#TravOnGameDay

Generally speaking, if Governor Deal asks you to do something, it’s a pretty good idea to do it.

And all the candidates for Congress from the Eleventh District got into it at some point:

Macon-Bibb Runoff Elections & Warner Robins

Macon Mayor Robert Reichert appears to be building momentum in the October 15th runoff against C. Jack Ellis for Mayor of Macon-Bibb County. Reichert announced a new round of endorsements that includes Bibb County Commissioner Joe Allen and State Rep. Nikki Randall.

Chuck Chalk, who made the runoff in 2009’s Warner Robins mayoral race, took first place in a straw poll at the yearly Middle Georgia Political Hobnob sponsored by the Robins Regional Chamber of Commerce. While straw polls have shown not a shred of predictive value in elections, as a candidate or consultant you still want to win. The straw poll was conducted on iPads, the first time I’ve seen that.

Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills was honored for the second year in the row as Georgia Sheriffs Association 2013 Sheriff of the Year.

SAT Scores

Forsyth County students led the state with an average SAT score of 1580, with Fulton County and Cherokee County coming in tied for second at 1567. Walton High School in Cobb County held a 1741 average and four north Cobb schools averaged over 1600.

Rome and Floyd County Schools performed well for average SAT scores, with Rome High School scoring a 1562 average and Floyd County schools averaging 1517, compared to the state average of 1452, which is unchanged from the prior year.

African-American students statewide showed gains.

Richmond County schools increased their average for the second year in a row, but remain well below the state with a 1343 average test score. Rockdale students gained an average 22 points.

Middle Georgia schools are hurting, with a number clustered at the bottom of the statewide rankings.

Among those ranked in the bottom third were Baldwin County, with 1,287; Bibb County, with 1,266; Crawford County, with 1,290; Dublin city schools, with 1,289; Jones County, with 1,319; Peach County, with 1,270; Twiggs County, with 1,164; and Wilkinson County, with 1,216.

In the middle third of ranked state schools were Laurens County, at 1,346, and Monroe County, with 1,340.

In the top third were Bleckley County, at 1,476, and Houston County, with 1,437.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has spreadsheets by individual high school average and by school system.

Here’s an interesting tale of neighboring schools: my alma mater, Berkmar High School in Gwinnett County posted a 1353 average score, 90 points below the state average. Nearby Brookwood High School averaged 160 points above the state with a 1612 and Parkview High School averaged 1578.

Until 2005, SATs were scored on a 1600-point scale, but with the addition of a writing section, a perfect score is now 2400.

Speaking of alma maters, my twenty-year college reunion is this weekend, so I’ll be taking my leave of you early this morning to prepare for the festivities. I hope you all have a great weekend.