Oconee County Library Board To Consider Five Requests For Reshelving Of Books At Library In Watkinsville

***Decision Expected In October***

The Oconee County Library Board of Trustees, at its meeting in October, is expected to consider the requests of five citizens who have asked that the Oconee County Library in Watkinsville change the shelving of five different books the citizens say are inappropriate for children.

The five Requests for Reconsideration of Material currently are being reviewed by a committee of professional librarians of the Athens Regional Library System, of which the Oconee County and Bogart libraries are a part.

COVID-19 Case Count In Northeast Health District Continues To Increase

***Oconee Cases Stable; Cases In Clarke Increase***

The Georgia Department of Public Health reported that the Northeast Health District added 230 new cases of COVID-19 in the week ending on Aug. 9, based on the Department’s electronic tracking system.

The Department of Public Heath did not issue a report two weeks ago, and the number of cases added last week after a two-week gap in reporting had been 224.

Oconee County Schools Announced Community Engagement Session For September As Part Of Strategic Planning

***High School Growth Likely Topic***

Oconee County Schools will hold a Community Engagement Session from 6 to 9 p.m. on Sept. 19 at the Oconee County Civic Center as part of its new Strategic Planning Timeline, school Chief Academic Officer Susan Stancil told the Board of Education at its meeting on Monday.

Oconee County Schools also will conduct stakeholder surveys in September and October before joining with the Georgia School Boards Association to develop goals, initiatives, and action steps for review by the Board of Education in May and June of next year.

Oconee County Schools Reported To State That Six Incidents Involving Weapons Took Place At Its Schools In School Year 2022-2023

***A Single Incident Involving Weapons Reported Year Earlier***

Oconee County Schools reported to the Georgia Department of Education six incidents at its schools involving weapons during the last academic year in the required Discipline Incident Type Count due at the end of the school year.

Two of the six incidents involved knives, two involved rifles, and two involved other unspecified weapons.

Oconee County Schools has provided to the public no information on any of the incidents, though open records requests indicate that it did communicate via email internally about three of the incidents.

Oconee County Commissioners Name Planned New Park After Wendell And Betty Dawson

***Cite Service Of Couple To Nation, State, And County***

Oconee County’s planned new park on the 246 acre Land Application System site on Rocky Branch Road will be named the Wendell and Betty Dawson Park following action taken by the Oconee County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday night.

The Board passed a resolution naming the future park for the Dawsons early in the meeting, citing Wendell Dawson’s service to “his country, state and county in a long and honorable career” and stating that “his wife Betty Dawson has been a constant support and help in all of his service.”

COVID Case Counts In Northeast Health District Show Sharp Increase Over Last Two Weeks

***Oconee And Clarke Report Increases***

The Georgia Department of Public Health reported that the Northeast Health District added 224 new cases of COVID-19 in the two weeks ending on Aug. 2, based on the Department’s electronic tracking system.

The Department of Public Heath did not issue a report last week, and the number of cases added in the  week ending on July 19 had been 63.

Oconee Board Of Education Votes To Approve Millage Rate Despite Criticism From Citizens

***Focus On Budget Surplus***

After hearing from 13 speakers who opposed the proposed 15.0 mill school property tax rate or at least the way the Board managed it, the Oconee County Board of Education adopted that rate unanimously on Monday evening.

Opponents focused on the 9.53 percent tax increase the rate represents, the way the Board handled the budget process, and questions about the need for the $34.8 million budget surplus in the Fiscal Year 2024 Budget for Oconee County Schools.