AFTER GETTING $40,871 PAYOFF FROM HERNANDO COUNTY ...more

July 5, 2008

The Human Resources Department on Wednesday already started addressing some of the concerns highlighted by an audit by sending 30 to 40 staffers who work with workers' compensation claims to training classes. ...more

June 26, 2008

STAFF TRAINING BEGAN WEDNESDAY ...more

June 25, 2008

Anthony Allred, a News Channel 8 photojournalist, was arrested Monday morning and charged with driving under the influence. ...more

June 17, 2008

SEBRING — The formal legal process for the appeals of two county employees for exchanging inappropriate and often sexually explicit instant-messages will begin in six days, on Monday. Jim McCollum, the attorney for ex-county employees Jared Lee and Treasa Handley, will take sworn statements, recorded verbatim by a legal stenographer, from four people, starting at 9 a.m. in a conference room at the Highlands County Government Center. Handley and Lee were dismissed more than five months ago for sending thousands of personal instant messages to each other, and others, on their county computers during working hours. Many of the messages were sexually explicit, and all of them are public record, accessible to anyone, with a request to either the county's public information officer or the Highlands County Clerk of Courts office. ...more

June 16, 2008

TAMPA - Anthony Allred, a News Channel 8 photojournalist, was arrested this morning and charged with driving under the influence. ...more

June 16, 2008

SEBRING — With the Career Academy opening in August at South Florida Community College, the School Board of Highlands County is working to fill its position of coordinator of career and technical education. After serving as the district's career/tech coordinator for about two years, John Rousch has decided to return to his former position in the classroom at Lake Placid High as a drafting/construction technology teacher. The possibility of freezing or not filling the position was discussed, but with the school board's focus on getting the Career Academy started this year it was decided that the position needs to be filled, district Human Resources Director Vivianne Waldron said. The closing date for applications is Monday, June 16. ...more

June 14, 2008

AVON PARK — An Avon Park High School teacher has been suspended without pay for an undisclosed incident, which is being investigated by the school district and a state education bureau. Science teacher John Altic's five-day suspension from May 21-27 was formally approved by the School Board of Highlands County on Tuesday. Altic was suspended because of an incident, which is currently under investigation, that occurred May 16 at Avon Park High School, Human Resources Director Vivianne Waldron said. Since this is an active investigation no more information can be released, she added. Altic, 63, was suspended for five days because that is the maximum length of time the superintendent can suspend a teacher without input from the school board, Waldron said. A disciplinary letter has been placed in his personnel file. ...more

June 13, 2008

NASCAR chairman Brian France denied Wednesday that a former official complained to her supervisors about racial and sexual discrimination, claims she alleged led to her eventual firing. ...more

June 12, 2008

The reorganization of Hernando County's Human Resources Department is coming along just fine, said Jerry Haines, who recently completed his first month as interim director. ...more

June 5, 2008