By Beth Alston

AMERICUS — Again this summer, the Americus Police Department is hosting the ever-popular GREAT (Gang Resistance Education and Training) program.
The program, for rising fifth and sixth graders, starts June 4 and ends six weeks later on July 13. The schedule is from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday at Sumter County Middle School. The school will not provide transportation this summer, so parents are responsible for getting their children to and from the program. Drop off and pick up will be each morning and afternoon in the Sumter County Middle School gym area.
Each day, breakfast starts around 8:45 a.m., followed by class in the classroom beginning around 9:30 a.m. each day. Lunch is served around noon each day in the classroom. The upcoming fifth and sixth graders will be divided into two groups with Deputy Montena Fish teaching one group and Sgt. John Brown teaching the other.
Classes last about 45 minutes each. The summer program curriculum is designed to reinforce the lessons taught during the school year, including the perfect society, creating laws, communication skills, responding to peer pressure, how to resolve conflicts, and bullying. After classes, students will break into smaller groups and work together brainstorming about their feelings and following rules.
The program also includes five field trips this summer, which mostly occur on Thursdays. A tentative schedule includes the Jimmy Carter Boyhood Farm at Archery near Plains; Andersonville National Historic Site in Andersonville; Stardust Skating Rink in Albany; Fun Park in Albany; and Hollywood Connections in Columbus.
The parent’s cost for the program is $75 per student. Food is provided by Sumter County Schools.
For information or to register, call Sgt. Brown at 229-924-3677, ext. 325 or 229-591-6432.