State
was expecting increase
of almost 1,000 students
The
10th-day enrollment report
Johnston County Public
Schools must file with the
N.C. Department of Public
Instruction shows a slight
drop in the number of
students attending
Johnston's schools: from
37,592 last September to
37,307 as of Tuesday.
The state had projected
Johnston's enrollment to
reach 38,482. Falling
short of that mark means
the county's school system
will see a reduction in
its initial allocation of
state funding this year.
Fewer students than
anticipated means fewer
teachers and support staff
will be required than what
was included in the
system's 2022-23 budget
adopted by Johnston's
Board of Education last
month.
While enrollment in all
Smithfield-area schools
accounted for 168 of the
county's overall loss of
285 students, Tuesday's
report showed a gain in
students attending
Smithfield-Selma High:
from 1,400 last September
to 1,498 this week.
All of Johnston's high
schools saw enrollment
gains: Corinth
Holders, from 2,131 to
2,212; Clayton, from
1,980 to 2,031; Cleveland,
from 1,770 to 1,875; West
Johnston, from 1,341 to
1,471; South Johnston, from
1,311 to 1,332; Princeton,
from 1,013 to 1,025; North
Johnston from 759 to 783.
VIEW the
10-day enrollment report
for all of Johnston's
traditional public
schools>
Johnston's
newest charter school
opens near Smithfield
American
Leadership Academy
Johnston – the county's
third charter school
geared up to become the
largest in terms of
enrollment – began its
first year of classes
August 30 with grades K-10
housed in separate
elementary and high-school
buildings (pictured
above).
Built and operated by a
small but growing chain of
charter schools started in
Arizona, the brand-new
campus is located beside
US 70 Business near Saint
Ann Catholic Church. It
has a Clayton mailing
address yet it's situated
within the Town of
Smithfield's planning and
zoning jurisdiction and
inside the Wilson's Mills
Fire District.
Approving plans for the
new school's construction
a year ago, the Smithfield
Town Council was told
enrollment is projected to
reach 1,950 after grades
11 and 12 are added for
the 2023-24 academic term.
(A report on enrollment so
far this year has yet to
be released.)
ALA Johnston is fielding
athletic teams like other
traditional high schools.
Its Junior Varsity
football team began
competition last month,
with boys soccer and girls
volleyball teams also
playing during the fall
semester. They're
competing as the
"Patriots."
Neuse
Charter School at
Smithfield and Johnston
Charter Academy at
Clayton have been
operating for several
years now. Enrollment at
Neuse Charter remains
about 900 students in
grades K-12, the school's
directors were told at a
recent board meeting.
Johnston Charter last year
reported enrollment of 728
in grades K-8.
Admission to charter
schools in North Carolina
is determined by lottery
without regard to place of
residence. No tuition is
charged. Charter schools
receive a per-pupil
allotment of state funding
the same as public
schools.
School
board finalizes two
recruitment campaigns
The
Johnston County Board of
Education approved details
of two new incentive
efforts for recruiting
staff at all levels during
its regular monthly
meeting Tuesday.
An Employee Referral
Program will provide
$1,000 to a current
employee of the school
system who recruits
someone to fill a vacancy
in a "certified" position,
including nurse, social
worker, teacher assistant,
cafeteria worker,
custodian, bus driver, and
office support staff. The
recruit must remain
employed with Johnston's
system for a year for the
recruitment bonus to be
paid.
The board amended a
previously approved
agreement with the
University of Mount Olive
to cover tuition costs for
presently employed teacher
assistants willing to
enroll in college courses
leading to their
certification as
full-fledged classroom
teachers. Instead of
$5,250 per academic year
for two years, the new
agreement extends the
offer to three years. The
program's intent is to
enable TAs to continue
working with Johnston's
schools while they pursue
their college degrees.
Ronald
Johnson's status
unresolved as speakers
take sides
He
was present throughout
Tuesday's school-board
session but remained
silent as both opponents
and defenders of his
continued service on the
board voiced their
opinions during the
meeting's "Public Comment"
segment, which may be
watched beginning at the
2:09:30 mark of the YouTube
video of Tuesday's
session>
The board voted last month
to censure Mr. Johnson for
violating two of its
policies – one barring
secret recordings of board
proceedings, the other for
intervening in a
student-assignment issue –
and followed that up with
a letter asking District
Attorney Susan Doyle to
investigate whether Mr.
Johnson's actions were
sufficient grounds for his
removal from office.
No word on that request
has come from the DA's
office, and no decision
has been announced
regarding a Town of
Smithfield investigation
into an undisclosed matter
related to his service as
a police detective. He
remains on unpaid leave
from his job with the town
pending the outcome of the
investigation.
There's
good reason
you continue to see
this sign in many
yards
around Smithfield.
Call
Pernell.com
and you'll
find out why.
My
Kid's Club Executive
Director Sarah Sheraski
(left) alongside volunteer
tutors Trudy Farnell and
Meg Scoville encourage
youngsters solving a word
puzzle.
After-school
extra learning at
South Smithfield
My
Kid's Club – a non-profit
organization started in 2019
as successor to Selma's Boys
and Girls Club – is
operating an after-school
day-care service at South
Smithfield Elementary School
that includes tutoring and
other learning opportunities
for any child whose parents
want it. And the fee is just
$10 for the entire school
year.
This is the
second year My Kid's Club
has stepped up to run the
program at South Smithfield
under the direction of Sarah
Sheraski, who took over last
August as executive director
of the organization that
relies primarily on
donations to support the
work it does in Smithfield
as well as Selma.
South Smithfield's school
day ends at 3:55. Soon
thereafter the kids start
arriving in the school's
spacious cafeteria where
they get a snack, individual
tutoring if they need it,
and a time to have fun
playing games both academic
and physical. They stay
there until their parents
pick them up (as late as
6:30).
Ms. Sheraski, who came to
Johnston County from
Wisconsin where she was a
United Way administrator,
said her hope is to expand
the after-school program to
other schools in the county
as resources allow.
Participation in the South
Smithfield program has been
building since the first day
of school August 29. Beverly
Watson, the organization's
director of clubs, expects
enrollment to grow to as
many as 50 youngsters.
Part-time employed
counselors Angela Cole and
Joshua Jackson work with a
table of energetic
students during a session
last week at South
Smithfield Elementary
School.
Leading
the after-school team at
South Smithfield: (left to
right) volunteer Meg
Scoville, Director of
Clubs Beverly Watson,
Executive Director Sarah
Sheraski, and volunteer
Trudy Farnell.
To learn more
about the organization,
visit the My Kid's Club
website>
PRIME
LA
ND
FOR SALE
IN
WEST SMITHFIELD
2.4-acre
vacant lot at 1558 W.
Market Street, US 70
Business. Mostly level
with 323-foot road
frontage. Less than 3
miles from Johnston
Regional Airport, about 5
miles from I-95: $525,000
(MLS#2447472)
SUSAN
LASSITER, Broker
• FONVILLE
MORISEY
REALTY • 919-669-9235
Johnston
Health Foundation names
its new director
From
UNC Health Johnston
The
Johnston Health Foundation
is pleased to announce
that Kyle Gray is its new
director. He's responsible
for leading all aspects of
the foundation, including
fund-raising and revenue
generation, financial
stewardship,
organizational and
programmatic leadership,
community engagement, and
strategic growth and
operational goals.
"As we expand our services
and community outreach,
the foundation is becoming
an increasingly valuable
partner in helping our
organization meet its
mission and the needs of
our growing region," said
Tom Williams, CEO and
president of UNC Health
Johnston. "We are
delighted to have Kyle at
the helm."
Mr. Gray brings 26 years
of experience in
higher-education
development, marketing,
and communications. During
his recent five-year
tenure at UNC's
Kenan-Flagler Business
School, he raised $32
million to advance the
school’s mission.
Previously at the UNC
School of Medicine from
2006 to 2017, he
demonstrated the ability
to increase development
activity by tripling the
Department of Health
Sciences donor base and
increasing cumulative
donations to more than $12
million.
From 2001 to 2005 he
served as the assistant
dean for development and
communications at
UNC-Chapel Hill’s School
of Government, where he
launched and managed the
Friends of the Institute
of Government Program to
increase public and
private financial support
for the school.
He holds a master’s degree
in public administration
from UNC Chapel Hill and a
bachelor's degree in
political science from The
Colorado College.
HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS REPORT
Neuse Charter's teams maintain
winning records
The
Cougars' girls volleyball
team has a record of 9-3
after defeating North
Duplin on Tuesday in its
first Carolina 1-A
Conference match of the
season. Finishing up the
non-conference schedule,
Neuse Charter beat
Franklin Academy last
Friday, then lost to West
Johnston on Monday.
Earlier last week, the
Cougars defeated
intra-county rival
Princeton High for a
second time this season.
Neuse Charter's boys
soccer team is 4-1 after
closing out its
non-conference schedule
with a win over Roxboro
Community School last
Friday. Next up is the
conference opener for the
Cougars – at North Duplin
next Monday.
Smithfield-Selma's
soccer, volleyball
teams: just 4 wins
The
SSS boys soccer team
opened Quad County 3-A
Conference play with a 6-3
win at South Johnston on
Tuesday followed by a 2-0
loss at Wilson County's
Hunt High School on
Wednesday. The leaves the
Spartans' overall season
record at 1-6-2.
The
SSS girls volleyball team
is 3-7 overall but 0-5 in
Quad County 3-A Conference
matches following a defeat
at West Johnston High last
Thursday and a loss at
home against Southern
Wayne on Tuesday.
No
football last weekend
for SSS and six other
schools
Of
Johnston County's eight
high schools that field
varsity football teams,
only North Johnston played
a game last Friday night.
Nash Central defeated the
Panthers 35-6.
Smithfield-Selma's
Spartans open Quad County
3-A Conference play this
Friday at intra-county
rival South Johnston.
WHAT'S
COMING UP?
Neuse
Little Theatre launches
46th season this weekend
The
new season's first
offering is Agatha
Christie's A Murder
Is Announced, with
performances at 8 p.m.
this Friday and Saturday,
3 p.m. Sunday, and the
following Friday and
Saturday (September 23-24)
at The Hut on the corner
of Front and Market
streets. To reserve
tickets at a discounted
price, call 919-934-1873.
VIEW
brochure with the full
lineup of shows coming
up in NLT's new
season>
SSS
hosting countywide Band
Expo Saturday evening
The Spartan Regiment at Smithfield-Selma High School will host its Band Expo this Saturday. Gates open at 6 p.m. Admission is $8. All Johnston County high-school bands will perform, with the Spartan Regiment scheduled at 8:30. "There will be plenty of food to go around," announced SSS Principal David Allen. "Bring the whole family for a great evening of music and fun."
County
Commissioners get draft
of land-use plan Monday
The
board will have a chance
to react to the latest
draft of the long-awaited
Comprehensive Land Use
Plan update during its
regular third-Monday
session at 6 p.m. at the
Courthouse. Commissioners
will also be asked to
adopt the Neuse River
Trail Study presented to
the board last week and
hear an update on
GoTriangle's commuter-rail
study.
New
art exhibition opens
next week at JCCollege
gallery
It
will feature the works of
artists William
Strickland, Yana
Slutskaya, Sue Avera, and
Frank Grubbs. An opening
reception hosted by the
Johnston County Arts
Council is set for 5:30-7
p.m. next Thursday
(September 22) in the
Frank Creech Art Gallery
inside the STEAM Building
on the back side of the
JCC campus. The exhibit
will be open to the public
Sunday afternoons from 1
to 5 September 25 through
October 23.
Autumnal
Equinox next week but
it's too soon to be Fall
It's
considered the
astronomical arrival of a
new season – the Autumnal
Equinox at 9:04 p.m. next
Thursday the 22nd – but
it's certainly not the
beginning of Fall in this
part of the world as
summer-like temperatures
will continue a few more
weeks and big bunches of
leaves won't fall around
here till well beyond the
first of October,
considered the
meteorological beginning
of Autumn.
DEATHS
& FUNERALS
Click
on the name to read an
obituary, usually posted
by the funeral home
BETTY MURPHY
BROWN, 83 – died
September 12
MARGARET
(PEGGY) LOUISE CASEY, 70
– died September 10
MIRIAM
LASSITER LORE, 91 –
died September 9
JAMES HOWARD
O'NEAL, 77 – died
September 9
CAROLYN
KILLETTE TORRES, 91
– died September 6
A
WORD (OR TWO) FROM THE
EDITOR
Are
we counting our chickens
before they hatch?
Let's
hope that's not the case.
But this news from the Business
North Carolina Daily
Digest, received on
Tuesday of this week,
fires a warning shot:
Developer
of 2,000-home Smithfield
project files for
bankruptcy
Chapel
Hill-based NRP Ventures
filed for Chapter 11
restructuring. The
company is behind one of
the largest housing
developments in Johnston
County, which is slated
to include a total of
2,005 new residential
units. The company
president and sole
shareholder, Ray Perkins
Jr., describes the
filing as a “pause” in
development at the site.
(From a report in the
Triangle Business
Journal)
Meanwhile, only one of
half a dozen residential
projects approved this
past year for sites in
West Smithfield is under
construction so far – a
134-unit townhouse
development at the
intersection of Wilson's
Mills Road and Durwood
Stephenson Parkway (pictured
below).
What
about Amazon's future
plans for us?
Beyond
the current snail's pace
of new residential
projects in and around
Smithfield is Amazon's
announcement that its West
Smithfield distribution
center, although
apparently finished, won't
go into service before
next spring, citing
"equipment supply issues"
coupled with "the recent
slowdown in the economy."
What's more, in reporting
Amazon's closing of a
distribution warehouse in
Durham that once employed
400, The News &
Observer included
this ominous paragraph:
In the past few
months, Amazon has
shuttered dozens of
delivery warehouses and
delayed plans for new
facilities across the
country. According to
MWPVL International, a
consulting firm that
measures Amazon’s
real-estate holdings,
Amazon has closed or
canceled 44 facilities
in the United States
this year while delaying
the opening of 25
others. This shift comes
as more customers resume
traditional in-person
shopping since the
height of the pandemic.
We'll keep our fingers
crossed.
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