10B
York/CI)e Cljarlotte ^osit/Rowan
REGIONAL
THURSDAY, JANUARY 16, 1997
Salisbury police cruise with video
By Brian Powe
FOR THE CHARLOTTE POST
SALISBURY - A video revo
lution has come to the
Salisbuiy Police Department.
Late last year, officers start
ed riding with some new
equipment - small cameras
and monitors nestled in patrol
MLK
day for
kids
Salisbury goes
all-out Monday
By Brian Powe
FOR THE CHARLOTTE POST
SALISBURY - The Salisbury
Parks and Recreation
Department is sponsoring a
celebration for local youth
Monday to commemorate the
birth of Martin Luther King
Jr.
The day of activities, called
Kid’s Day Out, will be held at
the Miller Center Monday
from 1-5:30 p.m.
There will be a number of
fun-filled activities designed
for kids who represent various
elementary and middle schools
in the area to enjoy.
The event, which is free to
the public, has been set apart
only for those children from
kindergarten to eighth grade.
Debria Pemberton, a recre
ation aid at the Miller Center,
says that the programs were
designed with specific purpos
es in mind which originally
stem from incorporating some
thing that will give kids posi
tive things to do on holidays.
“It’s just something for them
to do that is positive and away
from street life,” she said. “It
will hopefully keep them off
the street and in a safe sur
rounding while most of their
parents are at their jobs.”
Officials are calhng for as
many participants as possible
to fellowship with other kids
during the celebration of
King’s birthday.
To make sure the day is filled
with games and attention-get
ters, recreation aides have
organized tournaments in sev
eral sporting events.
There will be pool, basketball
and board games. In addition,
for creative youngsters, there
See MLK on page 11B
cars.
According to Salisbury Police
Captain David Belk, the cam
eras are proving to be a handy
crime-fighting tool.
“We steuted asking for them
about five years ago,” he said.
“Other cities were doing it and
officers were carrying their
own mini-recorders. We use it
for police and for the public’s
protection.”
Although there are only four
cameras and three color moni
tors in use now, Belk said eight
patrol cars are equipped to
handle the technology. The
cameras are designed to fit
just below the rear-view mir
ror. The monitors are placed
by the radio while a VCR
records the necessary audio
visuals from the trunk.
Produced by New Jersey-
basedMobile-Vision, the cam
eras have popped up in sta
tions and patrol cars from
California to the Carohnas to
Canada.
According to Mobile-Vision’s
marketing director, Megan
Holleerg, there Eire some spe
cific reasons why the company
chose to make the instruments
for law enforcement officials.
“The company markets the
cameras as a help in getting
more guilty pleas and support
for officer testimony,” she said.
In operating the cameras and
S I
^ ■
i 4 1'-
C
-•f
• * y' I
A
m
w
B
PHOTO/BARBER-SCOTIA COLLEGE
Barber-Scotia College President Sammie Potts (left) accepts a check from Philip Morris Cabarrus Manufacturing Manager Greg
Cummings to help retire the school’s debt
Barber-Scotia gets a gift
By Herbert L. White
THE CHARLOTTE POST
Good news is finding a home
at Barber-Scotia College.
Philip Morris USA donated
$110,000 to the Concord school
last week. Company officials
made the presentation to
Barber-Scotia President
Sammie Potts on the eve of the
college’s removal from proba
tion status by the Southern
Association of Colleges and
Schools. Nearly all of the
money - $100,000 - will go to
the Revitalization Project,
which includes the elimination
of the deficit created between
1992-94 and expanding the
school’s academic offerings.
“This contribution will assist
the college towards meeting
the goal of fuUy eradicating its
$1.8 million deficit by the end
of the fiscal year,” Potts said.
The gift is “a great boost to
Barber-Scotia’s image building
as the local community wit
nesses Philip Morris’ support
of various programs of the
institution. Philip Morris con
tinues to be one of our major
local contributors. Our rela
tionship continues to be an
excellent partnership.”
Barber-Scotia’s turnaround
comes on the heels of a tumul
tuous three-year period in
which the school teetered on
the brink of bankruptcy. The
school has whittled down a
debt that approached $3 mil
lion, recruited Potts as presi
dent and stabilized enroll
ment, which convinced SACS
to upgrade Barber-Scotia’s
standing.
In addition to the grant,
Philip Morris contributed
$5,000 to The College
Fund/UNCF, which has a goal
of $67,823 and employees
pledged $2,930, to be doubled
with the company’s matching
gift program. The program,
which ends March 31, has
raised $41,710 for UNCF.
“Philip Morris strongly
beheves in giving back to the
community by supporting edu
cational and cultural pro
grams that enhance the quali
ty of life,” said Cabarrus
Manufacturing Manager Greg
Cummings. “We’re proud to
contribute to the renaissance
of Barber-Scotia. And we sin
cerely hope our gesture will
have an impact on current and
future generations of stu
dents.”
A list of
homecoming
activities
The inauguration of
Barber-Scotia College
President Sammie
Potts will highlight
homecoming activities
next week.
The week’s theme is
“A New Era of
Distinction and fea
tures Spirit Day, bas
ketball games and
alumni dances. A
schedule of events fol
lows.
For more informa
tion, call 789-2944.
See BSC on page 11B
S.C. conference
addresses concerns of
young black males
Mentoring program for youth
By Herbert L. White
THE CHARLOTTE POST
A Clover, S.C.-based organi
zation is gearing up for a con
ference to help black youth
face life’s challenges.
Brothers United For Change
will sponsor its third annual
Black Male Conference Jan.
24-26 at Clover Middle School.
The event is expected to host
more than 500 African
American youth from North
and South Carolina. 'The con
ference’s aim is to give young
sters a healthy outlook and
empowerment as well as dis
cuss social ills, such as drug
abuse, AIDS and crime, that
plague African American fami
lies.
Statistics back up BUC’s con
cerns. African American males
represent 66 percent of South
Carolina’s prison population
while representing 13.9 per
cent of the state’s general pop
ulation. Thirty-four percent of
black males in grades 8-12
dropped out of school inl995,
or one-third of black males
scheduled to graduate. The
leading causes of death among
African American males, who
have the lowest life expectancy
of any other segment of the
population, is homicide and
AIDS.
The conference, which is
open to the public, starts
See BLACK on page 11B
By Brian Powe
FOR THE CHARLOTTE POST
SALISBURY - A Rowan
County minister was recently
selected by the Salisbury
YMCA to head a new mentor
ing program for kids 6-15
years of age.
Rev. Charles Robert Street,
outreach director of the Adopt-
A-Youth program, says the
new organization program is
needed.
“It’s time we reclaim our
youth from the trifling
lifestyles that can be found in
the streets,” he said. “A pro
gram of this magnitude can
accomplish many positive
things in the lives of our chil
dren.”
Street, pastor of Smith Grove
AME Zion Church, believes
the program’s aim is to recon
struct the mindsets of
YMCA emphasis on prevention
Salisbury children.
“Once we capture the minds
of these youngsters we can
once again get them interested
in school, give them an opti
mistic attitude towards life,
thereby instituting a strong
sense of self-esteem,” he said.
Sandy Flowers, associate
director of the Salisbury
YMCA, said Street is a good fit
for the program.
“We thinks he’s going to be
super at this job. He has a
strong background,” she said,
“and he’s worked with other
YMCAs. He’s just perfect for
the position. We couldn’t be
happier.
“Our goal is to provide a car
ing role model for youth. There
Eire a lot of kids we’re trying to
reach. I really feel like there is
a definite need in Rowan
County for this service. It just
seems like the right thing to
do.”
Rowan-Salisbury school offi
cials and the YMCA will help
identify children who may
need mentors. The school sys
tem plans to serve as many
children as possible though
the kids who reach the pro
gram first will be those with
designated priority.
With the emphasis on pre
vention instead of interven
tion, human service agents
voted to focus on boosting
mentoring programs for youth
during the State of the Child
Conference held last May.
“We’re tr^ng to reach these
See MENTOR on page 11B
monitors, officers can either
rely on its technology to auto-
maticEdly run the machines or
do it mEmually.
The camera automatically
activates when the car’s siren
is turned on. The camera will
run automatically until the
officer shuts the system off.
See CAMERAS on page 11B
Going
back to
school
By Brian Powe
FOR THE CHARLOTTE POST
SALISBURY - Training min
isters to serve their congrega
tions Eind communities was the
focus of a recent conference.
The Institute of Church
Administration and
Management met at Hood
Theological Seminary in
Salisbury to address the prob
lem of untrained ministers.
More than 50 ministers from
Tennessee to Virginia were
informed about the various
intricacies of the ministry dur
ing the JEin. 6-10 conference.
ICAM, based in Atlanta on
the campus of
Interdenominational
Theological Center, was
designed to react to the chang
ing needs of the black church
universally. Its sole priority is
to improve the skills of minis
ters by maximizing the finan
cial means of the institution
(or church) as it continues to
serve the black community
and supply viable human
resources more effectively.
Albert J.D. A3Tner, Dean of
Hood Theological Seminary,
said ministers should receive
as much trEuning for service as
possible.
“The ICAM workshop is a
must in my opinion,” he said.
“It was simply superb.”
The Advisory Board of the
ICAM includes members rang
ing from bishops from denomi
nations such as the Christian
Methodist Episcopal, African
Methodist Episcopal, AME
Zion and the Church of God in
Christ, to presidents of Allen
University and
Interdenominational
'TheologicEd SeminEiiy.
On hand for the institute in
SEdisbury was the executive
director of the staff, Calvin
Pressley Eind assistEmt director
Lisa Rhodes.
Rhodes, who taught church
planning, instructed students
to follow the basic tenets of the
philosophy of leEiming while
participating in the program.
“These tenets must be fol
lowed to succeed in ministry,”
she said. “One must be moti
vated, involved, holistic, reten
tive, unique, and have the abil
ity to trEinsfer information into
similar situations faced in
hfe.”
Although ICAM charges
individuals a hefty fee for
instruction, ministers contin
ue to come from far and wide
to receive training.
Since 1989, ICAM has served
500 religious leaders, five dif
ferent theological institutions
(ITC, Howard University,
Virginia Union University,
Hood Theological Seminary,
and Union Baptist Theological
Seminary), and has put out
standing seminary students
into its Executive Internship
Program.
The Rev. Charles Tillett, one
of the ministers who attended
the Institute, said the knowl
edge is good.
“It was extremely enlighten
ing and thought-provoking,”
he said.