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Carlisle Alumni update museum. See pictures on p. 8.
Volume 120 Number 40 - USPS 225-680
Serving all of Prairie County and the Grand Prairie
Wednesday, October 6, 2021
Community Calendar of Events Friday October 8 Hazen Hornets vs Des Arc Eagles Eagle Field 7:00 p.m. Carlisle Bison Homecoming 2:00 p.m. Homecoming Parade following Carlisle Bisons vs McCory Jaguars Fred C. Hardke Field 7:00 p.m. Saturday October 9 Carlisle Public Library Book Sale 9:00 a.m. Monday October 11 Columbus Day City & County offices will be closed. Biscoe EHC Meeting First Baptist Church in Biscoe 10:30 a.m. Tuesday October 12 Quorum Counrt Meeting Annex Building 6:00 p.m. Thursday October 14 DeValls Bluff City Council Meeting 6:00 p.m. City Hall Thursday October 21 Food Distribution Hazen Methodist Church Drive thru 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Community events brought to you by Hazen Chamber of Commerce
and the Please call F&M Bank (255-3042) or The Grand Prairie Herald (255-4538) to list events.
Congratulations to Athletic Director and Head Coach Lee Larkin, recognized Saturday, during the UCA home game. Coach Larkan was presented the Buddy Harding award which is presented annually to a UCA alumnus for coaching excellence. Coach Larkan presently coaches at Greenland High School where he has been for 20 years. Larkan is a graduate of Hazen High School.
Des Arc Schools to give bonuses By Lisa Mills At the September 27th Des Arc School Board meeting two bonuses were approved for all certified and classified staff. A one time $1,500 bonus will be given from the American Rescue Plan Act funds. A second $200 bonus will be given to all staff members who are fully Covid vaccinated by November 1st. Present at the meeting were Superintendent Dr. Marc Sherrell, Board Members Johnny Reidhar, Sylvester Holloway, Stewart Morton, Charlie Brown, Jordan Smith, Billy Hinson and Drew Widenar, High School Principal Michaael Strothers, Elementary Principal Cheryl Holland and District Treasurer Natasha Richards. Dr. Sherrell reported that the “Home Ec” building had been approved for the National Historical Register, and a grant application would be submitted in November to repair and restore the building. Sherrell also reported that a grant application had been
submitted for two saferooms to be built. He stated that an architect had to be hired to submit plans for the saferooms. The only response to the advertisement was Lewis and Elliott Architects, and the board approved a motion to hire Lewis and Elliott contingent upon grant approval. Dan Lovelady from First Security Beardsley presented board members with current figures from bonds savings. Refunding the bond will allow for a lower interest rate. The board approved a motion to submit an application for a permit to issue bonds in the amount of $6,835,000 and to hire 1st Security Beardsley as the fiscal agent and to authorize Superintendent Sherrell to accept or reject the best bid submitted. The funds will be unrestricted to use. Dr. Sherrell reported that three bids were submitted to pressure wash the high school buildings: Arkansas Pro Wash $9,600, Cabot Pressure Wash $8,900, and Flash Pressure Wash $225 per hour for an estimated 40-50
Parks pleads guilty Earl Parks plead guilty to all counts, including first degree murder, at his trial held in the Circuit Court of Prairie County on Tuesday, September 21. He was sentenced to 76 years in prison for the first degree murder of Christy Rooks, felon in possession, abuse of a corpse, and tampering with evidence charges by Judge Daniel Brock. Park was credited 606 days for jail time, which will shorten his sentence by approximately 20 months. The body of Rooks, who was from Cross County, was recovered on January 25 from a crude grave site about nine miles north of Hazen in Prairie County. State Troopers of the Highway Patrol Division, CID Special Agents and FBI Special Agents began investigating at the site on Friday, January 24. During the course of the Arkansas State Police
hours. He said that after speaking to them, he felt that the best choice was Arkansas Pro Wash. A motion was approved to hire Arkansas Pro Wash. The funds will come from the remaining balance of the bond money. A motion was approved to purchase two A/C units from Knupp Service Company for the AG building. Dr. Keith Williams from McPhearson and Jacobs Consulting addressed the board with an update on the process of hiring a permanent Superintendent. He presented an outline created from a summary of meetings with the four focus groups and survey. He stated that he was pleased to report that everyone from all the focus groups had very positive comments about the schools teachers and administrators, as well as the community members.
There were no negative comments. Most students praised the teachers with comments like “they all truly care and are always willing to help, and are aware when students are struggling and offer to help.” The only comments for improvements offered were “So many teachers are burnt out and stressed so the new Superintendent should look for ways to help them,” “The new Superintendent needs to establish a better relationship with city leaders.” The only negative comment made about the community was “lack of housing”. Williams presented the board with an outline draft of what the schedule would look like for interviewing the finalists selected. He said the deadline for applications will be October 19th, and so far six applications have been received. He set
November 8th for a special board meeting to review the prospective finalists and set up interview dates. Billy Hinson stated “I have heard a lot of positive comments about doing the search this way.” A motion was approved to renew the tuition agreement contract with The Sunshine School with the cost going from $42,000 to $36,000 due to the number of students enrolled. A resolution was approved for a 6 year Master Plan to the State Department of Education. A motion was also approved to renew the Arkansas School Unemployment Compensation Program, and to approve a Statement of Assurance for Perkins Funding. The 2021-2022 Minority Recruitment Report, the 2020-2021 Financial Report, and the 2021-2022 Budget were approved.
DHS seeks Angel Tree donations By Kelly Chapman The Department of Human Services will be sponsoring the 2021 Angel Tree for Prairie County. Applications can be picked up at the Prairie County Department of Human Services. Applications will be accepted 10/01/21 – 10/31/21. Applications received after this date will not
be accepted. Each applicant will be interviewed and required to meet the income guidelines in order to be eligible for the Angel Tree. We are asking for your support by adopting an angel. The angels can be found on one of the Christmas trees located in our local banks at Hazen and Des Arc the Monday after
Thanksgiving. If you have questions, please contact the Prairie County Department of Human Services at 870-9982581. Thank you for supporting the Angel Tree Project and making Christmas merrier for the children in our county that are less fortunate.
Earl Parks investigation, state troopers and special agents were assisted by the law enforcement officers of the Prairie County Sheriff’s Department, Cross County Sheriff’s Department, Hazen Police Department, Wynne Police Department, and the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission Enforcement Division. The Prosecuting Attorney was Rebecca McCoy.
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