Trinity County News - Breakout

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TCNS staff

The pinwheel serves as a symbol for awareness of child abuse.GROVETON — Advocates for the prevention of child abuse gathered at the County Courthouse April 11 to continue to fight against child abuse, and to recognize the agencies that come together to help put an end to the tragic part of life.

Along with county officials and law enforcement agencies, representatives included the Child Welfare Board, Trinity County Child Protective Services, Kalin’s Center, CASA and the Family Crisis Center of East Texas.

Former County Judge Doug Page read a proclamation passed the same in Trinity County Commissioners Court, and a representative from Kalin’s Center talked about their organization and gave an update. County Attorney Colton Hay and District Attorney Benny Shiro both discussed the work their offices do to combat child abuse, and Mike Loftin, a county commissioner and pastor, led the group in prayer.

Also attending the event were County Judge Danny Martin, commissioners Steven Truss and Tommy Park, Tax Assessor/Collector Nancy Shanafelt, Kristen Raiford, Sheriff Woody Wallace and department, Treasurer Orrin Hargraves, constables Lawrence Adamick and Mark Cole, along with county staff and other members of the community.

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The Trinity County Commissioners Court proclaimed April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month, along with Whitney Burran, executive director of Family Crisis Center of East Texas, and Rana Wingo and Tracy Stoudt of SAAFE House.

By Tony Farkas
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GROVETON — The Trinity County Commissioners Court approved changes to the pauper funeral application, something that was said to have been necessary for some time.

Lisa Rogers, County Judge Danny Martin’s administrative assistant, presented a revised version of an application at the April 11 regular meeting of the court.

Rogers said the application had not been updated since its approval in 2017, and did not contain much information about finances, as there were no questions about assets or bank accounts.

She said she compared Trinity County’s application to six other counties, and found that while Trinity’s was one page, other counties had multiple pages.

If the county does provide funds, it would be for cremation only, and applicants will not be able to add extra funds for a full funeral, Rogers said, adding that the reasoning was that if an applicant can pay extra, they could pay it all.

In other business, the county:

•proclaimed April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Child Abuse Prevention Month;

•approved an application for a pauper funeral payment;

•approved a budget amendment for acceptance of funds from a settlement in an opioid case;

•approved parking county equipment on private property in Precinct 3;

•approved a $3,000 donation from RDGK Holding for roadwork in Precinct 1; and

•approved the purchase of 1,200 acres of land on Chita Cemetery Road at $3,500 an acre for a material facility for Precinct 1.

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By Tony Farkas
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TRINITY — The city of Trinity has hired Daniel Kee as police chief, filling the position that had remained vacant for six months.

At its regular meeting on Thursday, Kee accepted his position following a lengthy closed session. He will be paid a salary of $52,000.

Prior to his hiring, Kee was serving as interim chief, replacing John Raiford who was not offered the position. Raiford was serving as interim after Steven Jones retired.

During the regular meeting, the council heard complaints from several residents regarding police procedures in the past few weeks; one woman complained about receiving a ticket for not removing a handicap placard from the rear-view mirror, and another woman who did not feel the department was moving fast enough on a case involving theft at her home.

Both incidents were addressed by Kee; Mayor Billy Goodin told the women, as well as the audience, that he and the council would not put themselves in a position to dictate what laws will be enforced and how.

In other business, the council:

•tabled action on a quote for culvert work on Jason Street to seek bids;

•approved a bid of $66,000 to replace sewer line on Emily Street;

•approved a bid of $39,000 to replace a paddlewheel at the wastewater treatment plant;

•approved the purchase of a chlorinator at $10,315 for the wastewater treatment plant;

•approved using County Treasurer Orrin Hargrave to set up investment policies and procedures; and

•approved recommendations from the Economic Development Board. The board will pay $6,200 for repairs to basketball goals and courts; $7,334.81 to repair fences at the city baseball complex; and an additional $10,000 for Christmas decorations.

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The Trinity ISD Board of Trustees discussed a move to a 4-day week with members of the public on Thursday. Photo by Tony Farkas

By Tony Farkas
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TRINITY — Parents, students and staff members discussed the numbers surrounding a plan by the Trinity ISD to consider a 4-day school week.

At a public meeting on Thursday, Superintendent Dr. John Kaufman provided information about the necessity of the plan and the results of several surveys that were done over the last few weeks.

Kaufman said that there is a statewide and national teacher shortage that affects all districts, but smaller districts feel the pinch even more because of limited resources. Combine that with most other districts in the area converting to 4-day schedules, and Trinity could have problems recruiting teachers.

“Sixty districts are now at 4-day schedules, and I don’t want to lose quality teachers to surrounding districts that offer 4-day schedules,” he said. “I also don’t want to lose anyone working here already.”

He also said that teacher and student morale has been shown to improve, and that disciplinary referrals actually decreased with the changed schedule.

Kaufman said that 373 parents, responsible for 536 students in the district, responded to an emailed survey, and of that, 71.24 percent were in favor of the switch. He also pointed out that for students who rely on school meals, the parents were largely in favor of taking home bagged meals if necessary.

Additionally, 65 percent of parents said they would not need day care.

Of the 546 students that responded to a survey, 92.65 percent were in favor of the plan, and that transportation to extracurricular events held on off days would not be too large a problem.

Of the 176 staff responses, 93.18 percent favored a shorter week, and almost 23 percent said they would be included to leave the district for one that offered a shorter schedule.

Kaufman said a loss like that would be tough to overcome, especially if other districts had the 4-day schedule.

The superintendent stressed that there would be minimal impact to the days of instruction, with the sole exception of Lansberry Elementary which would start class 5 minutes earlier. A mock calendar showed all holidays and school breaks were unchanged, and that the district would have 165 days of instruction.

He also said the change would not affect pay for educators or support staff, nor would it affect extracurricular activities such as sports, band or FFA.

Kaufman stressed that no decisions have been made, and that the board will take the matter up at its April 24 meeting; however, he was adamant that the students deserved to have the best teachers possible in front of them, and that this proposal could help in recruiting.

Several teachers in the audience stated the change would allow them to get things done, from personal errands and appointments to grading and personal development, and leave the weekend for family time.

Student Cole Hortman said that since the sports teams all are members of group chats, transportation to games would not be a problem either.

Kaufman said a calendar committee would review the proposal and offer any criticisms, and the matter will be on the board agenda at the end of the month.