|
Contents: |
During the 1990s, Dalton, Georgia's growing carpet industry brought increasing numbers of Spanish speakers into the region
and the local school system. In 1996, local attorney and former U.S. congressman Erwin Mitchell recognized the need for bilingual
educators in Dalton Public Schools to teach the growing number of non-English speaking students. Mitchell and a small group
of Dalton citizens founded the Georgia Project, a community based non-profit organization, to serve the academic needs of
Latino and Hispanic students, their teachers, and their parents. The Georgia Project developed an exchange program and brought
qualified bilingual teaching assistants from Spanish speaking countries to assist in Dalton Public Schools. The collection
illustrates the partnership that developed between the Georgia Project, University of Monterrey in Mexico, and the City of
Dalton and Whitfield County schools. Committee files, conference and meeting files, general files, and financial records document
the administrative activities of the staff of the Georgia Project. Reference material including clippings, reports, and publications
demonstrate the need in the community for bilingual education and teacher training. The collection includes correspondence,
memoranda, notes, reports, clippings, financial records, statistical reports, publications, photographs, and audiovisual material.
|
|