Archive for: December 2009

by Coach Marc Pennington
The Mid-Prairie Golden Hawks opened the 2009-10 campaign with a rugged 35-28 victory at West Liberty Monday, November 23. The Hawks, opening the season with two seniors, one junior, one sophomore, and eight freshmen on varsity, used …

Iowa Mennonite School’s boys basketball coach Dwight Gingerich is one of 18 Iowa coaches nominated for the 2010 National Coach/Athletic Director of the Year. This award is sponsored by the National High School Athletic Coaches Association and has been …

[caption id="attachment_1434" align="alignnone" width="440" caption="The Mid-Prairie Board of Education was honored November 19 by the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB). From left, back, are Jack Hill, IASB president; Maxine Kilcrease, IASB excecutive director, M-P board members Randy Billups, Jeremy Pickard, Rob Stout, and Superintendent Mark Schneider, Front, from left, George Schaefer, Jim Hussey, M-P president, Jack Dillon, M-P vice-president and Stacia Bontrager. (Photo submitted)"][/caption]

The Mid-Prairie Board of Education is one of three honored by the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB) during the 64th annual ISAB convention November 19 in Des Moines. The Making a Difference award also carries a $1,000 grant.
Mid-Prairie was honored for taking “sometimes unpopular but necessary risks to improve (student) achievement and those risks have paid off,” noted the ISAB.
One thing that stood out about Mid-Prairie during the selection process was the board’s push for a 4-3-3-3 graduation standards put forward by the Institute for Tomorrow’s Workforce and ACT, Inc. In addition to the unique graduation standard, M-P students are required to self-select if they think they will go to a four-year college, two-year college or join the workforce directly after high school. Their curriculum is then adjusted around that decision, with students taking AP courses and two years of a foreign language, six hours of community college credit or two 90-hour internships respectively.
“My reaction when I read this was: ‘Can we beg, borrow and steal?’” said Amy Jurrens, ISAB board member and of the George/Little rock School board who helped select award recipients. “What a great idea to prepare students for their individual paths. It makes students feel that no matter what path they choose, it’s valued, value for all skills and interests.”
Other achievements that weighed in for M-P:

Forecast calls for harsh winter weather, with a strong chance of slips, trips and falls
According to this year’s Old Farmer’s Almanac, winter in the upper Midwest will be colder than normal,

We urge customers to do the right thing, not …

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Hannah Altmaier and Hoi Ting Davidson"][/caption]

Hannah Altmaier and Hoi Ting Davidson were accepted as first violinists into the All-State Chamber Orchestra. The Chamber …

Rachel Halder, a graduate of Iowa Mennonite School, is serving in a key student communication post at Goshen College for the 2009-2010 school year.
Halder, a senior communication major and the daughter of John and Nancy Halder of Parnell, is serving …

Offensive Most Valuable Player – Tanner Miller. Defensive Most Valuable Player – Micah Berg, Michael Aldeman, Tanner Miller. Special Teams Most Valuable Player – Tanner Miller, Brody Barthelman. Attitude and Effort Award – Mark Aldeman, Dylan Wertz, Billy Riggan. Linemen …

By Mary Zielinski
The big winners in the fall grant cycle of the Washington County Riverboat Foundation (WCRF) are youth and veterans. The award ceremony November 18 at the Riverside Casino saw 14 of the 27 grants given to area schools and youth programs and another four to projects benefiting veterans. The WCRF is the nonprofit license holder for the Riverside Casino and Golf Resort and receives its funding from state mandated allocations.
Total of the 18 grants is $476,658 and range from $1,770 for the Girl Scouts Green Girls to $200,000 (given in two years at the rate of $100,000 each year)) for the Washington School DistrictÕs $2,200,000 facilities improvement plan. The Hawkeye Area Council Boy Scouts received $2,750 to aid with the $25,700 Washington County Venturing Outreach program.
The single biggest grant was $1,055,000 to the City of Kalona for its $2,848,937 downtown revitalization project to be provided in a five-year period, which means the city will receive approximately $200,000 per year. Officially, the WCRF awarded a total of $1,748,643, which includes the multi-year grants. The WCRF had received, by its October 9 deadline, 46 grant applications that totaled $2,983,630 in requests. Officials noted that the WCRF received $2,727,000 from the Casino gaming operation through October.
The grants struck a nice balance with funds to the school districts helping not only with classroom technology and educational programs but also with bus and school safety. One of the grants, to the Washington County Sheriff’s Department, is $9,991 to help with the $11,991 School/Active Shooter Response Equipment. In simple terms that means having equipment to respond to a possible terrorist (or shooter) situation at a school. As a deputy noted, “It’s like insurance you hope you never have to use, but you know you had better have it.”

The following students were named to the SEI Super Conference All Academic List for fall sports, including volleyball and cross country for 2009. To be eligible for the list, they must be a junior or senior team member or support …

May 1, 1920 – November 21, 2009
Jess W. Grout, 89, of Kalona died Saturday, November 21, 2009 at Pleasantview Home following a brief illness. Celebration of life services were held Wednesday, November …

June 10, 1943 – November 17,2009
IOWA CITY – Rhoda Alverda Creamer, 66, of Iowa City, Iowa, died Tuesday, November 17, 2009, at her home in Iowa City following a brief illness. In accordance with her wishes, Mrs. Creamer’s body has …