North Carolina added 330 newly-credentialed teachers in 2013 to its National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT) cadre. This brings the state’s total number of NBCTs to 20,122, and once again places North Carolina first in the nation in the number of NBCTs. The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) this morning released the latest numbers for states and the nation. Twenty-one percent of North Carolina’s educators are National Board certified. State Superintendent June Atkinson commended the newly-certified teachers and thanked …
Month: December 2013
White House: I’m asking you
Good evening — The Affordable Care Act has been in the news a lot recently — and increasingly for the right reasons. The law is working: Already, nearly 365,000 people across the country have picked private plans through the Marketplace — and 800,000 more are on track to get Medicaid through their states. These are people for whom health insurance might not have previously been an option — people who in the past might have been discriminated against for simple …
Wednesday Open Line
The satellite Atlas was launched from Cape Canaveral on this date in 1958. The spacecraft would make history the next day, beaming the first voice heard from space — a recording of President Eisenhower with a 58-word Christmas greeting. These words came at the height of the Cold War and the space race with the Soviet Union. Today, satellites daily perform vital functions — tracking the weather, relaying millions of telephone calls and computer links, as well as radio and …
City of Henderson Holiday Sanitation Schedule
The City of Henderson Public Services Department Sanitation Division will follow the schedule below for holidays during the month of December and New Year’s Day Wednesday, December 25, 2013, Christmas Day Brush pick up by city will follow normal schedule (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday). Garbage collection by Waste Industries for Thursday’s normal route will be collected on Friday December 27th 2013. Friday’s normal route will be collected on Saturday December 28th 2013. No recycling this week. Wednesday, …
Scammers target child support dollars in texting scheme
Scammers often try to trick people into providing account numbers and confidential information by pretending to represent a bank or other institution, and claiming there is a problem with the person’s account. In the latest version of this scam, people are getting text messages which appear to be from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Social Services (DHHS). (In North Carolina all child support payments are funneled through DHHS, and the parent who receives the child support has …
Movie Night at the White House
Ever dreamed of having your own short film screened in a movie theater? How about right here at the White House? Great news: We’re inviting K-12 students from around the country to create and submit one- to three-minute short web videos. The topic: Highlighting the importance of technology in the classroom — and imagining how technology will change the educational experience for kids in the future. And finalists could have their videos screened at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, and posted on the …
Tuesday Open Line
Carolina’s Outer Banks, as the Wright brothers made the world’s first powered, heavier-than-air flight. With Orville and Wilbur alternating as pilot, the plane made four flights that day. The first airplane flight lasted 12 seconds and covered 120 feet. The longest distance covered that day was 852 feet in 59 seconds — an average speed of 31 miles an hour. In only a few years, the airplane became an important part of America’s economy and defense, as well as a …
VGCC offers BioWork training program on two campuses
Classes to train area residents for jobs in the growing biotechnology manufacturing field are scheduled to start in January at both Vance-Granville Community College’s Franklin County Campus near Louisburg and at the Main Campus in Vance County. Both campuses have state-of-the-art biotechnology labs in which to conduct the “BioWork” Process Technician training course. A BioWork class will be held in Building 8 on Main Campus on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6 until 10 p.m., Jan. 8 through May 14. The …
Congresswoman Renee Ellmers: Why did the president tell us we could keep our doctors?
I hope you and your family are enjoying a safe and happy holiday season. In the House this week, we passed H.R. 2019, the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act, which eliminates the Presidential Election Campaign Fund and redirects funding to the Pediatric Research Initiative. I am a proud cosponsor of this act, which will help expedite important breakthroughs in cancer, autism and other rare diseases. This bill is fully-funded and will not cost taxpayers anything. Recently, PolitiFact named Obama’s …
Vance County NC Cooperative Extension Survey
Here is your opportunity to provide feedback on the programs they provide. Please take just a few minutes to fill out this brief, anonymous survey. Here’s the link: http://harvest.cals.ncsu.edu/surveybuilder/form.cfm?testID=22570 PLEASE RESPOND BY 12/18
White House Weekly Address: Marking the One-Year Anniversary of the Tragic Shooting in Newtown, Connecticut
In his weekly address, President Obama honors the memory of the 26 innocent children and educators who were taken from us a year ago in Newton, Connecticut. The President and First Lady observe a moment of silence and light candles at the White House in honor of those lost at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. December 14, 2013. Welcome to the West Wing Week, your guide to everything that’s happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, and far beyond. This …
Monday Open Line
Over the past few years, an activist group called the “Tea Party” has become a force within the American political structure. It takes its name, by some reckoning, and its inspiration from one of the most effective and famous protests ever staged — the Boston Tea Party. On this date in 1773, colonial protestors boarded ships in Boston Harbor and dumped many crates of valuable tea overboard to protest British tax policies. Britain’s retaliatory moves only hardened the position of …
Seven graduate from EMT-Paramedic training at VGCC
Vance-Granville Community College recently honored two women and five men who completed the college’s 11-month-long Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic program in December. Graduates included Dylan Cash and James Poteat, both of Grassy Creek (Granville County); Richard Lovings of Henderson; Melissa Clark of Oxford; Quentin Woody of Watkins (Vance County); and Gavin Frederick and Ruby Wheeler, both of Wilton. Vivian Loyd, a Registered Nurse and Paramedic Level I instructor, was the instructor for the class. EMT-Paramedic instruction includes 596 hours of didactic …
VGCC offers advanced course on building, repairing computers
Vance-Granville Community College is currently registering students for “Advanced PC Maintenance & Repair.” The course is scheduled to be held on Monday evenings from 5:30 until 9:30 p.m., Jan. 6 through June 30, 2014, in room 7107 on the college’s Main Campus in Vance County. Mitch Evans, the Director of Information Technology for VGCC, is the instructor, and has taught introductory “PC Maintenance & Repair” classes in the past. According to Evans, this class is geared towards providing more advanced …
Vance County Schools Committee Meeting Dates
Vance County Board of Education Committee Meeting Dates: * Building & Grounds, Thursday, December 19th, 8:30 am * Curriculum, Thursday, December 19th, 9:15 am * Personnel Committee, Tuesday, January 7th, 8:30 am
State Capitol highlighting agriculture during holidays
RALEIGH — The holiday decorations inside the State Capitol reflect an agricultural theme this year. The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services created several displays on the second floor of the Capitol rotunda. Each display highlights a different aspect of the state’s agricultural industry: Christmas trees, seafood, wine and grapes, and farmers and ranchers. “As we celebrate with family during this time of year, we should all be thankful for the people who grow and raise the food we …
Butterfield Applauds HHS Grant to NC Health Centers to Expand ACA Enrollment Assistance
WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman G. K. Butterfield (NC-01) today applauded the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for awarding a $2.2 million grant to 32 community health centers in North Carolina, including 10 in the First Congressional District. The grant award will be divided between the health centers and used to expand enrollment assistance efforts as more North Carolinians enroll in affordable health insurance coverage. “This investment is essential to enrolling as many eligible North Carolinians as possible …
VGCC offers Commercial Cleaning course
Vance-Granville Community College will soon offer an 11-week Commercial Cleaning training course during the evening at the college’s Warren County Campus in Warrenton. The class will meet on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 5:30 until 8:30 p.m., Jan. 6 through March 19, 2014. Instructor Amy Fleming will teach students proper procedures for taking care of a building, including custodial skills, stripping, waxing and floor maintenance. Topics will include tools, safety, techniques, and cleaning agents. The cost of the course is …
Friday / Weekend Open Line
The important holiday business of viewing such classics as “It’s A Wonderful Life” and “A Christmas Story” from the comfort of home owes much to a technological advance this month 75 years ago. In December 1938, Russian-American engineer Vladimir Zworykin was awarded two patents for cathode ray tubes. One was for the iconoscope to capture video images. The other was for the kinescope, which displayed television and computer monitor images for decades until the advent of flat panel screens. Zworykin …
Video: Henderson Christmas Parade for 2013
Below is a recording of the 2013 Henderson, NC Christmas Parade on December 1st, 2013