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Boys BasketBall • sports, B1
Monday, February 25, 2013
awards roundup • nation, a2
Barbs hope to keep current streak going in regional
Micah Fagerstrom
Anne Hathaway, Christoph Waltz win at Oscars
Anne Hathaway
Suicide attempts a growing problem Mental health, family life contribute to dangerous trend in DeKalb County By JEFF ENGELHARDT jengelhardt@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Jason Nicol sees a disturbing trend sweeping DeKalb County that is going largely unnoticed: suicide at-
dencies and self injury – an observation supported by county statistics. In 2010, DeKalb police responded to 110 suicide attempts. In 2012, that number increased to 162. Countywide,
tempts. Nicol, executive director of the Youth Service Bureau in DeKalb, said two of the top three concerns his staff has identified in the area’s youth and families are suicidal ten-
successful suicide attempts doubled from five in 2010 to 10 in 2012. Nicol said a variety of factors from mental health issues to the increase in fractured families are causing the increase.
He said in each of the past three years, 27 percent of the youth that come to his organization for counseling suffer
Has depression ever affected your life? Vote online at DailyChronicle.com.
See SUICIDE, page A7
DeKalb nears deal on homes
REGIONAL SPELLING BEE
King bee crowned
Voice your opinion
Sycamore student heads to D.C. competition next
Public hearing set for today By DAVID THOMAS dthomas@shawmedia.com
show for more than a year of contract talks to replace one that expired eight months ago. Negotiators are expected to sit for another round of talks this week. But if progress continues to elude them,
DeKALB – An annexation agreement for Irongate, a 1,000plus unit housing development on the north side of DeKalb, could be reached as early as March, city officials said. City Manager Mark Biernacki said that since a Jan. 29 special meeting on the topic, a lot of progress and compromise has been made between Irongate developer ShoDeen Construction, city staff, and DeKalb’s school and park districts. “I’d characterize the plan being 90 percent – to the point where it meets Mark all of the coun- Biernacki cil’s objectives,” City manager Biernacki said. “There will be some issues the council will be asked to amend their opinion on.” A public hearing on Irongate is scheduled for today’s DeKalb City Council meeting. Annexation of any new housing developments requires the approval of at least six aldermen. Despite some unresolved issues, Biernacki said he feels confident that the progress that has been made could lead to a first vote on the annexation at the council’s March 11 meeting. “It’s conceivable that there could be final or formal action at one of the two meetings in March,” Biernacki said. Plans for Irongate in November called for 1,053 singlefamily homes on lots ranging from 50 to 80 feet wide, a special housing development for
See STRIKE, page A7
See HOMES, page A7
Rob Winner – rwinner@shawmedia.com
Matthew Rogers, 12, of Sycamore Middle School, reacts after correctly spelling “megalopolis” Saturday in the 14th round to win the DeKalb County Spelling Bee at Kishwaukee College in Malta. To view video from the competition, visit Daily-Chronicle.com. By ERIC JOHNSON news@daily-chronicle.com Megalopolis. M-e-g-a-l-o-p-o-l-i-s. Megalopolis. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as “a very large city.” It also was the final word that won 12-year-old Matthew Rogers the 2013 annual Daily Chronicle/DeKalb County Regional Office of Education
Regional Spelling Bee. And, aptly, a very large city – Washington, D.C. – is where the Sycamore Middle School seventh-grader is headed to compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee at the end of May. “It hasn’t really sunk in yet,” Rogers said. “But I’m very excited.” Twenty-one third- through eighth-grade students from surrounding DeKalb County schools
gathered at a Kishwaukee College auditorium in Malta on Saturday to put their spelling prowess to the test. “We were happy to see representation from all of our public schools and three private schools,” said Amanda Christensen, regional superintendent of DeKalb County schools.
See COMPETITION, page A7
Strike threat raising stakes in state union talks By JOHN O’CONNOR The Associated Press SPRINGFIELD – The emerging threat of at least 30,000 Illinois state employees striking might seem extreme, but union leaders say they’re seriously considering the prospect as contract talks
have stalemated amid an overall state government financial picture that is equally extreme. Illinois remains mired in a fiscal quagmire that includes a crushing $96 billion deficit in public-worker pension systems and a festering $9 billion backlog of unpaid bills to
service providers. That’s the backdrop for ongoing negotiations between Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn and the state’s largest union, the American Pat Quinn Federation of
State, County and Municipal Employees, which often finds itself on the defensive at a time when organized labor across the country has suffered losses. AFSCME has futilely fought against facility closures, appealed to the courts to enforce raises promised in 2011 and has little to
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