By Melinda L. Lucas Albany city council members approved a recommendation to go with the effective tax rate, which is almost the same as last year’s actual rate, during their regular session on Monday, Aug. 12.

By Melinda L. Lucas Shackelford County sheriff Edward Miller explained a new “Jail Navigator” program being proposed by the board of the Betty Hardwick Center during a regular meeting of the county commissioners on Monday, Aug. 12.

By Kathy Thomson The Albany Chamber of Commerce’s bi-annual party at the Aztec Theater at 7:00 p.m. next Friday, Aug. 23 will feature both a look backwards into local history and will also honor three people who are helping Albany shine brightly toward the future.

By Kathy Thomson Albany High agriculture teacher Chris Beard said that Albany students will exhibit steers, heifers, goats, and pigs at the West Texas Fair and Rodeo in Abilene, which runs Sept. 5-14, and those entries are due today.

EDITOR’S NOTE: In last week’s Back-to-School special section, the News mistakenly switched two of the photos that went with the new teacher bios. Those two portions of the article are reprinted below. The News apologizes for this error.

By Kathy Thomson Golfers are invited to sign up and enjoy two days of play at the Albany Golf Club’s traditional Labor Day tournament on Saturday, Aug. 31 and Sunday, Sept. 1. “We still have openings for both the 8:30 a.m. and the 1:30 p.m. tee times on Saturday,” said club president Randy Walker.

By Kathy Thomson Students at the Moran Independent School District have two more weeks of summer vacation before classes start on Monday, Aug. 26, but the new school year officially began today for the staff.

By Kathy Thomson Both the Bulldogs and the Lady Bulldogs began practices this past Monday, Aug 5. The football players started at 7:00 a.m., and volleyball two-a-days began at 8:00 a.m. Football “I was extremely pleased with practice,” said new head coach John Hughes on Monday.

By Kathy Thomson Moran’s annual city-wide garage sale will be held on Saturday, Sept. 7, starting at 8:00 a.m., according to organizer Michelle Taggart. There is no charge to participate, and maps showing all of the garage sale locations will be available.

By Melinda L. Lucas The final two Old Jail Art Center sponsored children’s summer camps take place in the next week, with spots still available for both classes at press time. The traditional Cell Series Teen Workshop originally scheduled for next Tuesday, Aug.