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SSS senior Francesca DiGiovanni state swim champ
Spartan women placed 4th in overall team competition

The women's swimming team from Smithfield-Selma High School placed fourth in the state 3-A Swimming and Diving Championships last weekend at the Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary. Lake Norman Charter's team was the first-place winner, followed by Central Cabarrus High, Carrboro High, and the SSS Spartans, who also finished fourth in last year's state meet.

Francesca (Frankie) DiGiovanni (left), a Smithfield-Selma senior, finished first in the 500-yard freestyle race and second in the 200-yard freestyle final.

She and SSS teammates Anya Muminovic, a junior, along with sophomores Natalie Irish and Payton Millard won second place in the 400-yard freestyle relay and third place in the 200-yard freestyle relay.

Also, Anya finished third in the 100-yard breast-stroke race and 10th in the 200-yard individual medley. Payton finished 7th in the 200-yard freestyle race and 8th in the 100-yard freestyle event.

The Smithfield Town Council at its meeting Tuesday night will honor the SSS team. Natalie is a part-time employee at the town's Recreation & Aquatics Center.
 

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Adopted school calendar continues current set-up
Board approves one-year test to check on "learning loss"

The Johnston County Board of Education had planned to adopt operating calendars for both the 2025-26 and 2026-27 school terms but agreed at Tuesday's monthly meeting to postpone approval of the second year's calendar, primarily to see if the coming year's schedule with a shortened first semester leads to "learning loss" by a significant proportion of students.

Even then, board member April Lee (a long-time public-school teacher) cast the only vote against the calendar recommended by a 40-member Calendar Committee that included parents, teachers, and school administrators. "I'm a believer in instructional time and we are shortchanging our children when we operate under the calendar law that is currently in place," she said of the state's rule that bars schools from opening no earlier than the last week in August.

She advocated joining 29 other school systems in North Carolina that have adopted calendars defying state law. "We get everything we want by backing up a calendar by two weeks," she said. "It gives us balanced semesters; it gives fair instructional time on both ends, and I think we need to be brave."

But Michelle Antoine, who chairs the board's Legislative Committee, disagreed. "I have no intention to break statutes," she declared, pointing out that the board has repeatedly pressed Johnston's legislators to support calendar flexibility to no avail as key leaders in the N.C. Senate continue to block efforts to change the law.

The 2025-26 calendar adopted Tuesday starts classes on Monday, August 25 and ends the first semester December 19. That provides 78 instructional days while the second semester provides 92, with May 27 the last day of classes. Winter Break is December 23 through January 3, Spring Break April 3-10.

While next year's calendar is similar to the calendar presently in effect, it does provide for an increase in instructional hours from 1,092 currently to 1,105 next year. Both numbers are well within the state's requirement of 1,025 hours to allow for class time that could be lost because of inclement weather.

The 2025-26 calendar provides for a longer summer break than a traditional calendar extending classes into early June. "I have said many times the 13 weeks really bothers me for summer," stated Board Chair Lyn Andrews. "I'll throw an additional concern in there, and that's our summer feeding program," Ms. Lee said.

VIEW the 2025-26 calendar for students posted on the JCPS website>

High-school dropout rates show improvement

The board learned that Johnston's high-school dropout rate improved from 2.28% in 2022-23 to 1.85% in 2023-24 (The statewide rate decreased from 1.95% to 1.88%.)
For Smithfield-Selma High School, the rate fell from 4.51% to 3% – down from a high of 5.04% in 2021-22.

Actual numbers of students dropping out of Johnston's high schools totaled 240 last year – down from 296 the year before. For SSS, the number fell from 71 to 45.

The top reasons cited for dropouts countywide were "work/employment" for 55 students, "moved" for 33, "attendance" for 27, "community college" for 24, "lack of engagement" for 21, "unstable home" for 20. "Discipline" and "psychological/emotional" reasons each accounted for nine dropouts while "childcare or pregnancy" accounted for eight.

The board also received a mid-year academic progress report that showed overall performance on fall-semester end-of-course testing for high-school students improved by 4.1 points from last year's midpoint and 9.3 points over 2024's year-end measurements.

The report showed mixed mid-year projections for proficiency in math and reading by students in grades 3-8. Kristy Stephenson, the school system's accountability and performance officer, noted that literacy assessments for kindergarten through the third grade are "trending above" statewide results at this point.

Johnston's schools have 4,500 AIG students

The school board received a report Tuesday on the status of Johnston's AIG program (that's the acronym for "Academically Intellectually Gifted" students). Currently just over 4,500 are identified as AIG participants in most of Johnston's schools. That's in line with statewide AIG enrollment of 11-12% of all students, noted Dorlisa Johnson-Cowart, the school system's officer in charge of advanced learning.

The current breakdown, she noted, has 1,145 AIG students in elementary schools, 1,264 in middle schools, and 2,093 in high schools.

Board member April Lee asked about "minority representation" in AIG enrollment here. "I want to make sure those kids are being served." Without providing numbers, Ms. Johnson-Cowart said Johnston is "comparable to the rest of the state," adding that "we're looking at the top 10% of all our sub-groups" when identifying students for AIG participation.

Board wants students to shut off cell phones in class

But the big question is: How will our principals and teachers get that done?

Board member Terry Tippett initiated Tuesday's discussion about Johnston County's existing policy, which he said requires students to put their phones away during class. "Our expectation is that this policy is followed," he declared.

Michelle Antoine said teachers "cannot take them away." That's a duty left up to school principals, she said.

"If a principal walks in and takes all the phones, in the next block (student class period) there won't be any cell phones," Kevin Donovan suggested.

But April Lee said teachers need more authority in handling cell-phone issues. "Administrators have bigger things to do" than "put out cell-phone fires," she said.

Mr. Tippett said stricter enforcement of the school system's policy will be mandatory if the N.C. General Assembly adopts Senate Bill 55, which would "prohibit students from using, displaying, or having a wireless communication device turned on during instructional time."

But that might not be enough, interjected Ms. Lee, who's a school teacher in Harnett County. "Students are crafty," she said; a state mandate "doesn't solve our problem."

Superintendent Eric Bracy assured the board he would immediately send out a directive to all school principals calling for tighter enforcement of cell-phone policy.
 

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Smithfield reports 2% rise in crime totals for 2024

A report included with the agenda for last week's Town Council session shows the number of crimes reported here rose from 1,356 in 2023 to 1,383 in 2024 – an increase of 2%.

The report shows a drop in the most serious crimes from 536 incidents to 516, but an increase in violent crimes from 49 in '23 to 53 in '24. Last year's total included 64 assaults, one murder, two rape cases, and eight robberies.

Other crimes listed in the Police Department's report include an increase in drug cases from 153 to 208, a decline in "simple assault" cases from 132 to 117, a drop in cases of fraud from 84 to 72, an increase in cases of vandalism from 53 to 67, and a modest rise in DWI arrests from 54 to 58.

Smaller numbers in the report for 2024 include 17 forgery/counterfeit cases, 12 embezzlements, 12 weapon violations, nine cases of stolen property, nine for offenses involving families and children, seven for disorderly conduct, five for "all other" sex offenses, and four for liquor-law violations.

A supplemental Police Department report shows 1,030 accidents investigated, 846 parking tickets issued (187 paid), 734 citations for driving with no operator's license or revoked license, and 103 speeding tickets written.


Town produces a new promotional video

The Town of Smithfield has launched a promotional campaign – "Smithfield Is Where It's At" – with an online video that "showcases the town’s unique charm, vibrant community, and thriving local businesses," reads the town's announcement.

“The campaign celebrates everything that makes our town special,” said Public Information Officer Brian Eaves. “We want to showcase Smithfield as a place where people not only visit but truly belong." The Johnston County Visitors Bureau has assisted the town with the campaign, Mr. Eaves noted.

WATCH the short video, posted on the town's website>
 

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Library offering books you can read as you listen

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WHAT'S COMING UP

Neuse Little Theatre is bringing back "The Foreigner"
It's the latest in a series of plays done by the local troupe early on during its 50 years in operation. The comedy opens this Friday, with performances also scheduled this Saturday night and Sunday afternoon and Friday and Saturday next weekend. Here's the link to purchase tickets in advance>

Monday is Presidents Day, a federal holiday only
That means all agencies of the Federal Government, including post offices, will be closed along with banks and other financial institutions. Also, students in Johnston County's schools will be away from their classrooms on Monday. State and local governments in North Carolina do not observe this holiday. That means Town of Smithfield garbage collections will be carried out as usual, and both Town Hall and the Johnston County Courthouse will be doing business as usual on Monday.

County Commissioners meet Monday, retreat at week's end
The Johnston County Board of Commissioners is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. Monday at the Courthouse in Smithfield. VIEW the agenda once it's posted>
The commissioners will convene next Thursday and Friday (Feb. 20-21) at the Workforce Development Center at Clayton for the board's annual Strategic Planning Retreat. The sessions will begin at 9 a.m. both days and will be live-streamed on the Johnston County YouTube channel>

Town Council to consider two Downtown projects Tuesday
The Smithfield Town Council's relatively light agenda for its third-Tuesday meeting next week includes funding requests for restrooms on recently acquired town property across Front Street from the Neuse River Amphitheater and a Downtown Development proposal to reconfigure landscaping of the courtyard and adjacent areas in front of the Public Library. Tuesday's meeting starts at 7 p.m. at Town Hall.
VIEW the complete agenda posted online>

Final public forum on transportation plan next Thursday
The County of Johnston is in the process of updating its Comprehensive Transportation Plan. What's being billed as the "final public meeting" on the update is scheduled as a "floating" drop-in event from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20 at JCATS headquarters at 1050 West Noble Street in Selma.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Details of the plan are not displayed on the county's website but there is a link to participate in a public survey>

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! (this Friday it is)

                Roses are red,
             Violets are blue,
             Remember your special someones
             'Lest they forget about you!

 

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DEATHS & FUNERALS

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A WORD (OR TWO) FROM THE EDITOR

"Minority majority" unrepresented on school board

Deborah Bolin stood before the Board of Education during the Public Comment segment of Tuesday's monthly meeting to declare that "the majority of our students are not represented on this board."

She cited statistics showing that 47% of students in Johnston County Public Schools are white while 53% are either Hispanic (30%), African-American (18%), Asian (6%), or some other racial identification. "However, I look across the board and I see 100% white members," she said.

"I understand that some of you may have experiences with other cultures; however, experience with does not equal to living as," she said. "I urge the board to take advantage of every opportunity to diversify its membership," she continued, reminding board members that one of the candidates for a vacant seat filled by the board last week was an African-American who was not chosen.

"I see a diverse board as a positive, and absolutely necessary for our black and brown students to receive the consideration that they also deserve in your decision-making processes," she concluded.

The appointment of a minority candidate to the Board of Education is much more likely than a black or brown person prevailing in an election under present circumstances where candidates must run countywide for a specific district seat according to place of residence. Prior to last year's elections, school-board candidates competed at large to be among the top three or four finishers in the voting. Under that scheme Johnston County did elect an African-American, the late Dorothy Johnson, to the Board of Education in 1998, and she won re-election five times on the way to 20 years as a board member.

A couple of African-American men, Al Byrd and the late Q.K. Wall, were appointed to fill vacancies on the board in years past yet both came up short in bids for election by voters to full terms.

Meanwhile, the Johnston County Board of Commissioners has never included an African-American member. Like the school board's set-up, commissioners must come from separate districts of residency and compete in countywide elections.

P.S Ms. Bolin is executive director of Johnston County Youth Services, Inc. In a follow-up e-mail to the Weekly Sun, she notes: "We provide community-based services to Juvenile Justice involved youth and 'opportunity' youth through our suspension and community service & restitution programs."

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