By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
Members of the Palestine-Wheatley School Board rejected a pair of recommendations from the district's personnel policy committee at the behest of district Superintendent John Manning Monday, during the board's regular monthly meeting.
A recommendation from the committee to increase the in-district and out-of-district travel pay to the IRS rate of 36 cents per mile was rejected by a five-to-one margin with board member Ronnie Crider casting the lone dissenting vote. Manning recommended the board reject the policy change due to the board's decision last month to eliminate in district travel pay.
Board member Dorothy Smith abstained from the vote because she was late to the meeting and missed discussion on the matter.
When asked by Crider if his decision was based on financial or personal reasons, Manning responded, "You and I have had discussions on this before Mr. Crider, and for the fourth time, this is based entirely on financial reasons."
Manning also recommended the board reject a measure which would have given classified employees three days instead of two for bereavement. Manning said that decision was also based on financial reasons. Crider argued that giving personnel the extra day seemed fair.
"I just don't think that a person should have to use sick days or vacation days when grieving the loss of a loved one. It only seems fair to me that we give them one more day," Crider said.
Board president Rodney Hicks responded, "They've already got sick days, vacation days and the normal school schedule, and now you're wanting to give them an extra day for deaths. You give them enough time off, and they won't be here to teach, will they?"
The board voted five-to-two with Crider and Dorothy Smith voting against rejecting the policy change.
In other business, the board agreed to a measure to change the rate of pay, and when vacation time could be taken for 12-month employees. According to Manning, the proposal would allow personnel to receive the substitute teachers' pay for any accumulated days instead of half their normal salary which is in effect currently. The substitute teacher salary is $45 per day.
The board also agreed to a tentative schedule for the 2004-2005 school year, as proposed by the personnel policy committee.
Board members also voted to rehire certified employees and accept the resignations of two elementary instructors, Vivi Hall and Shannon Russell. At the recommendation of Manning, the board hired Rebecca Lee as a certified personnel.
By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
The second time around will apparently be the charm for a proposed Regional Child Support Enforcement Building in Forrest City.
According to officials with the Arkansas Building Services Division, the department is hopeful that the building will be completed by June 1.
"We just received a report on the building, and they're about 50 percent complete on the entire project. Most of the work now is on the interior of the building, and we're hoping that we can have everything completed, inspected and ready to move in by the first of June," said Ann Laidlaw with Building Services.
According to project contractor Cotton Roberts, the completion of the building is expected by the end of the month, and the project has been going smoothly.
"Things have really gone great. We're expecting to have the building completed by the end of this month, and then we're planning to start work on the parking lot in the next two to three weeks," Roberts said.
In 2002, efforts to build a Regional Child Support Enforcement building south of Forrest City failed after the state terminated a contract when the building was not completed.
The new facility will serve St. Francis, Cross, Lee, Woodruff and Monroe counties.
By TAMARA JOHNSON
Managing Editor
A Forrest City man is missing and his family is searching for answers in his disappearance.
In a report filed Thursday afternoon at the St. Francis County Sheriff's Department, Pauline Harris reported her son, James "Jamie" Paul Clark, 30, missing. Harris told SFC Chief Criminal Investigator Glenn Ramsey that state police were the last people to see her son before he disappeared.
Harris told Ramsey that she believed state police had chased Clark north on the St. Francis River Levee about 11:30 p.m., only to find his abandoned truck near the riverbank about an hour later. Clark has not been seen or heard from since that time.
Lt. Tommy Wicker with Arkansas State Police Troop D in Forrest City this morning said a trooper working Interstate 40 last Tuesday night observed Clark's 1994 Ford pickup on the river levee on the north side of I-40 about 11 p.m.
"He was across the fence from where the trooper was. The trooper got the license number on the vehicle and recognized the driver. He ran a check on Clark and discovered that his driver's license was suspended," Wicker said. "The trooper drove back to Widener to obtain access to the levee where the driver took off to, and he had gotten out of sight."
According to Wicker, the trooper was assisted in the search for Clark's vehicle by another trooper and a county deputy. During the search, residents in the area told police they had seen the truck on the St. Francis River bank near the base of Big Eddie Hill.
"There is no ongoing investigation into this issue. They never saw the driver when they found the vehicle. The guy is missing, and they've been looking for him," Wicker said. "The vehicle was towed because the guy had abandoned the vehicle."
Wicker said he had also discussed the incident with ASP Investigator Dale Arnold and the two agreed that an investigation is not necessary until there is "proof that some crime needs to be investigated."
After Harris filed her initial report on Thursday, members of the county's search and rescue team searched the river bank and wooded area where Clark's truck was found. The first search was called off about 8 p.m., and searchers returned to the area on Friday and again on Saturday without finding any clues as to Clark's whereabouts.
"Basically, we've found nothing," Ramsey said.
Anyone with information as to Clark's disappearance may contact the Harris or the St. Francis County Sheriff's Department.
Tammy Talley announced today she is seeking the position of St. Francis County Treasurer in the May 18 Democratic Primary.
Talley and her husband, Tommy, and their sons, Caleb and Cody, reside in Colt. She is the daughter of Jr. and Tommie Milton and the late Elizabeth Borden Milton. Talley and her family are members of the New Prospect Missionary Baptist Church in Colt where she serves as a youth sponsor.
Talley currently attends East Arkansas Community College where she is working toward an associate degree. She is a member of Phi Theta Kappa. Talley has received her certification in government training through Southern Arkansas University Tech. "I will continue attending educational classes, if elected, which provide the most current information needed to serve my community in this capacity.
"I am confident that I have the knowledge and the ability to fulfill the duties of the county treasurer's office. I have 10 years experience in the financial department. I can, and will, balance each account on a daily basis. I will make all records available to the public through a visit to my office, through mail, or through e-mail correspondence, at all time. I will work closely with all the banks to stay current on all financial regulations and avenues in order to better utilize your money the county's money," Talley said. "Of course, I will always have an open door policy to help you, the public and my employers, with any problems. I pledge to serve you in a friendly atmosphere. As in the past, I will be available for notary services.
"I want to be your St. Francis County Treasurer. I'm asking for you to please vote for me on May 18," Talley said.
Chris Oswalt today announced his candidacy for the position of Forrest City alderman for Ward 4. Oswalt previously served four years as alderman for Ward 4.
"As a former city council member, I worked closely with other city elected officials to make Forrest City a great place to live. I know what the needs are in Ward 4, and I would like to have the opportunity to serve in that capacity again," said Oswalt.
"Forrest City is a great town. We have a lot of potential. We see great things happening every day. With the bypass opening in the near future, we have the opportunity to grow in size, businesses and population. We are a major corridor with I-40, and we need to aggressively pursue not only manufacturing jobs, but small businesses as well," said Oswalt.
Oswalt said he would like to help not only Ward 4 become a better place to live, but all of Forrest City. "I want to work with all elected officials in the city to make Forrest City the best town in Arkansas."
While on the city council, Oswalt was a member of the police and fire committees and the Advertising and Promotions Commission. He is a member of the Forrest City Area Chamber of Commerce and the Forrest City Kiwanis Club. He is a former teacher with the Forrest City School District where he worked at the ABC Preschool. Oswalt is now a consultant and a mentor teacher for the Core Knowledge Foundation, an educational foundation, where he works with preschool teachers in the Delta.
He and his wife Amy have a three-year-old
The Times-Herald is ranked among the top 20 oldest established businesses in Arkansas, according to a recent report in Arkansas Business.
Owned by the McCollum-Lewey family, the Times-Herald, founded in 1871, is in a three-way tie for the 20th spot.
The Courier-Index in Marianna, which is also owned by the McCollum-Lewey family, is tied for the 15th oldest business position with four other newspapers. A weekly, the Courier-Index was founded in 1870.
The only other Forrest City business named to the list of companies that have marked 100 years or more in Arkansas, is the First National Bank of Eastern Arkansas, which is ranked at 72nd. The commercial bank was founded in 1886.
According to the story, there are 166 businesses in Arkansas that have survived for more than a century. Many of those are newspapers, banks and law firms.
Several more people have filed for office in the St. Francis County Democratic Primary.
Dave Parkman has filed for reelection as Sheriff and Collector. He will face a challenger, George Cochran.
Country Treasurer Ann Harbin also filed for reelection. Tammy Talley is challenging her.
Paul Spears has filed as a candidate for County Clerk, and will face incumbent Elizabeth Smith.
Bette S. Green filed for reelection as Circuit Clerk, and faces no challenger so far.
In other filings, Floyd French filed for Constable of Goodwin Township. In addition, there were several filings for positions on the county's Democratic Central Committee, as follows: Floyd French -- JP District 11, Position 2; Lorene Wall -- JP District 7, Position 3; Della Newborn -- JP District 6, Position 3; and Joyce Ann Jones, JP District 1, Position 1.
A longtime St. Francis County business is now under new management after Producer's Tractor Supply recently purchased Brother's Implement.
According to Wally Cox, with Producer's Helena office, the company is excited about moving into the area.
"We were excited to get the store, and we're looking forward to coming in and serving the farmers of St. Francis County. We're looking at this as a great opportunity, and we plan on becoming active members of the community," said Cox.
According to Cox, the store will offer a full service department. "We've hired a couple of new sales personnel and some customer service representatives, and we'll be offering a full service department with mobile service so we'll have people going out to service equipment for farmer's instead of them always having to bring them in," he said.