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Dropout
answers
delayed
to May
Some Myers Park
High families are
seeking legal help
By Erica Singleton
FOR THE CHARIOTTE POST
Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Schools won’t report its inves
tigation into allegations of
student miscoding and
dropout coercion at Myers
Park until May, .
Meanwhile, parents of stu
dents allegedly forced out at
Myers Park are looking into
hiring attorneys, said Richard
Manners, a retired CMS coun
selor who is'working with the
parents.
Asked if that means a law
suit could result, Manners said
“There’s a good likelihood.”
Helms, Mulliss & Wicker
attorney Landis Wade, a Myers
Park graduate and parent
leading the investigation, pre
sented his findings Tuesday
in a closed-door meeting with
the school board. The panel
will finish reading the report
and perhaps make those find
ings public next month.
CMS Superintendent Peter
Gorman admitted in a March
press conference that a possi
ble strategy to force at-risk
students out at one school
may have spread to other
campuses. Following the
press conference, CMS estab
lished a telephone hotline on
March 30 for parents with
concerns their children were
coerced to drop out. The con
fidential line closed April 13.
CMS’s communications office
explained in a statement:
“Since the hotline just closed
... we are extending the inves
tigation to give the attorneys
time to review any new infor
mation and contact additional
families, if needed.”
While the hotline addressed
possible coercion, little has
been said about alleged mis-
codings, CMS officials have
been asked about the dis
trict's coding procedure, who
is responsible for determining
students’ status and who has
to approve, or sign them
before they are official.
The official response is:
“The registrar is responsible
for entering the code in the
computer for a student with
drawal. The coding is based
on information that typically
comes from the family of the
student, which is often passed
along to the registrar from a
school administrator or coun
selor. Dee Gibson, supervisor
of student attendance, uses
the information from the
school to prepare all school
reports to submit as a district
report on a monthly basis.
Ann Clark, regional superin
tendent for high schools, ver
ifies that a student is 16 years
old and eligible to be
dropped.”
Please see MAY/3A
With trust between ethnic groups lagging, Charlotte
leaders launch long-term initiatives for change
Communit
at crossroads
23216 Sl2 pi
B. Duke Library
100 Beatties Ford fid
Charlotte NC 28216-5302
POLL POSITION IN PALMETTO STATE
PHOTO/CURTIS WILSON
Johnson C. Smith University officials Karen Lawler, Calvin Banks, Angela Jeter and Kenneth
Westary listen to speakers at Tuesday's Crossroads Charlotte press conference. JCSU
launched initialives fo tutor at-risk public school students and expand its Saturday Academy.
( I Organizations are
(doing work
important to their
organizations, but
they are (doing it in
collaboration with
other organizations,
which brings a sort
of mutual
accountability, f f
Community Building
Initiatives director
Dianne English
By Erica Singleton
FOR THE CHARLOTTE POST
Organizations representing
business, education, and
communities announced
Tuesday initiatives geared to
build access, inclusion and
equity across Charlotte.
The programs are part of a
community initiative named
Crossroads Charlotte which
called on groups to respond
to four possible stories about
the year 2015 and the kind of
community that might take
shape.
“Years ago w€ developed a
representative listing of major
for profit, not for profit, educa
tional, governmental, faith
based, and media organizations,
to come together," said Dianne
English, executive director of
Community Building Initiative,
which manages Crossroads
Charlotte. “The companies had
to decide whether to continue or
opt out; 35-plus opted to stay
in.”
Announcements were made by
team leaders and representa
tives of 15 organization, includ
ing Bank of America, Charlotte-
Please see INmATIVES/2A
Huntersville mothers of invention
in national spotlight for produet
Clinton Obama Edwards
Former first Freshman Native son
laciy leads U.S. senator has some
among S.C. in second catching
Democrats place. up to do.
33% 26% 21%
SOURCBBARRINGTON BROADCASTING-ZOGBY POLL
Slakes
high ig
Democrat
debate
In S.C., focus is on large
African American base
By Herbert L. White
herb. wHife@fhechafi(3 ttepost.com
Cardero Gilliam is leaning toward support
ing U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton for president, but
the former first lady can’t count on his vote
just yet. He wants to hear Clinton - and any
one running against her - talk about issues
important to African Americans.
"It’s not in stone by any means," said
Gilliam, a Rock Hill Democrat. “Anybody
could come out of the woodwork if they’re
. talking about what’s important to us.”
Tonight’s Democratic debate at South
Carolina State University in Orangeburg is the
latest round in a campaign dominated by
Please see S.C. CAMPAIGN/SA
U.S. businesses
keep food from
Africa’s hungry
By Grace Akinrinade
NATIONAL NeWSPAPEf? PUSUSHER5 ASSOCIATION
U.S. aid programs that feed the hungry in
Africa have been hamstrung by rules created
for American agribusiness, which put Africa
in the paradoxical situation of waiting up to
six months for food from America because
they are not allowed to eat of their own stock
piled food.
Under American law, virtually all food
given as aid must be grown in the United
States, which means it has to be shipped out.
Thomas Melito, director for international
affairs and trade of the Government
Accountability Office, said in cin interview:
See U.S. BUSINESS/2A
By Herbert L. White
berb. while@fhechariotteposf.com
George Washington Carver
invented new uses for the
peanut. Garrett Morgan cre
ated the traffic signal.
Deborah Mance helped
design the ultimate scrap
book aid.
Mance and co-inventors
Mary LaValley and Pam
Hester are the brains'behind •
a magnetic scrapbooking
system in “Everyday
Edisons," a reality show that
debuts nationally at 7:30
p.m. Sunday on PBS. It can
be seen in Charlotte on
WTVI (channel 42).
Like most inventions, the
Arccivo system was an idea
born out of necessity.
Returning from- a 2003
scrapbooking show in
Myrtle Beach, Mance,
LaValley and Hester pon
dered how they could hold
materials in place until they
could be mounted perma
nently.
"We’d talked about scrap
ping and we said we’d love
to bring something to the
market,” said Mance, a
Huntersville resident and
reimbursement manager
and Medicare educator at
Please see MOTHERS/3A
BOUNCING BRAIN PRODUCTIONS
Mary LaValley, Pam Hester and Deborah Mance (from
left) are inventors of a magnetic scrapbooking system
highlighted on “Everyday Edisons” on PBS.
Wake Forest professor
talks about religion s
divisive power/5B
INSIDi
LifelB
Religion 56
Sports 1C
Business 6C
A&E1D
Classified 3D
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