Look Back ... to final rites planned for an Oxford soldier, 1949

Feb. 10—Feb. 10, 1949, in The Star: Funeral services for Pfc. Wilks Edward Roberts of West 8th Street, Oxford, will be held Feb. 13, 1949, at the Second Baptist Church of Oxford. Burial will be in Edgemont Cemetery, where graveside services will be conducted by the George N. Meredith Post 924. Pfc. Roberts was 27 years old when he gave his life to his country in Okinawa on May 13, 1945. Born in Calhoun County Dec. 14, 1917, Roberts attended school at Oxford prior to his entrance into the Army on July 6, 1944. He had previously been employed by Kilby Steel Co. and later by Anniston Ordnance Depot. He is survived by his former wife, Mrs. Mildred Richardson of Dearmanville, one son, Jerry Roberts, and three daughters, Betty, Deloris and Margaret Ann Roberts, all of Dearmanville. Four sisters and two brothers also survive him, as do his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Ligon Roberts of Oxford.

Feb. 10, 1999, in The Star: When the doors of Cleburne County's public schools opened for a new year at the end of last summer, students, teachers and administrators stepped into the great unknown in terms of class scheduling. It might sound mundane, but it's made a big difference: It's called block scheduling, in which students take only four courses per semester, but they're in each class more than 90 minutes per day. That helps them and their teachers to grind through in each semester what was formerly a year's amount of coursework. "Bless their hearts, they've been wonderful," said Cleburne County High School biology teacher Donita Dennis of the way students have adapted to all the changes. Todd Bates, a sophomore, said he has seen his own grades improve under block scheduling. Most notably, the 93-minute class periods "give you time to finish your work in class," he said.