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TRENTON
THURS. APRIL 6, 2023
REPUBLICAN-TIMES “GOD BLESS AMERICA”
Old Glory flying at Five Points
republican-times.com
Established Sept. 4, 1864 - 159th Year - No. 31
16 PAGES + 1 INSERTS
TFP Responds to Recent Fires
Soptic elected Trenton Mayor
TMU Announces Changes to Water Disinfection
The Trenton Fire Department recently responded to two fires in Trenton. At 5:14 p.m. on Wednesday, March 29, TFD was called to 708 Van Buren Street for a grease fire in the kitchen. The home is owned by Lisa Troyer and occupied by Kendra Lickteig. Firefighter Dustin Whorton reported light smoke coming from the house upon arrival. The resident had used a fire extinguisher to extinguish the fire prior to TFD’s arrival. Firefighters removed the pan from the stove and set
up a ventilation fan to clear smoke from the house. No injuries were reported. Firefighters were on scene for twenty minutes. Grundy County Ambulance assisted at the scene. On Sunday, April 2 at 6:16 p.m., TFD responded to a structure fire at 5002 Manor Dr., owned by Jim Bush. Firefighter Wayne Brown reported that upon arrival firefighters found the garden shed to be fully involved, along with fire on a nearby tree. Firefighters deployed an attack line of foam and extinguished the fire. The garden shed was a [See TFP, Page 2]
BRIEFS Bridge Replacement to Begin
The Grundy County Route W bridge over Hickory Creek, located between Route WW and Route F, is scheduled to close Monday, April 10. The Missouri Department of Transportation, contracted with Phillips Hardy, Inc. to replace the Route W Hickory Creek Bridge and the currently closed Wolf Creek Bridge, located between Routes WW and F. During both bridge replacements motorists will be directed around the closures via a signed detour on Routes 6 and F. Both bridges are expected to reopen in July.
Gees Creek Bridge Now Open
Grundy County Route W is now open after a bridge replacement project. The Grundy County Route W bridge over Gees Creek was closed in mid-November as part of the FARM (Fixing Access to Rural Missouri) Bridge Program. The design-build team of Lehman-Wilson, working with the Missouri Department of Transportation, was able to reopen the bridge the evening of Monday, April 3.
Princeton R-5 Special Meeting
The Princeton R-5 Board of Education held a special meeting at 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 30 to discuss personnel. The meeting was closed to the public. During the meeting, the board voted to approve the hiring of Rebecca Bickel as junior high/high school math teacher. Also approved was the retirement of Krista Snow as junior high/high school English teacher. The resignations of Danessa Stout as Title One teacher and Steve Richman as girls basketball and softball coach were accepted by the board.
VFW District Meeting
VFW District One will hold a meeting at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 8 at VFW Post #6278 in Lawson. Included on the agenda are a memorial service for deceased members and the election of new officers.
NCMC Closed Friday
North Central Missouri College will be closed on Friday, April 7th. This closing includes all buildings and offices at all locations, and no classes will be held. The Ketcham Community Center will be open from 5:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. and closed on Sunday, April 9th. NCMC and the Ketcham Center will reopen on Monday, April 10th, for regular hours of business.
R-T Photo by Jamey Honeycutt
EXERCISING THEIR CIVIC DUTY - Poll worker Glen Briggs verifies voters are in the right precinct Tuesday during municipal elections. As of the lunch hour, over 125 voters had cast ballots at the courthouse voting location.
By Jamey Honeycutt Publisher
Municipal elections were held in Grundy County Tuesday and County Clerk Courtney Campbell posted unoffi-
cial results Tuesday night before 9:30 pm. Results from races with no candidates, that had write- in votes were not readily available as those ballots [See Election, Page 3]
Beginning April 6, the Trenton Municipal Utilities Water Treatment Plant will begin utilizing free chlorine, or a free chlorine conversion, in its water system. This entails feeding free chlorine, instead of chloramines (chlorine combined with ammonia), as the disinfectant at the leaving the Water Treatment Plant. This will affect customers of Trenton Municipal Utilities, Grundy County PWSD #1, City of Galt and the City of Spickard. Western Sullivan County will be affected if they are using water from TMU. This will occur for 6 to 8 weeks. Here are some commonly asked questions about free chlorine conversion and its purpose: • Possible Noticeable
Effects: There are no associated health risks to the process. During these efforts to improve water quality, there will be times of lower water pressure, possible odor, taste, discoloration, and small particles in the water. TMU and/or your water service will attempt to flush the particles, color, and taste and odors from the mains with directional flushing, however there is a possibility that some of the color, odor and tastes will get into your service line. • Is my Water Safe to Drink? Yes, TMU Water Department is dedicated to making sure the water is safe to drink and will monitor disinfectant levels continually during the conversion. If you experi[See TMU, Page 2]
NCMC Board of Trustees Approves Room and Board Rates, Extends President’s Contract The North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees met in regular session on Tuesdsay, March 28 and took action on room and board rates for the next academic year as well as the contract extension of President Dr. Lenny Klaver. The board also heard communication reports and took action on Head Start items, bids/purchases, meeting request, sonography tuition fees, tuition reimbursement rates, board policy changes, and personnel items. In communication reports, new employee Kristi Varner, Grant Writer/Scholarship Coordinator, was introduced, and Alicia Endicott gave an update on the NCMC Foundation events, scholarships, and campaign. Janet Gott, Head Start Director, discussed classroom video reporting and a recent Area 2 focus meeting. Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Tristan Londre reported on a Surgical Technology program accreditation and upcoming accreditation visits. He also mentioned the recent Ag Contest on campus
and allowed Dean of Instruction Dr. Mitch Holder to discuss his recent trip to Tonga and progress with this partnership. Dr. Kristen Alley, Vice President of Student Affairs, highlighted new student registration, a recent A+ Coordinators meeting, and the completion of the HEERF annual report and gave an update on commencement planning. She also gave an update on housing room sign-up and summer housing events. Jennifer Triplett, Chief Information Officer, provided the Trustees an update on website improvements and redesign, the Savannah Campus, and a recent telecommunications audit. President Klaver gave an update on legislative efforts, the state budget and policies, the appointment of the Higher Learning Commissioner, and a funding study. Klaver mentioned the A+ Coordinators meeting and provided information on the number of students that use the A+ program. He updated the Trustees on Shared Governance, campaign visits,
presentations, conferences, and meetings. In business items, the Trustees approved the Green Hills Head Start 2023-2024 Policy Council Bi-Laws, the Head Start COLA and quality improvement funding distribution, and the Green Hills Head Start Change of Scope. Trustees also approve several bids and purchases, including furnishings for phase two of the Savannah Campus, a concrete bid for new concrete for the Alexander Student Center parking lot, and the purchase of a CRM system for the Admissions department. Trustees approved a joint meeting request with the NCMC Foundation for May 16 at 5:30 p.m. in Cross Hall. Tuition and fees for the Medical Diagnostic Sonography program for the 2324 academic year were approved, as well as the 2023-2024 Room and Board Rates for the Anchor apartments and Selby and Ellsworth hall and meal plans. Trustees approved a change in the amount for employee tuition reim-
bursement from $70 a credit hour to $100 a credit hour. Two board policy changes were approved, with one regarding the purchasing/expenditures and investment policies and the second, regarding the employee/dependent tuition waiver policy. In personnel items, Trustees approved Head Start resignations from Karrigan Bowling, Cierra May, Kelley Crumpton and Brittany Robbins, and the employment end for Lynda Brosdahl. They also approved the employment of Head Start employee Taffi Robbins as Teacher Aide at Unionville. For NCMC, Trustees approved the resignation of Ron Emberton, Custodian/Maintenance Technician. Trustees also approved for NCMC the transfer of Brandon Mysliwiec to Database Administrator and the transfer of Chris Flowers to Personal Computer Specialist II. They also approved the em[See NCMC, Page 2]