Indiana House Republicans have taken another stand against lasting election reform by rejecting a proposal from State Rep. Ryan Hatfield (D-Evansville) that would have helped remove politics from drawing new districts for the Indiana General Assembly and our state’s congressional delegation.

House Republicans refused to consider an amendment from Hatfield that would have prohibited the use of political data to draw districts for the Indiana House and Senate and our state’s members of Congress. The proposal, rejected on a party-line vote, was offered to Senate Bill 220.

“This amendment simply said that officials may not use data related to party registrations, voting histories, and election returns in drawing new legislative and congressional districts,” Hatfield said.

“Approval of this proposal would have sent a clear sign that the Indiana General Assembly is in favor of a full, fair and completely impartial election system, rather than a system that leaves the people of Indiana feeling that our elections are rigged,” he added. “Right now, our legislative and congressional districts are drawn through an overtly political  system that maximizes every opportunity for the party in power to maintain its control over state government. This amendment answers Hoosiers’ calls to take politics out of our redistricting process.”

Hatfield and other Indiana House Democrats have made several attempts to raise election reform as an issue worthy of consideration during the 2017 legislative session, only to be rebuffed by House Republicans at every opportunity.

“There was a bill that would have paved the way for an independent, nonpartisan commission to handle redistricting, but the chairman of the House Elections and Apportionment Committee (State Rep. Milo Smith, R-Columbus) refused my call to vote on the bill in committee,” Hatfield noted. “Then his House Republican colleagues rejected attempts by myself and one of my colleagues to keep the idea of an independent commission alive this session.

“The House Republicans may not want to talk about election reform, but the people of Indiana do,” Hatfield said. “I will continue to talk about it in the weeks we have left in this 2017 session.”

On July 27^th and 28^th, the Evansville Police Department will host the FIRST STEP Advanced Student Threat Assessment and Intervention Response Program.  FIRST STEP gives you the skills, materials, and confidence to quickly and effectively assess, intervene, and manage a student who has made a threat of violence.

This training is for Police Officers, School Resource Officer, Teachers, School Administrators, Counselors, Residential Life Coordinators as well as anyone else involved in the education and safety of students.

Every student who is planning to attack a school has stepped onto The Path to Violence. When this occurs, the best way to ensure the immediate and long term safety of your school community is to guide that student off The Path to Violence and back to the person he used to be and can be again.

FIRST STEP helps you to do just that–assess, intervene, and guide students back to a safe place–back to the FIRST STEP–the place they were before they began to travel down The Path to Violence.

This two-day advanced professional development course gives you 12 new skills to stop a school attack, change students’ lives, as well as to increase your personal growth and enhance your professional worth.

1. Implement effective and realistic techniques to save lives

2. Distinguish normal from threatening behaviors

3. Identify indicators of imminent or impending danger

4. Assess (read) student behaviors and determine their true risk level

5. Predict type & intensity of future student behaviors & calculate potential risk

6. Utilize proactive and effective (included) intervention plans to lower the risk level

7. Administer effective discipline after a student has made a threat of violence

8. Integrate suspended and expelled students safely back into the school

9. Prevent stigmatizing students and alienating parents

10. Positively change the lives of students

11. Enhance your quality of life and raise your school’s total climate

12. Protect your school and yourself against civil liability

FIRST STEP can be used as a stand-alone program or to supplement your existing procedures!

Those who have these skills are invaluable members of their community and profession!

For more INFORMATION & to REGISTER online go to http://peoplearetheprize.com/_pages/classes/first-step-student-threat-assessment-program.html or visit People are the Prize at www.peoplearetheprize.com.

RONALD RIECKEN

Angie Bullock

Tommy Stillwell

Randy Vaughn

Fred Hunt

Tim Alford

Mick Arrick

Cindy Lucy Riedford

Tim Carter

Dennis Duffy

Krista Burdette Polk

Shelly Phillips Cullum

Julie Davis

Laura Wasson

Thomas Ferguson

Dennis Schnell

Rob Nieters

Javier Lugo

Gretchen Gerling

Michelle Johnson

Sandy Williams Morris

Kelly Gilbert

Sherry Wright

Buster Grayson

Linda Whitehouse Thompson

Heather McAfee Ricketts

Keith Gander

Bob Fuchs

Melinda Fischell Mackey

Becky Bateman-McDaniel

Carrie Shetler

Cindy Buttram Massey Dreshfield

Paul Hoskins

Joey Kiefer

Kelle Grimm Ruedlinger

Jeff Long

Beth Dodson Kemper

Katie Beitler

Diana Bell Britton

Lisa Sikes

Curtis Zirkelbach

Kurt McBride

Daniel Kisner

Shane Sabel

Randy Craig

Carol Shourds

Maureen O’Daniel

Pam Rickenbaugh

Andrew Grammer

Michael Sandefur

Beverly Kempf-Robb

Steve Robinson

Sonya Burkhart

Mark Neff