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Senator Braun addresses members of Indiana National Guard before Middle East deployment

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Senator Braun stands for the national anthem with Major General Lyles, the adjutant general of the Indiana National Guard

JUNE 6, 2024

Camp Atterbury, Ind.—On Friday, May 31st, Senator Mike Braun addressed soldiers from the Indiana National Guard 252nd Support Maintenance Company, as well as their families and friends, at their departure ceremony before the unit deploys to Kuwait.

Senator Braun’s remarks below.

“I am so proud of the strong National Guard presence we have here in Indiana. Our National Guard are called to action to serve the Hoosier state and the country at a moment’s notice. We cannot thank you enough for your service and sacrifice.”

 “The rigorous training and preparation you have endured has prepared you for this very moment. I owned a trucking and logistics company down in Jasper for many years.

I know just how important properly maintained vehicles are to an operation, and the dedication and expertise it takes behind the scenes to keep things running. As maintenance specialists, you are critical to mission success. You work hard every day to make sure every part of the operation runs flawlessly from the vehicles to critical equipment. As you prepare to deploy abroad, remember the importance of your contributions to our state and to our nation. Your work directly strengthens our national security and I am confident in your abilities to serve and make our country proud.”

 

“I would also like to recognize the families of our Guard. Many of you are with us here today. Our Hoosier military families are truly unsung heroes. Thank you for your love, support, and sacrifice for our servicemembers. Let’s have a round of applause for our Indiana Guard families who sacrifice so much to help our state. As your Senator, taking care of our servicemembers, veterans, and their families have always been top of mind for me. Thank you for answering our nation’s call and for being ‘always ready, always there!’  We will be praying for your safety overseas and look forward to welcoming you home.”

CenterPoint Energy enhances natural gas delivery system in southwestern Indiana

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Evansville, Ind. – June 4, 2024 – CenterPoint Energy is continuing its multi-year effort to replace aging bare steel and cast-iron natural gas pipelines throughout southwestern Indiana. For more than 16 years, the utility has invested in its southwestern Indiana natural gas infrastructure to maintain safe delivery and further contribute to reducing operational emissions.  

“Bare steel and cast-iron pipes can be susceptible to performance issues,” said Ashley Babcock, Vice President of Gas Operations, Indiana and Ohio. “This aging infrastructure will be replaced with new industry-grade pipes that meet all current industry and federal requirements. Ongoing investments in our natural gas system remain a top priority. We are committed to maintaining a safe, reliable system to deliver dependable natural gas to Indiana homes and businesses.”  

The replacement of natural gas mains under streets and sidewalks will be prioritized, followed by service lines that run directly to homes and businesses. Affected sidewalks, yards and streets will be restored as weather conditions allow. Timelines for each project will vary based on the scope of the project and weather and soil conditions. Crews will work as safely and quickly as possible to minimize impact on customers and surrounding areas.  

Customers are urged to keep a safe distance away from any work sites. Additionally, if you smell the “rotten egg” odor of natural gas, avoid anything that could spark a flame and immediately leave on foot to a safe location.  Once at a safe location, call both 911 and CenterPoint Energy at 800-227-1376.  

With only one year remaining in the bare-steel cast iron replacement program, investments over the past 16 years have totaled more than $186 million, which has led to a reduction in leak calls and natural gas emissions from the distribution system. 

CenterPoint Energy will be completing work in Boonville, Evansville, Fort Branch, Francisco, Mt. Vernon, Newburgh, Oakland City, Princeton, Vincennes and Washington. 

For an interactive map of current projects and more information about CenterPoint Energy’s gas infrastructure modernization program, visit CenterPointEnergy.com/PipelineReplacement.  

 

FORMER ADDICTION COUNSELOR SENTENCED TO 16 YEARS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION FOR DEALING METHAMPHETAMINE AND NARCOTIC DRUGS

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FORMER ADDICTION COUNSELOR SENTENCED TO 16 YEARS

JUNE 6, 2024

Evansville, IN –Prosecutor Diana Moers announces that on May 30, 2024, Michael Garrett Hagedorn was sentenced to a total of 16 years in the Department of Correction—

which includes 10 years for dealing Methamphetamine, 10 years for dealing a narcotic drug (to be served concurrently) and a habitual offender sentencing enhancement of 6 years. Special Judge Honorable Judge Greg A. Granger presided in the Vanderburgh County Superior Court. 

On January 12, 2023, Detectives with the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Drug Task Force were conducting surveillance on Michael Garrett Hagedorn. Detectives received numerous tips that Hagedorn was dealing large quantities of narcotics. The tips also claimed that Hagedorn, a former owner and Director of an addiction treatment counseling center, would sell these narcotics to subjects attending his counseling services. 

Hagedorn eventually admitted to using the 15.1 grams of Methamphetamine that were found in his vehicle, as well as having more at his residence and the location he had just left. Nine firearms, body armor, 28.3 grams of marijuana, and 3 digital scales were all located at Hagedorn’s Newburgh, IN residence. Officers also found hand-written ledgers showing the names of people who owed Hagedorn money – one individual owing as much as $43,000. With the price per pound of Methamphetamine averaging around $3,000 at the time of the crimes, the ledgers indicated Hagedorn had sold large quantities. 

Deputy Prosecutor John Bober represented the State on this case and was able to obtain a guilty plea from the Defendant. 

Prosecutor Moers stated: “Because of the diligent work of the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Drug Task force, a large quantity of drugs is off the streets and out of our community. Hagedorn’s case is particularly egregious since he was a drug-addition counselor. Hagedorn is well-aware of the devastating impact drugs have on individuals and a community—yet he preyed on addicts and was profiting greatly from his drug sales.  Drugs bring crime and destruction to the community, and their peddler is now in prison and out of Vanderburgh County. We are safer because of the efforts of the joint task force and prosecution.”  

Prosecutor Moers extends her appreciation to Det. Seibert, Det. Knight, Officer McCrarey, Det. Patterson and his K9 Officer, Det. Mansfield, Det. Simpson, Sgt. South, and all the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Drug Task Force who work tirelessly to get these drugs and their dealers off the streets of this community. 

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USI Social Work Department to add Online Master of Social Work degree this Fall

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USI Social Work Department to add Online Master of Social Work degree this Fall

JUNE 4, 2024

The University of Southern Indiana’s Social Work Department within the College of Liberal Arts will offer a fully online Master of Social Work degree beginning in Fall 2024. This new offering is based on the current in-person Master of Social Work degree but will offer the same classes in an online environment that fits any schedule.

Master of Social Work courses will prepare students to provide desperately needed services to help people cope with issues like mental illness, substance abuse, poverty and discrimination. Positions in hospitals, mental health clinics, schools, employee assistance programs, residential treatment facilities, prisons, senior centers, government agencies and many more settings are attainable after degree completion.

“When reflecting on my education at USI, I believe that my professors made more of an impact on my perspective toward the profession than a specific course” says Macie Cox ’21, USI Master of Social Work Graduate, Behavioral Mental Health Therapist, Indiana United Methodist Children’s Home. My professors did an amazing job at balancing textbook knowledge with their professional experience. I remember most of my classes transforming my perspective on the world.”

This online degree is meant to open the doors to higher education for working individuals that need more flexibility to earn their degree. This fully asynchronous program allows students to work on assignments at their convenience with no meeting time each week to plan around. The courses have a student-to-faculty ratio of 12:1, so students will have ample opportunities to interact with faculty and peers.

“The new online MSW program was designed to provide accessible and flexible opportunities for individuals to obtain their MSW at USI,” says Dr. Quentin Maynard, incoming Director of the Master of Social Work Program. “The online MSW program will educate and train social workers to provide clinical, mental and behavioral health services in our community. We are excited to see how this new program option will benefit our community partners and the individuals living in the Tri-state area.”

This degree is fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education, which uses a rigorous process to evaluate Master of Social Work colleges for the quality of their education and student outcomes.

For more information on the Online Master of Social Work program, contact Maynard at qrmaynard@usi.edu, or visit the Master of Social Work webpage.

NCAA releases 2022-23 Academic Progress Rate report

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UE men’s golf and volleyball earn perfect scores

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – On Tuesday, the NCAA released its latest Academic Progress Report (APR), which holds institutions accountable for the academic progress of their student-athletes through a team-based metric that accounts for the eligibility and retention of each student-athlete for each academic term.

Data submitted for the 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23 academic years is included in the latest report.  Two University of Evansville programs are being recognized for their multi-year APR scores.  The Purple Aces women’s volleyball and men’s golf teams were honored for being in the top 10% of NCAA Division I.

“This recognition is a testament to the hard work put in by our student-athletes, coaches and staff,” UE Athletics Director Dr. Ziggy Siegfried said.  “To have two of our programs rank in the top 10% nationally is a prestigious honor for the University of Evansville and our athletics department.”

The four-year Academic Progress Rate national average for Division I teams remained steady at 984 this year, as the division marked the 20th anniversary of APR data collection. During those 20 years, overall student-athlete academic success has risen substantially.

Compared with the four-year period prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (2015-16 through 2018-19), the overall national four-year average across all sports increased one point. At the sport level, changes in the national average were small. Compared with pre-pandemic averages, baseball increased 1 point to 978, football fell 1 point to 963, men’s basketball increased 2 points to 968 and women’s basketball decreased 2 points to 981.

Dave Schnase, NCAA vice president of academic and membership affairs, said, “Student-athletes have achieved incredible success in the classroom over the last 20 years, mostly due to the hard work and commitment to academic achievement by student-athletes on campuses across the country.

“In addition, the unprecedented success is in part due to the work of the Committee on Academics and its predecessor, the Committee on Academic Performance. The policy changes they made, including initial-eligibility standards and progress-toward-degree requirements, along with on-campus support for student-athletes, contributed to the high rates we are seeing now.”

Each academic year, every Division I sports team’s APR is calculated using a simple and consistent formula. Scholarship student-athletes can earn 1 point for staying on course for a degree in their chosen major and 1 point for being retained (or graduating) at the end of each academic term. For schools that do not offer athletics scholarships, recruited student-athletes are tracked.

This is the third consecutive year of publicly reported APRs after a one-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, the Division I board approved the release of APR scores but voted to continue the suspension of program penalties. After further review, the Committee on Academics is not enforcing the loss of access to postseason competition for teams that have scored lower than 930. Instead, a conditional waiver is being offered this year due to lingering impacts of COVID-19.

Gov. Holcomb announces plans for new $1B Microsoft Data Center in Northwest Indiana

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Announcement marks $14.8B committed to Indiana’s technology infrastructure in 2024, accelerating global cloud and AI innovation

LA PORTE, Ind. – Governor Eric J. Holcomb today announced that Microsoft will invest $1 billion to establish a new data center in northwest Indiana. The new facility, which will create up to 200 new jobs by the end of 2032 in La Porte, will accelerate cloud computing infrastructure to support growth in technology and artificial intelligence worldwide.

“Indiana is committed to being a central hub in the global economy of the future, and this latest announcement ensures Hoosier communities and talent will be key to widespread advancements in cloud and artificial intelligence technology,” said Gov. Holcomb. “As a state, we’ve built a pro-growth business climate and implemented a future-focused framework to attract major investments in high-tech, high-growth sectors. We’re excited to welcome Microsoft’s new data center to Indiana and look forward to the incredible value add impact this will have on our statewide data driven ecosystem, new career opportunities, specifically the greater northwest Indiana community.”

Microsoft, headquartered in Redmond, Washington, will construct a new 245,000-square-foot data center on 489 acres at the Radius Industrial Park in La Porte. The campus will help power the Microsoft Cloud and support the next-level digital transformation spurred by the widespread adoption of cloud computing and AI (artificial intelligence). The La Porte facility will join the company’s worldwide network of cloud computing infrastructure of more than 60 Azure regions, more than 300 data centers, over 280,000 kilometers of network, and over 190 edge sites.

To support its growth in Indiana, Microsoft plans to hire a variety of positions, including critical environment engineers, IT technicians and managers, inventory and asset technicians and managers, security personnel, and site managers. The timeline for construction and operations of the new datacenter is dependent on the design, planning and permitting process, which will start in cooperation with the City of La Porte later this year.

“Microsoft is excited to expand our datacenter infrastructure into Indiana, with our first campus to be built in La Porte,” said Bowen Wallace, Microsoft CVP Datacenters, Americas Region. “We appreciate the collaboration with the State, City and the La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership that has made this opportunity possible. We look forward to an enduring and beneficial relationship with Indiana and the City of La Porte as we build and scale our data center infrastructure to support our customer and partners.”

Microsoft is committed to the responsible operations of their datacenters, with its environmental impact on local communities firmly in mind. The company has four main sustainability goals: Being carbon negative and removing its historical carbon emissions by 2050; Being water positive and replenishing more water than it uses; Being zero waste across its direct operations; Protecting more land than it uses by 2025.

“Projects like this happen once in a lifetime, and their effects are felt forever,” said La Porte Mayor Tom Dermody. “What makes this even better is that we get to work with the talented and community-minded team at Microsoft. From the very beginning of this project, they have been committed and attentive to the needs of our community. We are incredibly excited to welcome them here and look forward to a strong collaboration long into the future.”

The city of La Porte approved additional incentives to support the project. NIPSCO offered additional incentives.

“Providing safe, reliable and affordable energy to the communities we serve is NIPSCO’s mission, and we have been working closely with Microsoft on plans to fulfill the energy needs for the new data center in the city of La Porte,” said Vince Parisi, NIPSCO President and Chief Operating Officer. “This economic development project will deliver long-term, sustained benefits to the northwest Indiana region, and we’re proud to support these efforts.”

Today’s news marks Indiana’s fourth strategically located major planned data center announcement in 2024. Together, these Fortune 500 businesses have made plans to invest $14.8 billion in cloud computing and storage infrastructure in communities and regions across Indiana, creating 1,500 new jobs in Fort Wayne, Jeffersonville, La Porte and New Carlisle.

Based on the company’s investment plans, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) committed an investment in Microsoft in the form of a 35-year term data center sales tax credit for a minimum $1 billion in eligible capital investment. For each $1 billion of eligible investment made at the site within the first 15 years, the company will be eligible for tax exemptions for an additional 5-10-year period, up to a total term of 45 years. These incentives are performance-based, meaning the company is eligible to claim state benefits once investments are made.

EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT

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EPD

MEDIEPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT

 

 

 

 

FOOTNOTE: EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT information was provided by the EPD and posted by the City-County-County Observer without opinion, bias, or editing.

USI MBB signs Horiuk

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Horiuk joins USI

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball announced the signing of junior forward Oleksandr (Alex) Horiuk (Chernivtsi, Ukraine) for the 2024-25 season. Horiuk is the eighth player to sign with USI and Head Coach Stan Gouard this spring.

“We are excited to welcome Alex to the Screaming Eagle family, anticipating his significant contributions to the team and community,” Gouard commented. Alex’s future at USI promises to be both impactful and inspiring.”

Horiuk transfers to USI after playing the last two seasons at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He played in 39 games over two seasons for UTRGV, averaging 2.0 points and 1.8 rebounds per contest.

Last season, Horiuk posted 1.8 points and 2.2 rebounds per outing in a two-year high 22 games, making one starts. He recorded a season-high four points on the road versus Utah Valley University and six rebounds on the road against the University of Texas Arlington.

During his freshman season in 2022-23, the 7-foot-0 forward recorded 2.4 points and 1.4 rebounds per game. He recorded a career-high 16 points and nine rebounds versus Southwestern Adventist University.

Prior to beginning his collegiate career, Horiuk finished his prep career by averaging 13.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 blocks, and 3.0 assists per game at College Prep Academy in 2021-22. The native of Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and Citrus Heights, California, also played three seasons at Jesuit High School (Carmichael, California), posted 4.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game as a junior and helped the Marauders to a 16-0 perfect mark in 2020-21.

The Screaming Eagles reached the Ohio Valley Conference Championship post-season in 2023-24 marking the second-straight season since USI made the transition to NCAA Division I. USI appeared in the 2023 College Basketball Invitational during its first transition year.

Randall joins USI

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EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball announced the signing of junior guard/forward Jayland Randall (Detroit, Michigan) for the 2024-25 season. Randall is the seventh player to sign with USI and Head Coach Stan Gouard this spring.

 
“Jayland is an exciting and very skilled player at 6-foot-5,” commented Gouard. “He is comfortable at any of the perimeter positions and can create off the bounce for himself and his teammates.
 
“I believe Jayland will develop into an elite three-level scorer,” Gouard continued “He has tremendous versatility and length, which will allow him to guard multiple positions for us.
 
“Jayland effectively uses change of speeds and direction in his attack off the bounce and plays the game with great passion,” concluded Gouard.
 
Randall arrives at USI after playing the last two seasons at Alabama A&M University. The 6-foot-5 guard/forward played in 50 games over two seasons for Alabama A&M, averaging 5.8 points, 2.1 rebounds per contest.
 
Last season, Randall posted a two-year career-high with 7.0 points and 2.7 rebounds per outing in 33 games, making three starts. He recorded a career-high 17 points on the road versus Bethune-Cookman University and seven rebounds in home game against the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff.
 
During his freshman season in 2022-23, the Detroit, Michigan native recorded 3.1 points and 1.0 rebounds per game. He scored a season-high 12 points at Alcorn State University and grabbed a season-best four rebounds versus Rust College.
 
Before beginning his collegiate career, Randall lettered in basketball at Chandler Park Academy (Harper Woods, Michigan). He was named first-team All-Charter League as a sophomore and junior.
 
The Screaming Eagles reached the Ohio Valley Conference Championship post-season in 2023-24 marking the second-straight season since USI made the transition to NCAA Division I. USI appeared in the 2023 College Basketball Invitational during its first transition year.
 

Scott dazzles as Otters win series opener

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EVANSVILLE, IN – The Evansville Otters (7-15) stepped back into the win column Tuesday night after taking down the Lake Erie Crushers (13-9) 3-1 at Bosse Field.

Starting pitching was excellent for both sides but Braden Scott was great in another quality performance. The southpaw tossed six scoreless frames en route to striking out 10 Crushers.

Scoring did not begin until the sixth inning. David Mendham walked with one out and two batters later Anthony Calarco kept the frame alive with a base hit. With runners on first and second, Randy Bednar hit an RBI double to the right-center gap, scoring a run and putting Evansville ahead 1-0.

Lake Erie tied the game in the eighth inning with a home run, but the Otters quickly responded in the bottom of the frame.

They strung together a two-out rally beginning with Calarco being hit by a pitch. After a Bednar single, Mike Peabody delivered by smoking a ball off the left-center field wall to plate both runners. While he was inches away from his third home run of the year, he gave the Otters a 3-1 advantage, finalizing the scoring.

Michael McAvene (Sv. 1) slammed the door in the ninth to pick up the first save of the year for any Otters pitcher.

Calarco led the bats with a 3-for-3 night. Riley Delgado also had a multi-hit game. Mendham extended his on-base streak to 21 games, reaching safely in every game he’s been a part of this year.

The Otters will look for their second series win of the 2024 season tomorrow against Lake Erie. Tomorrow’s first pitch is scheduled for 12:05 PM CT. Coverage is available on the Otters Digital Network and FloBaseball.
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