NWH-6-8-2015

Page 1

MONDAY

June 8, 2015 • $1.00

GOALIE GUESSING

NORTHWEST

Lightning coach Cooper unsure who will be in net for Game 3 / B1

HERALD RALD

NWHerald.com

THE ONLY DAILY NEWSPAPER PUBLISHED IN McHENRY COUNTY

‘[SPECIAL NEEDS STUDENTS] GO FROM HAND HOLDING TO ABSOLUTELY NOTHING’

Complete forecast on page A8

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Students push for smoking ban at fest, get civics lesson By ZACH BROOKE

Photos by Matthew Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com

Katie McGee (left), 20, of McHenry leaves McHenry High School West with her mother, Karen McGee, on May 29 in McHenry. McGee is entering her final year in the school’s special education program for 18- to 22-year-olds.

Aging out of system tough for families Area lacks choice for developmental disability services early as 3 years old, said D.J. Newport, associate director for intellectual and develCARY – Trevor Maki opmental disabilities at the sits on the couch with his Pioneer Center. mother. He isn’t looking at That’s when someone the iPad she’s holding, but with a developmental he’s gently moving her hand, disability diagnosis should spelling out an answer to her get placed in the state’s question. Prioritization of Urgency of Trevor Maki is nonverbal Need for Services database, with profound autism, but also known as the PUNS list, he cracks jokes and swears. which amounts to a waiting He enjoys tasks that seem to list for state services, he said. have purpose, preparing food Wendt, however, cautions or doing office work, such as parents against planning out shredding and organizing. too far in advance because Katie McGee shares a laugh with the principal’s assistant Beth kids can make a lot of progHe attends Crystal LakeNelson (left) as McGee waits to be picked up by her mother, Karen ress and their paths are “unbased Community High McGee, on May 29 at McHenry High School West in McHenry. School District 155’s STRIVE usual and unpredictable,” program for 18- to 22-yearshe said, adding she doesn’t olds who are eligible for include saving for college in old son who is on the autism developmental disabilities. special education services. that warning. School districts spectrum. “I haven’t gone This transition period is But come next June, he’ll be start the conversation after through it yet, but I have often the most difficult for 22 and on his own. the children turn 14, as reheard and read a lot of the parents of those with “They go from hand holdthings. It really is like having quired by law, and develop a disabilities. transition plan, District 155 ing to absolutely nothing,” something ripped out from “Believe me, it keeps Director of Student Services said Suzi Schoenhoft, McHen- many of us up at night,” underneath you.” Kim Dahlem said. ry-based Pioneer Center for said Holly Wendt, a parent District 155 has some of Human Services’ community liaison for Crystal LakePreparing for the transition Some preparation for this based Options & Advocacy and vocational program transition period starts as and the mother of a 19-yearSee SERVICES, page A6 manager for intellectual and

By EMILY K. COLEMAN

LOW

80 58

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zbrooke@shawmedia.com

ecoleman@shawmedia.com

HIGH

MARENGO – A group of Marengo High School seniors accomplished something in its last semester that often takes seasoned legislators much longer, if they cross the finish line at all: It passed a law. It started in January. The 12 students had finished a mandatory senior civics class, informally known as legislative semester, the previous term, which was all about the legislative process. Their teacher, RJ Meyer, had learned about a grant offered through the McHenry County Health Department. “The purpose of it is to enable students to gain real-world educational experiences. To teach them about local government and also push for a cause. This particular theme is anti-tobacco,” Meyer said. The grant allowed them to form an extracurricular group. The group, called Marengo Reality, met on Sundays and discussed various issues to pursue before deciding to push for a smoking ban at Settlers’ Days before the Marengo City Council. They made sure they had all of their ducks in a row before approaching the council. They compiled medical information about the dangers of secondhand smoke and conducted a survey to gauge community support for a Settlers’ Days smoking ban. The results showed 86 percent of survey respondents favored limiting smoking in public

places at Settlers’ Days. “My role was just as facilitator. To help reinforce the concepts of government and such,” Meyer said. “The research and the speeches and the presentation and the resolution, that all came from them.” The students also sought expert help on navigating the legislative process. They enlisted the help of Marengo Police Sgt. Paul Fritz, who just presented a resolution on e-cigarettes to the City Council, for advice on crafting a bill. City Attorney Carlos Arevalo also helped draft the exact wording of their proposal. Through it all, Assistant City Administrator Joshua Blakemore offered advice on gaining the support of the council. “This was a very engaged group of students,” Blakemore said. “It was just fun to work with them. It was cool to see a group of kids take interest in their local government and help improve their community.” When they finally met with the council, aldermen were receptive, but not without reservations. Alderman Dennis Hammortree asked the group to get approval from the organization that runs Settlers’ Days. There also were concerns about enforceability. “The first time through, they liked the idea, but they wanted to know more about how we were going to enforce it, because Saturday night on Main Street is a huge area to

See SMOKING BAN, page A2

Zach Brooke – zbrooke@shawmedia.com

Recent Marengo High School graduates Emily Millard, Kaylee Wyrostek, Monica Millard and Aaron Schmitt were part of Marengo Reality, an extracurricular group that pushed for a smoking ban at Settlers’ Days before the Marengo City Council.

Abortion numbers in state fall, mirroring national trend By CARLA K. JOHNSON The Associated Press CHICAGO – The annual number of abortions in Illinois is continuing to fall, reflecting a national trend and reaching the lowest point in a decades-long decline. The latest figures show that there were 40,750 surgical abortions performed in Illinois in 2013, which is 2.6 percent fewer than the 41,859 performed in 2010, Illinois Department of Public Health data show. The numbers do not include abortions induced by prescription-only pills containing

the drug mifepristone, which is also known as RU-486. Illinois plans to include pill-induced abortions in its next report. The Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights, recently estimated that medical abortions in 2011 accounted for 23 percent of all abortions nationwide. Women traveling from other states for abortions in Illinois raised the totals by about 3,000 abortions each year. Illinois has less restrictive abortion laws than neighboring states and shares borders with Missouri and Indiana, two states among the most aggres-

sive in passing abortion restrictions. Illinois does require girls younger than 18 to notify a parent or adult family member 48 hours before an abortion, unless a judge grants a waiver. Otherwise, Illinois abortion laws are considered unrestrictive compared to other states’, and public funding is available for medically necessary abortions. Nationwide, abortions have decreased by about 12 percent since 2010, according to an Associated Press survey of health data. The biggest decreases were shared almost equally by Republican-led states that have joined in enacting a wave of anti-abortion

laws in recent years and states that have rejected such measures while protecting abortion rights. In Illinois, teen pregnancy rates are falling, which may account for some of the drop in abortions. Abortion-rights advocates also credit education and increasing access to contraceptives. Abortion foes, meanwhile, cite changing attitudes toward terminating a pregnancy. “This is the most pro-life generation we’ve seen in history,” said Emily Zender of Illinois Right to Life. Illinois has more than 50 pregnancy resource centers that offer counseling about al-

SPORTS

NATION

SPORTS

WHERE IT’S AT

Seeking state

Beyond the blue

Looking ahead

Jacobs baseball looks for supersectional win over Stevenson / B1

Outlaw biker gangs, police clubs blur lines, drawing concern from some / A4

Marengo softball ready to face Wauconda for shot at semifinals / B1

Advice ................................C8 Classified........................ C1-7 Comics ............................. C10 Local News.....................A2-3 Lottery................................ A2 Nation&World...........A2, 4-5 Obituaries .........................A6

ternatives to abortion, Zender said. Two Illinois abortion clinics closed in recent years following a sweep of state inspections. Abortion-rights advocates believe women who would have visited those now-closed clinics found abortions available elsewhere. Women in Rockford, for example, where a clinic closed in 2011 following health and safety violations, can obtain abortions in Madison, Wisconsin. “Women are still obtaining abortions,” said Carole Brite of Planned Parenthood of Illinois. “They have had to travel greater distances and incur greater expense to do so.”

Opinion...............................A7 Puzzles ........................... C8-9 Sports..............................B1-6 State ................................... A3 TV listings ......................... C9 Weather .............................A8


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