College, career academy grant application submitted; now the wait begins

After an exhaustive effort, including 16 hours of meetings over 45 days and countless other volunteer hours expended, the grant application for the Lamar County College and Career Academy has been presented to the state.If approved, the grant will bring in $3.16 million in grant funds to begin expansion at LCCHS to house the charter program.Steering committee chairman Tracy Bittner reported 61 letters of commitment from community stakeholders were submitted with the grant application.’To our knowledge, that is the most letters submitted by an applicant this year,’ Bittner said.Also vying for the grant are five other systems.Lamar should hear by late September or early October if it is a finalist for the grant. Final word is expected by December. In another development, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, endorsed Lamar’s efforts to acquire the funding.’I appreciate the community partners in Lamar County who came together to fulfill their vision and I wish them the best during the evaluation process,’ Cagle said.He has championed career academy projects.