Saltillo Junior High District Track Win
Boys Team Results: Saltillo 139 Wildcats Golf in Regional Tourney
After day one of the Regional Golf Tournament at the Rockwall Golf and Athletic Club Monday, Wildcats Golf Coach Ross Funk said his team had a lot of work to do today. The Wildcats are in the thick of things. The top two teams advance to state along with the top two golfers from teams not going to state. The Wildcats are tied for sixth place after day one. Their 317 score ties them with Prosper and Nacogdoches for sixth.
Frisco shot 301 to lead. Mansfield Legacy and Lindale shot 307 each. Frisco Wakeland had 311 and Texas High shot 314.
Among individuals, Wildcats Brody Blackmon and Alex Motes both shot 73. They are tied for seventh but they are only two shots out of first place. Other Wildcats scores on day one were Matt Calhoun 82, Caleb Lewis 89 and Carter Lewis 92.
Round two Tuesday was delayed a bit due to some storm damage to the course.
Recent Theft of Livestock Arrest Could Lead to More Arrests and More Cattle Recovered
Special Ranger Tony Hurley said the recovery of 57 head of stolen livestock is just a tip of the iceberg in theft of livestock in the area and will probably lead to Francisco Ledesma and others being charged with engaging in organized crime. Hurley covers an 11 county area in Northeast Texas for the Southwestern Cattlemen’s Association.
Hurley stated that an individual working a dairy with a large number of cattle, say 3,000 head, and surrounded by other large dairies could steal a few head at a time and place them on leased land nearby. In this instance, the 57 head of stolen livestock were primarily heifers in the 200-pound range. He said the thief could then take the livestock, four or five at a time every other week, to sale and could do this for years before being caught.
Hurley stated that the theft of livestock carries more weight in the penal code than does ordinary theft. He said theft of livestock is a theft of livelihood for a rancher or cattleman. He noted that the theft of a newborn calf is a third degree felony. However, for the punishment to be increased to a second degree felony, at least 100 head of livestock must be stolen. If the owner of the livestock is over 65-years of age, the penalty increases again. Hurley pointed out that engaging in organized crime in the theft of livestock brings the highest level for charges.
Hurley works closely with law enforcement in the 11 county area that is his responsibility. He stated that when he received the information regarding the thefts, he immediately contacted Hopkins County Criminal Investigator Lewis Tatum who soon found the livestock. According to Hurley, local officers are often his strongest source for solving this type of crime. There are some cases that take much longer to solve. He stated there are still a couple of cases in Hopkins County that date to four years ago that are still under investigation.
SSISD School Board Discusses Possible Head Start Expansion Grants
During the action item presentations at the SSISD School Board monthly meeting on Monday night, Director of Head Start Hillary Young presented two grant application requests for the board to consider for approval.
The first request was for a partnership grant that would expand the Early Head Start program and allow for EHS to provide childcare. If approved by the school board, EHS would apply for the grant and if accepted the school district would then partner with a childcare facility in Sulphur Springs to provide early education for a younger age group in the community. Grant funding would be provided in 5 year cycles.
Board members were in favor of the option and voted to postpone a decision on the application submission until more information about the grant and expansion opportunity had been shared. The school board then voted to deny the second request for a grant that would expand SSISD Head Start services to other county schools in order to make a better decision on the EHS childcare partnership grant.
SSISD 2016 Budget Calendar Adopted
During Monday night’s SSISD School Board meeting, Sherry McGraw, SSISD Business Manager, presented the board with the 2016 Budget Calendar for the school district. The budget calendar is as follows:
- April 11- Board notified of Budget Calendar
- May 9- Preliminary Budget presented to Board
-revenue based on new template, but last year’s tax values and student counts
-expenditures based on last year’s budget, with payroll increases estimated and any new expenditures added - June 6- Preliminary Budget presented to Board
-(Preliminary because of employee turnover) - August 8- Board adopts 2016-17 Budget & Tax Rate
-certified values and final student counts used for revenue
-expenditures will include all changes to payroll, all campus budgets, and any new expenses that have been identified - August 26(noon)- Board approve 2015-16 Amended Budget
Less Stress: New Jail a Segment of Adams Legacy as Sheriff
A part of the 20-year legacy of Hopkins County Sheriff Butch Adams will be the building of a new jail. Adams credits county commissioners with much of the leadership, however, his team of investigators, deputies, jailors, and staff, which he calls his second family, not only necessitated the jail thanks to their diligent work but also assisted in making the current jail less stress for the sheriff.
Along with jail improvements, a new jail administrator, who is a retired warden and has 30 years’ experience in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, has continued the quality of work performed toward those who are incarcerated in the local jail, according to Sheriff Adams. Adams said the previous jail administrator desired to return to patrol which led to the hiring of Kenneth Dean. Dean’s experience as a warden and what he will learn through state jail standards training will well equip him to run the local jail.
Adams stated that six jailors added to the force by Commissioners’ Court has enabled a continued ease of service for the jail. With technology in place and the design of the building, inmates are better housed and confined.
The jail, built for 192 inmates housed 110 on April 12, 2016. Adams said the idea of contracting with other entities, such as housing federal prisoners, is a possibility. However, he stated that additional personnel and requirements have not motivated the county to pursue with great interest housing for other counties or entities.
SSISD School Board Meeting Briefs; Personnel Changes
The Sulphur Springs Independent School District School Board held their monthly meeting Monday night in the Administration Building board room.
During the public forum portion of the meeting, board members were presented with an update on the Civic Center auditorium renovation project by Charlie Wilson, supervisor for the project. Wilson told the board that they expect the renovations to be completed by mid-May in hopes of a children’s concert scheduled for May 15th being one of the first events in the newly renovated auditorium.
Board members were then presented with numerous administrative reports. Gina Wilder, Kathy Wright and Josh Williams reported on the spring District 15-5A UIL Academic competitions that SSES, SSMS, and SSHS students participated in and all three coordinators discussed ideas to improve the interaction between the three campuses to create more excitement and better results in future competitions.
Kimberly Williams presented a report on the 2015-2016 School Health Advisory Committee activities. Williams said that the committee’s involvement with the annual Kid’s Safe Saturday proved to be beneficial. Williams also presented the board with the new committee membership list for 2016-2017 that is composed of community members, SSISD students, parents of students, and school district faculty and the board approved the new members. Members of the School Health Advisory Committee (SHAC)2016-2017:
1. Heath Anderson –parent member
2. Veronica Arnold–SSISD-Food Services Director
3. Brittany Bales –SSISD-SSHS student
4. Tammi Carrell–SSIS-Athletic Trainer
5. Jill Dietze–parent member
6. Laura Kosub-Doughtie –parent member-local physician
7. Kathy Froneberger –SSISD-SSHS nurse
8. Debra Garner–SSISD-Bowie nurse
9. Amy Griggs–parent member
10. Traci Haire –parent member
11. Sidney Hawkins–SSISD-SSHS student
12. Johanna Hicks–community member-Ag Extension Agent
13. Abbey Martin–SSISD-SSHS student
14. Allison Martin–SSISD-Technology Dept
15. Shanna Martin–community member-Can Help Organization
16. Sylvia Millsap –community member-Dept of State Health Services
17. Susan Mooney –parent member
18. Shana Romero–SSISD-SSES nurse
19. Tenny Tanton –parent member
20. Liz Vice –parent member
21. Kimberly Williams–SSISD-Speech Pathologist
22. Robbin Vaughn–parent member
The board approved six action items during the meeting which included:
- an Instructional Materials Allotment TEKS Certification Form for 2016-2017
- a Head Start Priority Screening Instrument
- 2016-2017 School Health Advisory Council members
- an update to the local board policy for FFA
- engagement letter with Rutherford, Taylor & Company, P.C. to conduct audit services for the fiscal year ending August 31, 2016.
- 2016-2017 School Calendar proposals
During executive session, board members discussed and considered approval of 2016-2017 professional employment contracts, the hiring of Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education and State & Federal Programs, hiring of Director of Food Services, Principal of Travis Primary school, and other personnel to be employed or reassigned. The board also discussed 16 total resignations across 7 campuses (see below).
PERSONNEL
Professional employment contracts were approved, as recommended, for the 2016-2017 school year.
Resignations
Perla Molina Part-time Head Start Aide ECLC
Laura Cleveland SpEd Teacher Bowie
Yolanda Cleveland SpEd Aide Bowie
Delaina Russell Grade 1 Teacher Lamar
Maria Rivera Grade 1 Bilingual Teacher Travis
Brooke Doughtie Elem. Instructional Technology Spec SS Elementary
Maria Rodriguez Grade 3 Bilingual Teacher SS Elementary
Angeles Yanez Title I Aide SS Elementary
Diane Shipley 7th Gr. ELA Teacher Middle School
Marisha Harris Science Teacher High School
Allison Irvin SpEd Teacher/Coach High School
Johnny Irvin SpEd Teacher/Coach High School
Sandra McAndrew Counselor High School
Stacie Yarbrough Science Teacher High School
New Personnel
Josh Williams Asst. Supt. Secondary Ed/State & Admin Bldg
Federal Programs
Veronica Arnold Director of Food Services Admin Bldg
Michelle Wallace Principal Travis Primary
Christina Shadix SpEd Teacher Bowie
Natalie Martino Trainer Middle School
Justin Maness SpEd Teacher/Coach High School
Personnel Change New position/campus Former position/campus
Mariana Hernandez Pre-K Bilingual/ECLC Grade 2 Bilingual/Travis
Kaley Perry Science/High School SpEd Aide/Middle School
Retirement
Carol Worsham Principal Bowie
Jossie Jimmerson SpEd Aide Bowie
No Arrests, No Accidents in Winnsboro April 4-10
Winnsboro Police Department reports no arrests and no accidents during the seven days of April 4-10. They responded to 185 calls for service, issued 54 citations, and 51 warnings during the time.
Lady Cats Softball Rescheduled
Due to field conditions following rainfall Monday, the Lady Cats softball game originally set for Tuesday evening at 6, has been rescheduled. The Lady Cats, 7-3 in district play and 23-5 for the season will now play host to Mt. Pleasant at Lady Cat Park Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.
