Around the State for Oct. 29, 2012
SLU to host summit on education
HAMMOND — A summit on a variety of education issues in Louisiana is planned Nov. 1 at Southeastern Louisiana University.
Sponsored by the university’s College of Education and Human Development, the free program will be held in the Kiva auditorium on the second floor of the university’s Teacher Education Center on North General Pershing Avenue.
The program is open to the public and is designed primarily for educators, school administrators and professionals in children’s advocacy and social services. Attendees can participate in any or all of the sessions.
Speakers will make short presentations on a variety of topics from 12:30 to 4:40 p.m.
More information on the summit is available by calling the College of Education and Human Development at (985) 549-2217.
New Orleans voters weigh tax proposals
NEW ORLEANS — Voters in three sections of New Orleans will decide Nov. 6 whether to join the long list of neighborhoods that pay special property fees or taxes for security patrols or other services.
The elections will be in the Gentilly Terrace and Gardens, Lake Vista and North Kenilworth neighborhoods.
New Orleans has more than two dozen such neighborhood security and improvement districts.
Most such proposals are backed by homeowner associations, and they normally are approved with little controversy.
In November 2010, there were 12 such proposals on the ballot — five for new fees and seven for renewals — and all were approved.
Cargo ship to take food to West Africa
LAKE CHARLES — Food gathered from around the nation is in Lake Charles to be loaded onto a cargo ship that is headed to West Africa.
The M/V (motor vessel) Sheila McDevitt will carry 28,000 tons of rice, lentils, cornmeal and other goods provided under relief programs sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Agency for International Development.
Capt. Max Stovall said it will take more than a week to load the ship before it leaves the Port of Lake Charles.
The Sheila McDevitt is U.S.-flagged and is operated by American officers and crew.
“We have gone to ports in North Korea, East Africa and Sri Lanka. Transporting food like this is very rewarding. You get to appreciate the life we have in America when visiting other countries,” Stovall said.
Lake Charles Stevedores and United Ocean Services worked together to get the goods to the port and loaded.
Rice was provided by Farmers Rice Mill, Louisiana Rice Mill and Beaumont Rice Mill. Beans, peas and cornmeal were sent from mills in Abilene, Kan., Williston, N.D., Chinook, Mont., and the Spokane valley in Washington.
The Sheila McDevitt is a bulk carrier that was built in 1980.
Concordia Parish road concerns voiced
VIDALIA — Deer Park Road residents got little satisfaction from the Concordia Parish Police Jury this past week as they aired complaints about the road’s condition.
Police jurors heard one resident, Rhonda Walraven, plead for help in putting the road back in shape.
Walraven said she appreciates the parish’s tight budget, but that the road’s poor condition is a safety issue. During heavy rain, Walraven said, postal trucks cannot deliver to her house. She told jurors two power company trucks recently got stuck trying to restore power near her house.
Walraven said after the meeting that she has repeatedly asked for help with the road and is disappointed in the Police Jury’s inaction.
Compiled from
The Associated Press