Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM JULY 27 - AUGUST 2, 2022 UCW 7 On the recommendation of Cumberland County Schools Superintendent Marvin Connelly Jr., the Board of Education approved five district-level appointments and one principal appointment at a meeting Wednesday, July 20. e special meeting was held largely in closed session and focused on the personnel changes. Lawrence Smalls was approved as principal of Ramsey Street High School. After joining the system as an administrative intern in 2011, Smalls was an assistant principal and athletic director at both E.E. Smith High School and, most recently, Pine Forest High School. In 2007, Smalls earned his master's degree in teaching and a special education general curricu- lum license from Fayetteville State. Smalls earned a principal certification from Sandhills Regional Edu- cation Consortium in 2012 and completed the local school district's Aspiring Principals Program in 2016. e new district-level appointments follow the naming of four new associate superintendents and two other district administrators in June. Five former associate superintendents retired over the summer. e appointments approved Wednesday include: Christine Catalano, assistant superintendent for K-12 curriculum and instruction. Catalano is new to the district and most recently worked for Durham Public Schools as executive director of K-12 cur- riculum and instruction, CCS said in a news release. She began her career as an exceptional children and regular education teacher in Halifax County. She held multiple jobs as she advanced to leadership roles with Nash-Rocky Mount Public Schools. After obtaining her master's degree in education admin- istration from East Carolina University, Catalano earned a doctorate in education leadership in 2018 from ECU. Donell Underdue, assistant superintendent for district transformation and strategic initiatives. He joined CCS in 2018 and most recently was princi- pal of E.E. Smith High School. Underdue began his career in education as a teacher in 1993 after serving in the Marine Corps Reserve. He has certifications and licenses in Florida, Illinois, Georgia and North Carolina. Underdue obtained his master's degree in school administration from ECU in 1998. Christopher Young, executive director of technol- ogy. Young's career with the school system started in 2002. While working as a network systems adminis- trator, he obtained his bachelor's degree in business education with a focus on information technol- ogy from ECU in 2012. e release said Young is a member of several professional organizations and technology committees, including the N.C. K-12 Cybersecurity Advisory Council. John A. McMillan, director of exceptional chil- dren's services. McMillan joined the district in 1998 as a teacher's assistant and bus driver at Howard Hall Elementary School. He has been in numerous jobs, including special education teacher, assistant principal, athletic director and principal. Most recently, McMillan was the district's exceptional children's programs coordinator. After earning a master's degree in school administration from Fayetteville State University in 2009, he earned his education specialist degree from Wingate University in 2015. Ann-Marie Palmer, Title I coordinator. Palmer joined the school district in 1995 and most recently was principal of Massey Hill Classical High School. She obtained her master's degree in school adminis- tration from Fayetteville State in 2004. In addition to arts education, Palmer has served the district as an exceptional children's resource teacher and case manager. She has been a school administrator in multiple CCS elementary and high schools since 2002. School Board approves new principal, district appointments by MICHAEL FUTCH, CityView Today NEWS MICHAEL FUTCH, CityView Today. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomin- gweekly.com. 910-484-6200. e N.C. Green Party has filed an emergency mo- tion in federal court in its bid to gain access to the state's election ballot this year. e motion filed ursday, July 21 contends that the N.C. State Board of Elections has failed to provide a legal reason for excluding Greens from the ballot. e group seeks a preliminary injunction. It would force the elections board to recognize the Green Party and place its candidates on the Nov. 8 ballot. "It has been 51 days, and counting, since NCGP timely filed its petitions with NCSBE, and NCSBE still has not certified NCGP as a new party, which it is required to do 'forthwith,'" according to the Green Party motion. "NCSBE has cited no legal authority for its failure to certify NCGP as a new political party," the motion added. "NCSBE has cited no applicable statutory provision, regulation, or other legal requirement with which NCGP failed to comply. On the contrary, NCSBE concedes that when it voted not to certify NCGP, county boards of elections had validated 15,953 signatures on NCGP's petitions – 2,088 more than the 13,865 valid signatures required under state law." "us far, the only explanation NCSBE has given for its failure to certify NCGP comes from its Chair, Defendant [Damon] Circosta, who stated that he had too many 'questions' to vote in favor of certifica- tion, because NCSBE staff claim to be investigating 'irregularities' in the NCGP petitions," the motion continued. "NCSBE has never produced evidence of any 'ir- regularities' in NCGP's petitions to NCGP, nor has it provided NCGP with any opportunity to defend the validity of the signatures on its petitions or the integrity of its petitioning process," according to the motion. "Yet NCSBE appears to have undertaken a wide- ranging investigation into NCGP's petitions, pursu- ant to which a team of NCSBE investigators has contacted NCGP's petition circulators by telephone and email to request information about virtually every aspect of their petitioning efforts," the Green Party asserted. "NCGP has fully and voluntarily cooperated with NCSBE, promptly providing all information and every record requested by NCSBE's investigators. Further, NCGP has repeatedly requested the op- portunity to meet with NCSBE to review its petitions and resolve any questions regarding particular sig- natures, but NCSBE has rebuffed NCGP each time." e Green Party argued that the state elections board "continues to invalidate NCGP petition signa- tures that county boards of elections validated." at process has removed 127 signatures to date, and "at number continues to drop each day." e motion noted the involvement of Michael Vincent Abucewicz, "who appears to be a field oper- ative of the North Carolina Democratic Party," in the campaign to keep the Green Party off the ballot. e Greens allege a "concerted campaign by Democratic Party operatives to contact NCGP petition signers and convince them to request that their names be removed from NCGP's petitions." "us, there is documented evidence of fraud in this case – Plaintiffs have audio and video record- ings proving it, which they are prepared to submit – but it was perpetrated by Democratic Party opera- tives seeking to gain political advantage in the 2022 general election, not by NCGP," according to the motion. e Green Party initially filed suit on July 14. e party's U.S. Senate candidate, Matthew Hoh, discussed his concerns about the state elections board's actions in a one-on-one interview with Carolina Journal. A hearing on the Green Party complaint is sched- uled Aug. 8 in Raleigh before U.S. District Judge James Dever. Green Party files motion in bid for N.C. ballot access by DAVID LARSON, Carolina Journal DAVID LARSON, Carolina Journal. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcomin- gweekly.com. 910-484-6200. e Green Party filed an emergency motion to get on NC ballots this year. (Carolina Journal photo by Mitch Kokai)