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Powhatan, Virginia B1 BSH basketball teams enjoyed a year to remember
Vol. XXXIII No. o. 39
March 25, 2020
Schools closed through end of academic year By Laura McFarland Editor
P
OWHATAN –Governor Ralph Northam announced Monday that all schools in Virginia will be closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 academic school year. During a press conference, Northam said that the closures are necessary to minimize the speed at which COVID-19 spreads and protect the capacity of the state’s health care system. “School division leaders will provide how students can learn the information they were meant to cover for the remainder of the year. By (Tuesday), our department of education will issue guid-
ance to help school divisions think through those decisions and ensure every student is served equitably,” he said. “We are already working on waivers to relieve test requirements and ensure that our students who were on track to graduate can do so.” Northam said he understands that many families will face the question of who will care for their children, especially “essential workers” such as doctors, nurses, first responders, and grocery store workers who help “keep our communities functioning.” Virginia has 1.2 million children under age 12 in the commonwealth and half of them are in public schools or preschools, he said, and half of them are in
public schools or preschool. A Yale study estimates that 80,000 may be the children of healthcare workers. “Today I am calling on our local communities, private daycare providers, community childcare partners, and public schools to rally together to provide childcare to the young children and school age children of essential personnel. Our childcare providers are also essential personnel. We must rally together to fill this pressing need across the commonwealth while following strict public health protocols to keep our children safe,” Northam said. Dr. Eric Jones, Powhatan County Public Schools superintendent, said he and other superintendents were informed
about the closures about an hour before the public announcement. He said it catches him by surprise that the decision is being made now to close for the remainder of the year. However, he said his staff had been working on different scenarios and planning for them, one of which is what happens if public schools are closed for the remainder of this school year. “I think we are still working through that and what that looks like. But I do know that our focus for this initial closure we have announced has been on engagement and enrichment and not giving new material per se, except in some high school courses and dual enrollment see SCHOOLS, pg. 5
Program gives First responders take extra safety precautions direction to first-time offenders
By Laura McFarland Editor
PHOTOS BY LAURA McFARLAND
DELIVER TO: Postal Patron Powhatan, VA 23139
Prsrt. Standard U.S. POSTAGE PAID Powhatan, VA Permit No.19
Above, cafeteria workers and volunteers hand out food to families who need help with meals for their children while schools are closed. Inset, Flat Rock Elementary teacher Tia Stout hands Crystal Corcoran meals for her children.
Schools, local nonprofits feed youth during shutdown By Laura McFarland
PCPS held its first food distribution on March 17 at Powhatan High and Middle schools, successfully handing out enough food to last 273 young people with four days of breakfasts and lunches, said Dorothy Kohler, food service director for Sodexo, which contracts with PCPS for food services. Several more bags of food were distributed to families who did not have transportation or could not attend the distribution event. Kohler said her employees worked 14 hours on March 16 to prepare 2,400 balanced meals for 300 local young people. She planned to increase that number for the second distribution on March 23 to 5,000 meals for 500 students as word spread of the service the schools were offering to children and teens under 18. The pickups will occur from 8 to 10 a.m. each Monday in the bus loops of the two see FEED, pg. 3
see SENIORS, pg. 6
see OFFENDER, pg. 8
Powhatan High School student Alex Knowles, who is in the Firefighter I class, helps keep equipment clean at Company 2 to protect first responders and the public.
By Laura McFarland
Editor
PCPS food services
United States and other countries has clearly shown that the most vulnerable population includes those who are 65 and older and have chronic conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and lung disease. In light of that, agencies such as the Powhatan Health Department, Senior Connections, and more have been making changes and trying to educate people about how to protect
PHOTO BY LAURA McFARLAND
Editor
POWHATAN – Powhatan County Public School officials and community members worked hard in the first week of school closures to make sure local children had enough to eat and there are systems in place for the coming weeks. After the school division announced on March 12 that it would be closing for two weeks to help slow the spread of COVID-19, a variety of groups began making plans to relieve some of the burden on already stressed local families and ensure children were receiving enough food. From an overnight food drive by Backpacks of Love Inc. to the school district’s efforts to local nonprofit Feeding Powhatan stepping forward to help, many in the community pitched in to show Powhatan children they are a priority. And now, as all Powhatan private and public schools have announced the closures will be extended until mid-April, the effort to keep the food supply available is an ongoing commitment.
POWHATAN – The Powhatan County First Time Offender and Community Service Program isn’t a free ride, but it is a chance to turn a youth’s life around. Aimed at 14- to 17-year-olds who have been found guilty of a nonviolent crime, the program LUXFORD provides a “careful balance between mentorship and accountability,” said Gretchen Brown, senior assistant commonwealth’s attorney and the program’s new supervisor. Students who have been found guilty of a crime in the Powhatan Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court receive community service, the First Time Offender program, or both. What follows is 36 hours of classroom work and an average of 50 to 100 hours all aimed at helping young men and women who made a poor choice take responsibility and, hopefully, undergo a big change in outlook. Does it work? They’ll stand by the program’s record. In the almost two years Brad Luxford has been the county’s community juvenile officer, 41 youth have gone through the program. In that time, there was zero recidivism. And before that, Lucky Hill filled the role, making a lasting impression on many local youth. “The kids who have been through the program, none of them have received additional charges. They are staying out of trouble,” Brown said. Before going to work in the commonwealth’s attorney’s office, Brown spent many years working as a defense attorney
POWHATAN – Powhatan County’s first responders are taking extra precautions to ensure the safety of themselves and residents as they answer calls for help in the coming weeks and months.
While their jobs by definition involve having a presence in the community and interacting with people in difficult situations, local first responders can still take steps to limit contact with the public as part of the larger atsee RESPONDERS, pg. 4
Steps being taken to protect seniors, vulnerable population CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Chick-fil-A at Westchester Commons donated lunches to be delivered to Powhatan seniors by volunteers on March 21. Shown, Jayne Lloyd delivers a bag to Yvonne Porter, who stayed inside. Seniors were also told the department of social services is handing out nonperishable food so they can avoid exposure.
By Laura McFarland Editor
POWHATAN – Individuals and communities around the nation have been working hard to make adjustments to protect seniors and those with serious underlying medical conditions – the populations most at risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. While COVID-19 is a disease medical professionals are learning more about every day, data in the