#EducationNews | AM 1180 Radio

August 20, 2026

Berry College Named Among Nation’s Best By The Princeton Review

Local News, Local News Items #AcademicExcellence, #berrycollege, #BestColleges, #CareerReadiness, #ChattoogaInfo, #CollegeEducation, #CollegeRankings, #CollegeValue, #EducationNews, #FloydCounty, #GeorgiaColleges, #highereducation, #LifeWorks, #MountBerry, #northwestgeorgia, #RomeGA, #StudentSuccess, #ThePrincetonReview, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, georgia 0

Berry College has again earned national recognition as one of the country’s best institutions for undergraduate education, according to the latest college guide from The Princeton Review.

August 20, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Lyerly’s Emma White Among Gadsden State Nursing Graduates

Local News, Local News Items #chattoogacounty, #ChattoogaInfo, #CollegeGraduation, #Congratulations, #EducationNews, #EmmaWhite, #GadsdenAL, #GadsdenState, #GadsdenStateCommunityCollege, #healthcare, #healthcarecareers, #LocalNews, #Lyerly, #lyerlyga, #northwestgeorgia, #NursingEducation, #NursingGraduate, #NursingGraduation, #NursingSchool, #RegisteredNurse, #RegisteredNursing, #StudentSuccess, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, georgia 0

A Chattooga County resident was among 38 registered nursing graduates recently honored by Gadsden State Community College.

Emma White of Lyerly received her nursing pin during the college’s summer pinning ceremony held August 6 at Wallace Hall on the Wallace Drive Campus in Gadsden.

The ceremony recognized students earning associate degrees through Gadsden State’s Health Sciences Division. Graduates represented communities across Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Other Northwest Georgia graduates included students from Rome, Lindale, Cedartown, LaFayette, Adairsville and Bremen.

Gadsden State’s registered nursing program includes classroom instruction, laboratory training and clinical experience designed to prepare students for careers in healthcare.

Students completing the registered nursing program earn an Associate in Applied Science degree and are eligible to pursue the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses, commonly known as the NCLEX-RN. Passing the examination is required to become a licensed registered nurse.

Congratulations to Emma White of Lyerly on reaching an important milestone as she begins the next chapter of her nursing career.

August 15, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Chattooga County Schools To Release Students Early August 27-28 For Fair Traffic

Local News, Local News Items #August27, #August28, #chattoogacounty, #chattoogacountyfair, #ChattoogaCountySchools, #ChattoogaInfo, #CommunityNews, #CountyFair, #EarlyRelease, #EducationNews, #LocalSchools, #northwestgeorgia, #Parents, #SchoolNews, #SchoolSchedule, #students, #summerville, #summervillega, #summervillemiddleschool, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, georgia 0

All Chattooga County Schools will dismiss students early on Thursday, August 27, and Friday, August 28, as preparations get underway for events surrounding the Chattooga County Fair.

Students across the school system will be released at 1:30 p.m. on both days. The adjusted schedule is intended to help clear traffic from the area around Summerville Middle School ahead of fair activities.

School officials say lunch will be served as usual before students are dismissed.

All scheduled after-school activities and programs will continue as planned, despite the early dismissal.

Parents and guardians who have questions about the schedule or need additional information should contact their child’s school.

The early release schedule applies to all Chattooga County Schools on Thursday, August 27, and Friday, August 28.

August 12, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Nearly $11 Billion In Georgia Student Loans Now In Default

Local News, Local News Items #chattoogacounty, #ChattoogaInfo, #CollegeCosts, #CollegeDebt, #CollegeStudents, #DebtRelief, #Education, #EducationNews, #FederalStudentAid, #FederalStudentLoans, #FinancialNews, #GeorgiaColleges, #georgianews, #GeorgiaStudents, #highereducation, #LoanDefault, #LoanRepayment, #LocalNews, #northwestgeorgia, #PersonalFinance, #StudentDebt, #StudentLoanDebt, #StudentLoanDefault, #studentloans, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, georgia 0

Hundreds of thousands of Georgians are in default on their federal student loans, with the amount of defaulted debt across the state now approaching $11 billion.

August 9, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Chattooga Mountain Education Going Phone-Free With Yondr Pouches Beginning Monday

Local News, Local News Items #August10, #BackToSchool, #CellPhonePolicy, #CellPhones, #chattoogacounty, #ChattoogaCountyGA, #ChattoogaInfo, #ChattoogaMountainEducation, #Education, #EducationNews, #GeorgiaSchools, #LocalEducation, #LocalNews, #MountainEducation, #MountainEducationCharterSchool, #MountainEducationHighSchool, #northwestgeorgia, #PhoneFree, #PhoneFreeSchool, #PublicSchools, #SchoolCellPhonePolicy, #SchoolNews, #StudentEngagement, #StudentPhones, #summervillega, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, #Yondr, #YondrPouch, georgia 0

Students at Chattooga Mountain Education will enter a new phone-free learning environment beginning Monday, August 10, as the school implements the Yondr phone pouch system.

August 9, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Walker County Board Of Education Plans Full Millage Rollback For 2026

Local News, Local News Items #August17, #BoardOfEducation, #ChattoogaInfo, #CommunityNews, #EducationNews, #georgianews, #GeorgiaSchools, #LaFayetteGA, #LocalGovernment, #LocalNews, #MillageRate, #MillageRollback, #northwestgeorgia, #PropertyTaxes, #PublicHearing, #PublicSchools, #SchoolBoard, #TaxRate, #WalkerCounty, #WalkerCountyBoardOfEducation, #WalkerCountyGA, #WalkerCountySchools, #WZQZ, #wzqznews 0

The Walker County Board of Education plans to adopt a full rollback millage rate of 14.013 mills during its meeting on Monday, August 17.

According to information released by Walker County Schools, the rollback rate is calculated using the previous year’s millage rate minus the millage equivalent of the total net assessed value added through property reassessments.

A public hearing on the proposed 2026 millage rate will be held at 6 p.m. on August 17 in the boardroom of the Walker County Department of Education, located at 301 N. Cherokee Street in LaFayette.

School district officials say they continue to work to balance the growing needs of students with efforts to keep local taxes as low as possible while also maximizing state funding.

Walker County Schools noted that over the past six years, the district has either lowered or maintained its millage rate. In 2019, the rate stood at 17.404 mills. For 2026, the district plans to adopt the full rollback rate of 14.013 mills.

All concerned citizens are invited to attend the public hearing.

August 8, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Georgia Students Near Pre-Pandemic Levels On Milestones Testing

Local News, Local News Items #AcademicAchievement, #BackToSchool, #chattoogacounty, #ChattoogaInfo, #EducationNews, #GaDOE, #GeorgiaDepartmentOfEducation, #GeorgiaEducation, #GeorgiaMilestones, #georgianews, #GeorgiaSchools, #GeorgiaStudents, #MathEducation, #MilestonesTesting, #northwestgeorgia, #PublicSchools, #ScienceEducation, #SocialStudies, #StudentAchievement, #StudentPerformance, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, georgia 0

Georgia students are continuing to make academic gains, with the latest Georgia Milestones results showing performance in several subjects now near or at levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.

August 7, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Georgia Highlands College Celebrates Milestone of Serving More Than 250,000 Community Members

Local News, Local News Items #ChattoogaInfo, #CollegeNews, #CommunityImpact, #EducationNews, #floydcountyga, #georgiahighlandscollege, #GHC, #highereducation, #northwestgeorgia, #RomeGA, #StudentSuccess, #WorkforceDevelopment, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, georgia 0

Georgia Highlands College is celebrating a major milestone, announcing it has served more than 250,000 community members since the institution was founded more than 50 years ago. The achievement reflects the college’s longstanding commitment to providing higher education opportunities across Northwest Georgia while continuing to expand its academic programs, enrollment and community partnerships.

July 2, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

Georgia Highlands College Announces Spring 2026 President’s and Dean’s List Honorees

Local News, Local News Items #AcademicAchievement, #chattoogacounty, #ChattoogaInfo, #EducationNews, #georgiahighlandscollege, #GHC, #highereducation, #LocalNews, #MenloGA, #northwestgeorgia, #summervillega, #trionga, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, #YourHometownRadioStation, DeansList, PresidentsList 0

Georgia Highlands College has announced its Spring 2026 President’s List and Dean’s List, recognizing students who achieved outstanding academic success during the spring semester.

June 27, 2026

by Jimmy Holbrook

According To Georgia Recorder, More Than Half Of Georgia Teachers Now Use AI To Prepare For Class

Local News, Local News Items #AcademicIntegrity, #AI, #ArtificialIntelligence, #ChattoogaInfo, #ClassroomTechnology, #EdTech, #Education, #EducationNews, #GenerativeAI, #GeorgiaEducation, #GeorgiaRecorder, #GeorgiaSchools, #GeorgiaTeachers, #LessonPlanning, #LocalNews, #PublicSchools, #StudentLearning, #Teachers, #WZQZ, #wzqznews, #YourHometownRadioStation 0

More than half of Georgia’s public school teachers are now using artificial intelligence to help prepare lessons and complete other classroom tasks, according to a new report highlighted this week by the Georgia Recorder.

The report, based on findings from the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts, found that 54 percent of teachers surveyed said they use generative AI tools for lesson planning, classroom activities, grading, or other instructional purposes. At the same time, many educators expressed concern that students’ growing use of AI could negatively affect learning, critical thinking, and academic integrity.

The findings come as school systems across Georgia continue developing policies for the responsible use of artificial intelligence in classrooms. State education leaders have also released guidance encouraging schools to use AI in ways that support teaching while protecting student privacy and promoting ethical use.