Pike County Times
The Pike County Times, PO Box 843, Zebulon, Georgia 30295. You can donate through PayPal at the link on the bottom of the page. Becky Watts: Phone # 770-468-7583 editor(@)pikecountytimes.com
 
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Kiwanis of Pike County Serve the Community - Free GED Classes in Williamson
By Editor Becky Watts

ZEBULON - Kiwanis of Pike County held its regular weekly meeting at the Concord Café on Thursday, January 31, 2019. The special speakers were Brian Hill and Janice Johnson to talking about FREE GED Classes that are being held in Williamson, and there were a number of topics that showed how involved our Kiwanis members are right here in Pike County!

First, a bit of information that I will cover in more detail if and when details to be worked out. Kiwanis of Pike is going to look into partnering with a business for Tour de Pike 20/20.

The group is exploring the possibility of partnering with Christ Chapel for the backpack food program in some way whether it be by monetary donation or members helping pack up donations for children in our school system.

They are also looking into an expansion of the Bringing Up Grades (BUG) program. The school has asked for interaction with children according to the BUG program charter. A group of members will be ironing out the details on this and bringing it back to the entire group.

Brian Hill and Janice Johnson spoke on behalf of Southern Crescent Technical College (SC Tech). Free GED classes are being offered at the Church of Joy located at 3080 Hwy 362 in Williamson on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Free instruction, free books and materials, flexible class schedules, and even scholarships for GED testing fees and learning English as a second language are all a part of the program! Classes are in session now, but students work according to their own schedule and can go through the program as slowly (or quickly) as needed.

Janice wanted to teach GED classes after working with a student to get her obtain her GED. She talked to SC Tech and they allowed her to start a new program in Williamson on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. The classes are free, and students do not have to follow a semester schedule. Janice also said that the duration of the program depends on the student’s individual needs.

Brian Hill said that these GED classes are much like a one room schoolhouse. Everyone from all levels is together in one room. He gave statistics for Pike County saying that there were 18,200 people in Pike in 2017 and about 2,600 people (14.2%) don’t have a high school diploma. This is a great opportunity to earn that degree!

GED classes are held at the Church of Joy in Williamson, in the PC Public School Annex in Zebulon, in the West Central Integrated Facility in Zebulon, and SC Tech is trying to get classes started in Molena. They have found that the number one thing preventing people from getting their GED is transportation. Students are tested every 40 hours so they can see their improvement and there are practice tests on each subject. The four parts of the GED are science, math, social studies, and language arts. Each one is $40 for the actual test when students are ready for a total of $160. Vouchers are available for students as well so they don’t always have to pay the $40 to take a test if they do well enough. Students can also get credit for study time online at home. Ways that Kiwanis and the community can help are to volunteer time, make a donation to help pay for a test or more than one test, and businesses can donate something that can be given to students as a reward during their studies.

Brian said that this is a way for parents to be a role model for their kids. He asked Kiwanis members to help us to make our community better by helping make our students’ lives better.

If you would like to help out with SC Tech’s Adult Education program, call 770-229-3176. Please tell them that you heard about this opportunity from reading Pike County Times.

Classes are in session now. Call 770-229-3176 for registration information.

2.2.19
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