The athletes.

Last night at Baywood Greens was The 27th Annual WGMD Sports Boosters Scholarship Awards where outstanding local high school athletes are honored and given $250 in scholarship money, with two, a boy and a girl, receiving the big award of $1,000 each.

WGMD’s Jared Morris and Dan Gaffney. Jared was broadcasting live from the event and Dan was the Master of Ceremonies.

WGMD’s David Schoumacher and $1,000 scholarship winner Max Coveleski from Cape Henlopen High School

Max Coveleski from Cape Henlopen High School took the big prize for the boys. Max will be heading off to Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where he’ll be studying Physics and Engineering. AUDIO

Ellen Rowe, $1,000 Scholarship winner from Sussex Tech and WGMD’s David Schoumacher.

Ellen Rowe from Sussex Tech won the $1,000 award for the girls. Ellen will be off to St. Joe’s in Philadelphia. AUDIO

The Hockers from Hocker’s G&E and Hocker’s Supercenter, and the Coveleskis, Max’s parents.

Pastor Gary Knapp from the East Gate Presbyterian Church and his wife Alisa. Pastor Gary opened and closed the event.

The Lawson’s from DryZone are our newest Sports Boosters.

Our sales team. Athletic? Maybe….

Larry Bauer, the keynote speaker, and Jack Renault, WGMD’s General Manager.

Lesley Rogan from Peninsula Rehab and Sports Medicine and Linda Wilson from WGMD.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF OUR OUTSTANDING LOCAL ATHLETES!

The Athletes:

Cape Henlopen High School:
Christine MacDonald
*Max Coveleski

Delmarva Christian:
Rachel Lins

Lake Forest:
Abigail Hill
Leland Hobbs

Milford:
Rhonda Thomas
Joel Sullivan

Stephen Decatur:
Allison Justice
Logan West

Sussex Tech:
*Ellen Rowe
Zachary Rickards

Delmar:
Alison Bloodsworth

Indian River:
Brittany Steele
Luke Wingate

Laurel:
Kelsy Ann Gordy
David Bartee

Seaford:
Kelsey Riggleman
Andrew Halter

Sussex Central:
Christin Headley
Ronald Lee Tyndall

Woodbridge:
Sarah Judy
Reuss Idler

 

A kindergarten teacher in Florida held a referendum with her students that resulted in a 5 year old boy with Asperger’s syndrome getting voted out of class by a 14-2 vote:

Melissa Barton said the teacher made her 5-year-old son, Alex, stand in the front of her classroom after he returned from the principal’s office, the Sun-Sentinel reports. Each classmate was allowed to say what they disliked about Alex and then the class was told to vote on whether he should remain. The school is in Port St. Lucie.

Alex lost the vote 14 to 2. He is in the process of being diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, a type of high-functioning autism.

The teacher tells the story this way:

Portillo and children in the class said Alex was pushing a table up with his feet while he was under the table. The teacher got the school resource officer to remove Alex from the classroom. It was the second discipline referral for Alex that day, the report said.

When Alex returned to the class, Portillo said she and the class were not ready for him to return.

Portillo told the officer she asked Alex to join her at the front of the class.

“She said she then asked him to listen to what the children didn’t like about the things he did, and she asked him how it made him feel,” the report said. “She said at this time, ‘We polled the class’ to see how his peers felt about his return at that time.”

Alex was voted out, 14 to 2.

The teacher has been reassigned, hopefully far, far away from children.

I can’t believe a kindergarten teacher would take this approach with a child that was in the process of being diagnosed with an autism disorder. What a cruel thing to do to a child, and what a cruel thing to do to the parents.

And what terrible lesson did it teach the children in that classroom?

Tisk.

Cape Henlopen School District’s referendum will be held on June 12th, the day after school ends. You can click on the images below to get the full sized versions.

Here’s what the referendum is going to look like:

And this is the District’s Fact Sheet on the referendum:

If you’re interested in learning more about the referendum, the next meeting to discuss it will be Tuesday, May 27th, at 6:30 p.m. at Shields Elementary School.

More to come…

The public parking lot at the end of Savannah Road in Lewes. It’s all sand.

A tree blocking the eastbound lane of King’s Highway, that’s the road to Cape Henlopen High School and the District office if you’re coming from Route 1 north. School was on time, but then around 8:30 a.m., an hour after the start of the day for many schools, the automated call came from the District Office that you shouldn’t send your child to school if there was flooding in your area…little late, fellas.

Downtown Milton.

The end of Old Landing Road.

Route 1 by Five Points.

The ocean at the Indian River Inlet.

A snowplow keeping Route 1 directly north of the Indian River Inlet Bridge free of sand.

The ocean in Rehoboth Beach, Rehoboth did a good job weathering the storm so far.

A small windmill on a home in Rehoboth cranking out power like a champ.

And, the R/V Russell W. Peterson, the research vessel that Bluewater Wind launched to study the possible impact of their wind farm on avian life, has run into trouble:

From WGMD News:

The Coast Guard responded to a distress call from a research vessel off the coast of Rehoboth Beach. Authorities say two people aboard the Russell W. Peterson activated an electronic positioning radio beacon and reported that the boat was breaking up and taking on water about 14 miles off the coast. A helicopter crew from the Coast Guard air station in Atlantic City, N.J., was on the scene, and two small boats from Cape May and Ocean City were also en route. The vessel, named after a former Delaware governor active in environmental issues, was christened in Wilmington just six weeks ago and was being used by Bluewater Wind to study migratory bird routes in connection with the proposed offshore wind farm.

More to come as the tide rolls in…

“It was the worst year of my life” said the Dorchester County Maryland school teacher, when describing the time she worked for Dana Goodman, the Sussex Central principal charged with 30 counts of rape. 

Teacher Jane Doe, (my name for her) also explained how Mr. Goodman would allow the middle school girls to refer to him as “husband” and would call themselves “Mrs. Goodman” while they adjusted his tie at lunch. 

Despite pages of complaints against Goodman, he apparently was given a glowing recommendation when seeking his job here in Delaware, because Dorchester wanted to get rid of him!

Click here and listen to my Jane Doe teacher interview audio.

The Indian River Power Plant, Delaware’s worst polluter.

Last week I started getting e-mails from various sources telling me about another public hearing in Millsboro over the issuance of a permit for the Indian River Power Plant, Delaware’s worst polluter. This time, the permit was over a proposed “Activated Carbon Injection” system designed to reduce mercury emissions from the smokestacks.

I thought, “Less mercury? Woo hoo!” But then, I started getting e-mails from various environmental groups that were filled with cautions over the plan. I didn’t get it. But now, unfortunately, I do.

NRG’s plan is to use an “Activated Carbon Injection” system to trap mercury, which is great, and apparently cost effective. What isn’t great is that when the system is saturated, the mercury infused waste will be dumped in the fly ash pile already on the plant’s site. An ash pile that has no barrier between it and the ground, it isn’t covered, and it isn’t equipped to handle toxic waste. So basically the mercury can leech into the ground, or it can simply fly off the top of the uncovered ash pile.

“A new solid waste is going to be generated and where and how this waste is managed is really a significant issue for the public.” ~ John Austin, Citizens for Clean Power AUDIO

(As an aside, it seems that even though studies are showing that fly ash piles are indeed toxic, the EPA is just getting around to thinking about it, meanwhile the piles are not regulated by either the EPA or DNREC, but what the heck, substances like arsenic couldn’t be dangerous, right?)

41st District Representative Greg Hastings, the only legislator who bothered to show up for the hearing.

“From sitting here tonight, it just makes me more aware of the work I need to do.” ~ 41st District Representative Greg Hastings AUDIO

And while an NRG Energy Representative assured the crowd the plant wanted to be a “good neighbor,” years of the facility thwarting regulations has left some, shall we say, “skeptical.”

Three representatives from NRG Energy in Millsboro. I’m showing them sitting down from behind because I’m so nice.

“You did stand here and say you want to be a “good neighbor.” I’m going to look in your face and I’m going to say, “As a physician who deals with cancer patients you be a “good neighbor,” do not fight these people, do not fight us by saying you won’t put it in a lined fly ash pit.” Do you like to sleep at night? Do you?” ~ Dr. Kim Furtado to NRG Representatives at the hearing AUDIO

Michael Fiorentino from the Mid Atlantic Environmental Law Center attended the hearing to ask questions. I think he was hired by one or more of the citizens groups in the area. I spoke with Mr. Fiorentino after the hearing to get his take on the plan:

“Our primary concern here tonight was that in the effort to control one dangerous pollutant we don’t end up squeezing that pollution out in another form.” ~ Michael Fiorentino, Mid Atlantic Environmental Law Center AUDIO

There were a few speakers who surprised me. One was a man named Brooks Freeman from Lewes:

“I’ve only spent 6 months of my entire life away from this area. I’ve never smoked, and I’ve never drank. I am a cancer survivor.” ~ Brooks Freeman AUDIO

The other was a Thomas Sullivan, a Millsboro resident:

“Three years ago my doctor warned me not to eat one fish out of the Indian River.” ~ Thomas Sullivan AUDIO

Now, I’ve got to say that the best part of the evening was when I stood up and tried to ask some questions, and for the record, I was extraordinarily polite. AUDIO But unfortunately, Hearing Officer, Robert Haynes of DNREC told me “No, no, no” and said I could ask DNREC and NRG questions after the hearing was over. I guess they didn’t want me on the record.

Well, Mr. Haynes denying me the right to ask questions really ticked off a woman in the crowd that I never saw before, and who left before I could find out who she was. I want to thank her for standing up for me like that. I found Mr. Haynes response to her unsettling, to say the least. Apparently, I’m not a “member of the public.”

“She’s a member of the press, she’s not a member of the public.” ~ DNREC Hearing Official Robert Haynes, ruling that I’m not a member of the public, and therefore I have no right to ask questions in a DNREC public hearing. AUDIO OF MY RIGHTS BEING DENIED BY A BUREAUCRAT

Now, just to add a little salt to the wound, after the hearing, the three NRG Representatives went squirrelly. One disappeared immediately, and the other two refused to answer my questions. And yeah, I have audio of the NRG people blowing me off. AUDIO OF NRG EMPLOYEES REFUSING TO ANSWER MY QUESTIONS

For the record, here are the horrifying questions I was going to ask DNREC and NRG Energy

1. What is the total amount of mercury in pounds or tons put out by the IRPP per year.

2. Are you (NRG) using the cleaner burning coal now? What kind of coal are you currently burning?

3. What percentage of NRG’s electricity is contracted to Delaware energy companies, how much goes to out of state contracts?

4. Is the 80% reduction based on total output or is it for each unit?

5. How often will emissions be tested, by whom, and is NRG responsible for telling DNREC they aren’t in compliance? Who tells DNREC if there is a violation?

6. Tell us about the erosion around the fly ash pit, is the seawall compromised? Why isn’t it lined or covered? Are fly ash pits regulated by the EPA or DNREC?

7. Will NRG be “mothballing” Units 1 & 2 on schedule?

8. What is the public comment time frame?

Yes, all scandalous and out of line. No wonder DNREC Hearing Officer, Robert Haynes shut me down. HERE’S A SCANNED COPY OF MY NOTEBOOK PAGES WITH THE SCARY QUESTIONS.

So, I have been officially ruled “not a member of the public” by DNREC. And here I was walking around like I had the right to ask questions about a state permit for a facility in my backyard and in the backyard of the people in WGMD’s listening area.

Shame on me.

Incidentally, the NRG Representatives told Mr. Haynes that they have to have the permit in three weeks which means no opportunity for the public to digest what went on Wednesday night, and then add their comments to the record for consideration.

You can contact DNREC Hearing Officer Robert Haynes at 302-739-9039 and his email address is Robert.Haynes@state.de.us.

We are four different bloggers (two Republicans and two Democrats) with four distinct points of view. But we have come together because we agree that it’s time for Delaware to say yes to offshore wind power.

Bluewater Wind’s offshore wind farm has been reviewed in hearings, subject to repeated analyses, supported by thousands of letters and e-mails from citizens, selected in a competitive process, survived intense negotiations, and endorsed by a majority of members of Delaware’s House of Representatives.

One hurdle remains: House Concurrent Resolution 38, which enjoys the support of 35 legislators of both parties, has passed the House, and is headed to the Senate. We are calling upon the Senate to take one last decisive step to make Delaware the first state in the U.S. to make offshore wind power a reality.

We offer this joint statement as a prologue to our separate posts on the subject. But together we agree that the time has come to say yes to our energy future.

Dave Burris
Maria Evans
Jason Scott
Tom Noyes

TIME TO INVEST IN DELAWARE FIRST

Tourists will need a few extra quarters so their kids can check out the wind farm from the boardwalk with cool binocular things like they have on the top of the Empire State Building

Let’s face it, I’m not that green. I’m a global warming skeptic. I drive a car that’s less than stellar on gas mileage. I would march a billion rats into a laboratory for testing to ensure I’d have one less wrinkle a decade or two down the road. But I’m in favor of the wind farm proposed to sit off the coast of Rehoboth Beach.     

The wind farm construction, according to Bluewater Wind, will bring in around “400 - 500 construction jobs and 80 – 100 operations and maintenance jobs for the life of the 25 year contract.” Along with that, a regional shipping hub would be established at the Port of Wilmington and there’s a commitment to a teaching and training program for wind farm technicians.

For Sussex County, I can imagine opportunities beyond what Bluewater Wind is offering the state.

Charter boats can take tourists sightseeing or fishing at the wind farm. Souvenir shops will have little windmills to sell next to the light houses. Windmill t-shirts and earrings and snow globes…those cool binocular things on the board walk that you can put a quarter into so your kid can see the wind farm up close…local artists capturing the wind farm in oil and water and on film…other governments coming to our shores to check out the first off shore wind farm in the United States.  

But instead of investing in the state of Delaware, Delmarva Power wants to enter into long term contracts with on shore wind companies in other states. Gary Stockbridge, the President of Delmarva Power called these contracts, “an exciting day for the development of renewable energy in the region,” but I’m not sure why. “The region” will simply be paying for other states to develop and build wind farms. Somehow that’s not “exciting” to me.

It’s time to bring some new life into Delaware.  Call your State Senator today and tell them you want your money invested in Delaware’s future, not shipped off to Illinois or Indiana.

Click HERE find your Senator and their contact information.  

From Tom Noyes at Tommywonk:      

Given that worldwide energy demand will grow at least 50 percent over the next 20 years, it is hard to imagine how energy prices will not continue to climb. Instead of costing us extra, offhsore wind will almost certainly save us money. READ MORE ….  

From Jason at Delaware Liberal:

For Christians, the choice is clear. Disciples of Christ are called to love and to allow concern for justice shape their daily lives. As an extension to that calling christian spiritual leaders agree that, stewardship of the environment is a permanent reality. READ MORE…  

From Dave at Delaware Politics:

A week ago, one prominent Delawarean told me that the project was dead, the deal had been cut, that all of the players, including Senate leadership and the Governor candidates, were involved. It was over. DP&L was one of the good old boys and BWW was not and that was it.

I say that’s bullshit. I have two kids that have to breathe in Eastern Sussex County for the next 80 years, God willing. It’s only dead if YOU let it die…. READ MORE…

THE TOWNSEND VILLAGE CENTRE FLARES UP AGAIN  


The Townsend Village Center, a proposed commercial and residential development that would sit across the street from Cape Henlopen High School, was addressed again last night at the Cape Henlopen School Board meeting, but this time not by a board member.


Terry Bartley told the board that choosing to keep the High School in Lewes shouldn’t mean the Board can’t get involved in the issue.  AUDIO


The proposed development was unanimously shot down by Lewes Planning and Zoning recently, but The Sussex County Council still has the authority (but hopefully not the audacity) to approve it.      


 SHARON DAVIS TELLS IT LIKE IT IS, WAS AND WILL BE 


Milton Mom Sharon Davis, addressed the Cape School Board Thursday night to stress “fiscal prudence in the current environment,”  AUDIO, among other things:

“The budget that has been presented to you paints a picture of financial health that might tend to bolster confidence in committing to spending as it recommends. After all, it increases expenditures in a number of significant and necessary programs, and still results in an overall surplus. But, knowing what we know about the financial health of this State and not yet knowing fully what the fiscal health of the county may be, does it make sense for you, as those responsible for the fiscal well-being of this district, to simply pass this budget and wait to see what happens next year.” - Sharon Davis  

Mrs Davis went on to urge the Board to “NOT vote on this budget tonight.” The budget was ultimately tabled due to typographical errors, like it had no money budgeted for the library at Milton Elementary School. Whoops! 

 OUCH! The State of Delaware wants 10% back from all over the state, and that includes Delaware’s schools. Where will it come from in Cape?           


Yeah, that says “REDUCTION IN FORCE OF 37 UNITS” which translates into teachers, teachers assistants and paraprofessionals. THAT translates into larger class size.       


THE GREAT BIG  ”SO YOU WANT TO BE A SCHOOL DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT” ESSAY QUESTION OF THE DAY


If you’re the Superintendent in a Sussex County School District, and your every budgetary move is being micro-analyzed by a group of parents who are angry that you balanced the budget by not replacing teachers and increasing class size, how do you walk into a School Board Meeting and announce that you may have to cut staff (i.e. around 37 teachers, teaching assistants and paraprofessionals), in one breath, and then announce that the pool that got shot down in a referendum and a second athletic field for the new High School are back on the table in the next breath? 


 DIFFERENT POTS, SAME “I JUST GOT POKED IN THE EYEBALL” FEELING FOR WORRIED CAPE PARENTS


Even though it was shot down by a District wide referendum, the swimming pool for the new Cape Henlopen High School may be back on the table because of a chunky windfall:      





So, the money may be there for a pool and a second athletic field for the High School. The other possibility mentioned for the windfall, is giving the extra money back to the School District tax payers, but it’s clear which way District Superintendent George Stone wants to go.  AUDIO 


What the parents attending the meeting wanted, was for the money to be spent on extravagances like more teachers and books and teaching supplies, and, yes, those parents “get” that you can’t take money from one pot and put it into another, but it doesn’t make it any better when you’re worrying about already increased class sizes getting increasier. (See how important a good education is!)


These were the questions people were asking today: Can the money be redirected by another referendum to education instead? What would a referendum cost?  Is Dr. Stone right and this is a great chance to bring some good facilities to the district?


More to come…       

The New High School

Cape teacher Bill Grizwald’s Architecture class gets a tour of the site.

The back of the school.

Where the Vikings hope to kick butt.

I went on a tour of the new Cape Henlopen High School and it’s impressive. But what was more impressive was the way EDiS took the time to help out a class of what could be future architects.

Bill Grizwald teaches Architectural Drawing and Engineering Drawing at the high school and his class has been coming out at regular intervals during the construction to see how it all works in the real world. AUDIO Bill Grizwald

The students are given the opportunity to ask questions and even check out the site plans. And here’s a little tidbit from the school board meeting…the project is on time and on budget according to the architect.

The Milton Elementary School/HO Brittingham Story

Board member Noble Prettyman called the idea “utterly ridiculous,” and one by one Board members voiced their opposition to the idea of reconfiguring Milton and HO Brittingham so that one school was K-2 and the other 3-5.

Milton mom Sharon Davis, who you may remember from the fight to leave the off colored bricks on the new Milton addition white, and won, made a compelling case. Ms. Davis stuck a survey in Milton Elementary School teacher’s mailboxes and got 50 back, with 96% of those teachers against the plan. There was one teacher who seemed OK with it as long as the Board did the same thing to Shields Elementary in Lewes, and Rehoboth Elementary School.

In the end the idea was tabled, and parents were relieved.

Milton Elementary School Principal Has Some Final Requests

MES Principal Sheila Baumgardner proudly gave her “School Improvement Report” to the Board and the large crowd of Milton parents and teachers then said her good byes, since she will sadly be retiring at the end of this year.

After a standing ovation from the crowd, Ms. Baumgardner took the opportunity to slip in a few requests, things that she really thinks the school, and the district need to be more successful:

- At least 2 more special education teachers and at least one new PARA for MES.
- A full time HOSTS coordinator since MES and HOB share one.
- A playground for kindergartners, since MES doesn’t seem to have the same equipment as other schools.
- Another technology technician for the District.

During the budget discussion, the stagnant condition of the District’s “Odyssey of the Mind” program was brought up, and Baumgardner brought up how teachers just don’t have the time for extra activities with all of the extra work they’re getting with No Child Left Behind coupled with state directives.

This Milton Elementary School parent salutes you, Mrs. B., you have certainly set the bar high.

Enter The Budget

Here’s the budget skinny, at least until it gets a little more dissected and digested….

Dr. Pete Coveleski wants the Board to have more control over the local portion of administrative salary increases, something they found out they had control of last November.

And good news, the district is $3.2 million in the black.

Cape School Board member Spencer Brittingham.

Cape Henlopen School Board member Spencer Brittingham wants the board to discuss “Milton Configurations” at tonight’s meeting. That may sound benign, but what he’s really talking about is a plan where Milton’s two elementary schools, HO Brittingham and Milton Elementary School, would reconfigure so that HOB would be students grades K-2 and Milton would be for grades 3-5.

Apparently this is an idea that’s sprung up before, and this time it may have sprung up over correspondence from an HOB parent complaining that she was turned down when she wanted to choice her kid(s) into Milton Elementary School.

The whole scenario was thrown into the public arena by WGMD’s Dan Gaffney on The Dan Gaffney Show, and what followed can only be described as outrage. So much outrage that Spencer Brittingham showed up at Milton’s PTO meeting last night to answer parent’s questions.

Dr. Stone made his feelings clear, he doesn’t want to mess up either school’s rating by changing them up.

Brittingham had a different take on the situation.

“How long do we allow choice to take away the high achieving students from one school and put them all in another school?” - Spencer Brittingham AUDIO

Meanwhile the Milton parents, joined by one HOB parent, basically told Brittingham that if there was a problem with kids choicing out of HOB for whatever reason, then fix HOB and leave Milton alone. Many parents voiced their concern over breaking up siblings, and the fact that the school has worked so hard to build a sense of community. Needless to say, parents were angry, and they didn’t hold back. Brittingham stood his ground.

The debate will continue tonight at Mariner Middle School in Milton at 7:30.