Four of the country’s nine specialist residential training colleges for disabled people are facing an uncertain future after the government announced a huge shake-up of specialist employability support.The contracting process, completed in less than 15 working days after years of “discussion and consideration”, saw five colleges succeed with their bids, while the other four missed out.The government says its Specialist Employability Support (SES) programme will provide support for 1,700 disabled people across England, Scotland and Wales every year, and should help 1,250 disabled people into jobs during the initial two-year contracts.The six contracts awarded – which will go live on 1 September 2015 – will more than double the current number of 800 disabled students currently supported by the nine colleges, and aim to offer “more choice and more convenient support”, although funding “will be maintained at the current level”.Four of the contracts are for pan-disability provision, with one for people with hearing impairments and another for students with visual impairments.A government advisory panel which reported on residential training in July 2013 found that DWP spent £18 million on such provision in 2009-10, and about £15.5 million in 2011-12.The six contracts will target disabled people who need the most support to enter work or undertake work-related courses and activities, and will use outreach and partnerships to ensure coverage is nationwide, as well as creating better links with Work Choice and Work Programme providers and voluntary organisations.The main SES programme will offer intensive provision supporting candidates “all the way to employment”, while SES Start Back will help people who need “a little extra support” to prepare for other work schemes.Four residential training colleges – RNIB College Loughborough, Queen Elizabeth’s Foundation (QEF) College in Leatherhead, Finchale Training College in Durham, and Queen Alexandra College (QAC) in Birmingham – were unsuccessful with their bids.The announcement came after the latest jobs figures last month showed the number of disabled people in work fell by 26,000 in the latest quarter, although it rose by more than 141,000 over the year.An RNIB spokeswoman said: “RNIB and Action for Blind People are obviously disappointed not to have been awarded this contract but nonetheless are delighted that the DWP have understood the need for a contract that specifically responds to the needs of blind and partially-sighted people. “As a specialist provider of services, RNC is well placed to deliver this contract and we will work with them to ensure great employment outcomes for blind and partially-sighted people going forward.”She added: “It’s extremely important that we do not make any guesses at to what the future impact of specific decisions may be; it would not be fair to the students or staff at Loughborough College to do so.”David Etheridge, Finchale’s principal, said: “It was a very quick process after many years of discussion and consideration and perhaps a more considered and a longer-term approach would have been more helpful.“The contracting process was truncated and it was effectively undertaken over less than 15 working days.”He said DWP had explained that “they felt they needed to get the situation resolved before the election”.Etheridge said SES was “a very different scenario” to the current residential training colleges, with a “different method of delivery and requirements, and I hope it works”.He said he could not comment publicly on what the failure to win the contract would mean for the college, but he confirmed that Finchale does not rely solely on the DWP residential training colleges funding.Jonathan Powell, QEF’s chief executive, said: “It is difficult to see how QEF’s Vocational Services could continue in its current form beyond September 2015 when the current contract ends, but we will consider all available options.“At this stage, it seems inevitable that a redundancy consultation will take place.“We will do all that we can to support the team members affected by this, and will follow the correct procedures.”He said that “it seems that the key issue which went against QEF Vocational Services was that our employability services are delivered at one site in Surrey”.He said: “The organisations that were successful have multiple sites where services can be delivered, which is something that would have been economically and operationally unfeasible for QEF Vocational Services to achieve in the time available.“Naturally, we are disappointed by this outcome, but our priorities now are to support the staff affected, and focus on helping our current trainees to secure employment as we bring our current contract to a successful conclusion.”QAC has failed to comment on its failure to secure a contract.The five other existing residential training providers – St Loyes in Devon, Enham in Hampshire and Portland College in Mansfield (working together as Steps to Employment), the Royal National College for the Blind in Hereford, and Doncaster Deaf Trust – were successful with bids.Three other organisations – the charity Shaw Trust, the welfare-to-work provider Kennedy Scott and Remploy (pictured) – also won contracts.The announcement means that the controversial US outsourcing giant Maximus, which has just bought Remploy, and also took over provision of the WCA earlier this month, now has a significant chunk of DWP disability contracts.The company, which has a lengthy record of discrimination, incompetence and alleged fraud in the US and has also been linked with allegations of exploitation and manipulation of government contracts within the Australian welfare-to-work industry, is one of the main Work Programme providers, and last year was awarded contracts to run the new Fit for Work service, and provide the WCA.Thanks to the Remploy deal, Maximus will also provide mental health support in the workplace under the Access to Work scheme, and will help disabled people into jobs through the Work Choice programme, in addition to the new SES programme contract.The Royal National College for the Blind (RNC) said its new contract was “an important step in ensuring that every adult with a visual impairment has the tools they need to find work”.RNC’s contract will be delivered nationally, through a network of local centres and a “central hub” in Hereford, with options including “immersive residential training”, short refresher sessions, vocational training courses leading to careers in specific industries, and other training that will act as a “gateway” to the government’s Work Choice or Work Programme schemes.A spokesman for Disability Rights UK (DR UK) said: “Historically those facing greatest barriers – like people with significant mental health challenges or learning difficulties or autism, or people using British Sign Language, or simply disabled people who have missed out on education – have often been let down or dumped by employment support services.“We hope this support will ?go some way to rectify this and will watch with interest.”Mark Harper, the Conservative minister for disabled people, said the new approach would “continue to break down the barriers for disabled people in work, so they can provide themselves with the security of a regular wage”.A DWP spokesman added: “We are confident that the contracting process was as thorough and robust as possible and the quality of the bids we received reflects this.”He said potential bidders were alerted on 13 December 2014, while DWP shared information about the SES requirements at an event on 13 January, which “allowed potential bidders to start to formulate their strategy and shape their proposals”.An invitation to tender document was issued on 30 January, with a deadline of 20 February.But he said the process of reviewing the provision and contracting arrangements for residential training colleges went back much further.Liz Sayce, DR UK’s chief executive, suggested “significant changes” to their funding and delivery model in her review of employment support, published in June 2011, while the advisory panel made “further detailed recommendations” in 2013, with DWP holding a final “stakeholder engagement and strategy review exercise” last year, “leading directly to the development of SES”. read more
One of Labour’s most prominent disabled politicians has called on her own party to demonstrate its intent to hold the government to account by appointing a shadow disability minister.Labour admitted last week that it had still not appointed a shadow minister for disabled people, nearly three weeks after party leader Jeremy Corbyn completed a reshuffle of his top parliamentary team.Amid confusion, a spokesman for Corbyn eventually told Disability News Service that discussions were “ongoing” but that the post would “definitely be filled”.The party has not had a shadow minister for disabled people since the promotion of Debbie Abrahams to shadow work and pensions secretary in July, more than three months ago.Neither Corbyn’s spokesman nor Abrahams were able to say last week why the process had taken so long.Now one of the party’s few high-profile disabled members has called for it to act now to fill the vacancy.Emily Brothers (pictured) was one of the handful of disabled people to stand for Labour at the 2015 general election when she fought the Sutton and Cheam seat in south-west London.But she has now expressed concern about Labour’s capability to hold the government to account over its new work, health and disability green paper, which was published this week.She said Abrahams was “doing a great job in speaking out for disabled people”, but since her promotion the shadow disability role had remained vacant.She said: “I was delighted that Jeremy Corbyn rectified a similar situation with mental health, but he needs to do likewise with the portfolio of shadow minister for disabled people.“With the new green paper and the government ambition to halve the disability employment gap by 2020, there will undoubtedly be consequences.“Labour must have the ‘capability’ to hold the government to account. Jeremy needs to demonstrate that intent by appointing a new shadow minister for disabled people.”Among others to criticise the party this week were Labour’s former minister for disabled people, Anne McGuire, herself a disabled person, who said on Twitter: “In 1974, Labour appointed Alf Morris, Minister for Disabled People, the first in the world.“It would be tragic if my party lost this focus.”Neither Abrahams nor Corbyn’s spokesman had responded to Brothers’ comments by 11am today (Thursday). read more
The results of the latest Labour Students election have been released this afternoon, showing that Rania Ramli was elected as national chair and the Corbynsceptic slate won all major positions.Ramli tweeted: “Delighted to have been elected as National Chair of Labour Students. I stood to make our movement bigger, better and bolder than ever before and that’s what I plan to deliver for our members. I can’t wait to get started!”The candidates endorsed by left and soft left groups including Labour Students Left, Open Labour, Momentum and CLPD Youth did not win any of the national positions, and only secured 5 of the 22 main roles including regional and national coordinators.Voters chose to reopen nominations (RON) the Yorkshire & The Humber regional coordinator position, as the only candidate that made it on to the ballot paper was a Corbynite.The election has attracted controversy, with accusations of vote rigging and calls for the organisation to be shut down. A number of student clubs complained that they were disenfranchised from the process, and some have vowed to disaffiliate from Labour Students.Critics of the way the elections have been conducted point out that there are tens of thousands of student Labour members, but only hundreds were eligible to vote – and there were reports that some of those eligible did not receive a ballot.Reacting to the results, Labour’s national executive committee youth rep Lara McNeill tweeted: “I have contacted Labour Students for the breakdown of their results and will be raising concerns at NEC. They are trying to hide turnout which will be predictably diabolical – reflecting the stagnation of the organisation and the Blairite politics that go along with it.”At its recent conference, with an electorate of 59, Labour Students voted against the abolition of tuition fees and against the introduction of one-member-one-vote (OMOV) in its elections.Again, critics pointed out that there was limited funding available for travelling delegates, which affected poorer students, the requirements to entry were unclear or not provided with sufficient notice, and the low levels of club affiliation has meant left the North without representation on the committee.Labour Students conference 2019National positionsNational chair – Rania RamliNational secretary – Jess RaspinCampaigns & membership officer – Andrew WilsonVice-chair (campaigns & policy) – Angus ReillyVice-chair (events & communications) – SJ SmythBAME officer – Jack GaleaDisabled students officer – Terence SmithLGBT+ officer – Liam DearyTrans officer – Arthur WebberWomen’s officer – Lily MadiganNational Policy Forum representative – Dan BewleyInternational officer – Eda CazimogluFurther education representative – Robin LordeRegion & nations positionsEast Midlands regional coordinator – Polly SwainEastern regional coordinator – Liam DearyLondon regional coordinator – Ansh BhatnagarScottish Labour Students chair – Andrew WilsonSouth East regional coordinator – Rosie SourbutSouth West regional coordinator – Michael GrantWelsh Labour Students chair – Shaun BendleWest Midlands regional coordinator – Nathan BorodaYorkshire & The Humber regional coordinator – RON (Re-Open Nominations)Elections committeeAlex DelameilleureAngus ReillyDan BewleyDanny FilerPolicy committeeGeorgie HarrisJade AzimScarlet ConwaySpencer PayneViljo Wilding Tags:Labour Students / read more
Sign up to LabourList’s morning email for everything Labour, every weekday morning.24 hours ago, the LabourList daily email discussed the possibility that Theresa May would not put her Brexit deal to another vote this week, but instead wait until after the EU summit. Well, she doesn’t have a choice in the matter now. In a statement that apparently took the government by surprise, Speaker Bercow told MPs yesterday afternoon that the deal “cannot legitimately” be brought back to the Commons for a third time without substantial changes being made to it.Print headlines today cry “B*ll*cks to Bercow”, call him a “Brexit destroyer”, point out his “smirk”. Westminster has described this as a ‘bombshell’ ruling. While there is no doubt that Bercow thoroughly enjoyed his intervention, it was hardly unexpected: last week, Labour backbencher Chris Bryant proposed an amendment to precisely this effect, the Speaker selected it and indicated that he agreed with its contention. And it is hardly unreasonable: the rule can be found in Erskine May, and common sense dictates that the same motion should not be moved over and over until its proposer gets the answer they are seeking.Government ministers are angry and a bit lost as to what to do next, but all other Brexit camps are cheered by the development. Jeremy Corbyn will hold talks with other opposition leaders and Brexit groups today, and they are bound to be more optimistic than ever. It’s good news for Common Market 2.0 advocates, and indeed anyone who simply wants a different political declaration in May’s deal (which is entirely possible to agree with the EU and would constitute substantial change to the deal, satisfying Bercow’s ruling). This is an “opportunity” for the PM to “change her red lines” and avoid “more humiliation”, CM2.0 backer Stephen Kinnock said.And without a third meaningful vote this week, the Prime Minister must ask EU leaders for an extension to Article 50 – including a lengthy delay. This is welcomed by campaigners for another referendum, who want as much time as possible to build up their numbers in parliament and don’t consider participating in European elections to be a bad thing at all.Has a softer Brexit – or no Brexit at all – just become more likely? There are good reasons to think so, though there are caveats. The government intends to press on with the current deal and hopes to implement only a short, technical extension to Article 50. The Speaker has made clear that his role is to facilitate the will of the House, which means a ‘paving motion’ could clear the path for another vote on the same deal. It’s quite astonishing that the PM would rely on this possibility: it would require two successive majorities and currently she is far short of one. But underestimating the stubbornness of Theresa May doesn’t seem wise.Sign up to LabourList’s morning email for everything Labour, every weekday morning.Tags:Brexit /Bercow / read more
When the women of Double Union received notice that their lease would not be renewed after it expired in September, it wasn’t entirely unexpected.“Its Valencia Street – we were right next to Four Barrel,” said the group’s executive director, Mary Becica, sighing. Operating on a one-year lease, the feminist hacker and maker space was one of many non-profits that occupied the historic Fog Building at 333 Valencia St. – until a bid to buy the building came in from the Prado Group, a major realtor company that specializes in residential and mixed-use properties. “They told us they were doing long-term renovations to the building, and that it was unclear if we would be able to move back in,” said Becica. “At that moment, we knew that our fate was sealed. We were toast.” Having worked out of a prime location on Valencia Street with access to public transportation, a variety of restaurants and other art spaces and female-oriented organizations, the ladies of Double Union were understandably reluctant to leave. “One of the things that (this eviction) is doing is making it harder for these kind of community spaces to exist– for the kind that are explicitly trying to serve underprivileged communities in the city, it’s nearly impossible,” said Becica.Nevertheless, they knew they would have to leave because Prado wants to make the space a startup co-working space.“We thought that they may let us move back in, but it quickly became clear that that wasn’t the case,” said Britta Gustafson, a Double Union member. “Leaving the Mission was tough for us.”An effort to address sexism in technology, Double Union was founded in 2013 and has evolved into a network of women seeking to work with and and learn from each other without the pressures and inhibitions of gender roles.When faced with displacement, Becica and others who make up the organization knew that what they had spent the past two years creating – a safe space in the city where women could sew, write, build, code, muse and connect – had to be maintained.Despite some savings from the group’s membership-based funding model, “space hunting” in the current rental climate proved challenging.“We pretty much depleted all of our savings,” said Becica. “We knew that if we wanted to stay in the city, we would need support from the community to make that happen.”Resourceful and true to form, the women turned to technology, and each other, for help.In September, the group started an Indiegogo campaign, and exceeded their goal of raising $8,000 to cover their moving costs in just ten days– proof, said Becica, of the public’s need for the space and comfort to be creative.One of the few things that Double Union wouldn’t compromise on was moving to Oakland, joked Becica. Luckily they didn’t have to.The “lady hackers” were able to secure a new home in Potrero Hill, at 1250 Missouri St. Having added a kitchen, a bigger workspace, and a backyard to that will enable them to create at a greater capacity, the women have adapted well so far.A few of Double Union’s members in their Potrero Hill location. Photo courtesy of Double Union.Classes and workshops ranging from topics such as sewing and homemade gift-wrapping, to programming and woodworking are offered on a weekly basis – and for those who want to work, or unplug, in a safe space where mutual respect is a base assumption, the doors are always open. Kind of.“We are working on getting front door access,” said Becica. The group recently designed a “doorbell” app to grant members access to their new building using their phones.Building on the momentum of their fundraising campaign, Becica said that the extra money raised during their campaign will be used to create a transportation fund to grant members better access to the new, more remote location. They hope this will encourage others to join when Double Union opens its membership in January.“I’m optimistic that spaces like these are going to stay in San Francisco, but they are going to change,” said Becica, acknowledging that group’s tech savviness and large membership helped them to avoid the displacement from the city that many art spaces are experiencing. “Traditional art spaces are still here, but because of technology, they are evolving. But the need for spaces like this will always exist.”And while many of its members lead careers in tech, Double Union is careful not to brand itself as being exclusive to women of the tech community. Regardless of income or professional background, any woman with an affinity for learning new skills is welcome.“We have a lot of “techie” members and we do a lot of technically cool projects, but we don’t want to speak for women in tech in general,” said Becica. “If anything, we also want to serve the makers who are not in tech. That’s really critical in getting more underprivileged and minority women interested in more technical things.”“That conscious effort to open the space up to people who are lower-income and still making an effort to allow them to come to the space…is what attracted me to Double Union,” said Laurel Heart, a member of the organization. The 25-year-old works at a startup that manufactures interactive toys and apps for children. “There are lots of meet ups for women around tech, but not as many that make sense for everyone.” Tags: tech Share this: FacebookTwitterRedditemail,0% 0% read more
SAINTS fan and club volunteer Mark Hurst has been acknowledged for his dedication to the Club, by being voted as Brut’s ‘Fan of Pride’ for St Helens.A fan since a young age, Hurst started playing the sport as a child, progressing through the ages. However, he believes it’s the location that thrust the game on to him.“I think it’s the area that introduced me to rugby league. The sport is so popular in St Helens, everyone lives for it, and it gave me the hunger and fire to play the game, but also to get behind St Helens.”Once Hurst had stopped playing, he moved in to the volunteering role, one that has spread across all sports through a national programme, but also focused around the Rugby League World Cup, hosted in England later this year.“I started working at St Helens a couple of years ago on match days, helping out which has been great. It’s fantastic to see the club behind the scenes and meet some of the players. But I applied for the volunteer programme for the Rugby League World Cup, ‘Team 13′, and I’m one of the lucky ones who will be a Team Leader and VIP Assistant for the tournament.”Alex Walmsley, recently crowned Young Player of the Year at St Helens, was at Langtree Park to meet Hurst and congratulate him on the award. He said: “First and foremost, the fans are the club. Without the fans coming week in, week out, we wouldn’t be a club. Those who get involved and do that little bit extra keep us going. It’s a fantastic community – we have a chance to meet the fans at Forums when they can ask their questions, and they make the team feel at home.”By winning Brut’s Fan of Pride Award for St Helens, Mark will enjoy a day out at the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford in October, as well as some Brut product. read more
THE tour party spent a relaxing few hours at Taronga Zoo today before undertaking their final training session in readiness for Penrith, writes Neil Kilshaw.The zoo was a first for a St Helens tour squad and replaced the scheduled visit to the Blue Mountains. During our trip NSW has had a tough time battling Bush Fires and the Blue Mountains have been inaccessible for visitors.The players, in particular Dave Eccleston and Jonah Cunningham, were very excited about seeing Kangaroos, Koalas and Crocodiles and the zoo didn’t disappoint.As ever ridiculous questions were plentiful. Dave Eccleston enquired whether it would be best to put after sun on before or after going in the sun.My favourite of the day was a conversation between Leo, Connor Smith and Liam Forsyth.Connor: “Will it be safe going in there, what if an Emu chases me?”Leo: “It’ll be ok, the Emus aren’t allowed to walk on the paths.”Liam: “Oh great, come on.”And off they toddled with blind faith in nature’s ability to adhere to the rules…The key part of the day was the evening training session and the players approached it in determined, focussed and relaxed mood.We are all confident of putting in a level of performance that befits the quality of the players and their progression as a group since a tough start at St George.The game will be played at 6pm Saturday evening (local time – 8am british time) at the Centrebet Stadium, Penrith.Enjoy the pictures.For the latest on the Academy Tour, click here. read more
IT is a time of significant change in Rugby League in this country, and nobody is under more scrutiny than RFL chief executive Nigel Wood.After an eventful start to the year, Rugby League World asks the questions that matter in an exclusive interview, and offers Wood the chance to respond to public criticism from certain quarters.RLW: After a host of significant announcements during the close season, how do you assess the state of the game in this country at present?NW: I think Rugby League in the UK is in a really good place in the spring of 2014. Our hosting of Rugby League World Cup 2013 proved to be a massive success and the positive legacy of that tournament is already being felt across the sport. The domestic leagues have started strongly; the restructure at the end of the year means the stakes have never been higher.You can read the rest of this article by clicking here. read more
The scrum-half returned to the Saints after a six-year absence and believes the squad is more than capable of grabbing silverware in 2017.“It’s good to be back where I started,” he said. “It has been a long time in the making. I’ve had some ups and downs in my career but playing for my hometown club once more is exciting and a good challenge.“I grew up watching KC and Longy and I’m looking forward to playing with James Roby, Jon Wilkin and Jonny Lomax. It’s not like coming a new club. I’m hoping for a big year; we are working hard in training and know we need to start well.“I enjoyed my time at Wigan and have some good memories. I am grateful to the club for my time there, they did everything they could for me. To come to my hometown club and win something would be extra special. KC has signed well, everything is in place and I’m hoping we can have a big year as on paper we stand a big chance.”Smith looks set to link up Theo Fages in the halves and notes similarities between him and George Williams at Wigan.“They are similar,” he continued. “They like running with the ball and their defence is really strong. I had a little time with Theo at Salford. His all round game is pretty solid and hopefully I can help him along the way as well.“This will be the biggest pack I have played with and we have spoken about playing with the ball more. If you get quick play the balls, then Roby goes off the back of that and you can throw the ball around. That is what we want to achieve and I think we have the players in place to do that.“You’re looking for a balance. With the pack we have it gives James Roby the chance to get out and run with the ball. If we play on the front foot then we have the plays to capitalise.“But we have to train well and that is what we are doing now.” read more
It’s holiday shopping season and your child may put the latest gadget from the tech world on their Christmas list, but that doesn’t mean you have to buy it.“You could find it really easy just to stay inside and play video games or just spend the whole day on your phone,” said Zachry.Zachry says instead of getting them something that will keep them inside the house, why not buy something that will get them outside and active?Related Article: Wilmington Boys Choir invites you to ‘A Dickens Christmas’“Just that simple gift of a baseball glove and a baseball and you can go outside for an hour or a soccer ball and you can go shoot on a goal and be outside for hours,” said Zachry.But there are also the health benefits kids get from getting outside and being active.“We do a lot of fitness equipment. We sell golf, disc golf, we have bikes, lacrosse, hockey, baseball, softball, we do a little bit of everything here. This time around the holidays, it only amps up,” said Zachry.So when you’re going shopping this holiday season, consider amping up your child’s gift by buying an active gift, rather than that new phone or television.It’ll get the kids outside and playing, and hopefully, even the little ones will reap some health benefits. Treadmills available for sale during the holidays at Play It Again Sports (Photo: Justin McKee/WWAY) WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Plenty of people hit the stores on Black Friday and throughout December to buy the hot electronics for their loved ones for Christmas, but what if you could buy sports equipment and keep them active throughout the year?“Sports are a pretty popular gift and a pretty fun gift. They get people out and get them active,” said Play It Again Sports store manager James Zachry.- Advertisement – read more
LELAND, NC (WWAY) — At the Piggly Wiggly in Leland, the store manager said they had to put in an emergency order for bread and milk as it was flying off of the shelves.The manager said the store is trying their best to continue to stay stocked and have plenty of items for their customers.- Advertisement – “I think everyone is planning on sticking around the house and kind of boarding themselves in,” Piggly Wiggly Store Manager Bobby Dorsch said. “So they’re really stocking up and planning on being inside for two days.”Bread, milk and eggs have been the most purchased items but it is important to make sure to buy items that are non-perishable in case there are any power outage.As people continue to go out to finish picking up those last minute items, make sure to be careful on the roads.Related Article: Frigid air, high winds sweep the Northeast; at least 6 deadStay locked in to WWAY News tonight as we will continue to bring more on the latest weather and advisories. read more
Quattlebaum had released a statement earlier in the day, when the number of time off requests was at 160.“At this time, our goal is to keep the schools open,” her statement said in part. “We are working with our principals to ensure classroom instruction and necessary student support services can be provided to our students without interruption. Our primary focus continues to be on delivering a quality education to all our students and ensuring they are in a safe and conducive learning environment. This commitment continues each day, even on days when one or more of our teachers are absent.”Brunswick County Schools have received just over a dozen requests, so far. District spokesman Daniel Seamans said those numbers will have zero impact on instructional time.Related Article: Harris won’t run in 9th District redo electionBladen County Schools have only received one request for leave on May 16, while Whiteville City Schools have not received any requests for the day off.We have left messages for Columbus and Pender County Schools but have not heard back.The state’s largest and third-largest school districts announced Monday they will be closed on May 16, following a similar move by the second largest district last week.The Wake County Public School System said about a quarter of its 10,000 teachers in and around the state’s capital city asked for the day off to participate in the rally. Guilford County schools canceled in the wake of nearly 2,000 expected teacher absences, twice the number of available substitutes.The rally is being organized by the state’s association of educators, whose members are unhappy with the Republican-controlled legislature’s decisions on teacher salaries and school funding.Second-largest Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools on Friday canceled classes for the protest.Information from The Associated Press was used in this story. WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — None of the school districts in our area plan to shut down on May 16, the day thousands of teachers plan to protest at the General Assembly in Raleigh when lawmakers reconvene for the legislative short session, but at least one school district is keeping an eye on the situation.New Hanover County Schools spokeswoman Valita Quattlebaum said late this afternoonn that 358 teachers have requested leave for that day. She said at this point neither the superintendent nor the school board has made any decision about cancelling classes, but the school district will continue to monitor the number of planned teacher absences. Quattlebaum said requests have to be made five business days in advance.- Advertisement – read more
Transit authority staff approved the lowest bid which came from Monteith Construction Corporation. The work would cost $3.9 million according to information provided by Wave Deputy Director Meghan Matheny.The authority had originally budgeted too little money for the project when bids nearly double their estimates came from prospective builders.That prompted them to pump the brakes on the new center last Spring. Authority staff tell WWAY they will take the contract agreement with Monteith Construction Corp. to the board at their August 23rd meeting.Related Article: Radiothon raises money for Women’s & Children’s Hospital WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) – The wheels are slowly beginning to turn again for work on the downtown multi-modal transportation center.The Wave Transit Authority reopened the bid process for the multi-modal center construction in the summer and that process closed in July. The transit authority received two bids to continue the work on the transit center located at Campbell and 3rd Street.- Advertisement – read more
That story was captured in the film “Breakthrough” which released this past April.It all happened on January 19th, 2015 and with his mother’s prayers, John came back to life nearly an hour later. 16 days after that John walked out of the hospital.“I got a phone call, and it was from my mom. It was pick up time so she was asking when I needed to be picked up, and I was telling her. Then she said I love you and I said I love you to, then 8 seconds later all 3 of us fall through the ice,” John said.“So I just decided that I was going to cry out to God and I did, then within seconds the nurse that was in charged that day started hollering I have a pulse, I have a pulse,” said Joyce.Pastor Jason Nobel stood by John and Joyce’s after the accident, says John’s story shows that no matter your situation never lose hope.“In life there is a lot of hard situations that we have to walk through and what I am thankful for is that God walks right beside us. He will walk through and help us deal with that. So don’t lose hope, always hold on to your hope no matter what you are walking through,” Nobel said.The film “Breakthrough” is now available on DVD.You can purchase the book “Breakthrough” by Joyce Smith and the book “Breakthrough To Your Miracle” by Pastor John Noble. 00:00 00:00 spaceplay / pause qunload | stop ffullscreenshift + ←→slower / faster ↑↓volume mmute ←→seek . seek to previous 12… 6 seek to 10%, 20% … 60% XColor SettingsAaAaAaAaTextBackgroundOpacity SettingsTextOpaqueSemi-TransparentBackgroundSemi-TransparentOpaqueTransparentFont SettingsSize||TypeSerif MonospaceSerifSans Serif MonospaceSans SerifCasualCursiveSmallCapsResetSave Settings OCEAN ISLE BEACH, NC (WWAY)– Do you remember this story from a few years ago?A 14 year-old boy fell through an icy lake, died and nearly an hour later came back to life.Sunday WWAY spoke with that boy and his family.John Smith and his mother Joyce were at the Beach Assembly of God Church in Ocean Isle Beach on Sunday sharing his story of survival.- Advertisement – read more
SharePrint Fr. Giovanni Cefai, M.S.S.P. has been nominated by Pope Francis as the first bishop of the territorial prelature of Apóstol de Huancané, Peru. Fr Cefai is currently the pastor of the parish of San Pablo Apóstol in the archdiocese of Arequipa, and regional superior of the Missionary Society of Saint Paul in Peru.The bishop-elect was born on 5 August 1967 in Zebbug, diocese of Gozo, Malta, gave his solemn vows in 1994, and was ordained a priest in 1997. He holds a licentiate in pastoral theology from the University of Malta. He has served in a number of pastoral roles, including director of the De Piro youth centre in Malta and parish priest of Santa Cruz and currently San Pablo Apóstol in Arequipa, Peru. He is also regional superior of the Missionary Society of Saint Paul in Peru.The territory of the new territorial prelature of Santiago Apóstol de Huancané is composed of the following 22 districts.The cathedral of the new territorial prelature will be the parish church of Santiago Apóstol de Huancané in Huancané.The population of the new diocese is 200,000 out of which 170,000 are Catholics. There are in the dioceses thirteen diocesan priests and two religious priests.The Missionary Society of St. Paul was founded by the Servant of God Mons. Giuseppe DePiro in 1910 with a missionary charism. The Society has established several houses in Australia, Perù, Pakistan, Canada and the Philippines.WhatsApp <a href=’http://revive.newsbook.com.mt/www/delivery/ck.php?n=ab2c8853&cb={random}’ target=’_blank’><img src=’https://revive.newsbook.com.mt/www/delivery/avw.php?zoneid=97&cb={random}&n=ab2c8853&ct0={clickurl_enc}’ border=’0′ alt=” /></a> read more
<a href=’http://revive.newsbook.com.mt/www/delivery/ck.php?n=a7617b59&cb={random}’ target=’_blank’><img src=’https://revive.newsbook.com.mt/www/delivery/avw.php?zoneid=128&cb={random}&n=a7617b59&ct0={clickurl_enc}’ border=’0′ alt=” /></a> Ex-Arsenal and Wolfsburg striker Nicklas Bendtner has received a 50-day prison sentence for assaulting a taxi driver. The 30-year-old Denmark international, who has also had loan spells at Sunderland, Birmingham City and Juventus, decided to appeal the sentence but is still obliged to pay the driver over £1,000 in compensation.In a surveillance video shown in court, Bendtner appeared to strike a taxi driver in the face after refusing to pay the fare. The Rosenberg player issued an apology a few days later:“To Rosenborg fans and audiences, I regret that this has happened. I’m sorry with all my heart that we are standing here today. I have never been a fighter but I protect those I love on and off the pitch.”WhatsApp SharePrint read more
Advertisement underwater object, but were left with more questions than they had answers. The divers found that the object was raised about 10 to 13 feet above the seabed, and curved in at the sides. – Advertisement – “First we thought this was only stone, but this is something else,” Ocean X team diver Peter Lindberg said in a press release.The object had an egg shaped hole leading into it from the top, working like an opening. On top of the object, they found strange stone circle formations, which resembled small fireplaces. The stones were covered in something that resembled “soot.”“During my 20-year diving career, including 6000 dives, I have never seen anything like this. Normally stones don’t burn. I can’t explain what we saw, and I went down there to answer questions, but I came up with even more questions “, Stefan Hogeborn, one of the divers at Ocean X Team, said in the press release.Farther back from the object, the Ocean X team said that they could see a “runway” or a downhill path that is flattened at the seabed with the object at the end of it.“As laymen we can only speculate how this is made by nature, but this is the strangest thing I have ever experienced as a professional diver“, continues Peter Lindberg, one of the founder Ocean X Team.Scientists are currently examining samples from the circle-shaped object, and experts in sonar imaging are processing data from the “ship” to help shed more light on what exactly this underwater object is.The outline of the ship on pictures resembles the famous Star Wars ship the “Millennium Falcon.”Lindberg said the odd thing about the discovery is that there is no silt on the rock, which is an ordinary thing to find when lying at the bottom of the sea.He also told Fox News that the object is “disc-shaped” and “appears to have construction lines and boxes drawn on it.”Lindberg told the news agency that the Americans and Japanese “are much more excited” about the discovery than the local Swedish people.Source: redOrbit read more
Advertisement Electrical problems are prevalent for most of Africa, in some countries like Nigeria, people and businesses rely on generators to get the power they need, in a country like Zambia, they depend on hydro-power.This reliance on hydro-power is problematic for Zambia though, especially for small businesses, because if there is a drought there can be severe economic risks. In a bid to help divide the load of power production in Zambia, and increase availability, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a loan of up to US$150-million to finance a new 300MW coal-fired power plant, as well as the revamping of an existing coal mine in Maamba, Zambia.Not only with this help the country’s people and businesses by increasing power-production, but the diversity from hydro-power will have safety benefits as the current coal mine often suffers from the unregulated and spontaneous self-combustion of tons of unused low-grade coal. – Advertisement – The upliftment of the Maamba power plant will help curb the amount of black outs Zambia is currently experiencing, and will ease the reliance on hydro power which is vulnerable to drought. Hydro-power accounts for 96% of total power production. The new development will use technology that features high combustion efficiency and reduced GHG emissions, leaving a lower environmental footprint.AfDB’s Division Manager for Infrastructure Finance, Tas Anvaripour, said, “I am delighted to reaffirm the African Development Bank’s commitment to support Zambia’s power sector as it embarks onto the path of energy source diversification and resilience in an increasingly climate change-sensitive environment.”AfDB is functioning as the co-mandated lead arranger, and alongside South African bank Absa Capital, is mobilising the capital from development finance institutions and commercial financiers, as well as coordinating the due diligence for the US$800-million project.Anvaripour said that not only is the diversity of power important, but that “the project will produce much-needed power for households, businesses, and Government, while remediating a long-standing environmental concern.”The African Development Bank, together with the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF) makes up The African Development Bank Group, which contributes to the economic development and the social progress of its 53 regional member states. read more
Advertisement Airtel Uganda and Total have officially unveiled their new partnership that allows customers to pay for any Total products/services using Airtel Money in their 45 stations across Uganda. In the coming weeks, the service will be rolled out across the entire 125 stations countrywide.Airtel has been at the harbinger in innovating to make mobile money platform a significant tool for the customer’s convenience. Through their together we can campaign they have partnered with many companies like Total Uganda to give their customers convenient and affordable access to products and services.True convenience is being able to pay for your fuel and other services from your mobile phone and Airtel customers will now be able to pay for the fuel and other services directly through their mobile devices. The new solution offers motorists unbeatable convenience as customers simply use Airtel Money to access all the products and services available at Total stations, a first of its kind technological innovation to improve the customer experience. – Advertisement – This new payment option will only not bring convenience in the stations purchasing process for the customers but will also save the company distribution costs as every customer will have access at their fingertips. There will be no extra cost incurred by the customers other than the cost of sending the money as per the Airtel money tariffs.Speaking at the event Managing Director Mr. Arindam Chakrabarty expressed confidence that the Uganda market will enjoy and embrace the Airtel money service;“We at Airtel are equally excited to introduce this payment method alongside Total Uganda. We pride ourselves on putting our customers first and partnering with well-established and constantly growing companies such as Total Uganda to increase our efficiency all for the convenience of our customers. Airtel Money a fast, instant and reliable service has gone a long way in ensuring that convenience is made realizable for all customers bridging the time gap which is indeed a scarce resource for travelers.”His remarks were echoed by the Managing Director of Total Uganda, Imrane Barry, who welcomed the Airtel partnership as yet another opportunity for Total to satisfy customer needs sustainably and innovatively. “Total has been at the forefront of creating value propositions for our customers and this partnership with Airtel, gets us closer to our mission of being the preferred choice in High quality petroleum goods and services”Guest of Honor Minister of State for Trade and Industry Honorable David Wakikona said “I would like to commend the continued investment and research by Airtel Money into developing more affordable services to their consumers. By introducing this payment option and facility to the Ugandan market we as citizens and consumers can be assured of high quality and advanced products”In addition to this partnership Airtel Money and Total will be rewarding 3000 customers who will pay for fuel above 50 thousand Ugandan shillings using Airtel Money with an extra one litre of fuel. There shall also be lucky dips at participating Total stations where there will be different items to be won ranging from caps, t-shirts and fuel worth 20million Ugandan shillings, an offer motorists and customers should be a part of. With Airtel Money and Total together we can drive longer. read more
Advertisement Are you finding it difficult to choose which mobile phone to upgrade to?The Samsung Galaxy S5 and HTC One M8 are the two flagship phones of the year, and two of the most searched for mobile phones in the last month on online.We are providing you with a review of the different features so that you choose which is better. – Advertisement – DISPLAY QUALITYThe display of the One (M8) is 0.1 inch smaller than the Galaxy S5, but its screen is actually sharper. Its pixel density, measured in pixels per inch of display, is around 2% higher than the display of the Galaxy S5.BATTERY PERFORMANCEBoth the GS5 and One M8 have terrific battery life. Battery capacity is the most accurate indicator of overall battery performance, and both of these phones have capacities above the average of 1,750 mAh.However, both phones also have a terrific new feature that can really extend your battery life in a second. Samsung’s is the GS5’s Ultra Power Saving Mode launched in February. Switch the feature on, and it will shift its screen to black & white and severely limit background processes. You’re left with email, text messaging, a web browser, and a few other options. Samsung says that Ultra Power Saving Mode will give you an extra 24 hours of battery life from just 10 percent juice.HTC has a similar power saving tendency. The HTC Extreme Power Saving Mode provides basically the same function, with the added bonus that you can set HTC’s to kick in automatically when your battery dips to a certain level.PORTABILITY If portability and ease of use are important, the Galaxy S5 is the right choice between these two phones. The HTC One M8 is 3 percent longer and 16 percent thicker than the GS5. But those are pretty minor discrepancies. On top of being 9.375% lighter than the One (M8), the Galaxy S5 is also thinner. Even with a typical protective case, the Galaxy S5 is will still be as thin as an average phone. Another plus is the pleather finish at the back that makes it more comfortable to hold.CAMERABoth phones have good cameras – as does basically every high-end smartphone produced in recent times. The GS5’s has a much higher resolution (16 MP to the One’s 4 MP), but the One’s camera has a few perks of its own.The biggest is the One’s low-light capabilities. The One also has a second camera on its back side, devoted to sensing depth which provides more camera features to play around with.AESTHETICSCosmetically, and in terms of build quality the One M8 is one of the most stunning smartphones ever made, with its aluminum unibody design unlike the S5’s plastic/leather finish. The Galaxy S5’s faux leather finish does, however, have a couple of perks. First, it helps to make the GS5 9 percent lighter than the One M8. But, more importantly, its slightly soft-touch pleather finish makes it more comfortable to hold.DISTINCTIVE FEATURESThe Galaxy S5’s killer feature is its IP67 water resistance. That means it can soak in 1 meter (3.3 ft) of water for 30 minutes without any problems as long as its battery and charging covers are sealed shut.The GS5 also has a heart rate monitor. It lives on the phone’s back side, just below its rear camera, and is tied to Samsung’s S Health app making the Galaxy S5 is the first phone to include a dedicated pulse sensorSamsung also included a fingerprint scanner in the Galaxy S5. The GS5’s home button doubles as a biometric sensor: just swipe your finger across it to unlock your otherwise passcode-protected phone.The biggest perk that the GS5’s fingerprint sensor has is its integration with third-party apps. You can use your print to login to PayPal and authorize PayPal transactions.HTC also has some distinctive features of its own, like the HTC’s Motion Launch which is a set of motion sensor-based shortcuts that let you jump to different areas of your phone a little quicker than you’d otherwise be able to.One example: when holding your One M8 in portrait mode with the screen off, you can just swipe up on the screen to jump straight to your home screen.► Click here to view Features and price of Samsung Galaxy S5 —–>http://bit.ly/1jxbCHB► Click here to view Features and price of HTC One M8 ——> http://bit.ly/W9VP7lCredit: Kamyu read more
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