,re CC^6’ r t\ Co"e«-e tea,nr.o^W' Gran’ wtoor°. M. 0485 8606 1 PAMLICO TECH cm , *'*B00? PO BOX 185 C°LLEGE grhntsboro NC 28529 Arapahoe students in grades K-4 presented the musical “Tall Tales and Heroes” Thursday night, May 29, under the direction of Betty Welch. The students sang and acted the stories of such legendary heroes as Johnny Appleseed and John Henry. A start was wade last week on preparing the new parking lot for the Pamlico Coun ty courthouse. The Department of Transportation was contracted to do the work. Commissioners Scrutinizing Budget Requests When the Pamlico County com missioners met last Tuesday night, May 27, to begin their review of the 1986-87 budget, they were faced with the task of cutting back expenses since the requests were almost $800,000 more than the proposed revenues. Although the boucd hAd directed, in their budget prepara tion guidelines, that no depart ments include salary increases in their proposals, fourteen did sub mit requests totaling $48,198. Revenues for 1986-87 are estimated at $3,229,735. Major sources are 1986 ad valorem taxes,$1,549,865; interest, $40,000; intangibles tax, $75,000; beer and wine tax, $29,000; one cent sales tax, $205,000; half-cent sales tax, $162,900; restricted half-cen|t sales tax (for the schools) $105,000; ABC stores, $20,000; building per mits, $14,696; re-inspection fees, $2,190; insulation permits, $3,675; electrical permits, $12,000; plum bing permits, $5,670; mechanical permits, $4,272; flood ordinance permits, $2,160; recording fees, $23,000; reproduction fees, $2,200; marriage licenses, $1,000; beer and wine licenses, $1,700; revenue stamps, $14,000; jail fees, $2,000; landfill (from Beaufort County), $41,149; and recreation fees, $7,200, Notably absent in the 1986-87 budget are appropriations from the general fund, fund balance and Pamlico Technical College fund balance and allocations to the Capital Reserve Fund set up several years ago for the school system s uuilding needs. Last year $576,499 came from the general fund’s fund balance and $4,754 from PTC’s Two hundred thousand dollars was placed in the capital reserve fund. This year, the budget for the governing body, which funds special projects of the commis sioners’, their salaries and memberships in various organiza tions, was $70,854. For 1986-87, the (SeeBUDGET, Page 10) The Jett Cowell Memorial Stadium at Pamlico County High School was sprigged with grass last week in anticipa tion of the fall football season. Aurora Tax Rate Set At 35 Cents AURORA-Finance officer San dra Bonner presented the town’s new budget to its board of com missioners at their regular mon thly meeting on Monday night. Bonner said that the budget, which will go into effect on July 1, is based on 35 cents per $100 valua tion on property within the Aurora city limits. Last year the base was 49 cents per $100 valuation but due to the revaluation of property in Beaufort County, the base rate has been lowered 14 cents. Bonner said that the largest ex pense in the new budget will be water plant repairs. The budget is on file at the town all for any in terested citizen to examine. The commissioners approved a motion made by Curtis Potter for the town to donate fifty percent of the cost of a new backstop at the Aurora ball field. The town’s share is not to exceed $1,500. An old town ordinance requiring businesses on Hwy. 33 to close on Sunday mornings between 10 am and 12 noon has been changed. These businesses can now remain open all day on Sunday because the churches are located at least 2 blocks away. The commissioners voted to participate in a workfare program proposed by the Department of Social Services. This program enables recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children (See AURORA, Page 9) Minorities Express Concern Over Lack Of Board Representation Minority citizens of Pamlico County Monday night, June 2, ex pressed their concern over the lack of black representation on the board of county commissioners and board of education and called for changes to be made in the way local officials are elected. Unless candidate Joe Himbry wins the run off Tuesday for the township 3 seat on the county com mission and subsequently defeats a Republican opponent in November, as of December there will be no black member on either board. Booker T. Jones, who is present ly serving on the school board but who lost his bid for re-election to the township 1 seat last month to C. Ray Poole, told the commis sioners that a “number of con cerned citizens and a majority of the minority (citizens) of this county have expressed con cern...about the inability of minorities to be elected to office.” Wanda Credle read a proposed resolution that stated that “the present system of at-large voting to elect county officials does dilute the minority voting strength and perpetuates voting among racial lines” and that similar election methods are being declared un constitutional. The resolution re quests that the law governing voting in Pamlico County, which was identified as House Bill 504, be changed so that a township representative would be elected by his own township only and not by the county as a whole. It also called for two at-large members to be added to the board of com (See CONCERN, Page 10) Vote On Bay River Sewage System Set For Sept. 16 Voters in the Bay River Metropolitan Sewerage District will go to the polls on September 16 to determine if they want $2.75 million in bonds sold to finance a sewage system that will stretch from Alliance to Vandemere to Mesic. County attorney Bernard Hollowell told the county commis sioners Monday night that the sale of the bonds had been approved. The system will also be financed by a grant from the Environmen tal Protection Agency and with state Clean Water bond monies. In addition, the county has allocated its share of Clean Water bond funds, which total $136,220 over a two-year period, to the project. On June 11, said Hollowell, the District board will meet and ad journ until June 30 when they will introduce the bond order. A public hearing will then be scheduled for July 21 with subsequent adoption. On July 23 and 30, the notice of referendum will be published. Voter registration books will close on August 18 with the actual elec tion set for September 16. Hollowell estimated that if the referendum passes, it will be three to four years before the system is operable. PJHS Principal Asks Board To Consider Closing School To Rec. Dept. Ball Games Pamlico County schools, the school board decided Monday night, June 2nd, will open on September 2nd tor the start of the 1986-87 school year and end on June 12,1907. The adopted calendar calls for a 2-week Christmas vacation begin ning December 22nd and ending January 2, 1907. The Easter holi day will start April 20, 1907 and end on April 24,1987. Snow days, if needed, will be made up during the Easter break. In addition, the calendar calls for 18 teacher work days of which 6 will mean no school for students. Also, the schools will be closed on Nov. 11th (Veteran’s Day) and Nov. 27t** and 28th for Thanksgiving. John Peterson, architect for the Anderson gymtorium, informed the board that plans and specifica tions for the building were com plete and that bids would be open ed on June llth at 2 pm. Peterson said that if the bids were accepted construction could start by August 1 with the facility being completed within 7 to 9 months. The 8-sided structure has 8,900 square feet and is expected to cost between 1404,000 and 1411,000 or approx imately (88.00 per square foot. John Hill, principal of Pamlico Junior High School, advised the board that he was having trouble protecting the integrity of the junior high school because of the drinking and vandalism associated with the softball games sponsored by the recreation department and held at the school. Hill said that supervision of the program is not consistent and that the situation doesn’t get better. He (&ee PJHS, Pa^ iO) Students Identified For Remedial Summer Program Although the state projected that one hundred Pamlico County children would need to attend summer school, based on April achievement test scores, only 25 children will be required to attend the summer session; they also have the choice of repeating the grade. The program addresses children in grades 3, 6 and 8 who scored below the 25th percentile on the April test. It does not in clude some of the exceptional children or those who have already repeated in their grade range. About 75 children were iden tified in the April testing. Those students were re-tested on the North Carolina Minimum Skills Diagnostic Test, leaving the 25. However, says Paul Delamar, director of instruction, since the state is providing $31,000 in funds for the summer session, which will run from July 7 to August 1, other students are being recruited to attend the classes including students who scored below the 25th percentile but are not re quired to go, students who scored between the 25th and 40th percen tiles and students who met the minimum standards when they took the second test. For the LD (learning disabled) students, the session could be im portant in that will help them “to maintain th|e gains they’ve made during the year so they won’t regress,” commented Delamar. Delamar said that several students in these categories have already signed up and the parents of others are being contacted by phone and letter. The seven teachers, Sandy Baluss, Lillian Sawyer, Sandra Harper, Marion Altman, Derwitt King, Carol Badger and Sandra Rice, are attending their training sessions this week. Altman, who is the assistant principal at Pamlico Junior High School, will be serv ing as lead teacher. All teachers are certified in their areas. Before the session starts, a Per sonalized Education Plan (PEP) will be prepared for each child, noting his weakness. Information for these is already being gathered, commented Delamar, and the PEP will follow the child into the next year. At the end of the summer ses sion, the child will be tested again, then the teacher and home prin cipal will determine if the child should be promoted. (See SUMMER, Page 10)

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