Two DeKalb County cities get federal roadway safety grants

Decatur and Doraville have received a total of $400,000 in grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation to improve roadway safety and lower traffic-related fatalities, the agency said Wednesday. 

A total of 20 such grants were awarded in Georgia totalling $6.53 million. About $800 million was awarded nationally.

Decatur and Doraville each received $200,000 "Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) Action Plan" grant awards in the first round of funding.

DeKalb County did not receive a grant, though nearby counties are set to receive first-round funds. Gwinnett County was awarded $200,000, Fayette County was given $312,000, and Rockdale County was awarded a $240,000 grant. 

Roswell and Sandy Springs, both in Fulton County, received a total of $560,000.

The City of Atlanta received almost $30 million in an "All Implementation Grant."

"Action Plan Grants assist communities that do not currently have a roadway safety plan in place to reduce roadway fatalities, laying the groundwork for a comprehensive set of actions," the department said. "The awards also provide funding to communities that want to build upon an existing roadway safety plan."

The funds come from President Biden's 2021 infrastructure plan, which "provides $5 billion over five years for regional, local, and Tribal initiatives -- from redesigned roads to better sidewalks and crosswalks -- to prevent deaths and serious injuries on the nation's roadways."

Another $1.1 billion in awards are expected to be released in April.

Stone Mountain book illustrator recognized by Sibert Medal committee

A book illustrated by a Stone Mountain author has been recognized by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association.

"Sweet Justice: Georgia Gilmore and the Montgomery Bus Boycott," written by Mara Rockliff and illustrated by R. Gregory Christie of Stone Mountain, was one of four Honor Books selected by the 2023 Robert F. Sibert Medal committee, which recognizes informational books for children.

Christie is an award-winning children’s book illustrator and lecturer and was the artist for the United Postal Service's Kwanzaa stamp in 2013. 

The announcement came during the ALA's "LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience" held in New Orleans, La. The ALSC is the world's largest organization dedicated to the support and enhancement of library service to children.

DeKalb prosecutor, CDC specialist to be honored as Georgia State alumni under 40

A DeKalb County prosecutor and a Centers for Disease Control & Prevention employee will be honored in March as "remarkable" alumni of Georgia State University.

The GSU Alumni Association has included Tyshawn Jackson (B.B.A. '05), a senior assistant district attorney in the Office of the DeKalb County District Attorney, as part of its 2023 class of remarkable alumni under the age of 40.

Also on the list is Arezoo Risman (MBA '15), a data modernization program coordinator who has worked at the CDC for more than a decade. Risman was previously recognized as one of the University of Georgia's 40 Under 40 Class of 2019.