Greensboro 101

During this season of charitable giving, we invited local nonprofit organizations to share their wish lists. Their needs range from hammers and computer printers to single-serving snacks. Most organizations welcome gift cards and financial donations.

In Cooper v. Berger, the justices ruled the state Senate does have the authority to confirm the governor’s Cabinet appointments. The opinion, by Chief Justice Mark Martin, says the Senate’s ability to reject an appointment doesn’t violate separation of powers, since the governor chooses who will serve on the Cabinet, supervises those officers, and can remove them at will.

The lifelong Guilford County resident, who first donned the Santa suit in 2006, has been inducted into the International Santa Claus Hall of Fame. One of six inducted this year, Grimes joins 63 others since the hall started honoring the jolly old elf in 2010. The list includes three other North Carolina Santas, along with notable Santas such as Ed Asner, who has portrayed Santa in a variety of movies including “Elf”; Mickey Rooney, who voiced Santa in several animated shows including “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”; and Edmund Gwenn of “Miracle on 34th Street” fame.

The N.C. House voted 72-40 Wednesday to override Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of Senate Bill 824, legislation implementing a constitutional amendment mandating voters present approved state-approved photo identification. The Senate’s vote Tuesday was 32-13, so the measure will become law.

The plan will cost money, although it didn’t specify how much. Among its steps: Create an Office of Arts and Culture to focus on arts and cultural development and policy, with a full-time director who reports to the office of the city manager.

Schools with an “F” grade had a higher percentage of chronically absent teachers than schools with an “A” or “B.” Similarly, chronic absenteeism seems to correlate with lower EVAAS scores, which is used to measure a teacher’s effectiveness.