Latest news with #Beall
Miami Herald
06-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Patriot Payroll Named 'Best Customer Support,' 'Best Value,' and More by Gartner Digital Markets
Press Releases Patriot Payroll Named 'Best Customer Support,' 'Best Value,' and More by Gartner Digital Markets Review platforms Software Advice, Capterra, and GetApp-all owned by Gartner Digital Markets-have recognized Patriot Software as one of the highest-rated payroll systems, based on user reviews. Patriot Payroll® has been recognized with multiple 2025 "Best Of" badges from review site, Gartner Digital Markets. Most prominently, Patriot Payroll has been rated "Best Customer Support" and "Best Value." "This kind of recognition is our favorite, as it comes directly from our customers - hardworking small business owners - who rely on us to take the hassle out of payroll," says Sam Beall, Head of Operations. Gartner awards badges to products that earn ratings in the top 25% in their categories from verified users for functionality, customer support, and more. The "Best Of" badges are based on reviews and ratings from users with experience using Patriot's payroll software . Patriot Software received the following 2025 badges from Gartner platforms in the "payroll" category: Best Customer Support (Software Advice) Best Value (Capterra) Best Functionality & Features (GetApp) The combination of best customer support, value, and functionality and features badges is a testament to Patriot's commitment to providing fast, simple, and affordable payroll software-backed by 100% U.S.-customer support. "When our customers are happy, we're happy," Beall continued. "But that doesn't mean we can get lazy! We need to defend our title and prove just why our payroll is the best value with the best customer support." Visit to learn more about Patriot's award-winning payroll software. ### About Patriot Software Patriot Software is disrupting the accounting and payroll industries with its low prices, highest customer reviews, and award-winning software. Patriot offers cloud-based accounting, payroll , HR, and time and attendance software solutions that help American businesses with up to 500 employees simplify their administrative tasks. Patriot's US-based customer support team provides a personal touch that most software companies lack today. The company has been serving tens of thousands of businesses nationwide since 2002. For more information, please contact: Rachel Blakely-Gray Content Manager marketing@ SOURCE: PATRIOT SOFTWARE LLC
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
FCPS awarded $40K grant for environmental literacy and sustainability plan
Frederick County Public Schools was awarded a $40,000 grant to create a comprehensive environmental literacy and sustainability plan. The Chesapeake Bay Trust awarded the money last month to the school district. Colleen Beall, secondary science curriculum specialist for FCPS, said in an interview on Thursday that the district has been trying to refocus on environmental literacy and sustainability over the past year. She said the goal of the plan is to increase educators' ability to teach environmental education, and to standardize sustainability efforts districtwide. "We've really grown to make sure that curriculum and facilities are working together to support our schools and teachers," Beall said. She added that another goal is to increase the number of Maryland Green Certified schools in FCPS. The Maryland Green School Program recognizes schools across the state that include environmental education in their curricula. FCPS currently has 13 Green Certified schools * Butterfly Ridge Elementary * Carroll Creek Montessori Public Charter * Catoctin High * Frederick High * Lincoln Elementary * Middletown High * Myersville Elementary * Oakdale High * Sabillasville Environmental * Sugarloaf Elementary * Urbana High * Windsor Knolls Middle * Wolfsville Elementary Beall said the grant program runs through December 2026, and the school district will have a comprehensive plan created before then. "We also want to just formalize our procedures for engaging with all of our community partners because we have some amazing community partners who want to support us," she said. "We just want to make sure that we're all communicating. So, it's just very exciting and helps us keep our momentum going."
Los Angeles Times
14-03-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
The Boys & Girls Club is leaving Rancho Santa Margarita after failed contract talks
By summer, the Boys & Girls Club will no longer have a home in Rancho Santa Margarita, after contract talks between the nonprofit and the city failed to reach a new agreement. The Boys & Girls Club of Capistrano Valley, which offers various after-school programs, has operated out of the Rancho Santa Margarita Bell Tower Regional Community Center since 2012. But they will be vacating the venue, which has been provided for free, on Aug. 13. 'The only reason why this contract is not going to continue into the future is because the leadership of the Boys & Girls Club terminated the negotiations with the city,' Rancho Santa Margarita Mayor Tony Beall told TimesOC. 'They notified the city, their staff and the community that they will be leaving Rancho Santa Margarita.' Last year, the club faced political blowback when conservatives in Aliso Viejo and Rancho Santa Margarita, including Beall, took issue with the club's diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging statement and an accompanying reading list that included titles such as 'White Fragility' and 'Race Matters.' Conservatives pointed to the reading list as evidence of political indoctrination. The club clarified that the books were intended as a reference for adults. Both the statement and reading list were deleted from the club's website amid the controversy. Despite Beall's lone vote against it in May, Rancho Santa Margarita City Council granted the club a $120,000 extension for one year on the condition that it submit a six-month report addressing concerns over average daily attendance and cost comparisons with other club youth facilities in San Juan Capistrano and Aliso Viejo. Beall claimed that the past DEI controversy was not a factor in negotiations, which council members directed city staff to enter into in January. He described the city's offers as 'generous.' When asked about talks with the city, Nicole Watson, chief executive of the Boys & Girls Club of Capistrano Valley, offered a general statement on behalf of the organization. 'Unfortunately, contract negotiations were not successful and, as a result, the city manager's report indicated that no further council action was required,' Watson said. During the Rancho Santa Margarita City Council meeting on Wednesday, City Manager Jennifer Cervantez gave an update on the broken-down negotiations, starting with the report that preceded them. 'The six-month report did not include all of the requested information, particularly the cost and service comparisons with its other locations,' Cervantez said. 'Staff was unable to provide a recommendation and the council was unable to evaluate the status of the issues previously identified.' Despite city staff's reservations about the report, Cervantez said talks afterward were mostly 'positive.' On Feb. 27, Rancho Santa Margarita offered the club a two-year agreement at a reduced rate of $100,000 per year. The city also offered relocation assistance for an alternative site outside of the Bell Tower. Cervantez claimed that the club rejected the offer. The city countered with a two-to-three year lease at the current $120,000 contractual rate. The club, according to Cervantez, asked for an extra month to vacate the Bell Tower at the end of the current contract, which the city agreed to. Without an agreement in place, the city's community services department is developing plans for alternative programming at the Bell Tower, including activities for youth. Council members will consider such a plan during the budget development process. In the meantime, parents attended the council meeting to voice their displeasure over the club leaving Rancho Santa Margarita. 'My son just started at the Boys & Girls Club,' said Jill Shea. 'I'm working three jobs and I still can't pay for other childcare. The Boys & Girls Club was a blessing to me. Now what am I going to do? I just don't understand why we would be trying to get rid of such an awesome service that is so inexpensive for someone like me who's a full-time mom and a full-time working person.' According to 2024 statistics, the club serves more than 1,100 youth, 59% of whom are Latino, across all three locations every year. Beall, the mayor, told TimesOC the club was only serving 62 children on average daily attendance in Rancho Santa Margarita, which led the city to pay nine times higher per child than San Juan Capistrano does. The organization's chief executive countered that the closure of the club will have a 'significant impact' on local families. '[The club] has long served as a vital resource providing after-school and summer programs that promote academic success, character development, healthy lifestyles, and life and workforce readiness within a safe and supportive environment,' Watson said. 'We believe that the absence of these services may affect the overall well-being and development of local youth by limiting access to mentorship, educational support and recreational activities that foster personal growth.' During Wednesday's meeting, Councilwoman Keri Lynn Baert spoke in favor of the club before Beall closed discussion. 'This program was well-worth the investment,' she said. 'This decision isn't about cost. We don't need to cut or reduce programs to balance our budget.'
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Yahoo
OPD seeks public's help in identifying suspects in multiple thefts across the city
ODESSA, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- The Odessa Police Department is investigating several thefts across the city and is asking for the public's help in identifying the suspects involved. Each case remains under investigation, and OPD is asking anyone with information to come forward. Sam's Club theft: According to OPD, an unknown man stole a wallet accidentally set down by another customer who forgot about it. Officials reported that the wallet contained approximately $1,400 cash and that the unknown man then left the store in a white BMW. Authorities are now working to identify the individual and ask that if anyone has any information, to contact Detective M. Troglin at 432-284-2012 or Odessa Crime Stoppers at 432-333-TIPS and reference Case #24-0014333. Taco Bell theft: In a similar incident, at a Taco Bell, a male and female suspect stole a purse that had been set down and forgotten. According to officials, the purse contained around $750 in cash. The suspects then fled the scene in a white GMC Terrain with an unknown license plate. Anyone who recognizes either suspect or has any information regarding the case, to contact Detective M. Troglin at 432-284-2012 or Odessa Crime Stoppers at 432-333-TIPS and reference Case #24-0014430. Beall's theft: A theft occurred at Beall's where an unidentified male suspect stole merchandise and was last seen running towards a CVS Pharmacy. Anyone who recognizes the suspect shown in the surveillance footage is encouraged to contact Detective S. Lofton at 432-335-4964 or Odessa Crime Stoppers at 432-333-TIPS and reference Case #25-0000866. HEB theft: According to officials, three unknown suspects stole merchandise from the HEB located at 2501 West University. OPD said the three suspects then left the scene in a white Charger with a black hood. Anyone who recognizes the suspects shown in the surveillance footage is encouraged to contact Detective M. Troglin at 432-284-2012 or Odessa Crime Stoppers at 432-333-TIPS and reference Case #24-0013874. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Humans Are Evolving Before Our Eyes on The Tibetan Plateau
Humans are not yet done cooking. We're continuing to evolve and adjust to the world around us, the records of our adaptations written in our bodies. We know that there are some environments that can make us unwell. Mountain climbers often succumb to altitude sickness – the body's reaction to a significant drop in atmospheric pressure, which means less oxygen is taken in with each breath. And yet, in high altitudes on the Tibetan Plateau, where oxygen levels in the air people breathe are notably lower than lower altitudes, human communities thrive. In the more than 10,000 years the region has been settled, the bodies of those living there have changed in ways that allow the inhabitants to make the most of an atmosphere that for most humans would result in not enough oxygen being delivered via blood cells to the body's tissues, a condition known as hypoxia. "Adaptation to high-altitude hypoxia is fascinating because the stress is severe, experienced equally by everyone at a given altitude, and quantifiable," anthropologist Cynthia Beall of Case Western Reserve University in the US told ScienceAlert. "It is a beautiful example of how and why our species has so much biological variation." Beall has been studying the human response to hypoxic living conditions for years. In research published in October 2024, she and her team unveiled some of the specific adaptations in Tibetan communities: traits that help the blood deliver oxygen. To unlock this discovery, the researchers delved into one of the markers of what we call evolutionary fitness: reproductive success. Women who deliver live babies are those who pass on their traits to the next generation. The traits that maximize an individual's success in a given environment are most likely to be found in women who are able to survive the stresses of pregnancy and childbirth. These women are more likely to give birth to more babies; and those babies, having inherited survivability traits from their mothers, are also more likely to survive to adulthood, and pass the traits on to the next generation. That's natural selection at work, and it can be a bit strange and counterintuitive; in places where malaria is common, for example, the incidence of sickle cell anemia is high, because it involves a gene that protects against malaria. Beall and her team made a study of 417 women between the ages of 46 and 86 years who have lived all their lives in Nepal above altitudes of around 3,500 meters (11,480 feet). The researchers recorded the number of live births, ranging between 0 and 14 per woman for an average of 5.2, as well as health and physical information and measurements. Among the things they measured were levels of hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells responsible for delivering oxygen to tissues. They also measured how much oxygen was being carried by the hemoglobin. Interestingly, the women who demonstrated the highest rate of live births had hemoglobin levels that were neither high nor low, but average for the testing group. But the oxygen saturation of the hemoglobin was high. Together, the results suggest that the adaptations are able to maximize oxygen delivery to cells and tissues without thickening the blood – a result that would place more stress on the heart as it struggles to pump a higher viscosity fluid more resistant to flow. "Previously we knew that lower hemoglobin was beneficial, now we understand that an intermediate value has the highest benefit. We knew that higher oxygen saturation of hemoglobin was beneficial, now we understand that the higher the saturation the more beneficial. The number of live births quantifies the benefits," Beall said. "It was unexpected to find that women can have many live births with low values of some oxygen transport traits if they have favorable values of other oxygen transport traits." The women with the highest reproductive success rate also had a high rate of blood flow into the lungs, and their hearts had wider than average left ventricles, the chamber of the heart responsible for pumping oxygenated blood into the body. Taken all together, these traits increase the rate of oxygen transport and delivery, enabling the human body to make the most of the low oxygen in the air respired. It's important to note that cultural factors can play a role, too. Women who start reproducing young and have long marriages seem to have a longer exposure to the possibility of pregnancy, which also increases the number of live births, the researchers found. Even taking that into account, however, the physical traits played a role. Nepalese women with physiologies most similar to women in unstressed, low altitude environments tended to have the highest rate of reproductive success. "This is a case of ongoing natural selection," Beall said. "Understanding how populations like these adapt gives us a better grasp of the processes of human evolution." The research was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. An earlier version of this article was published in October 2024. Radioactive Dust Still Blows Over The Sahara From Cold War Nuclear Tests New Non-Opioid Painkiller First in Decades to Win FDA Approval Study Reveals How Much Exercise You Need to Control Your Blood Pressure
