Lakota Investments

By Lindsey Hilty | Thursday, November 20, 2008, 08:49 AM

Ever wonder about how schools invest money? Treasurer Craig Jones said schools can’t gamble money on the stock market, but they can earn interest and work with bonds. Here is the latest investment update.

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Number Crunchers

By Lindsey Hilty | Tuesday, November 18, 2008, 03:21 PM

For all you number crunching people, here is the latest spending plan from Treasurer Craig Jones. I get these reports every other week, but I never thought to put them online. If you would like more reports, such as investment schedules, etc. let me know. I find these things dry to read, but if you are interested, let me know.

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Aftershock of board meeting

By Lindsey Hilty | Tuesday, November 18, 2008, 09:31 AM

You could have cut the tension with a knife at last night’s board meeting. Superintendent Mike Taylor gave a brief presentation about the contract. I will attach a copy at the bottom.

Then, one LEA member got up and bashed the board. The board responded by reminding teachers that they are dealing with tax payers’ money and they need to be mindful that many of those people did not get raises, lost their jobs or lost their homes this year.

Teachers took this as an attack, and LEA President Judy Buschle said it was not a way to heal.

Board members said their comments should not be taken as an attack. They said they were merely speaking the thoughts of the voices that did not get heard at repeated board meetings.

I plan to blog on this topic several times today to get you as much information as possible. For starters, here is Taylor’s presentation.

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LEA contract to be approved

By Lindsey Hilty | Monday, November 17, 2008, 10:08 AM

The Lakota Educators Association contract is expected to be approved tonight along with a contract for marketing rights with the Atrium Medical Center.

The 7 p.m. meeting is expected to be a long one. Here is the Atrium contract to be approved. Details on the LEA contract will be here tonight, so stay tuned.

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Marketing to Lakota

By Lindsey Hilty | Thursday, November 13, 2008, 09:48 AM

One topic of conversation at Monday’s board meeting will be about Atrium’s offer to fund the resurfacing of Lakota’s football fields with artificial turf. Here is the deal: For marketing rights, Atrium will give Lakota $48,500 each year for 20 years. With this money, the district would also fix drainage problems on both fields. The board has asked the community for their thoughts on this project and have said it will not require any new tax dollars. The funds they used to spend on maintaining the fields would just be redirected to these new fields.

What are your thoughts on this? Personally, I think it is interesting to see the marketing strategies of various companies. In my former high school, Findlay Liberty Benton, we had a brand new gymnasium built primarily from funds garnered from a softdrink company. I have seen articles about districts looking to place advertisements on or in school buses. Some have considered ads on school folders or planners. In a world where it is much easier to skip commercials, you can see a shift of advertising to product placement written right into the script. What are your thoughts on this? Do you think schools should seek more such deals in an attempt to offset funding issues? Do you have issues with advertisement in schools?

One issue that school boards are facing is the line they must draw when it comes to which advertisements would be allowed. Fairfield City Schools just went through this, and decided they would not allow take-home materials to have advertisements, because they were worried it would open the door to multiple issues: what if a company with questionable products wanted to advertise? What if the item advertised would negatively affect some children? What compensation should a school get for placing ads in front of their students and parents?

Many parents cringe at the amount of toys and junk foods promoted during their children’s cartoons. However, they have the option of turning it off. We saw schools start phasing out pop machines or turning them off during lunch, because studies showed they were contributing to the obesity of children. By turning them off, the district stepped in to make that decision for the students. What other ads could negatively impact children? What ads might be beneficial or harmless?

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I’m BACK!

By Lindsey Hilty | Monday, November 10, 2008, 09:37 AM

Hey all, I’d like to say thanks to Dave for keeping up with my blog while I was gone, and thanks to you all for continued readership!

I have just spent two hours checking e-mails, and I have yet to even listen to my voice mail. So, rest assured I will get back into the swing of things by this afternoon and will continue to keep you posted on Lakota. In the meantime, here is a guest article by Barbara Albert.

When nearly 200 Lakota East Marching Band members visit Pearl Harbor in a few weeks they will carry with them thoughts of their own loved ones who served or continue to serve in the military. Many band members have some family connection with military service whether it is a grandparent, parent or even a more recent connection with a brother, sister or cousin serving today. And while these high school students are no doubt planning to have a fun time in Hawaii, they also will be thinking about the sacrifices made by so many at Pearl Harbor and battlefields around the globe. “Not only is this trip going to be a great educational trip to learn about our country’s history, but it will also be a great personal experience to know that my grandfather was among those men who served,” said Jennifer Bortnem, Bortnem’s grandfather served in Italy from 1944 to 1946 and was sent home early due the loss of another immediate family member in the war. As her grandfather grew older, Bortnem said the war memorials meant a great deal to him and although his health was failing he made his way to the World War II memorial in Washington D.C. The Lakota East Marching Thunderhawks, along with parent chaperones, band directors and family supporters, will leave for Hawaii on Nov. 24th. Among the highlights of the trip is a performance at the USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor and an appearance in the Waikiki Parade which honors those who served at Pearl Harbor. The band will be traveling with Pearl Harbor survivor Joe Whitt and his wife, Judy. Mr. Whitt was 18 and aboard the USS San Francisco when Pearl Harbor was attacked and he went on to participate in nearly every significant battle of World War II. Mr. Whitt appreciates how important it is for this generation to understand the sacrifices made by so many of his generation. “Many men came back from war and didn’t want to talk about it. I didn’t want to talk about it.” Mr. Whitt said. “The memories were horrible, especially of that day at Pearl Harbor. As time went by most of us didn’t talk about it. Now that we are losing so many of our World War II veterans, we know it is important to share our experiences.” Today, Mr. Whitt is eager to share his experiences and he has been meeting with the band and history classes at Lakota East High School to talk about the war and his experiences. His stories are sometimes graphic and he holds nothing back when talking with students about the horrors of war. “It has been really great to hear what Mr. Whitt has to say about his experiences,” said Rob Wilson, a junior percussionist whose grandfather served during World War II. “It is one thing to watch movies and TV shows, but to sit and talk with someone who lived through the experience makes it all so real. He wasn’t much older than we are and he was in the middle of a war.” Wilson’s grandfather, Raymond Murnane, was a career serviceman and although he did not see battle in World War II, he did serve in Korea. Wilson’s grandfather passed away before he was born, but his grandfather’s military stories live on through photos and stories. While many of the band students didn’t get a chance to know their grandparents who served in World War II, they have heard family stories and have used Mr. Whitt’s stories to fill in some of the blanks and understand how it must have felt to be so young and at war.

Andrew Mohr’s grandfather, John, and his great-grandfather, Leroy Turpin, both served in World War II. Mr. Turpin also survived the attack on Pearl Harbor, but passed away before he could share his experiences with his great-grandson.

Trevor Lambert has also appreciated time spent with Mr. Whitt and looks forward to the first-hand stories of Pearl Harbor. Trevor’s grandfather died when he was little, but he has heard stories of how he helped to build the runway that carried the planes that delivered the atomic bomb.

“It’s really interesting to hear the details Mr. Whitt gives us and it helps to understand better what my grandfather went through,” Trevor said. Trevor’s dad, Frank Lambert, is a Desert Storm veteran and active member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7696 in West Chester, along with Vietnam veteran and band parent Mickey Vidourek, Mr. Lambert and Mr. Vidourek often present the flag as part of Lakota East football games with the band playing our National Anthemn. “This is really an incredible opportunity for these kids,” Mr. Vidourek said. “Pearl Harbor and other memorials are visible reminders of our country’s place in the world. Band students will be able to appreciate the commitment of the men and women who gave their lives at Pearl Harbor, as well as those like Joe who fought so valiantly.” Mickey’s daughter Molly knows first-hand the sacrifices made by those serving in the military as her brother is currently serving in Afghanistan. There are many more connections linking Lakota East Marching Band members to military service and the great heroes that define our nation. When these students set foot on Pearl Harbor, they will do so with great reverence for those who have served. “Knowing just a little about the sacrfices my grandfather and his friends made, reminds me that it’s important to remember the sacrifices of our veterans,” Jennifer Bortnem said. “I think it’s important to remember these sacrifices, because we needed our veterans to defend our country when others could not, or would not.”

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Election Day 2008

By Dave Greber | Tuesday, November 4, 2008, 10:27 AM

I don’t have a whole lot of time today to devote to the blog, but I wanted to pose a few questions and observations about today.

First off, for journalists, Election Day is better than Christmas Day. It’s 24 hours and beyond of coverage, things happening and then a huge payoff at the end. Although the first Tuesday in November is typically the busiest day of the year, it’s also the most rewarding. Folks, this is what journalists study, go to school, train and live for.

And I can assure you, the staff and all of the Cox Ohio Publishing papers feel the same, and are ready to put in the time and effort to do the best job we can of covering this historic election.

But, I want to know about your voting experience today. Do you feel as jazzed as I do? Did you have to wait? If so, how long? If not, why not?

Traversing Butler County this morning, I encountered several locations where voters showed up well before 6 a.m., and by the time the polls opened, lines were several dozen to a few hundred people deep.

By 8:30 a.m., the lines had mostly dissipated. As of 10:35 a.m., today, there were no problems reported.

Thoughts?

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