TownTalk: AVID Equals Post-Secondary Readiness for VCS

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AVID is a program that’s been helping public school students unlock their potential for more than 40 years. Its longevity is a tribute in part to its effectiveness and in part to its response to the evolving needs of students.

The acronym stands for Achievement Via Individual Determination, and VCS AVID District Director Dr. Destiny Ross-Putney said today’s program focuses not just on college-bound students, but post-secondary pursuits that include work after high school.

Putney calls it “post-secondary readiness,” whether students are college-bound or head right into a career.

A typical AVID student is a student who has a GPA between 2.0 and 3.5. “It’s not for your typical high-flying student,” but rather for students who have the potential to be more successful with just a little bit more structured support in the classroom, Ross-Putney said.

“Some students are simply not interested in college,” she said, but AVID prepares students for life after high school graduation, whether it’s college or work. AVID teaches students how to be truly prepared to be active citizens in the community.

Three Vance County Schools have AVID programs – Vance County Middle School, Vance County High School and, new this year, Carver Elementary. There are about 70 middle school students at each grade level that participate in AVID, and there’s an elective class at the high school, Ross-Putney said. VCHS is a schoolwide AVID school, she added, which means that faculty use AVID techniques and strategies in their classrooms.

The third- and fifth graders at Carver are getting their first taste of AVID, Ross-Putney said. The plan is to introduce AVID in other elementary schools in the district.

The district also has professional development to share with teachers’ various AVID strategies, which include things like how to take good notes, create resumes, and effective interview techniques.

There’s a focus on writing with AVID, and teachers use the WICOR strategy to help students: WICOR stands for Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization and Reading.

AVID helps students develop self-confidence and self-advocacy, she said. “I can see how confident students are,” when she visits AVID classrooms. “They are specifically taught how to have a discourse,” she said, which increase students’ “abilities to communicate as well as withstand rigorous course work.”

And AVID also keep track of students after graduation – it’s a built-in component of the program to check in one year and three years after graduation.

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Kerr Tar Workforce and NCWorks

TownTalk: Kerr-Tar Regional Young Adult Hiring Event

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There’s a big show scheduled at Raleigh Road Outdoor Theatre, but anyone who drives in will see that the feature isn’t the latest movie release from Hollywood but dozens of employers hoping to grab the attention of prospective employees.

The Kerr-Tar COG is hosting a young adult hiring event from 12 noon to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Apr. 30 at the drive-in theatre, 3336 Raleigh Road just outside Henderson.

And although the focus is on high school seniors who may be looking for work after graduation in a few short weeks, Desiree Brooks said anyone from the community is welcome to attend.

Brooks is business services manager for the KTCOG Workforce Development Board and she said that 40 employers from across the five-county KTCOG region will be on site to share information about available jobs at their respective businesses.

“There are some really cool jobs out there that you can make a career of,” Brooks said on Monday’s TownTalk. Young people often believe that they have to go to larger areas nearby to find work, she said. But the employers who will be at the upcoming hiring event are from right here in our region.

So far, more than 100 students have registered to attend and there’s still plenty of time to sign up, she said. KTCOG is working with the Career and Technical Education programs in the five counties’ school districts to promote the hiring event.

It’s a time when graduating seniors can “either secure employment, or at least identify what they want to do after graduation,” Brooks said.

Turning Point CDC’s Mobile Van will be on hand, and Kittrell Job Corps to share options for post-secondary education programs.

These days, manufacturers are using cutting-edge technology to make and deliver products, and those who attend the hiring event will get a chance to see some of this technology up close and personal – whether it’s heavy equipment from Sunrock to drones flying overhead as part of Vance-Granville Community College’s presentation.

It’s important for job seekers to understand that factory work has become more than just working on a production line, she said. “Advanced manufacturing involves robotics, welding and engineering – all of these things you could have a great career in,” Brooks said.

Wolfspeed is just one business that will be on site next week. It manufactures energy efficient power products for electric vehicles and has a facilities in Durham, among other cities in the state.

In addition to reps from the advanced manufacturing field, expect to see representatives from local, county and state government, banking, information technology and popular trades like HVAC and more.

Find the event on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ncworkskt or call the Career Center at 252.598.5200. Learn more about this program and more at www.ncworks.gov.

 

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Harrington Wanted for Murder

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— from Henderson Police

UPDATE 6 p.m. Friday, April 26:

Police remind you to contact law enforcement if you have any information about this incident or the whereabouts of Antarious Tebron Harrington.

UPDATE 2 p.m. Monday, April 22:

On April 15, 2024 at approximately 9:30 p.m., a shooting occurred during an altercation at 1800 Julia Avenue. The victim, Tyquel M. Alston, age 24 of Daffodil Drive, was shot in the yard of the home by the assailant at close proximity.

Alston was transported to an area medical facility where he has succumbed to his injury. Investigators of the Henderson Police Department worked diligently on the case and warrants have now been obtained for the arrest of Antarious Tebron Harrington, age 28 of Barclay Lane, for the murder of Tyquel Alston. Harrington is currently out on pre-trial release for felony drug charges.

If anyone has any information about this incident or the whereabouts of Antarious Tebron Harrington, please contact us through following: Henderson-Vance Crime Stoppers at (252- 492-1925 or P3 app), Henderson Police Department’s main number 252-438-4141, Facebook or Instagram, or just call 911.

Shriners Fish Fry is May 8th

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The 60th annual Shriner’s Fish Fry is coming up on Wednesday, May 8, and plans are well underway to provide another great plate of fish with all the sides to raise money for the Shriner’s Children’s Hospital.

The Tri-County Shriners will be out in full force from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. to provide plates of steaming hot fish at 210 Industry Dr., between Mako and Servpro.

Plates are $10 each and although tickets are available for purchase ahead of time, no ticket is necessary – the Shriners will happily take your money in exchange for a plate of fish, slaw, potato salad and hush puppies, said Donald Seifert, a Tri-County Shriner who spoke with WIZS on Thursday’s TownTalk.

“The lines flow smoothly and there’s very little waiting,” said Seifert, as he explained the easy, drive-through process.

Delivery is available for 10 or more plates. Contact Seifert at 252.438.8355 or Ray Fields at 252.813.7665 to set up a delivery on Fish Fry Day.

They planned for 1,700 plates at last year’s event, and Seifert said the club’s goal each year is to raise $10,000 for Shriner’s Children’s Hospitals. There are 22 hospitals and five burn centers across the country, all of which provide care and treatment – free of charge – for children up to age 18. Shriners also provide transportation to patients and a family member to receive the care they need.

“It’s one of the reasons our Shriners’ Fish Fry has lasted so long,” Seifert said. “It’s for a good cause.”

Last year’s proceeds approached the $10,000 goal, he said. “Our biggest days, we’ve exceeded the goal,” but he predicted that, on average, each fish fry has netted $8,000.

A conservative figure for the fish fry’s 59 years is just shy of half a million dollars.

The volunteers who help behind the scenes and on fish fry day have a good time together, Seifert said, “but there’s so much work to be done on the day of the fish fry, everybody has to be productive to turn out that many plates. It takes a lot of help.”

He said the Shriners appreciate the support of the community each year and they look forward to another successful fundraiser.

“The community has always turned out, and we’re thankful for that,” he said.

 

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Dr. Cindy Bennett Named 2024 George Watkins Citizen of the Year

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The 2024 George Watkins Citizen of the Year award honors Dr. Cindy Bennett, superintendent of Vance County Schools. The awards dinner will be held Thursday, May 16 beginning at 6 p.m. at the Henderson Country Club.

The goal of the awards dinner is to bring more than 100 top leaders in business and the community to celebrate the honoree, and to raise $75,000 to support Scouting programs in the Occoneechee Council, which includes Vance and Granville counties.

Tickets are $50 each, but sponsorships also are available, according to information from Event Chair Ronald Bennett, vice president of Supply Chain at Variety Wholesalers, Inc. and the number of tickets to the dinner depends on the sponsorship level.

Through Scouting, local youth develop character, citizenship, leadership, patriotism, self-reliance and personal fitness. Proceeds from the fundraiser help remove financial barriers for youth to participate in Scouting and provide additional outreach programs to serve at-risk youth in our most under-served communities throughout the Occoneechee Council.

The award is presented annually to extraordinary community leaders in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the quality of life in the Eno River District and who best exemplify the Scout Oath Law.

Sponsorship levels are:

· Golden Eagle – $10,000

· Silver eagle $7,500

· Benefactor Sponsor $5,000

· Eagle Sponsor $2,500

· President’s Circle $1,200

· 2 Scout Sponsor – $600

· 1 Scout Sponsor – $300

To obtain a copy of the sponsor application – click here – or contact Adam VanStedum at the BSA Occoneechee Council office in Raleigh at 919.500.6445 or adam.vanstedum@scouting.org.

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SportsTalk: KVA Graduate Joins The Iron Dukes

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Duke, NC State and UNC…them’s fightin’ words around here.  Loyalty to your favorite university sports team is just part of growing up in North Carolina.  What do you do if you are a graduate of NC State, UNC and work for Duke?  That’s the unique situation that Kerr Vance Academy graduate John Averette finds himself in.

Averette, who was a guest on Wednesday’s SportsTalk, started off as an undergraduate at NC State.  “Getting into sports management at NC State was an accident,” Averette said.  He was thinking about going into business but was placed in the sports management program.  “I didn’t know anything about it,” Averette added.

During his time with the Wolfpack, he interned with Wolfpack Sports Properties and when he completed his time at NC State he moved over to UNC to work with the Rams Club as an intern.  Once he graduated from UNC, he went into the job market where he landed a position with the Iron Dukes.

“I do a lot of fundraising,” Averette said. According to Averette, sports management is more than just fund raising.  “There are hundreds of people behind the scenes,” he said.  All of the athletic events and people fall under the sports management umbrella.

Averette credits Kerr Vance Academy for giving him the foundation to succeed in his current profession. “They are a great school for having a college prep environment.  They teach the little things to get you ready for the college environment,” Averette said.  They just don’t teach you who to pull for.

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TownTalk: Sheriff Brame Discusses Detention Center With County Commissioners

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As Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame sees it, this county needs a new jail, no two ways about it. He’s said it before and he said it again during an April 15 commissioners’ work session, during which commissioners reviewed several options from an architect’s needs assessment and received an update on current conditions from the sheriff.

Commissioners agree that something needs to be done, but as the old saying goes, “All it takes is time and money.”

Replacing the jail comes with a $42 million price tag, according to the assessment by Moseley Architects. An expansion would cost north of $31 million and repairing the existing facility would cost more than $5.2 million, according to the architect’s report. Board Chair Dan Brummitt speculated that even if the board decided now to build a new jail, it would be between five and eight years before the first detainee would be housed there.

There are no easy answers to the challenges that face the aging jail, but Brame said he’s worried about the lack of basic safety measures being in place – for detainees and for staff.

He said the jail has 20 staff openings right now, and that overnight staffing is sparse at best. Hiring is difficult, he said, partly because of the salary offered and partly because of the jail conditions.

“Pay does help,” Brame told commissioners. “We do need an increase in pay. But they will not come because they feel unsafe … those inmates could take over the facility any time they want to.”

The county recently spent half a million dollars to replace security doors at the jail, but Brummitt said they were not installed properly and the Georgia company that installed them has not returned to finish the job to the county’s satisfaction.

County Manager C. Renee Perry said she would look at the terms of the contract to determine if the county has any recourse in the matter.

There are other more routine maintenance issues that need attention, and the jail does have an employee who handles them, but other issues like replacing light fixtures and moving outlets away from inmates’ reach are things that require an electrician.

And tradespeople don’t want to do the work because it’s unsafe.

“We have an unsafe facility down there,” Brame said, “from the doors, to how it’s designed, to staffing.”

Commissioner Sean Alston said there are federal grants to apply for help with paying for a new jail and he is hopeful that recent talks with Don Davis and others are going to pay dividends in that area.

Perry said she had submitted to Davis two capital projects for funding consideration – the jail and a new EMS building.

It all comes down to safety, Brame said. “We’ve got a lot of dangerous people in our facility,” 40 in jail for murder. Between June 2021 and July 2022, there were 26 major incidents that occurred in the jail, including death, rape and assault.

From 2019 to 2024, Brame said there were 636 incidents at the jail that came in to 911 – from the jail. “Ninety percent of our people are violent offenders,” Brame said.

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