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IS IT TRUE OCT 9, 2015

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IS IT TRUE please take time and vote in our current unscientific but trendy “Readers Poll” on who do you want to be the next Mayor of Evansville?  …so far the results are interesting?

IS IT TRUE on Wednesday we ask Sgt. Jason Cullum of the Evansville Police Department  to explain the mission of “Cops Connecting with Kids”?  … EPD Sgt.  Jason Cullun said;  “We raise money on behalf of IRS approved non-profits that provide services to kids and low income families?   …he also added that “The money raised goes directly to those entities”?  “Our efforts are in the same spirit as other groups who have raised money on behalf of Easter Seals, St. Jude Children’s Hospital, Santa Clothes Club, and other non-profits”?

IS IT TRUE we assume by Mr. Cullum evasive and vague answers to the above question is that the charitable fundraising entity called  “Cops Connecting with Kids” used to promote meaningful charitable fundraising activities on behalf of the EPD amd may not be incorporated or registered with the Indiana Secretary of State or isn’t approved by the IRS as Not-For-Profit organization?  …if our assumption is incorrect we welcome Mr. Cullum to come forward with the correct information?

IS IT TRUE on Wednesday  we also ask Sgt. Jason Cullum of the Evansville Police Department if EPD pay any employees for working at the Bennett Motors Charitable Fundraising event?‏  …Mr. Callum response was; “Over the course of this event, there were officers who were there on their own time and officers who were on their regularly scheduled work day.”  “There was one uniform officer at the event each day working on an overtime basis”.  “The funding mechanism for the officers who were on city time is the same as in past cases.” Those cases include 911 Gives Hope Toy Drive, The Shriner’s Festival, The Nut Club Fall Festival, and the Together We’ll Stop The Violence Dust Bowl”. “The impact these events have on our community is great and they all serve as great opportunities for local non-profits to raise money to help our community”. “All of these events allow us to create new community partnerships, interact with members of the community, strengthen bonds, and build new ones”.

IS IT TRUE we want to stress we are very appreciative that members of the EPD  feel duty bound to go beyond the call of duty to help the less fortunate of this community?  ….we also know that members of the FOB are doing an outstanding job in doing so?  …we feel that any future charitable fundraising activities put on behalf of the EPD sponsored entity should be incorporated or registered with the Indiana Secretary of State, have a performance bond and proper liability insurance and approved by the IRS as a not-for-profit organization?

IS IT TRUE we  respectfully suggest that in the future that Mr. Cullum consider providing individuals and organizations who have financially contributed to  “Cops Connecting with Kids”  fundraising events  with assurance  that the  funds were used for the intended purpose?   …Informing them that donations made to a EPD sponsored charity events can be written write off as a tax deductible charitable contributions with the IRS?

IS IT TRUE we once again want to thank members of our local EPD for helping the less fortunate of this community?

IS IT TRUE the City-County Observer is excited to announce that our annual CCO “OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD” luncheon for 2015.will be held on October 26, 2015 at Tropicana-Evansville Walnut rooms A and B.? …this years winners of the “Outstanding Community Services Awards” are: Vanderburgh County Commissioner Joe Kifer, well respected local attorney Joe Harrison, Jr, Indiana State Auditor Suzanne Crouch and former Vanderburgh County Sheriff and 8th District Congressmen Brad Ellsworth, Dr. Dan Adams, Dr Steven Becker MD, Tracy Zeller, Holly Dunn and Cheryl Musgrave who currently sits on the Vanderburgh County Board of Zoning Appeals and also is a Commissioner on the Evansville Redevelopment Commission? … registration begin at 11:30 am, the event officially starts at 12 noon on October 26, 2015? …reservations for this event may be obtain by calling Mollie Drake Schreiber at 812-760-4233 or e-email her at mdarke07@yahoo.com. Deadline for registration is October 15, 2014.? … the last five (5) events were sellouts.

Method To The Mediation

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Dave Stafford for www.theindianalawyer.com

Larry Bridgesmith has been in between bickering businessmen and feuding physicians. He’s been called in to try to solve problems when dysfunction between normally high-functioning professionals has undermined organizations.

Like many mediators, he’s dealt with situations where “reason has left the building,” when parties in mediation have become irrationally emotional, entrenched in their positions, or unwilling to negotiate. That’s what the Nashville, Tennessee-based attorney and ADR luminary came to Indiana to talk about.

bridgesmith-larry-mugBridgesmith

Bridgesmith was the featured presenter at the fifth annual Midwest Mediation Conference, hosted by the Indiana Association of Mediators on Sept. 25-26. He focused on difficult mediations, and he’s had his share, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to hospitals and universities.

“Mediators are about helping people regain their cognitive abilities,” Bridgesmith said. Neuroscience is providing insights into how people process information, and the breakthroughs in this understanding can lead to breakthroughs in alternative dispute resolution.

“I can’t instruct someone to change the way they think, but I can ask questions that enable them to change the way they think,” he said. About 80 percent of the time during mediation, Bridgesmith wants to be listening, talking only 20 percent of the time. And when he speaks, he should almost always be asking questions.

“Questions help (participants) move from their experiential mind into the cognitive brain and look for answers to the questions,” Bridgesmith said. “You can’t do it coercively. … The power of the question really opens people to examining different positions than the ones they’ve taken.”

By analyzing the importance of the issue in dispute and the importance of the relationship between disputing parties, Bridgesmith believes these variables can be charted to suggest what may be the best course of action toward resolution. For example, disputes involving very important issues but insignificant relationships are likeliest to result in conflict, perhaps litigation. Where relationships are paramount and issues minor, accommodation should be the strategy.

“There are a variety of conflict responses,” he said. “You need to be strategic about how you reach into the tool box and find one that works best in the circumstance you’re in. … These are what I believe to be neuroscientifically established tools to help people step back from the ledge, look back at the situation from the balcony and see it more objectively.

“There’s virtually no place of any description where, first of all, conflict doesn’t arise, and secondly, these tools aren’t useful,” he said.

shelemey-lea-mugShelemey

Valparaiso attorney and mediator Lea Shelemey said Bridgesmith gave her a lot to think about and incorporate in her practice primarily mediating family law cases. He stressed the importance of teasing out the underlying interests among parties and the importance of being strategic by asking carefully phrased questions.

A lot about how to ask those questions and direct the discussion can be gleaned through what Bridgesmith calls convening – taking time in advance of mediation to speak with the attorneys and parties who will be involved. Doing so can set goals and expectations and get an idea of the parties’ objectives for resolution. It also can serve as an icebreaker and help get parties prepared and willing to negotiate.

“It’s critical to do the convening, and it may even help us to anticipate barriers,” Shelemey said.

Impasse is a perennial issue for mediators, and Shelemey said Bridgesmith suggested the time spent convening ahead of mediation could help resolve situations where a party is resistant to the process or standing in the way of resolving issues. The up-front process could mitigate feelings of parties who believe they aren’t being heard.

“You can even return to that during the mediation,” Shelemey said of the convening concept.

thrasher-ann-mugThrasher

Attorney and mediator Ann Thrasher runs the civil and family law alternative dispute resolution program in Hendricks County and is president of the Indiana Association of Mediators. She said Bridgesmith’s presentation builds on CLE training the conference has provided in past years examining developments in neuroscience.

Thrasher said well over 80 percent of the family law cases she deals with result in resolution. The toughest cases are those in which one party doesn’t believe in divorce and simply won’t be moved, even though the divorce will happen with or without the spouse’s consent.

“I’ve very rarely had anyone say, ‘I’m not budging on anything,’” Thrasher said. She stresses to clients that it’s in their best interest to craft agreements they can live with rather than leaving it up to a judge. But disputes aren’t always logical.

“I’ve had several cases where somebody looking from the outside in would say, ‘You’ve figured out all the really tough topics, but why are you stuck on this one piece of furniture?’” she said. “At the same time, it means something to each of them.”

mediation-chartMediators say sometimes a party’s intransigence can be dealt with by reminding that person of concessions from the other party. Reminders of those gains compared with where talks began sometimes can spur compromise.

Bridgesmith, who also teaches at Vanderbilt Law School and founded the Institute for Conflict Management at Lipscomb University, said mediators should be willing to spend as much time as possible working toward resolution. He cited an American Bar Association survey that found the leading contributor to failed mediations was mediators who the parties said gave up too soon.

The tools Bridgesmith advocates to use aren’t just valuable in non-domestic civil mediations, in fact, they might be even more valuable in family law cases. There, “the relationship is bigger, stronger, longer lasting and more powerful than whatever the issues are.”

Parties who come to mediation are already at impasse to some degree or they would have solved their disputes themselves. In mediation, some conflict should be expected, as well as occasional irrationality. Bridgesmith confesses some himself.

“I have to say I have irrational optimism. … I don’t give up until they stop returning my calls.” And that rarely happens, even when the stakes are high and dysfunction is the defining characteristic.

“Change comes when the pain of change is more attractive than the pain of staying the same,” he said. “If you trust this process – the process, not me, not my ability, but the process – it will bring people to a point where they can resolve their differences.”•

NEW WALKING TRAIL TO OPEN AT ST. MARY’S EPWORTH CROSSING

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Join us as we open a brand new walking trail for the community. The new walking trail at Epworth Crossing will serve as an entry point to the Warrick Wellness Trail. Ample parking is provided near the trail head for community members to come and enjoy the trail for walking, running or bicycling.

Thursday, October 22
10:00 a.m.

St. Mary’s Epworth Crossing
(100 Epworth Crossing Newburgh, IN 47630)

St. Mary’s is pleased to be a part of this project in collaboration with Warrick Wellness Pathways, a not-for-profit group of volunteers working with area officials and corporate donors to improve the quality of life for our community’s residents and visitors. This project is also a great way to address the need identified in our Community Health Needs Assessment to provide more “walkable” communities and build environments to increase physical activity.

Swimming and diving travels to Missouri State

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With their opening weekend in the books, the University of Evansville swimming and diving teams head to Missouri State for a 4 p.m. meet on Friday in Springfield.

 

“We are looking forward to continuing our season and competing against a great team,” head coach Rickey Perkins said.  “Our teams had a good start last weekend and we hope for more improvement this week.  Missouri State is a great team and will be a good reference point for where we are at.”

 

Friday’s meet will be a short format and will be a change of pace from last weekend.  In Saturday’s opener versus Southern Illinois, the Aces had a format that featured all relays.  Sunday’s Butler Quad Meet was a long format.

 

Courtney Coverdale had a stellar weekend on the boards to open the season.  She earned decisive victories in the 1 and 3 meter dives at the Butler Quad Meet.  Michaela Kent also had a strong weekend, swimming a 54.39 in the 100 free to take second place.

 

On the men’s side, Dan O’Brien was in the zone, teaming up with Kent, Troy Burger and Mackenzie Harris to take top honors in the mixed 200 medley relay against the Salukis.  His team also earned a second in the 100 fly relay in the opener.

 

Rep. Bacon will host series of town hall meetings

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tate Rep. Ron Bacon (R-Chandler) will host a series of town hall meetings throughout October.


9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10

Victoria National Golf Club
2000 Victoria National Blvd.
Newburgh

 

6 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 14

Boonville-Warrick County Library
611 West Main St.
Boonville

 

6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 20

Winslow Community Center
411 East Porter St.
Winslow

 

Bacon will be available to discuss issues which constituents would like to see addressed during the upcoming legislative session. He encourages all interested and concerned members of the community to attend.

 

A complete list of town hall meetings can also be found at in.gov/h75. For media inquiries, please contact Courtney Bearsch at 317-234-9006 or email Courtney.Bearsch@iga.in.gov.

CONNECTING COPS AND KIDS

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According to Jason Cullun of the EPD  the group called “Connecting Cops and Kids”  and the local EPD sponsored “Cops Connecting with Kids”  have different names but also different missions.  Please take time and review the attached overview of a national training program called “Connecting Cops & Kids”.  We hope this nationally proven program will be discussed during the current Mayoral campaign debates as a possible tool to improve community relations in the 3rd, 2nd and 4th political Wards of Evansville!

Overview of the “Cops and  Kids” Training Program Enhances Community Policing Efforts And Public Safety

The YEF Institute and the Fred Rogers Company have partnered to connect cities with a no-cost training program that enhances community policing efforts and public safety by improving police interactions with children and teens.

The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) is supporting a series of local training sessions in communities across the nation.  We are interested in hearing from local law enforcement officials if they are using or considering to implement this seemly worthy community policing  program.

 The Fred Rogers Company, well known as the nonprofit organization responsible for the creation of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, has produced “One On One: Connecting Cops & Kids,” a video-based professional development training for police and community support agencies. Its goal is to help officers increase their effectiveness when interacting with children and teens.

The day-long training is designed to raise officers’ awareness of the tremendous impact their presence has on children, and show how basic knowledge of children’s development can enhance an officer’s impact, safety and ability to achieve law enforcement goals.

The program’s strong reception by police in the Pittsburgh area, where the training was piloted extensively, resulted in a COPS Office grant for a national rollout of the training available to selected police departments at no cost. Earlier this year, the YEF Institute assisted the Fred Rogers Company in soliciting applications for this training from cities across the country.

Trainings have taken place with police departments and social service agency partners in eight cities, as well as the National Community Policing Conference hosted by the COPS Office in August 2011 in Washington, D.C. Selected sites have included:

  • Brunswick, Ohio;
  • Fort Worth, Texas;
  • Gadsden, Ala.;
  • Glendale, Ariz.;
  • Nashville, Tenn.;
  • Thornton, Colo.;
  • Tukwila, Wash.; and
  • Youngstown, Ohio.

In many instances, officers from other applying cities are travelling to these sites to learn how to conduct the Cops & Kids training for their own police departments. Additional trainings are also being scheduled in 2012 in the following cities and towns that applied:

  • Albany, N.Y.
  • Buffalo, N.Y.
  • Cleveland, Ohio
  • Memphis, Tenn.
  • Newark, N.J.
  • Rock Hill, S.C.
  • Sacramento Area, Calif.
  • Richmond, Calif.
  • River Rouge, Mich.
  • Virginia Beach, Va.
  • West Valley City, Utah
  • Wellington, Fla.

If your city did not submit an application earlier this year, but is interested in the training, please contact Mark Meyers at the Fred Rogers Company atmeyers@fredrogers.org.

The Cops & Kids Training Program
Children are almost always present when police officers perform their duties. Encounters with police can make a profound impact on children. Children also can make officers’ work much easier or harder and considerably safer or more dangerous.

The Connecting Cops & Kids training program builds on expertise both in child development and the day-to-day reality of police work, having been developed by the Fred Rogers Company in collaboration with the Boston, New Haven, and Pittsburgh police departments, the National Center for Children Exposed to Violence and the Child Witness to Violence Project. Cops & Kids combines personal narratives and film footage of actual, non-scripted situations involving New Haven police officers interacting with children or responding to calls involving children, from friendly encounters to intense conflicts.

The Fred Rogers Company first produced the Cops & Kids training five years ago with support from the Heinz Endowments and the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

“We developed Cops & Kids to help build less adversarial and more collaborative relationships among police officers and children and families. An effort that increases everyone’s safety in this way is as important today as ever,” said Fred Rogers Company President and Pittsburgh Public Schools Board Member William H. Isler.

“This training opens officers’ eyes to the ways that kids can be allies when it comes to fighting crime,” said Thomas Klawinski, Detective Sargeant for the New Kensington, Pa., Police Department. “It causes officers to look at juveniles not as a problem, but as a wealth of information. If they trust you, they’re going to help you. It also teaches officers that other agencies in the community-which we sometimes think of as roadblocks-can be great assets and partners.”

“No police officer should graduate from the Academy without this training,” said Charlotte-Mecklenburg, N.C., Police Chief Darrel Stephens.

Using a flexible curriculum, the Connecting Cops & Kids program:

  • Helps police officers build trust in communities they are sworn to serve and promote greater cooperation and reporting of criminal activity;
  • Increases their safety and effectiveness while on patrol and as first responders;
  • Promotes greater preparedness to help children who are in trouble and prevent further victimization
  • Improves the perception of officers as role models for children;
  • Strengthens partnerships with social service agencies that work with the same youth officers encounter on a daily basis; and
  • Enhances officers’ community policing skills and ability to improve public safety.

At the heart of the program is a series of professionally-produced documentary videos that serve as jumping-off points for discussions. Training topics include:

  • Kids: How They See Police-understanding how children’s perceptions of police change as they grow older, connecting with kids in age-appropriate ways, using positive interactions to increase safety and job effectiveness;
  • Weighing Options-providing initial support to children exposed to violent or criminal behavior, exploring options for responding to children in trouble, using officer authority to help children at risk;
  • Children and Trauma-recognizing situations that are traumatic for children, understanding how children experience and react to trauma, responding appropriately to traumatized children; and
  • Partners in Crisis-getting acquainted and building working partnerships with the local social service agencies that support and advocate for children and families exposed to violence.

Hundreds of officers, from veterans to new recruits, have enhanced their community oriented policing efforts by participating in the program. They credit it with helping them develop new skills and increasing their awareness of strategies and partners they can turn to when dealing with children and teens.

“Cops & Kids gave me and my department some very valuable resources for developing our community oriented policing unit,” said Curtis Boyd, Lead Community Resource Officer for the Port Authority Police of Allegheny County, Pa. “It helped us reach kids and reach out to other police departments to learn from them. The program also helps us make the case that preventive policing really does work.”

“Cops & Kids is a terrific and important program,” said Sue Ascione, Executive Director of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Lawrence County, Pa. “It is very valuable for officers to learn how they can be helped by children’s advocacy organizations and how to hook up kids with organizations they might not otherwise connect with.”

In early 2011, applications to participate were invited from entities including but not limited to:

  • Offices of the mayor, city manager, or city council members;
  • Municipal police departments;
  • Police academies;
  • Tribal police departments;
  • Housing authority police departments;
  • Transit police departments;
  • Military police departments;
  • Campus security departments;
  • Juvenile probation programs;
  • School police departments;
  • Postsecondary educational institutions that provide pre-professional and continuing education for law enforcement officers; and
  • Social service/human service agencies and other community organizations.

Trainings will be held at a number of sites throughout the country, as well as online, at no cost to participating cities or their police departments and officers. An effort will be made to hold trainings in easily accessible areas for a wide range of departments and populations. Follow-up support will be provided for local trainers interested in facilitating additional workshops. If you are interested in this program, please contact Mark Meyers at the Fred Rogers Company at meyers@fredrogers.org.

EDITOR FOOT NOTE: The City-County Observer is excited to announce that our annual CCO “OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD” luncheon for 2015.will be held on October 26, 2015 at Tropicana-Evansville Walnut rooms A and B.  This years winners of the “Outstanding Community Services Awards” are: Vanderburgh County Commissioner Joe Kifer, well respected local Attorney Joe Harrison, Jr, Indiana State Auditor Suzanne Crouch and former Vanderburgh County Sheriff and 8th District  Congressmen Brad Ellsworth, Dr. Dan Adams, Dr Steven Becker MD, Tracy Zeller, Holly Dunn and Cheryl Musgrave who currently sits on the Vanderburgh County Board of Zoning Appeals and also is a Commissioner on the Evansville Redevelopment Commission.  Registration begins at 11:30 am, the event officially starts at 12 noon on October 26, 2015.  Reservations for this event may be obtain by calling Mollie Drake Schreiber at 812-760-4233 or e-email her at mdarke07@yahoo.com. Deadline for registration is October 15, 2014..  The last five (5) events were sellouts.

Daily Off Topic Forum October 9, 2015

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Joest to serve as Executive in Residence for USI’s Romain College of Business

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Doug Joest, executive director of Evansville Regional Airport, will serve as the 2015 Executive in Residence for the University of Southern Indiana’s Romain College of Business. His presentation, “Flight Plan for Your Career: Passion, Persistence, Performance & Patience,” will be presented at 9 a.m. and noon on Thursday, October 22, in Carter Hall in the University Center West. Both presentations are free and open to the campus and public.

The Romain College of Business’ Executive-in-Residence program provides valuable insights into the business world through the experiences of business executives. This year is the 43rd year for the program at USI.

An Evansville native, Joest became interested in aviation early, and earned his pilot’s license while attending William Henry Harrison High School. He subsequently worked on the airport ramp at Tri-State Aero, Inc., while completing his bachelor’s degree in accounting at USI.

After graduation, he worked in public accounting and then gained experience in corporate finance, while working for a natural gas pipeline company in Texas. After several years, he eagerly moved home to Evansville, returning to Tri-State Aero, Inc. as its CFO and business manager. While in this position, he was active on the Business Management Committee of the National Air Transportation Association.

After 13 years at Tri-State Aero, Inc., Joest explored different aspects of financial management across several industries. During this time, his enthusiasm for aviation led him to serve on the Evansville Vanderburgh Airport Authority Board for five years.

In 2007, he returned to the aviation industry when he joined the Evansville Airport staff as financial manager and treasurer. Since 2010, he has had the opportunity serve the Evansville community in his current role by maintaining a safe and attractive gateway to the region and expanding air service to further connect Evansville to the world.

He is a member of the boards of the Aviation Association of Indiana and the Growth Alliance for Greater Evansville. He also is active with the American Association of Airport Executives, the Board of the Southwest Indiana Chamber of Commerce, the EVV Pilot’s Club, and the Board of Advisors for the Romain College of Business at USI.

ACCOUNTABILITY

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EPA Announces Recipients of 2015 Environmental Justice Small Grants

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WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced nearly $1.2 million in competitive grants selected for award to 40 non-profit and tribal organizations working to address environmental justice (EJ) issues nationwide. The grants enable these organizations to conduct research, provide education, and develop solutions to local health and environmental issues in minority and low-income communities overburdened by harmful pollution. In addition to the 36 projects receiving funding from EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice, the program is bolstered this year by the funding of four additional projects in Gulf Coast communities by the EPA Gulf of Mexico Program.

“EPA’s environmental justice grants help communities across the country understand and address exposure to multiple environmental harms and risks at the local level,” said Matthew Tejada, Director of EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice.  “Addressing the impacts of climate change is a priority for EPA and the projects supported by this year’s grants will help communities prepare for and build resilience to localized climate impacts.”

EPA’s EJ Small Grants have been a foundational piece to the portfolios of many community organizations that have gone on to make a visible difference in their communities.  The 2015 grants will help organizations in 22 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands carry out projects that will educate residents about environmental issues that may impact their health, collect data about local environmental conditions, and work collaboratively to address environmental justice issues in their communities.  The grants support activities that not only address a range of community concerns, but also support activities that are educating and empowering youth and the next generation of environmental stewards. Specific grant projects will focus on reducing exposure to air pollutants from diesel exhaust, developing resilient sustainable agriculture, protecting farm workers from health impacts of pesticides, and increasing community climate resiliency.

“We’re excited to have this critical support to further our EJ work,” said Juan Parras, Director of the Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services (t.e.j.a.s.).  “Funding for EJ groups can be hard to come by, and the support from the EPA will go a long way at the community level.”Environmental justice is defined as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of race or income, in the environmental decision-making process. Since 1994, EPA’s environmental justice small grants program has supported projects to address environmental justice issues in nearly 1,500 communities. The grants represent EPA’s continued commitment to expand the conversation on environmentalism and advance environmental justice in communities across the nation.

For 2015 Environmental Justice Small Grant recipients and project descriptions: http://www3.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/resources/publications/grants/ej-smgrants-recipients-2015.pdf

For more information on the Environmental Justice Small Grants Program, including descriptions of previously funded grants:
http://www3.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/grants/ej-smgrants.html

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