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I N D I A N A D A I LY S T U D E N T | W E D N E S D AY, M A R C H 9 , 2 0 1 6 | I D S N E W S . C O M
REGION
EDITORS: ALEXA CHRYSSOVERGIS & LINDSAY MOORE | REGION@IDSNEWS.COM
Superintendent rebukes IPS staff By Samantha Schmidt schmisam@indiana.edu @schmidtsam7
In reaction to child seduction charges against an Indianapolis Public Schools counselor, the district’s superintendent condemned the school officials’ delayed reporting, calling it “a clear case of incompetence.” In a public statement Friday, IPS Superintendent Lewis Ferebee acknowledged school administrators failed to report the allegations against the counselor, Shana Taylor, to the Department of Child Services immediately after being notified. It took six days for IPS officials to report the case to DCS after the assistant principal initially heard about it from a parent, a delay that violated state law, school board policy and administrative guidelines, Ferebee said. “I am very disturbed that reporting the allegations did not occur in a timely manner,” Ferebee said. The allegations led to the arrest of Taylor, who was charged March 2 with nine counts of child seduction, one count of dissemination of matter harmful to minors and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Taylor reportedly had sexual relations with at least two male students, ages 16 and 17, she was responsible for counseling. Taylor reportedly met with one of them for oral and vaginal sex during the course of several months, according to court documents. She was hired by IPS in March 2015 as a guidance counselor at an IPS alternative education program, Positive Supports Academy. The case remains under investigation and additional charges can still be added. On March 4, the IPS School Board voted to terminate Taylor for “gross misconduct.” An independent investigation into the chain of events following the initial report indicates at least five school officials were made aware of the allegations and did not report them to DCS, Ferebee said. However, all of these employees were aware of their reporting obligations, he said.
When a parent first reported the inappropriate relationship to an assistant principal at the Positive Supports Academy, the assistant principal consulted with the principal, who was on medical leave. The principal addressed the situation, but neither administrator contacted DCS. Instead, the assistant principal contacted the director of student services, Ferebee said. The director inaccurately assumed the administrators had contacted CPS and instructed the assistant principal to contact human resources. Human resources immediately worked to make sure Taylor had no further access to IPS students, Ferebee said. But once again, the human resources employee assumed DCS had already been contacted. “At the corpus of these careless errors is a very disappointing tangle of miscommunication,” Ferebee said. On Feb. 22, an employee processing Taylor’s file for recommendation for termination noticed DCS had not been called. Yet it was not until the following day, Feb. 23, the principal finally sent a report to DCS. “These breakdowns are unacceptable and simply cannot occur,” Ferebee said. He said district-wide training is being planned with an external agency to clarify safety protocols. Taylor was a student at IU and a recipient of the Cox Scholarship in 2008, according to an IU news release and her LinkedIn account. The 17-year-old student told police he and Taylor had sexual intercourse or oral sex on more than 20 different occasions, according to court documents. Several of these instances took place in her counseling office. Other times they met at the boy’s residence, Taylor’s home in Greenwood, Indiana, in the backseat of her car or in a Bloomington hotel. A different 16-year-old student said he engaged in threeway sex with Taylor and the 17-year-old student. While she Taylor’s trial is set for May 11. She is being held at the Marion County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bail.
New Indiana State Police troopers receive cop cars From IDS reports
After months of ridealongs, 46 state police probationary troopers received their very own Dodge Chargers on Tuesday. The 75th Recruit Academy received its own cop cars at the Indiana State Police Youth Education and Historical Center in Indianapolis. The recruits just finished up five months of academy training, followed by three months of field training with Indiana State Police troopers. Field training includes observing other troopers and riding around in their cars. Watching the rookies drive their own cars for the first time is always an exciting day, ISP Sgt. John Perrine said. “All of us veteran troopers remember that moment,” Perrine said. “It’s a feeling of both anxiety and pride when you pull out of that parking lot for the first time with no one in your car.”
This ISP recruit class includes 46 officers, but only 45 were present for Tuesday’s ceremony, since one member is an active member of the military and is currently serving, Perrine said. Each of the Dodge Chargers now belongs to these recruits, until the car gives out or an officer is promoted to a newer vehicle, Perrine said. Previously assigned to other troopers, these Chargers have between 80,000 and 100,000 miles on them. Tuesday’s recruits make up the first class in ISP history to receive all Dodge Chargers, ISP Sgt. John Perrine said. The role of the iconic, “very reliable” Ford Crown Victoria is waning because of the superior technology and capabilities of the Dodge Charger, Perrine said. “It’s just a matter of a different vehicle,” Perrine said. “It doesn’t change the way we do our job.” Hannah Alani
science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Winners receive $1,000 scholarships for college, according to a state press release from the governor’s office. Pence will announce the winners in May. The deadline to apply is April 10.
By Melanie Metzman mmetzman@indiana.edu @melanie_metzman
Ann Kreilkamp didn’t believe in astrology for much of her life. However, after she was fired from her teaching position at the New College of California, Kreilkamp was convinced by two friends to do an astrological chart. Astrology investigates the energetic system that was present at the moment of one’s birth, Kreilkamp said. Before computers, Kreilkamp said astrologists did the math and drew the charts by hand, so making one took a few hours. Though Kreilkamp was not yet a believer, she said something inside her said she needed that chart. If she saw some of the outer planets, which align every few hundred years, were together at the time she was fired, it had to mean something. “They did,” Kreilkamp said. “I knew I had to study this language and it would be the thing I’d use to help other people.” Kreilkamp has practiced astrology since her revelation, and now she has clients all over the world. Kreilkamp can make a chart within minutes on her laptop through an app that enters information about the time, date and place of one’s birth. Kreilkamp grew up the first of eight children in a strict Catholic home in Idaho. She had her first mental and emotional breakthrough at age 26 shortly after she was diagnosed with life-threatening peritonitis. “I asked the doctor, ‘Am I going to die?’” Kreilkamp said. “You didn’t ask that back then — that was a taboo subject.” The doctor wouldn’t tell her, Kreilkamp said. However, instead she was answered by a invisible, booming male voice. “It said, ‘Live or die. It’s your choice,”
YULIN YU | IDS
Ann Kreilkamp talks about astrology Tuesday at her apartment. Kreilkamp studies astrology as a hobby and is the outreach coordinator for the Green Acres Permaculture Village.
Kreilkamp said. She didn’t know who or what this voice was, Kreikamp said. But she knew she was free. The next day, Kreilkamp’s body was cleared of the peritonitis. That was when Kreilkamp said she realized she was responsible for her own life and had to make decisions. “This is when I knew the body followed the spirit,” Kreilkamp said. “When you have a bodily problem, it’s because the spirit is asking you something.” Kreilkamp explains her peritonitis as her spirit’s expression of treating herself as a victim. The world is more mysterious than people realize, Kreilkamp said. The synchronicity in astrology exposes this. This is not God, Kreilkamp said she has no idea what it is. Kreilkamp exemplifies the synchronicity through a near car accident and an
experience at the Griffy Lake when three pit bulls came after her and her sister’s dogs and Kreilkamp stopped it. She picked up the dogs and yelled at the pit bulls. Kreilkamp felt fearless, she said. “I became a banshee,” Kreilkamp said. “It was ten minutes before it was over, but I noticed I had stepped out of my shoes so I would be completely grounded.” Something larger than the little person she is came through, Kreilkamp said. However, it only comes through when it’s needed. Grounding yourself and being open to the universe is the key, she said. “We need to come back to the earth and come home,” Kreilkamp said. “Our connection is with all of the species.” Kreilkamp still practices astrology; however, she now primarily writes for her blog, exopermaculture. com, which has about 2,000
unique visitors a day. Kreilkamp also does community outreach for the Green Acres Permaculture Village, where she lives with property manager Rebecca Ellsworth and SPEA graduate student Leah Thill. The village is made up of two houses and has one acre of land for animals, including cats, dogs and chickens, and the organic garden. The most special thing about the community is it’s intergenerational, Ellsworth said. Kreilkamp and Ellsworth are both older than 60 while the other residents are younger than 30, Ellsworth said. A permaculture village is all about letting things go naturally as they are, Ellsworth said. “We all depend on each other and the environment,” Ellsworth said. “You’re going with how things are naturally rather than how you think it ought to be.”
Architects explain building process Comthomp@indiana.edu @CodyMichael3
COURTESY PHOTO
Indiana is now accepting nominations for the 2016 Mr. and Miss Math and Mr. and Miss Science awards, Gov. Mike Pence announced Tuesday. The honors recognize up to four high school seniors for excellent performances in
Local woman guided by stars
By Cody Thompson
Trooper Jordan Craig received the top recruit award, he was presented a license plate honoring the late Lt. Gary Dudley, killed in the line of duty.
Applications due for Indiana STEM awards
Two architects explained how blueprints go from hand-drawn sketches to full commercial projects Tuesday evening at the Venue Fine Arts & Gifts. Dawn Gray and Barre Klapper spoke on the difficulties and art of architecture. Gray, Barre and Jayne York, are partners at Springpoint Architects. “A lot of people who are good artistically have a picture of what they want but can’t quite make it come together,” Barre said. “We’re there to help them.” Gray and Klapper have been partners at Springpoint for almost two years but have been practicing in Bloomington for more than 10 years. The pair presented a
slideshow to a small audience of six people. Gray and Klapper listened to questions and comments from the audience, which was followed by both praise and questions about their photos and methods. “People always know they need a contractor but not that they need an architect,” Barre said. Architects help people strategize, Barre said. They keep clients stay on-budget and think about the project collectively so they can do the work they can afford, he said. The architects showed a project of a 7,500-square-foot house they designed that is currently under construction in Monroe County. They also showed several other house remodels, kitchens and basements they have designed, many with before and after photos.
“I feel that a lot of the folks in the planning department are very reasonable,” Barre said in response to a question about Bloomington’s building restrictions. Some of their previous projects include Vintage Phoenix Comics on Sixth Street, Bloomingfoods and Fairview Elementary School. The partners said they do their first drawings by hand so the project looks fluid and nothing seems permanent. They occasionally use 3-D computer modeling software if necessary for design, Barre said. One house they’re designing will have the largest solar panel array on a residential building in Monroe County, Barre said. “I think architecture can be somewhat mysterious to the general public, so we’re here to talk about mainly
residential projects, but we do all kinds of different work,” Gray said. “We thought, at this venue, people would be more interested in the residential aspects of our work.” The Venue invited the architects to speak. They have done occasional speeches at schools if there is a connection with a class, Barre said. Bloomington resident Marc Haggerty said he often comes to lectures on Tuesdays at the Venue because he is friends with the owner of the gallery. “I design for poor people and how to make a living structure with minimum space easy to heat and bringing all the utilities together,” Haggerty said. “A couple architects lecturing on houses is very interesting to me and more power to ‘em, and I wish them all the luck in the world.”
Lectures 2015–16
James Scott
Sterling Professor of Political Science, Yale University
A Brief History of Flight from the State Thursday, March 10, Presidents Hall, Franklin Hall, 7:30 p.m. patten.indiana.edu