The Oscar-nominated film Speaking in Strings, a profile of flamboyant violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg produced by St. Thomian Lilibet Foster, will be shown at the Westin Resort as a fund raiser for the the V.I. Film Society. Admission is $10, with proceeds to benefit the film society.
The motion picture, shown at the V.I. International Film and Video Festival last month, has been nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary feature. Oscar winners will be announced March 26.

The state of emergency declared for the territory’s wastewater system by the Turnbull administration earlier this week was followed Thursday by plans for a new $30 million treatment plant on St. Thomas.
The state of emergency was declared to let the Public Works Department "obtain supplies, materials, equipment and contractual services necessary for the repair of the public sewer system in the open market, without advertising for public competitive bidding requirements."
A Government House release Thursday said the Property and Procurement Department will solicit bids from construction companies for the Mangrove Lagoon plant on March 25. The new plant, which is scheduled to take two years to complete, will replace five smaller wastewater-treatment plants that serve the Old Tutu, New Tutu, Nadir, Donoe and Bovoni housing communities.
According to Government House, the project has been approved by the local Coastal Zone Management and has been under review by the Army Corps of Engineers for three years. The plant will enable the territory to meet federal Clean Water Act requirements, which the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. District court mandated in a 1995 consent decree.
Gov. Charles Turnbull said he had directed the commissioners of Public Works, Property and Procurement, Health, Finance and Justice, as well as the heads of other agencies, to cooperate in instituting the emergency procedures at Public Works.

Teachers and support staff at Charlotte Amalie High School reportedly have been assured that six students involved in a violent incident on the campus less than a month ago will not be permitted to return Friday and classes are to resume.
Teachers and other staff walked out Thursday to protest the students' planned return on grounds that they threaten the safety of everyone at the school.
"We will not go back in until we get some concession or relief to this threat to our safety," said physical education teacher Arthur Solomon.
The incident, which occurred Feb. 17, was extremely serious, according to CAHS teachers. Fights broke out all over the school, bottles were thrown and ultimately two students had to be treated at Roy L. Schneider Hospital for stab wounds.
The teachers, according to Solomon, were prepared to stay out of classrooms if the issue is not resolved.
Glen J. Smith, president of the St. Thomas-St. John chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, said the Education Department has reversed, temporarily, Deputy Superintendent William Frett's decision to allow the six students to return to class.
Smith, too, noted the seriousness of the offenses they are alleged to have committed.
"Students who were involved were armed," he said. "Two were stabbed and required medical treatment."
Smith said he heard a gun was brandished although it was never recovered.
"We must protect the rights of the majority of the students who are willing to learn," he said, adding, "Students told me they don't want those students here. They are a threat to the (students') safety."
Smith told the Source a position paper will be developed flatly stating that "the students are not wanted back on the CAHS campus."
A teacher at the school later reported that the paper had been developed and delivered to the superintendent's office late Thursday afternoon.
Simmonds told Radio One on Friday morning she was reviewing the document. She said she expected to have a response for the teachers by Friday afternoon.
Karen Andrews, chief labor negotiator, met Thursday with Frett and CAHS principal Jeanette Smith at the school.
"Emotions were high" among teachers and staff, she said, adding the concerns were legitimate.
However, there is an appeal process that teachers could have gone through instead of the job action, Andrews told the Source.
She said two of the students in the fracas had been expelled.
The six students who are effectively suspended until further notice reportedly may appeal their punishment, but Smith does not believe they should be allowed to returned to the CAHS campus.
"The superintendent said he intends to inform the parents of the students that they are to remain at home until further notice," he said, calling on the government to develop a formal alternative education program for these students.
Alternative education choices are limited in the territory, Smith acknowledged, but do exist.
"This is one area where government has failed, although the AFT has clamored for the development of this type of program," Smith said.
Solomon, a physical education instructor, does not believe Thursday's walkout should have been necessary. Frett, who reportedly made the decision to permit the student's return, should have followed the disciplinary code, he said.
"It's in the hands of the leadership of the Education Department," Solomon said. "The decision is theirs to make. If they want us to teach, they must keep these kids off the campus."
Whether the CAHS protest at Charlotte Amalie High School is over, Solomon said, depends upon the sincerity of administrators who are obliged to enforce discipline to ensure a safe campus.

After months of downplaying the pending purchase of American Yacht Harbor, Dennis Kissman announced this week that the deal is final. The marina and shopping complex on St. Thomas' East End has 84 slips and five docks, a service station and fuel dock, and space for 50 shops.
In a written statement, Kissman "declined" to identify the new owners except as a Texas-based investor group. However, public records at the Coastal Zone Management division of Planning and Natural Resources list MOF VI Limited Partnership as the entity to which minor permits were transferred. A pending renewal of the major permit also is expected to be assigned to the company by American Yacht Harbor Holding, Inc., the seller.
Kissman's management company, Marina Management Services, Inc., will manage the property. He is also a manager and part-owner at Crown Bay Marina on St. Thomas' west side, but he has said previously that the group buying AYH is not involved in Crown Bay.
Kissman could not be reached Thursday. The AYH office said he was off-island, and his office in Boca Raton, Florida, said he was out of the office. He did not return a message seeking more information about the purchase.
In his press release, he said his company's operational plan for AYH "calls for continued focus on attracting more sportfishing charter operators, elite anglers, and recreational boat owners to the Virgin Islands."

Erica McDonald, the new administrator of St. John's Myrah Keating-Smith Clinic, says she's pleased with what she has found so far at her new workplace.
McDonald, who began work March 1, said she spent the first week looking over the clinic, its operations and its staff. While the building "is in good condition," she said, "it needs more attention to maintenance." She expressed the hope that "by the end of the month we will have a plan."
Staffing at the clinic is adequate — and, in some cases, more than adequate, she said. But she added that there will be no immediate dramatic changes in personnel.
McDonald comes to her new assignment from West Virginia, where she was the administrator of Mann Appalachia Regional Hospital, a 74-bed facility. In the territory, she said, she is enjoying the change of climate and the daily ferry rides across Pillsbury Sound from St. Thomas and back. "I wanted to make a lateral move. It's more of a scenery move," she said with a smile.
She recognizes that operationally things will be different for her here. "I have to adjust to how the government works and the difficulties it has in getting things done," she said. Often, she said, "people's expectations are for things to get done faster than the delivery of those expectations occurs."
Challenges that McDonald sees facing Keating Clinic are in the acquiring of medicines and other supplies and the delivery of medical services. She said she will be looking at how best to utilize the small ward of observation beds set up in the clinic when it was re-opened several years ago.
She pledged to pay particular attention to the area of maternity services. One of the first things she learned on St. John, she said, was how strongly some expectant parents feel about having their children born as native St. Johnians.

The Turnbull-James administration is lobbying hard to maintain the existence of Foreign Sales Corporations in the territory because they bring millions of dollars in revenue each year.
Last month, an appeals panel of the World Trade Organization ruled that FSCs, which enable U.S. companies to enjoy tax breaks on industrial and agricultural exports, are an export subsidy and therefore violate global free-trade rules.
About 3,500 FSCs are registered in the territory, according to Lt. Gov. Gerard Luz James II, whose Corporations and Trademarks Division has oversight for them. Over the last 15 years, he said, the program has generated more than $69 million for the V.I. treasury through franchise taxes.
James has been lobbying the White House, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and members of the Congressional Black Caucus to help save the FSC program.
"Along with thousands of U.S. exporters, the Virgin Islands has unquestionably been a major stakeholder in the FSC program," James said in a release. "The territory can ill afford to lose the economic benefits of the FSC program, particularly when the local government is experiencing a substantial budgetary shortfall."
The WTO had ordered the United States to dismantle the FSC program by Oct. 1 of this year. Because the ruling is against the United States, the territory has no direct status to appeal, James said.
Besides generating franchise taxes, James noted, the FSC program has a trickle-down effect economically. He said FSCs use local lawyers and accountants who have clerical and managerial staff who pay income taxes locally. There is also a derivative income earned by banks that hold FSC funds, he said.
Congress established the Foreign Sales Corporation system as an alternative to a previous program to which U.S. trade partners had objected. Exporters began using FSCs, offshore subsidiaries, in 1985. A portion of a company's export sales run through its FSC is exempt from federal taxes.
The European Union first signaled its intent to challenge the FSC system formally in November 1997. A series of formal and informal discussions followed between the EU and the United States, and the negotiations were reportedly ongoing throughout much of the WTO deliberative process.
Many observers believe such negotiations will intensify now. Meanwhile, several U.S. accounting firms have been working for months to develop alternatives to FSCs that will also give U.S. exporters some tax relief.

The Turnbull-James administration is lobbying hard to maintain the existence of Foreign Sales Corporations in the territory to preserve millions in revenue each year.
Last month, an appeals panel of the World Trade Organization ruled that FSCs, a U.S. tax-break scheme on industrial and agricultural exports, were an export subsidy and therefore violated global free trade rules.
Approximately 3,500 FSC are registered in the territory, said Lt. Gov. Gerard Luz James II, who as lieutenant governor has oversight for FSCs. He said the program has generated more than $69 million for the V.I. Treasury through franchise taxes over the last 15 years.
James has been lobbying the White House, the U.S. trade representative and members of the Congressional Black Caucus to help save the FSC program.
"Along with thousands of U.S. exporters, the Virgin Islands has unquestionably been a major stakeholder in the FSC program," James said in a release. "The territory can ill afford to lose the economic benefits of the FSC program, particularly when the local government is experiencing a substantial budgetary shortfall."
The WTO had ordered the U.S. to dismantle the FSC program by Oct. 1 of this year. Because the ruling is against the U.S., the territory has no direct status to appeal, James said.
On top of the taxes collected on FSCs here, the program has a trickle-down effect, James said. It uses local lawyers and accountants who then train and employ clerical and managerial staff who pay taxes locally. A derivative income is also earned by banks that hold FSC funds.
Congress established the Foreign Sales Corporation system as an alternative to a previous program to which U.S. trade partners had objected.
Exporters began using FSCs, offshore subsidiaries, in 1985. A portion of the export sales run through the FSC are exempt from federal taxes.
The European Union first signaled its intention to make a formal challenge to the FSC program in November 1997. A series of formal and informal discussions followed between the E.U. and the U.S., and the two sides reportedly were negotiating throughout much of the WTO process.
Many observers believe such negotiations will intensify now. Meanwhile, several U.S. accounting firms have been working for months to develop alternatives to the FSC that will continue to give U.S. exporters some sort of tax relief.

The Turnbull-James administration is lobbying hard to maintain the existence of Foreign Sales Corporations in the territory to preserve millions in revenue each year.
Last month, an appeals panel of the World Trade Organization ruled that FSCs, a United States tax-break scheme on industrial and agricultural exports, were an export subsidy and therefore violated global free trade rules.
There are approximately 3,500 FSCs registered in the territory, said Lt. Gov. Gerard Luz James II, who as lieutenant governor oversees the program. Over the last 15 years, he said, FSCs have generated more than $69 million for the V.I. treasury through franchise taxes.
James has been lobbying the White House, the U.S. trade representative and members of the Congressional Black Caucus to help save the FSC program.
"Along with thousands of U.S. exporters, the Virgin Islands has unquestionably been a major stakeholder in the FSC program," James said in a release. "The territory can ill afford to lose the economic benefits of the FSC program, particularly when the local government is experiencing a substantial budgetary shortfall."
The WTO had ordered the U.S. to dismantle the FSC program by Oct. 1 of this year. Because the ruling is against the U.S., the territory has no direct status to appeal, James said.
Besides the taxes collected on FSC companies in the territory, James noted that the FSC program has a trickle-down effect. It uses local lawyers and accountants, who then train and employ clerical and managerial staff who pay their taxes locally. There is also a derivative income earned by banks that hold FSC funds.
Congress established the Foreign Sales Corporation system as an alternative to a previous program to which U.S. trade partners had objected. Exporters began using FSCs, offshore subsidiaries, in 1985. A portion of the export sales run through the FSC are exempt from federal taxes.
The European Union first signaled its intention to make a formal challenge to the program in November 1997. There followed a series of formal and informal discussions between the EU and the US, and the two sides reportedly were negotiating with each other throughout much of the WTO process.
Many observers believe such negotiations will intensify now.
Several U.S. accounting firms have been working for months to develop alternatives to the FSC which will continue to give U.S. exporters some sort of tax relief.

Education Commissioner Ruby Simmonds got a more favorable response from St. Thomas veterans Thursday about using Memorial Day as a school make-up day than she did at a vituperative meeting Sunday on St. Croix.
About 20 veterans turned out for Thursday's mid-morning meeting called by the Veteran's Affairs Office to allow the military veterans to voice their concerns about the planned use of Memorial Day.
The meeting opened with Simmonds providing a detailed explanation of how uncontrollable factors made it necessary to schedule school on Memorial Day and other holidays.
Simmonds responded to each veteran in an attempt to assure them that the school system is only trying to fulfill its obligation to students and that officials are aware that any decision about using a holiday is potentially an affront to some.
The most vocal opponent to the planned use of Memorial Day has been veteran Vincent "Beef" Clendinen.
"Veterans are not against kids or against education," he said adding, "What we are against is the use of this day, Memorial Day, as a make-up day."
Clendinen, a former member of the Board of Education, spoke at length about the possibility that both the Education Department and the Board of Education could build in several days that can be used as make-up days when the annual school calendar is developed.
Another veteran, Albert A. Mercer, told Simmonds that he sees the need for students to be taught "the meaning of patriotism."
Mercer said he believes that students must understand that "V.I. veterans fought and in some cases lost their life to protect their freedom." Mercer said he is committed to spreading the word about the importance and significance of the Memorial and Veterans Day holidays. "Until my dying day I will try to convey the meaning of patriotism," Mercer said.
Justin Harrigan said he understood the pickle that the Education Department. has found itself in. But unlike many other veterans in the territory, he supports the department. "It's about the kids," he said.
Harrigan endorsed teaching students in each classroom on May 29 "the meaning of this day we hold so dear."
The task force is expected to revisit the make-up day schedule when it meets again Monday.

After shepherding St. Croix to the brink of its first Casino, V.I. Casino Control Commission chairwoman Eileen Petersen received glowing reviews at a reconfirmation hearing before the Senate Rules Committee Thursday.
Petersen, a retired Territorial Court judge with 23 years of service, is up for her second $80,000-a-year, four-year term on the CCC. With less than a week before the ribbon-cutting for the Divi Carina Bay Resort and Casino, Petersen was lauded for her work in helping get a casino open on St. Croix.
"You’re the person in the position, frankly, who should run the casino commission," said Sen. Vargrave Richards. "You, to this date, have tried to establish a high standard . . . for casinos in the territory."
Despite being underfunded and understaffed, especially in technical assistance – the downfall of most gambling regulating bodies, according to a national expert – the commission, Petersen said, will be successful in regulating casinos. Already, she said, it has thwarted individuals who had questionable motives in investing in St. Croix, particularly people looking to launder money.
"I cannot and will not be corrupted," she said, adding that despite the shortcomings of the CCC, gaming will work here. "This Casino Control Commission intends to beat these odds . . . so the result is a resounding success for this community."
Sen. Gregory Bennerson warned that "casino sharks" roam the world in search of new casinos with inexperienced staff and lax security.
"There is people out there who gear themselves up for a new casino to open up. I guess we’re going to be there next week," Bennerson said. "If you don’t have the financial support from this government, then casino sharks are going to milk that casino."
According to the Casino Control Act, gaming enforcement agents are supposed to be in the casino during all business hours. But because of funding issues, Petersen said the commission will have to find ways to ensure proper staffing. She told senators that the commission would explain its plan in private.
"We can’t afford agents at all times," Petersen said. "We have to be creative . . . to make sure we have a presence as required by law. This is new to all of us. As mature as I appear, as confident as I appear, I’m apprehensive and as scared as everybody else."
Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen, meanwhile, questioned whether hiring at the Divi Carina Bay Resort and Casino was adhering to the Casino Control Act. She said casino-hotels are not supposed to open until "resident workers" have been trained and qualified to assume jobs at all levels. "When the doors open it better be with people who’ve been suffering and waiting for positions," Hansen said.
Taken by itself, Petersen said, Hansen’s point would keep the Divi from opening next week. But Petersen said she was taking into consideration other requirements of the casino act that allow off-islanders to train locals for a short time.
As of Feb. 25, some 222 people had been hired at Divi. About 77 percent are bona fide Virgin Islanders, meaning people either born in the territory or who have lived in the islands for five years. The Casino Control Act mandates that at the end of its first year of operation, a casino-hotel must be staffed 65 percent by locals.
"I have to look at the statute and interpret it not in isolation," Petersen told Hansen, adding that if it was just the section Hansen referred to, casinos on St. Croix would be "dead."
"For example," Petersen said, "we have an (off-island) casino manger . . . you can’t get that from a school. Those are positions you have to have technical assistance and experience working with one of our local people, so within the next two to three years they can move up to the next position."
Petersen’s reappointment was moved out of the Rules Committee with a favorable recommendation on a 6-1 vote, with Sen. Adelbert Bryan absent. Her appointment will go next to the full Senate.
Meanwhile, Petersen said potential investors are watching the opening of the Divi. If it doesn’t go well, she said the island’s future for gaming is doomed.
"There are several persons waiting to see how the commission and the government treat the casino before they turn their license application in," she said.