WHYWHYISIS SHESHE SOSOHAPPYHAPPY ?? WWW.CHAMPIONNEWSPAPER.COM • FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 2013 • VOL. 15, NO. 50 • FREE FREEP•RESS A PUBLICATION OF ACE III COMMUNICATIONS • Serving East Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chamblee, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, Dunwoody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Tucker and Stone Mountain. Judge rules against DeKalb school board remove the board members. Jester, Pamela A. Speaks and The probation triggered enforce- by Andrew Cauthen “The harm from the loss of ac- Eugene P. Walker—were removed ment of a state law that allows the [email protected] creditation to the school district and Feb. 25 by Deal on the unanimous governor to remove school boards the resulting harm to the students recommendation of the Georgia threatened with loss of accreditation A federal judge has decided the in the district are profound,” Story Board of Education (GBOE). due to “school board governance fate of six DeKalb school board stated in a court document. “To per- In December, the DeKalb related reasons.” members who sued to keep their mit the board members to continue County Board of Education was “The interest of the public in a jobs. to serve…risks substantial conse- placed on accreditation probation by healthy system outweighs the inter- Federal Judge Richard Story quences for the schoolBecause district she and gets herSouthern news updates Association online fromof Colleges the The Champion.ests of board members in serving in decided March 4 to lift a temporary its students.” Because she gets her andnews Schools updates (SACS), online from the agency the The Champion.their positions,” Story stated. restraining order and deny an in- The board members—Sarah that accredits the school district The judge acknowledged the junction against Gov. Nathan Deal. Copelin-Wood, JesseAnd “Jay” you Cun- canthrough too! its Follow parent company, us. Ad- The decision allows the governor to ningham, Donna AndElder, Nancyyou canvancED. too! Follow us. See Judge on Page 13A www.facebook.com/championnewspaper Like Us On Follow Us On www.facebook.com/championnewspaper www.twitter.com/championnews www.twitter.com/championnews Latino students visit Frida and Diego exhibit at High Museum by Daniel Beauregard www. championnewspaper.com [email protected] www. championnewspaper.com A group of 85 Sequoyah Middle School students en- rolled in the Latin American Association’s (LAA) after- school program visited the High Museum’s bilingual Frida and Diego exhibit March 1. Isabel Perez, the man- aging director of academic achievement for LAA, said it is important students are ex- Approximately 90 student from the Latin American Association’s posed to work such as that of after-school program at Sequoyah Middle School attended the ex- hibit at the High featuring the work of Mexican artists Frida Kahlo Mexican artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. Photos by Daniel Beauregard and Diego Rivera because it embraces Latin American achievement gap and help “I told them what they culture. children struggling in school. could expect and what was “It’s the first bilingual art The program now meets going on historically, such exhibit for our students and it three times a week and stu- as the Mexican Revolution,” embraces our culture—this is dents receive tutoring, men- Gonzalez said. fabulous and we can identify toring and cultural enrich- Gonzalez said he also so it’s really important for ment. There is also a summer discussed the meaning iden- us,” Perez said. program. tity with his students and The exhibit, which runs Recently, LAA hired a asked them to think about through May 12, features high school program man- what it means to be Latin more than 120 paintings and ager who will help the stu- American. Kahlo’s father drawings by Kahlo and Ri- dents in the eight grade at was a German who traveled vera, two of Mexico’s most Sequoyah transition to Cross to Mexico in the late 1800s, famous painters. Keys. and her mother was of Amer- Sequoyah Middle is lo- Teacher Oscar Gonzalez ican Indian descent. Rivera’s said he has been preparing mother was a “converso,” cated in an area of DeKalb Students from Sequoyah Middle School stand in front of County with a large Latin his students for their visit to a Jew whose ancestors had Atlanta’s High Museum of Art. American population. Perez the High by discussing with been forced to convert to Ca- said approximately 70 per- them the cultural and historic tholicism. important to not focus too more immersed in the arts. cent of Sequoyah’s students context that both artists were Although both artists much on race but more on “It’s about politics and are Latin American; neigh- working in at the time. The were born in Mexico, they identity. passion and it’s important boring Cross Keys High exhibit, titled “Frida and came from diverse back- Sequoyah student Ashley because of how we express School has 80 percent. Diego: Passion, Politics and grounds and Gonzalez said Garcia said she had been ourselves and we’re proud of Perez said the LAA Painting” focuses on a range he discussed with his stu- looking forward to seeing the who we are. I want to show decided to begin the after- of periods in the revolution- dents why their background exhibit because she thought how I think and how I see school program to close the ary artists’ lives. is important, and why it is it would help her become the world,” Garcia said. The Champion Free Press, Friday, March 8, 2013 Local News Page 2A Legislator proposes foreclosure study committee by Andrew Cauthen that the committee would with the consumer to fi gure one of last resorts.” been “traumatic.” [email protected] recommend required out a way, if in fact they Steve Bridges, a “We have had a terrible, judicial foreclosures, in have the capacity to bring lobbyist for community terrible time in real estate Rep. Dar’shun which all foreclosures the account into some kind banks and a former banking in this state, probably since Kendrick (D-93), a self- would be brought before a of a current status and keep commissioner, agreed. 2007,” Thrash said. “Every proclaimed champion of “We usually lending institution, every foreclosure reform, wants wait quite some bank, community bank, the state government to time before we credit union—everybody’s study the problem. ‘Foreclosures are high in this would go through been affected by this.” “Foreclosures are high state. DeKalb County, which that process Kendrick said her in this state,” Kendrick because we are resolution does not advocate said Feb. 28 during a I represent is second highest trying to work with for judicial foreclosures. hearing in front of the the borrower,” “Doing nothing is not Banks and Banking Sub in the state.’ Bridges said. “We an option,” she said. “At Committee of the state’s - Dar’shun Kendrick don’t want that the end of the day, it’s up House of Representatives. property. We don’t to the committee to provide “We keep teetering want it back.” recommendations or not between fi rst and sixth Mortgage provide recommendations. [place]. DeKalb County, judge. the family in the home,” banking industry lobbyist There might be something which I represent is second “The reason…we go to Culbertson said. “The Mo Thrash said the we’re missing.” highest in the state. For a nonjudicial foreclosure foreclosure process itself is foreclosure problem has us to not recognize it as a is that the home has been problem is a big issue for abandoned,” said Mike Georgia.” Culbertson, a lobbyist Kendrick has introduced representing credit unions. a resolution calling “The longer that [home] for the creation of a stays abandoned, the more study committee on the property damage and the foreclosure crisis “to study less the value is. That’s the state foreclosure laws one of the reasons why and processes so that we can we really defend the right provide recommendations to go through nonjudicial to the Georgia General foreclosures because most Assembly about of the time when we get into legislatively [preventing] that position, the house has foreclosures.” been abandoned.” The state representative Banks and credit unions said she hopes the proposed need to be able to get in the committee would, “whether house, repair and sell it, little or big, [make] Culbertson said. recommendations about The normal foreclosure how we improve the process in Georgia takes process. There is no harm in approximately 21 months, improving our process for he said. foreclosure. In a judicial foreclosure, “I don’t think there is any it could take 37 months harm in making sure people “because the dockets and get due process when you’re the courts themselves are so taking their biggest asset,” full,” Culberton said. Kendrick said. “We need to “The last thing the credit streamline the process…to union wants to do is to be make sure the homeowner in possession of the house is very clear about the itself,” Culbertson said. process.” “That’s not the business Some attendees at the we’re in. hearing were concerned “We’ll try to work along Page 3A The Champion Free Press, Friday, March 8, 2013 Georgia Piedmont Tech president inaugurated by Andrew Cauthen college’s history. [email protected] Simama worked for El- lis from 2009-12, serving There was much pomp as chief policy adviser and and circumstance as a Dr. deputy chief operating offi - Jabari Simama offi cially cer of development. took the helm of Georgia Additionally, Simama Piedmont Technical College was the vice president for (GPTC) Feb. 27. community development and external relations at Benedict College in Columbia, S.C., from 2005-2009. “ Before that, he was the executive direc- We’re not just tor of community Legislator proposes foreclosure study committee technology for the educating students city of Atlanta, 2000-2005, and Jabari Simama gives his inaugural speech as president of Georgia Piedmont Technical College as his and preparing a served as Atlanta’s former boss, DeKalb CEO Burrell Ellis, looks on.