1 Front
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Serving Bureau County Since 1847
NEWSSTAND PRICE 75¢
Not always a walk in the PARCC Part 2 of PARCC will soon begin By Zita Henneberry zhenneberry@bcrnews.com
SPRINGFIELD — After about a one month break, PARCC testing will soon continue in Illinois schools. More than 13 million students in 29 states across the country are scheduled to complete the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College Careers (PARCC)
assessment or the Smarter Balanced assessment system. These two examinations are the only two tests designed to measure achievement aligned with the new Common Core standards. According to the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), schools across the state have reported a strong start for the first administration of the new PARCC assessment’s Part 1 of the two-part examination. The ISBE said schools have praised the new exam’s utility, technological features and ability to engage students. However, LaMoille Superintendent Ricardo Espinoza shared a different per-
spective. “In my humble opinion, the money has been misspent on an endeavor that will fail to meet the needs of improving instruction and learning at any classroom level,” he said. According to an ISBE press release, “This cumulative assessment is not meant to measure progress from one portion to the next, but rather demonstrate whether or not students have learned the content provided and whether they are deemed proficient on the measured standards.” Since testing began, more than 1.4 million PARCC Performance-Based Assess-
ment (PBA) test sessions have been completed by Illinois students with no major technical difficulties reported to the ISBE. At the most recent Princeton Elementary School Board meeting, principals Bob Bima and Amanda Carr stood to report on the PARCC testing administration. Both principals agreed testing had gone better than expected at their respective schools. While there were a few minor glitches along the way, they said testing was completed without any major complications.
PARCC Page 3
Spring into safe driving habits By Zita Henneberry zhenneberry@bcrnews.com
The recent weather storms have led to local concern about safe storm habits and readiness. “In Ogle County they had approximately 50 homes damaged or destroyed. The storm continued into DeKalb County and caused devastation in the town of Fairdale,” said Bureau County Emergency Management Agency Director Keenan Campbell. “Every family and business should have a NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) weather radio. Always go to the lowest level of a sturdy structure away from windows.” According to the National Weather Service, Americans live in the most severe weather-prone country in the world. On average each year, Americans cope with: 100,000 thunderstorms; 1,000 severe thunderstorms; 5,000 floods or flash floods; 1,000 tornadoes; and two land-falling deadly hurricanes. These storms only add to the many concerns of winter storms, intense summer heat, high winds, wild fires and other deadly weather impacts. Campbell advised area residents, “After a storm, always consider all power lines energized.” He added, “Trees down can fall on people and can also hide energized power lines.” The Spring Valley Police Department is reminding citizens about the city’s severe weather policy as a Storm Ready community since 2011. Campbell explained, often times storms are following a warm or cold front, so extreme temperature swings can be indicative of a possible storm coming in. Also, he said, green storm clouds usually mean a hail downpour in that area. During these conditions, the Spring Valley severe weather plan includes early warning notifications to various locations such as schools, care facilities and community buildings. The National Weather Service’s Storm Ready program helps to arm American communities and other groups with the communication and safety skills needed to save lives and property during and after severe weather conditions. “Always check the weather forecast before you leave. And have a disaster kit in your car,” said Campbell. He said
Safety Page 4 Year 169 No. 45 One Section - 16 Pages
© Bureau County Republican
BCR photo/Becky Kramer
Supporting 4-H by chowing down Linda Wright and her granddaughter, Emily Wright, are served food at the Manlius 4-H Club’s pancake and sausage breakfast Sunday, April 12, at Manlius Sportsmen’s Club by 4-H members Molly Bohm (from left), Emily Rabe and Abby Rabe.
Your dog has the ... flu? What you need to know about canine influenza By Goldie Currie gcurrie@bcrnews.com
It might be spring, but flu season is far from finished, especially for man’s best friend. A canine influenza outbreak has hit the Chicagoland area, causing five canine deaths from complications with the flu between January and March. More than 1,000 cases have been reported so far. In response to the outbreak, local veterinarian services are prepping for a
potential spread to the area. Dr. Stuart VandeVenter of Princeton Animal Care Clinic reported he has not yet seen a widespread problem in this area, but there have been plenty of questions and concerns coming from local canine owners. VandeVenter confirmed he has treated one canine owner whose dog was exposed to another dog in Chicago that had been at one of the boarding homes where an outbreak had occurred. They are watching the dog closely, as it did develop a cough, but the dog has not gotten significantly ill, VandeVenter said. The common signs of the canine flu include cough, running nose and fever. VandeVenter said canines can be infectious two to five days before they begin
showing symptoms and will continue to be infectious within 10 days of recovery. VandeVenter confirmed the disease is spread through the air and by second-hand contact — similar to the human flu. Three examples of ways dogs can contract the disease is if they are exposed to a place where one dog may be carrying the virus and that dog sneezes on another. The second way is if a dog chews on a toy that has been chewed on previously by a dog who was exposed to the virus. The third way is if someone touches a dog exposed to the flu, doesn’t wash their hands and then touches another dog.
Dog flu Page 4