Georgia to receive $38M federal grant to expand charter schools

by Kimberly Sawatka | Oct 4, 2022

Georgia to receive $38M federal grant to expand charter schools

(The Center Square) — The U.S. Department of Education has awarded a nearly $38.3 million grant to fund the expansion of charter schools throughout Georgia.

The money awarded to the State Charter Schools Foundation of Georgia is from the fiscal 2022 Charter Schools Program State Entity grant competition. The grant will fund the expansion of the Georgia Strategic Charter School Growth Initiative.

“Charter schools are one of many innovative ways available today in Georgia for families to customize their student’s education and give them the best learning environment possible,” Buzz Brockway, executive vice president of public policy for the Georgia Center for Opportunity, said in a statement.

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Expert says despite improved federal data, Georgia still faces inflationary pressures

by Georgia Center for Opportunity | Sep 14, 2022

Expert says despite improved federal data, Georgia still faces inflationary pressures

While the July and August Consumer Price Index numbers show “inflation has stalled,” a Georgia expert warns that “we’re not out of the woods yet.”

On Tuesday, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the CPI rose 0.1% in August and 8.3% year-over-year.

“There are warning signals, including worldwide drought and continued energy disruptions, that inflation is not yet tamed,” Erik Randolph, the Georgia Center for Opportunity’s (GCO) director of research, said in a statement. “Moreover, Federal Reserve policy is refusing to allow the price level to come back down, meaning that most households will continue to contend with higher prices and lagging income growth.”

Meanwhile, a National Federation of Independent Business survey found optimism has improved, but inflation remains a challenge for small businesses.

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Report ranks Georgia 14th nationally for educational freedom

by Georgia Center for Opportunity | Sep 12, 2022

Report ranks Georgia 14th nationally for educational freedom

Georgia ranked 14th in the nation for its educational freedom, according to a new indexfrom the Heritage Foundation.

The Peach State ranked in the middle of its neighboring states. Georgia performed better than Alabama (No. 16), North Carolina (15) and South Carolina (23) but trailed Florida (1) and Tennessee (10).

“The Heritage Foundation Education Freedom report card shows that some progress has been made in empowering parental choice in Georgia. But there is much more that can be done,” Buzz Brockway, the vice president of public policy for the Georgia Center for Opportunity, said in a statement.

“Neighboring states like Florida and Tennessee offer their parents more options, and are higher ranked in education achievement,” Brockway added. “We owe it to our children to give their parents more options with programs like an Education Scholarship Account and continuing to increase Georgia’s Tax Credit Scholarship program.

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Opinion: Expanded school choice can help pandemic learning losses

by Buzz Brockway | Aug 31, 2022

Opinion: Expanded school choice can help pandemic learning losses

Buzz Brockway, a former Republican legislator from Gwinnett, is vice president of public policy for the right-leaning think tank Georgia Center for Opportunity, which promotes school choice.

In this guest column, Brockway discusses solutions to pandemic learning loss.

Georgia students are flocking back to their classrooms, but in addition to the usual assortment of back-to-school supplies, kids are taking something else with them — profound learning losses from the past two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A 2022 research brief reveals that K-2 students are the greatest victims of learning loss. Furthermore, the literacy gap between minority and white students is now larger post-pandemic. Parents and teachers know that the earliest years of instruction are often the most impactful.

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Gwinnett government departments will begin presenting 2023 budget requests on Monday

by Georgia Center for Opportunity | Aug 26, 2022

Gwinnett government departments will begin presenting 2023 budget requests on Monday

Although Brockway is a newbie on the team, he is no stranger to dealing with budget requests. As a member of the Georgia House of Representatives, Brockway served on the House Appropriations committee among other committees.

Videos of each department’s business plan presentation will be made available on TVGwinnett, which is the county’s government access channel. On-demand videos of each presentation will also be available on the county’s website, www.gwinnettcounty.com

The proposed 2023 county budget that the review team will help craft will be presented to the public in November. County officials are planning to hold a hearing on Dec. 5 and the Board of Commissioners will vote on the budget at the first board meeting in January 2023.

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New economic data shows that Georgia is outperforming many states

by Georgia Center for Opportunity | Aug 25, 2022

New economic data shows that Georgia is outperforming many states

Minnesota saw the best change in unemployment, while the District of Columbia reported the worst change, according to WalletHub. Nationwide, 18 states have recovered all their jobs lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, a Georgia non-profit is crediting Georgia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic for its economic standing.

“While the White House is taking credit for the job recovery, the credit really belongs to just 18 states — and Georgia is among them,” Erik Randolph, director of research for the Georgia Center for Opportunity, said in a statement. “These states are the only ones who have recovered all their jobs lost to COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns.

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