Inco Alloys International in Huntington, W.

Tuesday, September 07, 1999

Inco Alloys International in Huntington, W.Va., has changed its name to Special Metals. The change reflects the Huntington facility’s purchase by Special Metals of New Hartford, N.Y.

Special Metals Corp. produces high-performance nickel-based alloys. Its specialty metals are used in aerospace applications, power generation, chemical processing, oil exploration and medical/dental devices. In addition to the Huntington plant, Special Metals operates 10 other U.S. and European production facilities.

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Connectlink, an Internet service provider headquartered in Chesapeake, recently expanded its coverage area to Jackson, Vinton, Gallia and Washington counties in Ohio and to Parkersburg, Vienna and Williamtown in West Virginia.

This is in addition to Lawrence County in Ohio and Cabell and Wayne counties in West Virginia.

The firm was established in April 1998. Phil Henson is the president of Connectlink.

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Dr. Michael Field has been named provost and vice president for academic affairs at Shawnee State University in Portsmouth. He currently is director of the Center for Professional Development at Bemidji State University in Bemidji, Minn.

The provost position has been vacant since June when Dr. William Nevious left to become president of Reinhardt College in Waleska, Ga.

Field was chosen from an initial field of 42 applicants. Of that 42, five were invited for campus visits.

Field also is a professor of English and director of the honor program at Bemidji State. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from SUNY at Stony Brook, and his master’s and doctoral degrees are in English from Cornell University.

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In other Shawnee State news, the university has announced a program with 10 area schools to establish "after-school malls" where students can find services and programs to help them succeed in the classroom.

The malls, or 21st Century Community Learning Centers, are part of a three-year, nearly $6 million federally funded program designed to improve school attendance and student performance on proficiency tests, expand parental and volunteer involvement in the schools, increase participation in anti-drug and violence activities and provide stronger links between partner schools.

"The centers will provide a safe environment for our students to learn and relax after school is out for the day," said Ryan McCall, SSU program coordinator.

The Shawnee State program is the fourth largest in the country in terms of money, size of the area and number of people.

Each center will offer a variety of opportunities, including tutoring and instruction for students at risk of failing Ohio proficiency tests or those who have difficulties in the classroom, computer training, reading programs and expanded drug and violence prevention education and counseling. There will be expanded library hours at each school, and students will take part in after-school field trips to work sites and college campuses.

The U.S. Department of Education and The Mott Foundation awarded a $1.9 million-per-year grant last spring to Shawnee State, Scioto County Joint Vocational School and the Ohio South Tech Prep Consortium partner school districts.

Attendance at the centers is voluntary. The centers are slated to open in mid- to late September and will be open all year. Some of the centers also will have summer components.

Centers will be operated at Northwest Middle and Elementary, Washington-Nile (Portsmouth West) Middle and Elementary, Minford Middle and Elementary, Bloom-Vernon Elementary, south Webster Middle School, Portsmouth High School and Scioto County JVS.

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On Tuesday, the City Loan office, located on 315 Vernon St. in Ironton will change its name to CitiFinancial.

CitiFinancial is part of the Citigroup family, the world’s most global financial services company.

"We’re pleased that we will now share the "Citi" name," branch manager Norm Staker said. "But what’s most important is that, while we have a new name, we will still continue to provide our customers with the friendly, attentive service they’ve come to expect from doing business with City Loan.

"We take the company philosophy of being a community lender one step further. We tell customers, ‘We’re still small enough to know you, and large enough to serve you.’ We really care about helping our customers and our neighbors. That’s why we’re here."

The other local CitiFinancial team members are Shawn Easthom, Thora Jo Dunfee, Robin Borders and Lisa Blevins.

CitiFinancial, a consumer finance company specializing in personal and home equity loans, has been in business since 1912 and currently serves almost two million customers, through nearly 1,000 offices and 8,000 employees across the United States.

Citigroup Inc., a dynamic family of financial services companies, was formed on Oct. 8, 1998, by the merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group Inc. Citigroup provides a broad range of financial services – asset management, banking and consumer finance, credit and charge cards, insurance, investments, investment banking and trading – and uses diverse channels to make them available to consumer and corporate customers around the world. Among its businesses are Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Salomon Smith Barney, Salomon Smith Barney Asset Management, Travelers Life and Annuity, and Travelers Property and Casualty.

 

Jennifer Allen is publisher of The Ironton Tribune.