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Matt Justak: A High Impact Young Professional’s View of the 2010 Election

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Matt Justak on the 2010 Elections

My journey as a Political Director for the Vanderburgh County Republican Party has been a roller coaster ride that I will never forget.

Fun, strenuous, unpredictable, erratic, and downright remarkable are words to describe my time serving the local GOP. I just completed working on the most historic Republican Election since Mayor Russ Lloyd Sr. took office in the early 70’s. So many headlines to take away from November 2nd, “Indiana now has two Republican U.S. Senators”, “The Bloody 8th is all GOP”, “Hermann takes down twenty year incumbent”, and the list goes on and on.

I started working for this grass roots organization in the summer of 2009. Keep in mind, this was when Obama’s popularity was at an all time, and the notion of a Republican come back was laughable. The cover for the May 2009 issue of Time Magazine pictured the GOP Elephant logo, with the caption “Endangered Species”.

Well, a lot has changed since then: Obamacare, Cap & Trade, Mayor Weinzapfel’s attempt at taking away our Homestead Tax Credit–then having Governor Daniels overrule him and giving it back, building a Downtown Arena without a referendum, and many other political miscalculations that have happened within the Democrat Party, both national and locally, has fueled a Republican comeback for the ages. Add this to our great slate of candidates who ran on the 2010 ticket, and it was an unstoppable avalanche that was bound to happen. You see, Chicago Politics mixed with Left Winged agendas is a dangerous potion, and will never ever adhere to the Hoosiers that make up the great state of Indiana. We are hard-working, honest, conservative, Americans who aren’t standing on the sideline waving the white flag for our Government to swoop in and fix things. I believe this was the message sent to Washington D.C. on November 2nd.

Again, it starts with the great slate of candidates and campaigns.

Sure the National-Anti-Incumbent-Wave helped a whole lot. But how do you explain a former Vanderburgh County Sheriff, running for U.S. Senate, losing in his own backyard, by 4,000 votes? How do you explain an ex-State Representative losing his old district in the 8th Congressional Race? How does Nick Hermann, in a rematch with Stan Levco from 4 years prior, swing 9,000 votes to secure a victory? How on earth does Wendy McNamara, first time running, defeat a State Senator in a HEAVY democratic district?
You can blame it on the conservative wave, the Tea Party Movement, and so on, but with the questions listed above, you have to accredit the candidates one-hundred percent for winning their races.
I was just happy to go along for the ride, and help them out with whatever they needed. Whether if it was to stuff envelopes, set up a fundraiser, make voter ID phone calls, put out 4×8 yard signs, hand out flyers at the Fall Festival, or find volunteers, I was content on serving them with the reward of winning their election. And, as history panned out on November 2nd 2010, that reward came to fruition.

With the proper guidance from our Chairman, Wayne Parke, and generous support from other Central Committee members, I was able to put together a solid GOTV plan that involved contacting would be Republican voters, and reminding them to get to their polling place. Judging by the polls leading up the Election Day, we knew this would be a special day and we wanted to leave zero doubt in turning out the vote; which is a stark contrast from 2008, when I volunteered my time helping out the Party. This go around, people were angry, motivated, and generous to give up an hour or two of their time to ensure victory on November 2nd. Aside from the Mitch Daniels campaign, I did not see this kind of intensity in 2008.
We hope that this momentum carries over into 2011 for the Municipal Elections (Mayor & and City Council seats). Perhaps it is time for the first time in over 40 years for Republican candidates to have an opportunity to assume power and lead the City of Evansville to prosperity. Ronald Reagan once ask the question “are you better off than you were 4 years ago”, and the American people responded by electing him to be their President.

The people of Evansville should ponder the question “are you better off than you were 40 years ago”? The harsh reality is that with respect to crime, wealth, earnings, population, educational attainment, economic growth, basic infrastructure, and listening on the part of elected officials that Evansville has been on a continuous downward spiral. Perhaps 2011 will be time to change leadership.

Editor’s Note: Matt Justak is prototype of the type of young person that Vanderburgh County’s future depends on. He is a young bright educated professional who has found a way to throw himself into an effort that he believes in that can make a positive difference to Evansville and Vanderburgh County. Unlike some of these locally grown young professionals who leave town as fast as they are accredited, Matt has chosen to seek his fortune right here. As we are kicking off a series of profiles of young professionals, Matt is our first profile.

Court upholds sentence in slaying of Spencer County Teen Attorney General committed to seeking justice in Roy Lee Ward case

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Court upholds sentence in slaying of Spencer County Teen
Attorney General committed to seeking justice in Roy Lee Ward case

INDIANAPOLIS – A court has rejected the latest appeal of a death row offender and agreed with the State of Indiana that the original sentence should remain intact.

On November 10, a judge in Spencer Circuit Court denied the post-conviction relief petition of Roy Lee Ward stemming from the slaying of a 15-year-old girl in 2001. In the ruling, Special Judge Robert Pigman of Vanderburgh County rejected every claim that Ward’s defense team had raised.

“In considering the complicated procedural history of this case, let us not forget the innocent victim, Stacy Payne, who was killed in a horrifically violent manner by an intruder in her own home, and let us not forget her family. My office is committed to obtaining justice in this case and ensuring that the laws of this state are carried out and the rulings of the trial court are upheld,” Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller said. Zoeller’s office represents the State of Indiana when offenders appeal their convictions and sentences.

Ward stands convicted and sentenced to death for the July 11, 2001, murder and rape of 15-year-old Payne in her Spencer County home. Ward attacked Payne in the presence of her younger sister and fatally slashed her with a knife, and he still was holding the knife when police arrived.

Ward was first convicted and sentenced to death in 2002; but the Indiana Supreme Court reversed the convictions in 2004 due to pretrial publicity. He was retried, convicted, and again sentenced to death in 2007; and his convictions and sentence were affirmed on appeal.

Ward then filed an appeal called a petition for post-conviction relief (PCR) in Spencer Circuit Court, raising numerous and varied claims, all of which the post-conviction court – Judge Pigman – rejected in the recent ruling. Zoeller’s office, through Deputy Attorney General James B. Martin and Deputy Attorney General Kelly Miklos, represented the State in the appellate case.

Next, Ward can ask the post-conviction relief court to reconsider its own ruling, and from there he could seek to appeal again to the Indiana Supreme Court. He has 30 days to initiate that process. Once the post-conviction relief process is exhausted, Ward then could attempt to bring a federal habeas corpus petition in the federal courts.

“The costs of capital punishment litigation concern me greatly. The prolonged appeals of death row offenders can drag out for years before the sentence is carried out, and the costs of the legal defense to which they are entitled is significant for the public. Most concerning is the toll the interminable delays take upon the victims’ families with no sense of finality in sight,” Zoeller said.

Earlier this week, Zoeller moderated a Criminal Justice Summit at the University of Notre Dame that focused on the costs and financial impact of the death penalty in Indiana. Several expert panelists from the prosecution, defense and courts offered their assessment of capital litigation in Indiana and expressed concerns about prohibitive costs. A Rutgers University economics professor, Anne Morrison Piehl, Ph.D., presented a study that suggested some possible areas of containing costs: by limiting the types of defense expert witnesses who can be called to testify in capital murder trials, or capping the fees they can charge, or developing more aggressive audit procedures after the fact.

Zoeller noted that approximately 75 attorneys and law students attended Monday’s Criminal Justice Summit, and he hopes it sparks discussion in the legal community and Legislature about death penalty costs, as all levels of government in Indiana wrestle with revenue shortfalls due to the economy.

Reader Cites Concern Over National/Local News Differences, Calls Local Tax Non-Increase Out for Deceptive Tactics

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To the Editor of the City County Observer:

Is anybody else concerned about the blatant differences in federal/national news coverage vs. local?

Nationally, I have read all sorts of reports about renewing the Bush tax cuts. But renewing the Bush tax levels is talked about in the media across the political spectrum as a tax cut, specifically one that needs to be paid for. Over and over and over, despite challenges to that “tax cut” label. The reports focused on a fundamental point that the policy proposal comes at a “cost” to governmental budgets and that the recent election results carried a message about concerns over debt levels.

Can’t I then assume then that a planned reduction in property taxes that is postponed due to government action, should be properly labeled a tax increase, right? And surely, a report about new debt will mention recent election results, right?

We just had an amazing Courier & Press report about Evansville, planning a new bond offering. In the story per city controller, Jenny Collins, “[They are] taking a property-tax rate that originally was to expire Jan. 1 2011 and extending it to 2013”. She said, “taxes will not rise to pay for the project but neither will they fall as soon as they otherwise would”. (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/nov/16/city-looking-borrow-2-million-parking-garage-repai/)

Ok, I see how this works?

Nationally: If we’re scheduled to get an increase in taxes, and arguments are made to extend the reductions – that is a new “tax cut”. And any politician that supports that proposal is regularly peppered for specifics of where to get the money from.

Locally: If we’re scheduled to get a decrease in taxes, and arguments are made to extend the higher levels – it’s basically just reported as something that’s going to happen.

Unlike the national story, the Republican in the story didn’t even make the fundamental case for labeling this an increase in taxes – although he probably should have. But don’t get me started about the difference between our local political parties.

To add to the convoluted nature of this “tax increase”… We’re planning to extend an old property tax rate that was apparently, initially added specifically for city parking garages. The extension of bonds totals $2 million. But only 1/4 of that amount is to be used for, “repairs”, of the garages!

The rest is to be used for, “building three more houses in the city’s Front Door Pride program and providing incentives to attract artists and entrepreneurs to the Evansville Arts District”?

Here’s a heads up to the media, please don’t treat us like we’re fools, waiting to be bonded into oblivion.

Questions:
1.) Exactly what are the incentives, and how could they outperform the bond requirements?
2.) Does this have a chance of bringing jobs?
3.) Doesn’t DMD already have a budget for “incentives”?
4.) Have they already maxed out their credit card, like the visitors bureau is trying to?
5.) Why hasn’t the garage repairs been done through an operating expense, like most “repairs” are?
6.) If we follow the Stadium story line, significant “repairs” justifies simply building new. Was this considered?
7.) Not only is Evansville building homes and selling them well below construction costs, we’re bonding out those costs! So we all pay interest on that deficit amount, too?
8.) How many years will the bonds extend?
9.) Are these bonds federally subsidized?
10.) Is it prudent to charge every homeowner with a 100K assessment $45 to “repair” garages they can’t use, to build homes they can’t buy, and to help “entrepreneurs” they haven’t met?

The lack of reporting of the basic fundamentals involved, or answering basic questions, or being consistent seems unconscionable. To me, convoluted stories like these are basically political division, served on a silver platter. As evidence, just look at the political sniping that starts on the comment boards.
Earlier I read an editorial today in the WSJ entitled “Who Stole Election Day?”, by Eliot Cutler, an independent candidate that recently lost his election bid. He has an interesting story to tell. But his story amplifies my concerns that the state of elections, general public electoral education, and good government are mired locally in the Courier & Press reporting. It seems in this case, just about enough to get out a fact or two and to stir the pot.

On the other hand, maybe we just get what we pay for? (“Top 5 Companies in the Publishing Industry With the Lowest Operating Margin (SSP, MEG, VCI, TRI, WPO)” -http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Newsfeed/Article/121704067/201011061035/Top-5-Companies-in-the-Publishing-Industry-With-the-Lowest-Operating-Margin-SSP-MEG-VCI-TRI-WPO-.aspx)

Dan Effinger
Evansville, IN

IS IT TRUE: November 17, 2010 Part 2

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The Mole #??

IS IT TRUE that Dan McGinn (R) City Councilman from the First Ward will be announcing on Les Shively’s radio show tomorrow that he will not be a candidate for Mayor of Evansville in the 2011 Election?….that Councilman McGinn has been the winner of every City County Observer Reader’s Poll that we have posted for the Republican nominee for Mayor of Evansville?….that Councilman McGinn has been a champion of the people of Evansville in calling questionable spending to task?….that the buzz will soon be about only two Republican candidates both of whom are veteran politicians?…..that unless a new face comes out that the Republican contenders appear to be confined to County Councilman Russ Lloyd Jr. and County Commissioner Lloyd Winnecke?…..that Councilman McGinn would have been a great candidate?…that we cross our fingers that Councilman McGinn chooses to run to keep his seat on the Evansville City Council and continues his vigilance in stamping out wasteful spending?

IS IT TRUE that new City County Observer columnist County Commissioner Stephen Melcher has advised us that he will not be entering the race for the Democratic nomination for Mayor of Evansville?…that Commissioner Melcher has every intention to continue pursuing his passion for leadership in the Vanderburgh County Commissioners and as the Commander of the local Veterans Organization?…that Commissioner Melcher has been a consistent and steady hand at the plow of Vanderburgh County leadership for many years and we wish him success for many more?…that the City County Observer is looking forward to his columns on Veteran’s Affairs and maybe even some guest editorial pieces on other issues on which Commissioner Melcher wishes to write?…that Commissioner Melcher has run strong in our Reader’s polls and would have made a great candidate in what is shaping up to be a spirited campaign?

IS IT TRUE that the time is RIGHT NOW to be soliciting bids to design a solution to the Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) problem that the City of Evansville is afflicted with?….that the two year clock is already ticking on restarting the fines for non-compliance?….that this is the biggest infrastructure project that the City of Evansville has ever had to deal with?….that the long arm of the federal government with the EPA will not take kindly to having two years pass with no plan produced?….that it took good leadership and the best negotiator that money can rent to get the two year extension on designing a solution and a 20 year extension on implementing said solution?….that taking the full term to fix this debilitating problem is NOT MANDATORY?….that the test or true leadership will be in fixing this problem and not in postponing a solution?….that there should be an RFP in the development stages and that a design group should be hired within no more than three months?

IS IT TRUE that the Evansville Arena is something that some people want and other’s don’t?….that functioning sewers, clean air, and pleasant smells 12 months a year is something that every citizen of the City of Evansville NEEDS AND DESERVES?….that the needs of all should take priority over the wants of the few?….that the #1 job of the next Mayor of Evansville will be to push an acceptable solution to the CSO problem to completion?….that if the current Mayor of Evansville does not get this started that his successor will have only 10 months and no budget to do it with?

Bain Forecasts Holiday Sales Growth of 3%

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Santa Clause and his Reindeer

Bain Forecasts GAFO Sales Growth of 3% for the Holidays

With cautious optimism, Bain is forecasting GAFO sales growth of 3% for the holidays.1
It’s going to be a good season . . . at least compared to the last few Although signals are mixed, we are heading into the season with relatively strong momentum versus last year. Among the positive signs: Retailers are stocking slightly more inventory and are planning to increase holiday hiring over last year, some consumers are excited about shopping (or at least about jumping on bargains), and the economy is on a gradual albeit bumpy road to recovery. Underlying our forecast, which is at the high end of publicized estimates, are results that will vary widely by GAFO segment and consumer tier. The purpose of this newsletter is to highlight holiday sales trends and to clarify conflicting signals. We plan to distribute updates every two to three weeks throughout the holiday season to keep you informed as new data emerge.

For the full text of the article click on the following link.

http://www.bain.com/bainweb/PDFs/cms/Public/Bain_2010_Retail_Holiday_Newsletter_1.pdf

CCO Alexa Ranking Rises to #45,317 in America Passes Vectren at #57,330

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Here is what Alexa.com says about the City County Observer:

“City-countyobserver.com has a three-month global Alexa traffic rank of 730,224. The time spent in a typical visit to the site is about 34 minutes, with 56 seconds spent on each pageview. The site has attained a traffic rank of 45,317 among users in the US, where almost all its audience is located. Visitors to this site view 12.0 unique pages each day on average. About 35% of visits to City-countyobserver.com are referred by search engines.”

Having observed the rapid rise of the City County Observer on Alexa and having received an unsolicited syndication offer from a Manhattan publisher we became curious with regard to how we stack up against other local media outlets for internet traffic. To the best of our ability here is a list of the top internet media traffic sites in the Greater Evansville region.

1. Courier and Press #7,774
2. WFIE Channel 14 #29,334
3. City County Observer #45,317
4. Tri-State Media #86,441
5. WEHT Channel 25 #86,669
6. City of Evansville #125,263
7. WTVW Fox 7 #145,283
8. Owensboro Messenger #245,547
9. News4U no ranking
9. Henderson Gleaner no ranking
9. Vincennes Sun no ranking

We also track our performance using Google Analytics. Our latest Google Analytics performance numbers for the past two weeks are as follows:

11,687 Visits
33,194 Page Views
41.6% Bounce Rate
Visits from 45 states and 35 countries

Top Cities:
Evansville, IN
New York City
Newburgh, IN
Houston, TX
Indianapolis
Chicago
Atlanta
Washington DC
Los Angeles
Denver

IS IT TRUE November 17, 2010

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IS IT TRUE November 17, 2010

IS IT TRUE that Vanderburgh County Councilman Tom Shetler Jr. has requested that the proposed Robert’s Stadium little league baseball/softball field project be added to the November 24th Agenda for the Vanderburgh County Council?…that Councilman Shetler’s request will have to be deferred until December 1st because this proposal entails a bond issue and has to be advertised as a public meeting?….that Mole #3 says that if the vote was taken today that the vote would look something like the following: Nay, Russ Lloyd Jr., Stephanie Terry, and Ed Bassemeir, Yea;Tom Shetler Jr., Joe Kiefer, and Mike Goebel?….that only Jim Raben has not yet let his intentions be known to any CCO Mole?…that our money grows on other peoples trees Mayor Weinzapfel is quietly committing the money to demolish Robert’s Stadium if the County Council approves this previously proposed $18M ball fields project?….that the costs are being spread around to reduce the amount of the bond issue that the CVB would need to do?….that some City of Evansville department head may see his or her budget shrink by $1.5M to pay for this demolition?….that the City County Observer thought that this cat only had nine lives?….that only Gregory Rasputin had more lives than a cat?….that if built these ball fields should be named Rasputin Park to commemorate the number of presentations it took to get built?….that the CCO is greatly disappointed in County Councilman Tom Shetler Jr. for not manning up and bringing this to a vote before the 2010 general election?…..that the City County Observer is shocked and amazed that any of the innkeepers tax would even be considered as on the table for ball fields when a binding contract is not in place for a Downtown Convention Hotel to complement the County owned Centre?

IS IT TRUE that creative minds like Mole #3 has explore many possibilities in search of solutions?….that in an editorial that the City County Observer proposed as one of four options that a parking lot could go right over the top of Walnut Street to accommodate for the insufficient building footprint remaining for a parking lot when the dilapidated Executive Inn is demolished?….that there is another solution to this great oversight that involves one hungry backhoe and a whole lot of concrete?….that with good design that an underground parking garage completely under the block where the new Downtown Convention Hotel is proposed could replace all of the spaces lost when the Executive Inn parking garage is demolished?….that this solution would provide the spaces needed, preserve an area for an overlooked loading dock, and add to the ambiance of Downtown Evansville?…that to have simultaneous opening of the Arena and the Downtown Convention Hotel that the hotel would have to be under construction right now.

IS IT TRUE that we were expecting to hear the sounds of demolition coming from the pigeon filled halls and Indiana brown bat guano covered floors of the McCurdy Hotel by now?….that this project has been one signature from commencing construction since last Spring?….that whoever that signature is coming from must be learning their letters because they sure aren’t signing off on the official loan documents?….that a single person with a passing interest in a restaurant made headlines last month?….that we are concerned that the McCurdy is closer to becoming the next Riverhouse than it was ever dreamed it could be?….that neglect has caused the entire structure to look its age?

IU launches the Innovate Indiana Blog!

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IU launches the Innovate Indiana Blog!

Join the conversation as we discuss the Indiana economy, health care, trends in technology commercialization and economic development, and research discoveries from IU faculty and researchers.
Innovate Indiana is the Indiana University Office of Engagement’s statewide initiative to leverage IU’s vast resources in technology, life sciences, and entrepreneurship into assets that can transform the Indiana economy.

Click on the link to join in! http://innovate.indiana.edu/blog/

Patricia Weinzapfel to Direct Full Service Community School Program

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Patricia Weinzapfel to Direct Full Service Community School Program

Patricia Weinzapfel has been named to the position of project director for a new grant-funded program designed to impact schools, students, and families through community partnerships. The Full-Service Community Schools grant will continue and enhance work already in place targeting the Academy for Innovative Studies, Cedar Hall Community School, Culver Family Learning Center, Lincoln School and McGary Middle School.

Weinzapfel officially began her position today (Nov. 16).

Weinzapfel holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University.

She is a founding member of the Evansville Regional Autism Coalition, a group dedicated to bringing together social service agencies, educators, and healthcare professionals to help families deal with the challenges of Autism. She is also a sustaining member of Junior League of Evansville, which created a Community Resource Room at Cedar Hall Elementary, the EVSC’s first Full Service Community School. She is also actively involved in CYPRESS – committee to promote respect in schools; and has worked as a volunteer with the Koch Family Children’s Museum of Evansville, Evansville Sister City Committee, helping to develop a sister city in China; and is a board member of the Indiana Jewish Historical Society.

She has served as an adjunct professor at the University of Southern Indiana where she created curriculum and taught introductory broadcast journalism courses. Prior to that she was a line, investigative, and special projects producer for WTHR-TV in Indianapolis. She also had been a reporter with Evansville’s WFIE-TV and WSBT-TV in South Bend.

EVSC Receives $2.5 Million Grant to Fund Full Service Community School Opportunities

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 16, 2010

EVSC Receives $2.5 Million Grant to Fund Full Service Community School Opportunities

The Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation has received a $2.5 million grant ($500,000 over five years) that will be used to coordinate education, health, social services and community programs district-wide, so that children and families can succeed in school and in our community, said Superintendent Vince Bertram during a news conference today (11-16-10). The U.S. Department of Education grant will help EVSC expand its Full-Service Community Schools initiatives. The EVSC was among 11 school districts selected nationally from more than 250 applicants from around the nation.

“Through this program, the EVSC plans to transform high poverty and persistently low achieving schools into Full-Service Community Schools (FSCS). Elements will include early childhood learning centers, after school and summer programs, a college access network, access to health services, social and emotional supports and alternatives to suspensions and expulsions,” Bertram said.

A full-service community school is a public elementary or secondary school that works with its local educational agency (LEA) and community-based organizations, nonprofit organizations, and other public or private entities to provide a coordinated and integrated set of comprehensive academic, social, and health services that respond to the needs of students, students’ family members, and community members. In addition, a full-service community school promotes family engagement by bringing together partnering organizations in order to offer a range of supports and opportunities for students, students’ family members, and community members.

In 2000, the EVSC spearheaded the development of a district-wide community school initiative called the School-Community Council. To date, more than 70 community organizations, businesses, and faith-based partners are collaborating to support schools. Components of the FSCS program are already in place at some EVSC schools. Schools that will be targeted with this grant funding include the Academy for Innovative Studies (6-12), Cedar Hall Community School (preK-8), Culver Family Learning Center (ages 3-5); Lincoln School (K-8); and McGary Middle School (6-8).

“We have a committed community and they have been working alongside us to address the diverse needs of our families and children,” said Cathlin Gray, associate superintendent for family, school, and community partnerships. “This grant will allow us to strengthen and grow that work. The grant will also be used to align our work to the School District’s Expectations for Excellence –

We believe that ‘Achieving our mission of Equity and Excellence for ALL children is a shared responsibility among EVSC faculty and staff, families and students, and our community.’ ”

On hand for the announcement today, was Martin Blank, president of the Institute for Educational Leadership in Washington, D.C., and director of the Coalition for Community Schools. Patricia Weinzapfel, project director for the Full-Service Community Schools grant, explained that Blank has been to the EVSC four times to help assist the community as the school district and area organizations worked to form these partnerships to aid students. Weinzapfel noted that Blank actually was a large catalyst in funding being available for the grant program. “He was a pioneer in helping secure dollars at the federal level to support the Full Service Community School Grants – the very grant we are announcing here today.”

The EVSC’s Full-Service Community School (FSCS) initiative will enhance existing resources and integrate services into a comprehensive network of programs. The FSCS mission in the EVSC is to establish school sites as places of community to enhance youth and family development. According to the Department of Education website on the grant program, the FSCS grants come from the Fund for the Improvement of Education (FIE), which is authorized by section 5411 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA). It supports nationally significant programs to improve the quality of elementary and secondary education at the state and local levels and help all children meet challenging academic content and academic achievement standards. The FSCS program, which is funded under FIE, encourages coordination of academic, social, and health services through partnerships among(1) public elementary and secondary schools; (2) the schools’ local educational agencies (LEAs); and (3) community-based organizations, nonprofit organizations, and other public or private entities.