News from JacksonHeraldTODAY

The dramatic hiring reversal this week by a member of the Jackson County Board of Education was wrong on so many levels that it’s difficult to know where to begin. Although the intentions of BOE member Michael Cronic in reversing his vote may have been good, his inexperience as a board member in the action sets a terrible precedent for the ... [Full Story »] 

A Jefferson man was given a life sentence, which calls for a mandatory 25 years behind bars, Thursday by Superior Court judge Joe Booth on child molestation charges. Kelly Clark Plummer, 48, was convicted by a Jackson County jury of aggravated child molestation, child molestation and cruelty to children in the first degree. The charges stemmed ... [Full Story »] 

In the coming days, a slew of graduations will hit local high schools. Somewhere around 700 young men and women will leave high school and begin the next phase of their lives. Multiply that across the nation and there will soon be hundreds of thousands of young people vying in a shrinking job market, or for restricted slots in colleges and ... [Full Story »] 

There will be up to 10 furlough days in the Jefferson City School System next year as part of a larger plan to cut costs in the system. The days won’t be decided and the calendar set until the city receives its state funds allotment sheet, officials said. In addition to the furlough days, the Jefferson Board of Education last week approved ... [Full Story »] 

An inmate died while in custody at the Jackson County Jail on May 6. Dennis Keith McElroy, 51, Bogart was booked into the Jackson County Jail April 30 on a bench warrant for failure to appear. He had been placed in the medical unit for detox treatment and was taking prescribed medications, according to Major David Cochran of the sheriff’s ... [Full Story »] 

It may have been subtle, but an earthquake took place in Jackson County Monday night. When the Jackson County Board of Education voted 3-2 to disallow three teachers to retire, then work part-time next year, it was a strong message from the BOE to the system’s administrators —change things, or we will. The action was especially notable ... [Full Story »]