NEWS & OPINIONS
Helping Seth live up to his potential
Of the many bills that will be under consideration by the Georgia legislature in 2019, one that we are particularly excited about is a piece of legislation creating “Individualized Education Accounts” (IEAs), which aim to improve our state’s Special Needs Scholarship...
Randy Hicks Addresses Compassionate, Commonsense Welfare Reform on FoxNews.com
President Trump recently signed an order aiming to streamline welfare in the U.S., which is leading lawmakers to take a deeper look at the many programs that make up the complex system. It's a positive first step, as the current structure reinforces dependency and...
The federal government is tackling welfare reform, and Georgia needs to follow
You’ve probably heard the old adage, “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day … Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” And while this nugget of age-old wisdom seems like common-sense compassion to most folks, in reality most governmental welfare...
Session Wraps With Two Key Victories for School Choice
Expanded education options will soon be available to thousands of Georgia families, thanks to two measures approved in the closing hours of the General Assembly’s session last week. The last-minute approvals came at a time when school-choice advocates were losing hope...
Time is Running Out to Expand Tax Credit Scholarships
As Georgia’s 2018 legislative session marches to a close this week, will lawmakers act to expand Georgia’s Tax Credit Scholarship Program? Legislation pending in the state Senate, if passed, would yield huge benefits for families in desperate need of educational...
School Choice Expands the ‘Success Sequence’
According to scholars, America is increasingly becoming a society polarized between higher- and lower-income people. Whereas until recently a majority of Americans were considered middle class, now good jobs for those who only have a high school diploma are rapidly...
Will Georgia continue to be a leader in school choice?
With more than 17,000 students enrolled in scholarship programs, Georgia is a leader in educational opportunity, according to the 2016-2017 School Choice Yearbook put out by the American Federation for Children (AFC). In fact, the Peach State is seventh in the country...
Report: Atlanta’s charter schools are more cost-effective than traditional public schools
Do public charter schools deliver results in a more cost-effective way compared to traditional public schools? That’s the question addressed by a recent research report from the University of Arkansas (PDF download). The answer, it turns out, is unequivocally yes....
Will Georgia become the seventh state to pass Education Savings Accounts?
On Monday, lawmakers in the Georgia House Ways and Means Committee overwhelmingly passed House Bill 482, a measure that would make Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) a reality in the Peach State. Representatives Paul Battles (R- Cartersville), Allen Peake (R- Macon),...
The Marriage Toolbox
It’s National Marriage Week, so it’s a great time to take an inventory of your marriage. Here are some tools to help you more fully engage with your spouse and help strengthen your marriage. Do you know your love language? If not, or it’s been awhile, take the online...
Marriage is the Greatest Weapon of Our Time
Since the 1970s the marriage rate has gone from 80 percent of adults being married down to 52 percent. This rapid decline in marriage has caused an upward spike in the number of single parents living in poverty. How do we as a community combat this negative spiral...
A “bullet-proof” school choice bill
Georgia lawmakers are poised to consider several bills that would make education savings accounts (ESAs) a reality for students in our state. ESAs empower families with the option of leaving their local public school and choosing an educational option that better fits...
MEDIA MENTIONS
Criminal records expungement expansion in Georgia takes effect Jan. 1 | The Moultrie Observer
Millions of Georgians will start the new year with a second chance. A new law that increases the number of criminal records that can be sealed takes effect Friday. The law, the result of Senate Bill 288, allows certain misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies to qualify...
Criminal records expungement expansion in Georgia takes effect Jan. 1 | The Center Square
Millions of Georgians will start the new year with a second chance. A new law that increases the number of criminal records that can be sealed takes effect Friday. The law, the result of Senate Bill 288, allows certain misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies to qualify...
Nonprofit organization offering free job training to Columbus residents | WTVM-9
COLUMBUS, Ga. (WTVM) - As many continue to deal with unemployment, a local nonprofit has created a program to help people wanting to get back to work. Under the Hiring Well, Doing Good program, the Georgia Center for Opportunity is offering something free...
The Working-Class Welfare Trap: How Policy Penalizes Marriage | NONPERELE
Our tax and welfare policies often penalize marriage, trapping too many people in poverty. ...Not surprisingly, these penalties seem to play a role in fueling working-class Americans’ retreat from marriage that we have seen play out over the past three decades. In...
UGA grant will help Georgia couples improve relationship skills | KPVI
ATHENS — A team of University of Georgia faculty in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences aims to provide Georgia couples with healthy relationship skills and financial guidance with the help of a five-year, $6.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health...
The Working-Class Welfare Trap: How Policy Penalizes Marriage | NATIONAL REVIEW
Our tax and welfare policies often penalize marriage, trapping too many people in poverty. ...Not surprisingly, these penalties seem to play a role in fueling working-class Americans’ retreat from marriage that we have seen play out over the past three decades. In...
Virtual learning isn’t working. Gov. Kemp, we need your help | THE CHAMPION
Gov. Brian Kemp is in a unique position to help families like mine during one of the most challenging times in our lives. My wife and I have two school-aged children, a son and a daughter. Both are being educated within the Decatur City Schools district. Our son,...
UGA receives $6.2 million grant to provide relationship, financial training | UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
A team of University of Georgia faculty in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences aims to provide Georgia couples with healthy relationship skills and financial guidance with the help of a five-year, $6.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human...
