Ten students made the cut

Chester-East 'mathletes'
head to Millikin for competition

[FEB. 1, 2001]  Ten local students are preparing to compete regionally, statewide and possibly even nationally in Mathcounts. On Friday, Jan. 19, 40 students at Chester-East Lincoln School took a math test to see if they could be a "mathlete." To qualify as a mathlete in Mathcounts, students had to score at least half of the highest possible number of points.

[Update: Click here for C-EL results from the regional competition]

Ten students made the cut: Alison Kessinger, Daniel Ohmart, Jennifer Ewins, Chris Ramlow, Jared Davison, Wes Reynolds, Aaron Meyrick, Kevin Huelskeotter, Tracy Turner and Ezekiel Payne. Next, Chester-East’s science, math and health teacher, Doug Rader, prepares them for the competition.


[Alison Kessinger, Doug Rader, Kevin Huelskeotter, Tracy Turner, Jennifer Ewins, Daniel Ohmart, Wes Reynolds, Jared Davison, Aaron Meyrick, Chris Ramlow, Ezekiel Payne.]

Mathcounts has been in existence for 18 years, and Doug Rader has been taking his students to the competitions for 12 years. He originally heard about this junior high extracurricular activity while he was a teacher in Springfield. When Rader transferred to Chester-East, he encouraged Lincoln’s students to participate in Mathcounts.

Students in Mathcounts practice challenging math problems in class and after school to prepare for regional, state and national competition. Rader described the problems as "more complicated horizontally, not vertically." The students complete fraction, probability, algebra, geometry and graphing problems, as well as answering questions about numbers and number theory. These are the same topics they study in their normal math classes, but the problems are written in unique and inventive ways that require extra thought, and sometimes teamwork, to solve.

According to the Mathcounts national office, "Each year over 500,000 students are improving their math skills with Mathcounts materials." They expect 35,000 students to compete in regional Mathcounts competitions this year.

This Saturday, Feb. 3, is the regional competition for Doug Rader’s Chester-East students. Chester-East will be competing against six other schools at Millikin University in Decatur. There will be four levels of competition: two different individual tests, a group test and an individual oral test, which is open to the public.

 

The first competition is an individual sprint round. Students race to complete 30 problems in 40 minutes, without calculators. The second test is also an individual event. Students receive four sets of two problems each. They may use a calculator, but they get only six minutes per set of problems.

The next competition is a team event. Four students are preselected from each school, with one alternate in case of illness. The team must complete 10 problems in 30 minutes, and they may use a calculator. Chester-East’s team is Kessinger, Ohmart, Ewins and Huelskeotter, and Ramlow is the alternate.

 

[to top of second column in this article]

The final competition is a public, oral round. The 10 students with the best scores on the first two individual rounds face off against each other.

The National Society of Professional Engineers sponsors these competitions at the regional and state levels. Participants in the regional competitions are eligible to win trophies and calculators. The best students and teams proceed to the state competition in Springfield. Last year, 500 students gathered for the state competition, but only four students and one teacher proceed to nationals in Washington, D.C.

The four best students in Illinois form a state team, which is then guided by the coach of the highest-scoring team. These new teams and their coaches are flown to D.C. to compete for $10,000 scholarships.

 

The Chester-East mathletes enjoy preparing for the competitions. They refine their math skills with worksheets and practice competing against each other and even students that are not in Mathcounts.

Reynolds appreciates the challenge of Mathcounts. "I’ve gotten a lot better with math," he says. Ohmart believes it "prepares you for the next level of math." The favorite advantage of being in Mathcounts is that participants do not have to do all the math assignments that the other students do.

On a more serious note, the mathletes did acknowledge how much they plan to use math in their future careers. Turner and Kessinger plan to be teachers. Ewins will work to be a doctor, and Payne wants to be a microbiologist. Huelskeotter aspires to be an architect, and Reynolds plans to study engineering.

Doug Rader expects this year’s team to do "real well." Most of the time his teams place in the top three teams at regionals. In the past 12 years, three of his teams and three individuals from his class have gone on to the state competition. None of his students has made it to nationals, yet.

If you are interested in learning more about Mathcounts, Doug Rader invites you to come and watch the oral round at regionals this Saturday at 11:20 a.m. at Millikin University in Decatur.

[Jean Ann Carnley]

 

[click here for C-EL results from the regional competition]


Students in health careers
can apply for Zonta scholarships

[JAN. 20, 2001]  Zonta Club of Lincoln will again sponsor health career scholarships. Residents of Logan County who are enrolled in or accepted into a health care professional curriculum are eligible to apply. Scholarships totaling $4,500 will be awarded. The number of scholarships will be determined by the scholarship committee.

Each award is for one academic year and is contingent upon the student's sustained academic achievement. Former recipients are encouraged to reapply. Application forms are available from county high schools and colleges, several health care facilities and pharmacies in the county, and by request.

We encourage students to make application if they are considering any health career field, including veterinary medicine, sports medicine, physical therapy or pharmacy. Zonta Club of Lincoln has awarded health career scholarships since 1981, assisting 36 students from Logan County with 49 scholarships with a total value of $51,750. Last year Zonta awarded four recipients $1,125 each.

All completed applications, including references, are due to the scholarship committee by March 5. Applications and information are available by contacting Marilyn Weingarz, 1425 1307th St., Lincoln, IL 62656 or by calling (217) 735-1840.

[Zonta news release]


Books are one harvest from
Jefferson School garden

[JAN. 13, 2001]  When you plant a seed, you can’t be sure how big your plant will grow, how much you will harvest or how many other seeds it may scatter. The seeds planted in third grade teacher Cathy Hawkinson’s Jefferson School garden have produced other harvests, but none so surprising as the gift that is bringing the school about $8,000 worth of new books for its library.

[Click here for pictures]

It started with eggs of the monarch butterfly, which hatched into caterpillars that were raised by Hawkinson’s third grade classes and then released. Those butterflies in turn hatched the idea of a butterfly garden, which Hawkinson and her 1999-2000 class built on a corner of the school grounds at Fifth and Adams streets.

"The garden became an outdoor classroom," Hawkinson said. "Each class in the school contributed something. The children were nurturing the garden and loving it. They were proud of seeing something they’d planted grow."

The success of the butterfly garden soon had Hawkinson and her students thinking of another one, an 1850s theme garden that would be planted across Sixth Street from the school. Along with the historic theme, this garden could also help children make connections with the books they were reading, like "Little House on the Prairie" and others set in pioneer times. By planting native prairie grasses and flowers, the children would be able to actually experience the prairie while they were reading about it.

 

To help raise funds for the new garden, Hawkinson began looking for "Prairie Partners" who would contribute money, time or other gifts. She approached hardware store owner Pete Fredericks, who agreed to build a log cabin out of old utility poles to serve as a storage shed for the tools Hawkinson’s classes will be using. Pete is just waiting for the snow to melt so he can finish building the shed.

She also approached Lincoln Mayor Joan C. Ritter, who, like Hawkinson, is an enthusiastic gardener. Mayor Ritter quickly became an enthusiastic Prairie Partner as well, even accompanying Hawkinson to visit schools in other communities that were adding gardening to their curriculum.

For the last two years, Ritter has also been a member of the Illinois State Historical Records Advisory Board. A fellow member, Dr. Jodi Martinez, is deputy director of the literacy office for Secretary of State Jesse White. In Illinois the secretary of state is also the state librarian and as such appoints members to the Illinois Literacy Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes the partnership of the corporate world and the private sector to provide literacy initiatives and programs.

One of the Literacy Foundation’s projects this year was a children’s literacy fund-raising drive. Each Barnes and Noble bookstore in the state was paired with a school or other organization for the promotion. Martinez was assigned to identify schools and other groups eligible to participate.

At a recent meeting of the Historical Records Advisory Board in Chicago, Mayor Ritter and Martinez sat together at lunch. They began talking about the various projects they were engaged in, and suddenly everything fell into place.

"The timing couldn’t have been better," Martinez told the Lincoln Daily News. "The night before, I had met with Barnes and Noble representatives. There are 24 Barnes and Noble stores in Illinois, and my assignment was to identify 24 recipients, one in each Barnes and Noble area. Then Mayor Ritter began telling me about the Jefferson School reading program."

 

Ritter told her about the way Hawkinson and other teachers were using the butterfly garden to encourage reading and about the plans for the 1850s garden, and suddenly Martinez saw "a good fit."

Jefferson School was paired with the Barnes and Noble store in Bloomington. When store patrons made purchases last December, they were asked if they would like to donate a dollar to a children’s literacy program. So many did that the Bloomington store collected $6,800, every dollar of which was given to Jefferson School. But because the store is also giving the school a 20 percent discount, Jefferson teachers will actually be able to purchase about $8,000 worth of materials, Martinez said.

 

[to top of second column in this article]

"This is truly a case of the private sector joining hands with the secretary of state and the Illinois Literacy Foundation. This is truly networking at its best," she said.

"It’s a win-win-win proposition," Hawkinson agreed.

This week, teachers at Jefferson School will "go on a shopping spree" to choose the new books they want in their library. Next week, a group which will include Hawkinson’s class, Mayor Ritter and Martinez will meet again at Barnes and Noble, and the children will select books they personally want to read from the list previously chosen by the teachers. Mayor Ritter will then take the group to lunch at a nearby restaurant.

"I’m going to ride to Bloomington in the school bus," Ritter said. "I’m so glad I was in the right place at the right time and knew what was going on in our schools."

Along with Pete Fredericks and Ritter, many other businesses and individuals have become partners in the Jefferson School gardening project. The Lincoln Elks Club has donated money and Lincoln city employees are donating time to build raised beds so special needs children can garden from their wheelchairs.

 

CEFCU donated a Christmas tree to replace the one lost in last year’s fire at the school, and children made natural ornaments by stringing popcorn and cranberries. The Logan County Soil and Water Conservation District is helping to develop the 1850s garden plan with advice on trees and grasses to be planted. The Logan County Farm Bureau and Salt Creek Nurseries will also help with donations and plants. Local stores R & H Farm Supply, Big R, Wal-Mart, Knox Greenhouse Outlet and Pete’s Hardware have donated tools, supplies, seeds and plants.

Dr. Lee Gurga, a Lincoln dentist, has contributed a white granite stone with his prize-winning haiku engraved on it to place in the butterfly garden. The poem is about butterflies.

Other Prairie Partners are Key Printing, Century Dental, Illico, State Bank of Lincoln, Guzzardo’s Italian Villa, YMCA, Edward D. Jones, Burwell Oil, Abbott and Associates, Keystone Risk Management, NAPA Auto Supply, Jane Wright’s State Farm office, Doug Knox Nursery of Beason, Mitchell Newhouse, Manley Monuments, and Bob and Joan Graue.

The contributions have made possible the purchase of grow lights, curriculum guides, science materials, worm composting equipment and supplies for the Jefferson Junior Garden Club, made up of the second and third graders at Jefferson School. But seeds from the Jefferson School garden project are sprouting in other places, too. Two workshops on school gardens have been held at Jefferson, one on butterfly gardens and one on literary gardens, and teachers from West Lincoln-Broadwell, Chester-East Lincoln, Carroll Catholic and all District 27 schools have attended. Hawkinson is thinking about teaching a junior gardener’s class at the YMCA this summer.

"The most important thing happening out of all of this is the community working together with the schools and the kids," Hawkinson said. "It’s amazing that so many people, through work, wisdom and wealth, have contributed so much to a project that is changing the way a school and a community can work together."

[Joan Crabb]

 


State Bank of Lincoln offers
scholarship competition

[JAN. 10, 2001]  State Bank of Lincoln has announced a scholarship competition that enables Illinois high school seniors to enter a statewide essay-writing contest. It is part of a program sponsored by Illinois community banks and the CBAI Foundation for Community Banking to increase public awareness of locally owned banks and their contributions to the community.

State Bank of Lincoln is a member of the Community Bankers Association of Illinois (CBAI), which formed the foundation in 1996. A scholarship in the amount of $1,000 per year for up to four years of higher education will be awarded to the author of the best essay submitted to the CBAI Foundation by a participating Illinois high school senior. Up to 12 additional $1,000 awards are available in each of the regions of the state. An additional $500 will be awarded to the high school of the overall winner.

 

The bank is working with Lincoln Community High School, Mount Pulaski High School and Olympia High School to invite seniors to submit short essays on this theme: "What new or enhanced products and services will community banks be offering in the 21st century?"

 

[to top of second column in this article]

William M. Hull, executive vice president, stated, "Any high school senior student in the area served by the bank is encouraged to participate. The past three regional winners have been submitted to the CBAI by the bank. Winners were from Lincoln Community High and Mount Pulaski High School."

Information on the contest is available at the high schools and through William Hull at the bank. Entries must be submitted to the bank by Feb. 14, 2001. The bank will then submit selected entries to the CBAI Foundation to be eligible for the statewide competition.

Based in Springfield, CBAI is a professional association that represents approximately 540 banks and thrifts throughout Illinois.

[State Bank of Lincoln news release]


Announcements

Kindergarten registration starts in Mount Pulaski, Elkhart

[FEB. 8, 2001]  Parents in the Mount Pulaski-Elkhart area who have a child who will be 5 before Sept. 1, 2001, should call the Mount Pulaski Grade School, (217) 792-7220, or Elkhart Grade School, (217) 947-2451, to register their child for kindergarten. This year the registration will be a phone-in process. After pertinent information has been submitted by telephone, parents will receive a packet of information and registration materials in the mail. Registration began Feb. 7 and continues through March 16. If you have any further questions, call the school where your child will attend.


School menus

Hartsburg-Emden

February breakfast menus

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
      1
Yogurt
Banana
Milk
2
Scrambled eggs
Toast
Juice
Milk
5
Cinnamon roll
Juice
Milk
6
Assorted cereal
NutriGrain bar
Juice
Milk
7
Sausage link
Pancake/syrup
Orange juice
Milk
8
Egg patty on biscuit
Juice
Milk
9
Sausage patty
Toast/jelly
Applesauce
Milk
12
No school
Lincoln's Birthday
13
Waffle/syrup
Orange juice
Milk
14
Cinnamon toast
Apple wedges
Milk
15
Blueberry muffin
Peaches
Milk
16
Scrambled eggs
Toast
Hash browns
Milk
19
Cinnamon tastries
Juice
Milk
20
Cereal
Pop tart
Banana
Milk
21
Breakfast burrito
Juice
Milk
22
Yogurt
Milk
23
French toast sticks/syrup
Assorted juice
Milk
26
Muffin
Fruit
Milk
27
Pancake and sausage breakfast stick
Juice and milk
28
Egg patty on biscuit
Hash browns
Milk
   

February lunch menus

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
      1
Creamed chicken on bun
Peas
Tossed salad
Fruit
Milk
2
Assorted sandwiches
Cooked carrots
Chips
Applesauce
Milk
5
Grilled chicken on bun
Corn
Strawberries
Cake
Milk
6
Lasagna
Green beans
Pears
Jello
Milk
7
Cheeseburger on bun
Raw veggies/dip
Mixed fruit
Brownie
Milk
8
Ham ponyshoe
French fries
Cole slaw
Applesauce
Milk
9
Pizza
Lettuce salad
Pineapple
Milk
12
No school
Lincoln's Birthday
13
Hot dog on bun
Macaroni and cheese
Peas
Applesauce
Milk
14
Sloppy Joe on bun
Nacho chips/cheese
Fruit cocktail
Cake
Milk
15
Chicken nuggets
Mixed vegetables
Peaches
Jello
Milk
16
Barbecued rib on bun
Green beans
Baked apples
Milk
19
Mini sub sandwich
Pasta salad
Corn
Pineapple
Milk
20
Chili
Veggie sticks
Peaches
Cinnamon roll
Milk
21
Pork tenderloin on bun
Sweet potatoes
Pudding
Milk
22
Salisbury steak
Mashed potatoes and gravy
Green beans
Apricots
Milk
23
Burritos with cheese sauce
Lettuce salad
Applesauce
Milk
26
Ham patty on bun
Baked beans
Fruit crisp
Milk
27
Fish fillet
Cheesy potatoes
Broccoli
Pineapple
Milk
28
Tacos with lettuce, cheese, salsa
Pears
Cookie
Milk
   

Lincoln Elementary Schools

Breakfast menus

Thursday, Feb. 8 — Silver dollar pancakes with syrup, sausage, fruit, milk

Friday, Feb. 9 — Cereal, toast with jelly, juice, milk

Monday, Feb. 12 — Abraham Lincoln's birthday — No school

Tuesday, Feb. 13 — Cereal, bread and jelly sandwich, juice, milk

Wednesday, Feb. 14 Happy Valentine's Day! — Trix yogurt, rice crispy treat, fruit, milk

Thursday, Feb. 15 — Cereal, graham crackers, juice, milk

Friday, Feb. 16 — Pancake bites with syrup, fruit, milk

Monday, Feb. 19 — Cereal, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, juice, milk

Tuesday, Feb. 20 — Iced pastry, fruit, milk

Wednesday, Feb. 21 —  Cereal, toast with jelly, juice, milk

Thursday, Feb. 22 — English muffin with ham and cheese, fruit, milk

Friday, Feb. 23 — Cereal, cinnamon toast, juice, milk

Lunch menus

(Milk is served with all meals)

Thursday, Feb. 8 — Barbecued rib on bun, corn, brownie, applesauce

Friday, Feb. 9 — Homemade chicken noodle soup, peanut butter sandwich, celery stick, whipped dessert

Monday, Feb. 12 — Abraham Lincoln's birthday — No school

Tuesday, Feb. 13 — Mini corn dogs, baked beans, carrot sticks, strawberry applesauce

Wednesday, Feb. 14 Happy Valentine's Day! — Beefy nachos, green beans, pudding, pears

Thursday, Feb. 15 — Hot ham and cheese on bun, french fries, pretzels, peaches

Friday, Feb. 16 — Chicken nuggets with sauce, mashed potatoes, bread and butter, peas

Monday, Feb. 19 — Hamburger on bun with cheese, green beans, goldfish crackers, fruit cocktail

Tuesday, Feb. 20 — Pork patty, broccoli and cauliflower with cheese, bread and butter, pears

Wednesday, Feb. 21 —  Sausage pizza, corn, carrot sticks, applesauce

Thursday, Feb. 22 — Chili with crackers, peanut butter sandwich, dill spear, cheese stick, whipped dessert

Friday, Feb. 23 — Turkey or ham roast, candied sweet potatoes, bread and butter, peaches


Mount Pulaski Grade School

Notes:

  • Students in grades three through eight may choose hot dog and bun, or peanut butter and jelly sandwich in place of main entree.

  • Students in grades six through eight may choose chef salad in place of main entree.

  • Condiments are served with meals.

  • Milk is served with all meals.

Thursday, Feb. 8 Sloppy Joe, tri-tator, pasta salad, cherry turnover

Friday, Feb. 9 Early dismissal; no lunch

Monday, Feb. 12 — No school

Tuesday, Feb. 13 Cheese pizza, green beans, apple jello, monster cookies

Wednesday, Feb. 14 Chicken legs, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, cherry pie, bread, oleo

Thursday, Feb. 15 Hot ham and cheese on bun, carrots, mixed vegetables, potato chips, orange, cookie

Friday, Feb. 16 Lasagna, lettuce, peas, apricots, bread sticks

[to top of second column in this section]

Monday, Feb. 19 — Breaded chicken patty, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, pears, bread, oleo

Tuesday, Feb. 20 Corn dog, tri-tators, corn, applesauce, rice crispy treats

Wednesday, Feb. 21 Nacho chips, meat, cheese, baked beans, banana, pudding, bread, oleo

Thursday, Feb. 22 Chicken and noodles, lettuce, peas, apple, jello, peanut butter sandwich

Friday, Feb. 23 Pepperoni pizza, mixed vegetables, carrots, pineapple, cottage cheese

Monday, Feb. 26 — Chicken noodle soup, cheese, crackers, carrots, celery, apple crisp, ice cream, bread, oleo

Tuesday, Feb. 27 Hamburger, bun, cheese, pickle, corn, tri-tators, cherry pie

Wednesday, Feb. 28 Chicken nuggets, carrots, pears, yogurt, bread, oleo

Back to top

 


 

Top Stories | Sports News | Sports Talk | Area Athletes in Action | Out and About | TechLine | Weather | Elsewhere

A Day in the Life... | Milestones | Obituaries | Diaspora

Business & Ag | Organizations | Events | Good Neighbors | Honors & Awards

Ombudsman | Law & Courts | Rural Review

Crosswords | Games

The Arts | Home and Family | Spiritual Life | Health & Fitness | Teaching & Learning | Book Look | Movies & Videos

Still Waters | The Hallway Buzz | What's Up With That? | Where They Stand | the em space
How We Stack Up | By the Numbers

Letters to the Editor | About LDN | Corrections | Happy Ads | Quick Coupon Clip-Outs