By Sam Waller

The Feed Store’s Fifth Quarter fellowship following home football games returns for another season Friday, Aug. 26 following the Albany Lions’ game against Lubbock Trinity Christian.

This week’s youth gathering will be hosted by Albany Church of Christ, Maranatha Fellowship, Jesus of Nazareth Catholic Church, and Trinity Episcopal Church.

Feed Store director Tisha Wilkins said Friday’s event will be separated like last year with high school students meeting at the fieldhouse parking lot, while junior high students meet at The Feed Store.

By Melinda L. Lucas

Friendship Baptist Church is planning to mark the new school year with a kick-off event for their children’s ministry.

According to one of the coordinators, Tanya Petree, Friendship will host a back-to-school bash on Wednesday, Aug. 31 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m., when local parents can bring their children four years and up to register for Friendship Kids and enjoy hot dogs and a s’mores treat.

“We will also have a water slide, so be sure your kids dress appropriately,” said Petree.

By Melinda L. Lucas

Board members of the Albany Chest will meet to organize the 2022 fund­raising campaign, nominate and elect new directors, and choose officers for the upcoming year during an Aug. 31 meeting

The meeting will be held at the Feed Store at 5:15 p.m.

Four of the 12 directors will complete their current terms, including board chair Jana Kitchens, Melinda Lucas, Clint Chapman, and Austin Sherwood.

Chapman and Sherwood will rotate off the board, with Kitchens and Lucas eligible to serve another term.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Volunteer Fire Department has two fundraising projects in the works, including the return of its Burgers & Birds cookout.

The event is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 3 at the fire station to celebrate the opening of dove season.

“We’ve done it in the past, and we got away from it because we didn’t have enough people in the event if we were dispatched out on a fire,” volunteer firefighter Alison Gardenhire said. “Our numbers are back up to where we can do the fundraiser even if we get called out.”

By Sam Waller

Albany’s Riley Reames enjoyed being part of the Texas Brigade program so much last year that she signed up for one of the other camps this year.

After attending the Ranch Brigade camp at Santa Anna in 2021, Reames attended the Rolling Plains Bobwhite Brigade camp June 10-14 at Wood Ranch at Rising Star.

“We were there for five days and did so much,” Reames said. “It was a lot packed into a little amount of time.

By Sam Waller

The Moran Independent School District received a grade of C from the Texas Education Agency, holding steady from the last ratings handed out in 2019.

The TEA assesses grades of A through F for accountability for districts and campuses throughout the state. The ratings were not issued the last two years because of COVID-related disruptions.

Moran principal Jo Hise said the district is taking steps to improve its rating.

By Donnie A. Lucas

The Texas Education Agency issued grades on Friday as part of the Texas A-F accountability ratings for districts and campuses in the state, with Albany ISD receiving a B.

This was the first time that the rating system has been used since 2019 due to two years of COVID-related disruptions.

The local district received an overall grade of B based on a score of 85 for the 2021-22 school year. The district had received a B when ratings were given for the 2018-19 school year.

By Donnie A. Lucas

Albany ISD was again expecting just over 500 students with the start of the new school year Wednesday (yesterday), indicating that beginning enrollment has been steady for the past three years.

Following “Meet the Teacher” sessions at both Nancy Smith Elementary and the Albany Junior/Senior High campuses on Monday evening, local administrators were looking for a total of 501 total students to show up for classes yesterday for the first day of school.

The same exact count of 501 students was reported last year.

By Melinda L. Lucas

During a regular session on Monday, Aug. 15, Albany ISD’s board of trustees set a date for a special meeting to adopt the 2022-2023 budget and tax rate, planning an early morning meeting on Aug. 31, the last day that the budget can be adopted according to state law.

The board also reviewed recently released state school ratings, with director of student services Leigh Lowe explaining the information, which is detailed in a separate article.

FIRST Rating

By Melinda L. Lucas

Progress has been reported in solving a series of car burglaries that occurred earlier this month, and the same thieves have apparently hit several other communities, according to Shackelford County deputy Jason Price, who is investigating along with police chief Mike House.

Officers are working with law enforcement in at least five other areas, including towns in Jones, Taylor, Callahan, and Haskell counties, Price said.