PRESS RELEASE
May 7, 2025

CONTACT:
Joselyn Butler 404-651-7774

Governor Roy Barnes today announced that Alliances for Better Education, Inc. (ABE) will locate operations in Sparta, Hancock County, Georgia. "I am thrilled to join the good citizens of this region in welcoming this company and 25 high-tech jobs to Hancock County," said Governor Barnes. "The resilience and tenacity of the local leadership, together with assistance from the Georgia Department of Industry Trade and Tourism (GDITT) and the OneGeorgia Authority has made this project a reality."

"I am very pleased to be able to help bring industry to yet another, rural Georgia community," said R.K. Sehgal, GDITT Commissioner. "Through the OneGeorgia fund established by Governor Barnes, our goal to encourage growth in the rural areas of the state has been made possible once again."

Officials from Hancock County and GDITT have been working for months to acquire a facility in Sparta suitable for the company's needs. A $215,000 grant from the OneGeorgia Authority to the Hancock County Development Authority to buy a 17,000 square foot building to be leased to ABE helped seal the deal for the community. It is the second EDGE Fund grant awarded under the new authority, chaired by the Governor. The startup company will manufacture computer desks, refurbish microcomputers, and fabricate computer servers to provide state-of-the art training capabilities to schools.

"This project is a great example of what I had in mind for the OneGeorgia Authority," said the Governor. "Providing quality jobs and diversification of the local economy is what OneGeorgia is all about."

"Hancock County is the perfect location for us to initiate our advanced technology concept in the local community," stated Bill O'drey, founder of ABE, Inc. "We are creating a proprietary networking platform that we plan to expand into business communities across the globe."

Hancock County is a rural Tier One community in the eastern part of Georgia. The County has suffered from chronic unemployment, low educational attainment and poverty. Local leaders have worked for years to build development capacity and their efforts finally seem to be paying off. The Commissioner of Hancock County applauded the state's effort at the ABE, Inc. opening ceremony. "I'd like to thank the Governor and our friends at the Georgia Department of Industry, Trade & Tourism and the OneGeorgia Authority who have worked so closely with our community in an effort to bring jobs and a better quality of life to Hancock County," proclaimed Commissioner Betty Hill.

The Georgia Department of Industry, Trade & Tourism is the state's sales and marketing arm, the lead agency for attracting new business investment, encouraging the expansion of existing industry, locating new markets for Georgia products, as well as planning and mobilizing state resources for economic development. For more information, visit www.georgia.org.

Governor Roy Barnes and the Georgia General Assembly created the OneGeorgia Authority to help bridge the economic divide in Georgia. The Authority is responsible for distributing one third of the state's tobacco settlement for economic development projects in Tier 1 and 2 and in some instances Tier 3 counties. The Authority offers loans and grants to support local and regional economic development strategies. For more information on the OneGeorgia Authority visit www.onegeorgia.org.