May 1,1997
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The Perquimans W
350
Vol. 65, No. 18
The only newspaper for and about Perquimans County people
Hertford, North Carolina 27944
Inside
PCHS athletes
attend Coach-
Captain retreat
in Raleigh
Page?
Bethei Rliritans
celebrate 50th
anniversary with
banquet
Pages
Teacher plays
bad guy in law
enforcement
lesson
Page 9
Worship In
Perquimans:
Anderson Methodist
Page 5
Perquimans County
an
All Of Us Care
‘ Community
, May’s theme:
Value and
enjoy our
environment
focusing on
Reduce, Reuse,Recyle
Conserve resources
Incorporate these Healthy
HABITS into your daily life and
help make our community a
better place to live!
For All of Us Care
information, contact
Dr. Randall L. Henion,
. Perquimans County Schools
426-5741
Fire insurance to drop
Hertford residents
to see fall in fire
insurance rates
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Hertford Fire Chief Sid
Eley is sounding the alarm.
Effective today, his depart
ment’s rating with the North
Carolina Department of
Insurance has improved.
Eley said the Hertford
department’s rating dropped
from a seven to a six, the
result of upgrades in equip
ment, other town upgrades
and good record keeping by
the department.
‘"This (rating) is very good
for a volunteer department,”
Eley said. “Normally, volun
teer departments cannot get
below a class five.”
The rating is not just a
number to put on paper. It’s
going to mean savings on fire
insurance for all residential
and commercial buildings
inside the city limits and all
those within 500 feet of a
Hertford fire hydrant.
A check with some local
insurance agents indicates
that the owner of an average
wood frame valued at $50,000
can expect to see savings on
fire insurance of about $80
per year. Eley said he was
told by an insurance agent
that the new rating brings
fire insurance premiums to
the lowest rate possible.
Eley said the state insur
ance department will notify
insurance companies of the
change. The companies in
return will contact their cus
tomers and notify them of
premium adjustments.
The state is supposed to
complete a fire inspection on
all departments every 10
years, Eley said.
School board
okays local
budget request
A Moment in Time
PHOTO BY SUSAN HARRIS
Hollywood had nothing on Hertford Saturday evening when dashing young men escorted glam
ourous young women to “A Moment in Time,” the theme of the annual junior-senior prom.
Outside, the local papparazzi, also known as parents and friends, lined up to watch and take pic
tures as couples made their way to the prom entrance.
It’s off to work we go for 5th grade
Central Schools
participates in
Take Your Kid to
Work program
No child labor laws were
violated last Thursday when
all the fifth graders at
Perquimans Central School
were put to work.
As a spinoff of the Ms.
Foundation’s Take Our
Daughters to Work promotion,
Central school sent their
young charges to work with
their parents or with mentors
in a program called Take Your
Kid to Work.
The program is designed to
prepare students for the 21st
century workforce. An imme
diate short range goal of the
program is to prepare students
for the transition from elemen
tary to middle school. A long-
range goal is to prepare them
for the transition from school
to work, whether this transi
tion takes place immediately
after high school, college, tech
nical school or the military. It
was coordinated by Anne
White, Director of Student
Services, and Central School
principal Gary Stubbins and
guidance counselor Stephanie
Mancini.
“When I was growing up, I
spent a lot of time dreaming
about my future,” White said.
“A large percentage of our stu
dents seem to have stopped
dreaming or thinking about
their futures altogether. We
hope to motivate students to
become excited about learning
by showing them the relation
ship between what they learn
in school adn what they will
need to know to become pro
ductive citizens in the 21st cen
tury workforce.
“For the first time in our
history, it really is imperative
that all students learn,” White
continued. “The number of
unskilled jobs are continuing
to decline while the number of
skilled jobs are increasing.
When we combine welfare
reform with the decline in the
number of unskilled jobs, stu
dents who are not prepared
will have no place to go.”
In addition to the parents
who served as work mentors
for the day, some students
spent time with ECSU
Chancellor Mickey Burnim,
principal Yvonne Walton,
counselor June Riddick,
District Court Judge J.C. Dole,
Chamber of Commerce
Director Sandra Smith, COA
Dean Lynn Hurdle-Winslow,
Perquimans librarian Jeri
Oltman, Perquimans Weekly
Editor Susan Harris, and
Pioneering Success students at
Perquimans High School.
Sheriff worried about domestic violence
Abuse in the
home is on the
rise, Lane said
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Perquimans County Sheriff
David Lane sees a trend in
Perquimans County that con
cerns him — an increase in
domestic violence calls.
“It’s beginning to worry
me,” Lane said Monday. “We
get calls every week, two or
three a week. One day recently
we had two calls in one day.”
One of the most disturbing
aspects of domestic violence,
Lane said, is that victims often
feel trapped for economic and
safety reasons. Some fear that
they will be unable financially
to provide for their children’s
basic needs without the
income of the abuser. There is
also the fear that if the victim
takes legal action against the
abuser, there will be further
abuse as a consequence.
Lane said often law officers
arrive at the scene of reported
domestic violence and find
that the abuser had fled the
scene. On other occasions, the
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
The Perquimans County
Board of Education is ready
for its May date with the coun
ty commissioners after
approving its local budget
request last Monday.
School officials will ask the
county to okay over $1.3 mil
lion in current expense and
$250,000 in capital outlay.
Local funds in the amount
of $325,066 are being requested
for employee salaries. County
funds are used to cover the full
salary of some employees and
a portion of the salaries of oth
ers. Salary line items break
out as follows:
$127,461—maintenance staff.
$77,480—custodial staff.
$25,606—instructional sup
port staff supervisor.
$17,410—maintenance, cleri
cal.
$12,404—executive adminis
tration, office personnel.
$12,079—fiscal services,
office personnel.
$10,688—office personnel/
SIMS.
$10,000—superintendent.
$8,356— principals and
assistant principals.
$7,400—band director.
$6,479—athletic director.
$5,000—assistant superin
tendent.
$2,540—instructional sup
port, assistant.
$2,163—mechanics.
In addition to salaries, the
budget includes $112,133 in
total local supplements.
Broken down by depart
ment, the school board is ask
ing for:
• Operation of Plant
$438,619. The largest budget
category, over half of this
department’s budget is for
electricity ($254,389). Fuel for
facilities adds $34,000 and
other utilities, $7,500.
Custodial salaries account for
$77,480, while custodial sup
plies are expected to cost
$45,000. Waste disposal, incen
tives, travel and uniform
rental make up the rest.
• Maintenance of Plant
$295,121. Almost half of the
budget ($144,871) is for
salaries. Contract repair,
parts, materials, uncapitalized
equipment and asbestos/
waste/water/pest manage
ment expenses account for
$138,000. Vehicle liability
insurance, travel and office
expenses total $12,250.
• Executive Administration
$96,304. Under this heading is
$28,304 in salaries and supple
ments, $16,500 for maintenance
contracts and repair, $6,500 for
superintendent vehicle
allowance, $10,000 for tele
phone, $8,500 for reproduction,
$5,500 for incentive pay and
$2,500 for assistant superinten
dent vehicle allowance. Office
expenses and professional pub
lications are included here.
• Employee benefits $96,002.
This covers social security,
retirement, hospitalization,
worker’s compensation, annu
ity, and longevity. In addition
to this line item, $15,929 in
employee benefits is reflected
in other departmental budgets.
• Regular Instruction
$84,979. This includes $10,000
for mobile classroom rent at
Central School. New to this
year’s request is $4,000 for
teacher awards/ incentives.
• Board of Education
$77,215. This category calls for
$10,500 in board member com
pensation, $11,000 in attor
ney/legal fees, $11,000 in audit
fees and $10,000 for member
ship dues and fees. Board
member travel, insurance,
police protection, cultural arts
and other services are also
funded in the budget.
• Office of the Principal
$45,817. Almost $30,000 of this
budget goes for salaries and
supplements, with the remain
der covering office expenses
and travel.
• Athletic Programs $39,960.
These funds cover the partial
salary and benefits of the ath
letic director, coaching supple
ments, student insimance and
telephone.
• Instructional Staff
Support $36,871. Over $32,000 is
for salaries and supplements.
• Transportation $36,613.
The largest chunk in this
department is $13,000 for bus
drivers supplement and over
time pay not covered by the
state. It includes athletic trav
el, gas, parts, travel, training,
contract transportation, equip
ment and drug testing.
• Performing Arts Program
$23,266. Departmental expendi
tures cover partial salary and
full local supplement for band
director, contracted interim
instructors, travel, repair, sup
plies and equipment for band
and chorus, and the local
share of employee benefits.
• Community Schools
$18,300. The largest chunk of
this category is for printing.
• Fiscal Services $13,729. All
of this request is salaries and
supplements.
• Occupational Education
$12,000.
• Evaluation-Information
Services $4,500. This covers
recruitment expenses.
Among the items included
in the capital outlay budget
are $110,000 for roofing, $7,500
for exterior doors, $17,000 for
termite treatment and $15,000
for improvements to Memorial
Field at the high school;
$25,000 for sewer line and
storm drain repair and $15,000
for upgrading the old band
room for use as an alternative
classroom at the middle
school; $7,000 for fuel tank
removal at two scools; $8,000
for maintenance equipment;
$2,500 for installing CB radios
on school buses and $43,000 for
an activity bus.
situation has calmed down and
the victim denies that any
abuse took place. Then there
are those times when the vic
tim admits being abused, initi
ates legal proceedings, then
either doesn’t show up in
court to testify or tells the
prosecutor on court day that
she will not testify.
One of the saddest conse
quences of domestic violence,
Lane said, is that it tends to
perpetuate itself through the
children who live in homes
where it occurs. He said a
Please see ABUSE, page 8
Outside
High:
Low:
High:
Low:
High:
Low:
70s
50s
70s
50s
70s
50s
CHANCE OF RAIN
MOSTLY SUNNY
PARTLY CLOUDY