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(04/09/14 3:11am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Teacher evaluations from a new statewide system of educator ratings were released Monday, but the data collected by the Indiana Department of Education has raised questions of viability.New teacher evaluations link educators’ performance to test scores. More than 87 percent of teachers were graded as being highly effective or effective, while 1 percent of teachers were graded as ineffective. Implemented in the 2012-13 school year, these scores are collected from local school corporations and distributed by the Indiana Department of Education.“I am encouraged by these numbers,” Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz said in an IDOE press release. “For the most part, they confirm what we already knew, that public schools throughout Indiana are filled with effective and highly effective teachers.”Many have criticized the evaluation process because the numbers of ineffective teachers seemed impossibly low. Only 0.39 percent of teachers were given an “ineffective” rating. Ten percent of educators were listed as “not applicable / not evaluated.”Teresa Meredith, president of the Indiana State Teacher’s Association, said this was probably because truly ineffective teachers were being let go or asked to resign. “If a teacher’s counted as ineffective, do you want them to stay in the classroom all year long?” Meredith said. “They’re just not evaluated.” Meredith said she did not think it was worthwhile to include these people in the evaluations. The 2012-13 school year was the first time the new evaluation model was in effect. Teachers were placed into one of four categories: highly effective, effective, improvement necessary and ineffective. Administrators and all certified school employees were also included in the evaluations.Legislation enacted by the 2011 General Assembly required school districts to adapt their methods of evaluation. A press release from the Indiana State Teacher’s Association said administrators were being required to spend more time evaluating each individual teacher on an annual basis rather than leading educational programming.Meredith said the scores are based on individual teacher evaluations conducted on the local level. Before the law was passed, there was not a requirement to conduct annual evaluations.“Before, schools might not have done an actual, physical evaluation in the classroom, but now they have to,” Meredith said.ISTEP test scores also contributed to the rating teachers received. Overall test scores of teachers’ pupils could affect the grade the educator is given.Meredith pointed out issues with this process, particularly that teachers could be working in a low-performing school but could still be performing to the best of their ability.“You could be a really good teacher, but if the school has a lot of challenges you could be harmed by that,” Meredith said. “If you’re in an impoverished community, your score might be harmed, but you could be doing an outstanding job.”The teacher evaluations are not strictly for data collection purposes. The data could be used to deny teachers pay raises, Meredith said. If teachers do not meet a certain standard, they are ineligible for a pay raise, regardless of whether or not funds are available.“They’re prohibited by law to get a pay increase if they’re not graded as effective or highly effective,” Meredith said. “It can affect a teacher’s compensation.”Meredith also said for teachers who are employed in higher-performing areas, the evaluations may not be representative of their performance. If there is less room to grow, Meredith said, then the evaluations may not reflect a teacher’s improvement.“I’m just not sure it’s a smart thing,” Meredith said. “So much hinges on the person who’s evaluating you.”The evaluation program is flexible at the local level. School corporations are given the choice of who will conduct individual teacher evaluations. Some corporations opted to bring in private evaluators who then sent the data to the IDOE. Evaluations were all-inclusive. They covered administrators, school counselors and any other certified employees. However, only 51 school corporations’ “central office” data was displayed on the spreadsheet distributed by the IDOE. About 80 percent of school corporations displayed “less than 10 educators reported” for their administrative office section.Meredith said this was a precaution to protect educators’ privacy. If too few employees are working in a corporation’s central office, the IDOE will not list the data in order to prevent poor scores from becoming obviously linked to a single person.“They’re really trying to protect identities,” Meredith said. “This isn’t a witch hunt.”The same was true for individual schools. If there were fewer than 10 educators for a specific school, the IDOE did not release the data. Data was therefore not accessible for 328 out of the 1,756 schools listed in Indiana. Some school corporations did not report to the IDOE at all. The Monroe County Community School Corporation was one of six school corporations that did not have any reports for any teachers.Meredith said if the school corporation’s contracts already had included an evaluation instrument, those teachers would not be required to undergo evaluations under the law until new contracts were drawn.Beverly Smith, director of school and community services for MCCSC, confirmed that this was the case for MCCSC. Meredith said she felt that establishing a program such as this on the state level was a good step toward keeping Indiana teachers from becoming complacent, despite issues in the first year with implementation.“I think an evaluation instrument is important, and I think it’s important that it’s flexible locally,” Meredith said. “I think teachers by and large want feedback to know how we’re doing.”
(04/03/14 3:58am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Bloomington City Council considered an amendment to an existing ordinance during a meeting Wednesday night that would allow professional sharpshooting at the Griffy Lake Nature Preserve.The amendment to the current ordinance, proposed by council member Dave Rollo, would allow only professional sharpshooters contracted by the city to hunt within the Griffy Lake Nature Preserve.Costs to the city for this expense were estimated to be about $30,000 annually.Municipal code does not allow any use of a firearm within city limits unless it is discharged by a law enforcement officer or used in self-defense.Rollo said that if the council does not take action to curb deer overabundance now, the effects could be irreversible.“Damage is acute now,” Rollo said. “And it’s getting worse.”The meeting began with the council voting by a margin of 5 to 3, with one abstention, not to limit the amount of time allowed for council deliberation and public comment.Council member Stephen Volan presented a motion to limit the debate to three hours in order to regulate the amount of time Wednesday night’s meeting would take.“There’s no reason why this has to be decided at second reading on April 9,” Volan said, implying that the ordinance could go to a third reading.Several council members objected, saying that the motion was unprecedented and would limit the input of the public.“We’ve never done this before,” council member Andy Ruff said.Each public comment was limited to five minutes, however.Ramsay Harik, a community member, asked the council to take immediate action, putting priority on the science available to them “no matter how squeamish it makes the rest of us feel.”David Parkhurst, who worked for the IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs until 2005, said allowing this amendment would help preserve the existing environment at Griffy Lake.“I don’t understand what’s so precious about deer that makes them so much more important than birds and other wildlife,” Parkhurst said.A Griffy Lake Master Plan compiled in 2008 recognized the problem of deer overpopulation and called for an examination of potential solutions to the problem.Sharpshooting was determined to be the most viable option. Contraception and sterilization were both discussed at Wednesday night’s council meeting as alternatives, but were generally agreed upon to not be cost-effective.“Contraception has ever proven ineffective in a free-ranging environment,” said Josh Griffin, a regional supervisor with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.Michael Ellenwood said he had been hunting deer his entire life and feels the council is not considering unintended consequences.Ellenwood is from upstate New York, an area that also struggles with deer overabundance.He said he feels that shooting the deer will only cause them to disperse.“As soon as you start shooting them, they’ll move,” Ellenwood said.Richard Darling, a Bloomington resident, said his neighborhood was serving as a “highway” for deer traveling to Griffy Lake. “‘Bambi’ is a very interesting movie. It’s fun to watch and kids love it,” Darling said. “I don’t want a herd of deer and skunks ravaging my front yard.”
(03/26/14 2:29am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Ed Ferrer, also known as “Snakehead Ed,” showed a variety of critters at the “Snakes of Planet Earth: A Live Animal Show” one-day program on Tuesday at WonderLab Museum of Science, Health and Technology.One girl exclaimed at the top of her voice when Ferrer pulled a corn snake out of a cotton bag. “You guys are easy,” Ferrer said to the group of delighted children when he showed the first and smallest reptile.Ferrer taught middle school science for 32 years and has been coming to WonderLab as a presenter for some time since his retirement.“I love going back to school,” Ferrer said. “I don’t care whether it’s kinder-care, elementary, middle school or college classes.”The last and largest of the snakes Ferrer showed, an albino Burmese python, weighed 100 pounds and required four people to hold it.Most of the chairs were full, with kids sitting on mats around the front of the audience of roughly 80 people. It was a typical turnout for a live animal show at the museum, said Karen Jepson-Innes, associate director of WonderLab.But this time of year is especially busy for the science museum. Last week was the busiest WonderLab has ever seen.“We’ve had record attendance,” Jepson-Innes said. “We have families coming in all over the state and the region throughout pretty much the entire second half of March and the beginning of April.”Each snake was kept in a breathable cotton bag with a rubber band tied around the top, or in the case of the two biggest reptiles, large coolers with duct tape securing the lid. Snakes prefer the dark, Ferrer said.Indiana is home to four venomous snakes, Ferrer said. Two live in the area: copperheads, which Ferrer said are fairly common, and timber brown snakes, which are endangered.Most venoms from snakes in the area can be treated easily with a trip to the hospital, Ferrer said.The museum makes an effort to bring in a diversity of presenters. It invites “Snakehead Ed” every one or two years. The snakes are particularly popular, Jepson-Innes said.“Live animals are a really popular way for people to engage with science and biology,” Jepson-Innes said.
(03/10/14 3:42am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Not long before the bridal fashion show began Friday, every salon chair in Royale Hair Parlor was empty. But behind a black screen in a usually unseen part of the salon, the back room was abuzz with activity. Women and girls of all ages slid into wedding dresses ranging in color from standout orange to pure white. Final hairpins were being secured and bouquets were handed out 15 minutes before the show began.When 7 p.m. came, the main salon was full. Spectators ‘ooh’ed and ‘ah’ed for each model as they walked the length of the parlor. The Bridal Art Fashion Show staged at Royale featured styles from two local businesses, A to Z Vintage and Lily Ball Designs. Local artists also created the cake, food and photography.“That was the emphasis,” said Lisa Morrison, owner of an event planning and design services company called I Do Events. “Local hair, local fashion, local floral, local food.” Erin Gammon, the managing stylist with Royale Hair Parlor, said this is Royale’s first bridal show. The stylings for each model were a wide range from modern to vintage.Gammon said there was an effort to choose models of different sizes and ages.Some of the models were garnered through Facebook and other bridal shows, Gammon said. Others, like Abby Bush, were asked to model.Bush, a 17-year-old high school student who plans to enroll at IU-Purdue University Indianapolis, said she was approached by one of the stylists at a tailgate.“This is my first time doing anything like this,” Bush said.Alex Martin, a self-described “wedding fanatic,” said he had come to the event to watch his partner model a dress and to try to better understand wedding culture.Martin’s partner was one of 10 models in the show and prepared the cake, along with a bride and groom cake topper, for the event. Martin said the two of them had “slaved away all night and all morning” preparing the dessert for Royale’s show.The variety of styles featured in the bridal show was meant to appeal to any bride-to-be, Gammon said.“A lot of the bridal stuff is over the top and super fancy, and that doesn’t suit a lot of people,” Gammon said. “We have a lot of clients who are a little bit more down to Earth, and they want something that suits them and still feels like them.”Royale typically has bridal parties almost every Saturday during wedding season, Gammon added. Royale is one of the few parlors in Bloomington that takes wedding parties.
(02/14/14 5:07am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>In the last year, the City of Bloomington Animal Care and Control shelter has seen decreased numbers of animals coming into the shelter and greater numbers of adoptions.Laurie Ringquist, Director of Animal Care and Control in Bloomington, said in a press release this is the first time the shelter’s annual intake has been less than 4,000 animals, according to data dating as far back as 1978.Shelter Manager Virgil Sauder said last year, the shelter held a three-month long ASPCA challenge in order to push animal adoptions. The program was successful, and there were 2,393 total adoptions in 2012, representing a 22 percent increase from 2011.“It was a lot of work and a lot of effort getting those out of the door,” Sauder said in regards to the ASPCA challenge. “Last year we didn’t do that, but we saw our numbers of adoptions being the same, pretty much.” There were 2,216 total adoptions in 2013, 117 less than 2012. There were also 106 fewer animals taken in by the shelter in 2013 than in 2012.“In our normal operating procedures, we were able to re-create those three months of complete, intense, push,” Sauder said.In 2013, 1,992 cats were taken into the shelter and slightly more than the 1,732 dogs.About 1,080 cats and 966 dogs were adopted, less than the 2012 adoption rate but considerably greater than 778 cats and 1,063 dogs adopted in 2011. Sauder has been working at the shelter since the fall of 2005, making this his ninth year as manager. Improvements in adoption, euthanasia and intake rates have happened throughout the years, Sauder said.“It’s been a change that’s happened over time,” he said.This is due to a variety of efforts throughout the years, Sauder said, including providing easy and affordable spaying and neutering services.When the number of litters decreases, the intake numbers for the shelter also decreases.The same is true for a city-supported effort to spay and neuter the feral cat population.Sauder said when he started, there were litters of eight to 10 puppies coming in multiple times a day.“When you go from starting the day with three kennels, to having easily 15 dogs walking in the door, there’s just only so much you can do because you get yourself backed up,” Sauder said. He noted this problem has persisted somewhat with kittens, but that intake overall has decreased.Sauder said the decreased numbers of animals in the shelter also improves the experience of people walking in the door.“Having less animals packed in makes for the adoptions to happen quicker because it’s not as overwhelming,” Sauder said.Funded by the city, the animal shelter also handles animal control. The shelter has contracted with the county, meaning county animal control brings in the strays from everywhere in Monroe County.“Everyone who’s a resident in Monroe County through their tax dollars are already paying for our services,” Sauder said. The shelter depends on the support of volunteers. Their services include sheltering stray animals, reuniting lost pets and their families, facilitating adoptions, enforcing county ordinances, and investigating cruelty and neglect cases, according to the shelter’s website.Sauder reiterated the past year has represented less work from volunteers but an overall improvement in numbers for the shelter.“We can do the same amount of saving lives and getting them out the door with less stress,” Sauder said. Follow reporter Mary Katherine Wildeman on Twitter @marykwild.
(02/10/14 4:59am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The game was won, and the IU hockey team silently jumped the rink barrier and formed a circle in the middle of the arena, sticks in hand. John Gerhan, an IU player, took off the No. 5 jersey he was wearing, slid it onto a hanger, and hung it on the rink’s wall. It wasn’t his jersey, it was his best friend’s. It was Goose’s.He picked up his stick and joined the rest of the team.The players pounded their on the ice about five times, and then raised them in the air. It was a final salute to their former teammate and friend, Michael Giesler. Everyone called him Goose.Single file, the players left the ice as silently as they came. Gerhan kissed two fingers, brushing them on the jersey as he skated past.One other player had worn No. 5 since Goose left the team in 2012. But after Goose died suddenly while skating on Feb. 1, they all agreed they should retire it in his memory.“He only played really one full season, but he was all of our best friend,” Gerhan said. “I wouldn’t want to see someone else wearing his number, personally ... that was his number.”Giesler only played on the team for the 2011-2012 season, but he was a member of a Bloomington league team after he left and was familiar to everyone in the Bloomington hockey community.Stephan Nicklow, a close family friend, said a sense of camaraderie was what drew Giesler to hockey. Gerhan described Goose as “a total rink rat.”Gerhan and Giesler were friends since the pair tried out for the team. Both from Minnesota, they shared a history in hockey. Gerhan’s school beat Giesler’s in the sport during high school.“He never let me live it down,” Gerhan said.That was the topic of conversation the last time Gerhan saw his best friend. Giesler was at one of the “hockey houses,” as the team referred to the house where many of the hockey players live and socialize, drinking a couple beers and having a good time.“It really could not have been a better last night with him ... it gives me good peace of mind,” Gerhan said. “It was everything I could ask for, for sure.”Giesler was the sort of person that everyone in the Bloomington hockey community knew, said Dan Emanuel, a senior member of the IU Men’s Hockey team.“If you were to go out and ask people if they knew who The Goose was, you would find so many people who would know instantly what you were talking about,” Emanuel said.At the time that he died, he was practicing to play in the Winter Classic, a hockey tournament in Bloomington. Giesler still came to IU hockey games whenever he could, Emanuel said, even though he was often working on Saturdays at Kilroy’s.Giesler was finishing his degree requirements at Ivy Tech, living in Bloomington and working at the local bar, said Nicklow. Emanuel said even though Giesler was no longer on the team and not an IU student when he died, he was still a part of the IU hockey brotherhood.“We’re a family,” Emanuel said, adding that most of the hockey players live in the same area, practice three times a week and stay in hotels together when they go to games. Giesler, he said, was loved by everyone.“He was one of the most genuine, loving people I knew,” Emanuel said. “He loved being the center of attention. He would bring that energy to the room. No matter what kind of mood you were in, he would put a smile on your face.”Nicklow grew up with Giesler and said he could not imagine anyone thinking poorly of him.“Everyone around him always felt Gies’ love,” Nicklow said. “You knew that man loved you every step of the way.”Nicklow was especially close to Giesler’s cousin. Giesler was the best man at his cousin’s wedding, and the two were really more like brothers, Nicklow said. Giesler’s father died before he was a year old and he had no biological siblings. Since he grew up with a single parent, Giesler was particularly close to his mother.“I’m so close with my mom,” Nicklow remembered his friend saying. “She’s my best friend.”Nicklow added that it was rare to catch his friend in a bad mood, and Giesler was the sort of person that had been known to have a 45-minute conversation with his taxi driver in a driveway.“We’re going to miss him, but he definitely lived every minute to the fullest,” Nicklow said.No one saw Giesler’s death coming. The heart attack happened without warning. If there was a pre-existing condition, Nicklow said, no one was aware of it.“It was a complete shock to me, to all of us,” Gerhan said. “It was really tragic.”For the hockey team, hearing about the loss of their friend was very difficult.“When we found out, I don’t think a word was said in the house for two hours,” Emanuel said. “It doesn’t feel real.”A memorial service was held for Giesler on Wednesday morning. Emanuel said it was very well attended, with friends from work and hockey coming out to pay their last respects to Goose.“When I saw him in the casket, I couldn’t help but smile, because I could just imagine his big smile coming across his face,” Emanuel said. “He definitely will never be forgotten.”On Friday in Orono, Minnesota, where Giesler grew up, a separate memorial service was held. Gerhan flew out of Indianapolis in the early morning to attend the funeral and flew back late at night.“There’s been tears, but everyone’s been as positive as possible,” Nicklow said. “We’re going to miss him, but he definitely lived every minute to the fullest.”Nicklow said for family and friends, the past week has been a celebration of Giesler’s life. Knowing his friend, Nicklow said that he would have wanted everyone to be happy and remember the good times they had together.“I haven’t even cried because I know he wouldn’t want me to,” Nicklow said.Follow reporter Mary Katherine Wildeman on Twitter @marykwild
(02/04/14 5:44am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A 24-year-old Bloomington man died suddenly while ice skating Saturday afternoon. According to a report from the Bloomington Police Department, the man fell at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Frank Southern Ice Arena on South Henderson Street. IU men’s hockey Coach Pete Nelson said the man’s name was Michael Giesler.The cause of death is not yet clear. IU Health ambulance personnel attempted CPR at the scene but were unsuccessful. Later, he was pronounced dead in the emergency room, Bloomington Police Department Sgt. Joe Crider said.He had been ice skating and may have sustained a seizure, then fell down, Crider said. Giesler complained to two other people in the arena of feeling tired before he fell. Teammates of Giesler said he was an extremely friendly person and dedicated to hockey. “He was the definition of a rink rat,” said John Gerhan, who said he was Giesler’s best friend. Gerhan said his friend played on the official IU team for one year. After that year, Gerhan and Giesler became roommates. “He was a very effective, smart hockey player,” Gerhan added. Both from Minnesota, Gerhan and Giesler grew up in the same area and were hockey players on rival teams during high school. When they both showed up to hockey tryouts at IU, Giesler initially refused to speak to Gerhan. But soon, the pair were the best of friends. “As our friendship grew, I felt like he was more of a brother to me,” Gerhan said. “We just got each other.”Nelson had known him since he started coaching the team. Also a fellow Minnesota native, Nelson said he had worked with Giesler during his first year coaching. “He was one of the first people I met here,” Nelson said. “First and foremost, he was a part of our hockey team with IU.” Nelson said Giesler left the team because of academic reasons. He was finishing his degree requirements and was due to graduate from Ivy Tech at the time that he died. Nelson went on to explain that he is a member of the same men’s hockey league team in Bloomington of which Giesler was a member. Tommy Washburn said he was Giesler’s teammate for three years. He said the team is very close and that Giesler was a “huge spirit who truly cared about everybody.”“Michael played a big brother role for everyone on that team,” Washburn said. Gerhan said there will be a funeral for his friend in Minnesota and a service for him 10 a.m. Wednesday at Bloomington’s Allen Funeral Home. On Saturday, when the team plays University of Kentucky, Gerhan will wear Giesler’s jersey. “We’re going to retire his number after the game,” he said. Dennis Barbosa contributed reporting to this story.
(02/03/14 3:51am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>About ten pairs of boots squished along the half frozen, half waterlogged path in 30-degree weather at Stillwater Marsh on Monroe Lake early Sunday morning.Naturalist Jill Vance led a 1.75-mile hike through the seasonal wetland area, which is managed by the reservoir’s staff. Sunday was World Wetlands Day, an annual international event marking the anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands. The convention was signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, and was originally signed by 18 parties. Since then, the number of signatures has increased to 168 participating countries. There are 2,177 Wetlands of International Importance, according to the Ramsar Convention website.“The primary intention of this hike is to showcase what we do as far as managing the land for the wetland complex,” Vance said.The Paynetown Activity Center, also on Monroe Lake, organized activities for children from 1 to 4:30 p.m. in honor of World Wetlands Day. Children could assemble their own 3-D wetland animals and watch films about wetland wildlife while munching on popcorn. The levee path is closed to visitors October through mid-April to create a resting area for the birds. That said, the birds’ winter won’t be entirely peaceful. “We do provide some limited opportunities for hunters to come in here,” Vance said. “All the funds that we get to manage the habitat and support these wildlife populations actually comes from hunting dollars.” Dolores and Jason Francis, mother and son, said they usually hike throughout the winter and around their home — though not as much as they would have liked in the month of January because of the inclement weather. It was their first visit to Stillwater Marsh. “This is the first time I’ve ever been here, but I’ve been on a good many of Jill’s hikes,” Dolores said. “I just enjoy these kind of hikes. I always learn something.” The Indiana Wetlands website estimates there are 14,416 acres of wetlands in Monroe County and 1,007,194 acres statewide. “Wetlands are among the world’s most productive environments,” the website for the Convention on Wetlands explains. “They are cradles of biological diversity, providing the water and productivity upon which countless species of plants and animals depend for survival.”Stillwater Marsh is one of Lake Monroe’s seasonal wetlands. Contained by a man-made levee wall, Stillwater is flooded into one continuous wetland area in the winter months and is closed to visitors from Oct. 1 to April 15. “We have a bunch of different habitats, like a patchwork through this area, so we can support a variety of needs that wildlife are going to have,” Vance said. Vance said the Monroe Lake reservoir was established in 1974. As the lake was put in, some wetlands were created as well. She added that Stillwater is by far the biggest area in the reservoir. “The intent was — after the lake went in — to create not just a wetland area, but a true wetland-managed complex,” Vance said. The purpose of Stillwater is primarily to attract wildlife, specifically water fowl, Vance explained. In the summer, fields in Stillwater are planted with corn, millet and other crops. When the area is flooded with water, the birds are provided with an easily accessible source of food and a respite from predators who won’t follow them into the water. Pumps flood the reservoirs in early October, Vance said. The largest pump is 24 inches in diameter, and runs constantly for about ten days, moving 18 to 20 thousand gallons every minute. The Environmental Protection Agency estimated that Indiana lost 87 percent of its wetlands by the 1980s. “We don’t have nearly as many as we used to,” Vance said. “Although our numbers have trended slightly back up.”Natural wetlands are important to preserve not only for wildlife, but also because they act as a filter for water. World Wetlands Day works to raise awareness of the importance of these reserves. “It’s a celebration of wetlands and what they do for people and animals all around the world,” Vance said. — M.K. Wildeman
(01/28/14 8:19pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Bureau of Labor Statistics released data last Friday indicating Indiana workers are slightly below the national average in union membership. The United States had an 11.3 percent average of workers who were union members in 2013, a statistic that was unchanged from 2012. Indiana reported a 9.3 percent union membership, which represented a slight increase from 9.1 percent in 2012. These numbers do not represent U.S. or Indiana employees who do not report union affiliation, but whose jobs are still covered by a union. Twenty-seven states reported higher union membership rates than Indiana. North Carolina had the lowest rate for 2013 at 3 percent. New York had the highest rate at 24.4 percent. Thomas E. Perez, U.S. secretary of labor, said in a statement union members had higher salaries and better benefits, such as health insurance and vacation leave, compared to non-unionized workers in 2013.“Among full-time wage and salary workers, union members have higher median weekly earnings than nonunion workers,” Perez said in the release. “The median weekly earnings of union members were $950, compared to $750 for nonunion workers.”— Mary Katherine Wildeman
(01/28/14 4:55am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Workers from the Indiana Department of Transportation have been working consecutive 12-hour shifts to meet the needs of a brutal winter, said Harry Maginity, a spokesperson for INDOT Southeast. Some employees have had only one day off a week. “Last year was not a very hard winter,” he said. “This year has been pretty extreme so far.” Statewide, the department is spending money at almost twice the rate of the average for the past five years, he said.“This year we’ve spent $31 million already, and the winter is half over,” Maginity said. A press release from INDOT indicated the state spent $33.8 million in “winter operations” on average over the past five years. According to the release, INDOT has logged 4.3 million miles, used 265,000 tons of granular salt and 2.5 million gallons of salt brine on highways. Maginity said INDOT Southeast was contracted to buy rock salt at a rate of $61 per ton.A typical truck carries six tons. Another problem INDOT has been facing is extremely low temperatures. Normally, rock salt is effective down to about 20 degrees, Maginity said. Supplements such as magnesium chloride and a product called Beet Heat can bring salt’s effectiveness down to zero degrees.“The problem is that we’ve been experiencing temperatures below zero,” Maginity said.It is not only snow plow drivers who are working overtime to meet the needs of the state.Mechanics have been put through their paces trying to keep up with machinery maintenance, Maginity said. Equipment used by the department is suffering statewide, too.Poor conditions take their toll on the fleet of trucks, Maginity said. He added that it does not help that the state extended the number of years single trucks are allowed to be on the road.“Several years ago, they extended the service cycle from 15 years to 18 years,” he said. “That’s stretching the money of the taxpayer.” Extreme weather condition roads do not only affect workers and equipment for the INDOT. Using large amounts of rock salt can also have serious environmental consequences.“The salt, as the snow melts, gets transported into local streams,” said Todd Royer, an associate professor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. “There, it changes the water chemistry.” Royer said rock salt runoff from roads can increase the salinity of the water. If the salinity is high enough, it can be toxic to aquatic life. Roadside vegetation can be affected as well, Royer added, because road salt will accumulate on roadsides. Royer was not aware of any alternatives to rock salt that are both environmentally friendly and cost-effective. There are some based on sugars, but Royer said they tend to be less effective than standard rock salt. Salt levels are increasing in the ground water, and though much of the salt is flushed out of the water in the spring, some can accumulate in ground water salinization, Royer said. Royer cautioned against reading too much into increased levels for just one year. Long-term, chronic effects will not be affected by higher levels in a single year, he said. However, the acute effects, as Royer put it, could be visible within the year. “This year will have higher salt use than average. That means there’s going to be greater opportunity for salt to get into streams and rivers,” said Royer. “When the soils thaw, we will see effects.”
(01/28/14 4:54am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Workers from the Indiana Department of Transportation have been working consecutive 12-hour shifts to meet the needs of a brutal winter, said Harry Maginity, a spokesperson for INDOT Southeast. Some employees have had only one day off a week. “Last year was not a very hard winter,” he said. “This year has been pretty extreme so far.” Statewide, the department is spending money at almost twice the rate of the average for the past five years, he said.“This year we’ve spent $31 million already, and the winter is half over,” Maginity said. A press release from INDOT indicated the state spent $33.8 million in “winter operations” on average over the past five years. According to the release, INDOT has logged 4.3 million miles, used 265,000 tons of granular salt and 2.5 million gallons of salt brine on highways. Maginity said INDOT Southeast was contracted to buy rock salt at a rate of $61 per ton.A typical truck carries six tons. Another problem INDOT has been facing is extremely low temperatures. Normally, rock salt is effective down to about 20 degrees, Maginity said. Supplements such as magnesium chloride and a product called Beet Heat can bring salt’s effectiveness down to zero degrees.“The problem is that we’ve been experiencing temperatures below zero,” Maginity said.It is not only snow plow drivers who are working overtime to meet the needs of the state.Mechanics have been put through their paces trying to keep up with machinery maintenance, Maginity said. Equipment used by the department is suffering statewide, too.Poor conditions take their toll on the fleet of trucks, Maginity said. He added that it does not help that the state extended the number of years single trucks are allowed to be on the road.“Several years ago, they extended the service cycle from 15 years to 18 years,” he said. “That’s stretching the money of the taxpayer.” Extreme weather condition roads do not only affect workers and equipment for the INDOT. Using large amounts of rock salt can also have serious environmental consequences.“The salt, as the snow melts, gets transported into local streams,” said Todd Royer, an associate professor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. “There, it changes the water chemistry.” Royer said rock salt runoff from roads can increase the salinity of the water. If the salinity is high enough, it can be toxic to aquatic life. Roadside vegetation can be affected as well, Royer added, because road salt will accumulate on roadsides. Royer was not aware of any alternatives to rock salt that are both environmentally friendly and cost-effective. There are some based on sugars, but Royer said they tend to be less effective than standard rock salt. Salt levels are increasing in the ground water, and though much of the salt is flushed out of the water in the spring, some can accumulate in ground water salinization, Royer said. Royer cautioned against reading too much into increased levels for just one year. Long-term, chronic effects will not be affected by higher levels in a single year, he said. However, the acute effects, as Royer put it, could be visible within the year. “This year will have higher salt use than average. That means there’s going to be greater opportunity for salt to get into streams and rivers,” said Royer. “When the soils thaw, we will see effects.”
(01/27/14 10:50pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Since the polar vortex struck, propane shortages have plagued Indiana. Sub-zero temperatures have increased demand as people attempt to heat their homes, while trucks carrying propane have been delayed because of road conditions. “Just ugly shortages,” said Dennis Clark, owner of Clark’s LP Gas in Bloomington. Clark said that his propane dealing business has been dealing with 50 percent less gas than what the company normally has at this time of year. Clark said the shortages have been a problem throughout January. He attributed the lack of propane not to a scarcity in supply but to increased demand for the gas and an inability to transport resources. “We’re rationing the gas allocation,” he said, saying that each customer was allowed 200 gallons maximum, whereas the normal limit would be between 250 and 350 gallons. Sandy Clark, an employee at Clark’s LP Gas on South Ketcham Road in Bloomington, said this means they can only fill a standard 500-gallon tank halfway. This amount of propane could last between three weeks to a month, depending on the weather, the home’s insulation and other factors, Sandy Clark said. Dennis Clark said the customers understand the need to ration, but they usually hate the decreased allocation of propane.For the time being, Bloomington residents will have to make do with the rationed amounts.“This will help them through this cold spell until we can do better,” said Sandy Clark. Gov. Mike Pence has been easing restrictions on the transportation of propane due to the “extreme winter weather,” according to a press release. Pence issued a proclamation on Jan. 3 waiving the limit on the number of hours truck drivers were allowed to be on the road in order to compensate for slow transportation.This proclamation, which was originally set to expire on Jan. 17, was extended through Friday in order to accommodate for persistent cold temperatures and poor road conditions. Transport drivers’ hours are normally limited, which has worked to contribute to shortages, according to a press release from Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller. “Consumers have likely noticed the spike in propane prices as the costs of heating their homes have jumped significantly,” Zoeller said in the release. “Unfortunately, there is no easy solution to the current situation so we urge consumers to take adequate precautions now to make sure their homes stay warm during these frigid temperatures.” The proclamation estimated that 500,000 Hoosiers use propane in their homes and acknowledged demand for propane has increased because of “near-record cold temperatures.” Additionally, a press release from the Indiana Senate Republican Caucus said an amendment will be announced to Senate Bill 1 today to “offer support to Hoosiers who may be affected by the Midwest propane shortage.” It was not made clear what exactly the amendment would do.The National Propane Gas Association reported the challenges in supplying propane began in October, when grain crops were being harvested. Because the harvest was large in quantity and very wet, a huge amount of propane was needed to dry crops prior to their storage. As a result, stores of propane were depleted, according to the NPGA. The NPGA also reported that 31 states have issued Hours of Service relief proclamations similar to the one issued by Gov. Pence. Dennis Clark said he does not think the propane shortage will last for too much longer. As weather improves, the propane deficit should stop being a problem, he said. “I think about the second week of February it’ll probably let loose a bit,” Dennis Clark said.
(01/27/14 5:32am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Monroe County was sixth in the state in total meth labs discovered by police in 2013.This is an improvement from 2012, when the county was listed at fourth in the state behind Madison, Vanderburgh and Delaware counties.There were 62 labs seized in Monroe County in 2013 and 60 seized in 2012.Vanderburgh County topped the 2013 charts with 115 meth labs seized by the Indiana State Police or reported from another agency.A press release from the Indiana State Police Meth Suppression Section said it expects Indiana will be first in the country in clandestine lab incidents for 2013, also noting that lab seizures have risen continuously in recent years.This is in contrast with national meth lab seizures since 2010. Based on data from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s website, the number of seizures decreased by 13 percent between 2010 and 2011 and by 18 percent between 2011 and 2012. There is no national data for 2013 listed at this time.In 2001, three labs in Monroe County were seized by the ISP. Rates in Monroe remained relatively low until 2011, when there were 54 seizures, up from 18 in the previous year.
(01/13/14 2:51am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Royale Hair Parlor dedicated a day of haircuts to a fundraiser Sunday for the annual Bloomington PRIDE Film Festival, an event devoted to screening GLBTQ-focused films at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater.The salon also coordinated a silent auction to support the organization’s upcoming festival, scheduled to take place Jan. 23-25. Local businesses and organizations contributed gift certificates and other donations to be auctioned. “I think I cut off a lot,” said Annie Corrigan, who had just received a pixie cut from salon owner Bridgett Vohland. Corrigan is a regular customer at Royale and is planning on attending PRIDE’s film festival. The weekend is a great opportunity to see films that would be hard to see elsewhere, she said. “This was sort of a win-win scenario for me. I needed a haircut anyway, and it goes to a good cause,” Corrigan said. Haircuts were offered from noon to 5 p.m. In two hours, 17 people came in for haircuts, and Royale raised $500 of their $1,200-$1,400 goal, not including funds raised from the silent auction. Molly Lecount, a stylist at Royale, said she first started working at the salon partly because the business often donated money, time and space to philanthropic causes.Vohland, the owner, sits on PRIDE’s board of directors. “One thing that attracted me to working at this salon was that [Vohland] uses her advertising dollars to support things she cares about,” Lecount said. Sunday’s event was the third cut-a-thon the salon has arranged. Royale also played host to a children’s art show to benefit Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children, commonly referred to as CASA. The salon took second place in a national charity challenge called Hairdressers at Heart and was awarded a $2,500 scholarship for its work with CASA. Lecount said that PRIDE is expanding as an organization. “PRIDE used to just be a once-a-year movie festival,” she said. “Now they are planning year-round events. The reason we’re holding the benefit is to help them get the ball rolling.”Abby Henkel, a co-director for PRIDE, said the program has been run by the Buskirk-Chumley Theater for the past ten years.The Buskirk-Chumley’s executive director recently handed over the reins to Henkel, 27, and Sarah Perfetti, 29.Henkel and Perfetti were one of thirteen couples to be married in last year’s LGBTQ wedding, a mass marriage event at the end of the opening day of the festival. Now co-directors of the organization, the pair is working to expand PRIDE’s reach. “Our goal is within a few years to have other programs, depending on what the community needs are,” said Perfetti. The organization is starting to focus on working with queer youth, collaborating with Catholic Charities in providing therapy and support. Henkel and Perfetti also noted that many people had expressed interest in a summer Pride Parade. Money from the fundraiser held on Sunday at Royale is intended to support the costs of screening the films, paying performers and paying the Buskirk-Chumley. Henkel and Perfetti said the average cost of screening a full-length film is $600, and each of the 22 short films they hope to show at the festival cost $50-100. Excess funds will go towards fundraising for PRIDE’s other events. Royale is also providing free makeovers on the opening day of the festival. Henkel and Perfetti said they have four participants signed up at the moment, but there might be more by the end of the week. “People who want to do something different about their look will come to Royale for a consultation,” said Perfetti. Henkel and Perfetti share a residence in Bloomington, and for the time being, their home is the headquarters of PRIDE. Both have full-time jobs, and commented that organizing the event has been a significant undertaking. “We pretty much work all the time,” Henkel said. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s rewarding.”
(11/08/13 5:30am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Dressed in a crisp white button-up, khakis, heavy black boots and a paperboy cap, Thomas Buhls scrawls messages in chalk in front of the Herman B Wells Library. “TRADYOUTH.ORG FOR FAITH AND NATION” and “PATRIARCHY IS BACK” are among the slogans peppered down the sidewalk. A student stops in his tracks and watches Buhls’ work. A woman stops her bicycle to read one of the messages. They both move on without a word. Buhls is the president and founder of IU’s Traditionalist Youth Network chapter, a racist, fundamentalist and anti-gay group. Trad Youth became an official student organization at IU in June. Although Buhls, a 30-year-old senior at IU, would not comment on their membership, the group has close to 2,000 Facebook “likes.” In recent years, there has been a marked increase in the number of hate groups in the United States. The Southern Poverty Law Center, a non-profit civil rights organization, reported 1,007 known organizations in the U.S., an almost 30-percent increase in the last decade. But white supremacy and the Ku Klux Klan have deep roots in Indiana and at IU, with larger membership than the state’s largest Christian denomination in the 1920s. A decade later, faculty members and state legislators debated whether to display murals depicting Klansmen in Woodburn Hall, painted by Thomas Hart Benton to represent the previous decade’s political reality.The murals with the KKK still remain today, and a former Klan member continues to spread a similar message. “My ultimate goal would be to see another white ethno-state emerge — a state comprised of and built for exclusively white people,” Buhls said. * * *In Buhls’ ideal nation, members of other races would be welcome, but would be required to possess a passport to enter. Buhls said he would like to think his work with Trad Youth is equally approachable for anybody. He concentrates on spreading the ideology of the traditionalist school of thought, which promotes a lifestyle based on values of Christian fundamentalism and orthodoxy.“Probably the most controversial position which the Traditionalist Youth Network advances is the idea that we all have a tribe and we all have an identity and we all have a tradition,” Buhls said. “We encourage people to pick one and stick with it.” Buhls upholds traditional views, but he said his childhood was anything but normal. His father was in the Marine Corps until 1992, and Buhls spent his early childhood moving homes and schools for his father’s job. They moved from North Carolina to Marine Barracks in London, England, and landed in Bloomington after his father retired. In June 2001, eight years after relocating to Indiana, Buhls joined the Marines. During his time serving in the military, Buhls joined the Knights Party of the Ku Klux Klan. At the time, immigration was a hot topic, and he said he was frustrated by the lack of government action against illegal immigration. Buhls said his involvement with the Klan was “dedicated and passionate.” But over time, Buhls drifted away from the party’s position and methodology. “For someone like me who’s more interested in actual grassroots political activism, and getting out in the street and doing something, I found that the Knights Party was not structured in a way to do things in a very immediate fashion,” Buhls said. Through social media outlets, Buhls connected with other advocates for white identity in the country. Looking for an outlet to express his views and lead the charge on white nationalism, Buhls turned to Trad Youth. Matthew Heimbach is the co-founder of the national Traditionalist Youth Network organization. A friend of Buhls, Heimbach also formed a White Student Union on the Towson University campus in Maryland. A documentary on Vice.com showed Heimbach and other members of the WSU conducting crime patrols on their campus, specifically targeting “black predators.” In late August, a Towson University professor reached out to the IDS, expressing concerns at the Trad Youth Network’s planned protest at Boxcar Books in Bloomington. Trad Youth is the “national extension” of Heimbach’s White Student Union, Buhls said. The group supports a variety of fringe ideas that have been inflammatory for students on campus. “Ideally, we wouldn’t have to worry about multicultural issues,” Buhls said. “We wouldn’t have those problems because we wouldn’t have a multicultural society.”* * *On July 4, 1999, Benjamin Nathaniel Smith, a member of a white supremacist organization and a former student at IU, murdered IU Korean doctoral student Won-Joon Yoon. After a three-day shooting spree across Illinois and Indiana, Smith drove by the Korean United Methodist Church, shooting the 26-year old. He shot himself later that day. Doug Bauder, co-chair for the IU Commission on Multicultural Understanding, remembers the fatal shooting on Independence Day almost 15 years ago.“When things like this come up, those of us who have been around are reminded how hate groups can lead to violent crime,” Bauder said. “It cast an absolute pall over the city.”An increase in hate groups is linked to President Barack Obama’s liberal policies, especially regarding gun control and immigration reform, Mark Potok, senior fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center, said in a report titled “The Year in Hate and Extremism.”Obama’s election in 2008 reflects a change in demographics. U.S. Census reports indicate that 2012 was the first year white births were in the minority. By 2043, the white majority will likely be gone. Potok’s report suggests the demographic shift is contributing to the expansion of hate groups. Despite not being in the historically conservative South, Indiana has deep ties to white supremacy organizations. In the 1920s, membership in the KKK exploded. The IU-affiliated Indiana Magazine of History reported Indiana’s Klan was “the largest, most enthusiastic and most politically powerful Klan in the country.”At its peak in 1925, Indiana’s Klan boasted more members than the Methodist Church, the state’s leading denomination.* * * On Aug. 6, Buhls received an email from the Office of Student Ethics. He was charged with “damage to or destruction of university property or the property belonging to others,” a violation of the Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities and Conduct. Buhls had chalked and posted fliers in campus spaces where chalking and posting was not allowed, including a bus shelter, in front of the Indiana Memorial Union and inside academic buildings. The office required him to attend a conduct hearing. “I got a little carried away,” he said.The First Amendment prohibits the University from obstructing students’ rights to free speech, so aside from regulating Buhls’ materials in prohibited areas, no action can be taken by the University to prevent Trad Youth from spreading their message. In order to uphold students’ freedom of speech, James Wimbush, vice president for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs, said Trad Youth is a registered organization within IU. However, the University does not endorse the actions of the group. “We find their message to be absolutely inconsistent with the values of the University,” Wimbush said. “It’s a message we absolutely abhor.”Carol McCord, dean of students at IU, said many students have reported instances of Trad Youth’s chalkings and protests to the University’s Incident Teams. “I know a lot of people have been made very uncomfortable by the messages of Trad Youth,” McCord said. “Some are even fearful.”Although Trad Youth’s speech may be despicable to some community members, controlling hate speech has been unsuccessful on state and federal levels, Tim Lemper, IU law professor and one of Buhls’ instructors, said.Attempts tend to regulate speech based on content, “and that’s offensive to the idea of protecting freedom of speech,” he said. Efforts to put a lid on hate speech may actually be misguided, Lemper said. Every type of speech has value in the community by provoking dialogue and discussion, he said.“The answer to bad speech is not to suppress it or to eliminate it,” he said. “The answer to bad speech is good speech.” Despite run-ins with the law, numerous assaults on his person and the conduct hearing with the Office of Student Ethics, Buhls intends to push the limits of legality and University policy. The dance between his activism and University policy is a game, he said. It is important to Trad Youth’s form of activism to capture and keep attention on campus. “I just sort of do what I do and hope I get away with it,” Buhls said.Follow reporter Mary Katherine Wildeman on Twitter @marykwild.