By Scott Harvey

College Station – The Texas A&M University System on Monday awarded $526,000 to outstanding faculty throughout the system for the spring 2010 presentation of the Teaching Excellence Awards.

161 faculty winners will receive checks from the voluntary, student-selected honors program, of from $2,500 to $10,000. A&M-Commerce had the second most recipients, behind A&M College Station, at 26. Five of the 26 individuals were in the top five percent.

By Scott Harvey

Rochester, MN – A Forth Hood shooting victim from Lone Oak is making miraculous progress since he was shot multiple times last November.

Doctors say Staff Sergeant Patrick Zeigler has battled back from eight brain surgeries and diagnoses that labeled him everything from "comatose" to "permanently disabled."

On Friday, Sgt. Zeigler walked out of the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. He plans to head back to Texas within the month and will report to Fort Hood.

By Scott Harvey

Sulphur Springs – An area educator is among 32 selections nation-wide to participate in a special program next month in California sponsored by NASA.

Teri-Rae Altenbaumer of the Sulphur Springs ISD will attend the Advancing Mentor and Novice Teachers in Space Science training next month. She became eligible by agreeing to serve as a mentor teacher for a "pre-service" or novice student teacher at the middle school level for the next two years.

By Brad Kellar

Greenville – A former Hunt County murder suspect is facing more legal trouble.

Michael Anthony Polk, of Caddo Mills, is alleged to have robbed an elderly man in December 2009 and threatened to kill a police officer.

Nearly a decade ago, Polk was indicted for the 1996 shooting death of Greenville resident Raymond Edwards.

By Brad Kellar

Greenville – A plan is in the works to clean up the former ESCO manufacturing plant in Greenville of decade's worth of environmental contamination.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will address the public to detail the proposal to remove soil from the plant, located in the Ardis Heights area, as well as demolish and remove the remaining structure.

By Scott Harvey

– While last week's state unemployment rate showed a drop by one-tenth of a percent, figures from area counties are showing the opposite.

A report by the Texas Workforce Commission shows Hunt County's June unemployment rate was 9.1 percent, up from 8.6 percent in May.

The best area jobless rate was in Hopkins County, at 6.9 percent. That's despite a .3 percent increase from the previous month.

By Scott Harvey

Caddo Mills – The City of Caddo Mills will soon implement a four-day work week to help save on utility costs.

City office hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday will also give more residents time to take care of any business before and after a normal work day.

Caddo Mills will give the new project 90 days before deciding if it wants to do it on a permanent basis. The new schedule begins August 2.

By Scott Harvey

Caddo Mills – A single-engine plane transporting more than a half million dollars worth of drugs landed near Caddo Mills Monday morning.

According to Hunt County Undersheriff Joe Knight, authorities were put on standby early that morning for a low flying plane involved in an earlier "incident with a federal agency."

A couple hours later, a silver, single-engine plane was spotted in a field near the Caddo Mills airport.

By Scott Harvey

Commerce – The Commerce School Board on Monday is scheduled to consider continuation of its Tiger Trust Card Incentive Program at the High School.

Board members last fall approved the program, which allows incentives to students who follow district guidelines.

Privileges include being able to use their cell phones before and in between classes and listening to an MP3 device while not in class.

By Scott Harvey

Richardson – The Lone Star Conference North Division, which includes Texas A&M University-Commerce, will be slimming down within a couple years as three of its Oklahoma members plan to withdraw from the league.

Conference commissioner Stan Wagnon says the Richardson-based league has been notified that East Central University, Southeastern Oklahoma State University and Southwestern Oklahoma State are leaving the conference.

League policy makes their withdrawal effective in June 2012.