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Wednesday, November 23, 2011
SUV crashes into loaded school bus
Teacher wrecks
k
minutes earlier
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Thirty-one elementary
school students were taken
to the hospital after a sport
utility vehicle driven by a
ihan with a revoked driver’s
i license struck the bus they
were riding Monday morn
ing, police say.
As of late Monday morn
ing, all but two of the students
I had been treated'and released
from Chowan Hospital, ac
cording to Michelle Maddox,
spokeswoman for Edenton
| Chowan Schools. She added
that those two were expected
to be released soon.
“There were no serious in
juries reported at the scene
of the accident, however all
I of the students were trans
*
ported to Chowan. Hospital
for medical assessment. Par
ents of the students are being
notified,” Maddox said in a
press release after the crash.
Bus No. 101, driven by
Jackie Patrick Jackson, 50,
of Roper, was carrying stu
dents to White Oak and D.F.
Walker elementary schools
northbound on Virginia Road
when a southbound 1996
Jeep Cherokee rear-ended a
pickup truck and then veered
into the path of the bus at 7:25
a.m., according to Edenton
police. David Edward Holley,
21, of Edenton crashed into
the left front fender of the
bus in front of the Burger
King. Holley was also taken
to the hospital where he was
treated and released for a
head injury, police said.
Students aboard the bus
range from kindergarten to
the 5th grade.
“We got lucky in it ... a
bus full of young ’uns,” said
Edenton police Chief Jay
Fortenbery.
Holley has been charged
with driving on a revoked
driver’s license, failure to
reduce speed, driving on
an expired registration, ex
pired inspection, and driving
with fictitious license plates,
Fortenbery said. Other charg
es could be pending if the
vehicle’s owner cannot show
proof of insurance, Forten
bery added.
Minutes earlier at 7:21
a.m., a teacher at White Oak
wrecked her car on N.C. 32
north of town near Brayhpll
Road, according to the-N.C.
Highway Patrol. Trooper
Steven C. Heath said Dari
Dressier, 26, of Merry Hill
ran off the left shoulder of
the road and struck a ditch.
Dressier first ran off the right
See WRECK, 6A
STAFF PHOTO BY RITCHIE STARNES
Edenton police Chief Jay Fortenbery, left, watches for traffic as Edenton-Chowan School’s
transportation workers prepare to move Bus 101 after a 7:25 a.m, crash, Monday. Stu
dents headed to White Oak and D.F. Walker elementary schools were taken to Chowan
Hospital for treatment of minor injuries. A SUV veered into the path of the bus after the
driver rear-ended a pickup on Virginia Road.
Board
pitches
energy
plan
BOE, county hold
joint meeting
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
School leaders could
turn to Energy perfor
mance contracting as a
way to upgrade aging fa
cilities.
In Monday’s joint meet
ing between the Board of
Education and the Chowan
County Board of Commis
sioners, school officials
shared the concept of the
plan that would theoreti
cally spare the system,
as well as the county, the
fiscal strain of capital im
provements. Instead, the
energy savings would pay
for the project cost.
Adding to the appeal of
energy performance con
tracting, the service pro
viders guarantee the accu
mulated savings will cover
the expense, school leaders
explained.
“This is as far away from
a bad loan that a bank can
get,” said Superintendent
Allan Smith.
First, the school system
would need to incur a loan
for the contract between
$750,000 and $1 million that
could be paid back over 20
years or sooner. But, of
ficials agree the payback
should occur sooner to
avoid prolonged interest
fees.
“Twenty years is a long
time to incur debt,” Smith
said.
Currently Edenton
Chowan Schools pays
$450,000 annually toward
utilities for its facilities. At
a savings of 20 percent, the
system could save $90,000
yearly.
The single procurement
contract would include
engineering, construction,
I installation, and mainte
nance services aimed at
energy savings improve
i ments.
School board member
See ENERGY PUN, 3A
|l
6ib89<
02009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
mM
• • •
STAFF PHOTO BY THOMAS J. TURNEY
Edenton sophomore fullback Marcus Jackson (center) rushed for 123 yards and a touchdown in last Friday's loss
toTarboro.
Aces come up just short against state champs
Tarboro 28
Edenton 26
By CHIC RIEBEL
Sports Editor
It could have been one of the
greatest victories in Edenton
football history
Instead, the Aces’ 28-26 loss
to two-time defending 2A state
champion Tarboro in an East
ern Regional semifinal Friday
night before a standing-room
only crowd at Edenton will be
remembered as The One That
Got Away.
Edenton (11-1) held a 26-22
lead in the early part of the
fourth quarter, but the Vikings
(11-2) drove 71 yards in 10 plays
to take a 28-26 advantage with
7:08 left to play.
Starting the ensuing posses
sion on their own 11-yard line,
the Aces methodically moved
the ball down the field for 16
plays until Deshon Fleming was
stopped less than a yard short
of a first down on fourth down
at the Tarboro 29 to turn the
ball back to the Vikings with 40
seconds remaining on the clock.
“We felt like it was ours,”
Edenton junior linebacker Shaq
Holley said after the game,
working hard to fight back the
tears. “It seemed like it was
meant for us. We played our
hearts out against a good team.”
In a remarkably even game,
it was almost impossible to tell
which team had played in three
straight state title games and
which was making its first play
off appearance in three years.
Tarboro, which did not at
tempt a pass, finished with 242
yards in total offense while
■ Edenton had 293 rushing and 16
. passing. Both teams amassed
14 first downs and each lost two
fumbles.
“Our guys can hold then
heads high, they left it all on the
field tonight,” Aces coach Wes
Mattera said. “But it hurts when
you come up short like that.
Even more when you know we
should have won the game. Some
mistakes really hind us.”
Chief among them were a
See ACES, 6A
Bertie’s
lawsuit
dogs
Lamb
Group wants
closed-session tape
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Chowan’s recently hired
County Manager Zee Lamb
will be leaving Bertie CounJ
ty’s same job in much bettei
fiscal shape than when hg
arrived, but he’ll also leav^
behind a lawsuit aimed at
uncovering how he secured
a 42 percent raise without
taxpayers’ knowledge. ’
A group dubbed Friends
of Bertie filed suit April
7 against Bertie County
in an effort to force the re
lease of an audio recording
of the Aug. 17, 2009 closed
session meeting whereby
commissioners gave Lamb
a pay raise. Lamb’s em
ployment contract called
for a salary increase from
$101,725 to $144,000 and an
additional $9,000 annually
for travel expenses, up from
the original $3,000. Lamb’s
salary ranks second in
northeast North Carolina
behind Dare and ahead of
Beaufort.
It wasn’t until January
2011 when the School of
Government listed the sala
ries of the state’s public of
ficials that Lamb’s pay raise
became public. Since then,
Friends of Bertie have de
manded answers about
why commissioners grant
See LAMB, 2A
Perdue touts Career & College Promise
STAFF PHOTO BY THOMAS J. TURNEY
Gov. Bev Perdue speaks to students at John A. Holmes High School in
Edenton, Friday. ‘
' _ JLi*
; W--- '
Governor
visits Holmes
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Part of an effort to promote her Ca
reer & College Promise educational
initiative, Gov. Bev Perdue visited
John A. Holmes High School in Eden
ton on Friday to explain the basic
principles behind the plan.
After first proposing the initiative
in a State of the State address earlier
this year, Perdue officially launched
the program last week as another
alternative for students to get a head
start toward college or a vocation,
particularly during a distressed
economy when college tuition is less
affordable and when high unemploy
ment rates lead to stiffer job compe
tition. The program provides college
credit for some and job training for
others while they’re in high school.
Career & College Promise offers a spe
cific preparation that’s tuition free to
students and will become available in
the spring 2012 semester.
“It keeps you from having to pay
college tuition for a year,” Perdue told
the students. “It’s up to you if you’re
going to use this chance.”
According to education officials,
Career and College Promise offers
three “pathways” for students:
• College Transfer - Earn tuition
free course credits toward a four-year
degree through North Carolina’s
v;.. fv . ;4 See PERDUE, 6A