Clips

News articles that Andrew Atwal has written

IOC Wrestling Decision Reaction

http://www.yankton.net/articles/2013/02/15/community/doc511db7f914b53450227155.txt

Wrestling Community Questions Removal Of Sport From Olympics
By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Friday, February 15, 2013 1:06 AM CST

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) decision Tuesday to drop wrestling from the 2020 Olympics is hitting home for many local wrestlers, wrestling officials and other members of the wrestling community.

At the IOC’s meeting, the committee was expected to drop the modern pentathlon, but instead decided to remove wrestling from the games based on various criteria, which included the sports popularity and how many people participate in the sport worldwide.

Dave Cornemann, who started wrestling in elementary school and went on to be a two-time state champion for Gregory High School, a two-time All-American at South Dakota State University, a national champion while in college, a wrestling coach and an official, said he was shocked when he heard about the IOC’s decision.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for them to have dropped wrestling out of the Olympics,” he said. “The sport is popular among high school students across the country and it ranks among the most participated sport among high school students.”

Cornemann, a former Yankton High School coach, added that when schools went through the Title IX crunch years ago, a lot of high schools and colleges were forced to drop wrestling programs as a result of the law, but wrestling was able to weather that storm. He hopes it can weather this one too.

“Wrestling is one of the original sports of the Olympics,” he said. “I don’t know why they decided to drop it, but it could have been for financial reasons. It’s a big blow for the sport, but I don’t think a lot of kids start wrestling in elementary school or junior high thinking they’ll eventually become Olympic champions. I don’t think that’s why they go out for the sport to begin with.”

Dan Specht, who wrestled in high school and college and has also been an official for about 20 years, also can’t understand the decision.

“Wrestling has a long-standing history in the Olympics, so to drop that significant part of the Olympic history is tough to figure out. I think wrestling was dropped for political reasons,” he added. “Think about it, the IOC keeps a sport like Trampoline, but drops the most historic event of the core sports. I think it’s important to note that the deal hasn’t been sealed as of yet, but the recommendation is out there and must stand on its own merit.”

Ryan Hage, coach of the YHS wrestling team, said he was also surprised when he heard about the IOC’s recommendation.

“The IOC, which among other things, emphasizes equality and participation, is going against its very purpose by eliminating wrestling from the Olympics,” he said. “In the United States alone, there are more than 1 million wrestlers, and that is a small number when compared to other countries around the world.”

Hage added that men and women now compete for the right to represent their country in wrestling, with the dream of bringing home a gold medal. In the United States wrestling has the third highest medal count out of all the Olympic sports.

Despite that, he said he doesn’t think anyone knows why the IOC made the decision to drop wrestling.

“I don’t think anyone really knows why they made their decision. Figureheads for wrestling, like Dan Gable and John Smith, were caught off guard and did not know that there was even a possibility that wrestling could get cut,” he said. “Unfortunately, I think the decision was driven by money.”

Mark Manning, the head wrestling coach at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, and a Vermillion native, released a statement on the IOC’s decision, and said he’s just as shocked as everyone else is.

“Removing wrestling from the Olympics would have a far-reaching impact on our sport,” he said in the statement. “It not only greatly affects our current and future Olympians, but it would also damage the sport at the collegiate, high school and youth levels. Hopefully, the IOC will take into account the impact of this decision on the American and international wrestling communities and re-consider when they meet in May.”

Cornemann said the decision is a “big blow” because it takes the sport out of the national and international spotlight.

“The decision does not make any sense to members of the wrestling community,” he said. “There are petitions going around to, hopefully, reinstate the sport in 2020. I hope the IOC reevaluates their decision.”

Specht said he was saddened by the decision and it hit home for him because of the amount of great wrestlers South Dakota has produced.

“South Dakota has had some great Olympic wrestlers including Randy Lewis from Rapid City, Lincoln McIlravy from Philip, Bill and Jim Scheer from Mobridge, and Dennis Koslowski from Doland,” he said. “Those famous South Dakota wrestlers are some I’ve known and wrestled with. Now dreams like they had may be going away for our next generation.”

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

BREAKING NEWS EXCLUSIVE: Principal Named Finalist For Superintendent Position

Kindle Named Finalist For Norfolk Superintendent Opening

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net

Yankton High School (YHS) principal Dr. Wayne Kindle has been named a finalist for the superintendent opening at the Norfolk (Neb.) Public School District.
Norfolk Public Schools cover nearly 69 miles in Madison, Pierce, Stanton and Wayne counties in Nebraska. The district has seven elementary schools, a middle school (grades five and six), junior high (grades seven and eight) and a high school. It also has an alternative school, Montessori school and an early childhood center. The district has an enrollment of about 4,000 students.
“A professional goal of mine has been to have an opportunity to lead a school district as a superintendent. It is a real honor to be selected as a candidate to interview for the superintendent position of the Norfolk Public Schools,” Kindle said. “I appreciate the leadership and personal qualities the search committee saw in me as a candidate. I am looking forward to meeting the committee, as well as other patrons of their school district.”
Norfolk will interview candidates for the position next week, and the school board will have a discussion the interviews on Feb. 23. The district will no longer accept applications for the position after March 8, and officials hope to have their superintendent hired by April.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

ONLINE BREAKING NEWS STORY:

http://www.yankton.net/articles/2013/02/14/community/doc511d57e07f261912497528.txt

Kindle Named Finalist For Norfolk Superintendent Job
By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Thursday, February 14, 2013 3:32 PM CST

Yankton High School (YHS) principal Dr. Wayne Kindle has been named a finalist for the superintendent opening at the Norfolk (Neb.) Public School District.

Norfolk Public Schools cover nearly 69 miles in Madison, Pierce, Stanton and Wayne counties in Nebraska. The district has seven elementary schools, a middle school (grades five and six), junior high (grades seven and eight) and a high school. It also has an alternative school, Montessori school and an early childhood center. The district has an enrollment of about 4,000 students.

Norfolk will interview candidates for the position next week, and the school board will have a discussion the interviews on Feb. 23. The district will no longer accept applications for the position after March 8, and officials hope to have their superintendent hired by April.

For more, see Friday’s Press & Dakotan.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

School Board Meeting: February

http://yankton.net/articles/2013/02/12/community/doc5119c603f0284191655057.txt

Group Ready To Begin Search For Yankton’s New Superintendent

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 1:07 AM CST
The Yankton School District (YSD) school board met with Rick Melmer during its regular meeting on Monday to finalize the district superintendent search.

Board members also discussed next year’s budget, which currently projects to have about a $1.6 million deficit.

Melmer’s and Tom Oster’s consulting group, Dakota Education Consulting, will be helping the board in gathering candidates for the open superintendent position, as well as eliminating candidates that don’t meet the needs of the district.

The group has been involved in a number of education searches across the state, and currently is helping out with searches with the Wagner and Viborg-Hurley schools.

“We have a broad base of services we’ll be providing the district,” Melmer said. “We’re confident that we can find a good leader for the Yankton School District for the future.”

The group will begin advertising for the position within the next few days. Melmer said they have already received some phone calls about the opening and have also made a few calls to people they know who may be interested in the position. Advertising for the position will be done primarily online, as Melmer noted newspapers have not been as effective as websites in recent years.

Jim Fitzgerald and Kathy Greeneway, members of the personnel committee for the school board, will directly assist Melmer and Oster in the superintendent search.

“The recruitment phase will begin right away, and we plan on spending a lot of time on the phone over the next few weeks,” Melmer said. “In early to mid-March we will begin phone interviews for the position.”

He added that he expects the district to receive about 30-40 applicants for the position, with a handful not being qualified right off the bat. Plans are to close the application phase around March 15.

Melmer and Oster plan on surveying district faculty members, administrators and community members on the qualities they want in their next superintendent. They also plan on meeting with board members around March 26 on the applicants they interviewed on the phone, and who should be brought in for in-person interviews.

“We recommend doing all of the in-person interviews on the same day,” Melmer said.

He added that the decision on who the next superintendent will ultimately be entirely up to the school board, and the interview committees and the consulting group play only an advisory role in the search.

“The earlier time frame the board is looking at gives us some time to figure out interview schedules,” Melmer said. “The time table we’re looking at should put YSD in a favorable position to get quality applicants.”

Board members are targeting April 11 for in-person            interviews.

Also Monday night, the school board spoke about next year’s budget.

Jason Bietz, YSD business manager, said the district has been holding the line on expenses in recent years, including keeping the same supplies and materials budget over the past several years, and also have frozen pay increases for teachers and administrators for the past few years.

For next year’s budget, Bietz projects a shortfall of around $1.6 million, as of today.

“The projected budget does not take into account any one-time monies the state might give us,” he said. “It only considers ongoing revenue sources for the budget.”

The district recently utilized its healthcare reserves in order to avoid making drastic cuts to student programs.

“The health insurance we have is a significant expense to the district,” Bietz said.

Board members might consider utilizing healthcare reserves again, using capital outlay flexibility or unemployment reserves.

“The Affordable Care Act will have a big impact on the district going forward,” Bietz said. “Sixty-three employees will be added to the healthcare plan from us, having to cover employees who work 30 or more hours a week, versus the 35 or more hours a week we previously covered. We have to comply with the law or we will face significant fines.”

Also Monday night board members:

• accepted the bid from Jonhston Painting of Wakonda to paint Beadle School this summer;

• approved the bid from APS Sports Floors, Inc., for sanding, painting and refinishing the gym floors at Yankton High School/Summit Activities Center this summer;

• approved the bid from Floor To Ceiling of Yankton for carpet repair and replacement at Beadle School;

• approved the bid from Roy Johnston Roofing Co. of Yankton for roof repair and resealing at Lincoln and Webster schools;

• approved a five-year service contract with SDN Communications for high-speed point-to-point fiber connectivity between school buildings in accordance with Erate requirements

• approved an orchestra trip to Marty Indian School and Wagner schools.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Theater Gala

http://www.yankton.net/articles/2013/02/11/community/doc5118459a3d89f804964382.txt

Stage Set For L&CTC Gala Saturday

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Monday, February 11, 2013 1:06 AM CST

The Lewis and Clark Theatre Company (LCTC) is set to hold its annual gala this weekend, with all proceeds from the event benefiting the Dakota Theatre in downtown Yankton.

The event will be held on Saturday, Feb. 16, at Minerva’s in Yankton. Tickets can be purchased by calling Michele Leibfarth at 605-661-0303. Tickets will also be sold at the door if the event does not sell out.

“There will be a live auction, silent auction, hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar and a dessert auction as well,” Leibfarth said. “Back by popular demand this year will be Yankton’s version of the’ David Letterman Show’ featuring Chris Hilson as David Letterman with Mike Hilson as Paul Shaffer with a band, too.”

The band will feature music from Jay Gilbertson, Mark Johnson and Tom Zoss, with Ted Powell on the piano and Scott Olson playing the role of Doc Severinsen.

“Each year, the live auction has been very popular and will feature a number of dinner options,” Leibfarth said. “New this year, there will be a fishing excursion with Cabela’s master Walleye circuit world champion Curtis Olivier on the Missouri River.

“However, the main draw to the event has always been our version of the David Letterman show. Everyone that goes loves it, and people that don’t go say they’re sorry they missed out every year.”

Other live auction items include a dinner with the president of USD, a dinner with the president of Mount Marty, a big barbecue party put on by Steve Huff, and a Chilean dinner. There is also another boating trip with a tour of the Gavins Point power plant.

Leibfarth added that Chris and Mike Hilson add a lot to the annual show. Chris Hilson, playing Letterman, a former radio personality, making him a natural for the role. Mike Hilson is a very in-demand area musician.

“They put the band together just for this show so it should be really nice to see,” Leibfarth said. “There will also be various ‘stars’ that come out to the show — some back by popular demand and others who will be brand new this year.”

The actors playing the stars for the show come from around the region, including some from Minneapolis, Sioux Falls and Nebraska.

“They all have a history here in Yankton and are popular individuals in town and have done performances in the past with the theatre company or high school theater,” she said. “The show, as a whole, is really funny and is really professionally done so people that go love it. Terry Winter has been a director for many plays in Yankton, including for the Yankton School District and theatre company.”

Leibfarth thanked the sponsors of the event and said they can only put on a show due to their generous help.

“Last year, the event raised more than $14,000 for the theatre company, and this year we’re hoping to push that number up above $15,000,” she said. “All of the proceeds go to the theater. Last year the funds we received really helped to keep the theater open. Our goal is to keep live theater up and running in downtown Yankton.”

The 20212 fundraiser attracted approximately 300 people. Committee members hope to push that number to more than 320 this year.

Leibfarth added that many people don’t know how much it takes to keep the theater doors open. The theatre company must have the rights to the shows its presents, plus have directors and costumes, plus the building upkeep — all adding up to a lot of expense.

“We began doing these fundraisers four years ago to keep the theater here open,” she said. “After each event is over, we immediately began making the plans for next years event, including putting together our ideas and gathering the entertainment for the night. It takes more than six months of hard work and planning to get each event off the ground.”

Leibfarth said she enjoys gathering all the people together that love theater in Yankton to share in the enjoyment of a show that helps out the theatre company.

“This is a very popular event and a really fun night out. I can’t describe it any more than, you just have so much fun at the fundraiser,” she said.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Legislative Forum

http://www.yankton.net/articles/2013/02/11/community/doc511845bfa8b43756263201.txt

 

Legislators Discuss Education, Medicaid Issues

Rep. Mike Stevens
By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Monday, February 11, 2013 1:06 AM CST

When District 18 legislators met at a Saturday morning cracker barrel at the Avera Professional Pavilion, education funding and Medicaid were two of the more vigorously discussed topics.

Legislators agreed that there are a lot of issues with Medicaid that must be examined, but there were disagreements on when the state should approach the issue.

“There are a lot of issues that are going on with the Medicaid program that we need to address,” said Rep. Bernie Hunhoff. “However, I spoke with someone who has worked in Medicaid for years who said South Dakota has the best functioning Medicaid program in the nation and have had that for many years here.”

He added that he supports a medical bill, which a similar form was passed in Nebraska, that would give pre-natal care to babies regardless of the mother’s citizenship status.

Sen. Jean Hunhoff said she thinks there must be more funding available for the Medicaid program.

“The reality here is that we all must go through the process and see what kind of money is left over at the end of the session,” she said. “If there is any money left over, the money added to various programs is only a one-time allotment. However, we do need to have more money in Medicaid but there is really no new money out there.”

Rep. Mike Stevens said if the Medicaid program was so simple, other states would have signed up for it in a snap.

“Once you get into the program, it is highly unlikely you’ll be able to get out of it,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a stupid idea to wait and get more information about the program.”

However, Rep. Hunhoff thinks the program would help South Dakota immensely and doesn’t believe the state should wait any longer before signing up for Medicaid expansion.

“We have always been trying to provide care for working poor adults,” he said. “Some of the provisions in the Affordable Care Act provide coverage for those adults. Having the program here would be a big thing for healthcare and the work force in the state.”

Rep. Hunhoff added that Medicaid expansion in South Dakota is inevitable, but it is more of a matter of how fast it happens. He said the program is critical to both large and small hospitals across the state and region.

On the other hand, Sen. Hunhoff said she is concerned with the federal allotment of money for states to fully enact the Medicaid program.

“Are the feds going to be able to provide all the funding they are promising?” she asked. “It’s the real elephant in the room in this situation. I’m for expansion, but I don’t want the burden to eventually be put on the taxpayers of South Dakota.”

Another hot-button issue discussed was education funding.

Stevens believes that, if there is a one-time funding allotment this year, the money should go back to local school boards to make the decision on how to use the funds.

“There have been a lot of different ideas about education funding floating out there,” he said. “I think it is up to local school boards to decide how to best educate their children — local control is the best way to do that.”

Rep. Hunhoff agreed, and said there are a lot of funding discussions going on in the Legislature each day.

“The big debate has been whether we start to micro-manage education again versus having more local control over it,” he said. “It seems like we’re moving back towards categorical aid for education. There is only so much money to go around, and we’ve fallen way behind in education funding in the state.”

Sen. Hunhoff said it is always the same discussion each year and legislators must work together to find a comprehensive plan for education and education funding.

Also discussed Saturday was the Human Services Center (HSC) and its proposed demolition of some of its old, unused buildings.

“It’s been about 30 years since the (old) campus of the HSC closed,” Rep. Hunhoff said. “Gov. Daugaard assured us that he wants to see the historic buildings saved, if possible. Since we’re only a few years away from demolition, this is really the last shot to find developers for the historic buildings.”

Sen. Hunhoff agreed, saying if the community wants to redevelop the buildings, people must step up now because the Legislature can’t continue to postpone the demolition plans.

Stevens said Daugaard is serious about getting input from others on the buildings and what can be done to potentially save them.

Legislators also discussed the recent passing of a prison reform bill, each saying how important the bill is for the prison system and its future.

The next cracker barrel will be held in Yankton on March 2.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Cafeteria Renovations

http://yankton.net/articles/2013/02/08/community/doc51148843450b3393560716.txt

 

MMC Cafeteria Gets Overhaul

Mitch Pinkelman, an executive chef with the A’viands food service of Minneapolis, Minn., stands next to the floor plans of the renovation being done to the Mount Marty College cafeteria area. The $325,000 project is expected to be completed later this month. (Kelly Hertz/P&D)

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Friday, February 8, 2013 1:06 AM CST
The Mount Marty College cafeteria in Roncalli is undergoing a major face lift.

The renovations began around Christmas, right as students left campus after finals.

One of the major parts of the renovation is the reconfiguration of the serving line. The new layout will offer students multiple hot and cold stations for food, an area just for pizza, a new griddle and an Asian wok station.

“One of the goals we had for the renovation was not to disrupt students during the process,” said Sarah Carda, vice president and dean of Student Affairs. “For now, we have been able to accommodate students by serving buffet-style meals, and there still have been a few wok-style concepts in place during the renovations.”

In addition to improvements with the serving line, the main dining room will also get a makeover featuring new decor, banquet quality chairs and tables, shades for the windows, decorations for the walls and new paint.

The estimated cost of the renovations is about $325,000 and is projected to be completed around Feb. 18.

“We haven’t done too much with the kitchen, so most of the major ovens and grills we have are intact,” Carda said.

“Before the project began, the dining hall was original to the building built in 1967 and the serving line was just one long buffet style line,” she added.

The first major event for the new dining hall will be the Women of Distinction luncheon, set to take place on Feb. 18.

“The event will allow a lot of the people from the community to see the changes we have made,” Carda said.

Tiling for the renovations will go in this week, while the new cabinets and serving line will go in next week.

“We were hoping everything would be done by this week, but it didn’t work out that way,” she said. “Even if we could get everything done by this week, there are still a lot of things that need to get done, like getting inspections done and getting all the necessary building codes.”

Another recent change to the food service on campus is Mount Marty switching from its previous food service provider, Aramark, to Minneapolis-based A’viands on a 10-year contract. The change took place when the students came back to campus in August.

“A’viands brings in chefs from Minneapolis to go over menus with our employees here,” Carda said. “We’re not just serving students the same kinds of things all the time. We want to offer them new and healthy foods and expose them to different foods.”

Another big reason for the switch is because officials from A’viands talked to Mount Marty staff members about their concepts of foods, including new, fresh foods and trying to use local resources whenever         possible.

“We knew we had to do something for the students with the cafeteria,” she said. “Students were frustrated with the food so we knew we had to make a change.”

She added that the new dining service will be much better for students when everything is in place, with far more options for students than there were before.

“It’s important to show the students that we are always trying to grow and evolve and make things better for them,” Carda said. “It’s nice to see those kinds of things happening on campus.”

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Cancer Center Machine

http://yankton.net/articles/2013/02/07/community/doc511329f97d27c679701718.txt

A New Tool In Fighting Cancer

Avera Sacred Heart Cancer Center dosimetrist Lindsey Olson (left), therapist Julie Steffen (center) and therapist Christy Jensen stand next to the center’s new Varian Linear Accelerator, which is currently being installed. The device will provide far more accuracy in radiation therapy, and will work much faster than current equipment. The new accelerator is expected to be operational later this winter. (Kelly Hertz/P&D)

Cancer Center Adds New Varian Linear Accelerator For Radiation Therapy

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Thursday, February 7, 2013 1:06 AM CST
The Avera Sacred Heart Cancer Center in Yankton is adding a new technology to make radiation treatment more comfortable for patients, and more accurate for doctors.The Cancer Center is getting a new Varian Linear Accelerator, which is the device that produces radiation beams for radiation therapy.

“This type of accelerator is very advanced. With the old accelerator we had, it only let us take x-ray pictures of patients, which are two-dimensional,” said Dr. Michael Peterson, radiation oncologist at the Cancer Center. “This one can do three-dimensional CAT scan images, which allows us to get much more detailed information about where the patient is positioned in relation to the beam the way we want them to be.”

He added that the new machine can detect skin marks and how they shift in relation to the organ that doctors are trying to reach.

“If you actually have a CT-like image, it gives you much better assurance that doctors will be able to hit the treatment area in exactly the way they want to,” Peterson said. “This means there is less of a need to treat normal tissue around the tumor to make sure you’re hitting the area you want every time.”

The machine will do a special type of treatment where its head can rotate around the patient, allowing doctors to conduct a treatment during which the dose prescribed goes exactly where they want it to around the tumor. The new treatment is also faster than it was before. With older machines, radiation therapy treatment could take around 20 minutes, but with the machine it could take fewer than 10 minutes.

“This machine not only does some things better and more accurately with improved treatment quality, but it also does them faster as well, making treatment more comfortable for the patient,” Peterson said. “This machine will be helpful, not only in terms of voluntary motion by the patient, but also by minimizing the amount of involuntary movement of the patient.”

The new device could mean the difference between a patient getting some of the long-term side effects of radiation or not getting them at all because of how precisely the new machine is.

“Patients on the new machine will be treated more comfortably as well. Instead of having them try to hold still for more than 20 minutes when a certain part of their body is hurting, they will have less pain on the treatment table and will be more convenient for them as well,” Peterson said.

Another advantage of the new machine is that it has thinner leaves then the old one, meaning it is able to treat infected areas more precisely.

“If we want to be able to treat a certain area, having wider leaves on the machine is not good,” he said. “We are able to treat areas with more accuracy with thinner leaves on the machine.”

The new accelerator has leaves that are about 1/2 cm wide, whereas the old machine had leaves that were about 1 cm.

Although doctors have the machine at the Cancer Center now, they will not be able to treat patients with it until later this winter.

“We can’t say for certain when we will be able to treat our first patient with the new accelerator until physicists do their final checks on the machine,” Peterson said. “There is a very extensive quality assurance process that all new radiation machines have to go through to make sure, when we prescribe radiation to a patient, that it’s the amount that comes out of the machine and that no beams are stronger than others.”

The machine was delivered to Sacred Heart in December and some other hospitals have had them for a few years, but Peterson notes it does almost all the latest treatments that machines coming out even this year are able to do.

“We couldn’t get the same detail with the older machines,” he said. “The machine we have been using has been here for about seven years. We’re not getting rid of it because it’s on its last legs — we’re getting rid of it because we’re committed to having the best new technology here for treatments.”

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

COLUMN: Heart-To-Heart Talk

http://yankton.net/articles/2013/02/07/opinion/editorials/doc51131a4e794b5398663415.txt

 

Writer’s Block: Let’s Have A Heart-To-Heart Talk

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Thursday, February 7, 2013 1:06 AM CST
Congenital heart defects are the No. 1 cause of birth defect related deaths.

One out of every 100 children is born with a congenital heart defect.

In the United States, twice as many children die from congenital heart defects each year than from all forms of childhood cancer combined — yet funding for pediatric cancer research is five times higher than it is for heart defects.

I am one of those born with a heart defect, but just by looking at me on the outside, you’d think I was a healthy adult.

I had open-heart surgery at about two months of age to repair a condition Tetrology of Fallot back home at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. My second open-heart surgery came at 23 years old, on Dec. 6, 2012 at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. By the time many children with heart defects reach their teenage years, they’ve needed several surgeries to stay alive.

Tetrology of Fallot is a condition where blood that does not have oxygen spills out to other areas of the body, causing obvious problems if not treated.

I underwent pulmonary valve replacement surgery on Dec. 6, a recovery that lasted six weeks at home — including four weeks without driving. However, I was able to return to work in the middle of January.

February is American Heart Month, and Feb. 7-14 is Congenital Heart Awareness Week. Thanks to new technology, many children are able to survive their defects, but others are not so lucky. Each child with a defect, however, now has someone to look up to in Shaun White, who has won multiple Olympics and X-Games medals who was born with Tetrology of Fallot.

I live a fairly normal life, aside from needing surgery as well as going to a cardiologist to get checked on every year. I graduated from high school, got my bachelor’s degree and then moved to Yankton to work for the Press & Dakotan. Without the surgery I had, particularly as an infant, none of this would have been possible. Without the surgery I had in December, things would have continued to deteriorate.

My surgeon said because the deterioration has occurred over an extended period of time, I never felt how bad it actually was — that is, until after this surgery when I saw how big of a difference it made and how much better I feel because of it.

As technology continues to improve, more babies will have these problems detected sooner, making survival and living a normal life more possible than it ever has been. State Sen. Jean Hunhoff (R-Yankton) has seen the need, as she introduced SB 168, which requires newborns to be screened for congenital heart defects. The bill was passed on Feb. 4.

Although survivorship into adulthood is a strong possibility for those with a heart condition, more research must be done to find out why so many born with a heart condition do not have it detected until they reach adulthood — or until after it’s too late.

I live a fairly normal life, and from outside appearances you’d never know I was born with a heart defect or that I’ve had two surgeries to correct it. Congenital heart defects are a real problem — a problem that must be solved in order to have more and more children survive their defects and live a normal life.

You can follow Andrew Atwal Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Hutchinson County Schools

http://www.yankton.net/articles/2013/02/06/community/doc5111ddfe109ca022708928.txt

Hutchinson Co. School Officials Leery Of Sentinels

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Wednesday, February 6, 2013 1:06 AM CST

Officials from Hutchinson County schools are expressing their disinterest in legislation making its way through the state Legislature that would allow local school boards to place armed, trained personnel in their school buildings.

Some officials believe the bill has raised more questions than it answers.

Chris Christensen, Menno’s superintendent, said he doesn’t think some of the legislatures around the nation have thought through all the implications that the bill would cause.

“There would be liability issues with the training,” he said. “Would schools be able to get liability insurance to cover accidental shootings or students killed from friendly fire? Do guns only go off when they are supposed to, and do they always hit only the intended target?”

He added that he doesn’t think they do, so one cannot conclusively say that guns are safe.

HB 1087, which passed the House last week, says that the school board must obtain the approval of the local law enforcement official who has jurisdiction over the school campus before implementing the sentinel program. In addition, any person who is hired for the position must complete a school sentinel training course and nothing in the bill authorizes any person to carry a concealed weapon without a permit.

The bill also states that any discussion by a school board regarding the program will be conducted in a closed meeting without any printed materials or record available to the public.

Pam Tieszen, principal and superintendent at Freeman Academy, a private, Mennonite school, said the core values at her school teach service, nonviolence and respect for all people.

“I do not anticipate our board considering the idea of placing a sentinel in our school,” she said. “We feel as if it’s more appropriate to discuss and train staff to be aware and recognize community members who are in need, or facing mental crises, rather than placing a sentinel in the school.”

“Our teachers strongly feel that peace and nonviolence carries more power than a sentinel or weapon. That doesn’t mean that violence can’t happen here, but we have a different perspective on how to deal with each other and our students.”

Tieszen added that having a sentinel in Freeman Academy would not bring the security school officials are looking for, but would only draw more attention to fears that can be addressed in more peaceful ways.

Lynn Vlasman, superintendent at Tripp-Delmont, said he believes the bill was brought forward with good intentions, but it places too high a burden on local school boards and sheriffs in answering a rather lengthy list of questions on how to implement such a program.

“How much training would be needed for staff members?” he asked. “What happens when the trained staff member takes employment elsewhere?”

Vlasman also asked who would own the weapon — would it be the individual or the district? Also, who is liable for the employee that is trained?

“I believe that a majority of our school district staff members would not feel comfortable serving as a sentinel, but there probably are some that would consider it,” he said. “However, in it’s current form, I see the bill creating more questions than answers, and I think our local school boards may be overwhelmed in trying to answer those questions.”

Shayne McIntosh, who serves as superintendent at Parkston schools, said he appreciates the Legislature listening to schools and helping them identify a potential problem and working to fill that gap.

“We take school safety very seriously,” he said. “However, I am not convinced that the creation of a school sentinel program is the answer. Rather, I would like the Legislature to provide the funding so that schools can make a serious effort to hire resource officers and communities to hire mental health experts.”

Christensen said every teacher he has heard from is against having guns in schools and believes schools will be no safer if the bill passes.

McIntosh agreed, saying he believes most teachers and administrators feel they do not have the skill set or mental preparation to be put in such a position.

“I do not believe that a person who is in the state of mind to shoot defenseless children would be deterred by this law,” he said. “They would find other opportunities like waiting for recess, a ball game, lunch hour or some other opportunity.”

There was no response at press time from officials at Freeman Public School.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

School Sentinel

http://www.yankton.net/articles/2013/02/05/community/doc5110877b898fe489049569.txt

YSD Officials Don’t See Local Need For ‘Sentinel’

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net
Published: Tuesday, February 5, 2013 1:06 AM CST

Yankton School District officials are expressing their disinterest in legislation making its way through the state capitol that would allow school boards to place armed, trained personnel in school buildings.

HB 1087, which passed the House last week, says that the school board must obtain the approval of the local law enforcement official who has jurisdiction over the school campus before implementing the sentinel. In addition, any person who is hired for the position must complete a school sentinel training course and nothing in the bill authorizes any person to carry a concealed weapon without a permit.

The bill also states that any discussion by a school board regarding the program will be conducted in a closed meeting without any printed materials or record available to the public.

Both Yankton school board chairman Chris Specht and YSD Superintendent Joe Gertsema do not expect the sentinel program, should it become law, to be implemented in Yankton.

“I’m glad the Legislature chose to allow the local school boards to make the decision,” Specht said. “I can’t understand what it would be like to make the decision in a smaller community where the police force could take more than 30 minutes to get to the school in an emergency.”

Gertsema said he doesn’t anticipate the board embracing the proposed program.

“YSD has always had a good relationship with the Yankton Police Department and they have quick access to our facilities in the event of an emergency,” he said.

Specht agreed, saying he doesn’t think he’d be in favor of it in Yankton, but said local school boards can each make their own decisions.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal