Son of the late State Representative Davisson sworn in as his replacement
Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush administered the oath in the House Chamber of the Statehouse to J. Michael Davisson (R-Salem), the newest Indiana State Representative. Davisson will serve as state representative for House District 73, fulfilling the remainder of the term of his late father, former State Rep. Steve Davisson, who passed away in September.
Davisson is a lifelong resident of Salem. He previously served as chair of the Washington County Young Republicans and for nine years on the board of directors of the Indiana War Memorial Commission. He currently operates a family-owned pharmacy in Salem. Davisson is also an Army combat veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq, and he retired in 2017 after 17 years of military service.
House District 73 includes Washington County, and portions of Jackson, Lawrence, Orange, Clark, and Harrison counties.
Hamilton proposes collaborative relationship with Palo Alto City
The City of Bloomington has announced its intention to move forward with a relationship through the Sibling Cities program with Palo Alto City, California. The relationship seeks to foster community building, further goodwill, and enhance civic dialogue and public policy discussions in the two cities through Sibling Cities USA, a new organization. The proposed pilot Sibling City relationship would be guided by Sibling Cities USA’s three pillars of Connection: Community, Commerce, and Civil Discourse. These guiding principles establish a framework for relationship building and community connectedness.
Local committees will form in each city to connect community organizations and build programs to expand public awareness and generate impact within each city. The committees will include representatives from local government, service organizations, schools and universities, and other community leaders. The committees would report at the one-year mark to each City Council identifying the progress and prospects for an ongoing program.
Palo Alto, known as the “Birthplace of Silicon Valley,” is home to 69,700 residents, nearly 100,000 jobs, and Stanford University. As the global center of technology and innovation, Palo Alto is the corporate headquarters and home for many world-class companies and research facilities such as VMWare, Hewlett-Packard, and Stanford Health Care.
Jim Sims, President of Bloomington’s City Council offered, “It’s an honor to play a founding role in nurturing a national culture of respectful dialogue across differing perspectives.”
The Palo Alto City council will consider approval of the relationship on November 15th, and Bloomington City Council will follow shortly thereafter.
Indiana offers options to credential more Special Ed teachers
The Indiana Department of Education will partner with the University of Indianapolis’ Center of Excellence in Leadership of Learning (CELL) to strengthen Indiana’s special education teacher pipeline, with a focus on supporting special education teachers as they work to earn full licensure. The new partnership, called Indiana Special Education Assisted Licensure (I-SEAL), streamlines the required coursework for teachers to earn full special education licensure. I-SEAL also provides financial assistance and scholarships to educators while they complete these requirements.
- For educators licensed in another subject: Currently-licensed teachers who wish to add special education to their existing license can participate in a fully-funded 18-credit hour graduate program through the University of Indianapolis, Taylor University or Indiana Wesleyan University.
- For individuals currently enrolled in a special education preparation program: Individuals who are currently enrolled in a special education teacher preparation program can earn scholarship assistance to support the completion of their required special education coursework and purchase textbooks.
- For non-education bachelor’s degree holders: Special education educators who have not earned full licensure but hold a non-education bachelor’s degree can receive a full scholarship to enroll in a federally-compliant Transition to Teaching program. Seven Transition to Teaching programs in special education are currently available across Indiana.
- For individuals who have not yet passed the state licensing exam: Individuals who have completed a special education preparation program but have not yet passed the state licensure exam can participate in a free test-preparation workshop.
The new rules, in compliance with federal requirements, create a three-year alternative route license requiring an educator to hold a bachelor’s degree, be employed by a school, and be enrolled in an approved alternative education program. Over these three years, the educator will have time to complete a professional educator special education license or a special education addition to their existing educator license.
Indiana special education educators currently teaching on an emergency permit may be issued an alternative route license if they are working toward completing licensure requirements in an approved alternative program. In alignment with federal requirements, one-year emergency permits will no longer be issued following the end of the current school year.
Learn more and apply for assistance by visiting IndianaSEAL.org.
This Week in Hoosier History
1967 – World War I “Flying Ace” Eddie Rickenbacker was in the book department at the L. S. Ayres Department Store in downtown Indianapolis. He was signing copies of his autobiography, Rickenbacker. Race cars and airplanes had been at the center of his long and adventurous life. He owned the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from 1927 to 1945.
For more local news . . .
Check out our archived episodes of What’s Happenin’ and Talkin’ Sports with Nick Jenkinson here!