The
QUIMANS
EEKLY
"News from Next Door"
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 16,2023
$1.50
@ SCAN ME
Page 6
Turner, others
denounce voucher
expansion at
Cooper event
Page 7
Davenport
customizes
hats at Whiskey
Bent Design
Page 6
NCSA ag
major Jackson
awarded
Rufus Harrell
Scholarship
Four Perquimans schools receive Cs on reportc^rds
Perquimans
Middle met its
growth target, HGS
exceeded target
REGGIE PONDER
StaffWriter
HERTFORD — Super
intendent Tanya Turner
said the latest perfor
mance results for Perquim
ans County Schools show
the district has been resilient
and bounced back from the
challenges of the pandemic.
In the Perquimans
County Schools, all four
schools — Perquimans Cen
tral School, Hertford Gram
mar School, Perquimans
Middle School and Perqui
mans County High School
— received grades of C.The
high school did not meet its
expected growth target, but
Perquimans Middle met its
expected growth target and
Hertford Grammar School
exceeded its expected
growth target.
“Overall, Perquim
ans County Schools is very
pleased and proud of our
performance results,’’Turner
said. “Once again, our school
system has no low perform
ing schools which is remark-
able following the learning
loss that occurred during the
pandemic.”
Turner noted that K-2
reading reading proficiency
at Perquimans Central
School exceed the numbers
for the state and region. Also
at that school, each grade
level “experienced tremen
dous growth,’’Turner said.
Hertford Grammar
School increased its per
formance grade and also
exceeded growth.
“Hertford Grammar
exceeded the regional aver
age in all tested areas and the
state average in six of seven
tested areas,"Turner pointed
out. “Perquimans Middle
School also improved their
School Performance Grade
and met growth at a higher
rate than last year. The mid
dle school was also higher
than the regional average in
all tested areas and higher
than the state average in four
of seven tested areas.”
Although Perquimans
High School did not meet
growth, it maintained its C
grade and exceeded the state
and regional average for
graduation rate,Turner said.
Also, 100 percent of the stu
dents identified as “concen-
trators”in career and tech
nical education fields grad
uated last year, and Turner
pointed out that exceeded
the state goal of 98.2 percent.
“The high school also
exceeded the regional average
in eight of nine tested areas,”
Turner said. “I am very proud
of our staff and students’
commitment to ‘Every Child
Every Chance Every Day.’
We are blessed with a won
derful school system, staff,
students, and community.”
Elsewhere, the Eden
ton-Chowan Schools was
added to the state’s list of
“low-performing” school
districts based on the most
recent N.C. Department of
Public Instruction report on
state-mandated testing.
More REPORT | A3
SALUTING BEST OF THE BEST
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
American Legion Post 126 honored local emergency responders during a ceremony Monday night. Pictured (l-r) are shift
supervisor Wayne Jordan, who was named Emergency Medical Professional of the Year; James Roy Beard of the Inter-
county Volunteer Fire Department, who was named Firefighter of the Year; shift supervisor Na'Kindra Downing, named
Emergency Telecommunicator of the Year; and Investigator James Fowden of the Perquimans County Sheriff's Office,
who was named Law Enforcement Officer of the Year.
Hertford awarded
$180K grant for
wall, boardwalk
Legion honors top emergency responders
Town to seek
lower price for
kayak rentals
REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
HERTFORD — Hert
ford officials have taken
two steps forward in their
efforts to improve access
to the town’s riverfront.
Town Manager Janice
Cole told Town Council
Monday night that Hert
ford has been awarded
a $180,000 grant by the
U.S. Economic Develop
ment Administration for
design of a retaining wall
and boardwalk, both of
which are key features of
Hertford’s Riverfront and
Community Development
Plan.The grant calls for
Hertford and Perquimans
County to each pitch in
$60,000 toward the proj
ect’s overall $300,000 cost,
Cole explained.
In addition,Town
Council authorized Cole
to negotiate with rent,
fun for a lower price for a
planned kayak rental pro
gram at the river. Council
voted last month to con
tract with rent.fun to offer
kayak rentals to the pub
lic at a cost of $25 for two
hours.
But town officials noted
Monday that nearby
Edenton rents kayaks for
$5 an hour.
Post 126 nominates
four for state awards
REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
HERTFORD — Amer
ican Legion Post 126 is
nominating three Perquim
ans County first responders
for statewide awards in rec
ognition of their service.
Investigator James
Fowden of the Perquimans
County Sheriff’s Office has
been named Law Enforce
ment Officer of the Year for
Perquimans County and his
name is being forwarded
to the North Carolina
Department of the American
Legion as a local nominee for
the state’s Law Enforcement
Officer of the Year.
Emergency Medical
Services shift supervisor
Wayne Jordan was named
Perquimans County Emer
gency Medical Service Pro
fessional of the Year and
nominated for the state
award. Also, James Roy
Beard of Intercounty Vol
unteer Fire Department
was honored as Perquimans
County Firefighter of the
Year and nominated for rec
ognition as the state’s Fire-
fighter of the Year.
More AWARDS | A3
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
American Legion Post 126 Adjutant Gary Kollman recognizes
Reginia Sebastian as local Legionnaire of the Year.
More GRANT | A3
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Ralph Warfield displays his 1964 Ford Falcon at the car
show that was part of the Indian Summer Festival on
Saturday, Sept. 9.
Tennis boosters: Name courts for Key
Key, who died in February, celebrated
as local tennis lover, Hertford booster
REGGIE PONDER
StaffWriter
HERTFORD — Eden
ton’s tennis community is
rallying behind a proposal
to name public tennis courts
in nearby Hertford for
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Hertford booster and ten
nis lover Tony Key, who died
earlier this year in an auto
accident in Virginia.
Kermit Nixon, a ten
nis player and instructor
and a leader in the Eden
ton-Chowan Tennis Asso
ciation, told the Per
quimans County
Board ofCommis-
2 sioners last week that
the ECTA is request
ing that the new pub
lic courts at the Per
quimans County
Recreation Center be
REGGIE PONDER/THE DAILY ADVANCE
The Chowan Tennis Association has asked the Perquimans
Board ofCommissionersto name the new tennis courts at the
Perquimans County Recreation Center for Tony Key, a long-
time Hertford resident killed in a traffic accident in February.
named in memory of Key.
Nixon said he enjoyed
playing tennis with Key
and appreciated his sup
port of tennis throughout
the area. He also described
Key as an excellent
ambassador for Hertford,
noting that Key would tell
people everywhere he went
that they should visit the
town.
More KEY | A3
Indian Summer
Fest draws over
3K to Hertford
Fest featured food,
music, street dance,
games, car show
REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
HERTFORD — Mak
ing new memories and
reliving old ones brought
an estimated 3,000 resi
dents and visitors to down-
town Hertford this past
weekend for the Indian
Summer Festival.
Following a Friday
night, Sept. 8, street dance
that featured music by the
band Night Years, the fes
tivities resumed Satur
day morning, Sept. 9, with
family-friendly activities
and mpre than a hundred
vendors.
The festival is pre
sented by the Perquimans
County Tourism Authority
with support from various
county and town agencies.
More FESTIVAL | A3