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[MAY 8, 2002]  Eighteen students from Zion Lutheran School received "Superior" ratings on their projects in the Regional History Fair. These students will be attending the State History Fair in Springfield tomorrow.

Amanda Baker, Dana Thomas House

Lindsey Boerma, Sugar Creek

Nathan Neal, Lincoln Christian College and Seminary

Paige and Amanda Podbelsek, Dixon Mounds

Amy Schumacher, Scully Estates

Kraig Sullivan, Wrigley Field’s History

Seventh grade

Michelle Eak, 1893 World’s Fair Columbian Exposition

Allyson Fuiten, Railsplitter Festival

Kate Kastendick, Chicago Race Riot

Isaac Sheley, Lustron Homes

David Williams, Postville Courthouse

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Sixth grade

Sabra Boyd, Turris Coal Mine

Emily Grass and Kristin Sullivan, New Salem

Jenna Opperman, Logan County Fair

Annie Sheley, Underground Railroad Quilts

Sarah Walker, Kickapoo Creek Park

 
[Photo by Bob Frank]

[Gina Sennett]

[MAY 3, 2002]  The future holds many changes for District 27’s venerable Central School. The most obvious is the new building going up behind the old one, but another important change is coming too. Lenny Janet, who has been principal for 21 years, is stepping down, and Christa Healy, currently a special education teacher at Central, will take over the job as principal of both Central and Adams schools.

[Click here for Part 1]

Although he believes in giving plenty of TLC, Principal Lenny Janet also has high expectations for the youngsters at Central School. He doesn’t think children who have problems or children who need extra help shouldn’t be expected to be responsible or to accomplish things.

"I have high expectations for students and staff as well as for myself. When a kid has a problem, it’s an opportunity for teachers and principals to help that kid deal with that problem.

"When kids don’t get along, we sit down and talk about it in a caring way — not a lecture but rules for life. We really work on conflict resolution.

"When a kid comes to the principal’s office with a problem, it’s not the kid as an individual I don’t like, it’s what the kid did I don’t like. I don’t revisit the problem. I may discipline a kid at 8 a.m. and give the same kid a high five at 10 o’clock.

"I just really like kids. I don’t have negative feelings about even kids I have had problems with."

"One of the keys to success is parents. Parents need to know they can come in and talk to the teacher and be welcome. We can have a difference of opinion and that’s all right."

[Photos by Joan Crabb]

Janet doesn’t spend a lot of time in his office, even though it’s a friendly place, with the monkeys, the golf memorabilia, a radio tuned to a classical music station, and pictures of Central School, including a photo of a 1921 eighth-grade graduating class a former student found in the garbage and gave to him.

"It’s more important to interact with kids than to sit at the computer," he says. "The action is where the kids are. In a school this size, your impact on the kids is pretty important."

Even before he knew who would replace him, Janet was working on ways to make the transition as smooth as possible. Last September he began a task suggested by District 27 Superintendent Robert Kidd — keeping a journal to hand over to his successor. It starts:

"Congratulations! You are given the responsibility to inspire, guide, counsel and direct 400 students, 40 employees, and more than a thousand parents and grandparents. I know you are qualified and eager . . . "

In this journal he gives practical information to guide his replacement through the first year, such as reviewing physical checkups and immunization forms and monitoring student attendance, but he also provides insights and philosophy that have guided him through his teaching career.

He suggests the new principal be sure to understand the population he or she is serving. "Each school is unique. Central has a diverse population; it has the largest percent of special education students in the district."

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Another suggestion, later on: "A wise person once reminded me that one cannot understand and learn without being a good listener."

This quality, those who know Janet say, is one of his strongest assets. Says Joe Hackett, Central teacher and lifelong friend, "His big thing is being such a good listener. You can have a heated debate with him and he won’t hold it against you. He listens and then he makes decisions. They may not be favorable to your side, but you know he listens."

Janet also has advice about the way a principal should interact with his students and staff. "It is important to develop a psychological approach to teachers, parents and students that is positive and thoughtful," his journal says.

"He is very supportive of his staff," Hackett reports. "If he has any criticism, it will be said in private; he will not embarrass anyone in front of others. He has a sensitivity you don’t find in all principals. Children are number one with him. He wants to be sure we are developing good citizens."

Although Janet wasn’t sure last September that Healy would be the new principal who would be reading his journal, he’s very sure she can carry on the Central tradition.

The only downside of her appointment, he says, is the loss of an excellent special education teacher. "The Tri-County Special Education Co-op rates her right at the top as far as being an effective teacher is concerned," he said.

Although she will miss the classroom, Healy says, "I will still be in the school and have an opportunity to work with the kids. "I’ll have an opportunity to touch a lot more kids."

She intends to follow in Janet’s footsteps by not spending a lot of time in her office. She plans to keep on greeting kids at the door, go to classrooms to say hello every morning, and in general spend a lot of time with the students instead of staying in the office to do paperwork. She laughs and says, "I’ll be doing my paperwork at night."

She’s excited and a little nervous about her new responsibilities, but she also sees it as the opportunity of a lifetime.

"I’ll start in a school I’ve been comfortable in; then in January I’ll be going into a brand-new school. I’ll take with me what I’ve learned from Mr. Janet and use those skills as I develop myself as a principal."

"The parents love her, the teachers respect her, and the kids like her," Janet says. "I’m leaving Central School in good hands."

[Joan Crabb]

[MAY 2, 2002]  The future holds many changes for District 27’s venerable Central School. The most obvious is the new building going up behind the old one, but another important change is coming too. Lenny Janet, who has been principal for 21 years, is stepping down, and Christa Healy, currently a special education teacher at Central, will take over the job as principal of both Central and Adams schools.

[Photos by Joan Crabb]
[Principal Lenny Janet and
incoming principal Christa Healy]

Even though the top administrator will change and in a few short years the old building will be taken down, Janet and Healy both believe the essential character of Central School will remain the same.

"Central has traditionally been a strong school because we’ve had excellent teachers. Only the building is going down. The tradition of the school will go on. The quality will continue," Janet says.

"I really feel comfortable with Christa’s judgment and ability to maintain the high expectations we have at Central. I hired her and acted as her mentor through the years. I think she has the same type of nurturing approach I use with students and staff."

Healy, who will complete her degree in educational administration and foundation at Illinois State University this summer, has been a special education teacher at Central for the past eight years.

"I was hired the day before I graduated from college. It’s been such a great working environment I’ve never wanted to leave," she says.

She shares Janet’s educational philosophy. "We are both very nurturing and caring, but our goal is for kids to learn to be responsible and respectful so they can start establishing their own goals. We have high expectations for the children and hope they will in turn develop those expectations for themselves. Mr. Janet set the tone. I hope to carry it on."

One of the clues to Janet’s philosophy, and the atmosphere at Central School, is the collection of monkey figures in his office. Some of them are playing golf, one is an astronaut, and his coffee cup has a monkey face.

"The monkeys remind us not to get too serious about ourselves," he says. "Laughter is a very important quality to help us see things in the light of what they are. We need to be able to joke and laugh.

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"School is a serious thing, but kids enjoy a place where laughter is going on.

"Kids need laughter. Kids need to relax. Kids need to know the principal of their school is taking an interest in them."

So every morning Janet stands at the top of the stairway and greets the kids as they come in. After that he makes a tour of the building, going into every classroom, including the four special education classrooms, and saying hello. The youngsters return his greeting.

He usually has another word or two for them, asking if they’ve had a good weekend or how their class work is going. Most days, he makes a trip to Adams School and says hello to the children there, as well.

Janet grew up in Lincoln and went to Washington-Monroe and Central schools himself. He then got his associate degree at Lincoln College and both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in elementary education and curriculum instruction at Illinois State.

His family valued education, and many are or were teachers. His brother, George, who is retiring next year as regional superintendent of schools, started as a teacher in Logan County schools. He has uncles, cousins and nieces in the profession, and his younger daughter, Amy, plans to be an elementary teacher.

Janet himself has been in education in Lincoln for 34 years, but he started out disliking school.

"When I was growing up I didn’t particularly like school, because I felt many of the teachers were a little bit tough on kids. They didn’t have a real good sense of humor — everything was business. I needed a little more TLC.

"I was a very sickly kid. I had a lot of ear infections and couldn’t hear well, and I had bad asthma. I missed a lot of school. I weighed about 80 pounds when I was a freshman in high school

"I’ve had a lifelong fight against asthma, but I wanted to be active, so I worked out to build myself up. I ran and played baseball unless I was so sick I couldn’t. I didn’t want to be one of those people who feel sorry for themselves and give up. I had a lot of grit, and I was determined not to let illness prevent me from doing things.

"I think I probably understand kids who have problems and have more empathy with them because of my background."

(To be continued)

[Joan Crabb]

[Click here for Part 2]

[MAY 2, 2002]  NORMAL — Heartland has received notification from the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation that the pass rates of its 2001 nursing program graduates for both the LPN and PN licensure examinations are above the state and national averages. Heartland’s division chair for human services, Catherine Miller, who directs the nursing program, says the pass rate on the exams is something the program has enjoyed for several years now.

Crediting a strong program, with strong commitment by both instructors and students, Miller says, "We know through feedback from our annual survey, that our graduates do very well when they move on into the health industry. Our students tell us they felt well prepared to enter or return to their careers in nursing. And their employers are letting us know that they are pleased with the knowledge and capabilities of our graduates."

Miller says application numbers for potential students into the limited number of openings is on the rise. She reports, "We have about 40 percent more applications for the coming year than we did last year at this time."

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She says the increase in applications could be attributed to many things: some economic instability, increasing word-of-mouth out in the community by employers and graduates alike who have either experienced or benefited from Heartland’s nursing program, and the unique two-step program that the college offers. The program has 32 spaces available for the incoming first-year students and offers a "ladder" program for licensed practical nurses in the second year.

The program’s transfer rate is also very good, according to Miller. Of the past nursing program graduates, she says 25 percent have enrolled in four-year institutions to complete a baccalaureate degree in nursing.

In the central Illinois area, an entry-level nursing position averages about $15 to $17 per hour, or about $32,000 per year.

[HCC news release]

[APRIL 25, 2002]  Students at Lincoln Junior High recently participated in a school-sponsored week of activities that provided education and support against drug use. The students partook in contests, games, tests and wore red ribbons.

[Tim Wiser.  Click picture for full size.]

[Moses Hernandez.  Click picture for full size.]

[Lincoln Police Department DARE Sgt. Ken Greenslate presented jackets to Tim Wiser (seventh grade) and Moses Hernandez (eighth grade) for their winning posters. Seventh-grade teacher Mrs. Sparrow helped coordinate activities.]

Honors & Awards

Announcements

[MAY 8, 2002]  The Lincoln Junior High School Music Department will present their spring concert on Thursday, May 9. The wind ensemble, jazz band and choir will be performing in the LJHS gymnasium. The concert starts at 7 p.m.

[MAY 3, 2002]  AURORA — The Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy is now accepting registrations from educators for its two summer programs that provide an introduction to problem-based learning, or PBL. The deadline for applications is June 15.

Problem-based learning is an educational approach that organizes curriculum and instruction around carefully crafted problematic situations adapted from real-world issues, such as groundwater contamination, air pollution and flood control. Learners gather and apply knowledge from multiple disciplines in their quest for solutions. IMSA’s PBL institutes empower teachers to design and implement this methodology in their classrooms.

The first summer program, Summer Sleuths Institute for PBL Coaching, will be July 15-19 and July 22-26. The first week, educators will immerse in a problem and then debrief and discuss the PBL process. The second week, educators will coach middle-school students (with help from a mentor coach) through the same problem. On the final day, educators and students will make formal presentations on their solutions.

The second summer program, Harris Institute for PBL Design, will be Aug. 5-8. Educators will begin the week immersed in a problem and will then design their own problems for classroom use with the assistance of a mentor coach.

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Information about these workshops can be found at www.imsa.edu/center/pbl/intro.html, and people interested can contact Deb Gerdes at (630) 907-5957 or dgerdes@imsa.edu.

Located in Aurora, IMSA is a learning enterprise that builds the capacity of students, teachers and policymakers to improve and transform mathematics and science teaching and learning. IMSA’s residential educational program serves Illinois students in grades 10 through 12 who are talented in mathematics and science; its professional development center serves schools, educational systems, teachers and students in Illinois and beyond.

[IMSA news release]

[APRIL 17, 2002]  NORMAL — The Bloomington Rotary Club is offering three scholarships to District 540 residents attending Heartland Community College during the fall 2002 semester that begins Aug. 15.

Two $750 scholarships are available to full-time students (12-18 credit hours). One $500 scholarship is available to a part-time student (less than 12 credit hours). Scholarships are renewable for one semester based on satisfactory academic performance.

The scholarships will be awarded based on financial need, evidence of community service and involvement, and satisfactory high school or college performance.

For consideration, students must complete the Heartland Community College scholarship application and address the scholarship criteria. Those interested can obtain an application from HCC’s financial aid office or at www.bccfoundation.org.

[HCC press release]

[APRIL 16, 2002]  Junior high school and high school students have an opportunity to attend summer camp offered by the Touch of Nature Environmental Center at SIU-Carbondale.

These camps combine adventure skills such as canoeing, caving, camping and hiking with a challenge to both physically and mentally develop an awareness and respect for our environment. Through a series of activities, campfire discussions and presentations, students are involved in current environmental issues, which will help them become problem-solvers of the future. This appears to be an excellent opportunity for any student interested in the field of conservation.

This year’s programs include Ozark canoeing expeditions for high school students and an Ozark Riverways canoe trip for sixth- to eighth-grade students. Program information has been sent to all high school and junior high schools in Logan County.

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The Logan County Soil and Water Conservation District will be sponsoring one full scholarship or two partial scholarships, depending on the number of applications received. Students interested in information concerning scholarship applications and funding should contact the district office, 1650 Fifth Street Road, Lincoln; (217) 732-2010, Ext. 3.

Students will need to submit a short description of their interests and why they would like to attend one of the workshops.

[SWCD news release]

Menus

• Lincoln Elementary Schools

• New Holland-Middletown Elementary District 88

• West Lincoln-Broadwell Elementary School District 92

(Milk served with every meal.)

Thursday, May 9 — Biscuit with egg and ham, fruit

Friday, May 10 — Cereal, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, juice

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(Milk served with every meal.)

Thursday, May 9 — Sloppy Joes, french fries, cole slaw, jello with whipped cream

Friday, May 10 — French toast sticks with syrup, sausage patty, hash brown, pineapple-orange cup

Two percent white or chocolate milk, bread, butter and peanut butter served daily.

Menu may be subject to change.

Thursday, May 9 — Chicken patty, bun, cheese potatoes, pineapple, vanilla pudding

Friday, May 10 — Cheese pizza, lettuce salad, apple slices, no-bake cookie

Monday, May 13 — Hot dog, bun, corn, mandarin oranges, pumpkin bars

Tuesday, May 14 — Turkey and cheese sandwich, corn, peaches, Texas cake

Wednesday, May 15 — Sloppy Joe, bun, green beans, strawberries, chocolate pudding

Thursday, May 16 — Macaroni and cheese, peas, pineapple, chocolate chip cookie

Friday, May 17 — Nachos, lettuce salad, pears, sugar cookie

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Monday, May 20 — Hamburger, CB, bun, french fries, applesauce, brownies

Tuesday, May 21 — Pig in a blanket, peas, peaches, ice cream treat

Wednesday, May 22 — Pork tenderloin, bun, cheese mashed potatoes, strawberries, Texas cake

Thursday, May 23 — Soft shell taco, corn, applesauce, no-bake cookie

Friday, May 24 — Ravioli, green beans, pears, gushers

Monday, May 27 — No school

Tuesday, May 28 — Corn dogs, carrot sticks, dip, peaches, vanilla pudding

Thursday, May 9 — Creamed turkey on biscuit, potatoes, peas, jello

Friday, May 10 — Sloppy Joe on bun, potato rounds, lettuce salad, pears

Monday, May 13 — Barbecued chicken on bun, cheesy potatoes, corn, mixed fruit

Tuesday, May 14 — Breaded pork chop, potatoes and gravy, broccoli, applesauce

Wednesday, May 15 — Soft tacos, lettuce and cheese, nacho chips, cheese sauce, veggie sticks, cake with fruit

Thursday, May 16 — Chicken fillet on bun, french fries, green beans, pears

Friday, May 17 — Hot ham and cheese, bun, potato rounds, slaw, peaches

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