For the second time in less than two years, a raccoon wreaked havoc on Albany’s electrical substation, causing much of Shackelford County to be without power for about four hours.
At about 2:45 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 3, Rocky Parsons and other local AEP employees were called out when electric service failed.
The outage covered almost all of the county, with the exception of the southeast corner that includes Moran.
New teacher bios, along with faculty assignment and school supply lists, are included in the special back-to-school section in this week’s issue.
There are also articles about vaccination requirements, elementary “meet the teacher” night, and orientation for new junior high and high school students.
See Section C for details.
Regular pool hours at Webb Park city pool will end for the summer next Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 14, as the time nears for school classes to begin.
The facility will still be available to rent for private parties through the month of August, with a fee of $125 for a two-hour block.
To book a time slot, call Albany City Hall at 325-762-3133.
Regular Pool Hours
With the start of the new school year just one week from today, any new students who have not yet registered in the Albany Independent School District need to do so as soon as possible.
Local classes start on Thursday, Aug. 16, with the tardy bells at both campuses ringing at 7:55 a.m.
Administrators are hoping for similar enrollment numbers as last year, although budget figures are conservatively based on less than that.
NSES Registration
New students at Albany High School and Albany Junior High School, including all incoming seventh graders, are urged to attend a special meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 14 starting at 6:00 p.m. in the cafeteria/snack bar, which is located in the junior high building.
At least one parent is asked to accompany their student to the brief meeting, if at all possible.
The time slot follows the elementary’s “Meet the Teacher” sessions, which start at 5:00 p.m.
A new teacher group orientation meeting for new Albany ISD staff members took place yesterday, Aug. 8 at the elementary school.
The orientation was used to introduce the new employees to the administrators and administrative staff, cover district policies and procedures, and campus rules and regulations.
Information about available local resources and some technology training was also covered in the group orientation setting.
There are five new classroom teachers plus several support staff members.
Three water fountains, one each at the elementary school, the junior high, and the high school, have recently been replaced with water bottle filling stations, according to school nurse Lisa Russell.
“We are so excited about our three new water bottle filling stations,” the nurse said. “They have refrigerated, filtered water and are great for flu season and throughout the year to keep our students and faculty hydrated. I cannot wait for the kids to see these when they return to school!”
Four local 4-H members participated in the Multi-County 4-H Food and Nutrition Camp held in Abilene last week, with the Taylor County AgriLife Extension Service hosting the event.
Paisley Clark, Myleigh Leveridge, Riley Reames, and Sidney Russell joined other 4-Hers from Callahan and Taylor counties for the two-day camp.
Shackelford County extension agent Michaela Bradford said that the participants learned about various topics ranging from why fruit turns brown to why popcorn pops.
The final two Old Jail Art Center sponsored children’s summer camps take place in the next week, with limits expected to be reached for both classes.
Eighth through 12th graders will participate in the Cell Series Teen Workshop on Friday, Aug. 10. There were a couple of spots available as of press time.
Those attending the class from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. will use a variety of media to create artwork inspired by current Cell Series artist Helen Altman, according to education director Erin Whitmore.
Lunch will be provided.
Recycled Art
The next star gazing party at Fort Griffin State Historic Site will give participants a great opportunity to view the Perseids meteor shower, which will peak the very next night.
The staff will host the August Stars & Skies of Texas event this Saturday night, Aug. 11, starting at 8:30 p.m.
There are also several other events offering this weekend during the daytime hours.
Stars & Skies
