WADESBORO Students returned to the classrooms on March 1 after the school board approved a two cohort re-entry plan for all schools.
This will be the first time students in grades six through 13 are returning to in-person learning after being virtual since last March. In the Fall, a re-entry plan only included students K-5 following a three cohort layout, but the in-person classes didn’t last long as county COVID cases were rising.
With vaccines being distributed around the county and to teachers, the hope is to keep students in this format through the end of the year. The school board may modify the plan depending on the success of the re-entry plan or if there is another spike in cases.
WADESBORO Several rows of cars parked at South Piedmont Community College Lockhart-Taylor Center to join together and celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan. 18.
Since 1986 Anson residents have gathered together on the third Monday of January to honor Martin Luther King Jr. He was a civil rights leader, minister and activist. He campaigned for racial justice in the United States through nonviolence and civil disobedience.
King led marches for desegregation, labor rights and voting rights for Black people.
King’s fight towards racial equality has remained pertinent to this day, especially as protests and rallies broke out around the world following the killing of George Floyd by a white police officer. These protests called for an end to police brutality and other racial biases within the legal system.
WADESBORO Since Dec. 16 the Anson County Government Building has been closed to the public due to the amount of positive COVID-19 cases within the building and it will remain closed until further notice causing residents to question whether important services are being provided.
The building, including tax portion of the government center and the DMV is predicted to be closed for at least another week, according to the county manager Barron Monroe. There have been about eight employees who have contracted the virus.
This closure brings up an issue of whether or not people can still pay their property taxes or if tax payments are being processed. The amount of staff working in the building has been significantly reduced, causing a delay in processing transactions.
WADESBORO The Anson County Chamber of Commerce welcomed another business to the area as the Arts Council opened the “new” Drake Gallery and Studio.
The gallery is part of the Anson County Arts Council. The current artist feature in the gallery is Michael J. Phillips with his “FaceTime” collection.
Walking through the gallery you will spot people you may already know as Phillips highlights portraits of friends from the theatre and Arts Council.
His detailing and perfection of faces has been honed over his 45 years of working as a hairstylist.
“Observing bone structure, proportions, facial features, and coloring became second nature,” Phillips wrote in his collection description.
WADESBORO When water was not reaching his part of the county in 1988, Ross Streater knew he had to make a change.
He ran to be an Anson County Commissioner and 32 years later, he leaves his chair as one of the longest serving Commissioner in the state of North Carolina.
“It doesn’t seem like it’s been that long,” Streater laughed. “When I think back, it seems like it was yesterday! I’ve really enjoyed being a commissioner. I think I’ve helped a lot of people.”
That recognition that something needed to be done about access to water for his part of the county was Streater’s involvement in local politics. He has since seen water expand to reach an estimated 80% of the county, compared to the 20% when he started.