Daily Archives: 04/27/2016
Easley woman killed in accident
POWDERSVILLE — A 76-year-old Easley woman died as a result of injuries sustained in a single-car accident Saturday morning.
The Anderson County Coroner’s Office identified the woman as Barbara Owens.
Owens was traveling south on Sitton Hill Road around 1.5 miles east of Easley on Saturday morning, according to Lance Corporal Tony Keller with the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
Her 2001 Ford went off the left side of the roadway and struck a traffic sign before striking a tree, Keller said.
Owens was not ejected from or trapped inside the vehicle. She was taken by ambulance to Greenville Memorial Hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.
The Highway Patrol is still investigating the accident.
Local principals given new roles
COUNTY — School District of Pickens County officials announced new duties for a pair of local principals this week.
A.R. Lewis Elementary School principal Melissa Terry will serve as a transitional principal to coordinate the merger of Pickens-area elementary schools during the 2016-17 school year, while Pickens High School principal Marion Lawson will serve as the district’s new assistant superintendent of administration for the coming year.
As transitional principal, Terry’s duties will include working with parents and students from A.R. Lewis and Holly Springs elementary schools as they relocated to new locations, She will also work with leadership, faculty and staff from all five Pickens-area schools to relocate and transition into their new locations and serve as the point of communication for all information concerning consolidation for various departments within the district. She will also assist the Instructional Services and Human Resources departments as needed for curriculum development and teacher evaluation.
“Mrs. Terry has done an excellent job as principal at A.R. Lewis Elementary School for the past two years,” SDPC superintendent Dr. Danny Merck said. “She is a true professional, and she has exactly the leadership skills needed to help the merger between the Pickens-area elementary schools go as smoothly as possible.”
On March 14, school board members voted to close A.R. Lewis and Holly Springs and to merge these schools with Hagood Elementary and Ambler Elementary. Pickens Elementary School, while not a part of the merger, will still be welcoming a new principal in 2016. Terry will be located in one of the Pickens-area schools as she works with the principals and staff next year.
As assistant superintendent of administration, Lawson will be the district office’s primary point of contact and evaluator for all principals and program directors. He will oversee four district-wide departments: Operations, Student Services, Food Services, and Transportation.
“I’m looking forward to working with our principals and department heads to build and enhance leadership so we can achieve success in and beyond the classroom,” Lawson said.
“The ability to mentor and lead our principals is the most important part of this role, and no one is better suited to that responsibility than Mr. Lawson,” Merck said. “Serving as a principal in our district for 18 years has earned him the respect of his colleagues, and I have great faith in his abilities as a leader and a manager.”
Lawson has been the principal of Pickens High School since 2000. Prior to working at PHS, he was the principal at Dacusville Middle School for two years. He was also an assistant principal at Easley High School for five years. Before he began his career in administration, be taught at Easley High, Easley Junior High School, Seneca High School and Liberty High School. He is a product of Pickens County schools, having graduated with honors from Easley High School.
Lawson has been a leader among his peers as a principal, serving as the president of the Pickens County Principals’ Association from 2001-02. He was also the president of the South Carolina High School League AAA Conference from 2006-08, the president of the SCHSL Executive Committee in 2010, and a AAA representative to the SCHSL from 2012-13.
Trains, planes & automobiles
Rocky Nimmons
Publisher
rnimmons@thepccourier.com
Two of Pickens County’s annual spring celebrations went off without a hitch on Saturday, as sunny skies and warm temperatures greeted visitors to the Central Railroad Festival and the annual Wings and Wheels for Meals at the Pickens County Airport. To see more photos from both events, visit the Courier’s Facebook page.
Chamber names Smagala director
Pictured, from left, are Mike Parrott, Kimberly Smagala, Rep. Davey Hiott and Pickens mayor David Owens.
PICKENS — On Monday, a crowd gathered at the Pickens Area Chamber of Commerce to honor and celebrate the contributions of the group’s retiring leader and welcome his replacement.
Mike Parrott, who has served as executive director of the chamber for the past seven years, will be replaced by Kimberly Smagala.
Smagala is an Upstate native with a diverse background in chamber work, marketing and small business development.
“We are grateful to Mike for his dedication and commitment to Pickens and the surrounding community. We wish him the best in his retirement,” chamber board president Liza Holder said. “The board is also excited about the fulfillment of this position with the hiring of Kim Smagala. She will serve Pickens exceptionally well.”
Holder said Parrott will be remembered most for “his passion for business growth and extraordinarily warm smile, which so often has been seen walking down Main Street and visiting with local businesses.
“He has been a tremendous asset in the growth of our area and has brought so much value to the chamber membership,” she said.
According to a news release issued by Holder, the chamber is a cornerstone for business in the area and solely exists to serve, promote and advocate for local business.
Those looking to join or find out more about the Pickens Area Chamber of Commerce may stop by the chamber office at 222 W. Main St. in Pickens, call (864) 878-3258 or visit pickenschamber.net.
Easley man faces child sex charge
PICKENS — An Easley man was arrested this week after police say he sexually assaulted a child last month.
Wolfgang Dylan Stein, 28, was served with a warrant for first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor after being picked up from an Anderson County facility where he had been held for several days on unrelated federal charges, according to Pickens County Sheriff’s Office chief deputy Creed Hashe.
Hashe said the sheriff’s office began an investigation on March 3 after receiving information that a child under the age of 11 had been sexually assaulted that morning at a home in Pickens County.
Detectives were able to find and interview the child’s mother, who police said witnessed the alleged incident.
Although he did not give details about their relationship, Hashe said Stein knew the woman and her child.
Stein was given no bond by a Pickens County magistrate on Monday and was transported back to Anderson County, where he was released back to authorities there.
Annual literacy association book sale set for May 6-7
By Jason Evans
Staff Reporter
jevans@thepccourier.com
PICKENS — Imagine there’s a wall cutting you off from those you love and a brighter future
On the other side of that wall is so many things, both big and small.
Love letters. Emails. Street signs. Maps. Newspapers. A voting ballot. Your children’s homework instructions. Job applications. Books. The Bible.
And you’re trapped behind that wall, unable to understand these things, unable to navigate the world.
Why?
Because you don’t know how to read. Perhaps it’s a secret you’ve kept from those you love, so they don’t even know about the wall you’re trapped behind.
The volunteers at the Pickens County Literacy Association help tear down that wall and open up a wider world for their students
The Pickens County Literacy Association provides one-to-one tutoring to its students to help them overcome illiteracy.
Director Everette Curl has been involved with the organization, which was started by the Pickens Jaycees, for many years.
She became involved when Ben Bagwell, a former employee of the Pickens Sentinel, asked her to take part. Bagwell was a former president of the organization.
“He really initiated this in Pickens,” Curl said. “He was very, very interested in literacy and got me interested.”
At that time, connecting the students with tutors was “really a struggle,” Curl said.
She went door-to-door in a poor neighborhood in Central, looking for tutors.
To meet the need, the PCLA hired Southern Wesleyan University students to tutor those in need of the program.
Today, the organization is staffed entirely by volunteers.
“They’re all volunteering because they want to,” Curl said. “It’s very gratifying. Everybody seems to love it.”
Volunteers enjoy seeing their students flourish. Curl said one of PCLA board member Harry Holladay’s students went on to become a tutor.
“That was outstanding,” she said.
The association provides training sessions and materials to its volunteers.
The PCLA operates on the “each one teach one” method.
“When we teach somebody, when they go all the way through, we hope they will turn around and teach someone else,” Curl said.
Anyone is welcome to use the PCLA’s services. There is no cost to students. All services and materials provided to students are free.
“We take all ages,” Curl said. “Nobody’s turned away.”
The association meets with students at locations across Pickens County, often at the library branches.
“We get a lot of referrals from the library,” Curl said.
In recent years, the association’s English as a second language program has become popular.
The PCLA is entirely funded by donations and the proceeds from its semi-annual book sales.
“All of the money is used for the materials and the students,” Curl said. “We’re constantly looking for new students.”
The next book sale will be held May 6-7 at the All Saints Hall at Pickens Presbyterian Church.
On May 6, the sale kicks off at 9 a.m. and will run until 6 p.m. On May 7, the sale will be held from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.
Thanks to the generosity of the PCLA’s many donors and volunteers, there will be tables filled with hard and paperback books, children’s books, cookbooks, self-help books, coffee table books and more.
“We’ll have books of all sorts,” Curl said.
In addition to the books, CDs, DVDs, audiobooks, cassettes and tapes will also be on sale.
For more information on the Pickens County Literacy Association or to volunteer, call Curl at (864) 878-9642.
DAR awards Gold ROTC Medals
Honorary Chapter Regent Sara Matkins Gilliland of the Andrew Pickens Chapter National Society Daughters of the American Revolution presented the DAR Gold ROTC Medals to two Clemson University cadets during the celebration of the ROTC’s 100th anniversary. The two award recipients were Colleen L. West from the Clemson University Army ROTC and Morgan L. Norton from the Clemson University Air Force ROTC. Pictured at left are Gilliland and West, and at right are Gilliland and Norton.
LHS to host districtwide dual-enrollment program
liberty — Liberty High School will host a dual-enrollment program for all juniors and seniors in the School District of Pickens County beginning next school year.
The district’s dual-enrollment program is an ongoing partnership with Tri-County Technical College, which allows students to earn college credits while still in high school.
“I’m greatly looking forward to the opportunities this will open up both for our students here at Liberty High and for students at the district’s other high schools,” Liberty High School principal Josh Oxendine said. “Tri-County has worked with us to schedule dual-enrollment courses at times during the day that will give students great opportunities to take advantage of Advanced Placement and other course offerings within our school.”
Tri-County director of high school engagement and outreach Amanda Blanton said hte college has had “a great relationship” with Liberty High for years.
“The counselors at LHS have been great to work with, and Mr. Oxendine has been a champion of the dual-enrollment concept,” she said. “The central location, the counseling staff and the principal are all going to make this an awesome opportunityfor students.”
The program is open to students at all four Pickens County high schools. Students in the dual-enrollment program will also have the option to take some elective courses offered at LHS, while remaining enrolled at their home high schools.
“What’s amazing about this program is that it eliminates the financial and transportation barriers that keep many students from being able to participate in dual-enrollment,” Oxendine said. “Every high school student in the district will be able to ride the bus, eat in our cafeteria, and take advantage of college-level courses on our campusduring the traditional school day.”
The fall semester courses being offered are: American Government (PSC 201), Probability and Statistics (MAT 120), English Composition 1 (ENG 101, two sections) and Art Appreciation (ART 101). The spring semester courses offered are: Macroeconomics (ECO 201), History of Western Civilization Post-1689 (HIS 102), Biology (Bio 101), English Composition II (ENG 102, two sections) and General Psychology (PSY 201).
TCTC will continue offering dual-enrollment courses at its campuses in Pendleton and Easley as well. The courses will each be taught by a qualified TCTC faculty member who meets all appropriate accreditation criteria for postsecondary instruction.
School District career fair set for Friday
EASLEY — The School District of Pickens County will be holding a career fair this Friday.
The district is looking to hire bus drivers, food service, grounds crew, custodians and temporary summer help.
The career fair will be held from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Adult Learning Center at 106 Glazner St. in Easley. Job candidates are encouraged to apply for positions online before the fair by checking job listings at www.pickens.k12.sc.us.
Those who apply in advance will be scheduled for an interview on April 29, and the district will be taking applications and conducting interviews at the fair.
For more information, applicants should contact coordinator of personnel services Danny Rogers at (864) 397-1039 or by email at dannyrogers@pickens.k12.sc.us.
Pill take-back day planned
COUNTY — This Saturday, law enforcement agencies and local hospitals in Pickens County will sponsor a day for the general public to rid their homes of potentially dangerous, expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs.
The service is free to the public, and no questions will be asked.
Residents are encouraged to bring any unused medication in need of disposal to one of the three drop off-sites during the hours of 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The sites include Cannon Memorial Hospital, located at 123 W.G. Acker Drive in Pickens; Baptist Easley Hospital, located at 202 Fleetwood Drive in Easley; and the Clemson Free Clinic, located at 1198 Tiger Blvd. in Clemson.
The event is sponsored by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Pickens County Sheriff’s Office, Easley Police Department, Clemson Police Department, Cannon Memorial Hospital and Baptist Easley Hospital.
Behavioral Health plans town hall event
PICKENS — Behavioral Health Services of Pickens County will hold a town hall meeting Thursday at the Oolenoy River Baptist Association Headquarters at 301 Secona Road in Pickens targeting underage drinking in the county.
The purpose of the town hall meeting is to increase awareness about the problem of underage drinking in our community and educate specific populations in the community about their role in preventing underage drinking. Those attending will be hearing from different decorated officers of the community, in addition to other community members educated in the issue of underage drinking.
BHSPC will also take this opportunity to showcase what the Pickens County Youth Board has noted to be “hotspots,” or youth targeted spots for underage drinking in the Pickens community. Community members will have the opportunity to ask questions and engage in a community-led discussion about underage drinking in Pickens County.
For more information, contact Alexander Dukes at (864) 898-5800 or via email at adukes@bhspickens.com.
