Vance Charter School Lottery Application Period Jan. 26-Feb. 27 For 2026-27

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Lottery applications for Vance Charter School for the 2026-2027 academic year will be accepted beginning Jan. 26. Applications will be accepted through Feb. 27.

Applications can be accessed at www.vancecharter.org. The lottery will be held Mar. 7, according to information from John Sossamon, vice chair of the school’s board of directors.

Two parent information sessions will be held – one on Tuesday, Jan. 27 and a second on Thursday, Feb. 19. Each session will begin at 6 p.m. in the school’s media center.

Learn more at https://www.vancecharter.org/

Find details about the lottery process at https://www.vancecharter.org/page/vcs-lottery-info

 

Freedom Bridge Resource Center Jan. 21 Lunch & Learn Topic: Overdose Prevention

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Join Freedom Bridge Resource Center for a Lunch & Learn session that will focus on overdose prevention.

The program, presented by Catherine T. Hazlitt, will take place at the Freedom Bridge Resource Center, 936 W. Andrews Ave. on Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 1:30 p.m.

The session is designed to increase awareness about overdose prevention, as well as providing life-saving strategies. It is open to anyone in the community who wants to learn more, including family members and service providers.

Registration is not required; just show up to attend the session.

Freedom Bridge Resource Center is a program of Community Partners of Hope.

Army Corps Of Engineers: Kerr Lake Level Almost A Foot Lower Than 295.5-Foot Target

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Rangers and staff at John H. Kerr Reservoir have received several inquiries regarding the lake elevation and current low water condition. Right now, water levels at Kerr Reservoir have dropped because much of the Roanoke River Basin has had a lot less rain than normal. Because much of the basin has been dry, less water is flowing into the reservoir — and that means the lake elevation is slowly going down. We manage the reservoir for a target elevation of 295.5 feet above mean sea level (msl) in the months of January and February, per the guide curve, with the current elevation being 294.7 feet msl on Thursday, 15 January 2026.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers monitors lake levels, rainfall, and inflows every day. We work with state and local partners to manage water carefully, addressing both upstream and downstream water resource needs and impacts, and make sure any changes happen responsibly. If you have questions or concerns please call the Visitor Assistance Center at 434-738-6143.

Before heading to Kerr Reservoir:

Water Control Plan: https://www.saw.usace.army.mil/…/john…/JOHNHKERR_WCP.pdf

Lake Elevation & Guide Curve: https://epec.saw.usace.army.mil/

Vance Sheriff: One Arrested On Heroin Trafficking Charges

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– From the office of Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame

Vance County – On Sunday, January 11th, 2025 members of the Vance County Sheriff’s Office arrested Christopher Gray on outstanding warrants. The warrants obtained on Gray were from a month’s long investigation into Heroin Trafficking within Vance County. During the investigation nearly 1000 dosage units of Heroin were seized from Gray. Gray was charged with five counts of Trafficking Heroin, PWIMSD Heroin and Felony Maintaining a Vehicle. Gray was placed in the Vance County Jail under no bond pending court.

 

TownTalk: ‘God’s Trombones’ Coming To McGregor Hall Feb. 1

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An upcoming production at McGregor Hall gathers together present-day preachers and musicians to highlight the work of a Black American poet whose work during the Harlem Renaissance continues to stir souls.

James Weldon Johnson is perhaps best known for writing the poem in 1900 that would be put to music by his brother and become known as the Black National Anthem.

“Lift Every Voice and Sing” is just one of the works that Johnson penned, however; the Feb. 1 production of “God’s Trombones” highlights a series of seven poems that Johnson wrote in 1927.

The full title of the collection of poems is “God’s Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse,” and all seven will be performed in this program by Connie Ragland Productions.

Ragland, Thursday’s guest on TownTalk, talked about the event, which will begin at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 1.

Advance tickets are $25, $30 at the door, and $10 for children 12 and under. Blocks of 10 tickets will be discounted to $25 each, and Ragland said she’d love to see churches fill up their church vans and head over to attend the performance.

New Horizons Training Group and R.O.Y. Leadership are partnering with Ragland’s company to bring the performance to McGregor Hall.

The trombone is a metaphor for the voice of the preacher, Ragland explained. Each of the poems has a different topic and explores “the voice of the Black preacher and how it’s evolved.”

The nine pastors, ministers and others – most are local to the area – who will be reading Johnson’s works “are already known for being able to stir a crowd,” Ragland said, “to speak in a rhythm that the crowd will enjoy.” Each sermonette should last about seven minutes, with musical performances following each reading.

“We try to produce something of good quality,” Ragland said. Just because it’s Black history, the program isn’t just for Black people, she continued. “We want to reach across all cultures, it’s not just about us, our history in general, it’s about hearing a good word from God, it’s about singers that are going to blow the roof off.”

Evangelist Mary D. Williams, a Duke Divinity School professor and historian, will play the role of legendary Gospel singer Mahalia Jackson. Ragland says her alto, story-telling voice “will lift your soul.”

Among other performers is Rubina Woods, part of the quartet New Creation based in Hillsborough

All the vocalists will be accompanied by a live band – keyboards, drum, bass and lead guitars, and brass – you can bet that joining the trumpet and saxophone will be, you guessed it, a trombone.

Purchase tickets at www.mcgregorhall.org. The box office is open weekdays between 1:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Call 252.598.0662 or stop by at 201 Breckenridge St., Henderson.

You can also contact Connie Ragland at 252.590.0303, Vince Ragland at 252.213.2095 or the

Rev. Eddie Williams at 704.472.6274.

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Cooperative Extension with Jamon Glover: Mentorship That Multiplies

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Jamon Glover, on the Vance County Cooperative Extension Report:

We wrap up our series on role models and mentorship and we talk about the impact that you may have on other kids that are not your own.

Listen live at 100.1 FM / 1450 AM / or on the live stream at WIZS.com at 11:50 a.m. Mon, Tues & Thurs.

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Possible School Closings, Consolidations Topic Of School Board’s Jan. 21 Special Called Meeting

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The Vance County Board of Education is holding a special meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 21 to have a public hearing about the possible closing and/or consolidation of two of the county’s elementary schools.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. in the Curriculum and Instruction area of the Vance County Administrative Services Center, 1724 Graham Ave., according to information from Superintendent Dr. Cindy Bennett and Board of Education Chair Ayana Lewis.

The most recent school consolidations came in 2018, when the school board voted to merge the two high schools and the two middle schools to form Vance County High School and Vance County Middle School. Beginning with the 2018-19 school year, the high school was located on the campus of the former Southern Vance High School and the middle school was located on the campus of the former Northern Vance High School.

Here’s the statement in its entirety:

Pursuant to the provisions of N.C.G.S. 115C-72 and N.C.G.S. 143-318.12 the Vance County  Board of Education will hold a special meeting on Wednesday, January 21, 2026 in order to  provide a public hearing to discuss with the general public the proposed closing and/or  consolidation of New Hope Elementary School with another school, and also the closing and/or  consolidation of Carver Elementary School with another school, having in mind and taking into  account the welfare of the students to be affected by such closings and/or consolidations,  including providing information regarding which the said Board has in its possession relating to  the practical and best use of its present school facilities and the costs and maintenance of all its  facilities, and the use of same, and also considering geographic conditions, increase or  decrease in school enrollment, the inconvenience or hardship that might result to the pupils to  be affected by such closings or consolidations, the cost of providing additional school facilities in  the event of such closings and/or consolidation, and such other factors as the Board shall  determine to be germane. 

Said hearing shall be held on January 21, 2026 at 6:00 p.m. in the Curriculum and Instruction area within the Vance County Administrative Services Center located at 1724 Graham Avenue,  Henderson NC, and the general public shall be afforded an opportunity to express their views regarding said proposed closings and/or proposed consolidations. 

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