Without drama, Indiana Senate passes Sen. James Tomes resolution to honor National Rifle Association
Without drama, Indiana Senate passes Sen. James Tomes resolution to honor National Rifle Association
INDIANAPOLIS—On the same day as America’s most recent mass shooting and four days before the National Rifle Association visits Indianapolis for its national convention, senators voted through a resolution to celebrate the organization’s leadership and gun safety programming.
At the beginning of Tuesday’s meeting in the Senate Chamber, Sen. James Tomes, R-Wadesville, stood before his colleagues to share Senate Resolution 33 to honor the National Rifle Association’s executive vice president and CEO, Wayne LaPierre, for his more than 30 years of service to the NRA.
The organization is a national gun rights advocacy group that works to lobby for the Second Amendment while teaching gun safety practices. The NRA’s stance on gun control remains that firearms are not the cause of shootings, instead saying on its website, “Criminals overwhelmingly obtain their firearms through illegal channels and will never be deterred by state and federal laws.â€
LaPierre is in town because the NRA is hosting its 152nd annual national convention in Indianapolis this week, with speakers including former President Donald Trump, former Vice President and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, R-Indiana, on the schedule to appear.
The resolution did not come without controversy. The Moms Demand Action activism group came to protest against SR 33.
Group founder Shannon Watts shared on her Twitter account, “Indiana Republicans are preparing to celebrate corrupt NRA president Wayne LaPierre in the statehouse, so @MomsDemand volunteers showed up to remind them that the gun industry’s agenda is killing our kids and endangering communities. Why are they celebrating that?â€
This frustration comes after shootings in Nashville, Tennessee, on March 27, Louisville on Monday, and Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, the same day as the resolution.
However, Tomes said the NRA’s work with gun safety programming is something to be celebrated.Â
“Since 2016, the NRA has refused to be a victim. Seminars have helped more than 100,000 men and women develop their own personal safety plans using common-sense strategies. For more than 150 years, the NRA has assisted millions of individuals in the United States and abroad in learning firearm safety through its own various programs,†Tomes said.
Sen. Blake Doriot, R-Goshen, supported Tomes on the resolution.
“This is a wonderful group doing good things, and I was pleased to be one of the authors of the constitutional carry bill which was passed last year,†Doriot said. “And I hope more of you will join me and Sen. Tomes on this resolution.â€
No Democratic senators shared their thoughts on the resolution or opposed it in a voice vote, meaning it unanimously passed.
After its passage, Sen. Greg Taylor, D-Indianapolis, said that while he believed Senate Democrats showed respect by letting Tomes present the NRA resolution, he felt he would be doing a disservice to Indiana by not saying something about gun violence.
“I take this opportunity to respectfully challenge us to start thinking about common-sense gun legislation while we can also celebrate those organizations that practice the same thing and protect everyone’s right to carry,†Taylor said. “We can still have both.
“We can work on sensible legislation to protect everybody and not just those who want to carry a firearm.â€
FOOTNOTE: Â Ashlyn Myers is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.Â
AGENDA FOR TODAYS BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERSÂ SPECIAL MEETING
BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERSÂ SPECIAL MEETING
KEVIN WINTERNHEIMER CHAMBERSÂ ROOM 301, CIVIC CENTER COMPLEX
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 12, 2023Â 12:00 NOON
 AGENDA
  CALL TO ORDER
   ROLL CALL FOR ATTENDANCE
  [NO APPROVAL OF MEETING MEMORANDUM- Memos for the regular meeting of 4/5/23         Â
   and this special meeting will be approved at the regular meeting on 4/19/23]
   CONSENT AGENDA: NONE
   OLD BUSINESS: AWARD OF CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT FOR PICKLEBALL FACILITY
       Presentation by Steve Schaefer
       Public Comment
- As per past practice, comments are limited to 3 minutes.
- The Board asks that all comments be presented respectfully and that the commenters avoid repetition of points already made.
- Disruption or disorderly conduct will not be tolerated and will be cause for Expulsion from the meeting.
       Motion to award a contract to Arc Construction as the lowest responsible and responsive bidder. second
       Discussion by Board (only), including questions to (but not from) others; for example, request to Steve Schaefer or Jeff Justice for clarification or additional information Roll call vote
   NEW BUSINESS: NONE         Â
   REPORTS: NONEÂ
   ADJOURN
HILLTOPPERS RALLY TO SNAP UE ROAD WINNING STREAK, 6-2Â
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The Western Kentucky University baseball team rallied for three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning on Tuesday night to key a 6-2 victory over the visiting University of Evansville Purple Aces at Nick Denes Field in Bowling Green, Kentucky.  The win snapped UE’s eight-game road winning streak, which was the longest in Division I baseball entering the night.
“It was really tough to get any offensive consistency going tonight with it being a staff day and seeing eight different pitchers,†said UE head coach Wes Carroll.  “But, that’s college baseball sometimes.  We had our chances tonight, but just couldn’t break through.  We just need to put this one behind us and be ready to go this weekend in Carbondale against Southern Illinois.â€
Evansville scored first in the top of the second inning, as senior third baseman Brent Widder led off the inning with a double, advanced to third base on a WKU error, and scored on a wild pitch to give UE a 1-0 lead.
The game would remain 1-0 through four innings, as graduate starter Eric Roberts, making his first collegiate start and first pitching appearance of the year, tossed three scoreless innings of one-hit baseball, and senior reliever Jakob Meyer worked around a lead-off double to toss a scoreless fourth inning.  But, the Hilltoppers would rally against Meyer (0-2) in the fifth inning to take the lead for good.
WKU outfielder Andrew Delany roped a one-out double to right-center field to tie the game at 1-1.  Then, after a walk to lead-off man Ty Crittenberger, a failed pick-off attempt, and a stolen base put two runners in scoring position, catcher Kirk Liebert delivered a two-run single to grab a 3-1 lead.
Widder would blast a one-out, solo home run over the bullpen in left field in the top of the sixth inning to trim the WKU lead to 3-2.  But, the Hilltoppers would add a run in the bottom of the sixth inning without the use of a hit to push the lead to 4-2.
Evansville would threaten in the eighth inning by loading the bases against WKU closer C.J. Weins on two walks and a hit-by-pitch, but Weins would bounce back with a strikeout on a pay-off pitch to get out of the jam.  Then, WKU plated two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning on an RBI single by designated hitter Camden Ross and a throwing error on the play to produce the final margin of victory.
Widder had two of UE’s five hits with a double and home run.  Roberts also went 1-for-3 offensively with two walks.  Ross went 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI to lead the way for WKU.
With the victory, WKU evens its record at 17-17 overall.  Evansville, meanwhile, falls to 19-13 overall.  The two teams will meet again next Tuesday in Evansville to conclude the home-and-home non-conference series.  Prior to that match-up, though, Evansville will travel to Carbondale, Illinois to battle first-place Missouri Valley Conference rival Southern Illinois in a three-game set.  The series will begin Friday night at 6 p.m., with Sunday’s series finale set for national coverage on ESPNU.
USI Romain College of Business receives extension of business accreditation from AACSB
The University of Southern Indiana Romain College of Business has received a five-year extension on its accreditation for its business programs from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International, the world’s largest and longest-serving accrediting body for business schools.
AACSB accreditation is considered the “gold standard†for business accreditation, and the Romain College of Business is among only 5.7% of business schools, globally, to have earned the accreditation.
“We were excited to learn we received the best outcome of an extension of AACSB accreditation for our business programs for five years, after a semester-long, intense peer-review process,†says Dr. Sudesh Mujumdar, Dean of the Romain College of Business. “This is a fine testament to the high-quality work of our world-class faculty, highly dedicated staff, superb students, and the highly supportive USI leadership, community partners and the USI Foundation.â€
USI achieved initial accreditation for its business programs in 1998. Achieving accreditation is a multi-year process of rigorous internal focus, engagement with an AACSB-assigned mentor and peer-reviewed evaluation. Schools must develop and implement a plan to align with accreditation standards. These standards require excellence in areas relating to strategic management and innovation; student, faculty, and staff as active participants; learning and teaching; and academic and professional engagement.
“AACSB congratulates each institution on their achievement,†said Stephanie M. Bryant, Executive Vice Pand Chief Accreditation Officer of AACSB. “Every AACSB-accredited school has demonstrated a focus on excellence in all areas, including teaching, research, curricula development and student learning. The intense peer-review process exemplifies their commitment to quality business education.â€
The Romain College of Business offers undergraduate programs in accounting, business administration, computer information systems, computer science, economics, finance, management and marketing as well as both a traditional and an online Master of Business Administration (MBA) Program, with the online MBA program having earned additional accolades of being ranked among the best online MBA programs by U.S. News and World Report for 2023 and 2022. The Romain College of Business also boasts a portfolio of four state-of-the-art laboratories which form the anchor of its value proposition—leveraging technology in unique ways to build market-leading competencies in a personalized, co-created learning environment.
THIS WEEK IN INDIANA HISTORY
April 9 – April 15This Week in Indiana History
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Indiana Quick Quiz1. Born April 14, 1931 in South Bend, Indiana, who starred in the TV show Days of Our Lives as Mickey? 2. What is Indiana’s state river? 3. What city in Indiana used to be called “Bethlehem” until 1874? 4. Born April 12, 1947 in Indianapolis, Indiana, who hosted the late night TV show Late Night? Answers Below
Did You Know???We have new lapel pins you can purchase!
Answers1. John Clarke 2. Wabash 3. Carmel 4. David Letterman
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EPA Proposes New Standards to Protect Public Health
Proposals would slash Ethylene Oxide emissions by 80% per year, require stronger worker protections
- Prohibiting certain uses of EtO where alternatives exist including use in museums, archival settings, beekeeping, some cosmetics, and musical instruments;
- Reducing the amount of EtO that may be applied for medical device sterilization while meeting applicable standards for sterility assurance;
- Requiring engineering controls that reduce worker exposures to EtO, such as automation or emissions capture technology; and
- Mandating Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in sterilization facilities when EtO is detected using state-of-the-art monitoring technology.
AD’s Council announces matching gift for Pep & Vim
The annual giving campaign is this week
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – This week marks Pep & Vim at the University of Evansville, which is the annual giving campaign on campus. Set for his first Pep & Vim as the Director of Athletics at UE, Dr. Kenneth “Ziggy†Siegfried has announced a pledge from the newly-formed AD’s Council.
Since his arrival on campus, Siegfried has put together an advisory council that includes alumni, supporters and influential community members. This council acts in an advisory role to Siegfried in all facets of the Purple Aces Athletics Department.
In conjunction with Pep & Vim, the AD’s Council has announced a $5,000 matching gift to the Purple Aces Club if the department can generate 100 gifts through April 14, which is the annual day of giving. All gifts that are received this week count towards the matching gift total. Donations can be made in amounts as low as $15 and can be made by clicking here or on the Pep & Vim link above.
The Purple Aces Club is the primary focus for donations this year as they impact all sports within the UE athletics department and contribute to the student-athlete experience.
Pep & Vim features a variety of events from Friday, April 14 through Sunday, April 16. It coincides with Reunion Weekend, which welcomes alumni back to campus.
Special thanks go to the AD’s Council for the generosity. Members of the council are listed below:
Jeff Anderson
Curt Begle
Alan Braun
Kelly Gates
Dan Hermann
Robbie Kent
Bob Jones
Larry Meeks
Sara Miller
Sally Rideout
Jim Sandgren
Brent Sternberg
Chris Traylor
Bill Vieth
Larry Rascoe
Pete Paradossi