TUESDAY July 30, 2013
Our View
Albion Redevelopment
New taxes come with complications
Baseball
TIF money to be used on paving, sidewalks
Page B4
Sox’s Peavy braces for trade
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Page B1
Weather Cloudy today, with a slight chance of rain. High 79. Low 62. Page A6 Serving Noble & LaGrange Counties
Kendallville, Indiana
GOOD MORNING 3 firefighters hurt in Fort Wayne blaze FORT WAYNE (AP) — Officials said three Fort Wayne firefighters were taken to a hospital after part of ceiling fell on them during a house fire. The crews were called Sunday to a home on the city’s north side after flames spread from an outdoor grill up the side of the house. Officials said four adults and one child who were home at the time all escaped uninjured by the time firefighters arrived. The injured firefighters all had neck pain and were hospitalized in good condition.
kpcnews.com
ISTEP glitches downplayed Review: Problems had no measurable affects on scores INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Glitches that disrupted Indiana’s online standardized testing this spring had no measurable negative impact on scores, even though at least one-sixth of students taking the exam were kicked offline at some point, according to an independent review released Monday. Contractor CTB/McGraw Hill reported that nearly 80,000 students in third through eighth
ISTEP Interruptions Percentage of students interrupted during ISTEP testing this spring: 25-35 % — East Noble 15-25 % — DeKalb Central, Westview 5-15 % — Central Noble, DeKalb Eastern, Garrett-Keyser-Butler, MSD Steuben County, Prairie Heights, West Noble 0-5 % — Fremont, Hamilton, Lakeland, Smith-Green SOURCE: INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
grade — or 16 percent of the more than 482,000 Indiana
EN official rejects report BY DAVE KURTZ dkurtz@kpcmedia.com
KENDALLVILLE — East Noble schools Assistant Superintendent Becca Lamon takes issue with a report Monday on problems with Indiana’s ISTEP testing. The report said “the average negative statewide impact on scores was not measurable.” Her first response Monday to a question about that conclusion came in the form of a laugh.
Lost kayakers rescued on river WINAMAC — An Indiana Conservation Officer rescued four kayakers who had become lost and stranded Saturday night on the Tippecanoe River, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources said. The kayakers made a 911 call requesting assistance at 10 p.m., the IDNR said. They were uninjured, but unable to continue down the river due to the darkness. Indiana Conservation Officer Jeff Richwine recognized the described landmark they were near, launched his boat and discovered the kayakers approximately one-half mile upstream from the state park canoe camp.
Info • The News Sun P.O. Box 39, 102 N. Main St. Kendallville, IN 46755 Telephone: (260) 347-0400 Fax: (260) 347-2693 Classifieds: (toll free) (877) 791-7877 Circulation: (260) 347-0400
Index
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Classifieds.................................B7-B8 Life..................................................... A5 Obituaries......................................... A4 Opinion .............................................B4 Sports.........................................B1-B3 Weather............................................ A6 TV/Comics .......................................B6 Vol. 104 No. 208
“There is absolutely measurable impact,” Lamon said. She pointed to one of the worst examples of the computer Lamon glitches affecting an East Noble student. “We had a student in Avilla SEE REPORT, PAGE A6
SEE ISTEP, PAGE A6
Donor’s school grade changed
Hot Cars Roll Into Town
Warnings remain after weekend drownings MICHIGAN CITY — Rip current warnings were still in effect on Lake Michigan for much of the day Monday following two weekend drownings, according to news reports. Lonnie Fisher, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in North Webster, told the South Bend Tribune a beach hazards statement warning about the high risk for rip currents was first posted Friday afternoon and was due to expire Monday afternoon. In Beverly Shores, Gonzola Silva, 37, of Lafayette died Saturday after being caught in high Lake Michigan surf at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Earlier Saturday, 15-year old Matthew Kocher from Tinley Park, Ill., was pulled out of the water by New Buffalo, Mich., lifeguards. He died several hours later after being flown to a Chicago hospital.
75 cents
Emails show charter’s score led to overhaul
600N Friday morning, when the male with whom she was arguing feared she was about to batter him, court records said. The alleged victim tried to reach a phone to call 911 for emergency assistance, but Fulkerson allegedly blocked him physically from making the call, court documents said. The victim was able to make the call later, court records said. No other charges have been filed against Fulkerson Fulkerson in the incident. Appearing in court Monday via video conference from the Noble County Jail, Fulkerson testified that she is unemployed. A public defender was appointed to defend her in the case.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Former Indiana and current Florida schools chief Tony Bennett built his national star by promising to hold “failing” schools accountable. But when it appeared an Indianapolis charter school run by a prominent Republican donor might receive a poor grade, Bennett’s education team frantically overhauled his signature “A-F” school grading system to improve the school’s marks. Emails obtained by The Associated Press show Bennett and his staff scrambled last fall to ensure influential donor Christel DeHaan’s school received an “A,” despite poor test scores in algebra that initially earned it a “C.” “They need to understand that anything less than an A for Christel House compromises all of our accountability work,” Bennett wrote in a Sept. 12 email to then-chief of staff Heather Neal, who is now Gov. Mike Pence’s chief lobbyist. The emails, which also show Bennett discussed with staff the legality of changing just DeHaan’s grade, raise unsettling questions about the validity of a grading system that has broad implications. Indiana uses the A-F grades to determine which schools get taken over by the state and whether students seeking state-funded vouchers to attend private school need to first spend a year in public school. They also help determine how much state funding schools receive. A low grade also can detract
SEE ATTORNEY, PAGE A6
SEE GRADE, PAGE A6
PHOTOS BY CHAD KLINE
Kendallville hosts car show Above, visitors to the annual Kendallville Car Show admire a 1932 Ford custom and a 1969 MGB Roadster on Main Street in downtown Kendallville Saturday. At right, Walker Allen, 7, second from left, signs his name to Pat Fox’s 1940 Rat Rod as Reace Kline, 7, left, Brent Kline, top left, and Kerrigan Smith, 14, look on during the show. Fox won an award for the Most Unusual Car.
Attorney in trouble with law again Albion woman allegedly interfered with reporting crime BY BOB BRALEY bbraley@kpcmedia.com
ALBION — An Albion attorney, once suspended from law practice for pretending a client was a private investigator, is in trouble with the law again. Anna E. Fulkerson, 47, of rural Albion has been charged with interference with the reporting of a crime — a crime she allegedly was on the brink of committing at the time. The charge is a Class A misdemeanor. Fulkerson allegedly became involved in a heated argument at her home in the 2000 block of E. C.R.
Four people arrested in raid on LaGrange home LAGRANGE — Police arrested four people in LaGrange Friday night after town police officers executed a search warrant on a home. Police sought the warrant after J. Clinton receiving information that illegal drug activity was suspected in a home in the 400 block of Poplar Street. As a result of an investigation, police recovered methamphetamine, marijuana and items Sites associated with the consumption and possession
K. Clinton
Wright
of drugs, a news release said. Police arrested Kathleen Clinton, 52, of LaGrange on charges of possession of methamphetamine and maintaining a common nuisance, Class D felonies, and possession of paraphernalia, a Class A misdemeanor. Joshua Clinton, 18, of LaGrange was charged with being a minor in possession of alcohol, a class C SEE RAID, PAGE A6
OCTAVIA LEHMAN
Pianos on display in area Registered piano technician Brian Doepke tunes a baby grand piano on the west side of the DeKalb County Courthouse Monday. The piano is part of Pianos on the Square, a free, interactive, outdoor event featuring decorated pianos all over the county. The baby grand piano has been painted white and will be decorated by the nonprofit Auburn revitalization group ADAC. Decorating of some of the pianos is complete, while work will progress on others as the exhibit continues through Sept. 15. The exhibit officially opens Friday evening.