March 6, 2003 – Kidnapping and robbery were added to the list of criminal charges including attempted murder against a St. Thomas man accused of breaking into a woman's home, holding her hostage, raping and stabbing her.
Michael Turbe, 20, waived a public reading of the 12-count description of charges filed against him Thursday at his arraignment in Territorial Court.
A day earlier, Harold Willocks, the Public Defender's Office attorney representing Turbe, had filed a motion to have his client's bail reduced, citing a federal law which prohibits courts from using excessive bail as a way to hold defendants in jail prior to trial. Willocks asked that the court allow Turbe to be released on a 10 percent bail bond. The court had yet to rule on the motion as of Thursday.
Bail for Turbe was initially set at $270,000 then raised to $900,000 by Judge I've Swan, who presided last Friday at the defendant's first court appearance in connection with the case. Swan raised the amount after prosecutors added attempted murder to a complaint that already included rape, burglary, assault and auto theft.
The complaint alleges that Turbe broke into the woman's house on Feb. 26, hid in the bathroom and confronted her with a knife when she came home for lunch. Prosecutors say he then raped and sodomized her and, after finding $4 in her pocketbook, forced her to call co-workers to bring money to the house. An individual subsequently did arrive with $1,000, and after that, authorities said, Turbe slashed the victim's throat and repeatedly stabbed her.
The victim had been undergoing treatment in the intensive care unit of Roy L. Schneider Hospital, where tight security had been set up. But she has now been transferred to an undisclosed location for her own protection, according to a friend.
Prosecutors said at Thursday's arraignment that the woman sustained 18 or 19 stab wounds as she fought her assailant, who attacked her with a kitchen knife after taking the money brought by the victim's associate.
Turbe was captured by police after an all-points bulletin was issued several hours after the attack, according to Deputy Police Chief Theodore Carty.
The youthful-appearing defendant, slightly under 6 feet tall, stood with his head bowed before Judge Brenda Hollar, wearing a red prison uniform, his hair in cornrows.
Hollar gave the legal teams a schedule by which to present evidence, file motions and challenge them. She set April 7 as the date by which the government can enter a plea bargain agreement and April 11 as the deadline by which the defendant can change his plea.
In the courtroom Thursday, about 10 women sat silently through the 9 a.m. hearing and then left as the judge called the next case. A short while later, another group of women stood outside the Farrelly Criminal Justice Complex, saying they, too, would have sat in court, but they had been given the wrong time for the hearing.
"We're all victims," said one, who declined to give her name. "It didn't happen to me, but we are all women in the community."

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March 6, 2003 – Interviews and e-mail exchanges with prominent people in the lottery industry from Washington, D.C., to Australia find them not only aware of but also "concerned" across the board about the secrecy with which the V.I. Lottery handles its finances.
Charles Strutt is the director of the Multi-State Lottery Association, the Iowa-based organization known as MUSL that promotes the big-ticket Powerball game, a recent addition to the lottery offerings in the Virgin Islands. He visited the territory last year when Powerball was introduced.
Asked by the Source to provide sales figures for the territory, Strutt declined to do so. But he did call the V.I. Lottery headquarters from his mainland office to encourage Virgin Islands officials to disclose the Powerball sales volume, which is a matter of public record everywhere else the game is played.
Strutt subsequently told the Source that the V.I. authorities had "indicated that they do not have any issues with releasing sales information."
A spokesman for a mainland lottery trade publication, who asked that it not be identified, said personnel there have been "following with concern the events in the USVI" having to do with secrecy in lottery operations. But he added that the publication has no intention of writing about the subject, as "you can appreciate that as a trade journal we have to be very cautious in approaching situations like this."
That trade paper spokesman suggested that an Australian publication, Lottery Insider, might react differently to queries. It did.
"We are talking with some lottery agents in the V.I.," its editor, Ernie O'Keefe, wrote in an e-mail exchange. "We have also scheduled an interview with one of the lawmakers who is very critical of the way the lottery has been operating."
The Australian publication editor also volunteered that he had been following reports on the matter published by the Source. (See "V.I. Lottery unique in not disclosing finances".)
Following up on Strutt's suggestion that contact be made directly either with V.I. Lottery officials or with the governor's legal counsel, Paul Gimenez, the Source this week did just that.
Gimenez e-mailed back that "I will contact the lottery and ask that they respond to your inquiry."
But despite the interventions of the Powerball executive and the Government House lawyer, no response was forthcoming from the V.I. Lottery.
If total Powerball sales or even all V.I. Lottery sales are released publicly, this will be only part of the story. The other critical question is: How much of the gross sales goes into the territory's General Fund?
The standard for state lottery operations on the mainland is not only that finances are revealed in detail, but that on average 35 percent of lottery gross proceeds go to the public treasury. For Powerball, the average is 31 percent; for the Virgin Islands, apparently it is about 2.6 percent.(See "V.I. Powerball percentage far below U.S. average".)
Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg chairs the Senate Finance Committee, which is undertaking an audit of the V.I. Lottery When he and a member of the Legislature's post audit staff went to the lottery offices on St Thomas last week seeking to examine financial records, they were turned away on orders of Gimenez and Attorney General Iver Stridiron.
This week, Stridiron said the Finance Committee does have authority to audit the V.I. Lottery but the problem was that the senator had not property notified lottery officials of his wish to examine the records.
Also this week, Donastorg in letters to Stridiron and Gov. Charles W. Turnbull took issue with the definition of "gross revenues" that he said appears in the government's contract with Caribbean Lotto Inc. He said the contract provides for the government to receive 10 percent of gross sales proceeds "after deducting the cost of free tickets issued as a part of the lottery games and the commissions retained by the selling agents."

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March 6, 2003 – Interviews and e-mail exchanges with prominent people in the lottery industry from Washington, D.C., to Australia find them not only aware of but also "concerned" across the board about the secrecy with which the V.I. Lottery handles its finances.
Charles Strutt is the director of the Multi-State Lottery Association, the Iowa-based organization known as MUSL that promotes the big-ticket Powerball game, a recent addition to the lottery offerings in the Virgin Islands. He visited the territory last year when Powerball was introduced.
Asked by the Source to provide sales figures for the territory, Strutt declined to do so. But he did call the V.I. Lottery headquarters from his mainland office to encourage Virgin Islands officials to disclose the Powerball sales volume, which is a matter of public record everywhere else the game is played.
Strutt subsequently told the Source that the V.I. authorities had "indicated that they do not have any issues with releasing sales information."
A spokesman for a mainland lottery trade publication, who asked that it not be identified, said personnel there have been "following with concern the events in the USVI" having to do with secrecy in lottery operations. But he added that the publication has no intention of writing about the subject, as "you can appreciate that as a trade journal we have to be very cautious in approaching situations like this."
That trade paper spokesman suggested that an Australian publication, Lottery Insider, might react differently to queries. It did.
"We are talking with some lottery agents in the V.I.," its editor, Ernie O'Keefe, wrote in an e-mail exchange. "We have also scheduled an interview with one of the lawmakers who is very critical of the way the lottery has been operating."
The Australian publication editor also volunteered that he had been following reports on the matter published by the Source. (See "V.I. Lottery unique in not disclosing finances".)
Following up on Strutt's suggestion that contact be made directly either with V.I. Lottery officials or with the governor's legal counsel, Paul Gimenez, the Source this week did just that.
Gimenez e-mailed back that "I will contact the lottery and ask that they respond to your inquiry."
But despite the interventions of the Powerball executive and the Government House lawyer, no response was forthcoming from the V.I. Lottery.
If total Powerball sales or even all V.I. Lottery sales are released publicly, this will be only part of the story. The other critical question is: How much of the gross sales goes into the territory's General Fund?
The standard for state lottery operations on the mainland is not only that finances are revealed in detail, but that on average 35 percent of lottery gross proceeds go to the public treasury. For Powerball, the average is 31 percent; for the Virgin Islands, apparently it is about 2.6 percent.(See "V.I. Powerball percentage far below U.S. average".)
Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg chairs the Senate Finance Committee, which is undertaking an audit of the V.I. Lottery When he and a member of the Legislature's post audit staff went to the lottery offices on St Thomas last week seeking to examine financial records, they were turned away on orders of Gimenez and Attorney General Iver Stridiron.
This week, Stridiron said the Finance Committee does have authority to audit the V.I. Lottery but the problem was that the senator had not property notified lottery officials of his wish to examine the records.
Also this week, Donastorg in letters to Stridiron and Gov. Charles W. Turnbull took issue with the definition of "gross revenues" that he said appears in the government's contract with Caribbean Lotto Inc. He said the contract provides for the government to receive 10 percent of gross sales proceeds "after deducting the cost of free tickets issued as a part of the lottery games and the commissions retained by the selling agents."

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March 6, 2003 – In a first for the Virgin Islands, a figure skating ice show is coming to St. Thomas on March 21-23 at the Mark C. Marin Center at Antilles School.
"It's history making for the Virgin Islands," promoter Angel Ventura said.
The two-hour "Paradise on Ice" revue is produced by Rosslyn Ice Shows of Royal Palm Beach, Florida.
Ventura, who operates Quality Family Entertainment, said the list of skaters who will perform includes 2002 Olympic bronze medallist, 2001 U.S. national champion and current U.S. silver medallist Tim Goebel. (For more background on this 22-year-old skating sensation, visit the official Timothy Goebel Web site.)
Ventura also listed U.S. skaters Christopher Hendricks and Cindy Davis and Russian skater Nadia Kova-Sharp as featured performers in the show.
Additional skaters, he said, will include Michelle Mare Franchville, Beth Brooker Blankenship, Brandy-Lyn Seabol, Jessica Lillian Ferguson, Julie Christine Vosters, Kelly Pauline Laughlin, Laurie Welch-Heath, Rene Besana Casaysay and Robb Ness. And the revue also includes championship juggler on ice Tommy Curtain, he said..
Ventura said he first though of bringing in snow for a skiing exhibition, but that proved too difficult. He surfed further on the Internet and discovered ice figure skating.
The major challenge comes in turning the Marin Center into an ice skating rink. Ventura said that a portable rink of 60 by 68 feet will be placed over the floor, and Bumble's Ice on St. Thomas will deliver 10,000 pounds of ice cubes — "without the holes."
The ice will be wet down and chilled, and in 30 to 36 hours, the floor will be fit for ice skating, Ventura said.
He suggested that people attending the shows wear sweaters because the Marin Center will be on the chilly side.
There will be shows at 8 p.m. on March 21, 4 and 8 p.m. on March 22, and 2 p.m. on March 23. Tickets are $10 for children and $20 for adults general admission, $30 for preferred seating, and $50 for front-row seats.
Ticket outlets are both Modern Music shops, Hemingway's Book Shop, all Sunrise Pharmacies, and V.I. Bridal and Tuxedo on St. Thomas; and St. John Drug Center and Marina Market on St. John.

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March 6, 2003 – Teachers, parents, day-care providers, librarians and anyone else who deals with children in kindergarten through third grade are invited to a Children's Literacy and Literature Conference on Saturday at the University of the Virgin Islands Sports and Fitness Center.
Sponsored by the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands Kids Count program, it runs from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Diane Moody, head librarian at Enid M. Baa Library, said there is a need to spread the word about how to teach children to read. "Reading is so important to school and jobs," she said.
St. John resident Cristina Kessler, the author of several children's books and a guest presenter for reading and writing projects at Julius E. Sprauve School, is the keynote speaker, Moody said.
Other speakers include Moody and UVI faculty members Patricia Harkins-Pierre, Linda Thomas and Linda Wymer. Moody and Harkins-Pierre will speak about the practical aspects of helping students learn to read. Thomas and Wymer will discuss issues relating to literacy.
St. Thomas resident Phillis Gershator, the author of numerous nationally recognized children's books, will be on hand to discuss books for youngsters, Moody said, and Elaine Jacobs and Harkins-Pierre will do some storytelling.
Moody said she hopes that those who attend the conference will be inspired to develop a network of people interested in helping youngsters learn to read well.
There is a registration fee for the conference of $5 in advance or $10 at the door. The Caribbean Writers Project will pay the $5 fee for the first 20 teachers who pre-register. For information about registering, call Moody at 777-6244 or 774-0630, or e-mail her at D. Moody.
She said the registration fees will go toward the Community Foundation's Dictionary Fund, which pays for dictionaries for students.

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March 6, 2003 – Teachers, parents, day-care providers, librarians and anyone else who deals with children in kindergarten through third grade are invited to a Children's Literacy and Literature Conference on Saturday at the University of the Virgin Islands Sports and Fitness Center.
Sponsored by the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands Kids Count program, it runs from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Diane Moody, head librarian at Enid M. Baa Library, said there is a need to spread the word about how to teach children to read. "Reading is so important to school and jobs," she said.
St. John resident Cristina Kessler, the author of several children's books and a guest presenter for reading and writing projects at Julius E. Sprauve School, is the keynote speaker, Moody said.
Other speakers include Moody and UVI faculty members Patricia Harkins-Pierre, Linda Thomas and Linda Wymer. Moody and Harkins-Pierre will speak about the practical aspects of helping students learn to read. Thomas and Wymer will discuss issues relating to literacy.
St. Thomas resident Phillis Gershator, the author of numerous nationally recognized children's books, will be on hand to discuss books for youngsters, Moody said, and Elaine Jacobs and Harkins-Pierre will do some storytelling.
Moody said she hopes that those who attend the conference will be inspired to develop a network of people interested in helping youngsters learn to read well.
There is a registration fee for the conference of $5 in advance or $10 at the door. The Caribbean Writers Project will pay the $5 fee for the first 20 teachers who pre-register. For information about registering, call Moody at 777-6244 or 774-0630, or e-mail her at D. Moody.
She said the registration fees will go toward the Community Foundation's Dictionary Fund, which pays for dictionaries for students.

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March 6, 2003 – The prosecutor in the case against a man charged with the September murder of St. Croix shopkeeper Rose Ovalle is calling the disappearance of the government's lead witness, Ovalle's husband, "odd."
Assistant Attorney General Marie John-Drigo said on Thursday that charges against 22-year-old Khamil Barker were dismissed earlier this week without prejudice, meaning they could be reinstated later. A major reason for the dismissal, John-Drigo said, is that Miguel Ovalle apparently left St. Croix with the couple's two school-age children and returned to his native Dominican Republic.
Rose Ovalle, 33, identified Barker as her assailant moments before she went into surgery at Juan F. Louis Hospital on the afternoon of last Sept. 23. She died several hours later. Police accused Barker of having robbed the Ovalle Convenience Store in Estate Calquohoun and of shooting the victim three times that morning.
Miguel Ovalle told police investigating the shooting that he had been in the back of the store at the time, ran to the front when he heard gunshots and his wife's scream, and saw Barker get in a car and flee the scene as his wife clutched her bleeding abdomen. Police said Barker was known to the Ovalles as a customer who regularly bought cigarettes and newspapers at the store.
John-Drigo said the prosecution learned soon after Christmas that Miguel Ovalle and the children were gone. She said he told a police detective that he would be back on St. Croix in time for the trial but did not notify the Attorney General's Office of his plans to leave the territory.
The couple owned two convenience stores on St. Croix. Miguel Ovalle sold them both, along with two vehicles and other personal effects, John-Drigo said.
Besides the victim's identification, "he is the one who identified Mr. Barker," John-Drigo said of Miguel Ovalle. "We found it odd that he would identify him and not be interested in seeing the matter brought to justice."
She said there was no way the trial could go forward without the husband's testimony because by law a defendant has the right to confront any prosecution witness.
John-Drigo said police are still investigating the matter. "We would like to speak with Mr. Ovalle," she said, and "continue investigation of the case."
She said it is not necessarily strange that the family of a murder victim should move away from the community where the crime occurred. But she said it does seem curious that the victim's closest relative, who was also the only witness, should seem uninterested in the outcome of the case against the man accused of killing her.
In Miguel Ovalle's absence, she said, "at this point, we've lost the opportunity to develop the case further."
Police said at the time of the shooting that Miguel Ovalle described the gunman's getaway car as a green Honda sedan driven by an accomplice. (See "Getaway driver sought in store owner's murder".) No one else has been charged in connection with the case.

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March 6, 2003 – St. Thomas's West End could be in for a small but dramatic change in ambience if a rezoning request to be considered at a public hearing next week is approved.
The rezoning sought is from R-2 (residential – low density, one- and two-family) to B-3 (business – scattered), to allow for the operation of a gas station, convenience store and small office in Estate Hope.
The hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday in the Planning and Natural Resources Department conference room on the second floor of the Cyril E. King Airport terminal.
Applicant Michael Dixon, owner of Courtesy Garage in Sub Base, said he owns property in Estate Hope, a storm-damaged house which only needs a roof. He is proposing to put a convenience store and small office in the house, and a gas station in front of the structure.
Dixon said on Thursday that "if the residents want advancement and would allow it, I want to help." He said there is no commercial establishment within five miles of the location. "I see people walking with a can of gas; there's nowhere there to get it filled," he said. "It's almost five miles from any business area."
The property, at 10 Estate Hope, is about a quarter mile before the Massack Nursing Home on the left side of the road, Dixon said. Sue Higgins, senior planner in DPNR's Comprehensive and Coastal Zone Planning Division, said the neighbors refer to the site as the "Enid Baa" property.
The public hearing is the first step in obtaining a rezoning. DPNR must approve the application, after which it would go to the Senate and, if passed, then to the governor for approval.
Four other rezoning requests also will be heard Tuesday:
– By Old Wireless and Telegraph, from R-3 (residential – low density, one- and two-family) to B-3 (business – secondary, neighborhood) for Parcel No. 36, Estate Nisky.
– By the Estate of Robert Joseph Questel, from R-1 (residential – low density) to R-2 (residential – low density, one- and two-family) for Parcel No. 7, Estate Agnes' Fancy.
– By Lloyd Norford, from B-4 (business – residential) to B-3 (business – scattered) for Parcel No. 32-B, Estate Frydenhahl.
– By Spencer L. Browne, from R-2 (residential – low density, one- and two-family) to B-3 (business – scattered) for Parcel No. 2-1, Estate Mariendahl.
Higgins said copies of the applications are available for review at the DPNR planning division office on the second floor of the airport terminal.

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March 6, 2003 – A bill to give merchants rebates for duties paid on watches and jewelry manufactured in foreign countries, shipped to the United States, and then shipped to the territory passed the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday.
Brian Modeste, an aide to Delegate Donna M. Christensen, said that if the merchants then were to ship the goods to a place outside the U.S. Customs Zone, such as Mexico, they would get the rebate. Since the U.S. Virgin Islands also lies outside that customs zone, this bill corrects an anomaly in the law.
He said that the bill also expands a current law that gives mainland-based watch and jewelry manufacturers credit on their federal income tax for wages paid employees who work in their Virgin Islands manufacturing facilities.
One effect of the measure will be "to attract new businesses to the territory," Modeste said.
Christensen said that the legislation will keep the territory's watch and jewelry industries competitive with their foreign competitors who don't have to comply with U.S. minimum wage requirements and other labor and environmental laws.
Heralding the House approval of the bill as "great news" for the V.I. economy, Christensen said she has been in contact with one company that has indicated interest in setting up operations on St. Croix but is "awaiting passage of this legislation."
A similar bill is before the U.S. Senate. If both houses approve the measure, it will go to President Bush for his signature.

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March 6, 2003 – The University of the Virgin Islands Bulletin Board issued today has these announcements:
Inaugural Week-Charter Day Events Scheduled
UVI's Charter Day observance and inauguration week activities begin Sunday, March 9, with Afternoon on the Green and conclude Sunday, March 16, with the inauguration of Dr. LaVerne E. Ragster as UVI's fourth president.
The public is invited to join in Afternoon on the Green, the Virgin Islands' best outdoor party, from noon to 5 p.m. on the St. Thomas campus golf course. Food, with delicious cuisine prepared by some of the V.I.'s best cooks, is the main attraction. Entertainment and children's activities will round out the day.
Other inaugural week public events include exhibits all week at the UVI library, the Sports and Fitness Center, and the Reichhold Center for the Arts; public forum on political status Wednesday, March 12, on a special edition of WTJX's "Face to Face," videoconferenced on both campuses; native St. Thomian Dr. Roy McClean speaking Friday, March 14, at the Theater on the St. Croix campus, videolinked to Chase Auditorium on St. Thomas; and a cultural extravaganza Saturday, March 15. All events are free.
Details are in the Source articles in Things To Do, Schools, and Community/Other Stuff sections, and also on the UVI Web site (address below).
Web Notes: Chancellor's Office Adds Site, St. Croix Agrifest Photos Featured in Current Events Section
The St. Thomas campus Chancellor's Office has developed an Internet Web site. Find it from the "Other UVI Sites" menu on the main UVI Web page or at this direct link.
A series of photos from Agrifest 2003 on St. Croix is now featured in the "Current Events – Photos" section of the UVI Web site. Find it from the "Other UVI Sites" menu on the main UVI Web page or at this direct link.
Noted Civil Rights Attorney to Speak on Both Campuses
Noted civil rights attorney Fred David Gray will make presentations on March 10 and 11 at UVI. Gray, who successfully defended Rosa Parks and served as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s first civil rights lawyer, is described as an entertaining speaker who focuses on the importance of diversity and who can make individuals proud of their cultural heritage.
Gray will make two presentations on Monday, March 10, on the St. Croix campus. The first is scheduled at noon in the Theatre (Evans Center room 401). It is for the UVI community. A second session is planned at 7:30 p.m. in the UVI cafetorium, and the general public is invited to the evening presentation. Gray's St. Thomas campus presentation is slated for noon on Tuesday, March 11, in Chase Auditorium (Business Education room 110). It is open to the UVI community and the general public.
For details on St. Croix call 692-4000; on St. Thomas call 693-1111.
UVI-Queen Mary Walk/Run Slated March 14
UVI's St. Croix campus invites alumni, students faculty and the entire V.I. community to participate in the second annual UVI-Queen Mary Highway Walk/Run on Friday, March 14.
The Walk/Run — which is part of the campus' celebration of Charter Day and the inauguration of Dr. LaVerne Ragster as UVI's fourth president — begins promptly at 6 a.m. (assembly time 5:30 a.m.) in the K-Mart parking lot in Sunshine Mall and proceeds along the Queen Mary Highway to the University's St. Croix Campus. The event ends at approximately 8 a.m.
The registration fee is $15 for adults and $12 for students and children. Participants will receive a commemorative T-shirt and towel. Light refreshments will be provided on conclusion of the walk/run. Commemorative prizes will be awarded to the top finishers.
Registration forms are available from the chancellor's office or on-line.
Workshops to Focus on Effective Sediment and Erosion Control Plan Training
Training workshops on sediment and erosion will be conducted from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 18, in Room 133 of the Research and Extension Center on UVI's St. Croix campus and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 20, at the SBDC Training Room upstairs in Nisky Center on St. Thomas. The program is sponsored by the UVI Cooperative Extension Service, V.I. Planning and Natural Resource Department's Coastal Zone Management Program and V.I. Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc.
The workshop is designed for individuals associated with the design and implementation of sediment and erosion control measures and plans. Workshop sessions are limited to 40 participants. For more information contact Julie Wright at 693-1082 or Faye Williams at 692-9632 extension 101.
UVI Jazz Ensemble, Pianist Mulgrew Miller to Perform March 20
The UVI Jazz Ensemble will present a concert at 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 20, in the Little Theatre on the university's St. Thomas campus. The concert will feature performances by renowned jazz pianist Mulgrew Miller and vocalist Danielle Greenaway. A native of the Mississippi delta, Miller is considered one of the leading pianists of his generation. He has produced more than 400 recordings and has performed around the world.
Miller's UVI concert will include such classic jazz pieces as "Bye Bye Blackbird," "Take the A Train," "'Round Midnight," and "St. Thomas." Vocalist Greenaway will perform "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" and "Blue Skies." Also performing will be pianist/vocalist Detra Davis, who will be featured on "God Bless the Child." The ensemble is conducted by Martin J. Lamkin.
The concert is sponsored by the Music Department of UVI's Humanities Division. It is funded in part by the V.I. Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional sponsorship is provided by Best Western-Emerald Beach Hotel. Admission is $10. Tickets are available from the UVI Humanities Division, the Music Department and Jazz Ensemble members.
Pianist Offers Free Public Clinic
The public is also invited to a free clinic that pianist Mulgrew Miller will offer on Wednesday, March 19, at 12:30 p.m. in the choir room of the Music Building on the St. Thomas campus.
Reichhold Center Announces STARfest9 Auditions
UVI's Reichhold Center for the Arts has announced it will conduct auditions for STARfest 9 on March 21, 22 and 23. STARfest, an annual theater production featuring the finest Virgin Islands dancers, musicians and comedians, will be staged on May 10 and 11, and May 24 and 25.
A modeling segment will be added to STARfest for the first time this year, said Reichhold operations manager Cindy Rollins. The addition is designed to help participants prepare for possible appearances on Star Search, the nationally televised CBS program hosted by Arsenio Hall. Star Search participants compete for $100,000 in prize money in each of five performance categories.
Applications to audition for STARfest9 are now available at the Reichhold Center on UVI's St. Thomas campus, Modern Music locations in Havensight Mall and Nisky Center, Parrot Fish, Krystal & Gifts Galore, and at the UVI Bookstore. March 14 is the deadline for applications. For more information contact Cindy Rollins at 693-1553 or e-mail her.
VIMAS Offers Workshop for Teachers on "Sound in the Sea" Web Site
The Virgin Islands Marine Advisory Service (VIMAS) at the Center for Marine and Environmental Studies will sponsor a workshop designed to show teachers how to best use a unique Web site titled "The Discovery of Sound in the Sea."
Nancy Craven of the Teacher's Ins titute at the University of Rhode Island's office of marine programs, which sponsors the Web site, will help teachers learn how to present concepts and material dealing with the use of nonvocal sound by marine animals in a format that increases student literacy. The target group for the activity is middle school (grades 6-9), but there are adaptations for high school and elementary school as well.
The workshop is not just for science teachers. A large portion of the activity focuses on language arts and process writing. The activity is designed to improve students' writing while learning science.
The workshop takes place from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 12, in room 101 of the Classroom and Administration (CA) Building on UVI's St. Thomas campus.
There is no registration fee; however, advanced registration is required. The workshop is limited to 10 participants. For registration, fax a letter with the names of participating teachers to Mayra Suárez-Vélez, at fax number (340) 693-1395 as soon as possible. For details call (340) 693-1392.
Koresh Dance Company Next At Reichhold Center; Travel Package Offered
A performance by the renowned Koresh Dance Company of Philadelphia is scheduled for 8 p.m. March 29 at UVI's Reichhold Center for the Arts. The company's style is described as "eloquent and explosive, employing an emotional blend of ballet, modern and jazz stylings." The Reichhold show will feature ten dancers performing a full-length piece entitled "Past, Present, and Future." Folk, ballroom, modern, classical and futuristic dance styles will be included.
A master class for dance enthusiasts, conducted by company director Ronen Koresh and members of the cast, is scheduled for Friday, March 28 at 5 p.m. at the Reichhold Center.
The performance is partially supported by a grant from the Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour, the V.I. Council on the Arts and WSTA radio. For tickets, group packages, and to register for the master class, contact the Reichhold Center Box Office at 693-1559.
The Reichhold Center and Seaborne Airlines are offering travel package discounts for individuals coming to the show from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and St. Croix. For details contact the Reichhold Box Office.
Basketball Bucs Open Season With Wins
Congratulations to the UVI's basketball Bucs, who won their season opening games last weekend in Puerto Rico against Metropolitan University of Puerto Rico (UMET). On Friday, Feb. 28, the Lady Bucs defeated UMET 56 to 52, while the men's team downed their UMET rivals 77 to 70. On Saturday, March 1, the Lady Bucs extended their streak, rolling over Universidad de la Este (UNE) 54 to 6. The men's squad lost their game to UNE, 90-72.
Next up, the UVI men take on UPR-Mayaquez and Politecnica University on March 7 and 8. The Lady Bucs have the weekend off and next play March 13 and 14 against UPR-Ponce and UPR-Carolina.
For more on the University of the Virgin Islands, visit the website at www.uvi.edu.

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