Newspapers / The Chowan Herald (Edenton, … / July 8, 1998, edition 1 / Page 1
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| Wednesday, July 8,1998 Published in the most beautiful little city on the North Carolina Coast Vol. LXV, No. 27 Preliminary test results for schools look good Chowan Middle, Holmes students post high scores BY REBECCA BUNCH Editor While the results are only preliminary, initial indications are that students, and teach ers, in the local( school system have a lot to be proud of with their state ABC testing-results. Maxine Britt, director of in struction for the Edenton Chowan Schools, said, “I’m very proud and happy to tell you preliminary test data indicate that Chowan Middle School will meet the exemplary growth standard, and that, based on partial data, it appears that John A. Holmes has a strong possibility of meeting the ex pectecf growth standard.” She said that exemplary growth indicates students have exceeded expected growth by at least 10 percent, while ex pected growth means students met the expected level of achievement for the year, as defined by the state. Britt said that 66.62 percent of Chowan Middle School stu dents tested scored at or above grade level. “They easily sur passed the 50 percent perfor mance standard, and we are feeling very good abjout that,” she said. She added that the “exem plary growth standard was met at most levels of consideration, including sixth grade reading and math, seventh grade read ing, and eighth grade reading and math.” Brenda Winborne, principal at Chowan Middle School, said she and her teachers were over joyed at the results. “I can only say that we are very happy. Our teachers worked very hard to prepare the students, and I think their hard work has really paid off,” she said. Performance results measur ing proficiency at the high school level were as follows: Algebra I, 43.2%; Biology, 52.7%; Ninth Grade Social Stud ies, 64.6%; English I, 44.7%; English II, 59.7%; and U.S. His tory, 44.4%. “Our high school students are clearly making those gains that the state wants,” said Britt, pointing out that a comparison of proficiency achieved over the past several years clearly shows continued growth in most areas. ” The results to which she re ferred are as follows: • Algebra I: 40.9 (1996), 41.9 (1997), and 42.4(1998) Coalition to bring consultant to town for public forum, tour On Wednesday, July 15, A1 Norman, who, for the past four years has helped dozens of com munities across the country fight the invasion of “big-box” mega-stores in their areas, will be in Edenton to conduct a pub lic forum, “What Happens When Wal-Mart Comes to Town?” Norman established his consulting firm, Sprawl-Bust ers, after organizing a success ful fight against Wal-Mart’s “coming to his hometown of Greenfield, MA. ' 'W-;,1-Mart has expre red an interest inbuikling a large com plex at the intersection of High way 17 and Rt. 32, just beyond the limit of this town of 5,000, but within its extra-territorial jurisdiction. Opinions voiced by local citizens regarding the proposed development are mixed. I . While some expressthe need for a Wal-Mart, others cite the devastating effect that Wal Mart has had in many similar | areas of the country: rising taxes, falling property values, increased crime, depressed Al Norman wages; fewer jobs, the end of charitable giving by local mer chants, and the disappearance of retail stores and other ser vice providers. , . Norman, who has been fea tured on television news docu mentaries, including 60 Min utes and Nightline, has been invited to the area by a local citizens group, the Chowan Peter Bogus Tourists spend millions here Domestic United States trav elers spent more than $12 mil lion in Chowan County in 1997. More than 150 residents are employed in tourism-related jobs, and tourism brings in ap proximately $610,000 in local tax receipts. Statewide, domestic travel ers spent nearly $10.2 billion, an increase of 4.13 percent over 1996. In North Carolina, em ployment increased 3.09 per cent to about 171,000 full-time positions. “From restaurants to motels and golf courses to outdoor ac tivities, tourism touches our community in so many ways,” said Pete Dail, chairman of the Chowan County Tourism De velopment Authority, in an nouncing the results. “It is a See TOURISTS On Page 12-A Communities Coalition. CCC was recently organized by citi zens of Edenton and Chowan Codnty “to afford residents an effective voice in the growth and development issues that affect communities and inhab itants of the area,” according to the group’s mission state ment. At the public forum, which is set for 6 p.m. in the auditorium of Edenton’s John A. Holmes High School on North Broad Street, Norman will show the 60 Minutes spot in which he, w'it helper ley Safer, demon strates what Wal-Mart can do to turn vibrant and thriving communities into ghost towns. Following the presentation, he will explain what can be done to keep Wal-Mart out. There is no admission charge for the public forum. Prior to the public forum, the mayor of Edenton will take Norman on a tour of the down town area, featuring meetings with local merchants who stand See FORUM On Page 12:A • Biology: 44.0 (1996), 48.5 (1997), and 52.7(1998) • Ninth Grade Social Studies: 49.3 (1996), 54.6 (1997) and 57.6 (1998) • English.I: 48.5 (1996), 49.4 (1997) and 46.6(1998) • English II: 48.1 (1996), 49.2 (1997) and 57.0 (1998) • U.S. History: 45.7 (1996), 44.3 (1997) and 48.4 (1998) Britt said that another piece of good news for the Edenton Chowan Schools could be found in the percentage of Holmes students meeting graduation^ requirements. “John A. Holmes has shown what we think is an impressive increase in the number of stu dents meeting the.college prep and college tech prep gradua tion requirements. Those fig ures have grown from 48 per cent in 1997 to 60 percent in 1998,” she said. Both of the county’s elemen tary schools got high marks on student performance evalua tions. According to Britt, both schools exceeded the state per formance standard by having more than 50 percent of tested students score at or above grade level. Results were as follows: D.F. Walker, 52.10%; White Oak, 63.62%. Britt said that the news was not quite as good in measur ing growth among the elemen tary school students. “The elementary schools stfere exemplary in growth at specific grade levels,” she said. “Although several grades made exemplary, the total growth for all grades in all subjects was not sufficient to rate either school at the expected or exemplary level overall.” She added that “bright spots” among growth mea sured came in fourth grade math and fifth grad# reading at D.F. Walker, as well as fourth grade reading and math and fifth grade reading scores at White Oak. In recognition of their out standing work at schools that meet expected growth stan dards, teachers and other cer tified personnel will each re ceive $750 bonuses, while principals and assistant prin cipals get $750 bonuses and a one percent salary increase. Teacher assistants at those schools will receive a $375 bonus. Teachers and other certi fied personnel at schools ex hibiting exemplary growth will each receive a $1,500 bo nus, while principals and as sistant principals get a $1,500 bonus and a one percent sal ary increase. Teacher assis tants at those schools will re ceive a $500 bonus. □ CELEBRATING THE FOURTH Two-year-old Evan Copeland had fun on the pony ride during the Fourth of July festivities at the Edenton waterfront Saturday. Guiding Evan along is his mother, Kristy Copeland, who accompanied the youngster through the activities which were enjoyed by all.(Staff photo by Sean Jackson) Sound Country Celebration being organized BY SEAN JACKSON Staff Writer Eco-tourism: Responsible travel that conserves the natu ral environment and sustains the well-being of local people. That’s the definition Peter Bogus offers for eco-tourism. Bogus, who owns the Trestle House Inn bed & breakfast on Soundside Road, has been in strumental in organizing the inaugural Sound Country Cel ebration to be held on the Bay Challenge Races to be held this weekend BY SEAN JACKSON Staff Writer Sun, fun and sailing. These three ingredients for a worn derful weekend are sure to create a pleasant memory for participants in this weekend’s Edenton Bay Challenge. Weather permitting, the two-day event, July 11-12, is scheduled to contain 50 boats, with participants coming from as far away as Florida and Maryland. Four types of boats will take part in the races. Thistle, Tanzer, Moth and Sunfish boats will all take to the wa ters of Edentpn Bay this weekend. An open class is also scheduled for competi See RACES On Page 12-A Edenton waterfront Nov. 14 15. The festival, he said, will in cludea wide variety of outdoor activities and entertainment for people of all ages, but will focus on water-related activi ties such as canoeing kayaking. “The festival is going to pretty much take up all of the town’s waterfront,” he said. “It’s going to be like an Edenton party, an outside kind of thing.” There will be no admission charge for the festival. Tentative plans are to have canoe and kayak races on Sat urday, Nov. 14. Both catego ries will include divisions for novice, expert and a business challenge. Single and tandem boats will participate in all races. The expert races will be sanctioned by the North Caro lina Canoe and Kayak Associa tion. The races will be open to the public. A registration fee of $10 per boat will be required. Local agencies, including Col lege of The Albemarle, and in dividuals are donating a lim ited number of boats for public use. A rental fee will be charged for those boats, said Bogus. The business challenge race will be similar to the format used in the America’s Cup Chal lenge, he said. “The winning business will keep the trophy for one year, just like the America’s Cup,” Bogus said, who is an avid kayaker and canoeist. See SOUND On Page 3-A 11-12 YEAR-OLD EDENTON ALL-STARS These are the 15 members and coaches of the Edenton all-star team which will compete in next week's tournament. See related story and picture on page 3-A. (Photo by Sean Jackson)
The Chowan Herald (Edenton, N.C.)
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July 8, 1998, edition 1
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