St Joseph County

State police said 56 Michigan public school districts – including Sturgis Public Schools – will get a share of $4 million in funding to boost school safety. The money announced last week will be used to purchase equipment and technology to improve the safety and security of school buildings, students and staff. Grant recipients have until Sept. 15 to spend …

The Centreville Public Schools Board of Education this week agreed to renew for one year its contracts with three administrators. During action Monday, the board approved contracts for high school/junior high principal Dennis Kirby, elementary principal Becky Stouffer and Covered Bridge School principal Juanita Miller, who also oversees the district’s adult education, community education and jail programs. Contracts for 2015-16 …

Up to six officials from the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department were granted permission to attend an out-of-state conference later this year. Members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners approved the request for the employees to attend the American Jail Association annual meeting in North Carolina. The conference will not impose a cost to the county, as all …

Members of the Sturgis City Commissioners are continuing work on a joint agreement for a new St. Joseph County senior center. The city has agreed to lease land near Doyle Community Center to the St. Joseph County Building Authority for $ 1 per year for the next 50 years to provide a site for the new center. The lease makes …

With their shared agreement for superintendent officially dissolved Monday, members of the Centreville Board of Education have decided to begin contract discussions with Rob Kuhlman. Kuhlman, who is in his fifth year as superintendent of Centreville and Mendon school districts, will not return to Mendon in the fall after its board last week voted 4-3 to not renew his contract. …

The Three Rivers Lions Club has selected Al Heivilin of Three Rivers as this year’s “Bruce C. Snook Citizen of the Year.” Heivlin, 65, is a graduate of Three Rivers High School, where he earned two letters in basketball, three letters in football and four letters in track. Later in life, he formed his own construction company, FTK Construction, which …

St. Joseph County Human Resources Director Teresa Doehring was appointed last week to serve as the county’s Freedom of Information Act coordinator. During Tuesday’s county commission meeting, county administrator Pat Yoder said the appointment puts the county in compliance with statutory changes requiring such a position be filled. There is no additional pay for the role. Doehring has worked for …

A former Constantine Police reserve officer was sentenced Friday to at least 20 months in prison for lying under oath in a case related to the homicide of 11-year-old Jodi Parrack. Raymond McCann II, who previously pled no contest to lying under oath during the investigative subpoena into the 2007 homicide of Parrack, was sentenced in St. Joseph County Circuit …

A pair of funding requests from the St. Joseph County E-911 Central Dispatch was approved by county commissioners last week. The agency was allotted $4,128 for security cameras to replace black-and-white cameras that are 15 years old, and $74,200 was granted to repair and make improvements to the Centreville communications tower. County administrator Pat Yoder said the upgrade for security …

Organizers behind the twice-a-year collection of electronics and household hazardous waste would like the public to be aware of an important change coming next month. Due to circumstances impacting recyclers of electronics, there will be a $10-per item charge for all televisions and computer monitors when the annual spring collection takes place April 18 at the county fairgrounds. There will …