By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
As soon as training is complete and everything is in place, parents of many students in the Forrest City School District will be able to check on the progress their kids are making with the click of a mouse.
Frequently updated progress reports will be posted on the Internet. Parents will be able to check progress by use of individual access numbers.
Tom Darnell is in charge of instructing teachers on how to use the new service.
"The teachers are using a program called GradeQuick," said Darnell. "Part of GradeQuick is a module that will connect to the Internet. That module is called Edline. That program allows teachers to post progress reports on the web, and parents can go to the site, log in, and see their children's grades."
Darnell said each child will have an access code and each parent will have an access code.
He said teachers at Lincoln have been trained. All the teachers at the high school have been trained, with the exception of a few makeups. Junior high teachers will be trained the week of March 12-16.
Not everyone has a computer at home, but the service is being made available for those who do. Also, one can use a friend's computer, or perhaps use a computer at the library.
"Anyone with the proper access code who can get to a computer will be able to get this information," he said.
There is not an exact date on when the system will be ready.
Abbie Robinson, acting principal at the high school, is looking forward to the day when the program becomes active.
"It's going to be a very helpful tool," Robinson said. "Parents will be able to go in at any time to check on their children's grades.
"And it's not just grades, it's progress reports," she continued. "It's broken down into such detail. It will alleviate a lot of misunderstanding between parents and teachers. It shows what's been done and what's been missed. Parents will know what's going on."
The grades for kindergarten through fifth grade will not be posted.
By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
In a special meeting Thursday night, citizens of Widener got information on a grant application the city is making to help build a civic center/multi purpose building.
Liz Lopez, secretary to Mayor Dot Halford and coordinator of the grant effort, conducted the meeting.
The grant, if received, will be a Rural Services Block Grant, Arkansas Department of rural Services. Rural towns with fewer than 3,000 people, in which at least 51 percent of the population is of low to moderate income, are eligible. The construction of a community center is also one type of project eligible under the program.
The grant request is for $30,000, which would be a 3-1 match. That means Widener will have to come up with $10,000. That can be done through in-kind work or fund-raisers.
The community Center as it is conceived would be a metal building, 60 feet by 40 feet, with a fully-equipped kitchen, handicapped accessible rest rooms, a small meeting room and large meeting room.
At present, the city is hoping to place the center across the street from city hall. Halford said Widener is in the process of attempting to acquire the land.
Lopez said the building could have a multitude of uses, and the audience made some suggestions to ones she had already made. Some of the possible uses could be banquets parties, reunions, weddings, receptions, dances, after school programs and summer enrichment programs.
Widener had a summer feeding program last year at city hall, which Lopez said was not large enough for the number of children served.
The center could be equipped with a generator and be used for a shelter in case of a disaster. Periodic health screenings could also be held there.
Lopez said that while the community center is attractive, there are no guarantees. The total amount of the grant and match ($40,000) may not pay for everything they want, so the building or some of its amenities may have to be scaled back. Funds are also limited, and a lot of communities are after them.
"We're competing with 48 other communities," said Lopez. "It will depend on how good a job we do with our grant application.
"Just because we've had the meeting and apply for the grant, it doesn't mean we'll get it," she continued. "But I think we have a good chance. Widener is a growing community."
By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
The chairman of the state's Public Service Commission on Thursday discussed the increasing costs of natural gas with members of the Forrest City Area Chamber of Commerce.
Sandra L. Hochstetter, was the guest speaker at Thursday's Chamber luncheon. In addition to the rising gas costs, she also discussed deregulation.
"We've found that you can't find competition on the retail side of things unless you have competition on the wholesale side. As business people you can understand that. We have to make sure that the resale transmission organizations are up and running before we can pursue deregulation," Hochstetter said. "The commission will also have to determine that the majority of small business and residential customers will benefit from deregulation before we go forward."
She also told the audience that the delay in deregulation will give the commission more time to study how deregulation is working in other states. According to Hochstetter, 25 states have passed restructuring legislation but only eight of those states have actually implemented deregulation. Texas is the only state bordering Arkansas that is currently pursuing deregulation.
"We're looking at the eight or nine states that have implemented the program and taking information on how it's progressing from them. California is obviously an example of what you don't want to do and so is Montana. So what we're doing is taking what we can learn from other states and finding both the good things and the bad things that come with deregulation," she said.
Hochstetter also spoke to the chamber members about the increasing rates in natural gas. She told those in attendance that the primary reason for the increase is low supply and high demand.
"These increases were predicted in mid-summer last year, and the biggest reason was due to low supply and high demand. We've had about 10 years of extremely low prices for natural gas. The prices have been so low that it has driven some producers into bankruptcy and out of business. As the level of supplies dropped off there weren't new wells to tap into. And, while the economy was going so well, people were using gas like gangbusters. So you end up with huge supply, low demand and maybe the coldest December on record. That caused a major increase in prices. There will be more production on the market, but it may take 18 months before prices settle back in," Hochstetter said.
Hochstetter gave the audience some of the options that the commission is suggesting to help maintain the increasing gas prices.
"Levelized billing is a rolling 12-month average in your gas bill and it levels things out for the year. For those that are on low income the gas companies are bending over backwards to extend long term payments to customers," said Hochstetter. "We are also suggesting conservation and weatherization. Those two efforts will save on the costs of heating a home or business and it's something that you can take personal control over."
By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
The number of cases of shigellosis, a bacterial disease which can cause mild to severe diarrhea in children, has risen to 24 as of this morning.
According to information from the Arkansas Department of Health, the shigellosis infects the intestinal tract. Anyone can get shigellosis, but it is recognized more often in young children.
Infected persons may experience mild or severe diarrhea, often with fever and traces of blood or mucous in the stool. This may be accompanied by abdominal cramps and vomiting. In most cases, the greatest health danger is dehydration.
Also, according to Health Department information, children with diarrhea should be kept home until their diarrhea ceases.
They can then return to their daycare or Head Start -- provided they carefully wash their hands after toilet visits.
It is suggested that anyone with symptoms be tested for the disease. Antibiotics are useful in shortening the duration of shigellosis.
Two Forrest City residents recently received board appointments from Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Florine Bingham was named to the Arkansas State University Board of Trustees. Bingham is the human resources manager for Boar's Head Provisions, a meat-processing company. She spent 28 years in education as a teacher and counselor and is the vice chairman of the state Workforce Investment Board. She will serve on the ASU board until Jan. 14, 2006. She replaces Velmar Richmond.
Oral Edwards was re-appointed to the East Arkansas Community College Board of Trustees. Edwards, the owner of the supermarket corporation GES Inc., will serve until Dec. 31, 2006.
Several people are on the agenda to speak on proposed capital improvements and other issues at the next Forrest City City Council meeting, to be held Tuesday, March 6. The meeting will begin at 7p.m.
Some are scheduled to speak on a proposed multi-purpose facility. These include Mike Morris of the Federal Correctional Institution at Forrest City; James Millbrooks with the Forrest City Community Voices; a representative of the St. Francis County NAACP; Elder M.T. Dedner and Rev. Sherman Baker.
Speaking on community assets will be Rev. V.L. Faulkner and Rev. Felix Duckworth.
The Senate Budget Committee adjourned this morning without taking a vote on the possible merger of East Arkansas Community College and Crowley's Ridge Technical Institute.
According to state Rep. Danny Ferguson, the committee heard about 30 minutes of testimony, then had to adjourn because the Senate was convening.
"It appears now there may be a vote in the committee, probably Monday," said Ferguson.