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WEDNESDAY, Feb. 23,2011
Serving All of Person County Since 1881
Copyright The Courier-Times inc. 2011 All Rights Reserved
75c
Our 129th Year — No. 16
Roxboro, North Carolina
Two Sections — 20 Pages
www.personcountylife.com
'A great day in Person County'
Eaton announces expansion that will create 120-plus new jobs
By PHYLISS BOATWRIGHT
C-T Staff Writer
pboatwright@roxboro-courier.com
“It’s a great day in Person County.”
That’s how Economic Development
Commission Chairman Jim Stovall
began the Monday afternoon Eaton
Corporation announcement that the
company will invest $23.3 million and
add 120 jobs at its Roxboro plant over
the next four years.
Glenn McLean, Roxboro Eaton plant
manager said the day was exciting for
him personally as well as profession
ally. The Stanley County native and
N.C. State University graduate said he
and Eaton were grateful for the support
the City of Roxboro, Person Board of
County Commissioners and the state
offered to Eaton in its endeavor to bring
about a project here that wiU help reduce
emissions and reduce fuel consumption
Glenn McLean
in automobiles manufactured by the
company’s global customers.
McLean said that support, combined
with Eaton’s “talented employees” here,
was a major factor in the decision to
bring the project to Roxboro. “We have
some of the best employees in the world, ”
McLean said of his Roxboro team.
McLean said the plant was set to be
gin receiving equipment this week that
would be used to make the location a
“world class manufacturing facility.”
He said the project meant, “We need
to start hiring.”
But, said McLean, “we won’t hire
all 120 [additional employees] imme
diately.”
The positions will be added over two
years, he said. There are 179 employ
ees currently working in the Roxboro
plant.
Celebrating its 100th anniversary in
2011, Eaton Corporation is a diversified
power management company with sales
of $13.7 billion in 2010.
Eaton has over 70,000 employees
in 150 countries, with 3,400 of those
employees in 12 locations throughout
North Carolina.
The company has operated the plant
in Roxboro since 1965. Over the years the
facility has manufactured a variety of
components for the automotive industry
including tire valves and various engine
components.
Today, the Roxboro plant is focused
on manufacturing components for the
next generation of cylinder deactivation
and variable valvetrain systems that can
help improve a vehicle’s fuel economy
and reduce emissions.
State Rep. WA. (Winkie) Wilkins, D-
Person, said, “This is important news
for a rural community with high unem
ployment. Our top-notch workforce is
attractive to companies that are looking
to invest in and expand their operations
in our state.”
“Last fall, I listened carefully to the
campaign rhetoric in our area and
across the state,” Wilkins added Tuesday
in a phone interview. “I heard some can
didates refer to job creation incentives
as ‘corporate welfare.’
“I find that term to be very agitating, ”
Wilkins continued. “What you can count
on is that if we don’thave incentives like
One NC, like incentives from the Rural
Center and Golden Leaf, then small
counties like my home county have no
chance to attract jobs, create jobs and
retain jobs.”
“During these challenging economic
times, I welcome this effort to expand
business and bring jobs to Person
County,” said state Sen. Elite Kinnaird,
D-Orange.
To help facilitate the expansion, Eaton
was awarded a $100,000 grant from the
state’s One North Carolina Eund. This
fund provides cash grants to attract busi
ness projects deemed by the governor to
be vital to a healthy and growing state
economy. No money is paid up front
See EATON back page
Jim Stovall
Tim Chandler / C-T
LISTENING IN — A host of Personians and current Eaton employees listened attentively Monday to news of
an additional 120-plus jobs being added at Eaton's Roxboro facility on the Durham Road.
Photo by Progress Energy
TAKING A TOUR — Progress Energy employee Shaun Shotwell (back to camera) gives an
overview of the Roxboro Plant control room to Drs. Shxiao Wang and Jiming Hao.
Chinese officials visit Progress Energy plant
Progress Energy’s Roxboro
Plant welcomed a delegation
from China on Wednesday as
part of an official visit to the
United States to study methods
of reducing emissions from
power plants.
The US. Environmental Pro
tection Agency chose the coal-
fired Roxboro Plan! as an example
for the Chinese delegation of a
modern power plant operating
with state-of-the-art emissions
controls and good environmental
performance.
The three members of China’s
Ministry of Environmental Pro
tection who visited the Roxboro
Plant were: Dr. Jiming Hao,
See CHINESE back page
PCBOE approves update
to 2011-12 calendar
makeup schedule
Saturdays will be an option for making up days
By GREY PENTECOST
C-T Staff Writer
greypentecost@roxboro-courier.com
The Person County Board
of Education during its Febru
ary meeting voted to approve
an update to the 2011-12 school
calendar’s makeup schedule.
The revised schedule lists Dec.
22, Jan. 3, Jan. 2, April 6, June
7, June 8, April 9 and April 10 as
makeup days.
During discussion of the
calendar board member Ronnie
King suggested that the option
of making up days on Saturday
be indicated on the calendar, in
an effort to reduce the amount
of holiday and vacation days
the schools would have to use as
makeup days.
Person County Schools Supt.
Dr. Larry W. Cartner Cartner
said there was a provision for
that in the Person County Schools
administrative rules, and the fol
lowing language was addedto the
calendar: “If instructional days
are missed on a Monday, Tuesday,
or Wednesday due to inclement
weather or other circumstances,
the day may be made up on the
Saturday immediately following
the missed day, at the discretion
of the superintendent.”
Draft one of the calendar for
the 2012-13 school year was also
approved during last week’s
meeting. Schools and the public
were surveyed on which of two
drafts they preferred. Draft one
had the most “yes” votes at 78.5
percent and the second draft
received 21.5 percent positive
votes.
During last week’s meeting,
the board voted to approve that
PCS require technology instruc
tion to be a part of the continuing
education units (CEUs) teach
ers must earn to renew their
licenses.
PCS Human Resources Direc
tor Dan Holloman explained that
25 school representatives were
appointed to a committee late
last year to discuss developing
the requirement. The committee
members were surveyed, which
led to the recommendation that
as a local requirement, certified
personnel renewing their licens
es in June 2012 should have one
CEU (10 contact hours) in tech
nology as part of the 15 credits
required by the state. It was also
recommended that by 2014 and
beyond, personnel should have
two CEUs in technology.
Some board members were
concerned with the availability
of classes in which these credits
would be offered, and suggested
that the school system make all
the required hours available
See BOE backpage
C-T's Phipps claims NCPA sports coverage award
Greg Phipps
The Courier- Times garnered a second
place award in the North Carolina Press
Association’s 2010 News, Editorial and
Photojournalism Contest.
Greg Phipps, The C-T’s sports editor,
for over three years now, took second
place honors for his sports coverage.
The announcement was made last
Thursday at the NCPA’s annual awards
ceremony
The winning sports editions submit
ted by Phipps for j udging were from Dec.
9,2009 and Dec. 12, 2009.
Phipps began working at The C-T
on April 30, 2007 and is responsible for
all aspects of the publication’s sports
coverage.
“This is a well-deserved honor for
Gregfor all of the hard work and dedica
tion he has brought to this newspaper,”
C-T editor Tim Chandler said. “He has
earned the respect of coaches, athletes
and sports fans in the county with his
dedication to his profession.
“We are all very proud of Greg for
bringing home this honor,” Chandler
added. “We have no doubt that Greg will
likely contend for many more awards in
the future.”
Phipps said he was proud to earn
this year’s award and plans to continue
to provide sound sports coverage for
Personians.
“It’s a nice feather in our cap but
there’s always room for improvement,
and there are always things we can do
better,” said Phipps. “We’ll continue to
do our best to provide Person County
with the best local sports coverage pos
sible.”
Phipps, who grew up in Massachu
setts, earned a B.A. degree in English
from Keene State College in Keene, N.H.
in 1997.
He has also done graduate study in
English literature and in education at
Vermont College of the Union Institute,
formerly Norwich University in Montpe
lier, Vt. and at the University of North
Carolina at Wilmington.
He worked several years as a sports
and news correspondent in Vermont for
the Brattleboro Daily Reformer. He also
served as sports editor for the Deerfield
Valley News, an independent weekly, in
West Dover Vt.
Prior to coming to Roxboro in 2007,
Phipps covered sports for the weekly
Topsail Voice in Hampstead, near Wilm
ington.
Before moving to North Carolina
approximately nine years ago, Phipps
taught conversational English in Japan
and South Korea from 1999 to 2001.
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