1 Front Volume 142 No. 30
Friday, July 1, 2016
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Funding not a crisis at Lostant School By Zachary J. Pratt news@tonicanews.com
LOSTANT — As the financial situations of many districts plummet, the Lostant School Board took a look at a budget crisis toolkit, but made certain to explain area families need not be worried about what this means for the school’s financial stability. During a brief discussion of the toolkit during the school board’s Wednesday, June 22, meeting, Superintendent Sandra Malahy stressed the school is not in any immediate danger of financial trouble. “I don’t want to put our community in
crisis mode because we are not in crisis mode. We have enough money to stay open,” Malahy said. The toolkit is a response to the situation many districts have found themselves in as they forge ahead without expected funding from the state. “This came out because of so many districts being in financial crisis and what might happen if schools aren’t fully funded or are not funded at all,” Malahy said. The state budget impasse has led to the possibility that some schools may not be able to afford to remain open throughout the fall, but this is not something Lostant
needs to worry about. The reason for this difference is that Lostant has managed much of its own funding in ways other than what these other districts have. “We only get about 20 percent of our money from the state,” board president Mike Phillips said. The district’s financial situation had been discussed in another part of the meeting, during which Malahy had described the outlook: “It looks like we’re going to end the year pretty good. Under budget, hopefully.” On a similar note, the board’s regular meeting had been preceded by a public hearing regarding the amended school
budget. The hearing began at 6:08 p.m. and ended at 6:09 p.m., as nobody had shown up for it. “It was on display for a minimum of 30 days, and nobody came to view it or ask questions,” Malahy said. “I was available.” In other news, repairs are coming to the school in Lostant, which could save on costs in the long run in addition to keeping students more comfortable. The board discussed an ongoing plumbing project as well as the results of a health/life safety report.
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Producing well-rounded students
Behavior and emotional issues important for students By Zachary J. Pratt news@tonicanews.com
Tonica News file photo/Mike Vaughn
On Monday, July 4, the nation, along with the Illinois Valley, will celebrate the birthday of the United States of America. Independence Day, also referred to as the Fourth of July or July 4th, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, by the Continental Congress declaring the 13 American colonies regarded themselves as a new nation, the United States of America, and no longer part of the British Empire. On behalf of the Tonica News, we wish you a safe and happy Fourth of July.
Enjoy the Fourth ... safely
Tonica Volunteer Fire Department reminds residents to consider safety when celebrating By Dave Cook
news@tonicanews.com
TONICA — Fireworks are so synonymous with the Fourth of July that it’s easy for people to forget how dangerous they can be if not handled properly. Even though there are warnings of their danger every year, fire departments and emergency rooms across the nation continue to see property damage and
Vol. 142 No. 30 Two Sections - 16 Pages
personal injuries caused by their misuse. Rick Turri, public information officer for the Tonica Volunteer Fire Department, spoke of the most common injuries and mistakes made during this nationwide celebration. “People think all fireworks are safe for them to use. Burns and eye injuries can occur even when smaller fireworks, such as sparklers and smoke balls are
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Summer is here. Are you ready?
Plumbing
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used. Larger, illegal fireworks can cause serious injuries that may result in permanent disfigurement or death. Fireworks of any size can start fires and sparks from a structure fire are not what you want to see going up in the air on the Fourth of July,” Turri said. As dangerous as they can be, however, remaining safe can be relatively simple.
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LOSTANT — Lostant Community School is looking at ways to teach about social and emotional issues as well as good behavior principles. In preparation for Senate Bill 100, which the board has discussed on previous occasions, the school has looked into ways to teach good behavior principles to students; a program to facilitate such discussion was proposed at the Wednesday, June 22, school board meeting. “One of the items that was discussed was making social, emotional and behavior topics, you know, make it something in the classroom on a regular basis,” Superintendent Sandra Malahy said. Grades K-2 and 3-5 are split into separate sections, both utilizing the Model Me Kids video series, while the younger group also uses Newmark Learning storybooks for social and emotional issues. Malahy provided examples of topics for this younger group, such as “I can be kind,” “I can show respect” and “that’s not fair.” The difficulty for this program is deciding what would work best for the different grade levels and age groups, as they have different needs. “These are all grade-level appropriate. It’s not one-size-fits-all, because it’s not a one-size-fits-all issue,” Malahy said. All groups had different needs, but that did not equalize into making them all require the same amount of work to plan for. “The grade level we thought was most difficult to plan for was sixth, seventh, eighth,” Malahy said. This sixth-through-eighth grade level group does not use either of the material providers which make the pieces for the younger groups’ courses, as it was decided those would not meet the need. This level required something else.
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