Blog Topic: Breaking News

In the Loop: Sen. Tim Scott Stumps for Rubio in Athens

By Blake Aued | February 28, 2016 4:16pm

Photo Credit: Blake Aued

Athens might be Bernie Sanders country, but Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio sent a prominent surrogate here today to round up votes for the Florida senator in Tuesday’s primary.

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott stumped for Rubio at Cine this afternoon, speaking for 45 minutes to a group of about 30, including prominent local Republicans like Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, state GOP Chairman John Padgett, Athens GOP Chairman Matt Brewster and Watkinsville city councilman Brian Brodrick.

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In the Loop: Lanoue Won't Take the Fulton Superintendent Job

By Blake Aued | February 24, 2016 10:55am

Clarke County School Superintendent Phil Lanoue won't take the top job in the Fulton County school system, he said this morning.

Lanoue—who's embroiled in a scandal involving an alleged sexual assault at Cedar Shoals High School last month—told parents and district employees in an email that he's decided to stay in Athens.

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In the Loop: Lanoue: Students Accused of Cedar Shoals Rape Were Not Suspended

By Blake Aued | February 23, 2016 1:15pm

Three students who are accused of raping a classmate at Cedar Shoals High School on Jan. 7 were never suspended, Superintendent Phil Lanoue confirmed in an email to parents today.

"I know that there are still many questions around the incident at Cedar Shoals High School,” Lanoue wrote. “What I can share is that unfortunately, no student suspensions occurred. Disciplinary decisions are made at the school level. At the district level, we did not receive any follow-up through our police department. We did not effectively provide communication to our community. Due to breakdowns that transpired, we are working at the district level to increase checks and balances.”

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In the Loop: John Knox Is Running for School Board

By Blake Aued | February 18, 2016 1:40pm

University of Georgia geography professor John Knox is running for Clarke County school board.

Knox, an Eastside resident and father of a Cedar Shoals High School graduate, is seeking the District 8 seat being vacated by David Huff, who is not running for re-election.

He made the announcement at a PTO forum on the alleged sexual assault at Cedar ShoalsWednesday night.

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In the Loop: Michael Thurmond Will Run for DeKalb CEO

By Blake Aued | February 16, 2016 2:53pm

Athens native Michael Thurmond announced today that he will seek the top elected position in DeKalb County, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

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In the Loop: Lanoue Announces Shakeup at Cedar Shoals

By Blake Aued | February 15, 2016 2:41pm

Clarke County School District Superintendent Phil Lanoue announced he’s reshuffling administrations at Cedar Shoals High School and Whit Davis Elementary School in the wake of Cedar Shoals Principal Tony Price’s suspension.

Price was placed on administrative leave Friday as district officials investigate the mishandling of an alleged sexual assault at Cedar Shoals in January.

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In the Loop: Suspects in Cedar Shoals Rape Denied Bail

By Blake Aued | February 15, 2016 2:05pm

Photo Credit: Clarke County Sheriff's Office

(L–R) Jaivious Collins, Markell Brannon and Xavier Clarke.

A Clarke County Superior Court judge denied bail Monday to two of three Cedar Shoals High School students accused of raping a 15-year-old classmate in a stairwell at the school on Jan. 7, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.

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In the Loop: Cedar Shoals Principal Tony Price Has Been Suspended

By Blake Aued | February 12, 2016 2:32pm

Cedar Shoals High School Principal Tony Price has been placed on administrative leave as an internal investigation continues into school officials' handling of an alleged sexual assault on school grounds Jan. 7.

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In the Loop: Parents and Teachers Demand Answers on Alleged Cedar Shoals Sexual Assault

By Blake Aued | February 11, 2016 8:12pm

Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones

Patti Huberty (right) speaks to the Clarke County Board of Education as board member Ovita Thornton looks on.

Parents and teachers criticized a “culture of silence,” as one speaker put it, in the Clarke County School District in the wake of an alleged sexual assault at Cedar Shoals High School Jan. 7 that went unreported for four weeks.

Several speakers at the Board of Education’s regularly scheduled meeting tonight called on the district to hold a public forum to answer questions and give a full accounting of why no one informed students, teachers or the public of the allegations until after the Athens Banner-Herald broke the story Feb. 4.

“We need to talk about it, and we need to talk about it now,” said Lisa Bayer, an Eastside parent.

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In the Loop: Fulton Officials 'Confident' in Lanoue After Alleged Cedar Shoals Rape

By Blake Aued | February 11, 2016 11:41am

When it voted to hire Phil Lanoue as its new superintendent, the Fulton County Board of Education knew of an alleged sexual assault at Cedar Shoals High School that was not reported to students, teachers or the public for a month.

Lanoue, Clarke County’s superintendent and the National Superintendent of the Year, announced last Friday that he will take the Fulton County job. The announcement came just hours after the Athens Banner-Herald reported that three Cedar Shoals students had been arrested on charges that two of them held down a 15-year-old classmate while a third raped her in a stairwell on Jan. 7. A security camera caught the attack on tape, according to Athens-Clarke County police.

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