Paid
Obituary
May 23,
2012
Dr. Edmund Clyde Martin, Sr., 89, died on
Tuesday, May 22, 2012. He was born March 8, 1923, to Webb and Winnie Wood
Martin at his home on Tanner’s Mill
Road in Chestnut
Mountain, Georgia. He attended Chestnut Elementary, then Oakwood High School. Although many students at that time dropped
out of school after 9th grade, his father valued education, so he
rode a bus to Chestnut Mt. Elementary then boarded another bus to go to Oakwood
High. He continued his education at the University of Georgia, first with a Bachelor’s Degree
in Agriculture, then his Bachelor of Science in Education, his Master’s Degree
in Education, his Specialist Degree in Educational Administration, and finally
his Doctoral Degree in Education in 1964.
In fact, Dr. Martin’s true vocation was
education. After having served in the
army during World War II, he taught agriculture classes. This was to be his
first job of many dealing in education in the state of Georgia. He
became the principal of the Maysville schools from 1950-1952, then the
principal of Ila Elementary from 1953-54. From 1954-1958 he served in Hartwell, Georgia,
first as the principal of all Hartwell schools and then as principal of Hart County
High School. He moved to Cartersville, Georgia,
in 1958 where he was the principal of the Cartersville City
schools, a position which included overseeing many schools at different
levels. In 1960 he was named the Superintendent
of the Cartersville Schools.
In 1965 Martin’s role in Georgia
education expanded even more as he was named the Executive Director of the
Georgia Educational Improvement Council.
Here he served as a major leader and reformer of Georgia education
until his retirement in 1978. In this role he routinely worked with the
legislature and the governor’s office to author educational legislation and to
study the impact these bills would have on the future of Georgia
education. One of his major accomplishments
during his tenure on the Council was authorship of the Adequate Progress for
Education in Georgia (APEG) bill in 1974.
This bill (somewhat like a pre-No Child Left Behind bill) recognized the
importance of educational opportunity for all, creating equal distribution of
funding to public schools and setting minimum achievement standards for all
students. As the Executive Director,
Martin routinely worked with important leaders of Georgia and was even consulted by
presidents, such as Presidents Nixon and Carter, for suggestions on cabinet
nominees. His influence went global when
he was invited to Russia
to observe the educational system there.
Upon his retirement from the Educational
Improvement Council in 1978, the Georgia legislature declared a resolution
honoring his service. However, even after Dr. Martin retired to his beloved Lake Lanier
home in 1978 to boat, fish and entertain his three grandchildren, he continued
to dabble in education, teaching Political Science classes at Brenau University,
Perimeter College
and Oglethorpe University. He also served on the board
at Georgetown University
in Washington, D.C. , and
worked for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), the
primary accreditation agency for eleven states in the south.
In 2001 Dr. Martin sold his lake home to
move to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, where he finally truly retired and
enjoyed relaxing in his backyard palm tree oasis, taking worldwide trips and
walking on the beach. He returned to
Tucker, Georgia, to be close to his family in 2007 and especially enjoyed
weekly dinner outings with his children.
Dr. Martin is preceded in death by his parents,
his brothers, Lawrence Wayne and Winfred Martin, and survived by his
children—Barbara Joan Hill and her husband Loren (Tucker, GA) and Ed Martin and
his wife Diane (Flowery Branch, GA).
Survivors also include three grandchildren and their spouses—Jennifer
Slater and her husband Mike (Acworth, GA); Edmund Daniel Martin and his wife Leslie (Houston, TX); and Christina McNeal and her husband Leslie
Vaughn (Tupelo, MS).
He also leaves one great-grandchild—Mackenzie Lee Slater (Acworth, GA). In addition, he is survived by one sister
Daisy Martin (Chestnut Mountain, GA), and several nephews—Ralph Wayne and his
wife Marti (Austin, TX); Glen Martin and
his wife Martha (Pendergrass, GA); Gilbert Martin and his wife Vivian (Chestnut
Mountain, GA)-- and a niece—Gayle Patrick
and her husband Will (Chestnut Mountain, GA).
Funeral services are scheduled for Friday, May 25,
2012 at 2:00 pm in the Chapel of Memorial Park Funeral Home with interment to
follow in Memorial Park Cemetery.
Reverend Darin Vogt will officiate.
The family will receive friends on Thursday, May 24, 2012, from 6 – 8 pm
at the funeral home.
Memorial Park Funeral Home, 2030 Memorial Park Road, Gainesville,
GA 30504 is in charge of arrangements.
Send online condolences to www.memorialparkfuneralhomes.com.
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