CTIM exciting addition to Dubois County region
Jasper — It was standing room only in the theater of VUJC’s new Center for Technology, Innovation and Manufacturing yesterday during the dedication ceremony for the new addition. Featuring members of the VU Board of Trustees, VU President Dr. Richard Helton, VUJC Dean Alan Johnson and special guest, Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann, the dedication ceremony highlighted the…
Bieker resigns as chief; Randle appointed interim
Special from Ferdinand News As of Midnight on Thursday, May 16, Ted Bieker will no longer serve as chief of the Ferdinand Police Department. The 24-year department veteran — over nine of those in the top spot — asked the council and audience (it was a packed house) to bear with him as he read…
Eight Dubois County schools 4 Star schools
Indianapolis — Eight Dubois County schools were announced as 4 Star schools on Tuesday. Jasper High School, Ireland, Northeast Dubois High School, Cedar Crest Intermediate School, Ferdinand Elementary, Pine Ridge Elementary, Holy Family Elementary and Precious Blood Elementary made the designation for 2013. Heritage Hills High School and Chrisney and Otwell elementary schools also made the…
Kaiser named president of Dubois County Community Foundation Board
Jasper — The Dubois County Community Foundation announced Attorney Bill Kaiser has been elected to serve as president of the Dubois County Community Foundation board of directors for a one-year term. Kaiser is a partner with Bingham Greenebaum Doll LLP. The Dubois County Community Foundation is a public charitable foundation serving Dubois County in southwestern…
Jasper biomass case back in court in January 2014
Members of Healthy Dubois County and the City of Jasper and its Utility Service Board will be back in court in beginning on January 14 of 2014. This time the trial will occur in Jasper and is scheduled for two days. A hearing to determine the case management for the lawsuit filed by Dr. Norma…
Kris Kristofferson to headline event in Santa Claus
Kris Kristofferson, Shawn Camp (with special guest) and David Murphy and Friends will headline a very special event to be held in Santa Claus, Indiana on Saturday, May 18. Yes, you read that right. Kris Kristofferson, famous actor, award-winning short story writer, Golden Gloves boxer, Rhodes Scholar, songwriter, helicopter pilot, folk and country music performer,…
Grant to be used for camera equipment for Huntingburg police vehicle
Huntingburg — The Huntingburg Police Department recently received a $2,500 grant from the Dubois County Substance Abuse Council under the Prevention/Education and Criminal Justice Services category. The grant will be used to purchase a Federal Signal DTX In-Car Video System which will be installed in a patrol vehicle. The video camera will aid in the detection, apprehension, and prosecution of…
Eight reasons to send the City of Huntingburg a letter before May 31
The City of Huntingburg needs your letters to assist in an application for a $500,000 grant to repair a major waterline. The city is applying for a $500,000 Community Focus Fund grant through the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs to repair about 2700 feet of 16-inch iron and concrete-pipe. The grant application is…
VUJC Center for Technology, Innovation and Manufacturing weeklong dedication next week
Jasper — The Center for Technology, Innovation and Manufacturing at the Vincennes University Jasper Campus will be dedicated on May 14, 10:00 a.m.(EDT), in ceremonies that will include Indiana Lt. Governor Sue Ellspermann. The celebration will continue through the week with special classes and demonstrations of advanced manufacturing techniques. The building dedication will also feature remarks by…
Huntingburg hires Steckler as Communications and Community Development Director
The City of Huntingburg welcomed Rachel Steckler as the city’s new Communications and Community Development Director. According to Mayor Denny Spinner, Steckler attended the Listening Sessions held by the city last year and saw that communications was a major concern among the citizens of the city. “She came to me and said if we ever…
Ferdinand launches an iPhone App
Ferdinand — Residents in Ferdinand can now stay in touch with the town management through an Iphone App they officially launched on Wednesday. The Town of Ferdinand’s iPhone app is now available for free download in the iPhone’s App Store. The town’s Android platform smartphone app is still in development and is expected to be available soon….
Council wrangles over new road money and performance-based pay raises
Update: The county has decided to postpone the construction of the access road to the Dubois County Park and 4-H Fairgrounds until next year. The county council had agreed to allocate $30,000 for the engineering of the new road at the April 29 meeting. The year delay will allow County Engineer Jason Heile to complete the…
Jasper elementary school facilities too small and not up to standards according to study
Jasper — Jasper Consolidated School Corporation’s three elementary schools are too small for their current student populations according to a study completed by Gibraltar Design of Indianapolis. The study results were presented to three members of the school board, principals of the elementary schools, and school corporation representatives at a special meeting held last night. According to…
City of Jasper ready to respond to deadly trench collapses
The City of Jasper was the highlight in the INDIANA LTAP Spring Newsletter magazine for their Spotlight on Innovation: Shoring Trenches, Saving Lives: Trench Safety in the City of Jasper. The purpose of Indiana Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) is to translate the latest, state-of-the-art road, highway and bridge technologies into systems usable by local…
Greater Downtown Jasper Business Association 2013 Youth Art contest winners
It’s the 30th year for the Youth Art Contest sponsored by the Greater Downtown Jasper Business Association. Hundreds of pictures will be on display in store windows May 3-5. Participants in the event are grades one through eight from Fifth Street, Tenth Street, Ireland Elementary, Precious Blood, Holy Family and JasperMiddle School. To celebrate the 30th year, 80 ribbons were awarded…
Jasper teacher recognized as a leader in education and awarded $1000 check
Jasper – Julie Schnell of Jasper High School was named a Peabody Energy Leader in Education for the 2012-13 school year and awarded $1,000 for her compassion and commitment to students. Schnell makes world history come alive in her 10th grade classroom by calling her students to think like historians and engaging them with her…
Huntingburg adding up to 2 miles of road to its inventory
Huntingburg — Street Superintendent Jason Stamm informed the board of public works that he has inventoried about 2 miles of streets in Huntingburg that aren’t included in the city’s ordinances. Stamm determined this as the department is in the process of completing a GPS survey of all the signs in the city. According to Stamm the ordinances regarding…
Kitchin named as Begle’s successor at Ferdinand Elementary
Special from WITZ AM/FM The Southeast Dubois School Board officially named the successor to long-time Ferdinand Elementary School Principal Lee Begle during Wednesday night’s board meeting. Begle had announced earlier this year he was ending his forty-plus year career in the Southeast System, effective at the end of this school year. Board President Kent Uebelhor…
Jasper assistant superintendent hired as Greene County superintendent
From principal, to assistant superintendent, to superintendent; Bob Hacker was hired as the new superintendent of the White River Valley School District in Greene County. In a special meeting on Wednesday night, the school trustees took less than five minutes to approve Hacker for the position. Hacker will replace Dr. Jerrill Vandeventer as the White…
Jasper mayor announces second set of city chats
Jasper – Jasper Mayor Terry Seitz announces the second annual series of City Chats scheduled for May and June. Building upon last year’s events, the City Chats are opportunities for officials to converse with the general public and for citizens to learn more about city government. The 2013 City Chats will take place at community…
Ward named interim director of Dubois County Humane Society
Jasper — The Dubois County Humane Society announced Cara Ward has been hired as the interim executive director for the recently reorganized non-profit. “With the recent re-organization efforts led by the governing board, this is an exciting time for expanded volunteer efforts and public involvement in the mission of the Humane Society,” said Ward. In collaboration with…
IHSAA allows homeschoolers to play high school sports
The Indiana High School Athletic Association voted to allow home-schoolers play in high school sports at a meeting on Monday. The new rule will take effect in the 2013–2014 school year. According to the new rule, a student enrolled in a non-accredited private school or homeschool now has the opportunity to try out for a…
Homeschooled students could participate in high school athletics after today’s vote by the IHSAA
(via Evansville Courier & Press) INDIANAPOLIS — The organization that regulates high school sports will decide today whether to let some homeschooled students participate in high school athletics. The move by the Indiana High School Athletic Association comes two years after the issue bubbled up at the Indiana General Assembly,…
Huntingburg Council meeting notes
Special from WITZ AM/FM The Huntingburg City Council held their second and final meeting of the month and worked through a shortened agenda. First, Huntingburg Chamber Director Nick Stevens thanked the council for their help and support during recent events – the car show and the just completed Jazz Fest. Stevens reported that they had…
New curriculum from Vincennes University allows transfer to all Indiana colleges
Vincennes — A new 30-credit-hour core curriculum from Vincennes University is designed to save students money on their first year in college. The Vincennes University Board of Trustees met Wednesday and approved adding a General Education Transfer Core Certificate to the curriculum. The certificate is designed to transfer among all colleges in Indiana. Enrollment is projected…
Lawmakers reach agreement on biennial budget
A draft of the budget bill calls for a 5 percent cut in individual income tax phased in with two cutbacks 3 percent in 2015 and 2 percent in 2017. The budget will be before the House and Senate this Friday and is expected to pass. [quote style=”boxed”]“Today Hoosier taxpayers won a great victory. The agreement reached…
Two new marshals in Town of Holland
The Holland Town Council swore in two new marshals at a special meeting on Wednesday. Ron Drew, a 34-year veteran police officer who most recently served as Huntingburg’s Chief of Police, is the new town marshal and Paul Voegerl Jr., a retired Marine, will serve as deputy marshal. Drew, 62, of Huntingburg, is married with…
A tale of two trucks and $90,000
Jasper Street Department Commissioner Raymie Eckerle was proud as punch to inform the Jasper Board of Public Works about saving the department and city about $90,000 on a new dump truck. The Street Department has used two military surplus dump trucks to carry tearout materials from street repairs for disposal for many years. According to…
Ferdinand Park Board opens new restroom/shelter house to 18th Street Park
The Town of Ferdinand’s Park Board has officially opened its new handicap-ADA compliant/accessible restroom and shelter house facility in the Town’s 18th Street Park. To save as much money as possible on the project, the majority of the project’s construction was performed “in-house” by the town employees. Project oversight was handled by Ferdinand’s Property Manager…
I-67 Coalition pushing for 8 year completion proposal
Huntingburg — “I think the stars are starting to align.” So said Coalition President and CEO of OFS Brands Hank Menke. He was speaking about the I-67 Coalition’s continued progress towards a connection between the improved U.S. 231 portion and I-69 east of Washington. “Conexus has identified 19 future corridors in the state that are…
Jasper HomeTown Competitiveness promoting random acts of kindness
The Jasper HomeTown Competitiveness Initiative is promoting the area become involved in the national “Pay It Forward Day” on Thursday, April 25th. The pay it forward initiative involves people doing random acts of kindness for others without expecting anything in return. The goal is to create a positive ripple effect of giving by paying the kindness…
