The Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) announced that the Decatur Industrial Park III has received Shovel Ready status.  Indiana's Shovel Ready program designates properties that are ready for development, making it easier for businesses to locate new operations on the property.

The Decatur Industrial Park III was awarded 'Shovel Ready' status after completing thorough title work, proof of ownership, environmental and legal review and qualify for accelerated permitting with state agencies.

The Decatur Shovel Ready Industrial Park III is a 62 acre park with 50 acres currently available.  The park is owned by the City of Decatur and has water, sewer, electric, gas and fiber at the site. More information about the Decatur Park can be found at the IEDC's Site and Building Database at http://statein.zoomprospector.com/ or the Adams County Economic Development Corporation website http://www.adamscountyedc.com/blog. To schedule a tour of the Decatur Industrial Park III, please call us at 260.724.2588

On Tuesday afternoon Indiana Lieutenant Governor Becky Skillman stopped in Adams County to experience the Berne Clock Tower. And what an experience it was!

Read the full Berne Tri-Weekly article.

From: InsideINdianaBusiness.com Report

A national study ranks the health of Indiana's 92 counties. The research is part of an annual report from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the New Jersey-based Robert Wood Johnson Foundation involving more than 3,000 counties throughout the country.

Adams County was ranked #10 among the 92 counties in the State of Indiana!

Link to Full Story: Health of Indiana Counties

Get the full story here: Marko's on 2nd via Journal Gazette

The South Adams School board took the first step in implementing its 1:1 high school laptop program during Tuesday evening’s board meeting by unanimously approving Superintendent Scott Litwiller’s recommendation for a 4-year lease agreement with Medical and Municipal Funding to purchase approximately 420 laptops. This decision allows technology director Myra Moore to order the laptops immediately.
The plan is to purchase the Dell laptops at a cost of $615. This cost is slightly higher than the $595 for the Lenovo laptops that was also considered, but it is still within the budgeted amount of $650. The Dell laptops do not have as high of balloon cost/value as the Lenovo.
The first year lease payment is $114,346; second year lease payment is $65,372; third year lease payment is $38,427; and the fourth year lease payment is $18,438; $55,000 from the CPF budget for new freshman laptops will also be added to each of these payments.
Moore also reported on the Tech Fair that took place at South Adams on March 1. According to Moore, the fair was a success with 49 teachers and staff from all three schools and a variety of grades attending. She also stated that she has seen a variety of ideas put into practice in the classroom since the fair.
In personnel news, the board approved the resignation of four South Adams employees.
Lana Schwartz, a fifth grade teacher, has worked at South Adams for 19 years and has a total of 24 years in public education. Her resignation is effective as of March 9.
Barb McDonald, a fifth grade teacher, will resign effective at the end of the school year.
Joan Morgan, who has been a cook at South Adams for 25 years, will be resigning. Her career at South Adams began in 1987 at the Berne Elementary.
Carol Cummings has been in public education for 37 years, 34 of those at South Adams. She has been an art teacher, a fourth grade teacher, Title I coordinator/teacher, and is resigning in the post as Title I director for South Adams. Her resignation is effective at the end of the school year.
The board also unanimously approved the hiring of three employees.
Kristi Cressman was approved as a Title I teacher to replace Janine Felabom. Cressman is currently a teacher aide in Felabom’s room and will take over the teacher position effective April 2.
Betsy Minnich was hired as an elementary teacher for the fourth grading period of the 2011-2012 school year. She will finish out the school year in Lana Schwartz’s fifth grade classroom. She has been substitute teaching for Schwartz.
The final employment approved was the position of athletic secretary. Under the recommendation of athletic director Mike Pries, the board approved the hiring of Jenn Neuenschwander to replace Connie Shady as athletic secretary. The board also approved Neuenschwander to begin working as soon as the necessary paperwork was completed, and they approved her contract for 210 days at the request of Pries. This would allow her to begin work approximately a week before fall sports begin practice and to work approximately a week after spring sports end.
In student news, the board recognized the winter athletes who participated in the IHSAA state tournament.
Cady Farlow, a freshman swimmer, qualified for the girls swimming state meet in the 100 meter freestyle and the 100 meter breaststroke. Farlow holds the school record in both the 100 meter freestyle and the 100 meter breaststroke. She also broke the Jay County Sectional record in the 100 meter breaststroke. She is daughter of Rod and Tara Farlow.
The other three students recognized were Todd Batt, Sawyer Miller, and LJ Moser. All three boys qualified for the state wrestling tournament held in Indianapolis.
Batt, a senior and son of Troy and Carrie Young, qualified to wrestle in the 132-pound class and was the runner-up in the state meet. He holds the South Adams’ record for the most wins by a wrestler at 152. He is also the first South Adams wrestler to be a state runner-up. Batt was also invited to participate in the Indiana-Illinois Wrestling Tournament of Champions in DeKalb, Illinois on March 10 through March 11. He defeated an Illinois state champion at the event.
Miller, a freshman and son of Roger and Jessica Miller, qualified in the 103-pound class and placed fourth in the state meet.
Moser, a junior and son of Dave and Kay Neuenschwander, qualified in the 112-pound class.
The board also approved the overnight field trip request by the vocational department for Gary McMillian and Jerod Dailey to use a white bus to travel to Indianapolis to take six students to participate in the State Skills USA Contest on April 13 through April 14.

from Decatur Daily Democrat

March 12, 2012

Superintendent Dr. Wylie Sirk

    North Adams Community Schools is one of 23 school corporations statewide to be named as a recipient of state education department technology grant funding.
    The Indiana Department of Education announced this week that the selected school corporations will receive up to $200,000 each to implement classroom technology projects. The grants, totaling $3 million, were awarded through Indiana’s classroom innovation grant program, which is funded primarily through the David C. Ford educational technology fund.
    The fund was created in memory of Indiana Senator David C. Ford of Hartford City, who worked to encourage classroom technology and innovation during his service to the Indiana General Assembly from 1994 to 2008.
    Schools that received grants in 2011, which included North Adams, were eligible to extend their grants with a maximum award of $100,000. Winners were chosen by a panel of IDOE staff members.
    Superintendent Dr. Wylie Sirk said North Adams year's stipend this year will be $100,000. The school district was awarded $200,000 in technology grant funding in 2011. Sirk said the initial round of grant funding was used to initiate Project Based Learning training for teachers and to "help us move toward a digital curriculum" that will see students rely less on textbooks and more on "various other technology means to help them prepare for work in the real world."
    The latest grant, Sirk said, will continue programs already in place, and will help move the school district toward its goal of providing iPads to all high school students within the next two years.    
    "We're excited, of course," Sirk said Friday about the grant award. He said a team of educators from North Adams met last week with the grant selection committee, first giving a 10-minute presentation and then undergoing a rigorous 10-minute question-and-answer session.
    "That was a first for us," Sirk said laughingly. "But I was pleased that they (the panel) recognized the good work we're doing."
    East Noble School Corporation was the only other district in northeast Indiana to be awarded a technology grant during the latest round.
    “More than ever, technology plays a central role in classroom learning and prepares students for a competitive, high-tech workforce,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Tony Bennett said in a press release. “I am proud to recognize these schools committed to driving student success using technology.”
    The schools and corporations that applied were evaluated based on their vision for a sustainable technology-infused learning environment and the level of innovation in their proposals. The schools were also reviewed for their efforts to advance student learning in key areas identified by the IDOE — including improvement in Math and English/Language Arts ISTEP+ performance, Advanced Placement exam scores, graduation rates, and use of student growth data.

Journal Gazette Article