VOLUME 148 ISSUE 9 | THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2025
CHATHAMNEWSRECORD.COM
PJ WARD-BROWN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD
Slow down, we’re working here! This week marks National Work Zone Awareness Week, for which NCDOT is the national host organization this year. Preliminary data shows nearly 7,000 work zone crashes occurred in North Carolina in 2024, resulting in 47 deaths. This year’s theme is “Respect the zone so we all get home.” Above, construction equipment lines a work zone on U.S. 64 west near Asheboro earlier this week.
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BRIEF this week
Federal report on Lumbee Tribe recognition path expected Pembroke Members of the Lumbee Tribe are awaiting the release of a Department of the Interior report that could light a path for federal recognition as a tribal nation. President Donald Trump issued a memo in January directing the department to create a plan to “assist the Lumbee Tribe in obtaining full Federal recognition through legislation or other available mechanisms, including the right to receive full Federal benefits.” The deadline for the plan is this week. The Lumbee have had a difficult time convincing the federal government, Congress and some recognized tribes that their claims to Native ancestry are legitimate.
Student loans in default to be referred to debt collection Washington, D.C. The Education Department will begin collection next month on roughly 5.3 million student loan borrowers who are in default, including the garnishing of wages for potentially millions of borrowers, officials said Monday. Beginning May 5, the department will start involuntary collection through the Treasury Department’s offset program, which withholds payments from the government, including tax refunds, federal salaries and other benefits, from people with past-due debts to the government. After a 30-day notice, the department will also begin garnishing wages for borrowers in default.
Traffic changes coming to Pittsboro Elementary School Road The board voted to implement an all-way stop and a no-parking zone By Ryan Henkel Chatham News & Record PITTSBORO — Safety improvements were the main point of discussion at the Town of Pittsboro Board of Commis-
“We clearly value safety, especially when it’s near a school or a public recreation facility,” said assistant town manager Kent Jackson. “Recently, we visited the site to observe some of the conditions. The primary limitation is the approach from Highway 87. It really has a challenging sightline
“We clearly value safety.” Kent Jackson, Pittsboro assistant town manager
See PITTSBORO, page A3
Supreme Court signals support for Maryland parents who object to LGBTQ books in public schools Three justices live in the Maryland county at issue in the parental rights case By Mark Sherman The Associated Press WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Tuesday signaled support for the religious rights
of parents in Maryland who want to remove their children from elementary school classes using storybooks with LGBTQ characters. The court seemed likely to find that the Montgomery County school system, in suburban Washington, D.C., could not require elementary school children to sit through lessons involving the books if parents
expressed religious objections to the material. The case is one of three religious rights cases at the court this term. The justices have repeatedly endorsed claims of religious discrimination in recent years. The school district introduced the storybooks in 2022, with such titles as “Prince and Knight” and “Uncle Bob-
Like Bragg, Fort Benning takes back an old name but honors a new soldier “What sets him apart was his unwavering dedication to his soldiers, his understanding of the soldiers’ needs.” Maj. Gen. Colin Tuley, commander of Fort Benning, on Fred Benning
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sioners’ most recent meeting. At its April 14 meeting, the board first approved two changes related to Pittsboro Elementary School Road. The first change was the implementation of an all-way stop at the intersection of Farrell Street and Pittsboro Elementary School Road. Currently, there are only stop signs from traffic from Farrell Street.
The base joins Fort Bragg in having a new namesake By Charlotte Kramon and Russ Bynum The Associated Press FORT BENNING — The Army officially restored the name Fort Benning to its storied training post in Georgia, only this time to honor an 18-year-old corporal who fought in World War I rather than a Confederate general. A ceremony to make the name change official was held Wednesday at the base just outside Columbus.
Roughly 70,000 soldiers, civilian workers and military family members are stationed at Fort Benning, which trains infantry troops and tank crews and is home to the elite Army Ranger School. It’s the second time in less than two years that Fort Benning commanders have been tasked with swapping out the post’s name on everything from signs marking gates, streets, police cars and buildings to official stationery and websites. That will cost around $653,000, according to Fort Benning officials. See BENNING, page A2
by’s Wedding,” as part of an effort to better reflect the district’s diversity. Parents initially were allowed to opt their children out of the lessons for religious and other reasons, but the school board reversed course a year later, prompting protests and eventually a lawsuit. See BOOKS, page A7