Pinson City Council presents $60K to local schools
The following is a story by Nathan Prewett for the Trussville Tribune:
PINSON, Ala. (Trussville Tribune) — The Pinson City Council presented their usual round of $60,000 to the local schools during a meeting that was held on Thursday, April 17.
Speaking first was Stephanie Floyd, who is vice president of the Jefferson County Board of Education, and represents District 3, which Pinson Valley High School falls under as a feeder pattern.
'I wanted to come and make sure that, you know, that we are here to help support you all in anything that you do to help support the schools is critically important for us,' she told the council. 'You know it takes a village. No one person can raise children. It does take a community.'
She highlighted chronic absenteeism as an issue for schools in the past, but said it has improved in recent times. She also mentioned Pinson Valley High School Principal Michael Turner being selected for the role of interim superintendent for Bessemer City Schools and congratulated him.
'It's going to be really difficult to fill the shoes of Mr. Turner,' she said. 'He was extremely vocal and vital to the community, so he will be missed.'
Afterwards Johnson Elementary School Principal Brandi Wilson spoke.
'I've enjoyed my years at Johnson and I'm so proud of the progress that we've made,' Wilson said and added that chronic absenteeism has improved, decreasing from 16% to 9% in 2024.
'We've just done a lot of mentoring with our students on why they should be at school everyday and the importance,' she added. 'So, all of those efforts did show.'
She expressed her gratitude to the council after the school was able to purchase playground equipment using the last round of grants last year.
Following her was Gerolyn Woodruff, principal of Rudd Middle School. She also expressed gratitude to the council and said that recently the school awarded several students for perfect attendance, as well as for good grades.
High school football recruit in Alabama declines $750,000 NIL deal to stay in state, trainer says
She added that the school celebrated with a 'Gaming Day Experience' in which 52 arcade games and other video game machines were set up in the gym for the students to enjoy. Additionally, the school also wrapped up its 'ACAMP' initiative to improve math and reading scores.
'We're going for level four gold, which is the highest,' she said. 'And we're just trying to increase our math scores and our reading scores at Rudd Middle School, and our state report card; we had a 75 so we're aiming for a B status for the upcoming year.'
During the pre-council meeting, Scott Ragsdale gave an update on his proposed Veterans Honor Park first mentioned in a January meeting.
At that meeting the council gave a preliminary approval for the park, which would display six, 20-foot tall concrete columns, each representing a branch of the armed forces along with an American flag, a plaque displaying the Oath of Enlistment, and an Arlington burial cross representing soldiers who died overseas or died after returning home.
The original plan had the entry of it going into Bicentennial Park. However, after consulting with engineers it was found that the location would cause flooding concerns and an exorbitant cost to address it.
And so he began looking for an alternative location and proposed that it be constructed at a section of Triangle Park at the intersection of Pinson Boulevard, Roddam Road, and Pinson Main Street.
'That is the staple point for the city of Pinson,' he said. 'I've been here all my life, except for the time I was in the service, and that is just like the main intersection that belongs to the city of Pinson.'
He said that he has letters of commitment from multiple contractors to provide labor but now needs an area to construct the project.
The matter will be revisited in the future.
In other business the council:
Approved an annexation request from a property owner on Ridgewood Drive,
Designated Councilor Clinteshia Irvin as the primary delegate to the Alabama League of Municipalities, with Roberts being the first alternate and Councilor Glenda Kirkland being the third alternate, and
Approved $25,000 for Turkey Creek.
Pinson City Council meets on the first and third Thursdays of every month at City Hall on 4410 Main Street. Live-streamed meetings can be seen on the city's Facebook page.
Nathan Prewett can be reached at nthomasp6@gmail.com.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
LA Clashes Escalate as Trump, Newsom Spar Over National Guard
(Bloomberg) -- Tensions flared in Los Angeles on the third day of anti-deportation protests, as demonstrators clashed with law enforcement while President Donald Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom exchanged blame over the unrest and responsibility for restoring order. Next Stop: Rancho Cucamonga! Where Public Transit Systems Are Bouncing Back Around the World Trump Said He Fired the National Portrait Gallery Director. She's Still There. ICE Moves to DNA-Test Families Targeted for Deportation with New Contract US Housing Agency Vulnerable to Fraud After DOGE Cuts, Documents Warn The arrival of National Guard troops deployed by Trump over the weekend inflamed residents protesting the sweeping deportation policies of the administration, local officials said. Clashes escalated Sunday evening, with some committing vandalism and violence, including burning cars. The heightened federal response over the objections of state and city officials led to growing friction between local leaders and the Trump administration. Newsom said he formally requested the White House rescind the 'unlawful' deployment and return the troops to his command, warning it would only ramp up tensions. The governor also said Sunday that he planned to sue the administration over the action. LA Police Chief Jim McDonnell said Sunday evening many of the earlier protests around the city had been peaceful, but that conditions deteriorated as people committing vandalism and violence replaced daytime demonstrators. 'This violence that I've seen is disgusting,' McDonnell said at a press conference. 'What we saw the first night was was bad. What we've seen subsequent to that is getting increasingly worse and more violent.' In a series of Truth Social posts late Sunday, Trump described the unrest as an attack on immigration enforcement efforts. 'A once great American City, Los Angeles, has been invaded and occupied by illegal aliens and criminals,' he wrote. Trump called the demonstrations 'migrant riots' and said federal agencies were directed to take 'all such action necessary' to restore order and continue deportation operations. He later urged law enforcement to escalate their response, including arresting people wearing face masks. Meanwhile, Newsom urged protesters to remain peaceful, an admonition some demonstrators ignored as crowds blocked a major roadway through downtown and people set fire to several self-driving ride-hailing vehicles nearby. Newsom met Sunday evening with law enforcement leaders in Los Angeles, he posted on X. 'We're here to keep the peace — not play into Trump's political games,' he wrote. According to LAPD officials, nearly 30 people were arrested Saturday. At least 10 arrests were made Sunday and three officers were injured. The California Highway Patrol made 17 arrests and the LAPD said more are likely as the immigration raids continue and the violence that's already taken place is investigated. Federal law enforcement officials clashed briefly with a smaller group of demonstrators earlier on Sunday when a crowd gathered outside a federal building in downtown LA. The LAPD declared the gathering an unlawful assembly, using less than lethal munitions, like tear gas and batons to chase the crowd back. The LAPD said some people in the crowd threw bottles, chunks of concrete and other objects. The ICE raids are sending a sense of fear and chaos into the city, LA Mayor Karen Bass said during a press conference late Sunday afternoon, adding that people who want to protest should do so peacefully. The First Amendment grants a right to peaceful protest 'but it does not give you the right to be violent to create chaos, or to vandalize property, and that will not be tolerated,' she said. National Guard The tense demonstration follows two days of protests sparked by sweeping US immigration raids across the region. Trump directed US Northern Command to assume control of the National Guard and dispatch 2,000 soldiers to the area 'for 60 days or at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense,' the White House said in a statement. About 300 soldiers from the California National Guard's 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team have been deployed to three locations in greater LA, according to US Northern Command. The Guard is focused on 'safety and protection of federal property and personnel,' the command said in a post on X. The 79th IBCT is primarily a combat unit, though it has previously been called up to support civilian authorities, and a unit most recently responded to the LA-area wildfires earlier this year. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that Marines could be sent next if protests intensify. Newsom called Hegseth's suggestion of deploying the Marines from nearby Camp Pendleton 'deranged.' Hegseth on Sunday countered that Newsom had allowed violence to get out of hand. 'Deranged = allowing your city to burn & law enforcement to be attacked,' Hegseth said in a post on X. 'There is plenty of room for peaceful protest, but ZERO tolerance for attacking federal agents who are doing their job. The National Guard, and Marines if need be, stand with ICE.' Facing mounting pressure from the White House, ICE has ramped up arrests in recent weeks, averaging about 2,000 detentions per day nationwide — still falling short of the administration's goal of at least 3,000 daily arrests. The stepped-up enforcement is part of Trump's vow to carry out the largest deportation campaign in US history. In the LA area, ICE reported 118 arrests this week, though the agency has not released updated figures as of Sunday morning. The protests were triggered in part by federal immigration raids that swept through the city from late Friday. Demonstrators gathered outside the federal building downtown, including outside a detention center. Other protests broke out in Compton and in Paramount, south of the city, where a crowd formed near a Home Depot as raids were reportedly underway. Tensions escalated when some protesters threw objects at officers, prompting the LAPD to declare an unlawful assembly and order the crowd to disperse, according to local media reports. Riot police used tear gas and flash-bang grenades. US Representative Nanette Barragan, a Democrat whose district includes Paramount and other parts of Los Angeles County, accused the Trump administration of using federal troops to suppress dissent. By the time the more violent skirmishes broke out Saturday night, the original protesters had already cleared out and the 'unruly folks' had arrived, she said. 'It's going to escalate the situation,' she said Sunday on CNN's State of the Union. 'People are going to protest because they're angry about the situation. And we have to just reiterate the people to do it peacefully.' Barragan described ICE agents stopping 'anybody at a bus stop that's going to shop' and said she was warned to expect 30 days of stepped-up enforcement. 'Form of Rebellion' Trump has repeatedly threatened to cut off federal funding to cities and states that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities — so-called 'sanctuary' jurisdictions — including LA. California law bars local law enforcement from using resources to assist in most federal immigration actions. In response to past federal crackdowns, California Attorney General Rob Bonta has defended the state's sanctuary policies and sued the Trump administration over attempts to force local compliance, arguing that California has the right to set its own public safety priorities. In an interview with NBC News, Trump border czar Tom Homan said Newsom and Bass should be thanking the president for helping to restore order. Homan warned the leaders could face arrest if they obstruct immigration enforcement efforts. The White House said the National Guard was being deployed to protect federal personnel and property, including immigration detention centers, citing what Trump described as credible threats of violence that could obstruct enforcement efforts and 'constitute a form of rebellion' against the US government. But the legal basis for the decision could face challenges. Federal law strictly limits the deployment of federal troops within US borders. The 1878 Posse Comitatus Act, along with amendments and supporting regulations, generally bars the use of the active-duty U.S. military — the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines — from carrying out domestic law enforcement. The law doesn't apply to state-controlled National Guard forces. --With assistance from María Paula Mijares Torres, Catherine Lucey, Isabela Fleischmann, Virginia Van Natta, Kevin Whitelaw and Kara Wetzel. (Updates with additional details of protests, law enforcement response. An earlier version was corrected to remove a video that included an erroneous description of Trump's comments on Marines.) The SEC Pinned Its Hack on a Few Hapless Day Traders. The Full Story Is Far More Troubling Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Wants to Donate His Billions—and Walk Again Is Elon Musk's Political Capital Spent? What Does Musk-Trump Split Mean for a 'Big, Beautiful Bill'? Cuts to US Aid Imperil the World's Largest HIV Treatment Program ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
The Hill
2 hours ago
- The Hill
US and China are holding trade talks in London after Trump-Xi phone call
LONDON (AP) — High-level delegations from the United States and China are meeting in London on Monday to try and shore up a fragile truce in a trade dispute that has roiled the global economy, A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng is due to meet U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer at an undisclosed location in the city. The talks are due to last at least a day. They follow negotiations in Geneva last month that brought a temporary respite in the trade war. The two countries announced May 12 they had agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the 100%-plus tariffs they had imposed on each other in an escalating trade war that had sparked fears of recession. Since then, the U.S. and China have exchanged angry words over advanced semiconductors that power artificial intelligence, 'rare earths' that are vital to carmakers and other industries, and visas for Chinese students at American universities. President Donald Trump spoke at length with Chinese leader Xi Jinping by phone last Thursday in an attempt to put relations back on track. Trump announced on social media the next day that trade talks would be held on Monday in London. The U.K. government says it is providing the venue and logistics but is not involved in the talks. 'We are a nation that champions free trade and have always been clear that a trade war is in nobody's interests, so we welcome these talks,' the British government said in a statement.
San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
US and China are holding trade talks in London after Trump-Xi phone call
LONDON (AP) — High-level delegations from the United States and China are meeting in London on Monday to try and shore up a fragile truce in a trade dispute that has roiled the global economy, A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng is due to meet U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer at an undisclosed location in the city. The talks are due to last at least a day. They follow negotiations in Geneva last month that brought a temporary respite in the trade war. The two countries announced May 12 they had agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the 100%-plus tariffs they had imposed on each other in an escalating trade war that had sparked fears of recession. Since then, the U.S. and China have exchanged angry words over advanced semiconductors that power artificial intelligence, 'rare earths' that are vital to carmakers and other industries, and visas for Chinese students at American universities. President Donald Trump spoke at length with Chinese leader Xi Jinping by phone last Thursday in an attempt to put relations back on track. Trump announced on social media the next day that trade talks would be held on Monday in London. 'We are a nation that champions free trade and have always been clear that a trade war is in nobody's interests, so we welcome these talks,' the British government said in a statement.
