Archives for February 2019

This Friday is the last day to sign up for local offices for citizens who wish to improve their communities, and it looks like most positions will be decided without elections.

Eighteen board positions are available, but only the City of Howardwick has attracted enough candidates to warrant having an election as of Tuesday morning while the City of Clarendon doesn’t even have enough declared candidates to cover all the offices that are open.

Howardwick Alderman Brice Hawley and Tony Clemishire, have filed to run for mayor, and five people are running for two positions on the city council. Alderman Johnny Floyd will be joined on the ballot by Beverly McCaskill, Erica Mills, Tammy Jordan, and Jerry Mullanax.

In Clarendon, the terms of Mayor Sandy Skelton and Aldermen Nathan Floyd and Jacob Fangman are up as well as the one-year unexpired term now held by Eulaine McIntosh. Only Skelton and McIntosh have filed for re-election

Hedley has three aldermen seats up this year. Aldermen Tonya Metcalf and Alicia Hanes are running for re-election, and Trisha Chambless has filed for the third seat.

Clarendon ISD Trustees serve three years, and the terms of Robin Ellis, Chuck Robertson, and Will Thompson are expiring this year, and all three have filed for re-election.

Hedley ISD has two full three-year terms and one unexpired term up this year. Michael Metcalf and Billy Hall are running for reelection, and Susan Cosby has filed for the vacant seat.

The Donley County Hospital District Board of Directors has four two-year terms up this year. Those are currently held by Wayne Tubbs – Place 1, Jeff Robertson – Place 2, and Melinda McAnear – Place 3. McAnear is the only person to have filed as of Tuesday morning.

Filing continues through Friday, February 15. Elections are scheduled to be held Saturday, May 4, 2019.

New security measures at Clarendon CISD will require all visitors to present identification at campus offices beginning Tuesday, February 19.

School officials say the Raptor Visitor Management System will strengthen safety for students and faculty. Part of keeping students and faculty safe is knowing who is in our buildings at all times, and the Raptor system will allow the school to do that. The Raptor system will used to screen visitors, contractors, and volunteers.

Upon entering a district building, visitors will be asked to present an ID such as a driver’s license, which can either be scanned or manually entered into the system. If a parent or guardian for any reason does not have a government-issued ID, a school staff member can use any form of identification and manually enter the person’s name into the Raptor system.

The Raptor system will check to ensure that registered sexual offenders are not entering our school campuses without the school’s knowledge.

The Raptor system checks the visitor’s name and date of birth for comparison with a national database of registered sex offenders. The registered sex offender database is the only official database checked by the Raptor system. No other data from the ID is gathered or recorded and the information is not shared with any outside agency.

Once entry is approved, Raptor will issue a badge that identifies the visitor, the date, and the purpose of his/her visit. A visitor’s badge will not be necessary for those who visit our schools simply to drop off an item in the office or pick up paperwork.

Clarendon CISD says the safety of students is its highest priority and the Raptor visitor management system allows it to quickly identify those that may present a danger.

The Texas Rural Leadership Program will be hosting its 2019 conference, Engaging Rural Communities, in Austin Texas, April 4-5.

“The future of Texas is changing. With it, the potential for the places we love to become increasingly urban, or even ghostly quiet is increasing. A healthier sense of community in our rural counties impacts the well-being of all Texans. Our program brings people together, in commitment to stronger community through inclusive leadership,” said Dr. Craig Rotter, Executive Director of the Texas Rural Leadership Program.
“There can be a vibrant future for small town Texas, through open discussion about what matters, and thoughtful movement into collective action.”

The Texas Rural Leadership program is a non-for-profit 501c3 organization, in close partnership with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Created in 1989 by a group of Texans who wanted to create leadership development opportunities for individuals in rural areas where access to such opportunities are not available, the first TRLP leadership program was convened in Marion County in 1992. Since then, nearly 800 participants have completed programs in counties spread across the state. The program encourages participants to identify assets that will improve the quality of life in their communities.

The 2019 Engaging Rural Communities Conference is set to energize participants, build connections to rural-focused resources, better define 21st Century rural leadership needs, and allow for discussion about what we should be doing to improve our quality of life. Attendees will hear success stories, gain a greater understanding of the power of the Texas Rural Leadership Program, and be reminded that it is often a handful of people that lead the way to a bright future.

For more information, contact Executive Director Craig Rotter, Ph.D., craig.rotter@agnet.tamu.edu, ph: 979. 845.2035, mobile: 979.587.1992, website: https://trlp.tamu.edu.

The Mulkey Theatre will reopen Memorial Day weekend with a Grand Opening celebration set for Saturday, May 25, and other festivities on Sunday and Monday, May 26 and 27.

The Clarendon Economic Development Corporation, which has led the ten-year effort to renovate the 1946 theatre, set the May opening during its regular meeting Monday night.

CEDC directors were told that construction work continues this week to prepare for the installation of sound, projection, and stage lighting equipment starting on February 18, followed by the installation of theatre seating scheduled for March 4.

Work at this point is on schedule and on budget and should be completed well in advance of the planned opening.

Chamber of Commerce Manager Bob Weiss reported that of 204 chairs available for sponsorships on the main floor, only five remained unsold as of Monday. (Update: By Wednesday morning, it was reported that all seats had been sold.)

Weiss also plans to volunteer at the Ritz Theatre in Wellington later this week to see the operation of that theatre first hand.

CEDC President Robert Riza appointed Weiss, Ashlee Estlack, and CEDC Secretary Roger Estlack to lead the planning for the grand opening weekend, which will take the place of the annual Mulkey Block Party this year. Details for the festivities are still in the formative stages, but discussions have focused on a combination of live performances as well as movies to showcase the capabilities of the renovated theatre.

CEDC also discussed rental rates for the Mulkey, which will be available for private, corporate, and civic events beginning in June. Those rates will be finalized at the March board meeting.

Clarendon College was well represented by President Robert Riza last week in Austin when the Texas Association of Community Colleges (TACC) and the Texas Association of Community College Marketers (TACCM) celebrated the annual Community College Day at the Capitol.

The organized day is an opportunity for Texas college students and administrators to engage with their elected officials and discuss issues relevant to them and higher education.

Dr. Riza met with Sen. Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo) as well as Rep. Four Price (R-Amarillo), the chairman of the calendars committee; and Rep. Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock), the ways and means chairman.

“Rep. Burrows is a friend of Clarendon College,” Riza said. “He is not an alumni but attended FFA Leadership Camps at Clarendon College when he was in high school and spoke at our leadership camp two years ago.”

Riza also met with Rep. Ken King (R-Canadian), Sen. Charles Perry (R-Lubbock) and Rep. Drew Springer (R-Muenster), each of whom represent different portions of CC’s service area.

‘’Community College Day gives the students an opportunity to discuss important policy issues related to education through face-to-face interactions with legislators,” said TACC President and CEO Jacob Fraire.
“We believe this insight informs students about legislative processes and the innerworkings of the state Capitol; it also offers legislators the opportunity to hear directly from Texans.”

Riza said the CC Honors College students are provided with opportunities to meet local legislators on campus and discuss issues facing higher education.

“They have met with Rep. King and Sen. Seliger between sessions to really have time to talk to them in depth,” Riza said.

With one week to go in the filing period, only one local taxing entity – the City of Howardwick – has enough candidates to hold an election this spring.

Howardwick Mayor Greta Byars confirmed this week that she is not seeking reelection to her office. Two other residents of that city, Alderman Brice Hawley and Tony Clemishire, have filed to run for chief executive’s spot. Meanwhile, so far five people are running for two positions on the city council. Alderman Johnny Floyd will be joined on the ballot by Beverly McCaskill, Erica Mills, Tammy Jordan, and Jerry Mullanax.

Five other taxing entities do not yet have enough candidates to hold elections.

In Clarendon, the two-year terms of Mayor Sandy Skelton and Aldermen Nathan Floyd and Jacob Fangman are up as well as the one-year unexpired term now held by Eulaine McIntosh. Skelton and McIntosh have filed for re-election

Hedley has three aldermen seats up this year. Aldermen Tonya Metcalf and Alicia Hanes are running for re-election, and Trisha Chambless has filed for the third seat.

Clarendon ISD Trustees serve three years, and the terms of Robin Ellis, Chuck Robertson, and Will Thompson are expiring this year, and all three have filed for re-election.

Hedley ISD has two full three-year terms and one unexpired term up this year. Michael Metcalf and Billy Hall are running for reelection, and Susan Cosby has filed for the vacant seat.

The Donley County Hospital District Board of Directors has four two-year terms up this year. Those are currently held by Wayne Tubbs – Place 1, Jeff Robertson – Place 2, and Melinda McAnear – Place 3.

McAnear is the only person to have filed as of Tuesday morning.

Candidate applications are available from the administrative offices of each entity. Filing continues through Friday, February 15. Elections are set for May 4.