Counties to Face Several Changes

Posted on: Monday, 28 January 2008, 03:00 CST

Counties to Face Several Changes
By Greg Gelpi , Betsy Gilliland and Julia Sellers

Big changes lie ahead for education in 2008.

In Richmond County, the changes could shake the foundations of the school system, while in Columbia County changes relate to the foundation of a new school and new growth. In Aiken County, a new superintendent will find revenue challenges.

Richmond County
The New Year could bring dramatic change to the Richmond County school system with major initiatives in the works and half the school board up for re-election.
With only five months at the helm, Superintendent Dana Bedden has already laid the groundwork for overhauling the school system.

Earlier this month, Richmond County received systemwide accreditation, capping two years of work that went toward that achievement. The board's accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement, subsequently filed a report of its findings, both good and bad.

Dr. Bedden said the report will become his "blueprint" for success.

The school system anticipates that in March, the results of an extensive audit of the school system's performance will be complete. The outside company hired to complete the "performancemanagement review" will then present step-by-step instructions on how to implement its recommendations.

"My hope is that we look at it very seriously and don't do what some people worry we will do," Dr. Bedden said, adding that it's part of the process of "building a better district."
"Again, we're not broken, but we can be better."

Other major initiatives to keep an eye on in 2008:

l The development of new teacher and principal evaluations that will include supporting documentation to justify the marks educators receive

l The alternative school could be revamped to better address the needs of the pupils it serves

l Departments will begin adopting goals and planning the year around them

l A pilot program could address the school system's dropout problem

To stir things up a bit, voters will go to the polls in November to choose five of the 10 board members. Up for re-election are Marion Barnes in District 1, Barbara Pulliam in District 4, Vice President Joe Scott in District 5, President Jimmy Atkins in District 8 and Helen Minchew in District 10.

Despite all that Dr. Bedden has set in motion, he said he is behind where he would like to be in fulfilling his vision for Richmond County.

"We haven't really been able to move forward where I hoped to plan for the future because we've been dealing with the now," he said.

Columbia County
Columbia County school officials project that school enrollment will grow by 484 pupils next year, and managing that growth will be a top priority for administrators.

The school board will finalize rezoning plans for about 6,000 middle school pupils in January to prepare for the opening of Stallings Island Middle School on Blackstone Camp Road. The county's eighth middle school is scheduled to open in August.

Administrators also plan to finalize rezoning plans for its high school students by the spring. A new high school, which is scheduled to open in 2009, is under construction on Chamblin Road. Superintendent Charles Nagle has said that school officials will select a name, colors and a mascot for the school in 2008.

The school board, which at one time considered scrapping its prekindergarten classes, also has expressed an interest in expanding the program. The county's elementary schools have 320 pre-K slots, but the school system can apply to the state for more spaces in March.

Aiken County
Dr. Beth Everitt, of New Mexico, will step into the Aiken County schools superintendent position Wednesday and she will oversee a system facing rising student growth and worries about revenue sources.

Dr. Everitt, a former superintendent of Albuquerque Public Schools, takes over for retired Superintendent Linda Eldridge.

Though Aiken County is seeing growth, finding the money to pay for educating new children might be a challenge.

Since 2000, school construction costs have increased 200 percent, according to figures released earlier this month in Aiken County Schools' five-year facility update. With oil prices going up, the district doesn't see relief in sight.

"We have some significant renovations coming up at Gloverville Elementary, Ridge Spring, Jackson Middle and North Augusta Middle, but after that, we're just waiting to see what we have to work with," said Aiken County Deputy Superintendent David Caver.

The school district has begun a process to determine future needs with a facilities study, which will evaluate current enrollment needs and show where new schools might be needed.
The study is expected to be completed early next year.

Originally published by Greg Gelpi , Betsy Gilliland and Julia Sellers Staff Writers.
(c) 2007 Augusta Chronicle, The. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.

Source: Augusta Chronicle, The
This Article Provided By: Red Orbit USA

Bank Of America Buys Countrywide

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Bank of America said Friday it will buy Countrywide Financial for $4.1 billion in stock, a deal that rescues the country's biggest mortgage lender and expands the financial services empire of the nation's largest consumer bank.

The acquisition will make Charlotte-based Bank of America Corp. the nation's biggest mortgage lender and loan servicer.

Bank of America said it initially plans to operate Countrywide separately under the Countrywide brand, with integration occurring no sooner than 2009.

The transaction represents a 7.5 percent discount to where Countrywide shares ended Thursday after they soared on news that a rescue plan was in the works. It also effectively leaves Bank of America with a big loss on its $2 billion August investment in Countrywide Financial Corp. during the height of the summer's global credit crisis.

An aggressive dealmaker who has already snapped up behemoths FleetBoston Financial and MBNA, Bank of America chief executive Ken Lewis this time isn't buying a financial winner. Delinquencies and loans in pending foreclosure are rising in Countrywide's loan portfolio, and Lewis said Friday "there are near-term challenges" in the nation's housing market.

But Countrywide's troubles have allowed Lewis to sweep in and add a major business line to his supermarket of financial products on the cheap.

"Countrywide presents a rare opportunity for Bank of America to add what we believe is the best domestic mortgage platform at an attractive price and to affirm our position as the nation's premier lender to consumers," Lewis said in a statement.

It also places Lewis in the position of a market savior. By buying Countrywide, he's keeping the industry and regulators from the messy task of figuring out who would take on the responsibility of collecting payments for the 9 million U.S. home loans serviced by the Calabasas, Calif.-based lender. Lewis said Friday there was no government support for Countrywide's loan portfolio.

"There's still plenty of risk involved," said Bart Narter, senior analyst at Celent, a Boston-based financial research and consulting firm. "He's brave to do it. But I think that it's very likely down the road to be profitable, maybe not immediately, but long-term."

There was no immediate work on job cuts, but analysts said they expect some among the ranks of Countrywide's 15,000 employees. Lewis said he would like Countrywide chairman and chief executive Angelo R. Mozilo to stay with the combined companies until the deal is done. "Angelo has told me that he will do anything that we want him to do," Lewis said. "I would guess that he'll want to go have some fun. I will talk with him next week about his personal desires. Many of the senior people will have big operating roles in this company."

Shareholders of Countrywide will receive 0.1822 of a share of Bank of America stock in exchange for each share of Countrywide. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter and to be neutral to Bank of America earnings per share in 2008 and lift earnings per share in 2009, excluding buyout and restructuring costs.

Bank of America expects $670 million in after-tax cost savings in the transaction, or 11 percent of the expense base of the two companies' mortgage operations.

The agreement has been approved by both companies' boards and is subject to regulatory and Countrywide's shareholders approval.

Shares in Countrywide hit record lows in recent days on persistent rumors that a bankruptcy was imminent, a condition brought on by the widespread spike in mortgage defaults and foreclosures, especially in subprime loans - those made to borrowers with weak credit. Countrywide shares plummeted more than 13 percent, or $1.04, to $6.71 at the open of trading Friday. Bank of America shares fell 19 cents to $39.11.

Countrywide shares have fallen 57 percent since Bank of America made its $2 billion deal in August at $18 per share. That purchase of preferred stock was convertible into a common shares of Countrywide at $18 per share, for roughly a 16 percent stake in the company.

Along with the $2 billion investment from Bank of America, Countrywide was forced to draw on an $11.5 billion line of credit to steady itself in August. It also tightened its credit guidelines and stopped selling some types of adjustable rate loans. But analysts said it wasn't enough, with one noting this week that Countrywide needed an infusion of $4 billion in capital within the next two weeks to save itself.

Lewis' bank holds $1.5 trillion in assets and is the nation's largest bank by market capitalization "Their balance sheet can take a shock much better than Countrywide," said CreditSights senior analyst David Hendler. "When you take the shocks at Countrywide, they have a big, busting consequence that's negative."

While Lewis downplayed the prospect of a major deal last month, it fits with an established pattern of building Bank of America through acquisition. In the past few years, Lewis has expanded the bank's retail operation with multibillion purchases of FleetBoston Financial Corp., bolted on a credit card business by adding MBNA Corp., and grabbed a wealth-management business in U.S. Trust Co.

The result of all the dealmaking is a widely diversified financial services company that does business with nearly one out of every two American households.

In the past year, Bank of America has boosted its market share of prime mortgages, or those offered to borrowers with a solid credit history, and was the top retail mortgage originator in the U.S. during the first nine months of 2007.

"We are aware of the issues within the housing and mortgage industries," Lewis said. "The transaction reflects those challenges. Mortgages will continue to be an important relationship product, and we now will have an opportunity to better serve our customers and to enhance future profitability."

In Countrywide, Lewis gets the "best, total mortgage-banking company in the U.S. by far," Hendler said. Countrywide's sophisticated back office is a valuable asset that makes Bank ofAmerica a much bigger competitor with Wells Fargo & Co., Washington Mutual Inc. and others, he said. In 2007, Countrywide had $408 billion in mortgage originations and has a servicing portfolio of about $1.5 trillion with 9 million loans.

"The technology platform, the people who run it, the hedging, the facilities, the mortgage servicing rights, the origination platform, you know, they are all state of the art," Hendler said.

While there are some regulator hurdles to close the deal, they are hardly insurmountable. The buyout would require approval from the Federal Reserve, and possibly other agencies, but analysts believe regulators are more concerned about a Countrywide collapse than industry consolidation.

A Countrywide failure would be a huge blow to government-sponsored mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which are major buyers of Countrywide's loans. Federal law also bars banks from acquisitions that would increase market share above 10 percent of U.S. deposits, a limit that Bank of America is nearing. Bank of America chief financial officer Joe Price said because Countrywide Bank us a federally regulated thrift, it "doesn't play into the deposit cap."

In addition, banking industry experts say Bank of America could easily lower the total amount of money held in deposits by decreasing interest rates and shedding deposits.

Article Provided By: NBC17

Miley Cyrus Racy Photos – Get Over It!

Posted on Dec 31 2007 - 10:19am by Angela

Harmless photos of Hannah Montana star Miley Cyrus goofing around with one of her gal-pals has everyone talking about whether the teen sensation is destined to become the next Britney Spears. The photos which appear to be quite innocent, have left the 15-year-old singer upset.
"They're nothing bad," Miley tells New York's Z100 radio station.

Miley Cyrus:"There was nothing wrong with it. It's two girls at a sleepover. And if all of a sudden that's bad, then what is the world coming to?"

The photos show Miley and her friend sharing a piece of candy, posing together and goofing around.

Vanessa Hudgens' nude photos were leaked and she barely experienced as much scrutiny as Miley.

Leave the girl alone. She's fifteen and was having fun with her friends.

When I see pictures of her drinking, smoking and getting arrested, then I'll be worried.
There are too many bad girls in Hollywood right now - we don't need to go out of our way to make a good girl look bad.

To see the photos go to CrazyDaysandNights.net.

Benazir Bhutto killed in suicide bombing

Benazir Bhutto, the Pakistani opposition leader and former Prime Minister, has been killed in a suicide bombing on her political rally today.

Ms Bhutto had been addressing crowds at the garrison city of Rawalpindi, ahead of Pakistan's general election next month, when the bomber detonated his explosives, killing around 20 people. She was taken to hospital, but could not be saved.

"At 6:16 p.m. she expired," said Wasif Ali Khan, a member of Ms Bhutto’s party who was at Rawalpindi General Hospital.

Rehman Malik, a security adviser for her Pakistan People's Party, suggested that the killer opened fire as she left the rally, hitting her in the neck and chest, before blowing himself up. He blamed the government for failing to protect Ms Bhutto.


"We repeatedly informed the government to provide her proper security and appropriate equipment including jammers, but they paid no heed to our requests," said Mr Malik.

The exact nature of the attack remained unclear, however. "It may have been pellets packed into the suicide bomber’s vest that hit her," Javed Cheema, an interior ministry spokesman said.

Russia and the United States both swiftly issued condemnations of the atrocity, which was being blamed on Islamic militants. A Russian foreign ministry spokesman predicted that it would bring fresh instability to the region, and trigger a fresh round of terrorist attacks.

"The attack shows that there are still those in Pakistan trying to undermine reconciliation and democratic development in Pakistan," said an official from the US State Department.

As news of her death filtered out, Ms Bhutto's supporters at the hospital began chanting "Dog, Musharraf, dog," referring to Pakistan’s President, Pervez Musharraf. Some of them smashed the glass door at the main entrance of the emergency unit, others burst into tears.

Islamic militants have vowed to kill Ms Bhutto, anathematising her as a supporter of Washington's war on terror, a proponent of women's rights, and as a secular politician who returned to Pakistan in October to contest parliamentary elections. Today's bombing is the second major attack on her since her return.

A suicide bomber killed nearly 150 people on October 18 as Ms Bhutto paraded in an open-topped bus through the southern city of Karachi after returning home from eight years in self-imposed exile. On that occasion she missed injury by seconds after leaving the top deck of her bus to give an interview.

The latest bombing was the second outbreak of political violence in Pakistan today. Earlier, gunmen inside the offices of a political party that supports Mr Musharraf opened fire on supporters of another former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, killing four, police said.

Mr Sharif was several kilometres away from the shooting and was on his way to Rawalpindi after attending a rally.

Ms Bhutto, 54, served twice as Pakistan’s prime minister between 1988 and 1996. She was born on June 21, 1953, into a wealthy landowning family. Her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founded the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and was president and later prime minister of Pakistan from 1971-77.

After gaining degrees in politics at Harvard and Oxford universities, she returned to Pakistan in 1977, just before the military seized power from her father. She inherited the leadership of the PPP after her father’s execution in 1979 under military ruler General Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq.

First voted in as prime minister in 1988 - the first woman ever to serve as prime minister of a Muslim country - Ms Bhutto was sacked by the then-president on corruption charges in 1990. She took power again in 1993 after her successor, Mr Sharif, was forced to resign after a row with the president.

But Ms Bhutto was no more successful in her second spell as prime minister, and Mr Sharif was back in power by 1996. In 1999, both she and her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, were sentenced to five years in jail and fined $8.6 million on charges of taking bribes from a Swiss company hired to fight customs fraud. A higher court later overturned the conviction as biased.

Ms Bhutto, who had made her husband investment minister during her period in office from 1993 to 1996, was abroad at the time of her conviction and chose not to return to Pakistan.

Mr Sharif meanwhile was deposed by General Pervez Musharraf in a military coup, and went into exile from which he too only returned in the last few weeks.

In 2006 Ms Bhutto joined an Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy with her arch-rival Mr Sharif, but the two disagreed over strategy for dealing with President Musharraf. Ms Bhutto decided it was better to negotiate with him, while Mr Sharif refused to have any dealings with the general.

Both had recently thrown themselves into campaigning for the multi-party parliamentary elections due to be held in Pakistan on January 8.

Global stock markets fell on news of the killing, and the price of gold and government bonds rose.

Article Provided By:TimesOnline

Web site aims to 'Ruin Romo'

By WALT ZWIRKO / WFAA.com

Can the face of a 27-year-old singer/actress bring down the mighty Dallas Cowboys? A California real estate agent has launched a new Web site targeting a perceived weakness of Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.

RuinRomo.com encourages fans of Cowboys opponents to print a mask of Jessica Simpson they can then hold up during a game to distract the play-caller who has led Dallas to a 12-2 record.

Romo seriously faltered for the first time this season in Sunday's game against a 5-8 Eagles team as Simpson—wearing a pink jersey bearing Romo's number—watched from a luxury box at Texas Stadium.

"Help your team to victory by letting him know the love of his life is in the stands!!!" implores the RuinRomo site, which was started by Matthew Sorensen, a real estate agent in San Diego who says he and his wife are big fans of the Green Bay Packers.

"After Dallas beat the Packers and [quarterback Brett] Favre got hurt, Romo just seemed to be a little too big for his britches," Sorenson said. "Romo and I are both Wisconsin born, and if anything, there is a little jealousy that a Wisco boy could land a girl like Jessica."

Sorenson said his wife provided the inspiration for RuinRomo.com. "My wife does a radio show here in San Diego and mentioned that all an opposing team would need to do is bring a Jessica Simpson mask to the game and Dallas would lose for sure after Romo's last two attempts to bring girls to the game," he said. Romo also lost a game to the Eagles last season when friend and singer Carrie Underwood was in the stands.

Sorenson's site is selling "Ruin Romo" caps, T-shirts and sweatshirts featuring the Simpson mask design. He said he hopes that the income might be used for a good cause.

"Last night it hit me that this could be a really good thing," he said. "I would love to raise some money on the site and extend an olive branch to Mr. Romo and even start up the Tony Romo Foundation where kids can have the opportunity to play sports... honestly!"

Sorenson said he's "100 percent" surprised by the impact of RuinRomo.com, and added that while he hopes his Packers will go to the Super Bowl, he is just hoping for a good game.

"So if that means Dallas is there, I will be the first one cheering on Romo and T.O.," Sorenson said.

People making news

LAW

Andrey Tomkiw, a partner with the Royal Oak law firm of Tomkiw Dalton, has been named to the Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce executive committee. A member of the chamber's board since 2003, Tomkiw will work directly with the organization's executive director and president.

Jonathan S. Berg and Michael N. Pappas have joined the Detroit-based law firm of Kerr, Russell and Weber. Berg practices in various areas of litigation and corporate law and Pappas practices in business law, estate planning and commercial litigation.
Tax attorney Jay A. Kennedy has joined Warner Norcross & Judd's Southfield office as senior counsel. Kennedy has nearly 30 years of corporate, nonprofit and individual tax-planning experience.

INSURANCE

Fausto Jose Martin of Canton has been appointed vice president and chief claims officer for the Auto Club Insurance Association (ACIA). Martin previously served as national physical damage claims assistant vice president and national director of property claims for Safeco Insurance Company of America.

TECHNOLOGY

Farmington Hills resident Doug Rossman has joined Osiris Innovations Group in Auburn Hills, a provider of e-business solutions, as vice president of procurement services. Rossman is responsible for the development and execution of procurement strategies for the Osiris customer base.

ACADEMIC

Eric Mayes has been appointed associate director of the Merrill-Palmer Skillman Institute (MPSI) and executive director of its child development lab at Wayne State University. He also is an adjunct assistant professor at WSU. In 1997, Mayes was cocaptain of the University of Michigan's national championship football team. He graduated from Howard University in 2006 with a PhD in educational psychology from the department of human development and psychoeducational studies.

MEDICAL

Brian D. Jepson of Grand Rapids has joined Metro Health as executive vice president of growth strategies. Jepson has more than 12 years of health care management experience. He will be responsible for developing programs designed to grow Metro Health's presence in western Michigan.

ARCHITECTURE

Richard B. Borrelli has joined Hobbs+Black Associates Inc. as a senior associate at the Ann Arbor architectural firm. He has more than 22 years of planning and design experience in education and health care. Donald J. Smith has joined the firm as resident construction specifier. He has 41 years of experience in commercial, health care, education and municipal projects. Daniel E. Kohler joined the firm as a project architect. Kohler has 28 years of experience in commercial office, retail and high-end custom residential projects.

PUBLIC RELATIONS

Troy-based John Bailey & Associates Inc. public relations firm has named Kirsten Ussery of Detroit account executive. Ussery will work on several of the agency's automotive accounts. She was with Yazaki North America, a global Tier 1 automotive supplier, where she worked as a public relations specialist.

Article Provided By:FreeP.com

Google offers 360-degree Street View of Metro Detroit

By MIKE WENDLAND


FREE PRESS TECHNOLOGY COLUMNIST


Google is now taking it to the streets of metro Detroit.
A new feature called Street View went live this morning on the Google Maps area of the popular search site, allowing users to get real 360-degree street imagery of metro Detroit streets, buildings and neighborhoods.


Google camera crews drove metro Detroit communities for several weeks early last year, capturing panoramic images that have been programmed into the search site, stitching together views that users can then pan and zoom in on as if they were in the street themselves.
How detailed are the photos?


Enough to read street signs, addresses and even recognize people if they happened to be visible as the Google camera crews drove public streets.


In San Francisco, where Google debuted the service in May, the detail on the map-photos was so great that privacy issues were raised. An attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation was unknowingly caught on an image smoking a cigarette, something he didn't want people to know he did.


Another image found on the San Francisco Street View was of a young woman who happened to be bending over near a pickup truck when the Google camera team passed by, inadvertently baring her thong.


Both images have since been removed.


Stephen Chau, product manager for Google Maps Street View, told me on Monday that anyone concerned about an image of themselves, their house address or license plate being recognizable can flag the photo and ask Google to remove it.


"At Google, we take privacy very seriously," he said, noting that identifying photos of domestic abuse shelters, for example, don't appear on the Street View images. He stressed, however, that Google crews drove public roads and only took photos of what was visible from the street.


Besides Detroit, seven other cities go live with the Street View feature today - Dallas; Ft. Worth, Texas; Boston, Providence, R.I.; Indianapolis; Minneapolis, and St. Paul, Minn.


They bring to 23 the total of cities now covered by the feature and Chau said Google plans to keep adding and expanding the service across the U.S., eventually to other countries.


Okay you eagle-eyed Freep readers, check out the new Detroit Street Level images service and let me know what you find that may raise an eyebrow or two. Try and get a screen grab and we'll post the best.


To See How It Works