January 25, 2012 Edition
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Former Belle Plaine Woman Gets Help from America’s Supernanny
Family Will be Subject of National TV Reality Show Next Tuesday Night
by Dan Ruud
Imagine sitting in a restaurant with your four young sons. They’re eating sugar packets, licking the ketchup bottle and engaging in silverware fights. Then you get home and the mischief continues day in and day out.
Who you gonna call?
Chris (Anderson) Skluzacek, a 1990 graduate of Belle Plaine High School, called on America’s Supernanny, a nationally televised program about a nanny who makes house calls to help square away out-of-control situations.
Chris said she was listening to the radio one day (almost two years ago) when she heard that officials from the show were in Minnesota doing casting calls. She called and asked if her family could be considered. After explaining her situation, the show sent videographers to her and her husband Bruce’s rural Montgomery home as an audition of sorts. It wasn’t until almost two years later (this past Dec. 1) that the Skluzaceks heard back from show officials.
“They just called one day to ask if we were still interested,” Chris said.
The answer was “yes.”
Chris, Bruce and their four sons – Landon, 9, twins Luke and Connor, 5, and Evan, 3 – hosted a television crew of about 15 people, including Supernanny Deborah Tillman, for one week in December. The Skluzaceks’ oldest daughter, Makayla, is a student at St. Catherine University in St. Paul.
Just how well Tillman did with Chris, Bruce and “the boys” will be unveiled nationally on next Tuesday’s (Jan. 31) episode of America’s Supernanny on Lifetime TV. It begins at 9 p.m.
The show’s synopsis for that night is “Deborah helps a Minnesota family with four unruly children.”
Tillman is a professional day care provider who devotes each episode to helping a family where the parents are struggling with their child-rearing. Through instruction and observation, she shows the parents alternative ways to discipline their children and regain order in their household.
For the complete story see this weeks issue of the Belle Plaine Herald
Deborah Tillman, America’s Supernanny, posed for a photo with the Bruce and Chris Skluzacek family while filming the show at their home in December.
Farmers Must Make Strong Case to Save Local FSA Office
by John Mueller
Linda Hennen, executive director of the Minnesota Farm Service Agency, says Scott County farmers will have to make a strong case to keep the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) from moving forward with plans to consolidate and ultimately close the local FSA office at the county fairgrounds in St. Lawrence Township.
“I’m sure the ink isn’t dry yet,” said Rob Casey, a Credit River Township farmer who grows corn, soybeans and alfalfa. “There’s been talk of closing it for several years.”
Casey listened to a conference call on the proposed consolidation last week. He said the impact on individual farmers would depend on how active the individual producer is in various loan and USDA programs. Some farmers, for example, may be involved in programs requiring a visit to the office anytime grain is sold. Others maybe required stopping in just a few times a year.
“Some may be in three times a week. Maybe they can do some of it online,” Casey said.
Tuesday (Jan. 31, 2 p.m.) at Ridges at Sand Creek Golf Course on Highway 21 just south of Jordan, staff from the state FSA office will hear comments on the proposed consolidation. Written comments are due at the state FSA office – 375 Jackson Street, St. Paul, MN, 55101 – by Feb. 13.
The Scott County office is one of five Minnesota county offices FSA is considering consolidating and closing as part of a USDA budget reduction. The others are North Branch County in Chisago, Pine County in Hinckley, Waseca County in Waseca and Nicollet County in St. Peter. Nationally, FSA will close 131 offices in 32 states, saving USDA $150 million. Nationally, the United States FSA’s budget is $1.5 billion.
The state FSA saved $3.8 million by voluntary early retirements and buy-outs of 55 full-time staff, Hennen said.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack claims USDA can find significant savings by consolidating these offices while ensuring vital services are not cut.
Hennen said the final decision, will be made in Washington, D.C.
“He’s (Vilsack) taking it out of the state’s hands,” she said.
Hennen said the plan will not eliminate any existing jobs. Administratively, the Scott County office is being merged with Dakota County’s office. Farmers will have a one-time choice which office their files are sent – Carver County (Waconia), Le Sueur County (Le Center), Sibley County (Gaylord) or Dakota County (Farmington).
The Scott County office served 580 farmers enrolled in USDA programs during 2011. The Carver County office served 605 and Dakota County 624.
Ted Kornder, who grows corn, beans, pumpkins and rye on 400 acres in St. Lawrence Township, said the loss of the county offices is disproportionately aimed at farmers since farmers rely on FSA and will not be required to drive further to access services provided solely to them.
“They (USDA) put us (farmers) on the chopping block because we’re the smallest group, the easiest to cut,” he said.
For the complete story see this weeks issue of the Belle Plaine Herald
Steve Barten plans to use his passion for science and lessons learned in Antarctica to help farmers in developing countries be better farmers. He recently shared his experiences with Our Lady of the Prairie students.
Barten Will Use Life Lessons From Antarctica to Help Others
by John Mueller
There are plenty of exotic places tourists may travel to see unique animals or learn about the environment. Steve Barten was part of a crew taking them to one of the coldest on earth.
Along the way, the experience helped a farm kid from Helena Township sharpen the focus on his career path and establish goals that could help him help others. It’s amazing what you can learn working at the bottom of the world.
Barten, 37, has spent much of the last decade working at scientific camps in Antarctica. Most recently, he spent three summers working as a tour guide and naturalist on the Eco-tourism ship called the Corinthian II, a 100-passenger ship carrying tourists to the frozen continent where he taught them about the last frontier.
With that experience behind him, Barten is ready to set his life on a new course, one where he teaches others to help themselves.
After completing his work on the ship and Antarctica, Barten returned to college at Columbia University in New York. He graduated last fall with a degree in environmental science and a concentration in sustainable development.
He and his wife plan to tour Asia as an adventure and looking for jobs. Barten’s interested in teaching people in developing countries about sustainable agriculture. He plans to use many of the lessons he learned growing corn, soybeans and pumpkins on the 140-acre family farm north of Highway 19 southeast of Belle Plaine. Barten worked the family farm the two years after his father, Roman, passed away in 2006.
“He’s very passionate about what he’s doing,” Barten’s mom, Fran, said.
Before his work on Corinthian II, Barten worked at two camps where scientists conduct varying forms of research. The work ethic he learned on the farm and abilities earned him additional duties aboard the ship and at the camps. He served on a spill response team, a trauma team, and a glacier search and rescue team.
For the complete story see this weeks issue of the Belle Plaine Herald
Council Rescinds Decision to Allow Man to Keep Three Dogs
by Dan Ruud
Two weeks after voting 4-1 to grant Christopher McNamar a one-year exemption from the city ordinance that states one household cannot have more than two dogs, the Belle Plaine City Council last Tuesday night voted to rescind that action and McNamar will have to give up one of his dogs within 30 days.
Mayor Tim Lies and other members of the council said some issues had come to light since they granted the exemption to McNamar, including the fact that he did not obtain licenses for the dogs until 10 days later (Jan. 13). Lies said McNamar had led the council to believe that the licenses would be obtained the following day (Jan. 4).
Council Member Gary Trost said he was upset that the council on Jan. 3 was not provided information from the police department that could have changed the vote to grant McNamar the extension. He said he had to find out about it the next morning in the newspaper. Trost wanted to know why the newspaper was given information involving the case and not the council.
What Trost was referring to was the Jan. 4 article in the Herald reporting that McNamar was issued a citation for falsely reporting a crime. According to the police report obtained by the Herald, McNamar claimed he found three abandoned newborn pups in a box near Our Lady of the Prairie Catholic Church. The pups were still moist from their mother with their umbilical cords attached.
But police say the puppies were not found abandoned on the street. They say the pups belonged to McNamar and he did not want the expense of three new puppies, so he called police expecting the city’s contract animal control firm, Critter Getter, to care of the newborns. Police say McNamar eventually admitted making the false report and that the puppies were from one of his dogs.
Sandra Steinmetz of Critter Getter, who responded to McNamar’s call of puppy abandonment, told the council last Tuesday night that McNamar lied to her just like he did to the police. She asked the council to reconsider its action on Jan. 3 to allow McNamar to keep three dogs in his apartment at 125 1/2 North Meridian Street. Steinmetz said at the very least the council should have mandated that one or more of the dogs be spayed/neutered. Steinmetz also expressed concern for the welfare of the dogs.
Attorney Mary Tietjen of the city attorney’s office explained that the council has the option to reconsider the motion and/or add further conditions.
Lies acknowledged that the council made a mistake on Jan. 3, and given all the information that came to light since then, a reconsideration of that action was warranted. The vote to rescind the Jan. 3 granting of McNamar’s one-year exemption form the city’s two-dog ordinance was 6-0.
For the complete story see this weeks issue of the Belle Plaine Herald
The cast and crew for BPHS’s 2012 one-act play are front row, from left, Cassidy Pumper (11), Erin Winters (11), Kelly Morrison (11), Kyeanna Pickar (12), Laura Schaefer (12), Kyle O’Brien (11) and Mitchell Farmer-Lies (11). In the middle row are Matthew Ludvik (9), Ben Preusser (11), Aiden Winterfeldt (10), Jake Hartmann (10), Mikhayla Clausen (10) and Andrew Winterfeldt (12). In the back row are Kalli Gorman (8), Nick Johnson (9), Alec Lorenz (9), Rylee Pumper (9), Dylan O’Brien (9) and Patrick Selly (8). Not pictured is Tyler Fatz (12).
BPHS One-Act Play Group to Perform Show Based on ‘War of the Worlds’
The Belle Plaine High School one-act play group hopes its 2012 production called “Invasion of Earth as It Began in Grover’s Mill, New Jersey” will lead to another star.
Last year’s production of “Mill Girls” marked the fourth time in the last five years that Belle Plaine, champion of Section 2A, has received a starred rating at state. The other three most recent were in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Belle Plaine also won section championships and received starred performance ratings at state in 1993, 1997, 1999 and 2000.
This year’s one-act play group, which consists of 18 cast members and two crew members, will perform their play publicly at 7 p.m. this Thursday at the Performing Arts Center in the Belle Plaine Schools District Center. It lasts about 35 minutes. The performance will be a prelude to this Saturday’s subsection competition at Le Sueur-Henderson High School.
J.R. Mimbs’ “Invasion of Earth as It Began in Grover’s Mill, New Jersey” involves four different groups of people awaiting the radio broadcast of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds in 1938. Things go horribly awry when a news report indicates that aliens may have invaded Grover’s Mill, N.J. As fears set in, concerns over money, conspiracies, faith and self-defense come to a head and panic builds as everyone struggles to decide what to do next. But what if things are not necessarily as they seem? In the face of a possible catastrophe, everyone must discover what is important in their lives.
The cast includes Aiden Winterfeldt (Announcer 1), Kyle O’Brien (Announcer 2/Orson Welles), Nick Johnson (Announcer 3), Mikhayla Clausen (Sound Booth Lady), Tyler Fatz (Hoyt), Cassidy Pumper (Janice), Laura Schaefer (Sandra), Mitchell Farmer-Lies (John), Kyeanna Pickar (Joyce), Kali Gorman (Maria), Jake Hartmann (Morris), Kelly Morrison (Sue), Matthew Ludvik (Joe), Laura Schaefer (Kerry), Dylan O’Brien (Mike), Patrick Selly (Buddy), Rylee Pumper (Terry) and Alec Lorenz (Phillip).
The sound and lights crew are Andrew Wintefeldt and Ben Preusser. The directors are Tony Hartmann and Peter Jacobson.
Doors for Saturday’s subsection contest in Le Sueur will open at 9 a.m. with performances throughout the day. Belle Plaine’s play is scheduled for 1 p.m. Other schools competing are Le Sueur-Henderson, Cleveland, Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop, Le Center, New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva, Sibley East, St. Peter and Waterville-Elysian-Morristown. The top two-rated performances will advance to the section contest.
A Chosen Few
On Friday, Jan. 20, Belle Plaine High School students Natashia Kalkes (alto sax), Kyeanna Pickar (flute and piccolo), Jacob Nowak (baritone sax) and Katelyn Zurn (percussion) participated in the 2012 Minnesota State University, Mankato Honor Band. These students and 70 others from schools across Minnesota participated in a day-long musical event that ended in a fantastic concert.
Woodard, DeKruif Meeting With Citizens in B.P., Area Feb. 4
Rep. Kelby Woodard, R-Belle Plaine, and Sen. Al DeKruif, R-Maple Lake, are co-hosting a series of office hours events in Northfield, Lonsdale and Belle Plaine Feb. 4.
The meetings coincide with the start of the 2012 legislative session and provide local citizens with an opportunity to meet individually with their local legislators to discuss any issues of importance to them.
All District 25 residents are welcome to participate by booking a 15-minute block.
“A top priority in 2012 will be to continue to identify the kinds of reforms that improve our business climate, improve the delivery of services from the state, and make the most of Minnesotans hard-earned tax dollars,” Woodard said. “Your input is crucial to this process and I welcome all of your thoughts and ideas. These office hours meetings have been very popular with area residents in the past and I look forward to another round of productive discussions.”
The Feb. 4 schedule includes meetings in Northfield, 8 to 10 a.m., Quality Bakery, 410, Division Street S.; Lonsdale, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., Lonsdale Library, 1006 Birch Street NE.; Belle Plaine, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., Kingsway Retirement Living, 815 Main Street W.
Office hours appointments can be made by calling (651) 296-5526.
Walk-ins are also welcome and will be worked into the schedule as time allows.
Update: Teachers Overwhelmingly Approve Contract
With 90 percent of the ballots cast favoring approval , the Bellle Plaine Education Association -- the school district's unionized teachers -- ratified a proposed contract for the 2011-12 and 2012-13 school years Wednesday. The proposal includes a 4.307 percent increase in wages and benefits. The school board will take up formal approval of the $14.25 million contract at an upcoming meeting.
Teachers’, School Board Reach Tentative Contract . . . Again
by John Mueller
After negotiators from the Belle Plaine Education Association and the school board had extracted the best terms from one another they could get over two-plus hours Wednesday night (Jan. 15), Director Gary Steinhagen looked at union president Jerold Stauffacher and repeated the same line he said in November.
“This ought to be an easy sell,” Steinhagen said.
Director Matt Lenz, the school board chairman, said the tentative agreement is “déjà vu all over again.”
Two months ago, it was anything but easy. Both sides hope this time is different.
The latest version of the proposed $14.25 million agreement calls for a 4.307 percent increase in wages and benefits over the 2010-11 and 2011-12 school years, slightly more than the proposed 4.299 increase the union rejected.
Teachers will receive a briefing on the proposed agreement for the two school years this week. A vote will take place after the briefing later this week. Unlike the first tentative agreement, members of the BPEA’s negotiating team told board negotiators they would endorse the proposal.
After teachers overwhelmingly rejected the previous proposal in November – the BPEA says 80 percent of the 106-member union opposed it -- the union and school board returned to the bargaining table Jan. 18 and reached another tentative deal.
The district agreed to put more money into health insurance in the first year of the deal but no additional money into health insurance the second year. Better pricing lowered the overall cost of health insurance to the district and BPEA members.
The district also agreed to put $200 per step and lane and compress the schedule from 26 steps to 24, a move the union wanted to allow teachers to maximize their earnings quicker, said Jerold Stauffacher, the BPEA president.
The biggest issue for the BPEA was retroactive pay. The school board wanted to freeze teacher advancement in the steps and lanes salary schedule for the first one-third of the first year of the contract. Its plan was to take that money and move it into the second year of the contract. The union vehemently opposed that plan, arguing instead for additional money throughout both years.
“With the state of the school district’s finances, for the group to take a freeze of any kind was not acceptable,” Stauffacher said.
In exchange, the BPEA acquiesced to the district’s proposal giving it the right to call teachers into work or make up any day school is unexpectedly cancelled.
“We have so much going on with change in our buildings, if we do miss a day, we should have the right to call them in,” Smith said
School Board May Change Half Days in 2012-13 Schedule
The four half days the Belle Plaine School District schedules for parent-teacher conferences, workshops and other non-teaching tasks could look a little different if the school board OKs switching the starting times of two of the partial school days.
Monday, the board took a first look at the proposed 2012-13 school year calendar. The biggest possible change in the calendar would be mornings off Oct. 3, 2012 and Feb. 6, 2013. The other two half-days – Nov. 16, 2012 and March 1, 2013 – would be afternoons off.
The board will discuss the proposal at an upcoming workshop. The proposed 2012-13 calendar will likely be formally adopted at the board’s February business meeting.
The district is interested in alerting parents to the possible change because of the impact it may have on childcare.
“This is a big change,” said Director Judy Nagel.
Superintendent Kelly Smith said staff, among them elementary school specialists, requested the change to mornings off.
He said the biggest drawback will involve students attending morning classes at Carver-Scott Educational Coop the two days with mornings off. Those students would likely have to attend class to avoid missing lessons, Smith said. The district would also likely have to start school the days with mornings off right before lunch hour, around 11:30 a.m., to make sure students whose families rely on the noon meal for are covered.
Details of the proposal will be honed as the proposed schedule receives further consideration, Smith said.
The proposed 174-day calendar has school beginning Sept. 4, 2012 and ending June 4, 2013. Christmas break runs Dec. 24-31. Spring break is March 25-29.
