Morgan Wheatly

 The second annual Chance Mark Jones Memorial 5K Walk/Run is two weeks away, but there is still time for runners and sponsors to sign up for the event.

The Clarendon Lions Club is hosting the event on Saturday, April 12, to coincide with Child Abuse Prevention Month.

Those interested in running or walking the 5K (about 3.1 miles) are encouraged to sign up before April 1 to take advantage of the early bird discount. Registration costs $25, but those who sign up early save $5.

The year’s race will start and end on the Clarendon College campus and will run through the city, by the site of the proposed Chance Mark Jones Memorial Playground, and past several historic structures, including the Donley County Courthouse, the First United Methodist Church, and the S.W. Lowe House.

The race will begin at 9 a.m. Race registrations are available at the Clarendon Visitor Center at the Mulkey Theatre or online at http://bit.ly/1dF0BdH.

Sponsorships are also available, and potential sponsors are asked to sign up by April 1 to ensure their names are on this year’s T-shirt.

Proceeds will go towards a playground project in Prospect Park, which will be designed to include four play components that will meet the needs of children with disabilities. The race and playground are intended to honor the life of four-year-old Chance Mark Jones, who died from abuse in 2011.

For more information, contact Boss Lion Ashlee Estlack at 806-874-4808 or 806-662-4687 or Lion Chandra Eggemeyer at tourism@cityofclarendon.com or 806-874-2421 or 325-234-3401.

Clarendon College Regents renewed administrative positions and considered several other agenda items during their regular meeting March 20.

Nineteen administrative positions were recommended for approval by CC President Robert Riza and confirmed by the board.

Those employees include Christy Brooks, Coordinator of Workforce Development; Tex Buckhaults, Dean of Students; Bonnie Burgoyne, Director of Financial Aid; Ashlee Estlack, Public Information & Marketing Coordinator / Assistant to the President; Annette Ferguson, Dean of Administrative Services; James Gordon, Learning Resource Center Coordinator; Becky Green, Enrollment Services Counselor; David Hall, Associate Dean of the Pampa Center; Brandi Havens, Registrar; Ray Jaramillo, Vice President of Off Campus Affairs & Dean of Workforce Education; Debra Lamb, Director of Student Life; Aaron Lopez, Recruiter & Default Aversion Specialist; Scott Mills, Director of the Childress Center; Pamela Reed, Director of the Library; Dr. Roger Schustereit, Interim Dean of Instruction; Martha Smith, Admissions Coordinator; Dr. Robert Taylor, Director of Institutional Research / Director of Title III; Will Thompson, Director of Information Services & Computer Operations; and Brad Vanden Boogaard, Athletic Director.

In other personnel matters, Dr. Riza reported that Coach Vanden Boogaard has moved from the women’s basketball program to the men’s program, and a search is underway to find a new women’s coach.

CC Regents also authorized Riza and the administration to review proposals from plumbing contractors who will be doing rough-in work on bathroom facilities at the Livestock & Equine Center.

Regents considered and approved a five-year lease with the City of Amarillo on a parking lot north of CC’s new cosmetology center in that city.

The board approved an order to cancel its May election and declare unopposed candidates John Howard, Bill Sansing, and Jack Moreman elected.

Two bids on tax delinquent property were approved as presented, one for property in Hedley and another for lots located in Howardwick.

In his President’s Report, Dr. Riza reported that he is negotiating with Cielo Wind Energy about a possible tax relief agreement.

The president also said he will be recommending to the board in April that the CC golf program be discontinued after this season. There are currently four players on the golf team.

LUBBOCK – This month wildlife experts are starting the third annual helicopter survey to assess lesser prairie-chicken populations across the bird’s range in New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Colorado.

The historic first effort to conduct a large-scale, helicopter-based survey to locate lesser prairie-chicken breeding areas or leks across the High Plains region in all five states occurred March-May 2012 and encompassed more than 300,000 square miles. Several previously unknown leks were detected, despite severe drought across the region. Survey teams also detected leks in Kansas beyond what was thought to be the northern extent of the bird’s historic range.

Last year’s 2013 range-wide survey revealed population estimates of 17,616, down from the 34,440 birds estimated in 2012. The population decrease was predicted by biologists because of the persistent drought that has plagued the region in recent years.

Lesser prairie-chicken populations have fluctuated historically due to weather and habitat conditions. In fact, populations were so low during the droughts in the 1930s and 1950s biologists feared the species was almost extinct. However, when the rains returned, the populations rebounded.

Bird numbers have been largely increasing in Kansas for the last 15 years, while populations have declined in parts of the southern portion of the range. Some biologists believe this northward expansion may represent a shift in the population of the species caused by climatic conditions associated with changing precipitation patterns.

“Besides rain, what will really help is on-the-ground conservation efforts we’re putting in place with the Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-wide Conservation Plan,” said Bill Van Pelt, Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies grassland coordinator. Van Pelt noted how the five-state plan provides ways for industry to be supportive and landowners to enroll in voluntary conservation agreements.

The range-wide plan includes management goals and voluntary conservation programs and practices to be applied throughout the lesser prairie-chicken’s range. The final plan was endorsed last October by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which has proposed listing the bird as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act, and is expected to announce a listing decision by March 31.

Aerial surveys will continue through mid-May, extending from the southern plains of the Texas Panhandle and southeast New Mexico up through the Oklahoma panhandle to western Kansas and southeastern Colorado. Surveys will be flown at 35-40 mph about 80 feet above ground. Pilots involved have extensive experience conducting aerial surveys and will make a special effort to avoid hazing livestock on pastures.

Anyone can learn more about the range-wide plan and options for landowners and industry on the WAFWA website.