Author: Scott D. Yost

A group of parents concerned about what they say is a highly offensive book used in the Guilford County Schools’ AP English program are hoping they can get the book removed from the reading list after they address school library officials in an early morning meeting on Thursday, May 19.

The Guilford County Department of Public Health has been named the “2021 North Carolina Public Health Association Health Department of the Year.”

They say the wheels of justice turn slowly and that’s certainly true in the case of the Deedsmobile that was stolen last November. Finally, the alleged thief is in custody and awaiting trial.

A group of parents of students in Guilford County Schools – and other concerned citizens – are calling attention to one of the books on a reading list for AP English students and demanding that it be removed from the list.  The parents claim that the book, “Salvage the Bones” by Jesmyn Ward, “promotes” sexual relations between a 19-year-old boy and a girl 14 years old or younger.  They also state that the book “promotes that sex with a minor is OK” and they liken parts of it to “child porn.”

Guilford County is asking all interested area businesses to take part in a virtual public meeting next month on Tuesday, June 7, from 6 to 7:30 p.m.  Those conducting the study hope to hear comments regarding Guilford County government and the county’s MWBE outreach.

Last year in October, when it became clear that the Guilford County Board of Commissioners would put a $1.7 billion school bond referendum on the May primary ballot this year, Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston began touring schools in the county with the most problems to highlight school facilities’ needs and help convince voters to pass that bond referendum. 

North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) don’t want anyone to drop their guard regarding COVID and is hosting a live “fireside chat and tele-town hall” on Wednesday, May 11.

Though the state is in much better shape right now than it has been in the past with regard to the disease, there are quite a few points of emphasis state health officials continue to stress.  During the livestream event, which will be from 6 to 7 p.m. there will be a  discussion on coronavirus vaccines, testing and boosters with a focus on these specific topics:

The county’s Emergency Services Department is overhauling the lights on the Summerfield 800 Megahertz Tower at 5501 Centerfield Road in Summerfield.

On Tuesday, May 10, former Guilford County Commissioner Alan Branson said he had little hope that county and state elections officials would address his concerns sufficiently, and he added that it appears he may have to take the matter to court. 

Former Guilford County Attorney Mark Payne stepped down from that position on the last day of 2021 and now the Guilford County Board of Commissioners has scheduled a closed session in an effort to pick Payne’s replacement. The Guilford County Board of Commissioners will hold a special work session on Wednesday, May 11 at 7 p.m. to consider the matter.

The NC Child Fatality Task Force – which analyzes data on child deaths in the state and makes recommendations for changes in the law to minimize those deaths – has submitted its 2022 Annual Report to Gov. Roy Cooper and the NC General Assembly.

The High Point Farmers Market is beginning its fifth season at its regular location – the High Point Public Library at 901 North Main St. Each Saturday, from May 5 through Halloween, the market will run from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

There are a lot of fathers who are proud of their children’s accomplishments, but these days former High Point Mayor Bill Bencini is especially proud of his son Michael.  On Saturday, April 30, US Navy Commander Mike Bencini took command of the USS Sampson in Busan, South Korea.

Most Guilford County residents know that the May 17 primary election’s ballot has a $1.7 billion school bond referendum on it, but they may not realize that the amount taxpayers will have to pay back will be closer to $2.5 billion.

On Thursday, May 5, GTCC President Anthony Clark gave a presentation to the Guilford County Board of Commissioners at which he touted the latest big perk – the school’s “Access Amazing” scholarship program. The scholarship is reminiscent of the now defunct Say Yes scholarship model.  That is, it is a “last dollar” scholarship meant to remove financial barriers for those who want to attend college.

The Guilford County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a potential “threat” that occurred or didn’t occur on Thursday morning, May 5 at Northeast High School.

People who wish to get to the other side of Arnold J. Koonce City Lake in High Point will have an option other than swimming or boating across the lake or walking around it.  A pedestrian bridge across the city’s prominent lake will connect the Piedmont Environmental Center with a city greenway by the end of summer.

 According to the final numbers from county staff, if the Guilford County Board of Commissioners leaves the county’s tax rate at the same level, the county’s taxpayers will collectively pay an additional $92 million in taxes due to the recent revaluation of all property in the county.

In a move that surprised a lot of people, Summerfield Town Councilmember John O’Day has left the town and the Town Council.

When it comes to the Guilford County sheriff’s race, some Republican candidates, if they win, said they would hire former Sheriff BJ Barnes.

the City of High Point is revamping its sign ordinance and, wisely, city leaders are seeking a good deal of input before arriving at a new set of rules governing signs.

On Thursday, May 5, the Board of Commissioners is set to vote on renewing contracts with several solid waste collection and disposal services as well as reiterate a “Solid Waste Collection Customer Bill of Rights.”

The voting has already begun on the $1.7 billion school bond referendum that Guilford County Schools’ officials and Guilford County commissioners would love to see pass.

On Monday, May 2, Guilford County announced that the commissioners will be holding a special work session largely to address how much money to give the schools.

The Guilford County Board of Commissioner’s Thursday, May 5 meeting, soon-to-be centenarian Lucy Sligh will join the board in celebration of her 100th Birthday, which actually falls on May 18.

Sedalia is a small town but it has been experiencing a great deal of drama in recent weeks – and that continued on Friday, April 29, when Calvin Atkins, the only remaining white person representing the town in an official capacity, resigned his seat on the Sedalia Planning Board.

This week, High Point University – working with the City of High Point – donated and planted trees at Southwest Guilford High School.  The university’s Arboretum and Botanical Gardens team – yes, the school has one of those too – joined Southwest Guilford students and High Point city workers to plant the trees on Friday, April 29 – which also happened to be Arbor Day.

Thursday, May 5, the Board of Commissioners is scheduled to vote to add $546,000 in federal COVID-19 relief funds to the budget of the county’s health department.  It’s supposed to help reduce communicable diseases in the county and therefore help the economy – and save lives too, of course.

If you were one of those parents who were hoping to get some “me” time Friday afternoon by dropping your kids off at Elementary School Satan Club for an hour or so, then you are out of luck for now. The controversial after-school club for kids in first through sixth grades, which was to be held in the Joyner Elementary School cafeteria, has been put on hold while school officials review the law and consider their options.

 But, even before a Florida judge nixed the mask requirement for air travelers across the country, Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTIA) saw a very healthy increase in March of 2022 when compared to March of last year. 

As far as a lot of people are concerned, the COVID-19 threat is pretty much over, however, Guilford County Sheriff Danny Rogers discovered the hard way that that’s not true.  On Thursday, April 28, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department sent out a press release announcing the development. The department reported that, earlier in the day, Rogers tested positive for COVID-19. 

The civil rights museum announced that its 2022 Summer Internship Program is seeking undergraduate junior and senior students and graduate students to fill the positions.

Former Guilford County Commissioner Alan Branson isn’t just not afraid of making waves – he actually relishes in doing it. He made some big new waves at 3 p.m., on Wednesday, April 27 when his attorney walked into the Guilford County Board of Elections Office in downtown Greensboro and presented elections officials with a protest claiming that Guilford County government is spending taxpayer money to support two referendums on the ballot. 

The City of High Point – in conjunction with community partners Housing Consultants Group and Community Housing Solutions – announced this week that the city is hosting an “Operation Inasmuch” Day of Service in High Point on Saturday, April 30.

The Guilford County Board of Elections has received a formal request for an investigation into irregularities in the way the $1.7 billion bond and the quarter cent sales tax increase referendums are being promoted by Guilford County.

On Friday morning, April 29, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners will get the chance to ask away in front of state legislators who represent Guilford County in Raleigh. The official purpose of the meeting is “to discuss upcoming legislative goals” – which can be read as: to discuss things the state can do to make life easier for county governments.

Just about everyone in Guilford County knows by now that an elementary school “Satan Club” may be held by Satanists at Joyner Elementary School starting on Friday, April 29.  School officials are apparently in a tight bind, because, while few if any want to see a Satan Club on campus, a 2001 US Supreme Court case prevents the schools from discriminating against a religious group’s use of school facilities if other groups are allowed to – and therefore schools can’t legally deny the use of facilities even for a club run by Satanists.

The Simkins PAC is a group of Greensboro’s black leaders who each election endorse a slate of candidates in an effort to help sway the election. This week, the well-known group did so again. However, when it sent out the list this time, the statement on the candidates included a typo.  There’s nothing unusual about that – typos happen all the time – but in this case the typo was quite amusing.

Early voting for the May 17 primary opens on Thursday April 28, and one group that always weighs in on those who it thinks people should vote for is the Dr. George C Simkins Jr. Memorial Political Action Committee. 

It’s not getting as much publicity as the Beatle’s Magical Mystery Tour did back in the ’60s, but...

The Greensboro/Guilford County Tourism Development Authority put out notice this week of its 2021-2022 proposed budget and also of a forum where local residents can give their input. 

The county and Sedalia are sponsoring “Spring Cleanup 2022,” which is being billed as a “secure, free, easy way to recycle scrap tires, appliances, electronic waste, and shred personal documents.” The collection party will take place on Saturday, April 30 from 8 a.m. to noon. 

One outspoken pickleball enthusiast, John Henry Bohlken, has been complaining as loud as he can about the way Guilford County is handling the pickleball courts operation at Bur-Mil Park – and this week Guilford County Parks Director Dwight Godwin said that a coming new contract with the private providers will be significantly different than the existing one.

On Thursday, April 21, when the commissioners held their first meeting in years in High Point in the High Point City Council’s chambers downtown.  County Commissioner Carlvena Foster, whose base of constituents are High Point residents, had pushed for the Board to hold the meeting in the county’s second largest city. Though Chairman of the Board of Commissioners Skip Alston was at the board’s meeting on Thursday evening, he gave the gavel to Foster and slid over one chair to his left.

Things got pretty chilly in winter when, in late 2021, Guilford County Commissioner James Upchurch suddenly changed parties from Democrat to Republican and blasted Chairman of the Guilford County Commissioners Skip Alston’s leadership of the board in the process.  That was the last time the two men spoke in person until Friday, April 22, when Upchurch called Alston and the two had their first conversation since last year.

Elementary schools and other schools have all sorts of clubs for students, however, a flyer for a “School Satan Club” now making the rounds has a lot of people doing double-takes.

A Sedalia Town Council member who had served on the council for 17 years has resigned over what she says is endemic racism from the all-black council against white residents.

Sedalia Town Council members are remaining silent about harsh allegations against the council by longtime Sedalia Town Council Member Valerie Jones, who just resigned over her concerns over the way the council handles business and treats white residents.

Ed Piotrowski, a white man who ran for a Sedalia Town Council seat last year, said that, due to his decision to run, Town Council members harassed him, treated him with complete disdain and claimed he was in violation of the law after he recorded a Town Council meeting on his phone and posted it on Facebook.

Ed Piotrowski, an aviation quality control inspector and a resident of Sedalia, recorded a Sedalia Town Council meeting and posted it on Facebook without informing the councilmembers. He said he was shocked to find himself being accused of a Class H felony by the town’s mayor and other town officials.