The Eastern Pulaski School Corporation will replace the public address and bell system at the middle school and high school. The school board Monday approved the purchase of a new intercom system from Fairchild Communication Systems for a cost of just over $33,000.
The Starke County Council members will be revising the salary ordinance to allow for a Starke County Sheriff’s Office employee helping out with case work.
Newly-appointed County Council President Brad Hazelton read aloud from a letter that an employee who had worked with the county for several years was hired as a part-time jailer at $14.00 an hour, which is higher than the $12.51 rate of pay, because of his many years of experience.
The three building principals told the Knox Community School Board this week that with the recent school closures, students are working well with the alternative instruction day.
Elementary School Principal Glenn Barnes said eLearning is a positive experience for his students when school is closed due to inclement weather.
Local school superintendents are keeping an eye on some bills being considered by the Indiana General Assembly.
North Judson Town Marshall Kelly Fisher presented town council members with a few different options for police vehicles when they met Monday night.
Fisher told them that she’s been seeking a vehicle that can be utilized by Officer Rico Simpson once the K9 is obtained from Vohne Liche Kennels.
She explained that $10,000 is currently set aside for the purchase of a code enforcement vehicle. However, she presented members with a proposal to utilize that money for a K9 vehicle instead.
Fisher said, “If we can hand Rico’s car down to the ordinance officer and then maybe if we could use that $10,000 plus maybe another 5 out of our donations to buy him an SUV.” Continue reading
Superintendent Dr. Annette Zupin provided the North Judson-San Pierre School members with a capital projects update when they met Tuesday night.
Dr. Zupin informed members that the emergency renovations to the pool are officially complete and it is fully operational. The pool area will now have renovations done to the dehumidification system as a part of the capital projects. Continue reading
The Oregon-Davis School Board has some new leadership. Andrea McIntosh was chosen Monday to replace Chris Lawrence as school board president, according to Superintendent Dr. Don Harman. “Kurt Hayes will be our vice-president, and Shirley Budka will be our secretary,” Harman says.
Pulaski County has a new Emergency Medical Services director. Bryan Corn was selected to fill the position, in a two-to-one vote by the county commissioners Tuesday.
Starke County may soon have two more paramedics on staff.
EMS Director Travis Clary and Clerk Mary Lynn Ritchie discussed the need for two full-time paramedics with both the Starke County Council and Starke County Commission members Tuesday night. They explained that it is difficult to find part-time paramedics to work for the county and it’s even harder to get part-time people to work shifts when a full-time paramedic is not able to work a shift. Clary said he’s been picking up extra shifts to fill the void.
The Knox Community School Board members discussed the purchase of Chrome Books for everyday student use.
Director of Technology Jim Landrum explained that the operating system will be a little different that what the students are used to with their MacBook Air devices.
The Oregon-Davis School Corporation is taking steps to better track students’ progress. Superintendent Dr. Don Harman says it’s part of the latest round of school improvement plans. “We’re using quarterly assessments to measure our students,” he says, “instead of just a one-year assessment, for example, with ISTEP.”
The Eastern Pulaski School Board has decided to go ahead with seeking bids for a large-scale paving project. On Monday, board members approved the specifications and scope for the concrete and asphalt project and issued the necessary bid documents. Continue reading
The North Judson-San Pierre school board approved a memorandum of understanding between the NJ-SP School Corporation and the Northwest Indiana Workforce Board when they met Tuesday night.
According to information provided by Superintendent Dr. Annette Zupin, the Northwest Indiana Workforce Board, or WorkOne, oversees the Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) program in Indiana High Schools. The agreement between the school and the organization is in line with complying with recent changes to graduation requirements. Continue reading
The West Central School Corporation’s long-time treasurer is stepping down. “Pamela Ledford, our corporation treasurer for several years, is retiring at the end of the year, and we were anticipating that,” says Superintendent Don Street. Continue reading
At the North Judson Town Council meeting Monday night, Clerk-Treasurer Andrew Rowe alerted members that there are several un-cashed checks on the books that go back several years.
Rowe mentioned that on all checks dispersed by the town, it states that they can be receipted back if they haven’t deposited after 2-years. Clerk-Treasurer Rowe said after speaking to the State Board of Accounts about the matter, the plan is to receipt all checks back into the town.
However, there was one check for Fire Captain Eric Wappel from 2015 that was apparently lost. Rowe was seeking to reimburse Wappel for the fire pay he never deposited. Continue reading
The Knox Community School Board held a public hearing Monday night to gather comments on the corporation’s proposal for updates to the Knox High School and additional projects at the two other schools and corporation office.
Pulaski County Sheriff Jeff Richwine is seeking pay raises for some of his employees. During last week’s county council meeting, he asked if part-time dispatcher Susan Hemphill could be bumped up to a higher pay level. “She was a full-time dispatcher, left, and then came back as a part-time person,” Richwine explained. Continue reading
Eastern Pulaski is the latest local school corporation to adopt an employee social media policy. The policy was finalized by the school board Monday.
The issue concerning the removal of flags on veteran’s graves at the Round Lake Cemetery has been resolved.
Mark Gourley, acting as American Legion District Vice Commander, told the Starke County Commissioners last week that he sat in during the Round Lake Cemetery Association meeting on Monday, Jan. 8 and the action of placing and removing American flags on veteran’s graves at Round Lake Cemetery will now be handled by the Knox American Legion Post #131.
Hamlet’s building permit fees may soon be getting an update. Last week, the Hamlet Zoning Board discussed the possibility of overhauling the town’s building and zoning procedures.
