For Immediate Release
Contact: Kerry Minster
706.454.1562
kerry.minster@lakeoconeeacademy.org

LAKE OCONEE ACADEMY CELEBRATES CONSTRUCTION OF HIGH SCHOOL CAMPUS
WITH GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY

Greensboro, Ga. (November 20, 2017) - Lake Oconee Academy (LOA) students, families, teachers, administration, board members, and friends celebrated the start of the construction of the new high school campus with a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday, November 16, 2017, followed by the annual Titan Bash school-wide event. The high school expansion project features two new buildings that will include seventeen classrooms with two science labs, and a student life center with a cafeteria and a gymnasium.

The LOA Foundation also announced on Thursday that the $2 million "Fulfilling Our Commitment" capital campaign to provide philanthropic support for the expansion of the LOA high school had met its goal with current funds raised at $2.3 million. The capital campaign will fund items such as advanced technologies, furnishings, safety measures, equipment, and green space for the high school campus.

"This is certainly a historical day for LOA and Greene County," said capital campaign co-chairman Rick Wolfert. "Today we have the opportunity to celebrate LOA's remarkable success and growth over the last ten years, but also understanding that this $19 million campus expansion shapes the future of our school. I would like to personally thank the over 200 donors, business partners and parents that made this campaign a success, and acknowledge our teachers and LOA board members who all contributed to the campaign at a 100% level. That is outstanding."

"We sincerely thank the USDA and appreciate everything they do through the Rural Development Loans program which made this project possible," said Dr. Otho Tucker, CEO of LOA. "What it really comes down to is the parents who had the need and desire to have these buildings go up and knew that expanding the school is a good thing for the children. LOA could still be 11 or 15 or 80 students in Lakeside Church, but our dream was to do more than that. We wanted to give this opportunity to more and more children. Without the parents, it would have never been possible."

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Photo: Representatives from JMWilliams Contractors, the LOA Board of Governors and the LOA Foundation participated in the groundbreaking at the site of the new high school campus (left to right): Daniel Hauser, Brad Campbell, Michael York, Jennifer Vaughan, Riezl Baker, Connie Hoyle, David Mapp, Dick Schmidt, Mark Lipscomb, Dr. Otho Tucker, Rick Wolfert, Tommy Jeffords and Allison Evans.