In support of the Wednesday, Oct. 25, editorial, “New minimum in education,” we would like to remind our fellow citizens, educators and business leaders that Crosby Scholars has officially launched in Rowan County!
Our singular mission is to equip area students with the skills, direction and guidance they will need to pursue a post-secondary degree, certificate or license. As was noted, completing high school is no longer enough to guarantee successful entry into the workplace.
Crosby Scholars partners with kids starting in the 6th grade and walks shoulder to shoulder with them through high school. We will reinforce the importance of post-secondary education and help shape their vision of a successful career.
Crosby Scholars of Forsyth County is a proven program, and we are fortunate to be able to draft on their 20 years of success. To date, 1,418 students have been accepted into our program, and applications will be taken until October 1.
The Rowan County Crosby Scholars Community Partnership has the potential to be a strong engine of change for sustainable economic development, prosperity and fulfillment in our county.
Please support us with your time, treasure and talent, and partner with us today for a more promising tomorrow. To learn more, please contact us at: info@crosbyscholarsrowan.org
— Gwin Barr and Jennifer Canipe

Barr is board chair and Canipe is executive director of Crosby Scholars.

Are there Americans out there who voted in the hopes that all candidates would work for the interest of the whole country? Candidates who could be trusted to work with each other to solve the problems that face the nation? Instead, we have a deluge of “No! No! No!” and a continual wail of one party sounding like a teething baby with colic.
Now we are again at the point where a bunch of legislators are threatening to shut down the government if the Affordable Care Act is not “defunded.” This is a law that was legally passed, which withstood a constitutional challenge in the Supreme Court and has been around since 2009 to be put into perfect shape. It will be put in motion on Oct. 1, and yet there are politicians who are willing to sabotage the country because they don’t want the public to have affordable insurance. (They do want us to continue to pay for their insurance for life.)
Closing down the government is not acceptable, conceivably even a treasonous act. Hopefully everyone will keep track of the voting, so that at the ballot box anyone who votes to hold the government hostage and rallies to do so will be exiled from the Capitol.
It does not matter what party — Democrat, Republican, Tea Party, Libertarian or the Elbonian Mugwumps. This kind of politics is a disgrace.
— Donald C. Tracy

Salisbury