The Greene County Board of Education met in a special session, Monday October 13, 2025, to discuss and determine the procedure for initiating its superintendent search. All board members were present as well as board attorney Hank Sanders.
Board President Leo Branch noted that the board had at least two options; conduct the search itself or engage the professional services of the Alabama Association of School Boards (AASB). Branch asked Attorney Sanders to further explain the options. Attorney Sanders confirmed that all the steps for the superintendent search would be conducted by AASB staff, including, but not limited to, advertising the position, receiving and screening all applicants and submitting finalists to the board. The board then interviews finalists and makes its decision. Sanders stated that should the board conduct the search itself, board members would be charged with conducting all components of the process.
President Branch informed the board the he was not able to lead such a search with the board.
“There is too much work involved and it is too difficult to get all board members together, which this process would require. We are already 13 days behind starting this search,” he stated. Vice-President Veronica Richardson said she would lead the process if the board chose to conduct its superintendent search. Board member Brandon Merriweather offered his assessment that since some board members have work obligations, the more efficient approach would be to go with AASB’s plan.
President Branch asked for a motion for action on the superintendent search. Mr. Merriweather moved to engage AASB and Board member Carrie Dancy seconded. All voted to approve, except Ms. Richardson, who voted no.
A second motion was made, seconded and carried to select the AASB Gold approach for the superintendent search. AASB offers a service tier which determines the expanse of the search, related tasks and the cost. AASB’s options are delineated as Silver, Gold and Platinum. The board selected the Gold tier which includes the following AASB tasks at a cost of $9, 999:
* Advertise the position statewide and regionally and recruit candidates.
* Publish a descriptive brochure.
* Facilitate a board meeting or work session to finalize a profile of the desired leader.
* Provide an interview guide for the board.
* Conduct up to five meetings with constituent groups.
* Present analysis of staff and community feedback.
* Survey staff and community on desired superintendent qualities and skills. Utilize a communication style assessment to assist with candidate screening.
* Receive and screen applications.
* Respond to inquiries regarding the vacancy.
* Check credentials and references.
* Notify candidates who are not selected as finalist.
Submit finalists to the board.
Once superintendent takes office, facilitate discussion of board and superintendent communication styles.
The board also approved scheduling a Superintendent Search Workshop with AASB, which would serve as the board’s required annual Whole Board Training, at no additional cost to the board.
Category: Health
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School Board selects AASB to conduct superintendent search
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State Audit charges Sheriff Joe Benison with $4.96 million in expenses with inadequate or no supporting documentation, mostly from Bingo Fund
The Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, the state’s auditors, did a review of the financial records of Sheriff Joe Benison for the 5 year and seven month period of October 1, 2018 to April 30, 2024, which found numerous problems in record keeping and inadequate or no supporting documentation to back up disbursements mostly from the Bingo Fund of close to 5 million dollars.
Rachel Laurie Riddle, Chief Examiner for the State of Alabama, held a hearing on the 12th of September to review the report and relieved the Office of the Sheriff of Greene County of $370,383.08 of expenses for which he provided documentation, out of $5.3 million, he was charged with, in the original report. This left $4,966,427.69 which the Sheriff “has failed to show just cause why the remaining charges should not be paid, therefore relief from these charges are denied,” a quote from the Chief Examiners Order.
The Chief Examiner referred her report to the local district attorney, Rachel England of the 17th Judicial District (Greene, Sumter and Marengo counties) and to The State Attorney General for any legal charges to be filed against Sheriff Joe Benison for his actions.
This 2024 audit report also references prior audits in 2014 and 2018 of the sheriff’s Office, which had some of the same general findings, which have not been corrected, but the largest problems are with the Bingo Fund, which the Sheriff used to receive payments from licensed bingo parlor charities and disburse them to community agencies, for the benefit of people in Greene County.
The 2024 audit examined a dozen funds administered by the Sheriff’s office, including General Office Account, Municipal Inmate Feeding Account, Sheriff’s Law Enforcement Fund, Sheriff’s Jail Store Fund, Prisoners’ Money on Deposit Fund, Sheriff’s Jail Law Enforcement Fund, Junior Deputies Fund, Equitable Sharing Fund, Process Serving Fund, Jail Food Fund, Prisoner Feeding Fund, and Bingo Fund.
The findings of the audit were: Finding 001: the fund accounts examined had not been reconciled to the cashbook monthly as required by state law. As a result, an accurate, reconciled bank balance was not available. The report indicates that the same findings were made in the 2014 and 2018 audits and not corrected.
Audit Finding 002 says state law requires the Sheriff to keep cashbooks, which reflect all financial activities of the office. The cashbooks should reflect the source of all amounts received and reflect disbursements that are maid. The finding says the Sheriff’s Office cashbooks were not properly maintained for each fund and receipts and disbursements were not properly categorized., The same finding was made in the audits of 2014 and 2018.
Audit Finding 003: in the handling of funds, the Sheriff’s Office did not have procedures in place to handle, receipt and deposit funds on a timely basis. The auditors could not determine that cash receipts were adequately accounted for and deposited in a timely manner. Receipts were not written for Sex Offender Fees, Deposits were not made on a timely basis and Pistol permit cash collections were not properly reconciled to deposits> This made it difficult for auditors to determine all money collected was deposited. The same findings were reported in 2014 and 2018.
Audit Finding 004: says the code of Alabama is clear that the Sheriff must maintain records of all disbursements with supporting evidence and specify when he uses funds for purposes not specifically allowed by law. This finding specifies that:
• $16,226.97 in expenses from various funds with no supporting documentation.
• $3,159,031.48 in payments made to employees of the Sheriff’s Department, in addition to payments made to employees for their salaries paid by the Greene County Commission. These payments were placed on Form 1099 to each employee. A list of the employees who received these payments is reflected in a chart from the auditor’s report on page 8 of this newspaper. The auditors allege no supporting documentation or legal justification for these payments.
• $2,161,552.32 in payments, of which $1,179,252.61 was paid to consultants and attorneys for professional services. The rest of the money was paid to merchants, individuals, hotels, restaurants and other businesses. Again, the auditors assert that that inadequate or no supporting documentation is made for these expenses. As a result, these expenses were charged back to the Sheriff Benison to explain, document or reimburse.
Audit Finding 005: says that The Sheriff violated the Constitution of Alabama for the disbursement of bingo funds for purposes not specified in the Constitution.
The examiners report contains pages of accounting information which they developed to reach and substantiate their findings.
The Democrat made many efforts to reach Sheriff Benison for his response to the State Examiners report and request for justification, documentation or reimbursement of almost $5 million in public funds.
Just before press time, the Sheriff issued this statement in response to the audit.
“It is regrettable that, in the face of documentation justifying the millions of dollars of expenditures made to improve the lives of the citizens of Greene County, the vendetta of the forces in Montgomery continues. Less than a year ago, the litigation waged by the Attorney General for seven years ended with the reaffirmation of my role under the Constitution as the sole regulator of bingo in Greene County.
Now, here we go again: The Examiners of Public Accounts have now issued a report questioning the expenditure of money for, among other things, the scholarships paid to every Greene County high school senior and the payments made to the deputies who protect and serve our county. They should be ashamed. I didn’t back down when they sued me, and I won’t back down now.” -
ANSC schedules Fall Membership Convention
The Alabama New South Coalition’s 41st Fall Membership Convention will be held Saturday, October 18, 2025, 8:00 am to 3:00 pm, at Wallace Community College, 3000 Earl Goodwin Pkwy, Selma, AL, in the Hank Sanders Technology Center. The convention is open to the public, registration fee is $50, which includes lunch. For more information contact ANSC State Coordinator, Ms. Shelley Fearson at 334-262-0932 or email:
alabamanewsouth@aol.com.
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Caravan Notice
The Save Ourselves Movement for Justice and Democracy (SOS) has postponed the “We Care Caravan” from Selma to Marion to Eutaw, from this Friday October 10, 2025, to Saturday November 8, 2025, to gather more support for the project. The rally at the William M. Branch Courthouse in Eutaw, set for Friday October 10, 2024 has similarly been postponed.
The SOS will still be co-sponsoring with many other groups a “No Kings Rally” – Against Trump’s Plans, Policies and Budget scheduled for Saturday, October 18, 2025, in Selma, Alabama at 2:00 PM at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge – Selma side, intersection of Broad Street (US Hwy 80) and Water Street. This “No Kings Rally” is part of a national protest against Trump at more than 2000 locations across the country involving millions of people.
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Newswire : Lt. Col. George Hardy, Tuskegee Airman and Patriot, dies at 100
Lieutenant Colonel George E. Hardy, one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen to fly combat missions during World War II, has died in Sarasota, Florida. He was 100 years old.
By Stacy M. Brown Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent
Hardy was born in Philadelphia on June 8, 1925. He entered the U.S. Army Air Corps at 18 and graduated as a pilot at 19, becoming the youngest Red Tail fighter pilot of the 332nd Fighter Group. Stationed at Ramitelli Air Base in Italy, he flew 21 missions across Europe.“We had our own club in Naples…so you didn’t go to the White club. That’s…the way life was,” Hardy said in an interview with the Veterans History Project. When the war in Europe ended in 1945, Hardy returned to the Tuskegee Army Airfield as a supervising pilot until it closed in 1946. His career continued across two more conflicts. He flew 45 combat missions in the Korean War and 70 more in the Vietnam War. His decorations included the Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor, a Commendation Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, and an Air Medal with 11 Oak Leaf Clusters.
Education remained central to his life. He earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and a master’s degree in systems engineering reliability from the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology. He also received an honorary Doctor of Public Service from Tuskegee University. “We went into the Air Force with racial segregation. When we came out, we changed…When I look back on my service, I’m so proud of the Air Force. And I just think I was able to participate in that and survive that,” Hardy said. The Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. called Hardy’s legacy one of “courage, resilience, tremendous skill and dogged perseverance against racism, prejudice and other evils.”
“Colonel Hardy was an amazing man. He was a patriot. He loved his family. He loved his community. He loved our organization,” Leon Butler Jr., national president of Tuskegee Airmen, Inc., said. “He worked very hard. He worked tirelessly to preserve the legacy, not for himself, but for those that he served with, and he cared about the families of other original Tuskegee Airmen.” The National WWII Museum honored him as a “true American hero,” while the Tuskegee Airmen National Organization honored him by noting that, “His legacy of courage and dedication will never be forgotten.” -
Newswire : Jane Goodall, iconic wildlife conservationist, has died at age 91
Jane Woodall with chimps
By N’dea Yancey Bragg and Kieth Matheny, USA Today
Legendary chimpanzee researcher, Jane Goodall, has died, the conservation organization she founded announced on Oct. 1.
Goodall, 91, died due to natural causes while she was in California on a cross-country speaking tour, according to The Jane Goodall Institute.
“Dr. Goodall’s discoveries as an ethologist revolutionized science, and she was a tireless advocate for the protection and restoration of our natural world,” the institute said in a statement on social media.
The British ethologist – a scientist who studies animal behavior within their habitat – had no formal training when she embarked on a study of chimpanzees in what would become Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania, Africa, in the early 1960s. She skyrocketed to fame thanks in part to a National Geographic documentary about her fieldwork and used her science celebrity status to advance conservation efforts for chimpanzees and other endangered species through her eponymous foundation.
“I passionately care about the natural world of which we are a part and which we depend. I love it,” Goodall told USA Today in 2021 . “I passionately care about animals. I want to fight the fact that many are becoming extinct, and I want to fight the cruelty.”
Who was Jane Goodall?
Born in London, England, in 1934, Goodall had a fascination with animals from a young age. In 1957, she traveled to Kenya where she met Louis Leakey, a Kenyan and British paleontologist and archaeologist whose fossil digs ultimately helped establish that humans evolved in Africa.
Goodall became his secretary and eventually joined him on a field expedition studying chimpanzees on the shores of Lake Tanganyika in what is now Gombe National Park in Tanzania, East Africa.
There she observed chimpanzees using grass stems to pull termites out of their mounds for food, which shattered the mainstream scientific belief that only humans made and used tools and is “considered one of the greatest achievements of twentieth-century scholarship,” according to the Jane Goodall Institute.
The National Geographic Society funded more of Goodall’s chimpanzee research and sent along cameraman, Hugo van Lawick, to document her efforts. Goodall and van Lawick later married in March 1964, and the documentary, “Miss Goodall and the Wild Chimpanzees,” released in 1965, attracted an estimated 25 million viewers in North America upon its first broadcast on CBS.
The couple had one son, Hugo Eric Louis van Lawick, known as “Grub,” and divorced in 1974. In 1975, she married Derek Bryceson, who died in 1980.
Goodall, a United Nations Messenger of Peace, was appointed a Dame of the British Empire in 2003 and awarded the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2025.
Goodall “worked tirelessly for our planet and all its inhabitants, leaving an extraordinary legacy for humanity and nature,” the United Nations said in a post on social media mourning her death. -
Newswire : Minority-Owned Businesses shut out as loan denials soar
By Stacy M. Brown Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent
The doors of opportunity remain locked for too many. A new LendingTree analysis reveals that Black-owned businesses faced the highest rejection rate for financing in 2024, with 39% denied loans, lines of credit, or merchant cash advances. Hispanic-owned businesses followed at 29%. By contrast, just 18% of white-owned businesses were turned away.
The figures draw a map of inequality, where capital flows freely to some and is dammed up for others. The report shows that one in five businesses overall—21%—were denied financing last year, a number nearly unchanged from 2023. But beneath that flat surface lies a story of disparity: while white-owned companies hit roadblocks less often, Black and Hispanic entrepreneurs carried the brunt of rejection. Size and age also stacked the deck. Firms with just one to four employees were denied 26% of the time, five times the rate of larger firms. Startups fared poorly, but even businesses with three to five years under their belts faced the highest denial rate, at 29%. By loan type, SBA loans and lines of credit proved the hardest to secure, with nearly half—45%—rejected.
The reasons mirror a harsh economy. High interest rates, inflation, and an unsteady job market have made banks wary. Community development financial institutions, often praised as a lifeline for underserved communities, turned down applicants 34% of the time. Large banks followed at 31%. Matt Schulz, LendingTree’s chief consumer finance analyst, said the trend is part of a larger retreat by lenders.
“Inflation, tariffs, high interest rates, and a slow job market are making things tough on small businesses and the customers they’re trying to attract,” he said. “[With] this uncertainty, banks pull back—as they tend to do in risky, unpredictable times. Standards for lending to consumers and businesses have generally been tight for some time, and that’s unlikely to change soon.” -
Newswire : Obama fills the leadership void in a fading Democratic Party
By Stacy M. Brown Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent
Former President Barack Obama has stepped back into the political arena, delivering some of his sharpest critiques yet of President Donald Trump as the Democratic Party struggles through one of its weakest moments in modern history. With the party’s leadership approval at historic lows and its ties to Black-owned media nearly nonexistent, Obama’s renewed visibility has exposed both the vacuum and the disillusionment threatening to fracture the Democratic coalition.
In recent weeks, Obama has spoken out against Trump’s authoritarian-style intimidation of universities and the administration’s crackdown on the press, declaring that America must “resist being intimidated” and warning that protecting democratic values may require “sacrifice.” At Hamilton College, he admonished Trump’s White House for suspending security clearances and canceling contracts with law firms and schools tied to perceived political rivals.
“That kind of behavior is contrary to the basic compact we have as Americans,” Obama said. “Imagine if I had done any of this.” Days later, he took to social media to denounce media companies for capitulating to Trump’s threats. “After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level,” Obama wrote, urging journalists and networks to “get a spine” and stand up for free speech.
Late in September at London’s O2 Arena, Obama expanded his message beyond immediate politics, telling a packed crowd that true leadership means constant vigilance and the courage to “show up and speak out even when it’s uncomfortable.” He cautioned against complacency, arguing that progressives had grown “smug” and unprepared for the rise of authoritarianism.“True democracy is a project much bigger than any one of us,” he said. “It’s a job for all of us.” Obama’s renewed activism comes at a time when his party’s base has grown increasingly restless. A Pew Research survey found that 59 percent of Democrats disapprove of their party’s leadership—the highest level of dissatisfaction since the question was first asked more than a decade ago.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s approval among Democrats has collapsed to 35 percent, while House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries remains little known to nearly four in ten Democratic voters.
That lack of visibility and engagement has been felt most acutely within the Black community. At the Black Press of America’s annual Leadership Awards, where Jeffries and Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clarke were to be honored, anticipation filled a packed ballroom. But neither showed up.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump had just pledged $50,000 to support the struggling Black Press, urging others to follow suit. “Typical of Democrats,” one attendee said afterward. “They don’t spend money with us. They don’t show up. And then they expect us to deliver their message for free.” The snub, just 18 months before the Black Press’s bicentennial, struck a nerve among publishers who have covered every chapter of America’s freedom struggle—from emancipation to civil rights—without the financial support they deserve. “Our ancestors built this press through every trial in this country,” said one Black publisher after the event. “The least Hakeem Jeffries could do was show up.”
Obama’s reemergence has not gone unnoticed by voters—or by Trump. During a recent Navy celebration in Virginia, Trump attempted to incite the crowd to boo Obama, but the attempt backfired. As he invoked “Barack Hussein Obama,” the crowd met him with dead silence.
Meanwhile, polls show that Obama remains the most admired living president. A Marquette Law School survey found Obama with a +17 net favorability, compared with Trump’s -15 and Joe Biden’s -24. Even so, Obama’s return to the spotlight underscores a sobering truth: the Democratic Party, battered by infighting and a failure to connect with its own base, still lacks a clear, trusted voice. Obama’s critiques of Trump’s policies—whether over healthcare rollbacks or media suppression—stand in contrast to the muted response from current Democratic leaders, who have failed to mobilize voters around issues that once defined their moral compass.Trump’s efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act have revived Obama’s signature policy as the centerpiece of a national political showdown. Democrats, scrambling to extend ACA subsidies that prevent premiums from skyrocketing, have tried to make healthcare their rallying cry again—but without strong, unified leadership, the message has struggled to resonate.
For all his measured tone, Obama’s message has sharpened into something closer to alarm. He warns that complacency, even within his own party, has opened the door to authoritarianism. “Progressives assumed our trajectory would bend inevitably toward progress,” he told the audience at the O2. “That complacency left us unprepared.”
As Trump wields federal power to punish dissent, the former president’s words carry the weight of both warning and legacy. But even as Obama reasserts his influence, the party he once led remains uncertain and divided—still ignoring the independent Black media that carried it through generations and still searching for leadership that matches the gravity of this moment. Obama may have left office eight years ago, but in 2025, he appears to be the last Democrat still leading. -
Newswire : Republicans Shutdown Government
By April Ryan. NNPA White House Corespondent
Democrats and Republicans are both pointing fingers, saying the shutdown is the other party’s fault. The government shutdown means that money has stopped flowing, and there is no continuing resolution to continue the funding for the government.
Republicans are in charge of the House, Senate, and White House and do not want to open borders or focus on healthcare to expand the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Firings are expected after an Office of Management and Budget memo during this shutdown, with no end in sight. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries went on social media after midnight, saying, “Democrats are on duty, ready to sit down with anyone, any time, and at any place to reopen the federal government and pass a spending agreement that meets the needs of the American people.”
However, Jeffries chastises Republicans, saying they are not a “credible partner” right now. He goes on to say,” We will not support a partisan republican spending bill that guts the healthcare of the American people. Not now! Not ever! In a statement, the Congressional Black Caucus emphasized” Today, our country is facing a crisis entirely of the Republican Party’s making and, unfortunately, Black communities will be forced to bear the brunt of their political games.”
During the 2018-2019 shutdown, the longest government shutdown in the nation’s history, the Postal Service, Medicare, and Social Security payments continued. Still, according to reports, some SSA services could be impacted during this shutdown. Federal courts, border security, disaster aid, banks, air traffic control, federal law-enforcement agencies, prison staff, the Secret Service, and the Coast Guard remain open.
Due to the shutdown, the National Museum of African American History and Culture posted on Instagram that it will remain open until October 6th, using existing funding to stay open until Monday.When it comes to airports, TSA agents are working without pay. However, once the government reopens and funding is flowing, TSA workers will receive their pay retroactively. Airports around the nation have had to delay planes because of the lack of air traffic controllers on certain days and times. Also, the nation’s veterans will receive health insurance during the shutdown from Veterans Affairs.
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SOS to sponsor Black Belt Caravan on October 10; also ‘No Kings Rally’ in Selma on Oct 18 at 3:00 p.m.
The Save Ourselves Movement for Justice and Democracy (SOS) together with other social justice organizations is sponsoring a Caravan from Selma to Marion to Eutaw on Friday, October 10, 2025.The purpose of the Caravan is to alert people in the western Alabama Black Belt of the many funding cuts in Federal programs and services that are coming in the Budget Reconciliation Act, passed by Congress in August.
This legislation, which President Trump calls, “My Big Beautiful Bill” makes cuts over the coming years in healthcare (Medicaid, Medicare, cancer research), SNAP (Food Stamps) and other nutrition programs, including school lunches, LIHEAP (a program to assist people to pay their utility bills), HUD housing subsidies, education programs including Title I, Pell grants and others, all programs directed toward assistance to poor, Black, Brown and other vulnerable people.
The SOS “We Care Caravan” scheduled for October 10, 2025, will alert people at the grassroots level of these coming cuts and onerous requirements to work 20 hours per week to get certain benefits like SNAP.
The Caravan will begin with a rally at 9:00 AM in Selma at the Monument Park, at the Montgomery side of the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Then the caravan of cars with signs, will drive through neighborhoods in Selma and drive through Uniontown en route to Marion. The caravan will travel through Marion neighborhoods and hold a rally at Noon in Marion.
The Caravan will leave Uniontown at 1:00 PM after the rally, wend its way through Greensboro and Sawyerville on its way to Eutaw in Greene County. From 2:00 to 3:00 PM, the caravan will drive through low-income communities of Eutaw. At 3:00 there will be a rally at the William M. Branch Courthouse in Eutaw, Greene County to alert people to the coming cutbacks.
At 4:00 the Caravan will return to Selma through Demopolis. The Caravan will distribute materials on the coming cutbacks at every stop. The first 25 people at each rally will receive a lucky $2 bill for attending. People from around the state are invited to join the caravan at any point along the way.No Kings Rally in Selma on October 18th at 3:00 PM
SOS will also be sponsoring a rally, with other groups, on No Kings Day, Saturday, October 18, 2025, from 2:30 to 5:00 PM at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge – west side, to protest the authoritarian, illegal and unjust policies and practices of the Trump-Vance Administration. This rally is in conjunction with over 2,000 similar actions across the country to resist the actions of the Trump-Vance Administration.
The October 18th. ‘No Kings Rally” will be a follow-on to a similar rally held on June 14th in the same place. SOS invites members of Alabama New South Coalition which will be holding its Fall Convention, that same day in Selma, to also attend the protest rally.
Persons with questions about either event may contact, John Zippert for more information at 205-657-0273.