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Volume 115 • Issue 37
75¢
Wednesday, September 15, 2021
Test results confirm pandemic’s effect on student achievement Graduation rate for the Class of 2021 is 86.5 percent; six schools are above 90 percent by TODD HAGANS Chief Communications Officer Gaston County Schools
Cherryville City Manager/Fire Chief Jeff Cash welcomes everyone to the 2021 20th Sept. 11th Remembrance Ceremony, held at the CFD Station House. (photo by MEP/Eagle/CF Media)
20th 911 Remembrance Ceremony urges all to “never forget” Somber occasion a time of reflection for all in attendance by MICHAEL E. POWELL Editor michael@cfmedia.info
It was a time for somber reflection – Cherryville’s Sept. 11th Remembrance Ceremony; the City’s 20th – held on Friday, Sept. 10, 2021 at 9 a.m., at the Cherryville Fire Department. City Manager/Fire Chief Jeff Cash said, after welcoming everyone who came, they do this once again in memory of the 2,977 innocent civilians; 343 NYFD firefighters; 27 NYPD officers; and 37 New York Port Authority officers; who were mur-
dered at the hands of a small group of radical religious fanatics. All perished when the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers crashed to the earth in New York City, and in the Pentagon, and on a quiet field in Pennsylvania. Cash spoke of how their department, along with 1,356 fire departments in the state, took up money for the NYFD and NYPD, and how they collected $500,000 for them. “We gave them a check for $300,000 and took them five vans for their use,” he said. He also told of his own personal feelings about being up there helping out when a whistle blew, halting work on the buildings’ wreckage, stopping everything because seven sets of remains had been found
beneath some of the rubble. Cash also lifted high a piece of the terrazzo flooring of one of the towers given him by one of the NYFD chiefs in honor of what the NC firefighters did for their fellow firefighters. Councilwoman and Mayor Pro-Tem Jill Parker-Puett, an EMS worker for 27 years, spoke, praising all firefighters, police, and EMTs everywhere for their sacrifices on a daily basis. Cherryville Police Chief Cam Jenks led everyone in the “Pledge of Allegiance” while the CHS Marching Ironmen band, under the direction of Director Mark Ewing, performed “The National Anthem”, and “Taps”. Captain Kurt Black lowered the s flag to See 911, Page 3
Test results for the 20202021 academic year confirm that the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant effect on student achievement in Gaston County and across North Carolina, according to information released by the North Carolina State Board of Education. Statewide, student proficiency rates on end-of-year and end-of-course tests were lower for all tested grade levels and subject areas when compared to data from the 2018-2019 year, the last year when students took state tests, according to the N.C. Department of Public Instruction. End-of-year tests were not administered for the 20192020 year after the pandemic forced the closure of school buildings and halted in-person instruction in March 2020.
Cherryville High School was one of six Gaston County schools with a graduation rate that exceeds 90 percent. CHS’ score was 92.0 percent. The others are Gaston Early College (100 percent), Gaston County Virtual Academy (100 percent), Highland (100 percent), South Point (91.8 percent), and Ashbrook (91.0 percent). (Eagle/CF Media file photo by Michael E. Powell)
“Everyone realizes the pandemic has affected all aspects of school, including academic achievement, accountability, and testing so it is not surprising to have test results that indicate lower student proficiency,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. W. Jeffrey Booker. “The state end-of-grade and endof-course tests are designed to measure student learning based on typical face-to-face classroom instruction during the school year. Because of the pandemic, 2020-2021 was an atypical academic year. The modified schedule
reduced the amount of in-person instruction at school and forced us to rely on remote and virtual learning at home.” Dr. Booker continued, “Because of the unprecedented circumstances we have experienced, we know the test results for 2020-2021 do not give a full picture of the academic ability of our students. We also know a decrease in proficiency does not equate to a decrease in effort. Our students, parents, teachers, and school personnel went beyond expectations last See TEST, Page 4
Gaston County Commissioner Allan R. Fraley, of Cherryville, reads the Aug. 24 proclamation regarding the placement of a plaque honoring the memory of late Cherryville Superior Court Judge Robert W. Kirby. The plaque graces the door of the fourth-floor jury room of the Gaston County Courthouse. With Mr. Fraley are family members of the late Judge and former Senior Resident Superior Court Judge, Jesse Caldwell (in front, seated), and family friend, James Russell Beam (far right). (photos provided)
CFD has push-in ceremony for their new fire truck Gaston County Courthouse plaque honors memory of the late Judge Kirby
Big unit in its new home, ready to go to work for the City by MICHAEL E. POWELL Editor michael@cfmedia.info
The push-in ceremony for the Cherryville Fire Department’s new truck, a.k.a. Engine 73, took place immediately after the City’s 911 Remembrance Ceremony on Friday, Sept. 10. Mayor Pro-Tem and City Councilwoman Jill Parker-Puett welcomed the small crowd that walked
Superior Court Judge Robert William Kirby fondly remembered by family; friends at Aug. 24 ceremony Cherryville City Manager and Fire Chief Jeff Cash presents Truck Committee chairmen Capt. Chris “Pudge” Cash and Capt. Kurt Black with framed photos of the new Engine 73. (photo by MEP/The Eagle/CF Media) over to the fire department’s bays, and after a prayer by Fire Chaplain, the Rev. Dr. Vince Hefner, Driver/Engineer Colby Heffner gave a recitation of the history of the new truck.
The need for, and purchase of, the truck began, noted D/E Heffner, in December 2019 when Chief Cash appointed a committee to be chaired by Capt. Chris See CFD, Page 12
by MICHAEL E. POWELL Editor michael@cfmedia.info
In a resolution adopted on Aug. 24, Gaston County Commissioner Allen R. Fraley of Cherryville, along with other commissioners and family members of the late Judge Robert Kirby, honored his memory by un-
veiling and placing a plaque on the door of the Fourth Floor Jury Room of the Gaston County Courthouse. Commissioner Fraley read the resolution noting how “…the Gaston County Board of Commissioners expresses its heartfelt appreciation for Judge Kirby’s many contributions to Gaston County and finds it is most fitting to posthumously recognize him by naming the Fourth Floor Jury Assembly Room located in the Gaston County Courthouse as the Judge Robert William Kirby Jury
Assembly Room.” This was done, said Fraley, “…remembering and honoring him as a Judge for ‘The People’, and for the example he set for generations of future leaders.” The proclamation continued, “WHEREAS, the Honorable Judge Robert William Kirby, long-time resident of Gaston County, was born Oct. 16, 1928 and was the son of Methodist Minister, Reverend Cicero W. Kirby, and Ruth McPhail Kirby; and, WHEREAS, before his See KIRBY, Page 4
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