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THE LEADER Thursday, January 28, 2010
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Volume 123 • No. 97
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What's that noise? Concern grows over rumbling By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com It's a rumbling sound that has been misidentified as an approaching freight train, rolling thunder or even a tornado, and it's become a great concern around Tipton County. The noise, explains Karla Blackstock, is "a small hiccup" and it comes from the Osceola, Ark. area. "This is really the first time we have had folks hear the sound that far away so this is new for us," she said. Blackstock, a public relations representative from Zachry Engineering, said a new power plant has been conducting steam blows since Jan. 10 to test turbines. Steam blows occur one time during the life cycle
of a plant so once this is complete and the plant is put into operation, it will not occur again. Still, it's become bothersome for Tipton County residents, who have flooded Central Dispatch, The Leader office, Memphis news stations and even Facebook with their questions and concerns. "I went outside and looked to see. It sounds like an airplane's about to land in your front yard," said Burlison resident Carl Ballard. "It's a loud rumbling noise we've heard for the past week or so. It sounds like a large jet plane somebody's cranked up and its rumbling and then its like somebody turned the switch off." According to a public notice in the Osceola (Ark.) Times, the steam blows at Plum Point Energy Station consists of forcing high-pressure SEE NOISE, PAGE A3
Plum Point Energy Station, pictured above, has been conducting steam blows to clean the system before its commercial use. The blow have caused rumbling noises that can be heard in Tipton County.
Survival training for caregivers By SHERRI ONORATI sonorati@covingtonleader.com There are four types of people in the world – those who are caregivers, those who have been caregivers, those who will be caregivers and those who need caregivers. - Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving.
A few members of the Brighton High School faculty pose proudly beneath the banner the school received last year as a bronze medalist in U.S. News & World Reportʼs annual ranking of Americanʼs Best High Schools. Pictured from left to right is Stephanie Thaggard, Bridgett Collins, Rachel Hayden, Beverly Shipley, Bonnie Strain, Charlie Gorman, Martha Cole, Jackie Howard, Lori Witherington, William Lea, Geanie Gibson and Laura Dean.
Brighton High awarded the bronze By SHERRI ONORATI sonorati@covingtonleader.com For the third year in a row, Brighton High School is the only Tipton County high school to be recognized by US News & World Report as a bronze medalist school in its annual ranking of America’s Best High Schools. BHS principal Kathryn Roe said she is honored to have her school selected as a top high school and she is very proud of both her faculty and students. “I think it’s a reflection of the teachers of how hard they work and how hard the students work,” explained Roe. “We have an incredible group of teachers across the board and they challenge our students to excel.” For the past three years, the 62 year-old magazine ranks the nation’s high schools using methodology developed by School Evaluation Services, a K-12 education data research business run by Standard & Poor’s. The 2010 report analyzed 21,786 public high schools in 48 states plus the District of Columbia using a three-step process to determine the best high schools. The criteria for ranking the schools into categories of gold, silver or bronze was based on the key principles that a great high school must serve all its students well, not just those who are bound for college, and that it
must be able to produce measurable academic outcomes that show the school is successfully educating its student body across a range of performance indicators. The top 100 high schools nationwide with the highest college readiness index scores were awarded gold medals. Nationally, 461 high schools were awarded silver medals based on their college readiness index scores and 1,189 high schools were awarded bronze medals. Of the 21,786 high schools analyzed throughout the U.S., 320 were Tennessee schools. Two Tennessee high schools were awarded gold medals, 4 awarded silver and 27 were awarded bronze, including Brighton High School. The first step determined whether each school’s students were performing better than statistically expected for the average student in their state. The researchers started by looking at reading and math test results for all students on each state’s high school test. They then factored in the percentage of economically disadvantaged students enrolled at the school to find which schools were performing better than their statistical expectations. According to the 2009 Tennessee Department of Education Report Card, BHS achieved a 98 percent reading proficiency and a 98 percent proficiency in math. Roe explained the reason Brighton doesn’t receive a silver or gold
medal is because of its lack of International Baccalaureate (IB) or Advance Placement (AP) classes but that’s okay with them because Tipton County high school juniors and seniors are eligible to take up to 20 hours of college level classes while still in high school and have their tuition paid for by state grants. “We don’t go above the bronze because we don’t offer IB and AP classes,” said Roe. “We do offer some AP classes but we swapped a lot over to the dual enrollment. Our advantage is we are a rural system and our kids can go ahead and get college credit through dual enrollment while they are in school and get part of that paid for through grants. “They have access to up to six hours in one math class, eight hours in math during their senior year and six hours through history and we feel that’s more advantageous to our students. Dyersburg State Community College is right up they road and they work so well with our students. Most of the kids are going to go into Tennessee schools so their credits are easily transferable. They’re going into their freshman year with experience on how to succeed in college, their parents are catching a break financially and we’ve got students taking challenging classes and preparing themselves for the future. That’s a win-win situation for all.”
Continuing its mission in promoting independence, wellness and advocacy for seniors, caregivers and their families, the Tipton County Commission on Aging will present its annual caregiver conference next week. “The conference is designed to provide knowledge to caregivers on how to effectively deal with dementia and how What: The Caregiver Conference to take care When: Feb. 1-2 8:30 - 3:30 of themselves Where: DSCC Covington auditorium while taking Cost: Free care of those in their care,” said TCCA executive director Molly Egg. This year’s free conference will be held over two days, Monday, Feb. 1 and Tuesday, Feb. 2 in the auditorium of Dyersburg State Community College, Jimmy Naifeh Campus in Covington. Beginning at 8:30 with registration, the conference will focus on several sessions of understanding dementia, ways to enjoy care giving and how dementia impacts all involved. Keynote speakers at this year’s event will feature local dementia expert Ruthann Shelton and occupational therapist Teepa Snow. Shelton is the director of Alzheimer’s Day Services of Memphis, Inc. She is also on the Governor’s Advisory Committee for Adult Day Programs of Tennessee, the Governor’s Task Force on Alzheimer’s DisSEE TCCA, PAGE A2
Luck ends for local gamblers By ECHO DAY eday@covingtonleader.com COVINGTON - Saturday was the night luck ran out for group of men gambling at a night club on Spring Street. After receiving several tips regarding illegal activity, Saturday night Covington officers conducted a walk-through at The Players Club, located near the square. According to the police report, officers observed seven men holding money and rolling dice at a table in a back room at the club. The men attempted to conceal their activity and possessions when they noticed officers. They, along with owner Robert Lee Adams, were taken into custody and the money in their possession seized. They have been identified as: • Larry Donnell Jackson, 56, 441 Azalea Lane, Covington; $13 • Melvin Lee Thomas, 54, 181 East End, Ripley; $37 SEE GAMBLERS, PAGE A3
Area events events Area This week’s week’s Featured This featuredChurch: church: Covington • Barretville • Millington • Collierville South Tipton • South Covington Morgage Offices: South Tipton • Millington • Arlington • Collierville
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Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church Turn to to Page Turn PageA7 A7forfordetails details
Feb. 20, 6-11 a.m. Lions Club Pancake Breakfast Covington Integrated Arts Academy Tickets: Adults $5; Children $3
1/27/10 3:28:09 PM