There’s a lot going on in the Polk School District over the past few years. From big SPLOST projects adding facilities to Cedartown and Rockmart High Schools and across the district, to new programs that are making a difference in the life of youth.

On this past Tuesday, January 5, Superintendent Laurie Atkins and Superintendent-in-waiting Katie Thomas were both invited to come talk to members of the Polk County Rotary Club for their first meeting of 2021.

Atkins and Thomas provided a presentation and conversation about the district’s response to COVID-19 and numbers of cases found within students and staff (177 by their figures combined) along with the expansion of facilities through the use of Special Purpose, Local Option Sales Tax funds that were approved in recent years, plus programs like Graduate Polk and what’s happening with the graduation rate, which is above 90% at Rockmart and increasing into the mid-80% range at Cedartown High School.

Talking Points on Polk.Today is made possible by local sponsors like Culver Exterminating Company, Floyd Medical Center and Croker’s Hardware in Cedartown.

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Thanks to the Polk County Rotary Club, Superintendent Laurie Atkins and Assistant Superintendent and PCCCA CEO Katie Thomas for providing the opportunity to share this episode with all.

This new year is well underway, and everything seems to be happening at once just like in the year previous. But the first guest of Season 2 understands that progress works at its own speed, marching ahead toward project completions without thinking anything of what day or month it might be.

Just before the year got underway recently appointed Cedartown City Manager Edward Guzman took a few minutes out of his day to talk about what's in store for the New Year for local residents to expect, and more.

Tune into this first episode of Season 2 of Talking Points on Polk.Today to hear from Guzman about several project, how downtown might develop further with the update of alcohol ordinances, how infrastructure looks in 2021 and much more.

Today's episode of Talking Points on Polk.Today is brought to you by local sponsors like Main Street Realty in Cedartown, who can help you get a great offer on your home or find the perfect place for you to live in Polk County and the surrounding area. Find out how much your house might be worth by calling Michael Tinney at Main Street Realty in Cedartown at (770) 500-8443 or at www.mainstreetrealtyga.com.

Additional sponsors include Croker's Hardware of Cedartown, Floyd Medical Center, Sherman Ross State Farm Insurance of Rockmart, and Sew Purdy! Check out these and more sponsors by clicking on ads here on Polktoday.com.

This episode of Talking Points on Polk.Today is a celebration of my favorite thing about Christmas: Letters to Santa. Listen in for a selection that were received in this first year of gathering letters from Polk.Today readers and educators across Polk County.

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In this special edition of Talking Points on Polk.Today, former Coroner and now Probate Judge Tony Brazier talked about what it feels like to have COVID-19 after he fell ill and tested positive for the virus, why we all need to be careful, his concerns over long term impacts and more in a phone interview for the podcast while he remains in isolation.

His goal in participating in the phone interview despite not feeling his level best was to ensure the public is fully aware of the dangers of COVID-19, and that people need to take it seriously and take precautions. Especially those who might be susceptible to other ailments during the winter months.

Hometown Pizza and Grill owner Rick Smith and I sat down in the dining room of his restaurant in Rockmart to talk business in this latest episode of Talking Points on Polk Today, along with an upcoming promotion he's running on Nov. 16 through Nov. 20 to help the band.

In this latest episode of the podcast, I sat down with Polk County's Airport Manager Chuck Beavers to talk about the Runway Extension project, operations and more. Check out free news, sports, videos, podcasts and more at Polktoday.com!

Tune into this episode to learn about the mission and work being done by the LMO Pregnancy Care Center in Cedartown, Georgia in an interview with Executive Director Heather Blackmon.