It’s back to school time!
School buses are running today as students register for a new school year.
Local and state law enforcement agencies urge motorists to be a little extra cautious and keep an eye out for the kids.
The THP and other local law enforcement officers often monitor school zones and watch for violators of speeding laws, as well as aggressive drivers and anyone who passes a stopped school bus.
Officials say it’s important that children learn school bus safety tips. They include:
Arrive at the bus stop five minutes early.
Stand at least five giant steps (10 feet) away from the edge of the road.
Wait until the bus stops, the door opens and the driver says it’s okay before stepping onto the bus.
Be careful that clothing with drawstrings and book bags with straps or dangling objects do not get caught in the handrail or door when exiting the bus.
Check both ways before stepping off the bus. Walk in front of the bus-never behind it.
Be alert to traffic. When you get on or off the bus, look left, right, then left again before exiting the bus or crossing the street.
The bus driver and others cannot see you if you are standing closer than 10 feet to the bus. Stay out of the danger zone
There are also important safety tips for drivers to remember, including:
Always stop for a stopped school bus.
Never pass a school bus.
Never speed in school zones, or in residential areas where children may be present.
The “Danger Zone” is the area on all sides of the bus where children are in the most danger of not being seen by drivers.
Pedestrian fatalities (while loading and unloading school buses) account for approximately three times as many school bus-related fatalities when compared to school bus occupant fatalities.
The most dangerous part of the school bus ride is getting on and off the bus.

The 2009 Grandpa Fair of the South may have been the granddaddy of them all in DeKalb County in terms of attendance.
Jeff McMillen, Manager of the DeKalb County Fair, says this year’s fair was a huge success. “The 2009 Fair was the best that we have had, attendance wise. We have tentative numbers and there’s a big range, but it looks like somewhere between 21,000 and 25,000. The reason there is such a wide range is because of passes that we haven’t counted.”
“Our events went well and what we liked about it is that under the economy we have today, we were still able to provide something for a family to come out to and not break the bank in doing it”.
McMillen says new attractions this year added to the excitement and at least one, that was rained out, may be rescheduled.. “The rodeo on Thursday night was a great event and they did a good job with it. The attendance was good. In fact attendance was good every night. It rained on Wednesday night and rained out our four wheeler event. I’m not making a promise, but we’ll try to work that four wheeler race in at a later date on a Saturday night. If we do we sure hope the people will come out for that.”
According to McMillen fairgoers ate plenty and spent a fair amount of money on the carnival rides. “It’s unbelievable how much food is consumed at a fair. We talked to the food vendors and they did great. The Lions Club booth did great and the one (booth) that the fair association owns did great. The carnival people did well. He had told me that everywhere he had been in the last six months since the first of the year, it was off eight to ten percent compared to the prior year, but at the DeKalb County Fair, he was up this year. That says a lot for the people around here. They do support what we put out there.”
The fair association appreciates the support of the public and the sponsors and McMillen says efforts will be made to make this event better each year. “We really don’t have any complaints except we know there are some things that we need to address like seating. We need more seating. We need more bathrooms. But that’s problems that’s great to have, growth problems. We’re very pleased and we just can’t say enough about our sponsors and all those people who came through the gates because if it wasn’t for them we couldn’t have it.”
McMillen says if you would like to become a volunteer, your help is welcome, even now for next year. “We sure would like to have more volunteers. Those we have do a great job but we just don’t have enough of them. Some of us are getting older and we need a little extra help. We’re ready for people now to volunteer because plans for the 2010 fair are being made right now. So volunteer, get involved, and be there in the planning of this event. We’d love to have you.”

In an effort to help the Youth Soccer League, the DeKalb County Commission Monday night voted to have a committee approach officials of Shiroki North America about the county leasing the industry’s soccer field for the fall season.
County Mayor Mike Foster says if a deal can be worked out with Shiroki for perhaps one year, then the Youth Soccer League could have more time to prepare their own fields for the following season. “Youth Soccer League is trying to build new fields at Northside Elementary School. They have them disked but as everybody who farms knows, you’ve got to sow grass in the fall to have grass later. If they were to sow this fall and play on it, it would destroy that grass.”
“We would like to approach Shiroki North America and ask about us, as a county, leasing their soccer field. The big thing they (Shiroki) were concerned about is the liability insurance. If we have it under lease, I think we would be able to insure it under our liability policy. I would like for you (county commission) to authorize a committee to talk to them about maybe entering into a one year lease to give the new property (Northside) time to grow.”
In recent years, Shiroki has allowed the league to use the field, but as Second District Commissioner Jack Barton explained, current economic conditions intervened this year. “Due to economic conditions, mowing, liability, and having to have a guard there during the games, they (Shiroki) chose to not allow them (Youth Soccer League) to use the fields during the spring season and if somebody doesn’t step up because of the field not being ready next to Northside, they’re going to lose their fall season too. There’s nearly 300 children who play in that league every spring and every fall. That’s a lot of parents and a lot of kids.”
“If we could come up with some agreement to try and take the liability off of it, the youth league, just like tee ball and little league (on their fields), would have to maintain that field during the time the county allowed them to use it, but this all needs to be approved through Shiroki.”
Barton made a motion that a small committee be appointed ” to see what it would take to make this happen. I don’t think it would be a lot of dollar amount as long as we’re not committing to a long term thing. I think Shiroki wants to help us over the hump.”
The county will seek a one year lease or whatever term they can agree too with Shiroki. Under the agreement, the county would agree to cover the liability on that field, rather than Shiroki and an agreement would be sought with the Youth Soccer League board to have them keep the property mowed and possibly have a security guard there.
Also on Monday night, the county commission voted to seek approval from the Tennessee Department of Transportation to install caution lights at the intersection of Highway 83 and U.S. 70 (near Kilgore’s Restaurant) because that area is considered to be a dangerous intersection.
County Mayor Foster says the plan will also include putting down rippled strips on the north and south side of Highway 83 to slow traffic approaching the intersection with U.S. 70 and the installation of street lights at the intersections of Highway 70 and Hurricane Ridge Road and Highway 70 and Dry Creek Road at Dowelltown. “We’ve got to get a plan together and send it to TDOT for approval and depending upon what the cost is, we may have to bid the project. We’ve talked about just putting some signs (caution lights) on the side of the road. We can do that on any two lane road but if it’s three or more lanes it’s got to be an overhead (light). We can’t put caution lights on Highway 70 because it’s five lanes. Those would have to be overhead. But the ones (lights) on Highway 83 could be on a pole on the side of the road. We could run an underground service to them.”
“Those little ripples come in two foot sections and they are $10.85 per section. They can be glued down with epoxy. About six runs of those strips could be put down which makes that rippling sound as you cross it. That’s not a major cost and I don’t think the lights on the poles will be a lot of cost but if they go overhead then there’s more expense and we may have to bid it. ”
“This also has to be approved by TDOT but we want to put a security light at Hurricane Ridge Road at Highway 70 just to light the entrance because it’s dark and also at Dry Creek Road and Highway 70 near Dowelltown. We have to present a plan. The only plan there is to put in security lights to light the intersections. That five lane road really makes it dark in those areas.”
The county commission voted to authorize a plan to submit to TDOT for approval.
Meanwhile, Foster talked about how the rainy weather we’ve had this year has affected the amount of leachate being created at the landfill, especially where the new cell is being developed. Truck loads of leachate are hauled away from the landfill each week and disposed of after being treated by the city, under an agreement with the county. “This is probably the wettest year we’ve had in fifteen years. You look at the rainfall and it parallels the amount of leachate that they’re hauling. It is one of the additional expenses of building a (landfill) cell. Before, some months we wouldn’t haul but three loads or ten loads. Now we’ve got four extra acres with a hole in the ground and there’s no possible way, when it (rain water) hits in there, it’s got to go out. Some people around town think it’s something out of the ordinary, but I’ve talked to White County, Clay County, Cumberland, and Smith and all of them are in the same boat. It’s a lot of loads and until that cell is full of garbage, it (leachate) will probably continue, but once the garbage gets in there, it soaks it up and makes it come through a lot slower. Until that cell is done, we may have to dig another pond with an overflow. The water that’s coming out of there, according to the sample, is almost good enough to spray on fields for irrigation. But it’s got just a little bit of organic matter in it.”
The county borrowed money on a three year note to develop the new landfill cell and Foster says that will be paid off soon. “The money that we borrowed when we first applied for this expansion was three years ago and by law that has to be spent in three years. The first two years we didn’t have a (landfill) permit approved so that money was staying in there and since we had borrowed it at considerably less than we were getting, we were making money on it being in the bank. All of it but about $236,000 has been spent and it has been transferred to fund balance and whenever all the bills come in for that cell that’s being built, you’ll (county commission) will be asked to transfer that. We had to put it in fund balance, by law. It will be brought back in later to pay for the finish of that cell.”
Foster says landfills, because of all the liability and regulations, are difficult for counties to deal with and he would like to see the county take another approach in disposing of it’s garbage in the future.” We would like, at some point in time, to see that landfill changed into a transfer station, simply because of the long term liability, because they (landfills) have to be maintained for 30 years (even after they’re closed). That would be up to you (commission) to approve but ideally four or five years from now, which is the life of this cell that just opened, I would like to see us go into a transfer station where we bring the garbage in and transfer it onto a trailer and send it to another county that wants to be in the landfill business. Because exposure to liability in maintaining that for 30 years seems to me to be too great.”

A 35 year old man was sentenced in a sex crime Friday in DeKalb County Criminal Court.
Freddy S. Stringer, Jr appeared before Judge Leon Burns, Jr. and pleaded guilty, under a negotiated settlement with prosecutors to two counts of attempted aggravated sexual battery. Stringer received a ten year sentence in each case to run concurrent with each other. He was given jail credit of 352 days from August 6th, 2008 to July 24th, 2009 and he will be on probation for the balance of the sentence and under community supervision pursuant to the sexual offender statute. Stringer is to have no contact with the victim or the family. He may have contact with his son if the boy initiates contact. Stringer cannot have a computer with Internet capabilities and he can’t use the Internet. Stringer was originally charged with two counts of rape of a child, two counts of aggravated sexual battery, and two counts of incest.
Meanwhile, in other cases 40 year old Jeanna Snow Bain pleaded guilty to two counts of sale of a schedule II controlled substance. She received a three year sentence in each case to run concurrently. She will serve six months and then be on TDOC probation. The term is to run consecutive to a violation of probation sentence against her that she is currently serving. Bain was given jail credit from May 22nd to July 24th, 2009
36 year old Arthur Dawson pleaded guilty to sale of a schedule II controlled substance. He received a six year sentence, all suspended to 180 days to serve. He will then be on probation. The sentence is to run consecutive to other cases against him. Dawson will be on community corrections the first year in the probation violation cases. He was given jail credit from May 13th to July 24th, 2009.
26 year old Jeremy D. Loader pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and received a four year sentence all suspended to probation. The term is to run consecutive to another sentence he is currently serving. Loader was given jail credit from January 14th to July 24th, 2009.
47 year old Jackie Mullican pleaded guilty to sale and delivery of a schedule II controlled substance. He received a three year sentence, suspended to TDOC probation supervised by community corrections. The term is to run consecutive to a violation of probation sentence he is currently serving. Mullican must undergo an alcohol and drug assessment. His $2,000 fine was waived.
37 year old Mitchell Layne Merriman pleaded guilty to a worthless check. He received a sentence of 11 months and 29 days, all suspended to probation by CPS. He must perform 20 hours of community service, make restitution of $398 to the victim, Kwik-N-Ezy, and pay seventy five dollars to the economic crime fund.
34 year old Billy P. Mooneyham pleaded guilty to theft under $500 and received a sentence of 11 months and 29 days, all suspended to two days in jail. Mooneyham will be on CPS probation, must perform 20 hours of community service work, pay seventy five dollars to the economic crime fund, and make restitution of $100 to the victim Walmart. He must also keep away from Walmart.

The DeKalb County Commission adopted the budgets and set the property tax rate for the 2009-2010 fiscal year during Monday night’s meeting at the courthouse.
Total appropriations come to $32-million 058-thousand 719 dollars.
The local property tax rate will remain the same, without an increase, at $1.46 per $100 of assessed value. The tax rate breaks down as follows:
County General 67 cents, up by 12 cents from 55 cents last year
Highway/Public Works- 3 cents
General Capital Projects- 7 cents
Debt Service-20 cents
General Purpose Schools- 49 cents
One cent of the tax rate generates $42,192 in local money with a 6.6% delinquency rate figured into the equation. Here’s how much each fund is expected to collect from local property tax dollars:
County General- $2,826,866
General Purpose Schools- $2,067,409
Debt Service- $843,841
Highways/Public Works- $126,576
General Capital Projects- $295,344
Total Tax Levy- $6,160,036
Last year a portion of the property tax rate (19 cents), funded Solid Waste. County Mayor Mike Foster says this year, some fees will be swapped. The 19 cents will now go to support the County General (12 cents) and the General Capital Projects fund (7 cents) while other fees such as wholesale beer taxes, excise taxes, and TVA in lieu of taxes will be used for Solid Waste. “Capital Projects (last year) was funded from in-lieu of taxes, part of the wholesale beer tax, and bank excise tax but this year it will have some pennies(tax rate) to it.”
Foster says the General Capital Projects Fund was set up a few years ago to make emergency purchases and other capital outlay expenditures without having to borrow money. “It (Capital Projects Fund) can only be used for capital projects, basically things that cost in excess of $10,000, such as vehicles, ambulances, and the air conditioning system for the courthouse, things like that.”
This year’s proposed Capital Projects Fund expenses include :
“Motor Vehicles Ambulance- $95,000 (partly funded by a grant)
“Motor Vehicles for patrol cars- $65,000
“Building Construction (Jail Roof)- $70,000
“Heating and AC Equipment (Courthouse)- $90,000
“Solid Waste Equipment (Roll-Off Truck)- $135,000
Pay raises for County General employees will have to wait. The budget includes no pay raises but Foster says that could change during the year, if the economy improves. “There’s no raises in here, but depending upon sales tax revenues, in December the county commission may consider giving a one time bonus and make it retroactive back to July. We’ll have to see how the economy is.”
Foster says the county already has a longevity pay plan in place and he would like to see that incorporated with a step pay scale. “Right now, if you’ve been here for over five continuous years, you get a $50 per year increase. We want to get on a step system. Right now, if you go to work today, you make the same as somebody who has been here ten years and that’s just not fair. We want to combine that with the longevity plan and set a starting salary for each position and then at the end of two years you get this much money, three years this much, five years this much, and so on.”
Total appropriations for each fund are as follows:
County General- $5,824,477
Highways- $2,114,271
Debt Service- $1,301,670
General Purpose Schools- $17,565,005
Central Cafeteria- $1,362,500
General Capital Projects- $472,243
Local Purpose Fund- $2,150,545
Drug Control- $56,960
Courthouse/Jail Maintenance- $57,001
Solid Waste- $1,154,047
Total- $32,058,719
The beginning Fund Balance for all funds combined to start the fiscal year July 1st, 2009 was $8,465,442. The ending fund balance by June 30th, 2010 is estimated to be $6,893,167.
The ambulance service budget estimates expenditures to be $1,131,591 for the year and projected patient charges at $765,000. That’s a difference of $366,595. Foster says had the state not cut $150,000 in TennCare funds to the county this past year, then the expense of operating the ambulance service would not have been a lot greater than when the county contracted the service with Sumner Regional a few years ago.
More than $13-million of the school system’s budget is from state funds, mostly BEP allocations, along with federal revenues. In addition to the $2-million for schools generated by the 49 cent tax rate, the county commission is transferring $1.5 million from the $2.1-million local option sales tax fund to help operate schools this year along with $588,000 to fund the school debt service.
The commission Monday night adopted the school budget as presented by the Board of Education in May. At that May school board meeting, Director of Schools Mark Willoughby called the spending plan a “bare bones” budget since the school system will have to use BEP reserves and federal stimulus money to balance it. There are no local pay raises for employees in the school budget, except for the step increases under the pay scale. The budget does includes a one percent increase in health insurance matching for all employees participating in the program. A few “positions” are being eliminated under the general purpose school budget, but those jobs will be saved thanks to the school system’s allocation of federal stimulus dollars, which will be used to fund them.
Except for three cents of the property tax rate and a mineral severance tax, Foster says all of the county road department’s budget is funded by state allocations, primarily state gas tax revenues. “Last year we bought a new front end loader for the highway department. It will be funded out of debt service. He (Road Supervisor Kenny Edge) was going to pay $13,000 toward that (from his budget). But we’ve agreed with him, if he will take that money and spend it a little more on oil and chip road work, then we’ll go ahead and pay that this year.”
Meanwhile, the commission also adopted a resolution making appropriations of more than $108,000 to the following non-profit organizations:
DeKalb Sparks Softball- $150
Upper Cumberland Development District- $3,411
Tennessee Division of Forestry-$1,500
DeKalb County Rescue Squad- $11,500
Plateau Mental Health-$7,180
Families First-$750
Senior Citizens Program-$22,281
DeKalb Soil Conservation District-$24,046
DeKalb County Chamber of Commerce-$10,000
Genesis House- $1,500
Other Child Welfare Services-$3,000
Prospect Incorporated-$12,500
Upper Cumberland Human Resources-$1,200
UCHRA Assessment-Homemaker Aide, etc-$8,985
In addition, the county commission voted to appropriate $1,500 to the DeKalb County Fair, $2,000 to the Imagination Library, and $5,000 to the Dowelltown Park fund.

Sheriff Patrick Ray is issuing a warning concerning a new scam taking place in DeKalb County.
According to Sheriff Ray, the scam usually occurs after a family has lost a loved one. The scammer sends a letter to the family or contacts the family by mail stating that they are from a bank or credit company and the deceased person has an account with them. The scammer tells the victim that they will discount the bill if the victim will pay the balance at one time. Most deceased victims have never had an account with the bank or credit company. Sheriff Ray says if you have been targeted by this type of scam, don’t pay the bill, but instead call the bank or credit company and ask about it. You do not need to call the scammer’s number. “Many people that I have talked to said they called the bank directly and the bank had no knowledge of the bill whatsoever”. If you believe you have been the target of a scam, you should report it to the Federal Bureau of Investigation by going on line to the FBI’s main website.
Meanwhile, in this week’s county crime news, Sheriff Ray says 47 year old Lucille Killian Wright of Ragland Bottom Motel, Sparta Highway was arrested on Thursday, July 23rd for disorderly conduct. Deputies were summoned to Highway 70 East to a domestic call. After arrival, the officers were told that Wright was involved in the disturbance and upon talking to her, Wright began arguing with them. According to the deputies, Wright was cussing, screaming, and threatening to beat up the officers. Wright was arrested for disorderly conduct and her bond was set at $2,500. She will appear in court on August 27th.
23 year old Shauna Faye Stringer was arrested on Friday, July 24th for public intoxication after she entered the DeKalb County Jail to serve her weekend. Correctional Officers at the Jail noticed Stringer to be unsteady on her feet and she had an odor of alcohol on her person. Stringer’s bond was set at $1,000 and she will appear in court on August 5th. Sheriff Ray says he will ask Judge Bratten Cook II that Stringer be ordered to serve her time straight because this is the second time within the last few weeks that she has been charged for weekend violations. Sheriff Ray says a few weeks ago Stringer was charged with failure to appear because she did not show up at the jail to serve her time.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, July 25th a county deputy was dispatched to the Four Seasons area in answer to a complaint about trespassers. While in the area, the officer stopped 29 year old Kym Denise Curtis of Judge Warren Road, McMinnville for a light law violation. After the traffic stop, the deputy noticed that Curtis had slurred speech. She was unsteady on her feet, and she had a strong odor of alcohol on her person. Curtis submitted to field sobriety tasks which she failed. She also refused a blood test. There were two passengers in the car, Curtis’ five year old daughter and Curtis’ 17 year old half sister. There was no child seat in the car for the five year old. According to Sheriff Ray, when Curtis was asked if she wanted to call someone to come and get the child, her response was “I do not care, do what you want, you will any way.” The 17 year old, who was also intoxicated, told the officers that Curtis had provided her alcohol and had furnished her marijuana in the past. Curtis was charged with a first offense of driving under the influence, child neglect, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor for furnishing the 17 year old beer. Her bond was set at $9,000 and her court date is September 3rd. Curtis was also issued citations for a light law violation, two seat belt violations, and violation of the implied consent law. The Department of Children’s Services was contacted concerning the five year old.

Alexandria, home to 837, is a small town that’s wasted no time in getting organized. The town’s list of accomplishments is impressive and has enriched the community’s quality of life. The town has been recognized with a 2009 Tennessee Municipal League Achievement Award for Small Town Progress. The award was presented on Tuesday, June 16th during TML’s 70th annual conference at the Chattanooga Convention Center.
Alexandria’s indomitable sprit and prudent use of resources is a shining example of small town cooperation and leadership at its best. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen rolled up their sleeves and went to work fixing problems by forming a new town charter, creating a modern budget process and a code with organized laws and regulations, a planning commission that understands its responsibilities, modern personnel policies, and a beer board to regulate the sale of alcoholic beverages.
In the meanwhile, the Board requested that the Municipal Technical Advisory Service undertake an annexation study and prepare a plan of services for an area of 1,000 acres.
“I had serious doubts to the town’s ability and political will to undertake such an ambitious annexation.” said Don Darden, MTAS Municipal Management consultant.
“To my amazement the proposed annexation has been implemented,” Darden continues. “It is not uncommon for a town or city to make one or two such improvements. What is extraordinary is that this little town has made all the improvements during the past 15 months.”
“When I was notified we were receiving the award for our list of accomplishments, I hadn’t thought about how many items we had accomplished,” said Mayor Ria Baker. “I just thought completing these things was what we were supposed to do.”
“The town of Alexandria is an example of what can be accomplished when city officials work together, use all the resources available to them, and make the best effort to do what is right and in the best interests of its citizens,” said Darden. “This little town knows where it is going and it has never looked back.”
Each year the Tennessee Municipal League honors cities throughout the state for overall excellence, improvement, specific out standing programs, or department accomplishments.
Other award winners for 2009 include: Chattanooga, for Excellence in Human Resource Programs; Dyersburg, for Excellence in Quality of Life Initiatives; Erwin, for Excellence in Governance; Gallatin, for Excellence in Police Services; Kingsport, for Community Progress; and Knoxville, for Excellence in Green Leadership; and Sparta, for Excellence in Public Works.
The Tennessee Municipal League is a voluntary, cooperative organization established by the cities and towns of the state for mutual assistance and improvements. The League’s primary function is to advocate on behalf of city governments. TML works with the Tennessee General Assembly promoting legislation helpful to cities and opposing legislation harmful to cities.
(Pictured: seated left to right- Tony Tarpley, Mayor Ria Baker, and Derrick Baker; Standing left to right- Charles Griffith, Shelia Clayborn, and Maureen Tubbs. (Eddie Tubbs absent)

Whether it was to see or take part in the Super Truck and Tractor Pull, for the gospel singing, for the carnival rides, other entertainment, a chance to win $1,000, or all of the above, a huge crowd turned out Saturday to enjoy the last day of their “FAIRCATION” at the DeKalb County Fair in Alexandria.
A drawing was held to give away four thousand dollars and four people, Sherrie Hall of Alexandria, Tim Crosson of Smyrna, Melissa Jones of Smithville, Charlotte Trapp of Smithville each took home $1,000.
Click here to view pictures from the Fair on Saturday.http://www.wjle.com/fair-saturday
Members of the Fair Board say they want to thank everyone who attended the fair or who supported it in any way. Good crowds each night helped to make this one of the best attended and most successful DeKalb County Fairs in it’s long history.
Click here to view a scene from the Super Tractor and Truck Pull Saturday at Fair

Michael Washer of Smithville was the winner of $1,000 at the DeKalb County Fair Friday night.
It was only the second night this week that a winner has claimed the cash prize. On Tuesday night Susan Martin was a $1,000 cash winner.
Since there was no $1,000 winners on Monday night, Wednesday night, or Thursday night, a total of $4,000 will be given away Saturday night at 9:00 p.m. There will be four winners, each receiving $1,000.
Your admission ticket is your ticket for the drawing and you must be present to win. Since Saturday is the last night of the fair, the drawing will continue until all the money is given away.

Cody Randolph was the winner of the DeKalb Idol competition held Friday night at the DeKalb County Fair in Alexandria.
Eighteen contestants competed for the title and Randolph was among the top ten called back. This year fans determined the winner by picking their favorite performers via text messaging through DTC Wireless, the sponsor of the event.
Kelsey Vaught of Smith County received second place and Olivia Wright of Smithville came in third place. Elizabeth Koegler of Smithville received the “People’s Choice Award”
As the winner of DeKalb Idol, Randolph received a trophy and a $300 cash prize.
Shan Burklow hosted the program which also featured a panel of talent judges portraying Simon Cowell (Joseph Chandler), Paula Abdul (January Agee), and Kellie Pickler (Amanda Lawson)
(Top Picture left to right: Kelsey Vaught, Cody Randolph, Olivia Wright, and Elizabeth Koegler)