The Hopkins County Echo (Sulphur Springs, Tex.), Vol. 111, No. 27, Ed. 1 Friday, July 4, 1986 Page: 1 of 4
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5jje Raskins (fatmfg Eclja
.27.
(ABSORBED THE GAZETTE CIRCULATION BY PURCHASE MAY 12, 1928)
SULPHUR SPRINGS, TEXAS, FRIDAY, JULY 4, 1986.
4 PAGES - 25 CENTS PUBLISHED EVERY FRID
No tax increase
for school district
By BOBBY BURNEY
Keep your distance
Police Crimefighter and safety mascot
McGruff stopped by this local fireworks
stand Tuesday to remind customers,
especially children, to play it safe with
fireworks this Fourth of July. Some don'ts:
don't throw toward a person, don't use glass
or metal containers, don't throw or direct
toward any vehicle. Some dos: do obey the
law, do supervise children, do get away from
fireworks once lit. McGruff also pointed out
that discharging fireworks inside the city
limits is illegal. Watching in the background
are, back row from the left, Jay Porterfield,
Chip Sims and Jeral Poskey. In front from
the left are A.J. McCaffery and Jennifer
Cope.
—Staff Photo by Karen Turpen
ETSU president ready
for showdown in Austin coUnty ok*
A 1986-87 preliminary budget for
the Sulphur Springs Independent
School District, presented to the
Board of Trustees Tuesday during a
special meeting, indicates there will
be no tax rate increase.
Because the district will be able to
aut about $260,000 back into this
year's budget, Superintendent
Leonard Merrell said he cannot
forsee the need for a tax hike in
covering the $10,021,419 proposed
budget.
Of the $260,000 that the district will
be able to re-budget, $150,000 will
come from unencumbered con-
struction funds. The other money is
what the district saved by refunding
bonds and refinancing old debts at
new rates.
The surplus construction money
comes from bonds that were sold to
finance a building program in 1984,
but were not needed. “Members of
this board have said that the money
should go back to the taxpayers,”
Merrell said, adding that the budget
reflects that request.
The debts that were refinanced will
continue to save the district money in
the next few years, Merrell said,
adding that this was not a one-time
savings proposition.
Action on the budget was not taken
because this is a preliminary draft,
Merrill said. The deadline to draft
the actual budget is Aug. 20.
The projected revenue in-, the
By MICHAEL PElBINf
Dr. Charles Austin, president of
East Texas State University, armed
with a 25-page report and backed by a'
contingent of eight university of-
ficials is prepared to appear before
the Texas Committee on Higher
Education July 10 to argue against
closure of ETSU.
Austin, speaking to a group of East
Texas media representatives in his
office Monday, said, "Certainly, the
state has economic problems. It must
deal with that But if we’re serious
that higher education is the oil and
gas of the future in Texas, then I think
that it should be properly supported
and that we are given the necessary
resources to accomplish our
missions.”
The report was prepared by the ■
university and time was scheduled to
appear before the committee in
response to a letter from committee
chairman I-arry Temple suggesting
the closure or merging of some
colleges and universities in the state
university system. Other institutions
targeted for consideration Of closure
are Sul Ross State University, Texas
A&M University at Galveston, and
the University of Texas at the Per-
mian Basin.
Austin said he plafis to stress three
basic themes to the committee
members: access, quality and cost
effectiveness.
"We intend to stress the im-
portance of access to higher
education in this region," Austin said.
"In fact, our service area, as
someone pointed out, is as large as
some full states. The idea of not
Equipment
to improve
Contel
A telephone construction project
involving Contel, Southwestern Bell
and General Telephone companies
should eliminate problems with long-
distance service in the rural areas of
Hopkins County by mid-July, ac-
cording to information from Contel.
The joint project includes placing a
fiber optic cable between Sulphur
Springs and Greenville Telephone
services superintendent for Contel,
Bob Locke said in a news release,
"Southwestern Bell employees are
installing the fiber now and they
should be finished no later than mid-
July "
having a university in such a large
part of the state would be comparable
to not having a university in some
states of comparable size and
population."
T think there is a strong emphasis
on the quality of the programs at this
university. The strong students we
have is measured by such things as
SAT, ACT and GRE scores, the very
fine programs we have, and the
quality faculty,” he said.
"In addition, our programs are
offered at a very competitive cost
compared to other universities
around the state," he said.
The cost per credit hour at ETSU is
$136, and the statewide average is
$132 per credit hour. Also. Austin
said. ESTU teaches more than 25
percent of its credit hours at the
graduate Tti*s^|nd, compared to the
other seven stait? universities with a
similar number of graduate students,
ETSU teaches at a lower cost per
credit hour
Austin said the process of
preparing the report provided an
insight to the university he hadn't had
Hopkins County
manufacturers
oppose closing
The Hopkins County Manufac-
turers Association, representing 19
major manufacturing concerns in the
Sulphur' Springs community, has
joined other forces in voicing op-
position to a proposal to close East
Texas State University.
In a letter to Dr. Victdr L. Arnold,
executive director of the Selelct
Committee on Higher Education, the
association strongly urges that the
committee not recommend the
propsalfor closure.
"Many of our employees utilize
ETSU to further their educations and
improve their marketable skills.
These efforts not only help the em-
ployees, but are of great value to
their employers also,” the letter
signed by the current association
president, Malcolm Kirkland, noted
The association represents firms
employing upwards of 3,000 workers
in the local market.
"Within the managerial ami
supervisory ranks, one of the keys to
attracting and retaining good em-
ployees is the availability and con-
venience of an instutute of higher*
education. East Texas State
University provides that key for
Sulphur Springs residents," it was
added in the association's letter
previously. "We've learned that
we're better than we realized, and I
think anyone who reads this report
w ill come to the sam^conclusion,” he
said
However, Austin said, if changes
become necessary, ETSU is ready to
bargain. "We are prepared to make
some adjustments, if necessary But
we think our programs are very-
relevant to what's being discussed at
the state level, and we don’t have a
number of high cost, expensive
programs. The ones we're offering
are the ones that every state leader
I've talked to have said are important
to the future of Texas."'
"Frankly, we ddn't have any idea
why we've ev'Frf'&een suggested ' for •
.^closure),", Austin said.
Industrial
insurance
bid
Hopkins County Commissioners
accepted a bid for insurance late
Monday afternoon after waiting for
final figures from Hibbs-Hallmark of
Tyler all day.
The bid was accepted, however,
with estimated cost quotes, not
concrete figures, for liability
coverage for public officials and law-
enforcement officers.
Commissioners had agreed to the
policy with solid cost figures in all
other areas of insurance, but were
hesitant to accept the policy without
solid Cost figures in those two areas.
The Hibbs-Hallmark bid has been
accepted, at a total cost of $92,329,
with the stipulation that if the actual
costs of public official and law en-
forcement officer liabilities are
higher than the estimated cost
figures, the commissioners can
cancel the entire policy.
group elects SS|SD board
plans budget
new officers
Directors and officers of the
Sulphur Springs Industrial Foun-
dation Incv, were elected Tuesday-
morning at the annual stockholders
meeting and subsequent directors
meeting. t
Jim Osberg, vice president of the
newly realigned Rockwell In-
ternational Flow Control Division in
Sulphur Springs, met with the board
for introductory re,marks. The
Foundation is the owner of the
building housing the Rockwell
operation here.
Osberg told the board that the
significant change in the realignment
of the division would be that the
Sulphur Springs plant would become
more responsible for full cost ac-
counting — including sales
management and customer sendee
— of the plug valve lines as opposed
to the more limited role as only a
manufacturing center in past years.
He was accompanied by Dan
Kowalczyk, newly named
manufacturing operations manager
of the local plant, and Bob Sook, the
new controller.
Directors elected to the foundation
board at the annual meeting Tuesday
were Gerald Prim. RE Pratt,
Gilbert McGrede, H.H Bridges.
Clarke Keys, E.I.. Ashcroft Jr., E.L.
Ashcroft III. W W Jones, J. Kearney
Brim, B.F. Ashcroft and J.H Ramey
In the following directors meeting.
Prim was re-elected president of the
foundation, Jones as vice president,
B.F Ashcroft as secretary-treasurer,
and Doris. Prim as assistant
secretary-treasurer
talks tonight
The 1986-87 Sulphur Springs In-
dependent School District budget is
scheduled to be discussed by the
SSISD Board of Trustees Tuesday at 7
p.m. in a special board meeting.
Superintendent Leonard Merrell
said the administration is'currently
"pulling the budget together.”
“We’re in the preliminary stages,”
he' said. "By law, August 20 is the
deadline to formally adopt a budget,
and I think it will take some time
before we do any formal adopting.”
The board is also scheduled to
consider approval of bids for an
athletic-extracurricular van for the
district. Two bids were reviewed at
the last board meeting, but several
board members voiced concern over
the price and use of the van.
Bids are expected to be considered
for the district's paper products,
Merrell said.
In executive session, the board will
consider approval of employee’s
retirements, namely that of .Bowie
Elementary School principal,
Malcolm Gregg. Trustees will also
employ and re-assign personnel
where appropriate.
A resolution commending East
Texas State University, which will go
before the state's Select Committee
on Higher Education July 10, ja ex-
pected to be passed by the board
maintenance and operating fund for
1986-87 is $10,066,517 - about $45,100
more than budget requirements. Of
the revenue total, $3,631,581 is ex-
pected to be local money. The other
$6.5 million will come from the state.
“What those figures tell you is that
we should be able to fund the budget
with the same tax rate,” Merrell
said. “This is not a bare bones
budget, but we feel we’ve been
conservative in some of our
requests.”
One of the requests is a $1,140
salary raise for all teachers and a 4
percent increase in pay for other
SSISD employees. That increase is
more or less mandated by the state,
Merrell said.
“If the district pays in excess of the
state minimum, then it does not have
to pay the $1,140,” he said of the state
requirements. "We do not have to pay
it, but we recommend to you that we
do.”
The $260,000 that the district will
come close to covering the increase in
salaries, said Paul Glover, assistant
superintendent of business.
“I really don’t anticipate a cut in
state funds for 1986-87,” Merrell said
of an upcoming legislative special
session that is expected to mend an
ailing state budget. “If there is
anything coming that .impacts
education, I think we will know about
it before we pass the budget.”
If state funds stay constant, tax-
payers will enjoy a third consecutive
year without a tax increase.
Following executive session, the
board hired Jackie Brice, who has
been director of the district’s com-
munity education “program, to suc-
ceed Malcolm Gregg as principal of
Bowie Elementary School.
In board action, a bid of $15,725
from Gober-Merrell Chrysler-
Plymouth-Dodge was approved for
an athletic-extracurricular van by a
6-1 vote. Trustee Mark McClendon
casted the no ballot. ,
Unanimous approval was given to a
series of paper products bids. Pollock
Paper Co. was awarded five bids and
Tri-State was awarded four. The low
bid was accepted in each case.
A bid to roof Lamar Elementary
School was granted to Brown Roofing
Co. of Sulphur Springs for $36,735.
A resolution supporting East Texas
State University in Commerce, which
risks being closed, was also passed.
New club formed for
retirement aged men
A new Kiwanis Club has been
organized in Sulphur Springs, known
as the Golden K Club. It is an
organization for men who are retired,
or are of retirement age. The club is
affiliated with Kiwanis International,
along with the regular Kiwanis Clubs,
Key Clubs, Circle K Clubs and
Kiwanette Clubs.
The club was organized by Roy
Welch, a past lieutenant governor of
the Texas-Oklahoma District from
Paris, Texas, and members of the
Paris Kiwanis Club, Paris Golden K
Club, and Sulphur Springs Kiwanis
Club.
A charter night banquet is
scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 5, at the
Woman’s Building on College Street
in Sulphur Springs, at which time the
local members will be presented with
their charter from Kiwanis In-
ternational. The affair is also a ladies
night banquet.
Elected as officers of the new club
are: Aster McKeever, president; W.
L (Pete) Long, 1st vice president;
Dr. G. W. (Bill) Gray, 2nd vice
president; Haskell Alberts,
treasurer; and Paul Herschler,
secretary.
Directors elected include Arthur
Grimes, Lynn Chapman, E. W. (Jim)
Massey, Bertram Bell, Ken Grundei
and Guy Felton.
Members other than the officers
and directors are Ira Black, W. H.
(Bill) Bowman, Charles Castleberry,
Loyd Dennis, Jewel Hodge, Moxie
Hodge, R. M. iBobi Huggins, T. C.
Irby, Glenn Kenley, John Lawrence,
Kenneth Massey, M. G. Mitchell,
Wayne McGrady, Hugh Mouser,
.Charles Richardson, T. L. Sanderson,
Howard Sapaugh, Dale Sewell, J. C.
Shockey, Luke Sloan, Wilson
Thomas, W. D. Walker, and James
Wood.
Award-winning photog
Bill Hammett, Texas Power and Light Co. photographer,
adjusts some slides before showing his nationally
recognized collection of East Texas still-life photos to the
Kiwanis Club Wednesday. Hammett, who also photographs
Dallas Cowboy games and was named the NJFL
Photographer of the decade in 1985, has shown that par
ticular slide presentation to more than 13,000 people.
/
lt«»f Photo by Ri<h«'d Had
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Keys, Clarke & Hillsamer, Dave. The Hopkins County Echo (Sulphur Springs, Tex.), Vol. 111, No. 27, Ed. 1 Friday, July 4, 1986, newspaper, July 4, 1986; Sulphur Springs, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth776842/m1/1/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Hopkins County Genealogical Society.