The Index Vol. 110 Issue 2

Page 1

Truman State University tmn.truman.edu THURSDAY, AUGUST 23, 2018 tmn.truman.edu

@TrumanMediaNet TrumanMediaNetwork

Pantry for Adair County opens its doors ELISABETH SHIRK Staff Writer

The Pantry for Adair County officially began serving people at their new building July 18, and hosted the ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house July 25. Lisa Ahrens, PAC Board of Directors president, said the mission of the new

Millot hired as Title IX coordinator RYAN PIVONEY News Editor

Truman State University has hired Lauri Millot to serve as the new Title IX coordinator. Millot is currently serving as the Executive Director of the Office of Institutional Equity, Title IX Coordinator and section 504 coordinator at New Mexico State University, but will start her position as Title IX coordinator at Truman Sept. 24. Janna Stoskopf, vice president for student affairs, said the University has been searching for a new Title IX coordinator since Jamie Ball’s departure in June. Stoskopf said Ball took a position at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, and Stoskopf has been serving as the interim coordinator since then. Sally Herleth, executive director of human resources, ran the committee in charge of finding the new Title IX coordinator. The committee consisted of representatives from different groups on campus, including one student. Herleth said the hiring process consisted of an advertised search, to which 15 applicants responded. “[Millot] has very strong credentials,” Herleth said. “She is doing very similar duties — practically the same job — so she was a very strong candidate with lots of good investigative experience with a strong background in that, so just very highly qualified.” Herleth said after a phone call interview with Millot, she invited her to campus for an on-site interview. While on campus, she said Millot met with different groups on campus. Herleth said the committee thought Millot was well qualified and was well liked by the committee. University President Sue Thomas offered Millot the Title IX coordinator position Aug. 13. Millot is currently working in a capacity similar to the Title IX coordinator position at Truman. Millot wrote in a statement to The Index that she is currently responsible for education, prevention and response to reports of sexual harassment, sexual assault, intimate partner violence, stalking, and employment and learning environment complaints of discrimination. Additionally, she is in charge of affirmative action hiring, address requests for disability, pregnancy and religious accommodations, and address accessibility issues. These are the responsibilities expected of Truman’s Title IX coordinator. Millot wrote, “When searching for a new challenge, I focused on highly respected institutions that were located in the Midwest and came upon the Compliance Officer opportunity at Truman State University. Truman State University is a high caliber academic institution that evokes a supportive community atmosphere.”

VOLUME 110 ISSUE 2 © 2018

Pantry for Adair County is to help curb the high rates of food insecurity found in the area. The building is located at 2012 South Halliburton Street on land owned by Central Church of Christ in Kirksville and will be open three days a week: Tuesdays from 4-6 p.m. and Wednesdays and Fridays from 1-3 p.m. The PAC Board of Directors, which coordinated the move to the new build-

ing, began in 2014 with six churches: First Presbyterian Church, First Christian Church, Mary Immaculate Parish, Trinity Episcopal Church, Faith United Methodist Church and Kirksville First United Methodist Church. One of the goals of the pantry, Ahrens said, is to bridge the gap in people’s monthly expenses. She said the pantry will be set up so people can

choose which items they would prefer, whereas in some pantries people would simply get a grocery package without the option to choose what is inside. Ahrens said she has learned that food insecurity can stem from a variety of situations, affecting different people for different reasons. See PAC page 5

BURDEN JOINS CITY COUNCIL

Missouri Hall Director Zac Burden was sworn in as the newest councilmember Aug. 20. Burden is filling the vacancy in the Council left when Mayor Jerry Mills resigned. Photo by Ryan Pivoney

Zac Burden is the newest member of Kirksville City Council RYAN PIVONEY News Editor

Missouri Hall Director Zac Burden is the newest member of the Kirksville City Council. The four Council members voted unanimously to appoint Burden at the Council meeting Aug. 20. Burden took the oath of office immediately following the meeting. There has been a vacant seat available on the Council since the resignation of Mayor Jerry Mills Aug. 6. City manager Mari Macomber said Burden approached the Council after Mills’ resignation to express his interest in the position. She said the Council had requested his appointment be placed on the agenda so the council members could consider him for the position. Macomber said the appointment would last until the

next April municipal election. Then, the winner of that election would take the seat on the Council. Burden said he was already planning to run for a Council seat in the April 2019 election, so when the opportunity to join the Council came early, he decided to talk to them. Burden said when he joined People for Better Parks, which helped pass the half-cent tax for improvements to parks, he worked heavily with the Council and began regularly attending their meetings. “I made a commitment that I wanted to learn more about what was going on in the city of Kirksville and understanding the different procedures and events that were happening,” said Burden. “Through that I started thinking, you know, I think I could be helpful sitting on the other side of the city council’s

table — I think I could really make a contribution to the community.” Burden said now that he is on the Council, he hopes to talk to the people of Kirksville to learn more about what they hope to see from their local government, provide strong oversight of all government departments and spread awareness about actions taken by the City. He said there are many passionate people in Kirksville with great ideas he would like to hear. Burden said he is proud of the work done in Kirksville, so he wants to let that work be recognized and join the effort to keep improving the city. Burden said he does not expect his new position as a Kirksville council member to interfere with his duties at Truman and Missouri Hall. See CITY COUNCIL page 3

Citizens discuss wind farm project NICOLAS TELEP Managing Editor

More than 100 community members gathered Tuesday evening in an elementary school gym in Queen City for a public hearing on a proposed wind farm in northeast Missouri that Ameren Missouri would eventually own. The Missouri Public Service Commission hosted the hearing as a step in the approval process for the private construction of the facility — which would be the largest wind farm in Missouri — in Schuyler and Adair counties. The High Prairie Wind Farm would be built by TG Prairie High Holdings and purchased by Ameren Missouri immediately upon completion. Ameren said the project will be completed by 2020 and generate enough electricity to power 120,000 homes. The Tuesday meeting began with a Q&A with representatives from the PSC, Ameren and the Missouri Office of the Public Counsel, which represents public utility customers across the state. After the session, a judge took sworn testimony from community members on the topic.

Ajay Arora, vice president of power operations and energy management for Ameren Missouri, represented the energy company and fielded the majority of questions during the first part of the event. He said the project will help Ameren meet a state mandate that 15 percent of its energy be generated from renewable sources like wind. Community members raised concerns ranging from property taxes levied on the project to the welfare of the area’s birds and bats. Arora said the project will be built without the use of eminent domain and also said the project would significantly increase the property tax collected by Adair and Schuyler counties. However, he was unable to answer questions about the project’s future decommissioning and high-frequency sounds generated by the wind turbines. Carolyn Chrisman, Kirksville Regional Economic Development Inc. director, testified in favor of the project, claiming it will bring jobs and economic development to the area. Ameren said the facility will generate hundreds of temporary construction jobs, as well as permanent positions.

A panel answered questions from the audience at a public hearing about the High Prairie Wind Farm in Queen City, Missouri. Caleb Hall represented the Missouri Office of the Public Counsel, Jamie Myers represented the Missouri Public Service Commission and Ajay Arora, vice president of power operations and energy management at Ameren Missouri, represented the energy company. Photo by Nicolas Telep


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.