Local Pastors Visit Local Schools

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Earlier in February, Pastors of local churches took time out of their busy schedules to visit four schools in the Vance County Schools system.

The school system invited pastors and church leaders throughout Vance County to take part in the four-hour event during the morning to learn more about the many positive things happening in local schools.

Dr. Anthony D. Jackson, superintendent of Vance County Schools, led the group of about 15 pastors on the tours. They visited the STEM Early High School, Pinkston Street Elementary School, Zeb Vance Elementary School and Early College High School. Breakfast and lunch also were provided for the participants at the school system’s Administrative Services Center.

At the STEM Early High School, Principal Rey Horner was joined by his school’s student ambassadors in leading the pastors in visits to several classrooms. They saw students in each classroom led by their teacher in hands-on work with electrical power boards, open discussions about literature written by famous African American authors, group discussions and students using Smartboards to solve mathematical equations and indepth discussions about our nation’s economy.

Heddie Somerville, principal of Pinkston Street and the school system’s Principal of the Year, welcomed the group to her school and had staff members take them to several classrooms where they had a chance to interact with teachers and students during their instruction time. Somerville and her staff also stressed how the school’s wing for classrooms in grades 3-5 is called “College Row” and daily discussions are held with students to encourage them to begin planning to pursue a college education.

Kristian Herring, the new principal of Zeb Vance Elementary, met the group as they arrived at his school. Student representatives led the pastors on tours of the school. They talked with several teachers and students in their classrooms and learned about the emphasis on reading throughout the school. Herring also explained to them how his faculty and staff work as teams to identify students’ specific needs and their academic progress throughout the school year.

Their final visit was to the Early College High School on the campus of Vance-Granville Community College (VGCC). Their visit was led by Vangie Mitchell, liaison between Early College and VGCC, who explained the unique partnership to enable students to complete their high school career and receive two years of college coursework at no cost to them. Pastors again were able to visit in several classrooms.

The school system has now hosted elected officials and business leaders, as well as the pastors, in visits to local schools. More of these events will be scheduled as school officials work to communicate with stakeholders about the services and programs provided to students.

(The preceding comes from a press release issued by VCS.  The pastors visited the local schools on February 3, but we are just now publishing this information at this time on WIZS.com.)

Home and Garden Show 02/23/16

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Early College Applications

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Vance County Schools is now accepting applications for rising ninth graders to enroll in the Vance County Early College High School for the 2016-2017 school year.

Applications can be picked up from counselors at Eaton-Johnson Middle School, Henderson Middle School and the STEM Early High School, as well as on the Early College website and at the school’s office on the third floor of Building 2 on the campus of Vance-Granville Community College off Poplar Creek Road.

The deadline for receiving completed applications is March 3, 2016.

The first of the parent information meetings with parents of current eighth graders will be held Thursday, February 18, at Eaton-Johnson Middle School at 6 p.m. in the school’s media center. Additional, parent meetings are scheduled on February 24, at 6 p.m. at the STEM Early High School on the campus of Northern Vance High School, and on February 25 at 6 p.m. at Henderson Middle School.

(VCS Press Release)

Home and Garden Show 02/16/16

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Early College Recognitions

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Administrators and faculty members at the Vance County Early College High School hosted their annual “Leading the Pack” celebration for outstanding students on February 9, in the Civic Center at Vance-Granville Community College.

There were 18 students honored during the celebration as they near the end of their fourth year in the five-year program and are on target to complete their high school education and have two years of college course credits when they graduate in May of 2017.ECHS awards spring 2016a

The students honored included Christopher Blue, David Cobbs, Nealee Fisher, Sierra Hawkins, Mychell Keith, Kristen Oakes, Bali Reavis, Autumn Richardson, Alexandra Saravia, Rebecca Short, Alicia Tucker, Jacob Weaver, Angel White, Darius Williams, Hailey Williamson, Jordan Williamson, Anautica Wilson and April Zuniga-Trejo.

Upon completion of their studies at Early College, the students will receive their high school diplomas and will have college course credits to transfer to four-year colleges and universities as juniors. Some will successfully complete work to receive a two-year associates degree in a chosen field of study from Vance-Granville Community College.

Principal Michael Bullard of Early College, led the celebration. He was joined in recognizing each of the students by Dr. Anthony D. Jackson, superintendent of Vance County Schools; Dr. Stelfanie Williams, president of Vance-Granville Community College; Dr. Cindy Bennett, assistant superintendent of Student Services and Strategic Planning at Vance County Schools; and Dr. Angela Ballentine, vice president of Academic and Student Affairs at Vance-Granville Community College.ECHS 2 awards spring 2016b

(Information supplied to WIZS by VCS press release.)

Cast, crew announced for VGCC Dinner Theater production

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Vance-Granville Community College has announced the cast and crew for “Deathtrap,” a comedy-thriller that will be the college’s fourth annual Dinner Theater event.

The dinner theater is scheduled for the evenings of Thursday, April 28, and Friday, April 29, in the Civic Center on VGCC’s Main Campus in Vance County. Dinner begins at 6 p.m. each night. Then, on Saturday, April 30, at 2 p.m., there will be a special encore matinee performance of the play, without dinner, at the same location.

For the first time, the dinner theater will incorporate two casts in order to provide more opportunities for students to participate. On Thursday and Friday, the cast will include Spencer Nunn of Warrenton as Sidney Bruhl, Jessie Hartley of Oxford as Myra Bruhl, Morgan McFalls of Oxford as Clifford Anderson, and Jordan Bunting of Rocky Mount as Porter Milgrim. For the Saturday matinee, the cast will feature TaJuan (“Taj”) Glenn of Oxford as Sidney Bruhl, Tia Garren of Henderson as Myra Bruhl, Malachi Glass of Henderson as Clifford Anderson, and Keyante Lindsey of Oxford as Porter Milgrim. Brittney Patterson of Henderson will play the part of Helga ten Dorp in both casts.

The crew includes Jerome Bulluck of Henderson, who is serving as stage manager, sound designer and lighting engineer; Michael Frink of Raleigh, the sound engineer who is also helping with props; and Ashley McEntee of Oxford, who is supervising props and costumes, with assistance from Jamie McGinn of Wake Forest and Allen Young of Henderson.

All are current students at the college, except for Garren, a VGCC alumna who is now on the staff of the college’s Continuing Education division.

Betsy Henderson, VGCC’s Department Chair/Instructor of Humanities and Fine Arts, is the director of the play.

Written by the late playwright and novelist Ira Levin, Deathtrap enjoyed a successful original Broadway run from 1978 through 1982 and was then adapted into a feature film. Skillfully blending thrills and laughter, the plot concerns the devious machinations of Sidney Bruhl, a writer of thrillers whose recent offerings have been flops, and who is prepared to go to any lengths to improve his fortunes. He receives a script from a student, Clifford Anderson, and immediately recognizes the thriller as a potential hit, setting in motion a suspenseful chain of events.

Tickets are scheduled to go on sale on March 15. For more information, visit www.vgcc.edu/dinnertheater.

Vance County Schools Recognitions

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(Vance County Schools Press Release)

Vance County Schools is proud to announce that Marion Perry, an outstanding volunteer in our school system and particularly for Carver Elementary School, was named the Citizen of the Year for 2015 at the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce Annual Banquet on February 4, 2016.

Our school system also is proud to announce that Flat Rock United Methodist Church in Vance County has been named the recipient of the school system’s Shining Moment in Education Award for 2015-2016 as the most outstanding business partner for our schools. Flat Rock United Methodist has a phenomenal partnership with E.O. Young Jr. Elementary School in Middleburg. Principal Marylaura McKoon and Karen Reece, E.O. Young’s social worker, presented the crystal vase and engraved base for the Shining Moment award to the Rev. Cathy Hoyle, pastor of Flat Rock United Methodist Church.ShiningMomentAward2015

Mrs. Perry and Flat Rock church are true champions of public education and their support results in great things in our local schools.

Mrs. Perry leads Carver Elementary’s One Step Above Reading Club weekly for students who need extra help in improving their reading skills. She promotes the joys and importance of reading to the children. She sponsors several special events each school year at the school, including a “Welcome Back” event for school staff members at the beginning of the year and the Black History Month Celebration in February. Mrs. Perry also seeks support for the school system throughout our community and serves on several boards and committees in our area, most notably the Vance County Public School Foundation and the Friends of Perry Memorial Library Board.

Flat Rock United Methodist Church has sponsored a summer reading program for the last two years for identified students at E.O. Young Jr. Elementary who need help during the summer to enhance their reading skills. MarionPerry(2015 Citizen of Year)The program, which includes several church members as volunteers who tutor students, has proven to help students successfully prepare for the oncoming school year. Flat Rock members also donate nonperishable food items for identified students in the Backpack Buddies program through the year and assist needy students and families during the holidays.

Finally, Vance County Schools wants to announce that staff members in our Maintenance and Transportation departments are the first to be honored through our new Vanceformation Award Program. They were given their Vanceformation lapel pins at the February 8, 2016, meeting of the Vance County Board of Education and recognized for their outstanding efforts in preparing school system vehicles, facilities and campuses for the return of students and employees after a snowstorm in late January. Those recognized included from the Maintenance Department, Wayne Cozart, Jimmy Faulkner, Shon Jones, Jay Kearney, Guy McFaddin, Joe Norwood, Chris Pulley, Ricky Railey and Robert Watson; and from the Transportation Department, R.C. Creech, Ryan Smiley and Jimmy Waverly.

Thank you all for your outstanding efforts to help us rethink, reform, reimagine and renew our educational mission.VanceformationHonors(Feb2015)

Home and Garden Show 02/09/16

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Vance County Schools Show 02/08/16

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VGCC Trustees endorse Connect NC Bond

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The Vance-Granville Community College Board of Trustees has voiced its support of the Connect NC Bond on the ballot for voters in the primary on March 15.

In a unanimous vote on Monday night, Feb. 8, at the trustees’ regular bimonthly meeting, the board adopted a resolution of support for the $2 billion bond package.

“The Connect NC Bond … will enable North Carolina’s systems of higher education to educate and train a highly qualified workforce for the 21st century and will support our state’s parks, National Guard, community infrastructure, and agricultural resources,” the resolution states.

If approved by the state’s voters, $7.6 million of the bond package “will pay for ongoing, necessary improvements for VGCC and provide a substantial savings to the people of Vance, Granville, Franklin and Warren counties,” the resolution states.

“This is the first statewide bond we’ve had since the year 2000,” VGCC President Dr. Stelfanie Williams told the board. “The state of North Carolina has actually grown by 2 million people since then. We have a lot of new people in our state.

“This will very much benefit our region. Not only will the community college receive funding but also the state parks. Kerr Lake is set to receive $3,750,000. Municipalities can apply for water and sewer infrastructure,” Dr. Williams said.

The college can use its allocation for new construction, renovations and repairs across its four campuses, Dr. Williams added.

VGCC’s proposed allocation is the eighth largest among the state’s community colleges. “The nice thing about this bond for Vance-Granville is that the formula for determining allocations incorporated county wealth and the age of buildings, so we fared well with $7.6 million,” Dr. Williams said.

Steve Graham, VGCC’s vice president of finance and operations, said the college has many needs for retrofitting and enhancing instructional program spaces and addressing critical repair and renovation needs with the bond proceeds, if approved.

Graham noted as examples that partnerships with area industry are resulting in higher enrollments in programs such as the new Mechatronics Engineering Technology academic program. Additional space is needed for lecture areas and for housing new equipment.

Some buildings on VGCC’s main campus have air handling units that are over 30 years old, and there are older model fire alarm systems that need to be replaced, Graham added. In some curriculum areas, such as Cosmetology, electrical and ventilation upgrades are needed.

Dr. Williams added that the public school students will also benefit from the bonds in the four-county area, because there are approximately 800 enrolled in the early college high schools on VGCC’s four campuses.

On the ballot, the Connect NC Bond will be labeled the “Connect NC Public Improvement Bond.” Early voting is scheduled for March 3-12, Dr. Williams said.

The board voted to contribute $7,000 of non-state funds to support the Connect NC Bond Committee.

In other action:

  • Mid-Year Amendments to the 2015-2016 Budget Resolution were approved. Trustee Danny Wright, chair of the board’s Budget Committee, said the adjustments were necessary to account for $2,074,022 in carryover funds from the previous year and grant funding.
  • The board voted to close the Industrial Systems academic program, effective in the fall of 2016, upon recommendation of the Curriculum Committee, chaired by Trustee Barbara Cates Harris. More students are gravitating to the Mechatronics program, contributing to low enrollment in Industrial Systems.
  • Under a new sales tax redistribution plan, the state and local sales tax base will be expanded to include repair, maintenance and installation services, Graham reported. A portion of local sales tax revenue will be placed in a statewide pool and allocated under a new statutory method with the proceeds used for expenditures related to economic development, public schools or community colleges. By county, the estimated annual distribution is: Vance, $241,000; Granville, $1,157,000; Franklin, $1,903,000; and Warren, $778,000.
  • Following a report by Trustee Sara Wester, chair of the Personnel Committee, the trustees approved resolutions to adopt two additional Supplemental Retirement Plans established by the State for the benefit of VGCC employees with no cost to the college. All qualified employees are eligible immediately for the NC 403 (b) and NC 457 plans.
  • The Investment Committee, co-chaired by Trustees Opie Frazier and Donald Seifert, reported on a joint meeting held with members of the VGCC Endowment Fund Board of Directors in January. Seifert said the two boards are currently updating the college’s investment policies.
  • In an update for the Building Committee, Graham reported that work began on the Building 10 renovations in January with an expected completion date of June 23.
  • The board approved a course offering at Polk Correctional Institution in Butner and Warren Correctional Institution in Manson. All courses offered at the state’s prisons must go before trustees for approval.
  • Student Government Association President Aleria Perry, who serves as Student Trustee, announced upcoming events at the college, including Fun Friday for Valentine’s Day on Feb. 12, Spirit Week starting Feb. 29, and a Talent Show for students on March 4.
  • In Dr. Williams’ report to the board, the trustees were updated on activities since the board last met in November, including the recent announcement of a former VGCC president, Dr. Ben Currin, winning the community college system’s top award, the I.E. Ready Award, and plans for VGCC’s new online learning initiative, VOLT (Vanguard Online Learning through Technology), to offer online College Transfer degrees starting in the fall. She also announced the dates of an Arts & Sciences Lecture Series that will feature Bill Barker of Colonial Williamsburg, Va., as Thomas Jefferson; lectures are set for Feb. 18, March 17, and April 21, at 11 a.m. each day in the Auditorium in Building 2. The college’s Fourth Annual Dinner Theater will be held April 28-30. The annual VGCC Endowment Fund Golf Tournament is set for Tuesday, May 3.

The Monday night meeting was moved to Feb. 8 because of inclement weather on the original meeting date of Jan. 25. The next meeting of the Board of Trustees is set for Monday, March 21, on the Main Campus.