-Information courtesy Rev. L.T. Harris, Joy In The Lord Baptist Church
Joy In The Lord Baptist Church will hold a gospel singing featuring “The Oak Grove Boys & Stephanie” from Elm City, NC.
on Saturday, August 18, 2018, at 6 p.m.
The church is located at 1238 Debnam Ave., Henderson, NC.
Everyone is welcome.
-Press Release, Vance County Schools
Alejandro Castorela, a 2018 graduate of Southern Vance High School, was honored on June 18, by U.S. Rep. G.K. Butterfield for his third-place award in the U.S. Congressional Art Competition for District 1.
Castorela is shown at left in the photo with Butterfield during the recognition in the Congressman’s Durham office.
Alejandro Castorela (left) and G.K. Butterfield (VCS Photo)
Castorela won the award for his sketch “The Creation of Art.” His third-place finish was a great achievement from among the hundreds of student art entries in the competition.
Castorela was joined at the recognition ceremony and reception by the other art award winners.
Butterfield represents North Carolina’s District 1, including Vance County, in the U.S. House of Representatives.
-Information courtesy Kaine Riggan, Downtown Development Director, Downtown Henderson
Mayor Eddie Ellington welcomes a healthy showing of community leaders to Thursday’s ribbon cutting for a new downtown business, Rebuild Communities, NC, located beside the courthouse on Church Street.
Mayor Eddie Ellington speaks on behalf of the City as Edith Thompson, John Barnes and Bernard Alston look on. (Photo courtesy Downtown Development)
-Information courtesy Kelly H. Grissom, Clerk to Board/Executive Asst., County of Vance
Items on the agenda include:
July’s agenda and previous agendas may be viewed on the County’s website by clicking here.
-Information courtesy Rev. Rodney Barwick, Averett Baptist Church
The Averett Baptist Church, 2671 Averett Church Road, Nelson, Virginia is hosting a free Bluegrass Gospel Concert featuring The Oak Grove Boys & Stephanie. Concert to be held Sunday, July 15 @ 6 p.m. All are welcome!
The church is located 5 miles southwest of Clarksville, VA off Highway 49-S
Free admission but a love offering will be taken.
(This is not a paid advertisement)
Dr. Vanessa Wrenn, Ed.D. has been named principal of Granville Academy, a blended learning experience for grades K-12 that allows for on-site and off-site independent studies.
Wrenn began her career in education teaching at Riverside High School in Durham and has served as a Career Technical Education teacher and the Director of Technology and Online Learning for Granville County Public Schools.
Among her accomplishments, Wrenn initiated the Granville Online program in 2010 for students in grades 7-12 and also implemented a one laptop device per student directive to allow for 24/7 anytime, anywhere learning.
“As a mother of three, my lens is always ‘what is best for children,’” said Wrenn. “My goal is to ensure that all children are engaged in their learning so they may be successful students.”
With a background in digital learning initiatives, Wrenn brings her extensive knowledge to this new approach to K-12 education. “My work has transitioned learning in Granville County Public Schools to a digital age teaching environment,” said Wrenn. “Students and teachers now have consistent access to technology devices, resources and online courses.”
As part of the Granville County Public School System, Granville Academy will begin its first school year on Monday, August 27, 2018, and will follow the traditional calendar for Granville County Schools.
Taught by state-certified teachers, and accredited as part of the school district system, Granville Academy staff “will use innovation and flexibility to best meet each learners needs.”
According to their website, Granville Academy will enroll students in K-5 and 6-8 to attend a physical school building two days a week for five hours each day. High school students in grades 9-12 will have flexibility in their workspace based on progress. All students will work virtually during the school week.
Academy classes will be located inside existing Granville County school structures. Tar River and CG Credle Elementary and Butner-Stem and Northern Granville Middle will serve as the Granville Academy elementary and middle school sites, respectively. High school students will attend a physical school building on an as-needed basis.
Granville Academy is available to both in-county and out-of-county residents. While free for residents of Granville County, students living out-of-district will pay a tuition as determined by the Granville County Public School’s Board of Education.
According to Wrenn, community feedback regarding the hybrid learning experience has been very positive. “The schedule of some days on campus and other days away from campus meets families and learners’ specific needs. We have families who travel for work and pleasure, students who are pursuing sports, arts, or have health reasons which require flexible schedules. Additionally, some students prefer a blended model due to their learning style.”
Over the past few months, Granville Academy staff have conducted numerous community talks to educate the community on the school design and to answer individual questions.
Although well-received, Wrenn said the biggest challenge has been helping both parents and the community understand how a blended school works. “The school utilizes a personalized course of study that follows local and state curriculum standards. Teachers provide the primary instruction and assign grades. Parents are highly involved, facilitating learning on the days students are at home.”
Students are assessed using the same state end-of-grade and end-of-course exams as traditional Granville County Public School students and are eligible for athletics and other activities as offered at their base school.
With 168 students currently enrolled in grades K-12, Wrenn is ready to get started. “I understand that each child needs an advocate and options. I am excited and eager to bring my skills as an educational leader in online learning and technology to Granville Academy and work to ensure every child’s success in a personalized learning environment.”
*For more information on Granville Academy, please visit their website at https://ga.gcs.k12.nc.us/ or contact Dr. Wrenn at wrennv@gcs.k12.nc.us.
-Information courtesy Sandra Wilkerson, Director of Admin and Events, Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce
Rebuild Durham, a Henderson Community Resource Center for homebuyer education, housing finance, construction, workforce development and revitalization, will host a grand opening and brunch on Thursday, June 28, 2018, from 10 – 11:30 a.m.
The event will feature Rebuilding Communities.
Located at 117 Church Street in Henderson, Rebuild Durham’s grand opening will also include a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce.
Please call Rebuild Durham at (919) 723-0100 for more details.
*The ribbon-cutting for Dysart Willis, 1108 Dabney Drive, previously scheduled for Thursday, June 28 has been rescheduled for Thursday, July 12, 2018, at 4 p.m.
(This is not a paid advertisement)
Krystal Harris, director of the Vance County Department of Social Services (DSS), was recently on WIZS’ Town Talk to discuss programs offered by the department.
According to Harris, services offered by DSS can be classified under one of four areas – economic services, adult services, child welfare services and administration.
“People usually think of our economic services such as food and nutrition or our child welfare services when they think of DSS but we provide many other additional services,” said Harris.
Medicaid, Work First, food and nutrition benefits, Child Protective Services (CPS), Adult Protective Services (APS), in-home services for the elderly and disabled, foster care and adoptions are among the many services provided by DSS.
Unlike many counties that source their child support services out to other agencies, Vance County’s DSS has an in-house child support program.
In addition, DSS provides daycare subsidies to approximately 1,000 children in Vance County with more currently on a waitlist.
Daycare providers must be accredited as a three-star center to be eligible to receive the subsidies provided by a combination of funding from the State and from Smart Start. The State sends payment directly to the participating daycare providers while parents are charged a “parent fee” or a percentage of the money owed.
Program Integrity, DSS’ fraud prevention program, is used to investigate reports or suspicion of anyone committing fraud, especially as it relates to economic services such as Medicaid, food and nutrition or the Work First program.
According to Harris, the need for DSS is great in the local area, a trend that she sees continuing to grow. “Approximately a third of the population of Vance County receives food and nutrition benefits,” Harris said. “A lot of our citizens are unemployed and when unemployment rates increase we see an increase in requested services.”
The number of people served and the increased need for services has led DSS to begin working with the County to explore relocation options. “We are in the process now and are making some progress on finding possible relocation sites for our office,” said Harris.
Vance County DSS currently employs 125 workers, including employees at the Senior Center in downtown Henderson, a division that falls under DSS. There are seven social workers available for in-house investigations on an as-needed basis. If you need to report a situation, Harris emphasized that there is someone available to help 24/7.
Part of Harris’ job as DSS Director is to use WIZS’ Town Talk and similar platforms to help educate the public on services that DSS provides and to help dispel negative ideas of the program. “In my experience, we do have a negative connotation with our name, but we provide a lot of services to assist people and to get them out of crisis situations. If we didn’t have social services a lot of people would not have health benefits or a meal on the table each day. Children and adults would not be safe.”
For more information on the Vance County Department of Social Services, please visit the office at 350 Ruin Creek Rd, Henderson or call (252) 492-5001.
Applications for services may also be found by visiting NC ePASS at https://www.nc.gov/services/e-pass.
-Press Release, Maria Parham Health Marketing
Maria Parham Health recently held their annual awards recognition dinner to celebrate their employees who have hit milestones in their years of service to the hospital. Employees were recognized in five-year segments with recognitions announced at five years, ten years, twenty years, twenty-five years, thirty years and forty years.
Employees and their guests enjoyed dinner and an awards presentation at the Henderson Country Club.
Five Years: Left to Right: Lisa Starling, Amanda Bell, Dr. Lakshmi Kanth, Shannon Carrol, Natalie Frazier, Carolyn Pulley, Rosalind Richardson, Raymond Dickerson, JR., Alma Wilson, Sean Zimmerman, Barbara Curry, Linda Woody, Catherine Fogleman. (MPH Photo) Not pictured: Brooke Coghill, Brooke Darnell, Kelly Edwards, Tony Franklin, Hernan Jimenez-Medina, Karen MacLean, Ashley Miller, Amanda Moody, Lisa Paynter, Felicia Tapp and, Heather Tysinger-Ayscue.
Ten Years: Left to Right: Gelene Sandifer, Cynthia Pruitt, Denise Smith, Dena Hunter, Olivia Dixon, Elizabeth Penderrass, Stephanie Carter, Kathy Adcock, Tammy Care, Tiffany Jarrell, Maya Tiwani, Vivian Walker-Marable, Georgia Ferrell, Jennifer Singley and Rosalie Steele. (MPH Photo) Not pictured: Jason Barrett, Russell Bryant, Caroline Cash, Terry Cooke, Destiny Jordan, Kathy Paschall, April Pernell, Roger Ramussen, Shannon Roberts and Eric Spangler.
Fifteen Years: Left to Right: Pam Parker, Brandy Turner, Karen Starkey, Sandra Ayscue and Anita Bennett. (MPH Photo) Not pictured: Hope Breedlove and Donald England.
Twenty Years: Left to Right: Margie Hentze, Estena Bradley, Brent Dillard, Tonia Starling, Kellie Velez, Minnie Hargrove and Travis Thompson. (MPH Photo) Not pictured: Traci Ayscue, Tammy Gallager. Peter Hunt and Tonya Setzer-Ayscue.
Twenty-Five Years: Left to Right: Dianne Williams and Dorothy Woodlief. (MPH Photo) Not pictured: Anita Newcomb and Nancy Radford.
Thirty Years: Left to Right: Sharlene Roberson, Donna Robinson, Rhonda Tippett, Roy Hargrove and Beverly Fuller. (MPH Photo) Not pictured: Anthony Hughes
Forty Years: Joni Ayers (MPH Photo)
