June 22, 2001 — The employee-organized Water and Power Authority Buy-out Committee has been quietly moving ahead with its 10-month effort to purchase the utility and is hoping to receive $200,000 from Congress to help fund a feasibility study.
The committee was formed last year after Southern Energy approached the Turnbull administration with an offer to buy WAPA. While the administration was in favor of the company’s $400 million offer, the Legislature, with the encouragement of many WAPA employees, shot down the deal last August.
While Southern Energy’s proposal was being debated last year, WAPA’s unionized employees, headed by Hubert Turnbull (no relation to Gov. Charles W. Turnbull), formed the buy-out committee.
The committee wants to offer the government a competitive bid to retain local ownership of the utility in the form of a cooperative. It has been working with three mainland companies — Shay Kimble Consulting Group, Praxis Consulting Group and the financial firm of Houlihan, Lokey, Howard and Zukin to develop its takeover plan.
"We’ve been working since last August pursuing different avenues of financing with the assistance of our consultants," Herbert Turnbill said. The first task, he said, has been to "put together a feasibility study on what it would take" for WAPA "to become an employee- or consumer-owned cooperative, or a combination of both."
Southern Energy had a months-long due diligence period before it offered to purchase 80 percent of the government-owned utility for almost $400 million, including $105 million in cash up front. The deal also called for the company to provide about $2 million in economic development funding and write off the government’s overdue utility bills, which then stood as more than $20 million.
Hubert Turnbull said the committee sought private and federal funding for its feasibility study, including donations from WAPA employees. With the help of Delegate to Congress Donna Christian Christensen, it lobbied the Interior Department for $200,000 toward the study, he said.
That request was approved by the House Appropriations Committee last week. It must be approved by both houses of Congress and the president in order to become reality.
"Our first step after the defeat of the sale to Southern Energy was to secure funding for the feasibility study, which would examine how to structure a transaction that meets the government’s primary objectives while better protecting the broader economic and social interests of our community as expressed by many concerned citizens during last year’s campaign for the sale," Hubert Turnbull said.
As the plan currently stands, the cooperative would be managed by a board suggested as 11 people -– four from WAPA, four from the business community and three residents. It would be empowered to secure loans from the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and the Cooperative Finance Corp.
By paying a minimal fee, residents would become co-op members and essentially co-owners of the utility, once it was purchased from the government. They would have a say in how it is managed, including voting for the board of directors.
Through national associations, the co-op would have access to low-cost capital, management expertise and storm insurance, among other things.
Cooperative ownership of electrical utilities in the U.S. dates back 64 years. Cooperatives now own 930 utility systems in 46 states and serve some 34 million customers, 12 million of whom own a share of the utility from which they purchase their power, according to the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.
Hubert Turnbull said the buy-out committee hopes to make a proposal to the V.I. government "in the near future." Meantime, he said, it will hold a press conference on July 5 to detail its plans.
BUSINESSMAN ARRESTED IN FEDERAL DRUG STING
June 22, 2001 – A well-known St. Thomas businessman was arrested Thursday on charges that he illegally sold more than 1,000 grams of Vicodin, a prescription painkiller. According to the Virgin Islands Daily News, the arrest of Salem Salem came after federal agents conducted a sting operation at a pharmacy where Salem was working.
Federal court documents indicate that the sting operation began with a federal witness telephoning the pharmacy owned by Rushdi Salem to arrange for the sale of 1,000 Vicodin tablets. The witness traveled to St. Thomas and purchased the controlled narcotic around 11 a.m.
At the time of the sale, Salem Salem was the pharmacist on duty. The witness paid $3,000 for the painkillers, the Daily News said. The court documents indicated that at the time the tablets were dispensed, Salem did not request a prescription, nor did he diagnose an illness as requiring the drugs. Vicodin is a narcotic prescribed for pain. It is addictive.
Salem Salem, who holds an interest in V.I. Pharmacy, Jewelry and Liquor on Main Street, also has financial interests in Furniture Discount Center, Value Furniture and American Furniture.
Federal court documents indicate that the sting operation began with a federal witness telephoning the pharmacy owned by Rushdi Salem to arrange for the sale of 1,000 Vicodin tablets. The witness traveled to St. Thomas and purchased the controlled narcotic around 11 a.m.
At the time of the sale, Salem Salem was the pharmacist on duty. The witness paid $3,000 for the painkillers, the Daily News said. The court documents indicated that at the time the tablets were dispensed, Salem did not request a prescription, nor did he diagnose an illness as requiring the drugs. Vicodin is a narcotic prescribed for pain. It is addictive.
Salem Salem, who holds an interest in V.I. Pharmacy, Jewelry and Liquor on Main Street, also has financial interests in Furniture Discount Center, Value Furniture and American Furniture.
HASSEL ISLAND DREAMS, PLANS FALLING INTO PLACE
June 21, 2001 – Hassel Island, a geographic and historic gem in the rough prominently poised at the mouth of Charlotte Amalie Harbor, is about to be dusted off and given what many in the community would agree is its rightful due.
Steeped in intriguing marine history, the island has been the object of noticeable neglect since it was acquired by the National Park Service in 1978 — as the new V.I. National Park superintendent readily admits.
"I feel bad the service hasn't done a better job in carrying out its responsibilities," says John King, who took over as superintendent earlier this year. "We haven't had the money or resources to manage St. John and Hassel Island, but now we are a little more flexible." And now, he adds, "We want to do something consistent with the island's cultural resources."
Hassel Island could be developed as a historic-interest attraction for tourists, he says, especially cruise ship passengers, offering something different while at the same time providing a relief valve for St. John.
King isn't the only person enthusiastic about restoring the harbor island and making it attractive to visitors and residents. Edward "Harmon" Killebrew has been eyeing it with a passion for half his life. The 50-year old Chicago transplant became enamored of its historic Creque Marine Railway 24 years ago, shortly after he moved to St. Thomas.
Killebrew doesn't see a decrepit stone and brick building creaking with disrepair, or the remnants of the railway now almost totally obscured by vegetation. Looking out from the privileged viewpoint of his home and workshop on Gregerie East Channel, almost directly across from the railway, he sees children, lots of children, and youths, scurrying around pulling weeds, clearing brush, bagging trash, carefully cleaning cobblestones, prudently applying herbicides.
"Of course, they'd be in small, supervised groups," he explains.
It's all part of a plan he has been working on for years — to revitalize the marine railway as an invaluable piece of St. Thomas history and a valuable heritage tourism site, and to provide a learning experience for young people at the same time.
From ruin to restoration
But this is just the first stage of the restoration Killebrew modestly envisions. He sees a totally restored steamhouse (the main building) and a functioning railway (the tracks on which boats were hauled from the water for repair). He talks about a maritime museum, a marine training academy at Prince Rupert Boatyard on the island's eastern side, and children conducting hikes along a trail system to explore the island. And even tourists and residents all dressed up attending plays and musical events in a theater built to blend in with the site.
Killebrew pauses in his mental tour, smiling. "I don't mean tomorrow," he explains. He opens a thick ledger with yellowed pages and begins naming names. "These are all the people I've talked to over the years, people who are interested in volunteering their time," he says, looking at dozens of cards. "And these are the articles going back 24 years," he adds, noting with a laugh that The Draughting Shaft donated the ledger to him "in the '80s."
"People want to help; they love the idea," he says, brimming with enthusiasm unbridled by the years. "They don't want to be paid — you don't get paid to fix your history. Everyone I've talked to wants to donate time or goods. They love the idea of a boat-building school, of a museum. Can't you imagine? All kinds of people from all over … bringing all kinds of stuff for the museum."
Killebrew is on a first-name basis with the old railway; it was his second home for a time after he moved from an East End boatyard. He is also familiar with the organization process, having been a founder of KATS — the Kids And The Sea program — and one of St. Thomas's first volunteer school teachers.
"When people ask me what I want to get out of it, I don't know what to say," he muses. "It's not about Harmon, never has been about Harmon. It's about the kids."
He decided a while back that when he turned 50, "I'd dedicate myself totally to the kids," Killebrew says. He will close his pizza shop in Frenchtown at the end of this month and do just that.
About six weeks ago, as a member of Friends of the V.I. National Park, he got permits to remove two unsightly old military marine landing craft which had been clogging up the railway since the mid-'70s, abandoned by a temporary partner of his who had fancy notions about restoring the property.
"I got a bunch of people to pitch in," he says, "Local Towing, R&R Caribbean, STS Trucking and A-9 Trucking — they all volunteered their services, moving the barges and hauling them to the Bovoni dump."
A little help from the Friends
The Friends of the Park will initiate island cleanup programs in the first stage of the restoration. "It takes a lot of planning," Killebrew explains. "We will be getting non-profit, volunteer groups of kids, like the Boys and Girls Club, Weed and Seed, to come in supervised groups to start the cleanup, but that requires backup."
Trudy Toliver, Friends of the Park development director, says for youngsters to work on the island, there must be shelter, water, an expert in CPR and first aid, and transportation – for openers. Killebrew is constructing a kitchen, complete with a mobile pizza oven, on his property to feed the volunteers. He has engineered volunteer ferry transportation with Barry Nasch of the Water Island Ferry.
Toliver says several local organizations have expressed an interest in helping with the project. A Rotary group has offered a grant, and Geraldine Smith, St. Thomas-St. John executive director of the Anti-Litter and Beautification Commission, will commit her youth crews to help out. It's too late to set up a summer program, Toliver says, "but we are hoping to use the kids this fall. They have a year-round Saturday cleanup program."
If enthusiasm were enough to make it happen, Toliver, Killebrew and King could have the island ready for business tomorrow. King says the planning process is now in the very beginning stages.
"We need to defoliate between the cobblestones," Killebrew says."Small trees have started between the stones, and when they come up, the mortar comes up with them. You have to remove the stones and cut the trees out, treat the stump with an approved herbicide, and use hand tools for digging out the root sections. Then you have to fill the cavity back in. There are thousands of joints like that."
And any work, even cleanups, must be closely supervised out of archeological sensitivity.
Railway may be the last of its kind
The marine railway is regarded by historians as the most important historic site on the island. It was one of the earliest steam-powered marine railways in the Western Hemisphere — and may be the oldest of its kind left in the world, according to documents Killebrew has. Built by a group of Danish businessmen, the railway functioned from 1843 to 1911.
In its heyday, Creque's Railway did a land-office business by sea. It hauled and repaired countless merchant ships calling at St. Thomas, the trading crossroads of the Caribbean at the time. Coal furnaces created the steam to run it.
When the railway came into existence, Hassel Island didn't exist. What today is the island was then an isthmus extending out from the Frenchtown area, effectively blocking the harbor and creating a backlog of refuse which fouled the otherwise beautiful bay. Dredging in 1865 created the cut that severed the spit of land from St. Thomas, allowing the harbor to come clean.
King says the park service has embarked on a thorough planning process that includes public meetings. "We want to make sure what we do is in concert with what the public sees as a vision for the island," he says. A park planner is finishing a two-month vessel management plan for the island.
There may eventually be concessions for food and drinks, transportion and a gift shop, but "we are a long way from getting to that point," he says.
King says the park service is looking to partner with community groups for maximum utilization of resources. Toliver says the Friends of the Park will be holding fundraisers to support the project.
And, of course, "We're going to have a web site," Killebrew says. "That way, people can watch each day what's being done and how we're coming along. They can see the materials and the work they're donating in use."
But all in good time. For now, he's concentrating on the logistics of getting the youngsters safely to the island to restore those countless cobblestones.
Steeped in intriguing marine history, the island has been the object of noticeable neglect since it was acquired by the National Park Service in 1978 — as the new V.I. National Park superintendent readily admits.
"I feel bad the service hasn't done a better job in carrying out its responsibilities," says John King, who took over as superintendent earlier this year. "We haven't had the money or resources to manage St. John and Hassel Island, but now we are a little more flexible." And now, he adds, "We want to do something consistent with the island's cultural resources."
Hassel Island could be developed as a historic-interest attraction for tourists, he says, especially cruise ship passengers, offering something different while at the same time providing a relief valve for St. John.
King isn't the only person enthusiastic about restoring the harbor island and making it attractive to visitors and residents. Edward "Harmon" Killebrew has been eyeing it with a passion for half his life. The 50-year old Chicago transplant became enamored of its historic Creque Marine Railway 24 years ago, shortly after he moved to St. Thomas.
Killebrew doesn't see a decrepit stone and brick building creaking with disrepair, or the remnants of the railway now almost totally obscured by vegetation. Looking out from the privileged viewpoint of his home and workshop on Gregerie East Channel, almost directly across from the railway, he sees children, lots of children, and youths, scurrying around pulling weeds, clearing brush, bagging trash, carefully cleaning cobblestones, prudently applying herbicides.
"Of course, they'd be in small, supervised groups," he explains.
It's all part of a plan he has been working on for years — to revitalize the marine railway as an invaluable piece of St. Thomas history and a valuable heritage tourism site, and to provide a learning experience for young people at the same time.
From ruin to restoration
But this is just the first stage of the restoration Killebrew modestly envisions. He sees a totally restored steamhouse (the main building) and a functioning railway (the tracks on which boats were hauled from the water for repair). He talks about a maritime museum, a marine training academy at Prince Rupert Boatyard on the island's eastern side, and children conducting hikes along a trail system to explore the island. And even tourists and residents all dressed up attending plays and musical events in a theater built to blend in with the site.
Killebrew pauses in his mental tour, smiling. "I don't mean tomorrow," he explains. He opens a thick ledger with yellowed pages and begins naming names. "These are all the people I've talked to over the years, people who are interested in volunteering their time," he says, looking at dozens of cards. "And these are the articles going back 24 years," he adds, noting with a laugh that The Draughting Shaft donated the ledger to him "in the '80s."
"People want to help; they love the idea," he says, brimming with enthusiasm unbridled by the years. "They don't want to be paid — you don't get paid to fix your history. Everyone I've talked to wants to donate time or goods. They love the idea of a boat-building school, of a museum. Can't you imagine? All kinds of people from all over … bringing all kinds of stuff for the museum."
Killebrew is on a first-name basis with the old railway; it was his second home for a time after he moved from an East End boatyard. He is also familiar with the organization process, having been a founder of KATS — the Kids And The Sea program — and one of St. Thomas's first volunteer school teachers.
"When people ask me what I want to get out of it, I don't know what to say," he muses. "It's not about Harmon, never has been about Harmon. It's about the kids."
He decided a while back that when he turned 50, "I'd dedicate myself totally to the kids," Killebrew says. He will close his pizza shop in Frenchtown at the end of this month and do just that.
About six weeks ago, as a member of Friends of the V.I. National Park, he got permits to remove two unsightly old military marine landing craft which had been clogging up the railway since the mid-'70s, abandoned by a temporary partner of his who had fancy notions about restoring the property.
"I got a bunch of people to pitch in," he says, "Local Towing, R&R Caribbean, STS Trucking and A-9 Trucking — they all volunteered their services, moving the barges and hauling them to the Bovoni dump."
A little help from the Friends
The Friends of the Park will initiate island cleanup programs in the first stage of the restoration. "It takes a lot of planning," Killebrew explains. "We will be getting non-profit, volunteer groups of kids, like the Boys and Girls Club, Weed and Seed, to come in supervised groups to start the cleanup, but that requires backup."
Trudy Toliver, Friends of the Park development director, says for youngsters to work on the island, there must be shelter, water, an expert in CPR and first aid, and transportation – for openers. Killebrew is constructing a kitchen, complete with a mobile pizza oven, on his property to feed the volunteers. He has engineered volunteer ferry transportation with Barry Nasch of the Water Island Ferry.
Toliver says several local organizations have expressed an interest in helping with the project. A Rotary group has offered a grant, and Geraldine Smith, St. Thomas-St. John executive director of the Anti-Litter and Beautification Commission, will commit her youth crews to help out. It's too late to set up a summer program, Toliver says, "but we are hoping to use the kids this fall. They have a year-round Saturday cleanup program."
If enthusiasm were enough to make it happen, Toliver, Killebrew and King could have the island ready for business tomorrow. King says the planning process is now in the very beginning stages.
"We need to defoliate between the cobblestones," Killebrew says."Small trees have started between the stones, and when they come up, the mortar comes up with them. You have to remove the stones and cut the trees out, treat the stump with an approved herbicide, and use hand tools for digging out the root sections. Then you have to fill the cavity back in. There are thousands of joints like that."
And any work, even cleanups, must be closely supervised out of archeological sensitivity.
Railway may be the last of its kind
The marine railway is regarded by historians as the most important historic site on the island. It was one of the earliest steam-powered marine railways in the Western Hemisphere — and may be the oldest of its kind left in the world, according to documents Killebrew has. Built by a group of Danish businessmen, the railway functioned from 1843 to 1911.
In its heyday, Creque's Railway did a land-office business by sea. It hauled and repaired countless merchant ships calling at St. Thomas, the trading crossroads of the Caribbean at the time. Coal furnaces created the steam to run it.
When the railway came into existence, Hassel Island didn't exist. What today is the island was then an isthmus extending out from the Frenchtown area, effectively blocking the harbor and creating a backlog of refuse which fouled the otherwise beautiful bay. Dredging in 1865 created the cut that severed the spit of land from St. Thomas, allowing the harbor to come clean.
King says the park service has embarked on a thorough planning process that includes public meetings. "We want to make sure what we do is in concert with what the public sees as a vision for the island," he says. A park planner is finishing a two-month vessel management plan for the island.
There may eventually be concessions for food and drinks, transportion and a gift shop, but "we are a long way from getting to that point," he says.
King says the park service is looking to partner with community groups for maximum utilization of resources. Toliver says the Friends of the Park will be holding fundraisers to support the project.
And, of course, "We're going to have a web site," Killebrew says. "That way, people can watch each day what's being done and how we're coming along. They can see the materials and the work they're donating in use."
But all in good time. For now, he's concentrating on the logistics of getting the youngsters safely to the island to restore those countless cobblestones.
KEAN CLASS OF 1991 AWARDS FIRST SCHOLARSHIP
June 21, 2001 – The Ivanna Eudora Kean High School Class of 1991 has chosen 2001 Eudora Kean graduate Sharline VanHolten to be the first recipient of its $500 class memorial scholarship.
The 1991 graduates recently held their 10th anniversary reunion. As part of the celebration, Simon Caines, class president, said, it was decided "to honor the memory of classmates who are no longer with us" through the creation of a scholarship fund. The class is committed to recognizing "deserving students" and to supporting IEKHS in other ways, he said.
The scholarship is intended to assist an above-average IEKHS graduate who has demonstrated exceptional resilience in the face of adversity.
In recommending VanHolten, her guidance counselor, Annette P. Bertrand, noted that "Sharline plans to pursue a career in the field of nursing. She possesses a nurturing spirit and works well with children." At Eudora Kean, Bertrand added, VanHolten was "respected by her peers and the faculty and staff for her fairness and quality of judgment."
The scholarship will fund the costs of books for her freshman year at the University of the Virgin Islands.
The Class of 1991 Memorial Fund was created in part with the proceeds from a raffle that including prizes contributed by the Caribbean Travel and Worldwide Travel agencies, and with a donation by Alvin Brathwaite of First Class Security Agency.
The 1991 graduates recently held their 10th anniversary reunion. As part of the celebration, Simon Caines, class president, said, it was decided "to honor the memory of classmates who are no longer with us" through the creation of a scholarship fund. The class is committed to recognizing "deserving students" and to supporting IEKHS in other ways, he said.
The scholarship is intended to assist an above-average IEKHS graduate who has demonstrated exceptional resilience in the face of adversity.
In recommending VanHolten, her guidance counselor, Annette P. Bertrand, noted that "Sharline plans to pursue a career in the field of nursing. She possesses a nurturing spirit and works well with children." At Eudora Kean, Bertrand added, VanHolten was "respected by her peers and the faculty and staff for her fairness and quality of judgment."
The scholarship will fund the costs of books for her freshman year at the University of the Virgin Islands.
The Class of 1991 Memorial Fund was created in part with the proceeds from a raffle that including prizes contributed by the Caribbean Travel and Worldwide Travel agencies, and with a donation by Alvin Brathwaite of First Class Security Agency.
TOURISM ACCEPTING 2002 EVENTS FOR CALENDAR
The U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism is now accepting information to be included in the 2002 Calendar of Events. The annual calendar is published as part of the tourism's promotional publications and includes information on all local events and holidays. It is distributed internationally, as well as locally, and is available on the Internet.
All organizations with scheduled events are encouraged to submit their information to be published in the calendar. Event information should be received by the public relations office of the Department of Tourism, 78 Contant, Elaine Company Building, third floor, by July 13.
Information can also be sent by fax to the attention of the public relations office at 774-4390, or by mail to: P.O. Box 6400, St.Thomas, VI 00804.
For more information call Juel Anderson at 774-8784, ext. 2242.
All organizations with scheduled events are encouraged to submit their information to be published in the calendar. Event information should be received by the public relations office of the Department of Tourism, 78 Contant, Elaine Company Building, third floor, by July 13.
Information can also be sent by fax to the attention of the public relations office at 774-4390, or by mail to: P.O. Box 6400, St.Thomas, VI 00804.
For more information call Juel Anderson at 774-8784, ext. 2242.
TURNBULL SIGNS STEP INCREASE BILL INTO LAW
June 21, 2001 – An October pay raise for government workers is now law. On Thursday Gov. Charles W. Turnbull signed the bill to fund salary step increases, school repairs and higher health-insurance premiums that was passed by the majority bloc of the Legislature a week ago.
Turnbull line-item vetoed one section of the bill because "it goes beyond what is currently required to get our government employees and retirees adequate insurance protection," a Government House release stated. He said the section is "far-reaching and requires additional research by the Health Insurance Board and input from the public, especially government employees."
In a letter to Senate President Almando "Rocky" Liburd, Turnbull said the bill "is the first part of the process towards giving all government employees and eligible retirees initial salary increases and other benefits in accordance with their negotiated contracts." He said it also provides funding to cover the increased cost of government health-insurance premiums and the deficit in the pharmaceutical program, "thereby ensuring that government employees and retirees will continue to be covered by insurance.".
The governor said other benefits of the bill include a summer maintenance program to get schools ready for the 2001-2002 school year, road repairs and maintenance of sewage disposal systems. It also provides funding for continued improvement of the Internal Revenue Bureau. A projected IRB windfall in tax revenues is the basis for the $100 million allocation.
The release made no mention of a variety of amendments tacked onto the bill in the special session a week ago by the majority bloc senators. The majority passed the measure in the absence of their minority and independent colleagues, who left the chambers to protest the lack of a hearing on the bill.
The amendments included appropriations totaling $2 million for the Legislature itself. The governor had vetoed a similar amendment to another bill for $1.5 million earlier this year.
Turnbull line-item vetoed one section of the bill because "it goes beyond what is currently required to get our government employees and retirees adequate insurance protection," a Government House release stated. He said the section is "far-reaching and requires additional research by the Health Insurance Board and input from the public, especially government employees."
In a letter to Senate President Almando "Rocky" Liburd, Turnbull said the bill "is the first part of the process towards giving all government employees and eligible retirees initial salary increases and other benefits in accordance with their negotiated contracts." He said it also provides funding to cover the increased cost of government health-insurance premiums and the deficit in the pharmaceutical program, "thereby ensuring that government employees and retirees will continue to be covered by insurance.".
The governor said other benefits of the bill include a summer maintenance program to get schools ready for the 2001-2002 school year, road repairs and maintenance of sewage disposal systems. It also provides funding for continued improvement of the Internal Revenue Bureau. A projected IRB windfall in tax revenues is the basis for the $100 million allocation.
The release made no mention of a variety of amendments tacked onto the bill in the special session a week ago by the majority bloc senators. The majority passed the measure in the absence of their minority and independent colleagues, who left the chambers to protest the lack of a hearing on the bill.
The amendments included appropriations totaling $2 million for the Legislature itself. The governor had vetoed a similar amendment to another bill for $1.5 million earlier this year.
TURNBULL SIGNS STEP INCREASE BILL INTO LAW
June 21, 2001 – An October pay raise for government workers is now law. On Thursday Gov. Charles W. Turnbull signed the bill passed by the Legislature last Friday that provides funding for salary step increases for unionized V.I. employees, school repairs and higher health-insurance premiums.
Turnbull line-item vetoed one section of the bill because "it goes beyond what is currently required to get our government employees and retirees adequate insurance protection," a Government House release stated. He said the section is "far-reaching and requires additional research by the Health Insurance Board and input from the public, especially government employees."
In a letter to Senate President Almando "Rocky" Liburd, Turnbull said the bill "is the first part of the process towards giving all government employees and eligible retirees initial salary increases and other benefits in accordance with their negotiated contracts." He said it also provides funding to cover the increased cost of government health-insurance premiums and the deficit in the pharmaceutical program, "thereby ensuring that government employees and retirees will continue to be covered by insurance.".
The governor said other benefits of the bill include a summer maintenance program to get schools ready for the 2001-2002 school year, road repairs and maintenance of sewage disposal systems. It also provides funding for continued improvement of the Internal Revenue Bureau. A projected IRB windfall in tax revenues is the basis for the $100 million allocation.
The release made no mention of a variety if amendments tacked onto the bill in the special session a week ago by the majority bloc senators. The majority passed the measure in the absence of their minority and independent colleagues, who left the chambers to protest the lack of a hearing on the bill.
The amendments included appropriations totaling $2 million for the Legislature itself. The governor had vetoed a similar amendment to another bill for $1.5 million earlier this year.
Turnbull line-item vetoed one section of the bill because "it goes beyond what is currently required to get our government employees and retirees adequate insurance protection," a Government House release stated. He said the section is "far-reaching and requires additional research by the Health Insurance Board and input from the public, especially government employees."
In a letter to Senate President Almando "Rocky" Liburd, Turnbull said the bill "is the first part of the process towards giving all government employees and eligible retirees initial salary increases and other benefits in accordance with their negotiated contracts." He said it also provides funding to cover the increased cost of government health-insurance premiums and the deficit in the pharmaceutical program, "thereby ensuring that government employees and retirees will continue to be covered by insurance.".
The governor said other benefits of the bill include a summer maintenance program to get schools ready for the 2001-2002 school year, road repairs and maintenance of sewage disposal systems. It also provides funding for continued improvement of the Internal Revenue Bureau. A projected IRB windfall in tax revenues is the basis for the $100 million allocation.
The release made no mention of a variety if amendments tacked onto the bill in the special session a week ago by the majority bloc senators. The majority passed the measure in the absence of their minority and independent colleagues, who left the chambers to protest the lack of a hearing on the bill.
The amendments included appropriations totaling $2 million for the Legislature itself. The governor had vetoed a similar amendment to another bill for $1.5 million earlier this year.
UVI TO HOLD OPEN HOUSE FOR STUDENTS
June 21, 2001 — The Counseling and Placement Office of the University of the Virgin Islands in coordination with the School-to-Work Program is pleased to announce three open house programs to be held June 28, July 12, and July 19 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The UVI – St. Croix campus open house is an opportunity for junior and senior high school students and their parents to learn more about the advantages of attending college, current trends in university life, admissions and financial aid procedures, and how students can best prepare for their college years. A picture is worth a thousand words and hope that by getting 7th-12th graders to visit UVI they will be better able to picture themselves in college.
The Open House will include:
– Welcome
– Panel Presentation
– Director of Admissions – What Colleges Seek, How Students Can Prepare
– Director of Financial Aid – Financing a College Education; What Students and Parents Should Know
– Student Affairs – Social Life on campus, Living away from home, Clubs, Sports, Safety
– University Professor – Characteristics of a Successful College Student
– Student Guided Tour
– Student Panel Discussion – Current UVI Students and UVI Grads Speak Out about their Greatest Challenges, Value of a College Education, and How to Best Prepare for College.
The St. Croix campus of UVI would like to help to "plant the seed" of further education beyond high school early. Teenagers as young as 13 need to realize that their studies in school provide an important foundation on which to build their future. To register for the Open House please call Ms. Robin S. Groelle, Counseling and Placement Supervisor, at 692-4187.
For more on the University of the Virgin Islands, visit the website atwww.uvi.org.
The UVI – St. Croix campus open house is an opportunity for junior and senior high school students and their parents to learn more about the advantages of attending college, current trends in university life, admissions and financial aid procedures, and how students can best prepare for their college years. A picture is worth a thousand words and hope that by getting 7th-12th graders to visit UVI they will be better able to picture themselves in college.
The Open House will include:
– Welcome
– Panel Presentation
– Director of Admissions – What Colleges Seek, How Students Can Prepare
– Director of Financial Aid – Financing a College Education; What Students and Parents Should Know
– Student Affairs – Social Life on campus, Living away from home, Clubs, Sports, Safety
– University Professor – Characteristics of a Successful College Student
– Student Guided Tour
– Student Panel Discussion – Current UVI Students and UVI Grads Speak Out about their Greatest Challenges, Value of a College Education, and How to Best Prepare for College.
The St. Croix campus of UVI would like to help to "plant the seed" of further education beyond high school early. Teenagers as young as 13 need to realize that their studies in school provide an important foundation on which to build their future. To register for the Open House please call Ms. Robin S. Groelle, Counseling and Placement Supervisor, at 692-4187.
For more on the University of the Virgin Islands, visit the website atwww.uvi.org.
AFT CONTRACT MAY BE REOPENED TO ADDRESS PAY
June 21, 2001 — The V.I. Education Department’s search for teachers will be a difficult one as long as starting salaries remain low, a union official said Wednesday.
Education’s human resources department will hold interviews this week on St. Croix and next week on St. Thomas for people interested in teaching in the territory’s public schools. But Tyrone Molyneaux, the president of the St. Croix chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, said the effort will likely be futile because of the starting salary offered by the department, which is about $24,800 a year.
"Until the entry-level starting salary becomes more attractive, it is difficult to recruit teachers," Molyneaux said, adding that those salaries should be in the $30,000 range.
Because of the low pay, Molyneaux said there may be problems for students getting instruction in required courses, particularly at the secondary level. In addition, he said the low pay has kept those trained to teach away from the profession in the territory. That has caused Education officials to turn to people without teaching credentials.
"We’re hiring teachers without the needed background and credentials," he said. "The standard of education is on a downward spiral."
But Sen. Norman Jn Baptiste, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, successfully attached an amendment to Gov. Charles Turnbull’s request for $10 million to pay salary step increases to government workers and eligible retirees. The amendment authorizes the governor to reopen negotiations with the St. Croix and St. Thomas-St. John AFT unions to increase entry-level salaries of public school teachers.
"We are in the process of addressing the issue," Jn Baptiste said.
Teachers should start at $26,000 or $27,000 a year, Jn Baptiste said. But if he is successful in the effort, then the salaries of teachers already in the system must also be adjusted accordingly.
Under the mediated contract agreed to by AFT members and the Turnbull administration, Molyneaux said teachers lost five years of salary and step increases, which equated to more than $50 million. By reopening negotiations to address starting salaries, Jn Baptiste said teachers will be included in the plan to pay government employees their raises by October.
"The AFT will now be able to regain what may have been lost in the last agreement with the government," Jn Baptiste said. "The teachers won’t be left out of the unfolding scenario."
Education’s human resources department will hold interviews this week on St. Croix and next week on St. Thomas for people interested in teaching in the territory’s public schools. But Tyrone Molyneaux, the president of the St. Croix chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, said the effort will likely be futile because of the starting salary offered by the department, which is about $24,800 a year.
"Until the entry-level starting salary becomes more attractive, it is difficult to recruit teachers," Molyneaux said, adding that those salaries should be in the $30,000 range.
Because of the low pay, Molyneaux said there may be problems for students getting instruction in required courses, particularly at the secondary level. In addition, he said the low pay has kept those trained to teach away from the profession in the territory. That has caused Education officials to turn to people without teaching credentials.
"We’re hiring teachers without the needed background and credentials," he said. "The standard of education is on a downward spiral."
But Sen. Norman Jn Baptiste, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, successfully attached an amendment to Gov. Charles Turnbull’s request for $10 million to pay salary step increases to government workers and eligible retirees. The amendment authorizes the governor to reopen negotiations with the St. Croix and St. Thomas-St. John AFT unions to increase entry-level salaries of public school teachers.
"We are in the process of addressing the issue," Jn Baptiste said.
Teachers should start at $26,000 or $27,000 a year, Jn Baptiste said. But if he is successful in the effort, then the salaries of teachers already in the system must also be adjusted accordingly.
Under the mediated contract agreed to by AFT members and the Turnbull administration, Molyneaux said teachers lost five years of salary and step increases, which equated to more than $50 million. By reopening negotiations to address starting salaries, Jn Baptiste said teachers will be included in the plan to pay government employees their raises by October.
"The AFT will now be able to regain what may have been lost in the last agreement with the government," Jn Baptiste said. "The teachers won’t be left out of the unfolding scenario."
WANTED: A WINNING ROOGOODOO JINGLE
June 20, 2001- The theme has been decided for Carnival 2002, which marks the 50th anniversary of the modern-day festivities. Now, the V.I. Carnival Committee is looking for a jingle to promote it.
"A Cultural Roogoodoo for Carnival 2002" is the theme of the celebration.
The committee will award a $1,000 prize for the winning jingle based on the theme. Entries must be submitted on tape with music, accompanied by typed or printed lyrics, and must be received by the comittee no later than July 31.
For further information, call the comittee office at 776-3112 or executive director Caswin Callender at 690-5557.
"A Cultural Roogoodoo for Carnival 2002" is the theme of the celebration.
The committee will award a $1,000 prize for the winning jingle based on the theme. Entries must be submitted on tape with music, accompanied by typed or printed lyrics, and must be received by the comittee no later than July 31.
For further information, call the comittee office at 776-3112 or executive director Caswin Callender at 690-5557.
