Susan Hinton, Adult High School Instructor/Supervisor, gave her annual report to the Board of Education and the Director of Schools Thursday night.
Hinton explained that a total of twenty seven students were served for the current year. Some either moved or dropped out during the year. Others are still attending. There were two graduates for the year; five GED graduates; and three who will be graduating this summer for a total of ten for the school year.
Hinton read essays by one of her students, Ben Southerland. She also explained how others can further their education through the Adult High School program. Persons interested are referred to the DCHS School counselor to set up an appointment.

Sealed bids were opened Friday afternoon at city hall from two companies wanting to sell the City of Smithville a ladder truck for the Fire Department.
EVS-Midsouth, Incorporated of Memphis submitted a bid for $746,705 for a Pierce Impel 75 foot HAL Quint with 1,750 gallon per minute pump/500 gallon tank.. The other bid is from Cumberland International Trucks of Nashville for a 2012 Sutphen 75 Foot Pumper/Ladder with a Stainless Steel Rescue Style Body Complete and Delivered in the amount of $785,818.
Secretary-Treasurer Hunter Hendrixson opened the bids. Mayor Taft Hendrixson was also present along with Smithville Fire Chief Charlie Parker, a few members of the fire department, Buddy McCain of EVS-Midsouth and Bradley Johnson of Cumberland International Trucks.
The bids will be presented to the Smithville Mayor and Aldermen at the next meeting on Monday, May 21 for consideration. The aldermen have the right to either accept one of the bids or reject both. Officials say bids from both companies are for trucks already built. Modifications would be required on either truck to meet the specs.
EVS-Midsouth, Inc proposes the following lease/purchase plan: Customer down payment of $250,000 (due at contract signing). The city could pay off the truck over a three year term in three annual payments of $173,746 at a rate of 2.45% or over five years in five annual payments of $107,068 at 2.55%.
Cumberland International Trucks offered six options in its proposed lease/purchase plan with financing terms from one to seven years as follows:
Option 1:
Lease Term: 3 years
First Payment Date: September 15th, 2012
Payment Frequency: one year
Lease Rate: 2.51%
Payment Amount: $270,245
Total Lease Payments: $810,736
Option 2:
Lease Term: 3 years
First Payment Date: September 16th, 2012
Payment Frequency: one year
Lease Rate: 2.51%
Payment Amount: $270,274
Total Lease Payments: $810,824
Option 3:
Lease Term: 5 years
First Payment Date: September 15th, 2012
Payment Frequency: one year
Lease Rate: 2.46%
Payment Amount: $165,993
Total Lease Payments: $829,967
Option 4:
Lease Term: 5 years
First Payment Date: September 16th, 2012
Payment Frequency: one year
Lease Rate: 2.45%
Payment Amount: $165,950
Total Lease Payments: $829,753
Option 5:
Lease Term: 7 years
First Payment Date: September 15th, 2012
Payment Frequency: one year
Lease Rate: 2.66%
Payment Amount: $122,145
Total Lease Payments: $855,022
Option 6:
Lease Term: 7 years
First Payment Date: September 16th, 2012
Payment Frequency: one year
Lease Rate: 2.66%
Payment Amount: $122,160
Total Lease Payments: $855,124

Anyone interested in making use of the new fitness (exercise) room in the county complex on South Congress Boulevard is invited to stop by Saturday to get a first hand look at the facility.
(PLAY THE FOLLOWING VIDEO SHOWING THE NEW EXERCISE ROOM)
County Mayor Mike Foster said the room will be open from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Saturday for people to view. Persons may ask questions and provide input on what the county should charge for memberships to use the room. “We’re going to have the community center open Saturday for people to come through and look at the exercise room,” said Foster. “We’re wanting to get information from the public as to what kind of hours to set (for the exercise room). We invite people to come by and look at the exercise room and pre-sign if they want to. We encourage people to come and participate and use the exercise equipment. We can talk to them about hours that might fit their needs. We can talk about a price for the entire family, for an individual, or for daily use. That money (fees) will be used to operate it and to put some money aside so that the equipment can be maintained and replaced so that we don’t wind up with a room full of bad equipment. Its all really state of the art right now. So we ask anybody to come by and look at it. The room is located on the community center end (north side) of the shopping center. We’ll be there from about 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Saturday, May 12. Come by and look at the equipment and figure out what you might want to do. We’ll try to have trainers from some of the other shops here in town who are already doing that to come by, maybe one day a week and talk to you about a program and try to get everybody who wants to participate set up on a program that fits their needs,” said Foster.

The DeKalb County Board of Education adopted a tentative budget for the 2012-13 school year Thursday night to be presented to the county commission’s budget committee.
The spending plan outlines funding options for a building project at DeKalb West School and re-roofing needs at three schools, including a possible bond issue. The budget also includes pay raises and the addition of a few positions.
The local property tax rate for schools would not be increased under this spending plan.
Director of Schools Mark Willoughby said he and County Mayor Mike Foster have been in budget discussions trying to come up with a workable plan that would be accepted by both the school board and the county commission. “A few weeks ago you (school board) gave me permission to work with Mr. Foster. We have worked together in several different meetings to get a budget where we would not have to ask for a tax increase. Mr. Foster said there is a possibility they (county) may do a bond issue (for DWS project) and he is going before his board (county commission) with the same packet (tentative budget) that you have. I do want to thank Mr. Foster for working with me,” said Willoughby.
Before the vote Thursday night, Director of Schools Willoughby gave a summary of new spending in the proposed budget and items which have been dropped.
The tentative budget includes:
A state approved 2.5% pay raise for teachers.
A 2.5% increase for teachers along with the regular step increases and degree advancements
A local 2.5% increase for support staff along with the regular step increases per salary schedule
An increase of 9% for projected health insurance costs
The addition of one math teacher at DCHS
The addition of two extra teaching positions (one for kindergarten and one for DMS sixth grade) if needed due to enrollment (currently unassigned)
Putting custodians on twelve month contracts instead of the current ten month contracts
Replacing Bookkeeping Computers for the School Bookkeepers
Additional costs in Special Education due to contracted services
Normal increases for utilities, transportation fuel, and for supplies
Items dropped from the proposed budget:
The addition of an assistant band teacher
The addition of an assistant soccer coach
Eliminating the Drivers Education Class
The food service budget, which is self supporting, includes a 2.5% increase for support staff with step increases as per salary schedules. The central office bookkeeper under food service will go from an 11 month to a 12 month position. Assistant cafeteria managers, called upon to serve in the absence of a cafeteria manager, would receive a quarter per hour more than their cook position.
The spending plan calls for $600,000 in local funding to meet a 12.5% FEMA grant match for building eight tornado “safe rooms” at DeKalb West School.
During the April school board meeting, Director Willoughby announced that the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency had approved grant funds of more than $1.5 million for the safe room project at DeKalb West School, pending final approval by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. No final word has yet been received on the grant.
To provide local matching funds for the classroom addition at DeKalb West School, and for the renovation of the kitchen/cafeteria, Director Willoughby said two options are being considered. Under one plan, the local grant match ($600,000) would be funded from the reserves and fund balance without the bond issue
Under the second option, a bond issue by the county commission would fund the local grant match ($600,000), a cafeteria and kitchen renovation project at DeKalb West School, as well as a re-roofing project at DeKalb Middle School (roof and removal of metal overhang soffit), DeKalb West School (roof and removal of metal overhang soffit and seal off gymnasium), and Smithville Elementary School (8,000 square feet of the roof).
Whichever plan is selected, Director Willoughby said the DeKalb West School project can go forward. “The $600,000 matching money for the FEMA grant is in the budget either way. It is in the budget using our reserves. We will be using $1.3 million in reserves to balance this budget without a tax increase,” said Willoughby.
The tentative budget calls for an appropriation of $1,236,824 from school reserves to balance the budget (with a bond issue for the building program) or $1,836,824 without the bond issue.
Meanwhile, in his monthly report on personnel, Director Willoughby announced that the following teachers would be retiring:
Dixie Crook, teacher at DCHS
Harriett Cantrell, teacher at DCHS
Kathy Hendrix, Principal at DCHS
Genrose Davis, teacher at DeKalb West School
Meanwhile Missy Vantrease, Educational Assistant at DeKalb West School will be resigning at the end of the school year.
Leave of Absence
Lori Alexander, teacher at DeKalb Middle School, leave as requested
Suzanne Williams, bus driver, leave as requested
Kenneth Wayne Taylor, custodian at Smithville Elementary School, leave as requested.

Students in Janet Woodward’s second grade class at Smithville Elementary School have learned the names of all the U.S. Presidents in the order in which they served.
The children recited the President’s names for WJLE Thursday morning in their classroom.

The children also learned a song naming all the states in the country.

Members of the class pictured in these videos are:
Jacob Beaty
Conner Crabtree
Maggie Felton
Marley Jones
Shayla Kirby
Javontae Martin
Jesse Martin
Kevin Martinez-Soto
Brenda Muniz-Guzman
Ethan Pope
Harrison Pryor
Addison Puckett
Madison Ray
Justin Rico
Olivia Taylor
Kaydence Thompson
Jamison Trapp
Orlando Escobedo
In addition to the video presentation here, you can listen to the children each morning May 14-18 following the 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. morning local news on WJLE AM 1480 and FM 101.7.

Legislation passed by the Tennessee General Assembly on April 27, 2012, provides for a reduction in the state sales and use tax rate on sales of food and food ingredients. Effective July 1, 2012, the state sales and use tax rate on sales of food and food ingredients will be reduced from 5.5% to 5.25%.
With the change, food and food ingredients will be subject to a reduced state sales and use tax rate of 5.25% plus the applicable local sales and use tax rate. Prepared food, dietary supplements, candy, alcoholic beverages and tobacco continue to be subject to the general state sales and use tax rate of 7% plus the applicable local sales and use tax rate. Existing laws defining which items are considered food and food ingredients remain unchanged by the new legislation.
Businesses selling food items subject to the reduced rate of sales and use tax are advised to begin making the necessary changes to allow for the new rate beginning July 1, 2012. Changes to cash registers and accounting systems should be completed by the July 1, 2012 effective date. However, businesses must continue to collect and remit the existing 5.5% tax on sales of food and food ingredients made through June 30, 2012 to the Department of Revenue.
The Department of Revenue is responsible for the administration of state tax laws and motor vehicle title and registration laws established by the legislature and the collection of taxes and fees associated with those laws. The Department of Revenue collects approximately 91 percent of total state tax revenue. During the 2011 fiscal year, the department collected $10.4 billion in state taxes and fees. In addition to collecting state taxes, the Department of Revenue collects taxes for local, county and municipal governments. During the 2011 fiscal year, local government collections by the Department of Revenue exceeded $2.0 billion. In collecting taxes, the department enforces the revenue laws fairly and impartially in an effort to encourage voluntary taxpayer compliance. The department also apportions revenue collections for distribution to the various state funds and local units of government. To learn more about the department, log on to www.TN.gov/revenue.

In his latest city crime report, Smithville Police Chief Randy Caplinger reports that 19 year old Terry Jones, III is charged with disorderly conduct. His bond is $2,500 and he will be in court May 10. Chief Caplinger said that an officer was recently dispatched to a possible domestic disturbance on Woodlawn Street. Upon arrival, the officer saw a man walking through the yard, screaming profanity and holding a knife with the blade open. The officer ordered the man, Jones, to drop the knife. He initially refused, still yelling profanities at the officer. Jones was ordered again to drop the knife. The officer then drew his taser. Jones subsequently released the knife, but remained very belligerent. The officer took Jones to the ground and placed him in custody.
37 year old Leslie Yorke is charged with reckless endangerment, evading by a motor vehicle, simple possession of a schedule VI controlled substance, and three counts of simple possession of a schedule IV controlled substance. Her bond is $11,000 and she will be in court on May 17. Chief Caplinger said that on Friday, April 27 an officer, while on routine patrol, saw a vehicle fail to stop at the intersection of East Bryant and South College Street. The officer turned around and activated his blue lights. He tried to stop the car but it turned onto Oak Street and sped up. The car then turned into a driveway and around to the back yard of a residence, Yorke got out of the car and tried to run away, leaving behind two small children in the vehicle. The officer caught up with Yorke and placed her under arrest. Several witnesses in the back yard said they saw Yorke throw her pocket book onto the back porch as she tried to flee. When the pocketbook was searched, the officer found Yorke’s identification, a plastic bag containing a green leafy substance believed to be marijuana, a pill bottle containing twenty seven diazepam pills, three triazolam pills, and three xanax pills. A computer check revealed her license to be revoked for failure to file security after an accident in Picket County.
45 year old Patsy Fults is charged with driving under the influence and simple possession of a schedule IV controlled substance. Her bond is $3,000 and she will be in court on May 17. Chief Caplinger said that on Monday, May 7 an officer was dispatched to Mapco Express to check out a possible intoxicated person in the store. When he arrived, the officer saw the suspect, Fults, getting into the driver seat of her vehicle. She was very disoriented and had slurred speech. The car was running. The officer asked Fults to get out of the vehicle. She was very unsteady on her feet. She could not submit to field sobriety tasks. Her purse contained pills, believed to be xanax. She did not have a prescription for them. Fults was taken to the emergency room of the hospital for a blood alcohol test and then transported to jail.
41 year old Tisha Elaine Burns is cited for simple possession of a schedule VI controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. She will be in court on May 17. Chief Caplinger reports that on Sunday, April 22 a vehicle was stopped by police for a traffic violation. During the investigation, the officer received consent to search and found half of a smoked hand rolled cigarette containing a green leafy substance believed to be marijuana. He also found paraphernalia used to smoke it.
24 year old Reva Campbell is cited for simple possession of a schedule II controlled substance. According to Chief Caplinger, on Wednesday, April 25 an officer observed a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed. He also saw the driver throw something out of the car window. The officer stopped the vehicle and asked the driver what she had thrown out. She said it was a hydro. The officer escorted Campbell back to that location and found a hydro pill in the center lane of the highway.
29 year old Roxanne White is charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. She will be in court on May 17. Chief Caplinger said that on Thursday, April 26 Smithville Police assisted county deputies in serving an arrest warrant at a residence on Robinson Road. When they arrived, White approached the officers, cursing out loud and causing a disturbance. Officers told her several times to calm down, but she refused. When the officers placed her under arrest, White resisted. White pulled away from the officers as they tried to place handcuffs on her and she got into a vehicle. She was subsequently handcuffed and transported to the police department
22 year old Nathan Kyle Basham is cited for shoplifting. He will be in court May 10. Chief Caplinger said that on Sunday, April 29 an officer was dispatched to Walmart in reference to a shoplifter. Upon arrival, the officer spoke with a store employee who said he saw Basham stealing an item. Basham was stopped and allegedly admitted to taking the item.
40 year old Willard Darrell Brown is charged with criminal trespassing. Chief Caplinger said that on Sunday, May 6, Brown was spotted in Walmart by a store employee. He had been served with notification on February 7 that he was to no longer enter the store. When confronted, Brown admitted that he was not to be on the property.