Robin red breast has been elected the state bird of West
Virginia. The vote, announced by E.A. Hunt, assistant state supervisor of rural
schools, was taken among school pupils of the state who are engaged in West
Virginia club work.
The votes were cast for 17 species of birds, but the robin won
by a large margin, receiving about twice as many as its nearest competitor, the
redbird, or cardinal.
Other birds receiving votes were the bluebird, crow, wild
canary, oriole, dove, nightingale, martin, English sparrow, bob white, wren,
woodpecker, mocking bird, blue jay, pheasant and partridge.
A new policy on attendance has been
started at Calhoun High and, after one week, has
already brought about an improvement in attendance.
The policy, formulated in several faculty meetings, is designed
to affect those students who are lax in attendance. For those students who are
absent, and are not excused for some valid reason, such as illness, grades will
be cut. Three unexcused absences fails a student in courses for the semester.
After three absences each semester in any class, there will be a
grade cut of two percent for each excused (legal absence) and a grade cut of six
percent for each unexcused absence, unless a waiver of such grade cut may be
conditioned by the student having secured a doctor’s statement that such illness
was of a serious nature.
Principal Roy J. Stump said, “Since the start of the policy last
week, there has been a definite improvement in attendance of fifty percent or
better among students who are inclined to absenteeism. Illness of students last
week did affect the attendance record, but the overall picture showed a
beneficial result.”
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held
Jan. 21 to celebrate the opening of newly-built
offices of Farmers Home Administration. The new
building, the size of a small home, is located above
the Consolidated Gas office. State director John
Musgrave was present, along with Jim McMillon,
district director.
The office serves Calhoun and Gilmer counties. Individuals can
apply for home, farm or personal loans. The district office in Parkersburg
handles all group business, water and sewer, and rental housing loans. Mt. Zion
PSD has its loan with the district office for water.
At this time, 621 individual FmHA loans are active in Calhoun
and Gilmer, with $181,000 given out in the first quarter alone.
The Grantsville office has the third largest farm program in
West Virginia. Lewisburg is the largest and Martinsburg is second.