Macon County Schools Update

The new school year is drawing close, so here are several updates regarding the new school year and meetings of the Macon County Coard of Education in one spot.

Schedule released for Open House/Orientation for local schools. [LINK]


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Board of Education Special Called Meeting 

The Macon County Board of Education will hold a Special Called Meeting on Thursday, August 9, 2018 beginning at 1:00 p.m. in the Board Room of the Macon County Schools Administrative Offices.

The purpose of this meeting is to review, discuss & approve any additional personnel for the 2018-2019 school year and enter into executive session pursuant to:

143.318.11.(a)(6) To consider the qualifications, competence, performance, character, fitness, conditions of appointment, or conditions of initial employment of an individual public officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee;

Other business as needed may also be conducted.

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August 2018 Board of Education Meeting

The next Regular Scheduled Meeting of the Macon County Board of Education will be held on Monday, August 20, 2018, at 6:00 pm in the Board Room of the Macon County Schools Administrative Offices.


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If you receive value from what Macon Media provides to the community, please consider becoming a supporter and contribute at least a dollar a month.



Become a Patron!
If you have a business or event you are interested in sponsorship opportunities or underwriting coverage, send an email to editor@MaconMedia.com for more information. Serious inquiries only. Macon Media rewards early sponsors/underwriters with lifetime guaranteed low rates while newer sponsors/underwriters pay higher rates based on the date they first support Macon Media.

Thank You to the people who have been sending in donations and those businesses who are underwriting coverage of news and events. You have kept Macon Media online.


Published at 2:00 am on July 25, 2018

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Daily Weather Briefing for Thursday, July 19, 2018

Walk on the Greenway with Friends of the Greenway
Saturday, July 28, 2018, at 9:00 am

The Friends of the Greenway invites the community to participate in a "Walk on the Greenway" on Saturday, July 28, 2018, at 9:00 AM beginning at Big Bear Shelter on Main Street. George James's walk will cover about a half mile, talking about the environmental positives of the Beaver Pond area, how it has changed over the years, and share information on the many creatures that call this area "home".

George is a long-time member of the Friends of the Greenway and current Chair of the FROG Board. He regularly monitors the trail and specifically the Beaver Pond area. A $5 donation is suggested for this benefit walk. Send an email of your interest in participating in the walk to: frog28734@gmail.com.

Macon County Schools Announce 2018 Open House and Orientation Schedule

Macon County Schools has announced the open house and orientation schedule for the 2018-2019 school year. The schedule is posted on the blog. [LINK]

LOCAL OUTLOOK

A weak stationary front will remain just south of the area while high pressure builds down from the north for the latter half of the week. A large upper low is expected to drop down from the Great Lakes to the Ohio Valley and Southern Appalachians starting on Friday night, making our weather unsettled for the weekend. A fairly wet weather pattern will continue through the middle of next week.


WEATHER SPONSOR



Adams Products, a Division of Oldcastle is underwriting the daily weather briefing & public safety updates for the month.

Open 7:30 AM to 4:00 PM, M-F, located at 895 Hickory Knoll Road, Franklin, NC. Visit our Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/Adams.Oldcastle.Franklin.NC/

All your masonry needs are available. Our phone number is 828.524.8545, the public is welcome, we’ll help you with your with your next project.

Weather Almanac for July 19th (1872-2016)
Record weather events for this date in Macon County

Highest Temperature 97°F in Franklin in 1986
Lowest Temperature 47°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station in 2009
Greatest Rainfall 3.79 inches in Highlands in 1959

Record Weather Events for July (1872-2017)

Highest Temperature 101°F in Franklin on July 29, 1952
Lowest Temperature 34°F in Highlands on July 2, 1911
Greatest Rainfall 21.15 inches in Highlands on July 29, 1879


WEATHER FORECAST MAPS

Forecast maps for 8 am, 2 pm, and 8 pm. 
[click on any image in this article to enlarge]
(These images replace the three-day forecast maps)





THREE DAY OUTLOOK



--------------------------------------
FRANKLIN AREA

TODAY

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 11am. Patchy fog before 9am. Otherwise, partly sunny, with a high near 82. Calm wind becoming southeast around 6 mph in the afternoon. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

TONIGHT

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 65. Light east southeast wind. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY

Partly sunny, with a high near 84. Calm wind becoming southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY NIGHT

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 65. Light south southeast wind.

SATURDAY

Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 10am. Partly sunny, with a high near 83. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

SATURDAY NIGHT

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. Chance of precipitation is 50%.


--------------------------------------
OTTO AREA

TODAY

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 9am. Patchy fog before 9am. Otherwise, partly sunny, with a high near 80. Southeast wind 3 to 7 mph. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

TONIGHT

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Patchy fog overnight. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 65. Light east southeast wind. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 82. East wind 3 to 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY NIGHT

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 65. Light and variable wind.

SATURDAY

Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 10am. Partly sunny, with a high near 81. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

SATURDAY NIGHT

A chance of showers and thunders


--------------------------------------
HIGHLANDS AREA

TODAY

A slight chance of showers, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 8am. Patchy fog before 9am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 72. East southeast wind 7 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

TONIGHT

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Patchy fog overnight. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 61. East wind 6 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY

Partly sunny, with a high near 74. East wind 6 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY NIGHT

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 61. South southeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm after midnight.

SATURDAY

Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 11am. Partly sunny, with a high near 74. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

SATURDAY NIGHT

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 61. Chance of precipitation is 50%.

--------------------------------------
NANTAHALA AREA

TODAY

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 11am. Patchy fog before 9am. Otherwise, partly sunny, with a high near 77. South southeast wind around 7 mph. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

TONIGHT

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Patchy fog overnight. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 63. East southeast wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY

A chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 3pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 78. East southeast wind 5 to 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

FRIDAY NIGHT

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 62. South wind 3 to 6 mph.

SATURDAY

Showers and thunderstorms likely. Partly sunny, with a high near 76. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

SATURDAY NIGHT

A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 61. Chance of precipitation is 50%.

--------------------------------------


GOES-16 GeoColor - True Color daytime, multispectral IR
11:42 pm last night to 2:37 am this morning


HAZARDS

Hazardous weather is not expected today.

Macon Media maintains a Severe Weather Preparedness Page at http://thunderpigblog.blogspot.com/p/breaking-news-hub.html for those who are interested.

As always, you can check to see what advisories, watches, and warnings are in effect for Macon County by visiting http://is.gd/MACONWARN



GOES 16 - Band 15 - 12.3 µm - Dirty Longwave Window - IR (Precipitation)
2:47 am this morning

TROPICAL OUTLOOK



Tropical Weather Outlook
NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL
200 AM EDT Thu Jul 19 2018

For the North Atlantic...Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico:

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected for the next five days.


MACON CALENDAR

If you have an event you wish to be added to this calendar, please send the information, along with a flyer in pdf format or a high-quality photo, to editor@maconmedia.com. If you want text published, please include a paragraph with your photo, flyer or graphics. Please include date(s) and time(s).
There is no charge for civic, educational or nonprofit groups, except for groups or events that receive funding from the TDA, TDC, and EDC, where full rates apply.

Organizers of political events must make themselves available for a video interview at least 7 days before a political event they wish Macon Media to promote. Two weeks is the preferred time frame to maximize awareness.


Walk on the Greenway with Friends of the Greenway
Saturday, July 28, 2018 at 9:00 am

The Friends of the Greenway invites the community to participate in a "Walk on the Greenway" on Saturday, July 28, 2018, at 9:00 AM beginning at Big Bear Shelter on Main Street. George James's walk will cover about a half mile, talking about the environmental positives of the Beaver Pond area, how it has changed over the years, and share information on the many creatures that call this area "home".

George is a long-time member of the Friends of the Greenway and current Chair of the FROG Board. He regularly monitors the trail and specifically the Beaver Pond area. A $5 donation is suggested for this benefit walk. Send an email of your interest in participating in the walk to: frog28734@gmail.com.


Suminski Family Books Summer Film Fest for Families

All ticket sales sold by FROG volunteers benefit:

FRIENDS OF THE GREENWAY, INC.

Location: Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts
Start time for each movie: 7:00 PM
Save When You Pre-Buy Your Tickets!

Single Ticket $5 for each movie (pre & at the door)
Season Pass $15 1 ticket to each movie Family of 4 Season Passes $50 4 tickets to each movie

Movies and Dates:

Paddington 2 on July 12, 2018
Hidden Figures on July 19, 2018
Peter Rabbit on August 19, 2018
Wonder on August 26, 2018 (benefits Friends of the Greenway)

Purchase at FROG Quarters, 573 E. Main (next to new bridge) Hours: Wed-Fri, 9 AM-2 PM

There are 3 other non-profits involved: Folk Heritage Association of Macon County NC, Grandpa’s Woodshed Project, Women’s History Trail, and Read2Me. The FROG-specific specific movie is Wonder, but our members can pre-sell tickets to all movies.



Uptown Gallery classes
(These are on-going classes – repeat weekly)

Free classes and open studio times are being offered at The Uptown Gallery in Franklin. Join others at a painting open studio session every Tuesday from 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm or on Thursday from 11:00 am – 3:00 pm.
Bring your own materials and join an on-going drawing course led by gallery artists on Fridays, from 11am – 2 pm. For information on days open, hours and additional art classes and workshops, contact the gallery on 30 East Main Street at (828) 349 – 4607.

National Alliance on Mental Illness
Appalachian South

Meets each Thursday at 7pm
The First Methodist Church Outreach Center
at the intersection of Harrison Ave. and West Main Street
(directly across from Lazy Hiker Brewery)

Come join our weekly support group for anyone suffering from mental illness and their family or friends. This includes Depression, Bipolar,8chizophrenia, PTSD, Substance Abuse, Etc.

Here you will find:
— others living with mental health challenges YOU ARE NOT ALONE
- learn coping skills and ?find hope in shared experience
- help learning how to break down stigma and guilt surrounding mental health
- how to live life with the expectation of a better a better future

Kay (706)970-9987 Denise (828)347-5000)

SYRINGE EXCHANGE PROGRAM

On January 1, 2017, the Syringe Exchange Program of Franklin began operating a comprehensive harm reduction program to address the opioid epidemic that is impacting western NC. Opioid overdose reversal kits including naloxone are available free of charge. If you have any questions about our services or if you know someone interested in volunteering, please contact Stephanie Almeida at 828-475-1920.



Sun and Moon

Sun

Begin civil twilight 6:04 a.m.
Sunrise 6:33 a.m.
Sun transit 1:40 p.m.
Sunset 8:46 p.m.
End civil twilight 9:15 p.m.


Moon

Moonset 12:55 a.m.
Moonrise 1:43 p.m.
Moon transit 7:39 p.m.
Moonset 1:28 a.m. tomorrow morning


Phase of the Moon on July 19, 2018: First Quarter at 3:52 p.m. (local daylight time)



Sky Guides for this week


Sky and Telescope Magazine 
Astronomy Magazine


There will be three solar and two lunar eclipses in 2018. [LINK]

Heavens Above has an Android App that will assist you in observing the sky and even has a satellite tracker that will let you know when the International Space Station and dozens of other satellites are overhead. [LINK]

Stellarium is also an app that will assist you in observing the sky. It is available in both Android [LINK] and iOS versions. [LINK]

CROWDFUNDING OR DAY SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES


If you receive value from what Macon Media provides to the community, please consider becoming a supporter and contribute at least a dollar a month.


Become a Patron!
If you have a business or event you are interested in sponsorship opportunities or underwriting coverage, send an email to editor@MaconMedia.com for more information. Serious inquiries only. Macon Media rewards early sponsors/underwriters with lifetime guaranteed low rates while newer sponsors/underwriters pay higher rates based on the date they first support Macon Media.

Thank You to the people who have been sending in donations and those businesses who are underwriting coverage of news and events. You have kept Macon Media online.

Learn more about becoming a patron of Macon Media at https://www.patreon.com/MaconMedia

Published at 3:00 am on July 19, 2018

#WNCscan #MaconWx #MaconSafety


Data and information sources: Sources (except where otherwise credited): heavens-above.com, Ian Webster's Github, National Centers for Environmental Prediction, The National Weather Service, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, National Hurricane Center, Penn State University Electronic Wall Map, The State Climate Office of North Carolina, Storm Prediction Center, U.S. Naval Observatory, University of Utah Department of Atmospheric Sciences, and the Weather Prediction Center.

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Macon County Commissioners Budget Work Session June 5, 2018

The Macon County Board of Commissioners held a work session to discuss the proposed 2018-2019 budget. Video of the meeting has been split into two parts. In the first part, commissioners discussed the general budget, then went into closed session for about an hour to discuss the potential acquisition of property. They returned to open session shortly before 5 pm to discuss the budget for education.

Part one has been embedded below and Part Two will be added as soon as it is processed and uploaded.

There was no published agenda, nor was any documentation shared with the news media or the public.

Previous Budget Meeting [LINK]




Part One



MEDIA ROLL CALL
(media outlets with a representative present)

Macon Media
WFSC-AM/WNCC-FM
The Franklin Press (two)
Highlands Paper/Keeping Up With Macon County (one)

Part Two (will go live once it has finished uploading and processing)






Documentation Shared At Previous Budget Meetings

County Manager's Budget Message

Macon County FY 18-19 Budget Message Final by Bobby Coggins on Scribd

Proposed Year Budget for the Fiscal Year 2017-2018

Macon County FY 19 Admin Recommended Budget by Bobby Coggins on Scribd

CROWDFUNDING OR DAY SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

If you receive value from what Macon Media provides to the community, please consider becoming a supporter and contribute at least a dollar a month.

If you have a business or event you are interested in sponsorship opportunities or underwriting coverage, send an email to editor@MaconMedia.com for more information. Serious inquiries only. Macon Media rewards early sponsors/underwriters with lifetime guaranteed low rates while newer sponsors/underwriters pay higher rates based on the date they first support Macon Media.

Thank You to the people who have been sending in donations and those businesses who are underwriting coverage of news and events. You have kept Macon Media online. You have made it possible for Macon Media to begin purchasing state of the art equipment and begin work on building a real website with features not employed by any local news outlets.

You can find out more information on how to do that and some of what I plan to accomplish if I reach certain levels of funding at https://www.patreon.com/MaconMedia

Published on June 6, 2018

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Meeting Video Macon County Board of Education Work Session/Special Called Meeting

On Tuesday, the Macon County Board of Education held a Special Called Meeting to discuss the budget and other matters. A video of the meeting and a copy of the public agenda is posted below. Supporting documents have not been made available to media outlets as of Thursday afternoon, and will be included in the shorter video segments that will be posted over the next several days.


Meeting Video



Roll Call
(media outlets with representatives present for the meeting. Elected critters from other boards are also included)

Macon Media
Macon County News and Shopping Guide
The Franklin Press
Gary Shields (Macon County Commissioner)


Meeting Agenda


Macon County Board of Education
1202 Old Murphy Road
Franklin, NC 28734
AGENDA
Call to Order
Welcome

I. 2018-2019 Budget Discussion

II. Principal Security Requests

III. Other Business as Needed

IV. Emergency Operations Plan

V. Closed Session

143-318.11.(a)(8) To formulate plans by a local board of education relating to emergency response incidents of school violence.

143-318.11.(a)(6) To consider the qualifications, competence, performance, character, fitness, conditions of appointment, or conditions of initial employment of an individual public officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee;

VI. Return to Open Session

VII. Adjournment



CROWDFUNDING OR DAY SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

If you receive value from what Macon Media provides to the community, please consider becoming a supporter and contribute at least a dollar a month.

If you have a business or event you are interested in sponsorship opportunities or underwriting coverage, send an email to editor@MaconMedia.com for more information. Serious inquiries only. Macon Media rewards early sponsors/underwriters with lifetime guaranteed low rates while newer sponsors/underwriters pay higher rates based on the date they first support Macon Media.

Thank You to the people who have been sending in donations and those businesses who are underwriting coverage of news and events. You have kept Macon Media online. You have made it possible for Macon Media to begin purchasing state of the art equipment and begin work on building a real website with features not employed by any local news outlets.

You can find out more information on how to do that and some of what I plan to accomplish if I reach certain levels of funding at https://www.patreon.com/MaconMedia

Author: Bobby Coggins
Videographer: Bobby Coggins
Published at 2:30 pm on April 12, 2018

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