IS IT TRUE? February 22, 2012
IS IT TRUE that Keep Evansville Beautiful has struck gold in its choice to succeed Ann Ennis as its president and CEO?…that it has just been announced that former County Commissioner, Assessor, and State Commissioner of Local Government Finance Cheryl Musgrave has agreed to assume the role?…that of all of the interested people that Musgrave has both the temperament and determination to accelerate the efforts that Ms. Ennis started?…that Musgrave is not one to suffer fools or laziness and that “butts†will be kicked to assure that Evansville not only keeps things beautiful but gets a lot more places to the point of beauty?…that the CCO congratulates the board of directors of KEB and Cheryl Musgrave on what we think will be a serious time of cleanliness going forward?
IS IT TRUE that sometimes decisions and actions taken in all towns make one shake their head in disbelief?…that the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation is taking the cake with its decision to send roughly 80 buses full of elementary school children to a hockey game at the Ford Center during a school day?…that hockey is a game and that the taxpayers of Indiana do not pay taxes for public education so that elementary school kids can be taken to hockey games during the school day?…that we wonder just what there is about hockey, basketball, or any other spectator sport that has enough educational content to justify spending public money for kids to attend or even letting them off of school to attend a darn game?…that this decision comes from the same school corporation that once made a decision that a family trip to the Smithsonian was not an excused absence?…that if one wants to know why our school’s performance is at the D or F level but that the EVSC thinks it is a solid A or B, then one should look no further than this imbecilic decision?…that for the kids that can’t afford the $5 admission that a “scholarship†is being offered?…that to call a free hockey ticket a scholarship is an insult to every real scholarship that is out there?…that we wonder what real scholarship fund these free ticket scholarships are being paid for from?
IS IT TRUE that right here in Evansville, the obesity capital of America that the scholarship hockey watchers will also be fed a hot dog, a coke, and a bag of popcorn?…that we have not heard of such a non-nutritious lunch offered by a school since some idiot in Washington DC deemed a smear of ketchup to constitute a serving of a vegetable?…that this is one case where these kids would be better off being “left behind†at school as opposed to cramming for a test in body checking, fist fighting, and broken teeth?…that the parents need to send the EVSC to the woodshed over this destructive silliness that undermines the educational process?
IS IT TRUE that a couple of well-intended City Council members are now questioning Evansville Police Chief Billy Bolin’s new policy that allows officers to take their cruisers home at the end of their shift?…that the CCO maintains the stance that Chief Bolin’s decision was a solid move towards good public policy?…that a little extra gas money is worth it when your house does not get burglarized because the would-be thief noticed a police car parked down the street?…that in a January poll regarding this very subject our readers overwhelming voted in favor of the policy change by a margin of 51%?
IS IT TRUE that there are some very influential political minds in the Vanderburgh County Republican Party that would like to see Party Chairman Wayne Parke personally recruit Mr. Bob Whitehouse as a candidate for the third Vanderburgh County Council At-Large seat?
I know my child gets to attend the game because of test scores…not sure if there was an incentive at all schools – but I have no issue with this slight deviation to the normal school day.
Also – this is the first field trip the whole year…not sure why you take such an issue with it…but my guess is you got chosen last alot on the playground.
I’m really not sure where I stand on this. I see both sides. Kids do need some rewards for grades and behavior, but at the same time rewards for good behavior can be educational. I’m not sure how educational a hockey game will be, not to mention the extreme “nutritional” value of the food they will be served.
Could it be that exposing kids to the new Ford Center will make them return to their parents, begging for more, pleading to attend the next game, concert or event? Hmmmm…..
Using kids like this is disgusting. If it is such a great idea why was it not done at Roberts Stadium in the recent past? This is really over the top.
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we did expose kids to Roberts tadium, they went to the Shrine Circus every year, and I don’t hear anyone complaining about that
Were these kids treated to an ice hockey game at Roberts in the recent past as a reward for improving their academic performance on the standardized test?
This is politics at its very worst.
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Disagree with the CCO’s position on the take-home police cars. The benefit cannot be measured, but the increase in fuel costs surely can. Not to mention there is no way to police abuse of the program. Show us empirical studies where take home police cars lowered crime rates and justified the added expense. Also, identify the City Council members questioning this, I would like to thank them.
Have to agree with LEO on this one, and fuel is just one aspect, you have to consider that any time that vehicle is on the road the potential for an accident is there, it’s also not very good utilization of city (taxpayer) resources because it depletes the pool of available cars per shift and will require the size of the fleet to be bigger to cover the extra usage not to mention maintenance & liability issues.
The other thing is that 51% voting in favor of something isn’t even close to being “overwhelming” in fact it’s just a couple clicks from being a no. “that in a January poll regarding this very subject our readers overwhelming voted in favor of the policy change by a margin of 51%?” 95% would have been overwhelming, 51% is by the skin of it’s teeth.
JMHO
The DIFFERENCE between those for and against was 51%, not 51% of the poeple were for it and 49% against.
LOL…thanks Pappa, my public school education didn’t include much more than basic math, I think I was probably in detention during the time fractions were covered. 😉
JMHO
They are kids let them enjoy the reward for good test scores! Going to a game and having a hotdog and a coke wow they may be damaged beyond repair!!!!
If the game were a reward for making the honor roll as opposed to a group outing to watch a game during school hours we would have been more supportive.
My 4th grade son has done an hour of homework three to four nights each week since August. A half day of hockey isn’t going to hurt anything. It may even inspire some of the kids to take up another sport and keep weight off. So lighten up, Francis.
I think the editor’s concern is this field trip has questionable educational content. I also see the concern that this is a poor choice of using EVSC resources (taxpayer dollars). I am a fan of hockey and I do enjoy sports. However, this field trip seems to be a promotion of the Icemen Hockey team. Maybe the lesson for this students should be shameless self-promotion.
Whitehouse for County Council seat… really???
Agree! ReallY?
Last night at the EVSC School Board Meeting, Sup. Smith, when responding to some of the questions about the Ice Men field trip, claimed the ICE MEN are paying for the transportation and other expenses. He said there was no cost to the EVSC. Since learning today that bus loads of kids from surrounding counties are also attending, I have reason to doubt the ICE MEN could afford to pay for drivers and fuel to transport 90 bus loads of kids to the arena, plus tickets and food. Are the Ice Men making so much money they can afford to import 5,000 or more kids to the arena? Or, as you mentioned, is this a ploy by the arena to try to increase adult ticket sales, like parents who are being pestered by their kids, to attend hockey games?
Sup. Smith also claimed there would be classroom activities based on what they learned on this field trip. Are they anything that could not have been done without taking over half a day off from school? I have heard of teachers using this excuse for a field trip to Eastland Mall after ISTEP scores show an increase. Bad example for the kids, in my book.
Teachers complain about not having enough time to prepare for classes and to complete all the paperwork the administration requires, yet they are taken away from their primary work to babysit. I wonder how many of them will be grading papers instead of watching the game, or will they be tweeting, texting or sending emails, as they do from the back of the EVSC School Board meetings?
I definitely agree with the “Lighten up Francis” comment.
I have absolutely no problem with this, especially considering it was used as an incentive. Every once in awhile, kids need a break, and if it is used as motivation, then I think it is great.
I recall several trips when I was in school that weren’t all education. Even the ones that were, such as a trip to the Botanical Garden in St. Louis. Sure, there was something productive while we were there, but what about the 6 hours we spent on the bus going and coming.
As mentioned in the same article, this is center of obesity in the country. Maybe some of the kids will actually find they want to play this game. At worst, we are teaching them to get away from the computer and TV, and go out and suppport our local teams.
Last night, the Aces played in front of 16,000 people. Unfortunately, that was in Omaha. We used to support our teams like that, but for whatever reason, we have stopped, and that in itself is sad. If nothing else, look at it as an investment in the quality of life in our city.
Ms. Musgrave has a temperament alright! Her interpersonal skills are minute at best. She is completely inept at running anything, as I’m sure Mitch Daniels found out just before firing her from IDLGF. The voters of this area also rejected her for State Representative. YUP…sounds qualified to me!
Now we have EVSC mid-day hockey. What ever happened to midnight basketball?
I have lost a lot of respect for Winnecke with this appointment. She’s rude, condescending, a liar and completely insane. I don’t see how she fits into his “nice” administration. I wonder if he will at least require that she take her meds.
This is not a mayoral appointment. KEB is a non-profit organization that has a board of directors charged with finding new presidents.
It is no more than an extension of the Mayor’s office, and given the Mayor’s litter initiative, he cares who’s in that position. It’s hard to imagine that the Board would have picked someone that he opposed. It will be a problem for him when no one can work with her.
My dear Editor! you sound positively cantankerous! The kids live in this city, may in the future live in this city, and I know we old codgers have a bit of $$ scraping to afford the few games we have gone to, so it may be the only chance some of them get to go. It’s a lot of fun to attend, and they all can’t be basketball or football stars. What a treat! Back in my day, we got to go to the planetarium-oh boy. We were such stellar minds that I still can’t do Algebra. Oh and the “This is my Story” at Roberts-I was proud to be directed by Aaron Copeland, rockin that .99 plastic recorder, then my rented clarinet, that I had to practice in the basement.
All you got for being a good kid back in the 60’s was a draft card and a trip to Vietnam.
Quit being an old dude, you’re usually way too cool, and let kids enjoy the building that they’ll still be paying for when their kids go to college. Said building was so “lavishly constructed”, it will look like homemade unowhat (what’s up with that? Cedar Hall looks cheap, the new North HS looks-I do not know what to call that-it’s odd looking, and there’s too much of it- and in a time when gas is sky high, I believe their intent was to consolidate the HS’s-those will look like cheap Christmas trash in 10 years. Bosse is a stately building, always has been, as is Reitz.) These kids have to contend with so much in their lives, a little treat was a nice idea. Ease up, Gramps. Being young used to be fun-these kids don’t know what fun is-life should not be a grindstone.
Great post Bootsie!
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