The Sunrise News Sampler

• Next week is Harassment Awareness Learning Together  (HALT) Week in all city schools. The anti-bullying program was implemented to teach students how to recognize bullying and safely intervene. Each school has designated days for the week, and the district will host activities of its own. In addition, an awareness session on bullying for parents will be November 5th from 6 to 7:30pm in the Regions Roomo at the Tuscaloosa City Schools office.

• Four of the justices who served on the Alabama Supreme Court with former Chief Justice Roy Moore are among 10 former and current justices who signed a letter endorsing Moore's opponent Bob Vance in the November 6th chief justice election. 

• Crime is said to be an increased concern in sections of New York City that are without electricity following superstorm Sandy. Police have brought in banks of lights and boosted patrols.

• President Obama is still skipping the formal campaign in battleground states but is underscoring his role as the incumbent in the wake of the storm, which has caused Mitt Romney to tread carefully while attempting to wage an effective campaign.

• Tomorrow at 4:30pm, Tuscaloosa resident John L. Hooks will be presented the Purple Heart in a ceremony in the North Zone of Bryant-Denny Stadium. Hooks earned the prestigious military award while serving in the US Air Force during the Vietnam War, but he never received the honor because of an error in processing paperwork. 

• A group of students from Spain Park High School in Birmingham took part in an international mock-trial competition in New York, and they'd planned to come home Monday but ended up stranded by the storm. They hope to return home today.

• Home prices are said to be on the rise with the average home price in 20 major cities jumping 0.9%. This is the 5th consecutive month of gains for the Standard and Poors/Case-Shiller home price index, with every city but Seattle recording month-over-month price increases, according to CNN Money.

10-31-12