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• Still no solutions to Hammond sidewalk issue
• Somerset special ed becomes national autism leader
• New Richmond girls soccer wins in overtime
• New Richmond's Singerhouse notches 500th career strikeout

By Shay Tilander, RiverTown Staff

In what has become one of the most tumultuous issues the Hammond Village Board has dealt with in the past year, the street/sidewalk project is still in limbo.

The project proposal began last August and still has Village residents wondering when and if their property will be altered due to construction of new streets/sidewalks.

Rod Turk, director of public works for the Village, presented a plan to the Board that included tentative plans for sidewalks and new road construction in the Village. Turk pointed out that in order to proceed with the road and sidewalk project, an initial plan has to be laid out first.

"This is just the framework for what you write the plan about," Turk said.

Residents packed the conference room at the Village offices and voiced their concerns about the lack of communication between the Board and the citizens concerning the street/sidewalk projects.

Trustee Chris Buckel agreed with the residents' concerns.

"More should be done to inform the public about why, how and when this project is going to be done," Buckel said.

Village residents in attendance discussed their displeasure with the Board for the lack of communication between the Board and Village citizens.

One homeowner asked the Board why updates on the street/sidewalk project were not posted on the Village Web site, as the Board promised months ago.

Turk said that he was put in charge of coming up with the street plan to increase safety after the Board decided the need for one.

"I'm sick of being the one having fingers pointed at," Turk said. "We have to clarify what is actually being approved."

After a considerable amount of discussion between Board members and those in attendance, it was decided to send the street/sidewalk issue back to the public works committee for further review.

Buckel suggested that the committee provide an explanation for the projects, updates on what is happening, information on who will be responsible for payment, timelines and other important information, and mail it to Village residents and allow them a chance to speak.

By Dave Newman, RiverTown Staff

The Somerset School District has been chosen as one of 12 districts in the nation to lead a national program on autism.

The program is the National Professional Development in Autism Spectrum Disorders Project.

In the program, 12 school districts around the nation will work with The National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Three states, Wisconsin, New Mexico and Indiana, were chosen for the first year of the this program. Four school districts in each state were selected to be model programs, and Somerset was one of the four districts in Wisconsin chosen for the program.

The four state schools will work closely with the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), Department of Health and Family Services, and the state Birth to Three Program. Staffs from these four schools will participate in a training institute in June that will showcase the use of best practices for special education providers and students' families.

Experts from the National Center for Training and Development on Autism, The Autism Society, UW-Madison and the DPI will be leading this summer institute on evidence-based practices and autism services.

The effort to have Somerset considered for this program was led by Director of Pupil Services Darren Kern. He went through an extensive interview with the DPI, detailing Somerset's program for autistic children, his background and his philosophy in teaching autistic children.

Kern said the strong special education staff in the District was a key reason why Somerset was chosen. The program will be conducted in the Elementary School, which has a higher population of autistic children.

Kern said school psychologist Mary Johnson, Elementary special education teacher Sonya Stewart, Early Childhood special education teacher Eva Armstrong, occupational therapist Lisa Haverly and speech-language specialist Michelle Paulisch will all be involved in the program.

A parent will also be selected to be part of the team involved in the advancement of autism practices in the District.

What is learned at the Elementary level will then be brought to the staff at the Middle School and High School.

By being part of this program, the Somerset District has a four-year commitment to work on the leading edge of autism education.

In the first year, the Somerset staff will be involved in learning and implementing the latest in autism education. In the following three years, the District will act as a model for other schools that want to advance their autism education.

"I think that Somerset will be looked at nationally as one of the best in meeting the needs of children with autism," Kern said. "This recognizes that we do good things already and meet the needs of kids with autism."

Senior Brianna Richter blasted a shot off the post that deflected into the net for the game-winning goal as the New Richmond girls soccer team beat Spooner 2-1 in overtime on Thursday.

Richter's goal gave the Tigers the win 40 seconds into the overtime period. The Tigers had trailed 1-0 at halftime. They tied the score early in the second half on a goal by freshman Laura Troftgruben.

The Tigers controlled the action for much of the second period, but couldn't get another goal, sending the game into the overtime. In the overtime the Tigers won a battle for the ball on defense. The ball was sent to Josie Wold along the sideline. Wold moved the ball upfield, then sent a lead pass to Richter. Richter fired the shot on goal, banking the ball off the post and into the net for the game-winner.

New Richmond pitcher Nikki Singerhouse recorded the 500th strikeout of her varsity career on Thursday as the Tigers ran their season record to 5-0 with an 8-3 win over Ellsworth.

The game was stopped briefly to recognize Singerhouse's landmark strikeout. She has been the Tigers' top pitcher since her freshman season and is the team's career leader in nearly every pitching category. In 31 innings this season Singerhouse has struck out 35 batters while allowing six earned runs.

Singerhouse celebrated her accomplishment in style. She was the first batter in the next half inning for the Tigers and she belted a homer that rolled all the way to the fence in right-centerfield at Hatfield Park.