Pikeland parents highlight scheduling conflicts

Posted by dadam – May 17, 2012

An incoming Pittsfield High School junior wants to take both chemistry and Spanish 3 but can’t because the sole section of each class is offered at the same time during the school day.

It’s a common problem facing students, and their parents, in many districts — and it’s one that Brian Curless and Walker Filbert want to keep in front of the Pikeland School Board.

Curless’ son, Frazier, faces the scheduling issue. He and his family opted for the foreign language class, hopefully clearing the way for him to take Spanish 4 and still pick up chemistry as a senior.

Curless said he understands the scheduling challenges facing the district but wants the board to keep curriculum offerings as a priority especially when it comes to weighted classes favored by college-bound students.

“I don’t want to make it about us or about Frazier. I want to make it about the students,” Curless said at Wednesday night’s board meeting.

“There are a lot of students out there who want to take every single one of the weighted classes,” Filbert said.

Superintendent Paula Hawley said the scheduling concerns aren’t limited to just the weighted classes.

“The bottom line is you can’t build a perfect schedule that’s going to fit everyone’s needs,” Hawley said. “Students have to make choices along the way, and some are hard to make.”

Board members traditionally have been willing to add another section of classes, when needed in all areas of the curriculum.

“I have sections of art that close because they’re full, and we don’t have enough kids to add another section,” she said. With chemistry, “we only had three kids who were not able to fit it in their schedule. You can’t open a section for three kids.”

Curless said students had more options in past years.

“In the past, you had more chemistry classes offered, more than one,” Curless said.

PHS Principal Angie Greger said two sections of chemistry were offered only once the past four years to accommodate a large class.

DaBurger, DaBears, soy and KSU

Posted by dhusar – September 21, 2011

Football season has soybean and pork producers cheering. Both commodities are getting more exposure on and off the field.

Illinois Pork Producers introduced a new pork burger at Chicago Bears home games this fall. Dubbed DaBurger, in honor of DaBears fans, the half-pound pork sandwich is served three different ways — all involving bacon —  “that respects your passion for pigskin and pork,” Erin Cleary, director of marketing and education for the Illinois Pork Producers Association, said in a news release.

During the next three Bears home games — Sept. 25, Oct. 2 and Oct. 16 — pork producers also will grill and offer free samples of ground pork on the southeast lawn of Soldier Field.

“Between DaBurgers and the ground pork samples at the stadium, we’re trying to get more ground pork on your plate at home,” Cleary said. “In the spirit of the Pork: Be Inspired campaign, we’re hoping inspired Bears fans will eat more pork.”

Soybean farmers, especially those in Kansas, are especially proud of the Kansas State University Wildcats — or at least their playing field.

KSU recently installed AstroTurf GameDay Grass at its field in Manhattan. AstroTurf products include a backing called BioCel, which uses soy-based-polyol technology developed with support from the soybean checkoff.

“The number one user of our soybeans is the animal ag sector, which uses 98 percent of our soybean meal. But soybean oil is used in a lot of things people aren’t aware of such as paint, cleaners and turf,” United Soybean Board new uses program chair Bob Haselwood said in a news release. “In fact, industrial use of U.S. soy has jumped 50 percent since 2006.”

While Kansas State became the first NCAA football institution to install soy-based AstroTurf, the USB release said the surface is used elsewhere including fields for the St. Louis Rams, Major League Baseball’s Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto Blue Jays and at the Citrus Bowl, home of the Capital One Bowl and Champs Sports Bowl games.

BioCel combines the oil from U.S. soybean with recycled content to make a polyurethane product alternative to similar petroleum-based goods. According to AstroTurf, the renewable backing extends the turf’s life, enhances player safety, lessens our country’s dependence on foreign oil and improves outdoor air quality.

Tractor runovers, rollovers leading cause of farm deaths

Posted by dhusar – September 19, 2011

Heading into National Farm Safety and Health Week, think about one number.

Thirty-nine.

From July 1, 2010 through June 2011, 39 farm-related deaths occurred in Illinois, the highest the state has seen since 2001. By comparison, in 2009-10, 21 farm-related deaths occurred.

“National Farm Safety and Health Week helps us focus on opportunities to learn from the past and plan for future farm safety,” Eric Vanasdale, senior loss control representative at COUNTRY Financial, said in a news release. “Accidents will still happen. If we can alter our work patterns so we don’t intentionally put ourselves in harm’s way, injuries and farm deaths will decrease.”

The release said the leading cause of death continued to be tractor runovers and rollovers, while roadway collisions ranked second for the third year in a row.

Statistics reported in the release show:

• Tractor runover and rollover death rates increased by four, to a total of 11, causing more than one-fourth of this year’s farm-related deaths.
• Roadway collisions caused 13 percent of farm-related deaths compared to 29 percent during the 2009-10 year. These collisions also accounted for all four non-farm resident deaths.
• Deaths involving grain bin suffocation, electrocution and ATV rollovers accounted for three deaths each.

This year’s theme is “Safety Counts — Your Community Depends on It,” with Illinois targeting community safety efforts for grain bin accidents and suffocations.

“All farms should have an emergency response plan that all employees understand,” Vanasdale said in the release. “Invite the local emergency personnel to your farm to learn the layout of the buildings and any hazards on your property like lagoons, ponds or chemical storage. Plan ahead, eliminate hazards and stay safe.”

Cooking to correct doneness is goal
of National Food Safety Education Month

Posted by dhusar – September 14, 2011

September is National Food Safety Education Month, and Feedstuffs Foodlink.com says consumers need more education to make sure food is cooked to the correct doneness.

The website reported a new poll commissioned by the American Meat Institute found that 88 percent of U.S. adults cook burgers, but only 19 percent use a meat thermometer to determine if the burgers are cooked to the correct temperature and are safe to eat, with 57 percent relying on cooking time and 73 percent relying on sight.

More concerning is that the survey found only 13 percent of adults ages 18-34 — many of whom cook for children — use a thermometer to determine doneness while 78 percent rely on sight, which is not an accurate indicator to determine if a burger is correctly cooked.

AMI said only 20 percent of those surveyed knew that beef and pork burgers should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees and only 13 percent knew that chicken and turkey burgers should be cooked to 165 degrees.

U.S. meat and poultry products are among the safest in the world, but like all foods, they can contain harmful bacteria, which is why it’s important for consumers to follow safe handling practices, AMI senior vice president Janet Riley said.

Riley urged consumers to follow four basic food safety steps:

• Wash hands and clean surfaces before preparing burgers and other meat and poultry products.
• Keep cooked and raw products separated.
• Cook products to the correct temperatures.
• Chill cooked products after serving them.

Following instructions and using a thermometer are just as important in preparing frozen and refrigerated convenience foods.

A new “Cook It Safe” campaign urges consumers to:

• Follow all cooking instructions on the package, including using a cover on the cooking dish if called for, stirring the food during cooking and using a “stand time” after cooking before serving the food.
• Cook foods in the appliance called for on the package.
• If using a microwave, cook foods according to the oven’s wattage, using the minimum cooking time for high-wattage microwaves and the maximum cooking time for low-wattage microwaves.
• Use a thermometer to make sure foods are cooked thoroughly. Ground beef, pork, veal, lamb, eggs and egg dishes are done at 160 degrees. Ground chicken and turkey are done at 165 degrees. Casseroles, leftovers, hot dogs and reheated deli meats  are done at 165 degrees.

Boosting truck weight limits could mean
advantages for corn, soybean growers

Posted by dhusar – September 8, 2011

Illinois soybean and corn growers say higher truck weight limits could cut time and costs for farmers while increasing safety.

Increasing the amount of goods semi tractor-trailers can carry could save a typical Illinois farmer up to 16 trips from field to elevator during the harvest season, according to a new study funded in part by the Illinois Soybean Checkoff and the Illinois Corn Marketing Board.

The study looked at boosting the weight limit from 80,000 to 97,000 pounds.

Research done by Informa Economics found that adding a sixth axle to trucks when increasing the weight limit would:

• Shorten the stopping distance for trucks,
• Possibly reduce wear and tear on roads and bridges and
• Decrease time spent hauling grain.

“With increased weight limits, our trips from the field would decrease by 25 percent,” Illinois Soybean Association Chairman Matt Hughes said in a news release. “Adding a sixth axle would not only save us time and money, it would also lead to state savings on maintenance costs for roads and bridges.”

The additional axle spreads the truck’s weight over a larger surface area, the release said, decreasing wear and tear on roads and bridges. Adding an axle increases the number of tires on a truck from 18 to 22, reducing the load weight per tire while improving tire surface and braking friction.

Fuel savings would be minimal with increased weight limits, but growers could save significant driving time.
For example, a farmer who grows 500 acres of soybeans and moves the soybeans in a 40-mile roundtrip would make five fewer trips annually with a 97,000-pound weight limit, according to the study. If an average trip requires 48 minutes of travel time and 54 minutes of wait time at the elevator, five fewer trips would save approximately 510 minutes during harvest. If 500 acres of corn are harvested, 16 fewer trips would be required.

Area farmers aren’t alone in battling weather conditions

Posted by dhusar – August 20, 2011

Farmers in Northeast Missouri and West-Central Illinois aren’t alone this year in battling challenging weather conditions.

Coatsburg farmer David Niekamp recently got a look at what farmers in Tennessee faced this growing season.

“It was hot and dry down there, too,” he said. “They needed rain.”

Niekamp, District 8 Director for the Illinois Soybean Association, spent four days in late July learning about agriculture in Tennessee as part of the annual Regional Exchange and Awareness Program sponsored by the American Soybean Association, the United Soybean Board, Bayer CropScience and Novus International. The program helps build a better understanding of the differences and similarities facing soybean growers across the country.

Participants visited soybean, corn, cotton and rice farms throughout western Tennessee and saw firsthand the widespread growth and impact of herbicide resistant weeds in that area.

“The rice was about a foot tall. It was still nice and green. It looks like wheat in a way. They had just flooded it,” Niekamp said.
Seeing rice and cotton fields was interesting, but the biggest concern for Niekamp was resistant weed pressure in Tennessee.

“You know what’s going on down in the south may be coming your way,” Niekamp said. “We don’t want it to get up this far.”

Roundup won’t touch a cross between pigweed and waterhemp, and farmers in the Volunteer State also battle resistant pigweed and marestail.

“Pigweed in cotton fields you can control a little better than in beans,” he said. “They’re walking beans with hoes, bean buggies to spray.”

While showcasing the regional similarities and differences in agriculture, the ASA REAP tour encourages learning and relationship building between soybean growers and the ag industry. This benefits the member-driven policy work of ASA and the soybean industry as a whole, and enables members to see how checkoff activities are supporting state soybean issues.

“We really don’t differ that much. We raise the same crops, work together on projects,” Niekamp said.

“This is a valuable opportunity for ASA members to share ideas and build relationships,” ASA President Alan Kemper said in a news release. “This program looks at farming operations unique to the area and gives soybean growers a chance to be educated on the issues and challenges specific to the area.”

Blessings in a Backpack grows to meet key need for children

Posted by dhusar – August 19, 2011

Blessings in a Backpack began in July 2005 with two schools in its pilot program.

The program now serves more than 27,600 elementary school children in 21 states, including Illinois and Missouri, and 156 schools.

Every Friday, students receive backpacks with staples that require little to no preparation such as soup, macaroni and cheese and applesauce. They return with the backpacks on Monday ready to learn.

Thanks to arrangements with national grocers, $80 feeds a child in the program for an entire school year. Following a donation, a school is chosen and a local grocer partners with the program to provide food for meals.
Organizers say the program meets a key need because:

• One out of every six children in the U.S., or 12.4 million, is at risk of hunger.
• Over 62 percent of children in U.S. public schools are on the free and reduced meal program.
• Poor nutrition early in life can impair neural development, leading to lower IQs.
• Unmet nutritional needs make it difficult for children to learn, pay attention in class and behave properly to retain knowledge.
• Data shows that hungry children are sick more often and have lower academic achievement.

Source: blessingsinabackpack.org

Are you smarter than a 1918 eighth grader?

Posted by dhusar – July 26, 2011

The schoolhouses of Adams County’s past may have had only one room and one teacher for grades 1-8, but plenty of learning went on in the schools dotting the countryside.

Students had to pass a comprehensive exam at the end of their eighth grade year, with tough questions even for today’s scholars. Students had to report to a testing site in Quincy and pass the daylong exam to receive a diploma.

The Adams County Retired Teachers Association posted the 1918 Eighth Grade Final Exam, submitted by Dale Simon, at its schoolhouse at the Adams County Fairgrounds.
Students were tested in 11 subjects.

Exam questions included:

• A car 36 feet long, 8 1/2 feet wide is loaded with wheat to the depth of 4 feet. How many bushels? What does the wheat weigh?
• Define and give examples of the four classes of pronouns. Use a pronoun in the following construction: Subject, object, indirect object, predicate attribute, object of preposition.
• How, when and from whom was the following territory acquired: Louisiana, Florida, Alaska, Philippine Islands, Gadsden Purchase.
• Give five rules for care of farm machinery. Name the forage crops raised in Adams County.
• Give the six objects of the constitution as set forth in the preamble.
• Name two Illinois inventions and state the effect of both on the growth of the United States.
• What and where are the following: Sydney, Sumatra, Nile, Monsoons, Gobi, Borneo, Palestine.
• State briefly Shakespeare’s “Seven Ages of Man.”
• Write a bank draft. Name the three parties to a draft.

One-room schoolhouse teachers also had strict rules. Rules for teachers in 1872 included:

• Men teachers may take one evening each week for courting purposes, or two evenings a week if they go to church regularly.
• Women teachers who marry or engage in unseemly conduct will be dismissed.
• Any teacher who smokes, uses liquor in any form, frequents pool or public halls or gets shaved in a barber shop will give good reason to suspect his worth, intention, integrity and honesty.

‘Chicago Moms’ project brings city to the country

Posted by dhusar – July 23, 2011

Illinois Farm Families hopes to answer questions about how food is grown and raised by bringing the city to the country.

“We’re offering Chicago-area moms the opportunity to become Field Moms — to visit our farms, get their questions answered and see firsthand how we grow food for our families and yours,” Illinois Farm Families spokesperson Donna Jeschke, who grows corn and soybeans in Grundy County, said in a news release.

Field Moms will have video cameras to record and share what they see and learn. Their videos, stories and photos will be available online at watchusgrow.org. Journal and blog entries about the farm tour experiences will be posted on Twitter and Facebook.

Eligible moms must be an Illinois resident at least 18 years old with at least one child under the age of 13 living at home. Applications will be accepted until Aug. 21.

Applicants should have a strong interest in learning more about their food and where it comes from. They are expected to attend up to five daylong farm tours over the next year. Most tours will leave the greater Chicago area at 8 a.m. and return about 6 p.m.

The public can follow the Field Moms on their tours and communicate with them online.

“More than 94 percent of Illinois farms are family owned and operated, and we feed our families the same food we grow for yours,” Jeschke said. “We’d like to show you how we grow nutritious, quality food for all our families and what it takes to protect our land and our animals. We’d also like to offer you the chance to get your food questions answered by the farmers who grow it.”

More information is available by calling (800) 647-7294 or sending email to info@watchusgrow.org.

Trinity Lutheran Church restores towers’ glory

Posted by dhusar – June 28, 2011

The Rev. Adam Dichsen recounts the history of the towers at Trinity Lutheran Church in Carthage and the efforts the congregation is undertaking to restore the structures built in the 1870s.

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