KINGS MOUNTAIN
a ey
ERE Sm
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Since 1889
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See page 1B
Thursday, July 6, 2000 Vol. 112 No. 27
INSIDE
SPORTS
A
3 Friday
KM girls going
to state tourney
Kings Mountain's 10-12
year-old Dixie Youth
pitch softball team won the
fast-
rulings give
KM new hope
By GARY STEWART
Editor of The Herald
District Tournament last
weekend at Kings Mountain's
Deal Street Park and will
compete in the State
Tournament July 12-16 in
Locust. 6A
PEOPLE
Jane Kiser notes
20th year in KM
Jane Campbell Kiser is cele-
brating her 20th year as a
dance instructor in Kings
Mountain. During that time
she has taught over 3,700 girls
to dance and has also helped
them prepare for local and
state beauty pageants. 3A
S-year-old helps
save father’s life
Five-
| year-old
Taylor Birt
of Kings
Mountain is
credited
with help-
ing save her
father’s life
after he had
a reaction to
a wasp
sting. The youngster called
911 and doctors at a local hos-
pital said if she had waited.
five more minutes it would
have been too late. 5A
COMMUNITY
Bloodmobile today
at Grace Methodist
Because of extra demands
during holiday periods and
the usual decrease in dona-
tions during the summer
months, The Cleveland
County Bloodmobile is in dire
‘need of blood. All eligible
donors are urged to give
Thursday from 1:30-6 p.m. at
Grace United Methodist
Church in Kings Mountain.
5A
History Channel
premier at KMNMP
The History Channel will
premiere its new production
on the Battle of Kings
Mountain Saturday night at
. the KMNMP auditorium. All
proceeds will go to the
Brigade of Friends for fund-
ing of special projects. 5A
KM Senior Center
lists new activities
Kings Mountain area senior
citizens have a full slate of ac-
tivities to choose from during
the months of July and
August. 9A
Real to Reel |
"at Arts Council
The Cleveland County Arts
~ Council will hold its Real to
Reel video festival July 17-22.
10A
Three surprise rulings late
Friday gave Kings Mountain
School officials renewed hope
in their fight to prevent a merg-
er of the Kings Mountain,
Shelby and Cleveland County
school systems.
The three rulings - by the
BM FESTIVE FOURTH
State Court of Appeals, Wake
County Superior Court, and the
U.S. Department of Justice -
came within a two-hour time
period as county officials were
preparing for the official mid-
night merger of the three sys-
tems.
On the previous.evening, the
recently-appointed interim
school board of the new
Cleveland County Schools had
unofficially selected Cleveland
County Supt. Dr. Gene Moore
as its superintendent, and Kings
Mountain’s Bob McRae and
Shelby’s Cliff Wilson as deputy
superintendents.
But the action of Friday after-
noon, which could hold off
merger for at least 60 days,
voided that plan for at least the
time-being, and along with ac-
tion taken on Monday by the
Gaston County Board of
Education virtually assures that
all students will continue in
their present schools for at least
another year.
The Gaston County Board,
which had earlier expressed de-
sire to have the 183 Gaston
County students who live in the
Kings Mountain city limits, vot-
ed that if and when merger oc-
curs they would allow the KM
GARY STEWART / THE HERALD
Kings Mountain Mayor Rick Murphrey dressed as Uncle Sam to officially open the city’s
independence Day celebration Tuesday at Deal Street Park. Mayor Murphrey stood on top of °
the YMCA to deliver a short patriot speech and lead the countdown to the city’s annual Fourth
of July fireworks extravaganza.
School merger on hold
students to continue attending
Cleveland County Schools upon
successful negotiation of fund-
ing with the new Cleveland
County Board of Education. If
the merger does not take place,
Gaston County students cur-
rently residing in Kings
Mountain city limits would
continue to attend Kings
Mountain District Schools.
Kings Mountain’s School
Board, which met Thursday af-
ternoon at Central School for
what it thought might be its fi-
nal meeting, referred to the
whole merger process as a
“roller coaster ride” in which
again
they had had more downs than
ups.
As the clock ticked closer to 5
p.m. Friday, the usual “getting
off” time for most court offi-
cials, their emotions reached
rock bottom.
But they quickly turned to joy
as first the Court of Appeals,
then the Wake County Superior
Court, and finally, at 4:55, the
Justice Department issued rul-
ings to hold off the merger until
- more information can be re-
ceived.
The Wake Superior Court is-
sued a 7-day restraining order
See Merger, 8A
KM Board
optimisti
By GARY STEWART
Editor of The Herald
Kings Mountain School
Board members greeted
Friday's news of another delay
of merger with mixed feelings.
Although all are happy that
there is a chance Kings
: Mountain will finally get its day :
i in court, the decisions obvious-
ly raised the question of
whether or not the action
would just delay the inevitable.
All are confident, though,
that Kings Mountain will win if
the Board can someday get a ju-
ry trial.
The decisions last week by
the Court of Appeals and Wake :
County Superior Court only
grant temporary stays until
judges can review earlier deci-
sions by judges in Cleveland
and Wake Counties. The Justice :
Department’s decision not to
pre-clear merger until it re-
ceives more information could
delay the merger for 60 days or
more, and if the Justice
Department denies pre-clear-
ance, the merger cannot take ef-
fect.
Melony Bolin, vice-chairman
of the KM School Board, said
the rulings are reason for “cau-
tious optimism” and could be
the stepping stone the system
See Optimism, 9A
: Tax decision
could cost
KM 3%300,000
By GARY STEWART
Editor of The Herald
With the anticipation of
merger of Kings Mountain,
Cleveland County and Shelby
schools on July 1, County
Commissioners adopted a bud-
get which calls for a huge rev-
enue increase and one county-
wide supplemental school tax.
Although the base tax rate of
62.7 percent remained un-
changed, the county will receive
millions of dollars of extra rev-
enue because of the recent
property revaluation which re-
sulted in an average increase of
18%.
Looking toward a single
school system, the commission-
ers set the supplemental school
tax at 16 cents per $100 proper-
ty evaluation. That's six cents
less than Shelby’s previous rate
of 22 cents, three cents less than
Kings Mountain's previous rate
of 19 cents, and six cents more
than Cleveland County’s previ-
ous rate of 10 cents.
See Budget, 8A
KM School Board approves contracts
The Kings Mountain Board of
Education approved a number
of personnel items at its called
meeting Thursday afternoon at -
Central School.
Susie Hughes, who formerly
taught in the Accelerated Lab at
Kings Mountain High, was
named Assistant Principal at
Kings Mountain Middle School.
She received a four-year con-
tract.
Former KMHS teacher Ronny
Funderburke, who had earlier
been named Assistant Principal
at the Middle School, was trans- -
ferred back to the high school as
Assistant Principal.
There, he replaces Steve
Moffitt, who will move to
Davidson School as a Physical
Education teacher.
Several other transfers were
approved. .
Danny McDowell, fourth
grade teacher at Bethware
School, will move to the
Accelerated Lab at Kings ~~
Mountain High School. He was
recently named the
. Mountaineers’ head men’s bas-
ketball coach.
Frankie Webster, formerly
clerical assistant at KMHS, will
become KMHS secretary replac-
ing Barbara Starnes, who re-
tired.
Tina Stewart, formerly a
teacher assistant, becomes sec-
retary at Davidson School; and
Tony Glenn, formerly a custodi-
an/bus driver, becomes a teach-
er assistant at Davidson.
Teacher contracts were
awarded to Judy Howell,
Guidance, North School; Donna
Cannon, Exceptional Children,
Middle School; Connie Bell,
Consumer Science (interim),
Middle School; Monica
Williams, Exceptional Children,
Bethware; Dana Drennan,
Elementary /Middle; and Jackie
Blanton, third grade, Grover.
The board accepted the resig-
nation of Tamara Allison,
Fourth Grade, North; Kevin
See Board, 10A
rs ey
GARY STEWART my THE HERALD
Dr. Larry Allen, center, chairman of the Kings Mountain Board of Education, makes a point
about the status of the Kings Mountain Board's lawsuits against Cleveland County
Commissioners and the N.C. State Board of Education at Thursday's called board meeting at
Central School. Left is vice-chairman Melony Bolin and right is Supt. Dr. Bob McRae.
9@
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