Office of the Lieutenant Governor For Immediate Release
March 20, 2008 Contact: Jaillene Hunter
404-656-5030; 404-561-5939
Jaillene.Hunter@ltgov.ga.gov *Please see the attached picture of Lt. overnor Casey Cagle and Heather Martin, Effingham student and grand prize winner (Atlanta) – Lt. Governor Casey Cagle today presented Heather Martin, a junior at South Effingham High School in Guyton, with the grand prize for winning a statewide contest to create a new logo and slogan for the Georgia Career Academies Project. Also there for her award were her parents, Billy and Yvonne Martin, and her high school teacher, Craig Owens. “It was an honor to welcome Heather to the Capitol today and present her with the grand prize in this statewide contest. While there were many excellent contributions to this contest, Heather, Sonje and Kendrick produced exceptional products and deserved the prizes they received today. We are serious about the positive impact and difference Career Academies can make in the lives of our students and we can see that first-hand in the bright students that are here with us today,” said Lt. Governor Casey Cagle. The Lt. Governor also presented prizes to the second-place winner, Sonje Hinson, a freshman at the Rockdale Career Academy in Conyers, and Kendrick Gloster, a senior at South Cobb High School in Austell, who won third place. Heather won a new Apple MacBook laptop computer for her winning logo and the slogan “Opening the Door to Your Career!” Her logo and tag line emphasize the unlimited opportunity available to Georgia students who participate in the career academy programs. Heather’s creation will be featured prominently in state career academies materials and communications, including a new website that is currently under development. “To me this means that anything you want - a future, a career, a start to your life - begins with opening a door. Opening the door to a Georgia career academy is a great place to start,” said Heather. “Don’t waste time and think about what you could have done. Start now by opening the door to a career.” The Career Academies Project is a collaboration between the Georgia Department of Education and the Technical College System of Georgia that partners Georgia’s local school systems with the state’s technical colleges and local businesses. High school students are attracted to the academies’ challenging programs and the relevant coursework that enables them to start training early for the in-demand jobs of tomorrow. That, in turn, helps to contribute to higher graduation rates. Lt. Governor Cagle helped to spearhead the Career Academies Project and last fall presented seven school systems with state investment totaling $16 million for start-up costs for career academy construction and staffing. As a result, five new career academies are under construction in the Effingham, Floyd, Fulton, Glynn and Thomas county school systems, and two others are being expanded in the Atlanta and Walton County school systems. The winner’s laptop computer, as well as the prizes awarded to the runners-up in the contest, was provided courtesy of Apple Computers, the Technical College Directors Association and the Technical College Foundation Association. ### |
