Editorial

The Ellettsville Fire Department conference and training room will soon be filled with children and their mentors as they build their lemonade stands for Lemonade Day. Chris Tann, unit director at the Lincoln Street Boys & Girls Club, said the workshop will need six to eight volunteers, including one with carpentry skills. “This person would … Read more

When Ellettsville resident Meghan Mayhugh joined the sport, she did so as someone doctors told would never walk again. They gave her the prognosis after a back surgery to repair her scoliosis, an abnormally curved spine. She remembered that when she joined Bloomington’s Bleeding Heartland Rollergirls in 2007. It was one more physical sport in … Read more

Indiana remains silent on how federal sequestration impacts its school corporations. Federal funding for school corporations such as Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corp. comes from Title I education funding and two special education funds. The state distributes the money according to formulas it developed. For Title I, the formula accounts for the poverty rate in … Read more

A discussion panel made up of law enforcement officials and one school administrator explained their roles in combating bullying to community members during a March 25 public forum organized by the Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corporation’s anti-bullying task force. Stinesville Elementary School Principal Bill Buxton, Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Mike Pershing, Ellettsville Town … Read more

The Monroe County Parks and Recreation Board approved a proposed five-year master plan for county parks at its March 20 meeting. The master plan included trail maps, with distances recorded in the legend, for all Flatwoods Park trails. General improvements, as well as maintenance projects, for specific trails are also set to begin under the … Read more

With federal sequestration underway, dramatic cuts in funding are expected to occur at the Area 10 Agency on Aging. According to Kerry Conway, executive director of the agency, it faces a 5.1% cut in operational funding. The cut is estimated to result in 4,200 fewer meals delivered to the homebound, 18,000 fewer Rural Transit bus … Read more

At the March 18 meeting of the Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corporation school board, RBBCSC Superintendent Steven Kain recommended restricting the hours of employees who work 30 hours a week. The recommendation comes ahead of the required May 1 implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. All board members were present. The act … Read more

The Pence administration enacted its first law Feb. 27 when Gov. Mike Pence signed Senate Enrolled Act 319. The law, proposed by state Sen. Jean Leising, of Oldenburg, will prevent scheduled changes in a tax on agricultural land value from occurring by maintaining the 2011 level for soil productivity. “I’m very pleased to have the … Read more

The Indiana Senate unanimously passed a bill Feb. 26 that would create a statewide articulation agreement between two-year and four-year universities. As it stands, two-year schools, such as Ivy Tech Community College and Vincennes University, must forge agreements with state schools individually. Under Senate Bill 182, a universal agreement would be established. That means transfer … Read more

The Monroe County Council said it was open to discussing a county tax levy of up to 1% on food and beverages during a Feb. 26 meeting. The estimated $2.5 million raised by the tax each year would be used to expand the Bloomington-Monroe County Convention Center, which has an 800-person capacity. “From the beginning, … Read more