?^?? Sports Week tal i Community I nderdogs in ^R9H| BjfcT^ ;4lSJ Hospital plans driver'sseat in CIAA VI JV^^HI HjAft, ^H|| centennial events ? ? ? livjri^ a pjb tw i ? (jftssi ^biwhi ? ? ? ? Glenn pushes past | | B Fire safety takes Eden Morehead b? $?? A2 seecs center stage -XHE, Pup OMTn "E ^?Tc,-rv ? u. VI 1JW/1 >| IV I J IT, 660 W 5TH ST # Q W in*? v c ?. ?/?> - * WINSTON SAIjEH NC 27101-2755 ? llA 1 * by Kevin Walker Twana Clyburn, far right, and her son, Seth, did not waste any time before coming to the Dixie Classic Fair. They joined thousands of others Friday, the opening day of the fair. A tradition here in Forsyth County; the Dixie Classit Fair features a varied number of activities for people of all ages, from exhibits to gravity-defy ing rides. The fair also gives residents the chance to win prizes by testing their skills at various games. Here, Clyburn cheers-on Seth as he goes for a victory at this bowling game. The fair will end Sunday. For more pictures from the Dixie Classic Fair, see the Community Focus main page, C1. HAWS teens going into business for themselves Program gives youngsters hands-on lessons in business and success BYT KEVIN WALKER THE CHRONICLE Many teenagers dream of owning their own businesses when they grow up. But a group of young peo -1. .n. I 1 1 pic living ill uic nij a public housing com munities are not wait ing for puberty to kick ? in before they make 1 that dream a reality. ] The Housing J Authority of Winston- it Salem is working to 9 broaden its partner- I ship with an innova tive nonprofit group Lawrence that helps teenager* develop and ran their own businesses. HAWS sees the program as a way to give young people something worthwhile to do and. perhaps, a means to end the vicious cycle of poverty that many of the teens are on the tail end of. "I think this program lets them know that they can grow out of public housing and grow out of it fairly quickly." said Reid Lawrence, HAWS executive director. HAWS' partnership with KidCommerce USA is still in its infancy. Currently, only 17 teenagers are working with KidCommerce. a six-year-old agency that works with young people to develop entrepreneurial skills and profitable businesses. The HAWS teens run everything from vending machine operations to a charm school. Most of their business ventures have already or are expected to turn a profit, above and beyond the seed money provided by KidCommerce to jump-start the businesses. "We pretty much let them run with their own ideas." said Gary Robinson. KidCom merce executive director. "I think there are a lot of people who are surprised by what we are doing with these kids and that these kids are very well spoken and astute." The program KidComtneree offers is See KidCommerce on A9 | Photo by Kevin Walker Bobby Pearson hones his landscaping skills near the Kid Commerce headquarters, in the Happy Hill neighborhood. Grant may help end disparities in schools IBM money will help teachers come up with rapid solutions to solve students' learning problems BY T. KEVIN WALKER THE CHRONICLE The school system is hoping that a $1 million grant from computer giant IBM will help its efforts to completely close the achievement gap that exists between white and minority students jj in subjects such as Imath and reading. The grant was announced Tuesday afternoon during a news conference at Diggs Elementary School and will be used to develop software that will, among other things, help teachers formulate specially Wright designed lesson plans to target students' trouble areas. The initiative is part of IBM's Reinventing Education program, which strives to bring high-tech solutions to the fingertips of educators. IBM doles out about two dozen of the grants to school systems throughout the world, including grants to the Durham and Mecklenburg systems. "This Reinventing Education grant will provide the tools and resources to enhance the teaching and learning environment and to bridge the gaps between student assess ment and curriculum and instruction plan ning," said Winston Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Don Martin. IBM researchers and technologists have already met with local teachers from all grade levels to gauge their needs. The IBM folks will work with system officials to develop the " software, which will integrate information Martin such as students' test scores and educational data. The school system's assistant superin tendent of technology described how the software will help student achievement: "Imagine ty-tpcher being able to pull data that determTnes her students are performing below average on specific math skills. To address the deficiency, she accesses lesson plans that specifically address her students] needs." David Shellman said. Sec IBM on A4