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Immigration Centers of America withdraw New Richmond request
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Anna Melberg and her dogs have become trusty companions for the students that read aloud to them each Monday at Lien Elementary School.
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Students benefit by reading pages to pups
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or shall we say reading — back. Mondays have turned into a special time at Lien, as it is the day Anna Melberg brings her dogs into the school to spend time with the children reading in the library. The young readers benefit by getting the opportunity to comfortably recite words in a pressure free environment. The
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dogs benefit from the gentle tummy scratches. Both parties benefit from the exchanged smiles and hugs. Melberg from Black Brook Kennels has been visiting students with her trusty companions since the beginning of the school year. She brings four canines, a stan
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Novelist, Humanities professor and Nobel Prize recipient Orhan Pamuk once said, “Dogs do speak, but only to those who know how to listen.” At Lien Elementary School, the children are listening. The students are also talking —
Immigration Centers of America announced last week it was withdrawing its application for rezoning to build a facility in the City of New Richmond. The decision came after city staff shared a draft report on the application. According to THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 33, ICA’s interpretation, the2222 report recommended VOL.against 131 NO. 19 authorizing www.moraminn.com $1.00 the application, saying it did not fit with the New Richmond 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The report was meant to precede a formal process including a public hearing and votes by the city’s planning commission and city council. Statements from an ICA representative seemed to interpret the report as an official rejection. “We’re disappointed the city has decided to reject our proposal,” Duane Ragsdale, COO of Immigration Centers of America, said in a press release. “Due to this decision being made now, we will be unable to locate another site to comply with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency’s RFP deadline in May.
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Safety and security project in full swing at Amery Schools
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In July 2018 the Amery Board of Education decided items needing to be updated as part of the district’s Safety and Security Project should be divided into three phases
based on the priority and financing of each item. Short-term borrowing paid for cameras and wiring that were part of phase one of the projects. A school safety grant was used to pay for a portion of the short-term borrowing. Phase one is currently being
implemented at the campus and Clint Waalen gave an update on the cameras during April’s School Board meeting. Waalen said the district’s old surveillance system is over 14-years-old. The 61 cameras run on an analog system, giving lower resolution. Just a
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few doors and hallways were covered at each building and playback was only available for 14 days. “Coverage was just not that great around the district,” he said. In comparison, the district’s new surveillance system features 139 cameras, each with 226 im-
ages. The cameras have high definition resolution and all doors, hallways and parking lots will be covered. Playback is available for 30 days and a mobile server allows for cameras to be accessed off-site. Waalen ex SEE SECURITY ON PAGE 2
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