KENTON
VOLUME 3, ISSUE 35 — AUGUST 1, 2025
THE VOICE OF NKY
linknky.com
Meet the pig with a purpose By Haley Parnell
F
or Phil Griffin, he’s some pig.
Dubbed a “show pig with a purpose,” Griffin won the porker in an auction at the Kenton County Fair. This little piggie, though, is destined not to be food, but rather a corporate mascot – and a Northern Kentucky icon. Griffin owns AnyWeather, a construction service company. He said the idea of making a pig the company’s mascot started as a joke. He said a friend called him about purchasing a pig his daughter was raising for 4-H at the Kenton County Fair. “I was just coming from a marketing meeting, so I guess you could say I was in a creative state of mind,” he said. “I told him a good show pig is too good to send to market, and, if I bought this pig, he was going to have a bigger purpose than a BBQ.” Griffin said the ideas kept flowing, and he spent that night laughing at the possibilities that could come with purchasing the Continues on page 3
Ellie Mae Armstrong tends to Mr. Pig. Provided | AnyWeather
Schools dial in to new student phone rules By Nathan Granger
I
t’s official: Students across Kentucky are banned from using their cellphones during class.
It’s the result of the passage in March of House Bill 208, sponsored by several Northern Kentucky representatives, which states that district boards of education must pass a policy that “at a minimum, prohibits a student’s use of a personal telecommunications device during instructional time.”
Walton-Verona High School prohibits cellphones in class, locker rooms and bathrooms, but students can still use them between classes and at lunch. Provided | Walton-Verona Independent School District on Facebook
The law allows exceptions for emergencies, times when phones and other devices are required to complete assignments and other times authorized by teachers. It also allows for exceptions under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Moreover, specific schools and districts have leeway in how they implement the
policy. They can ban phones outright, limit their use during instruction time or mandate students turn in their phones at the beginning of the day for redistribution at dismissal. Districts are now considering what’s right for them. Boone County Schools recently completed the first reading of a policy that mirrors the language of the bill. The policy is due for a second reading in August. Catholic schools are making changes, too: Notre Dame Academy in Park Hills, which already requires student phones to be off and put away between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., is considering a more structured way of enforcing screen time. School officials planned to hold roundtable discussions with parents at the end of July to help guide their policy revisions. Walton-Verona High School began re-
Economist urges NKY to focus on key sectors p5 Residents not swayed by industrial planning p6 Covington shop helps artists create place for success p7
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