The Dawson Springs Progress VOL. 94, NO. 24
Seventy-Five Cents
Dawson Springs, Hopkins County, Kentucky 42408, Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Board chairman chris smiley resigned june 27
Proffitt Resigns As School Superintendent By Carolyn Walker
At Monday night’s regularly scheduled meeting, the Dawson Springs Board of Education accepted the resignation of Superintendent Charles Proffitt effective July 22. Proffitt, who served only one year in the position, has accepted the job of superintendent of the Cloverport Independent School System in Breckinridge County. Former superintendent Alexis Seymore was appointed interim superintendent. Proffitt was hired after Seymore’s retirement in 2012.
Another resignation left a board seat empty and called for the election of a new chairman. Longtime board PROFFITT member Chris Smiley resigned June 27 after serving for 24 1/2 years. He left the board so that his daughter could apply for a position with the district. At the start of the meeting, Proffitt presented Smiley with a cer-
tificate in recognition of his years on the board. A reception honoring Smiley will be held at 4:30 p.m. Aug. 19, prior to the monthly meeting. The reception is open to the public. Earl Menser was elected board chairman. He will finish the remaining 3 1/2 years of Smiley’s term. The treasurer’s report showed a bank balance of $1,305,349.48 at the end of June. While cash in the General Fund was up almost $15,000, treasurer Jenny Bruce said the district will lose in excess of $200,000 in SEEK funds for the
2013-2014 school year. In the elementary report, Jennifer Ward said the library, music and art rooms in the elementary building are almost complete. She expects the relocation to improve daily flow between those areas and the classrooms for elementary students. Kevin Stockman reported on ACT results for the Class of 2014. The ACT is now part of the state assessment required of all juniors. Local English, reading and math scores are well above the state average, while science scores are even with the state. The composite
for the class is 19.9. Guidance counselor Lori Wooton said students can still improve on their individual scores by the time they graduate by choosing to retake the ACT on their own. The board approved a revised tobacco use policy for certified and classified staff. The policy prohibits adults employed in the school system from smoking in the presence of students, on or off school grounds, while on duty. Adult employees may smoke only in their personal vehicles. —Continued on page A5
cost of $24,373
Dodge Charger Bought For Police Department By Carolyn Walker The Dawson Springs City Council voted Monday to purchase a Dodge Charger with a standard police package at a cost of $24,373. Mayor Jenny Sewell said the purchase was approved by the budget committee. The city had postponed buying the vehicle until it was able to do so without financing. Ben Leonard reported that two dilapidated houses
will soon be advertised for sale at the judicial center steps. Judgements have been obtained, and the three required independent appraisals of the properties are in the works. The recently adopted nuisance ordinance is being condensed for publication. After publication in the newspaper, the ordinance can be enacted, and a code enforcement board and officer will be put in place. The city attorney also
reported receiving a letter from a Time Warner representative agreeing to a fiveyear contract rather than the 20-year agreement Time Warner originally asked for. However, the representative told Leonard there is currently no plan for upgrades of any type. Also, any equipment for local programming will be the city’s responsibility. Sewell said she doesn’t —Continued on page A5
pre-register for $20
5K Run Will Be July 27 By Jacob Parker The first annual Dawson Springs 5K Barbecue Run will commence the morning after the barbecue, July 27, at 7:30 a.m. Registration is open until the day of the run, but those registering before July 20 will only pay a $20 entry fee. Anyone registering after that date will be charged a fee of $25. The fee includes a t-shirt, with all proceeds
going to the Dawson Springs Community Center. The walk will begin at the four-way stop on Arcadia Avenue heading toward Dairy Queen. The walkers will then make a left onto Frederick Road, a left onto Rosedale Lane, another left onto Oak Heights leading back into town, and a left on Hall Street. Jim Hillerich, who is in charge of the 5K, said the extra walking within the
town was incorporated it to make it a full 5K, or 3.1 miles. “Some people get upset if it’s too short, and a lot of people get upset if it’s too long,” Hillerich said. To account for the remaining distance, walkers will make a left onto Hunter Street, a right onto Railroad Avenue and will end up back in the middle of town. —Continued on page A5
elementary sbdm council
Master Schedule And Budget Is Approved By Carolyn Walker With the 2013-2014 school year fast approaching, the Dawson Springs Elementary SBDM Council held its July meeting Monday. Several items pertaining to the start of school, including the SBDM budget and master schedule for the year were approved. Jennifer Ward, principal and council chairwoman, told council members that she and junior-senior high principal Kevin Stockman have worked together this summer to create a teacher handbook. The handbook, she said, includes organizational information and district policy which pertains to teachers at all levels. Also in the handbook, is material specific to the elementary school such as
bell and lunch schedules, duty rosters and SBDM meeting dates and times. Ward said much of the information she has previously distributed to teachers will now be located in one central document. Teachers will have electronic access to the handbook which can be printed if they choose. After being tabled for the past two meetings, a promotion and retention policy was approved. Ward said the policy “gives teachers more voice.” The council voted to change the date and time of its meetings for the coming school year. Meetings will be held on the third Wednesday of each month at 3:30 p.m. —Continued on page A5
Baseball League Response ‘Great’ By Jacob Parker The Amateur Tradewater Men’s League has received positive responses so far. Rick Hendrickson, a local resident who serves as the unofficial consultant commissioner of the league, said the response has been great despite being a work in progress. “So far, we’ve seen great attendance, and the response has been great,” he said. “We see families and children, and hear positive comments. It’s been an honor to be a part of this community effort.” The games, played every Wednesday and Sunday night at 6 p.m. in Riverside Park, feature four teams: the Cardinals, Braves, Giants and Dodgers. —Continued on page A5
junior-senior sbdm council
Handbook Is Online For Teachers/Staff By Carolyn Walker The Dawson Springs JuniorSenior High SBDM Council took action July 10 to prepare for the coming school year. DeNell Storms, high school secretary, was appointed recorder, and teacher representative Dan Dillingham was elected council vice chairman. The 2013-2014 meeting times and dates were set for 4 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month. A teacher/staff handbook will be online for employees to access. Principal and council chairman Kevin Stockman said having the handbook on the Web site will mean changes can be made without completely redoing the document. A hard copy will be placed in the
office for use by request. The council also voted to approve new vision and mission statements. Stockman said the mission statement, which he believes should be short and to the point, will be on the lobby wall. The vision statement now includes college- and career-readiness, the school’s ultimate goal. Stockman discussed plans to meet with small groups of teachers during their planning periods at intervals during the school year. The groups will collaborate on how goals can be met. He also noted that with the elementary library being moved, some changes can be made to the media center. He plans to reorganize the computers and —Continued on page A5
LocaL 5 Day Forecast
The
Dawson Springs Progress Your Community Newspaper Since 1919
CONSTRUCTION on the museum began last week to repair the failing infrastructure. A worker subcontracted through Lanham Brothers Construction, LLC works to repair the facade on the museum. photo by Jacob Parker
Inside
Obituaries Pearl I. Thorp, 82
Generally sunny despite a few afternoon clouds.
All Chrysler 200’s in stock All models
Up to
Mix of sun and clouds. Partly cloudy. Highs Scattered thunderTimes of sun and Highs in the low 90s, in the low 90s, lows in storms. High in upper clouds. Highs in mid lows in the mid 70s. the mid 70s. 80s, lows in upper 60s. 80s, lows in upper 60s.
Police Reports…A2 Obituaries…A3 Opinion…A8 Sports…B1-B5 Comics…B7 Classifieds…B8-B9 People…B10
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