ATHENS-Does the police chief give out tickets?
Has the fire chief ever been scared on the job?
What sports does the recreation supervisor play?
Students will learn the answers to these questions and more through a series of videos the City of Athens is creating called “It’s My Job.” The five- to seven-minute videos highlight jobs within the City of Athens.
“The videos are a one-on-one interview with various individuals answering questions about what it is like to serve as a police and fire chief, a utilities foreman, a mayor, a city councilman and several other jobs,” said Grant Coordinator/Communications Specialist Holly Hollman.
Elementary and middle school teachers from Athens, Limestone County and the private schools often ask Mayor Ronnie Marks and others to speak to their classes when students are studying local government or the community. Last year during the initial COVID-19 pandemic, instead of asking the mayor to visit the classroom, many elementary teachers asked Marks to record a short video talking about the role of mayor. The teachers would share that video with the class.
Holly Hollman
“That gave me the idea of creating videos we can keep on file to share with teachers,” Hollman said. “It’s a resource they can use as needed for the classroom. I reached out to the principals, and they liked the idea.”
The videos are meant for fourth grade and under.
Rebecca Dunnivant, principal at Piney Chapel Elementary responded, “I think that would be a great resource for teachers to use as part of a community helpers unit.”
Amanda Tedford, principal at iAcademy at Athens Elementary, responded she loved the idea, and teachers would “definitely use this at iAcademy.”
Teachers currently have access to “It’s My Job” videos with Athens Police Chief Floyd Johnson and Mayor Marks.
Other videos being created include:
- Athens City Councilman Frank Travis
- Athens Parks and Recreation’s recreation supervisor Carrie Moss
- Athens Fire Chief Al Hogan
- Wastewater Treatment Plant Superintendent Virgil White
- One of the city planners, Lakeisha Johnson
- Athens Utilities Foreman Johnnie Pryor
Teachers interested in using the videos for their classroom can contact Hollman at hhollman@athensal.us.
