No school is shinning brighter these days than Fayette County High; it has the “stars” to prove it.

Every high school in Georgia has a STAR (Student Teacher Achievement Recognition) student and teacher. The student is the one with the highest SAT score and the teacher is the educator the student selects who has had the most influence on his or her academic success.

The Metro Fayette Kiwanis has once again honored the most improved 5th grade student from each elementary school.

Sixteen students were selected and a reception was held for them, their families, teacher and principal was held at the Fayetteville First Baptist Church.

Pleas from family and friends was not sufficient to help Earnest Ray Toney avoid a lengthy prison sentence for a recent conviction on methamphetamine charges. Superior Court Judge Tommy Hankinson sentenced Toney Wednesday to 25 years for trafficking and five years for possession. The sentences will run concurrently.

The tens of thousands who have died fighting to protect America's freedom were honored today in separate services at the veteran's memorial in Peachtree City and at the city cemetery in Fayetteville.

It was hugs all around at all five Fayette public schools tonight as seniors spent their last official school event waiting ... in line ... for their diplomas.

(Click HERE to view our photo gallery of the McIntosh graduation)

(Click HERE to view our photo gallery of the Sandy Creek graduation)

(Click HERE to view our photo gallery of the Fayette County High graduation)

(Click HERE to view our photo gallery of the Whitewater graduation)

Fayetteville, Georgia ñ Bank of North Georgia has created a new department to cater to the unique financial needs of the legal community in metro Atlanta. To lead the effort, Toni Nunn has joined the bank as Senior Vice President and Legal Practice Group Manager.

Fayetteville police shot and killed a fox this morning that had attacked a local woman at her home on Sharon Drive.

Police were summoned to the scene after the woman reported the fox attacked her, and while they were looking for the animal police got another similar call about the same fox in the area, said Lt. Steve Crawshaw.

A Hampton man convicted of trying to buy a half-pound of methamphetamine from undercover drug agents avoided sentencing Wednesday afternoon after claiming a medical malady.

Candice Wyckoff, 13, Newnan, jumps on the Euro Bungee at the annual Taste of Fayette in downtown Fayetteville on Sunday.

One of the taste-testers at the Chocolate Explosion May 17 in Fayetteville, 18-year-old Nikki Hembree also participates as a baker for the event. Nikki baked 300 chocolate chip cookies the night before the event at the Hollingsworth House.

Supt. DeCotis in budget hearings with school board: Will taxes have to be raised?

Fayette County School Board members will soon begin deliberations on the 2008-2009 budget that takes effect July 1.

13,720 moved here between 2001 and 2005; Coweta 3rd with 3,647 into Fayette

A regional snapshot compiled by the Atlanta Regional Commission offers a fascinating view of the migration of neighboring counties’ residents into Fayette County.

Were several potential cases of abuse or neglect that have surfaced in Fayette County recently routed to Clayton County DFCS (Department of Family and Children’s Services) for a screening evaluation or does the Fayette County DFCS board have it all wrong?

Fayette County has become part of the latest criminal trend: thieves stealing catalytic converters from unattended vehicles.

‘Balanced’ budget expected with current tax rate in place

Fayette County commissioners got an overview Tuesday of the recommended 2009 budget. Finance Director Mary Holland explained that the budget would balance at the current tax rate, though the effects of the slowdown in the local economy continue to be clearly visible.

What has been billed as Fayetteville’s premier shopping and luxury apartment venue hit a snag last week when anchor store prospect LA Fitness pulled out.

Fayetteville Police investigated what was thought to be fireworks or gunshots early Monday morning, only to find bullet holes in the walls and a window of a Heritage Lake Drive home.

Fayetteville Police do not have much to go on but are searching for two subjects involved in a May 15 burglary at Radio Shack at Fayette Pavilion.

Time spent in jail can provide the initiative to avoid future incarceration. But that was not the case for 31-year-old Forest Park resident Manuel DeJesus Leyva, who spent years in jail on a Fayette County armed robbery conviction, only to be arrested May 16 by Fayette Drug Task Force (DTF) undercover agents after he fled Fayette Pavilion in what was to be a drug transaction involving methamphetamine.

As gas prices rise and traffic congestion increases, residents are starting to look for other transportation options to get them back and forth to work. One option that has been bandied about for years is implementing a commuter rail system, and that effort may finally be getting closer to reality.

An $8,000 SkillsUSA Lowe’s Education/Chapter Improvement Grant will help fund the school system’s first-ever landscape management program for students with mild cognitive disabilities.

Four-day summer work weeks are one of several cost saving measures the Fayette County Board of Education is implementing in what is shaping up to be a tight budget year.

(Photo courtesy Gwen Brown)

A man was rescued from a house fire in downtown Fayetteville early Friday evening by city firefighters.

The victim, in his mid-40s, was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation but did not suffer life-threatening injuries, said Fayetteville Fire Lt. Bill Rieck.

A Forest Park man was apprehended Friday morning on Huntington Court after fleeing undercover Drug Task Force (DTF) agents during a buy-bust involving methamphetamine at nearby Fayette Pavilion.

Atlanta Christian College announced today (May 15) that Peachtree City and Newnan are “the top two venues under consideration” for the school’s next location.

Fayetteville police have arrested five teenagers from Fulton County for an incident at The Banquet Hall off Glynn Street on Jan. 27.

A Citizen reader just submitted this photo depicting the aftermath of a "felony takedown" executed by the Fayette County Sheriff's Office Drug Task Force in the Wilshire Pavilion shopping center parking lot Friday afternoon.

A Fayetteville man pled guilty this morning to shooting a Gwinnett woman and a Fayetteville policeman in August 2006.

Jarrod Michael Gooden, of Byington Drive, was sentenced to 40 years in prison by Fayette Superior Court Judge Johnnie L. Caldwel Jr.

The Sandy Creek boys track team celebrates its second consecutive Class AAA state title in this victory photo. The Patriots were led by Christian Taylor, who was a state champion and state record setter in the long jump, the triple jump and the 400 meter dash. Also this weekend, Landmark Christian School’s boys track team won their eighth Class A state title in track. For more on track results, see the story on Page D1. Photo/Special.

Wingo asks for increased fees to collect taxes for cities; opponent says Wingo wants pay raise; he says it’s for his employees