By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
St. Francis County Election Commission Chairman Joe Young has followed through with his threats to leave the commission if its office at the courthouse is closed.
Young presented his letter of resignation to the St. Francis County Judge's Office on Wednesday.
In the brief letter, Young said, "(I) resign my position as third member and chairman of the St. Francis County Election Commission today, June 16, 2004."
On Tuesday, documents, ballot boxes and equipment used by the election commission were moved from the commission's office on the north end of the St. Francis County Courthouse, into the vault in St. Francis County Clerk Elizabeth Smith's office to make that space available for employees in the St. Francis County Assessor's office.
"That is space that the commission needs for storage and to provide us with a place to work. We're very upset about the decision to move us out, and I'm probably going to hand in my resignation if the move takes place," Young said just prior to Tuesday's move.
Young chose not to offer additional comments on his resignation, but St. Francis County Judge Carl Cisco said he was sad to see Young resign.
"I think that Joe did a great job, and we're going to be sad to see him leave. It's been great working with him, and I wish this didn't have to happen," Cisco said.
With Young stepping down, the commission now consists of two members, Florence Brown and Bettye Proctor, and according to Proctor, the position may remain open for awhile.
"We're not going to be in any rush to make a decision right now," Proctor said referring to the Democratic Central Committee.
The election commission consists of an appointed member of the county's Republican party and an appointed member of the county's Democratic party. The county's dominate political party, which in St. Francis County is Democrat, appoints the third member of the commission. The St. Francis County Democratic Central Committee will be responsible for selecting Young's replacement.
"I think that Joe did a great job for the commission and the citizens of St. Francis County, and we're going to miss him. I really hate the fact that he's leaving, but there's nothing that can be done about it. I couldn't have asked for a better man to work beside, and I shall truly miss him," Proctor said.
"We don't have any elections coming up anytime soon, so we have time to make pick the right person," Proctor added.
By TAMARA JOHNSON
Managing Editor
A woman who has claimed to officials to have AIDS is today charged with three felonies after allegedly attempting to share her disease with employees at the St. Francis County Jail.
Linda Mills, 35, of West Memphis, was taken to jail about 9 p.m. Wednesday by officers with the Forrest City Police Department after they arrested her on an order of commitment.
While being booked into the jail, arrest records claim that Mills became irate and spit on jail employees.
First Judicial District Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Chris Morledge said Mills "represented that she had AIDS."
Because she allegedly tried to infect the jail employees with the life-threatening disease, Mills was charged with three counts of knowingly exposing another person to acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). That charge is a Class A felony which carries a penalty of six to 30 years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections. In addition, Mills is also charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
Morledge said he planned to ask St. Francis County District Court Judge Steve Routon this afternoon to release Mills on her own recognizance, due to her medical condition, and to set a date for her to appear in circuit court on the felony charges.
"I will also request an order from Judge Routon for her to submit hair, blood and saliva samples to the court," Morledge said. The samples would help authorities substantiate Mills' claim of having AIDS.
The University of Arkansas, in conjunction with East Arkansas Community College, has announced that a web-based master of education degree will be available to students beginning with the fall 2004 semester.
The Department of Rehabilitation, Human Resources and Communication Disorders in the College of Education and Health Professions will be offering the program.
The degree program offers prospective students the opportunity to access a master's degree program when they otherwise might not be able to do so. In addition, the program offers flexibility, as students can access coursework from any place they have an Internet connection, and at any time.
Students have the option to choose between coursework in vocational and adult education, and human resource development. The degree prepares graduates to be teachers, administrators or private consultants in higher education, academic, business, community or industrial settings.
Requirements for the non-thesis degree program are that students complete 33 semester hours with a cumulative GPA of 3.00, and pass a written comprehensive exam in the student's final semester. Students also have the option of transferring six credit hours in from another program or institution.
In order to be admitted to the program, a student must have a GPA of 2.7 on all bachelor's level coursework from a regionally accredited college or university, or a score of 50 percent or higher on the GRE or MAT test, or a minimum 3.20 GPA on their last 60 hours of undergraduate work. Students who do not meet these conditions may be admitted on a conditional basis. Following admission, students are assigned to a faculty advisor with whom they will work to structure and plan their program of study.
Course offerings include: Learner in Adult Education, Change Process, Computer Technology, Foundations of Adult Education, Foundations of Human Resource Development, Foundations of Vocational Education, Training Needs Assessment, and Developing Human Resources. Applications are being accepted now for the fall semester.
Dr. Kenda Grover will be on the campus of East Arkansas Community
College on Tuesday, June 29, in Room B-129 of the Learning Resources
Center. Following a brief introduction, a question-and-answer
session will be held in order to allow prospective students the
chance to inquire about program specifics. For more information,
contact Grover at (479) 575-2675, or by email at kgrover@uark.edu
mailto:kgrover@uark.edu.
Free or low-cost mammograms will be offered to St. Francis County women who are 40 years old or older on Wednesday, June 23, in Hughes.
The location will be the Lee County Cooperative Satellite Clinic, at 503 S. Broadway (Highway 79) in Hughes. The mammograms will be performed by health care professionals from St. Bernard's Medical Center in Jonesboro.
The mammograms are being made possible by the Witness Project, a community based cancer education program of the Arkansas Cancer Research Center at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
The Witness Project promotes awareness of mammography among African-American woman and medically underserved women. Women who are survivors of breast or cervical cancer serve as role models and "witness" at churches and civic groups about their triumphs over cancer.
Pre-registration is required for the mammograms. For more information, including the qualification requirements, call 800-275-1183.
Two men were robbed as they tried to enter their room at a motel on East Broadway Wednesday night.
James Cunera, 47, of Broken Arrow, Okla., and Michael Lackey, 24, of Collinville, Okla., were robbed just before 10 p.m. as they were walking into their room at the Regency Inn at 907 E. Broadway.
According to a report on file at the Forrest City Police Department, the two men were approached by four black male subjects as they were going into their room. The four allegedly grabbed the victims, threw them to the ground and took their wallets. The suspects reportedly took the money and threw the wallets on the ground.
The investigation is continuing.
St. Francis County received $135,350.66 in sales tax receipts for May, according to figures from the Arkansas Municipal League.
In addition, cities within St. Francis County received the following prorated amounts: Hughes, $26,825.87; Forrest City $212,279.27; Wheatley, $5,345.06; Palestine, $10,647.02; Madison, $14,181.64; Caldwell, $6,681.32; Colt, $5,287.58; Widener, $4,813.43.
Several towns in St. Francis County also have their own sales taxes, received the following: Forrest City, $153,420.53; Hughes, $10,461.75; Madison, $1,357.73; Palestine, $6,315.21; Wheatley, $3,676.86.
The Arkansas Workforce Center will be conducting seminars in Forrest City during June, at the local Center, 2615 S. Washington.
"Why Can't I Get A Job" is a unique approach to discovering hidden job opportunities. It will be conducted Wednesday, June 23, from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.
"Understanding and Creating a Resume" is an in-depth look at creative ways to develop and prepare a resume. It will be presented Thursday, June 24, from 9 a.m. until noon. "Interviewing Techniques" offers an insider's look at how managers develop interview questions to help them assess applicants. It will also be presented June 24, from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Anyone wishing to sign up should visit the center. For more information, call Sharon at 870-633-2900.
A St. Francis County 911 Committee meeting originally scheduled for 5 p.m. today has been rescheduled for Thursday, June 24. For more information, contact Linda Thweatt at 261-1760.