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HCPS has notification system in place By Melody Kinser Managing Editor f a parent or guardian needs information about their child that is a student in Hanover County Public Schools, a system is and has been in place for some time to share information as soon as possible. Who hasn’t enjoyed the comedic phone calls from Chris R. Whitley, HCPS public information officer, announcing the status of schools during inclement weather? But, that’s not all he does in his position. Unfortunately, during times of crisis, Whitley also is the go-to guy for information on what’s taking place in your child’s school. On Thursday, Feb. 13, a trespasser was arrested inside Lee-Davis High School. An email about the incident was released by Sgt. Steve DiLoreto, public information officer for the Hanover
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County Sheriff ’s Office at 8:41 p.m. The article was posted at 9:54 p.m. on our social media sites. Reaction was immediate, with many questioning why they had not been notified. Well, at the first of a school year, parents and guardians are reminded of the parent portal -- located at https://hanover.bbcportal.com/ -which provides news like what occurred on the 13th, as well as scheduled events like plays and concerts. I’m no techie, but the log-in/registration process is simple. Shame on me, because I hadn’t signed up at the start of the 2019-2020 school year. Whitley was helpful and now I’m good to go. We want to share as much school news as possible with our readers. A school is often considered the heart of a community.
Back to Feb. 13. Principal Charles Stevens had emailed “Families, Faculty, and Staff ” “to make you are of a safety concern that occurred today.” He explained the incident and how it was handled, pointing out that “This individual was calm, cooperative, and did not make any threats.” Stevens said an “alert staff member noticed a possible unauthorized visitor and immediately reported the concern to L-DHS administration.” A student had opened a locked door to allow the young man into the building. Please tell your children that they have a responsibility to keep their schools safe too. Anyway, Stevens had released a lengthy email informing parents and guardians. We encourage you to register for the parent portal and keep an eye out for what may be happening in your child’s school. We’ll all agree that their safety is the priority.
Wacky words can work wonders on the world By Laura McFarland Richmond Suburban News It’s time to flex my nerd muscles again. I have talked in the past about many of the reasons I am a nerd and the fact that I own all of them. One of my favorites is my love of the idiosyncrasies of the English language and
how absolutely discombobulating it can be at times. Last week, I was minding my own business scrolling Facebook when I came across a great post about “some of the best words literally ever.” I didn’t want to be persnickety by questioning the poppycock that would invoke such over-exaggerated phrasing and risk causing a kerfuffle. I will instead
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embrace the spirit of joy inspired by the nincompoop who wrote it and get up to some literary shenanigans that will leave some people gobsmacked with my flibbertigibbet ways. I won’t lollygag around – let’s dive right in. I am a bit flummoxed as to why silly things like this bring me so much happiness. I will say that when I was a young whippersnapper, I loved read-
ing those thingamajigs with all the words above all else. (I probably mention this fact every time I write a column about Powhatan County Public Library’s awesome summer reading program, and, if I am being honest, it will likely come up again.) My mom says as soon as I started to read – see WORDS, pg. 8
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Trump should be remembered for successes In 2016, I was slow to jump aboard the Donald Trump train. Marco Rubio was my candidate for that primary. I always was going to vote for the Republican nominee, especially with the Antonin Scalia vacancy. It wasn’t until Trump chose Indiana Governor Mike Pence as his running mate that I decided to also campaign for him. My heart really got in the Trump campaign when Hillary Clinton called Trump supporters “deplorable”. I admit to being incorrigible. In the first months of his presidency, there were some cringeworthy moments. It took a year for President Trump to start rolling up victories (federal judicial appointments, tax cuts, regulatory reform) but once he got started America got stronger at home and abroad. In spite of all this, there are some that selfishly put their feelings about President Trump’s personality ahead of his accomplishments for the country. This is not a vote on who we are inviting over next Thanksgiving. Even if this new economy does not help everybody, should we go back to the bad old days where 1% growth rates were dismissed as the new normal? Should we go back to fighting like a schoolyard bully for the right to project weakness on the world stage? Should “Uncle Sam” go back to being “Uncle Sucker” on trade deals? It is one thing for true-believing liberals to disagree with Republican philosophy. However, for those who believe we’re better off now than four years ago, but still want to vote based on hurt feelings, I have to say I’m sorry, but your feelings aren’t hiring. Nat Atkins Mechanicsville see LETTERS, pg. 8
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The Mechanicsville Local
February 26, 2020
