Pawhuska Elementary School Principal Byron Cowan was at Monday evening's school board meeting talking about how things have went during the fall semester. He started by saying that the elementary school ended the semester with 134 kids coming to school daily and 19 students doing virtual learning. Cowan said that was as high as 38 to start the year.
Cowan went on to talk about MAP data and where students stand academically. Cowan said that because the school went fully virtual to end the last year, he knew they would be behind, but he looks forward to seeing how they catch up. Cowan speaks with teachers each week and he talked about how behavior issues haven't been as much of a problem this year as he has seen in years past. Cowan added that mask-wearing hasn't been an issue among students and the teachers do a great job setting an example by wearing theirs as well. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will be partnering with local county sheriff’s offices for the 2020 Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over Campaign.
Beginning on Wednesday and running through the start of the New Year, law enforcement will be participating in the national campaign where law enforcement agencies will show no tolerance for drunk driving. There will also be additional officers on the lookout for impaired drivers on the road. In 2018, one person was killed every 50 minutes because of a drunk-driving crash. In December alone, 839 people lost their lives in a traffic crash involving drunk driving. During the Christmas and New Years Holidays, 285 fatalities occurred. The NHTSA reminds the public that these deaths are preventable by designating a sober driver, using a ride service to get home safely or taking the keys away from someone who has been drinking and is about to drive. The Osage Nation Museum will be holding a virtual opening for its latest exhibit, “Creativity 2020: Works from the Community” this Friday at 7 p.m.
The intention of the exhibit is to provide a space for individuals to share the creative art that they have been working on since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March. Speakers for Friday’s program include artists who have been involved in a discussion about the healing potential of an artistic process. Presenters include Wendy Ponca, Anita Fields, Dante Bliss-Grayson and Dr. Moira RedCorn. The virtual exhibit can be viewed at osagenationcreativity.com. You may also view their work in person at the Osage Nation Museum in Pawhuska by purchasing a free, timed ticket at the website listed above. The exhibit will run through February 12th 2021. Four days after losing in the semifinals of the Class A State football tournament, the Pawhuska Huskies took to the basketball court Tuesday evening to take on cross-county rival Hominy. It was a sloppy start for the Huskies, plagued by turnovers and missed shots, but they got in a groove as the game went along and went on to win, 64-44.
Pawhuska led 11-9 and extended that lead to 26-21 going into halftime. Pawhuska came out firing in the second half. This quick 4-0 spurt made it 38-24 midway through the third quarter. The Lady Huskies defeated Hominy by a score of 63-19. Arianna Soliano had 15 points and Shelby Laird added 13. You can listen to the Pawhuska Huskies all season long on Sportstalk KPGM FM 99.1 and watch the Huskies on KPGMTV.com. Even with the COVID-19 pandemic damaging the State of Oklahoma in various ways, Pawhuska Public Schools is doing better than they were last year, as they have increased their revenue by $100,000 from a year ago. Superintendent David Cash continues to expect the State of Oklahoma to lay out some budget cuts in the spring semester. Here, Cash gives some details as to what that may look like.
Cash says that for right now, the Pawhuska School District is in good shape heading into this shortfall that will likely start in the coming months. Cash says state aid is what will be cut from the budget. So that Pawhuska Public Schools is in compliance with a recent executive order issued by Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, the school will be requiring individuals to purchase vouchers ahead of all athletic events.
Vouchers will be given to athletes and they may distribute them how they wish. Any extra vouchers will be left at the High School Office and individuals wishing to go to the game can pick them up there after 1 p.m. on the day of the game. Masks will be required to enter the arena. Children under the age of two will not be required to have a voucher. Ice caused an Osage County Sheriff’s Deputy to spin out and lose control of her vehicle during Monday’s snow storm. This is the second weather-related accident involving an Osage County Sheriff’s vehicle in the past month. Sheriff Eddie Virden is now taking action in an effort to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Virden said his top priority is the safety of his fellow officers. At last check, the deputy was feeling OK. The Board of Osage County Commissioners took no action regarding the public entering the courthouse and other county-owned buildings, but they want to stress that the coronavirus is serious and it isn’t to be taken lightly. District one commissioner Randall Jones explains how it is affecting one of his employees.
District three commissioner Darren McKinney said he currently has three employees affected by the virus at the county shop in Hominy. One utility permit was signed for district two of Osage County during Monday’s board meeting. In the past, all three commissioners have talked about trouble they have had with utility companies abiding by rules and regulations to properly install the utilities. District one commissioner Randall Jones talked about a problem he was recently facing.
District three commissioner Darren McKinney said he has recently had a few procedural problems with utility companies as well. A Bartlesville man was arrested over the weekend and was presented with preliminary child sexual abuse charges in Washington County Court on Monday.
A probable cause affidavit states that police officers received a phone call from a woman wishing to make a report. The witness reported that she had reason to believe that her live-in boyfriend, Johnny Castro, was having an inappropriate relationship with her 14-year old daughter. The witness had installed a hidden camera in the victim’s bedroom and the probable cause affidavit states that she is willing to testify that when she logged onto the live view of the camera, she believed she saw Castro and the victim lying in bed. The witness believes that while the blanket was over the top of them, they were having sex. This was later turned over to police for evidence in the case. The affidavit goes on to say that an on-call investigator interviewed Castro at the police station, but he never admitted to having sex with the victim. Castro will be presented with formal charges on Tuesday. His bond is set at $100,000 on the condition he has no contact with the alleged victim. |
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