Latest news with #GHS
IOL News
18 hours ago
- Business
- IOL News
Over 25 million South Africans depend on social grants amid rising poverty
Stats SA's statistics show that a staggering 25.4 million South Africans rely on social grants. Image: Independent Newspapers Archives The latest General Household Survey (GHS) released by Statistics South Africa has revealed that a staggering 25.4 million South Africans, or 40.1% of the population rely on social grants for survival. The GHS shows that 50.4% of all households in the country receive at least one form of social grant, making grants the second most important source of income after salaries. In some of South Africa's poorest provinces, more households depend on grants than on salaries. 'A larger percentage of households received grants compared to salaries as a source of income in five provinces: Eastern Cape (65.6% versus 49.0%), Free State (64.2% versus 54.6%), Limpopo (62.9% versus 50.4%), Northern Cape (64.0% versus 60.5%) and Mpumalanga (59.1% versus 56.8%),' Stats SA reported. In response to the rising numbers, Evashnee Naidoo from Black Sash said: 'The increase in poverty, unemployment and inequality increases month-on-month in South Africa due to poor economic growth and limited to no employment opportunities, particularly for those aged 18–59. As we know, the highest rate of unemployment is for the age group 18–35, where the government has also failed to provide an adequate social security safety net to protect and cushion individuals adequately from birth to death.' Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading With the government adopting austerity budgeting, Naidoo warned that 'spending on social spending is decreasing at an alarming rate. Black Sash calls on the government to end austerity budgeting and rather prioritise social spending so that it firms people living in South Africa and allows economic growth to flourish in communities,' she said. Naidoo said access to grants also remained an issue. 'Access to pay channels, as well as government institutions for recourse are particular challenges in the administration of grants, particularly in peri-urban and rural areas, where beneficiaries are shunted from pillar to post.' Black Sash said it would continue to call for permanent Basic Income Support for those aged 18–59 years. 'This would ensure dignity to our people and provide a secured source of income to individuals and households,' Naidoo said. THE MERCURY
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
GHS Class of 2025 steps into a new chapter
By Travis Hairgrove thairgrove@ The air was filled with the sounds of cheers and airhorns at T.A. 'Cotton' Ford Stadium as the Class of 2025 of both Greenville High School and New Horizons High School walked across the stage and into a new chapter of their lives. 'Kindergarten was the first step of many we unknowingly took to get here today, on a journey that we sometimes believed would never end,' student Aden Lewis said in remarks to those in attendance. 'Now, 13 years later, we're a little taller, a little wiser and still wondering what's ahead of us, we're here to celebrate.' One of the highlights of the ceremony was the graduation of the 18 students who make up its third graduating class of GHS' Early College High School program, a four-year program through which students are able to earn associate's degrees in engineering or multidisciplinary studies. When ECHS Chancellor Rebekah Russler spoke, she proudly listed the accomplishments of the class – who graduated from Paris Junior College two weeks earlier – announcing that six of them graduated with honors, that four finished with a GPA of a 4.0 and that five out of the top 10 GHS graduates were in the program. 'They earned every bit of their two diplomas,' Russler said. With the ceremony being a celebration of a major milestone in the students' lives, an ongoing theme in both the salutatorian a valedictorian speeches was one of embracing the uncertainty of the future. 'Every single one of you will leave this field with the promise of one thing – freedom,' GHS Salutatorian Nadenka Hallonquist said. 'And here's the fun part. You're on your own now. Don't want to wake up early? Go ahead. Sleep in. Don't want to go to your least favorite class? You don't have to. No one can tell you what to be and what to do now. 'Honestly though, that's a scary idea – being on your own,' she continued. 'I can't predict the future. No one can. All we can do now is hope we make decisions that will shape a good one, but I know we can do it.' Similarly, Valedictorian Ian Kowalczyk stressed the importance of being both confident and kind to oneself when dealing with challenges. 'When I first walked into Greenville High School as a freshman, I had the instinctual worry of not fitting in or being awkward … but the more I tried to run from me insecurity, the more I regretted being afraid of it in the first place. I failed myself,' Kowalczyk said. 'That's what happens. You will fail,' he continued. 'Sometimes subtly and other times visibly. But either way, you'll learn that in life, things are simply just not that easy.'
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Reality meets theory in Geneva's STEM Wars
GENEVA — Laughs and learning mixed freely Tuesday afternoon as the Geneva High School's STEM Wars kicked into full gear. Eighty students from the school's advanced placement classes competed against each other in five different events, including an egg drop, rocket launch, popsicle stick bridge construction, and mouse car building. Students worked together to create entries into the tournament, which takes the stress off after a long semester of hard work. Any Geneva High School students interested in advanced placement courses are allowed to take them. 'It is a lot more fun than the three hour exams we took,' senior Julie McDaniel said. She said she really enjoyed watching John Barbo throw things off the roof of the school. The students went from place to place, in and outside the school building, testing their work against that of other students. Science teacher Anne Markijohn said students previously competed in a multiple-school STEM Wars event through the Chagrin Valley Conference, but it got cancelled last year, so the school decided to start their own. 'It is a fun way to keep them motivated,' Markijohn said. Geneva High School Principal Michael King said any time you can do hands-on work, it is better than pure classroom work, or tests, because it is something students will remember for a long time. 'This is what science is all about,' Markijohn said after a surprise result at the rocket launch. A pre-launch estimate was 20 feet, but the rocket went hundreds of feet as the students and teachers reacted with surprise. A popsicle bridge experiment had similar results. 'Guys this is unbelievable,' GHS science teacher John Barbo said. A wrong measurement may have made the test easier than expected, as a full bucket of sand turned into weights from the weight room. Geneva High School science teacher Wendy Booth was also deeply involved in the event, and was as excited as the students as the results developed. Amy Fernandez, a junior, said she learned it is challenging to build a car. She said students also learned patience and how to overcome challenges.
Chicago Tribune
13-05-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Glencoe's Frank Lloyd Wright cottage fundraising to open architectural gem
Glencoe's Ravine Bluffs Cottage, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, has had a colorful past — being physically moved twice and last year being renamed because its namesake had an ugly racist history. However, its future remains unsettled as its owners scramble for funding to open the historic gem to the public. Nearly five years after the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed structure was hoisted up and moved about a quarter mile away to a new location in Glencoe, it remains closed to the public. A restoration of the building's exterior has been completed, but the interior needs work, and the Glencoe Historical Society, which owns it, is conducting a fundraising drive so the building can be opened to the public. 'We saved it, we set it up for future success,' GHS co-president Patrick Kaniff said. 'All the hard work is done and now it is just a matter of… finishing out the interior.' The fundraising drive represents the latest chapter for the building constructed in 1913 by the acclaimed architect Wright. It was set to be a temporary home for the family of Sherman Booth, his friend and attorney. Last year, however, the historical society announced it would strip the name of Sherman Booth from the cottage upon the discovery that Booth led a racist scheme in the 1920s, intending to keep Blacks and Italians out of Glencoe. After an initial relocation in 1917, the cottage remained at 239 Franklin Road in Glencoe and was owned by a series of people, according to historical society officials. It is one of 13 Wright-designed structures in Glencoe, which has the third-greatest number of examples of his work in Illinois, trailing only Chicago and Oak Park. GHS labels the cottage as a 'transition building' and one of the last Prairie-style structure designed by Wright. 'While this building is small and simple, it really exemplifies his genius,' said Scott Javore, a historical society board member, who is also an architect. John Waters, the preservation programs director of the Chicago-based Frank Lloyd Wright Conservancy, described the building's characteristics. 'It is low, it is very horizontal with banded windows and a flat roof,' Waters said. 'The way the eaves extend out on both sides more than they do on the front emphasizing the horizontality, that has much more of a feel for Wright's later Usonian work.' In 2019, the future of the cottage was in doubt as its owners inched toward demolition. The razing of a Wright-designed structure sparked an outcry from preservationists. Eventually, a deal was struck where the cottage was donated to the Glencoe Historical Society, where it would be moved to a small piece of land owned by the Glencoe Park District at 301 Maple Hill Road. The historical society leases the land from the Park District at the nominal rate of $1 per year. A throng of curiosity-seekers gawked on a July 2020 morning as the cottage was moved and placed at its new home. As part of the move, Kaniff said the historical society raised $350,000 to stabilize and move the cottage as well as for property site work, exterior preservation and attending to interior needs such as the HVAC system, plus plumbing and electrical upgrades. Since then, the historical society has spent about $14,000 a year for insurance and maintenance, Kaniff added. With the doors closed, the cottage received little public attention until last year, when it removed Booth's name due to his racist activities. With the building renamed the Ravine Bluffs Cottage, the historical society now wants to raise another $350,000 to complete an interior restoration. While other ideas have surfaced in the past to activate the space, the historical society envisions a three room museum-type building with explanation of Wright's history, his work in Glencoe and Prairie School architecture, Kaniff said. The specifics of the $350,000 goal include $100,000 for the interior restoration and the rest for an endowment providing maintenance and upkeep funding in perpetuity, according to Kaniff. The historical society held a fundraiser in March launching the drive. So far, they have raised about $61,500 with about 80% of that coming from historical society board members. However, Kaniff, who works professionally in facility management, acknowledged the historical society is encountering challenging in the latest fundraising drive. He said that lasting effects of the coronavirus pandemic still resonate for any museum in 2025. The historical society has applied for both private sector and state grants, but has found little success, he added. 'In this climate and with the amount of need for historic structures, it is very difficult to access grants,' he said. Another issue is the limitations of the Park District lease. Upon fears from neighbors about activity on the property when the move was initially contemplated, the cottage may only be used for the historical society's business and office, museum use, meetings, and programs pursuant to and consistent with the GHS mission and operational policies only,' explained Park District spokeswoman Erin Classen. She said public hours of operation are limited to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with up to six events per year not to go later than 10 p.m. As for other limitations, the cottage may get no more than 15 hours of public use per week, and any additional hours require Park District approval. With those terms, the cottage cannot host events such as weddings. 'That really ties our hands in raising ongoing money,' Kaniff concedes. Thus, the search for the funding continues with Kaniff saying the organization is exploring selling naming rights as part of an overall effort seeking donors from Glencoe and throughout the North Shore. As the drive continues, Kaniff concedes there is some frustration about the situation within the historical society board regarding the entire situation. 'The sense of frustration is that 80% of the project is done,' he said. 'It is just what is most public that is… not done.' Kaniff did not hide there is a sense of urgency to get the interior work going. 'We have board members who have been working toward the goal of finishing the interior for years,' he said. 'There is no deadline, but the public has increasingly said they would like to see the finished product as well.' The historical society does not receive any local government funding, but the village is monitoring the situation. 'The GHS plan at the outset was to ensure that the cottage was first relocated, and then that the exterior be restored so that its appearance was attractive and fit in with the neighborhood. We recognize the challenges of fundraising and are eager to see the GHS' plans for the future use of the cottage,' Village Manager Phil Kiraly wrote in an e-mail. 'It was always intended to be a much more passive space than their main campus in downtown Glencoe, and in fact, restrictions on its use were included in the agreement between the GHS and the Park District. The Village remains supportive of the GHS and looks forward to the opportunities for the cottage to support awareness of Glencoe's unique architectural heritage.' Village President Howard Roin spoke of the potential benefits of the cottage at the March fundraiser. 'It is not our asset but it is an asset to the village,' Roin said. 'This could be one of our crown jewels.'
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Yahoo
Garfield High School student killed at Yakima party
The Yakima County Sheriff's Office says an 18-year-old died Sunday after someone shot him at a party. A post by the Garfield High School Parent Teacher Student Association on Facebook identified him as Salvador 'Junior' Granillo, a senior at the school. The person who shot him is still at large. According to the sheriff's office, the teen showed up at MultiCare Yakima Memorial Hospital around 2 a.m. with a gunshot wound. Deputies learned that someone shot him during a fight on South Keys Road. The teen died at the hospital. 'Another loss of another precious person in our school community is devastating. Holding his family, friends and everyone who knew and loved Salvador in our hearts. Holding all GHS students, teachers, staff and families in our hearts too,' the Garfield High School PTSA wrote on Facebook. The post says there will be a candlelight vigil for Granillo at 4 p.m. Monday outside of the high school. The sheriff's office says the man they're looking for is 21-year-old Israel Barriga Vargas from Yakima. He was seen driving a 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer with Washington license plate CRH8859. He is considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with information that may help find Vargas is asked to call the Yakima County Sheriff's Office at 574-2500 or 800-572- 0490. Tips, including anonymous ones, can also be called into Crime Stoppers of Yakima County at (800) 248-9980 or online at On the request of Ms. Perez, GHS Spanish teacher and Granillo family friend: sharing heartbreaking news that Salvador... Posted by Garfield HS PTSA on Monday, April 21, 2025
