A prom is supposed to be a time of joy, an important part of going through high school.  At Hamilton Heights High School Saturday night, that joy turned to sorrow and grief as two students headed to the prom died in a vehicle crash at 281st Street and Lacy Road.

Kalen Hart, a student at Heights, was in the front seat of a 4-door car when there was a collision with an SUV.  Also in the front seat was Cathedral High School student Lendon Byram.  Both died in the crash.

Two students in the back seat suffered what police say were non-life-threatening injuries.  The driver of the SUV refused treatment.  The Hamilton County Sheriff’s office is investigating.

The prom was cancelled and grief counselors will be available to students as classes resume today (Monday).

It is difficult to put into words how the entire community of Hamilton County feels after this tragic event.  Seeing news accounts of some of the memorials and comments from people close to both of these students breaks one’s heart.

For the friends and family members of Kelan Hart and Lendon Byram, know that this local community is with you and ready to do whatever we all can to support you in this moment of sorrow.

As someone that writes regularly, it is not possible to put feelings into words at a time like this.

Hamilton County Reporter

Hamilton County Reporter

Hamilton County will break ground on a new parking garage at Eighth and Clinton streets in Noblesville at 10 a.m. on Monday, May 10. The new garage will consolidate parking for county employees who currently use several lots around downtown Noblesville.

“Building this parking garage will prevent county employees from having to cross Indiana State Road 32 to get to the government center, which can be dangerous,” said Mark Heirbrandt, president of the Hamilton County Commissioners. “This parking garage will also help us accommodate a burgeoning court system. Hamilton County will soon get another judge which means more jury members, attorneys, and judges.”

Building of the new garage also frees up land on the south side of Conner Street that is currently being used for county parking. The City of Noblesville and J.C. Hart have agreed to purchase the lot from the county for $4.5 million and plan to develop a $47 million mixed-use development with commercial and retail space.

“This is a win-win for everyone involved,” Heirbrandt added. “That property sits near the river and is prime for redevelopment. As it is now, that land is not taxable because it is owned by the county. But selling it and putting it back on the tax rolls will generate tax income for Noblesville.”

The five-story garage is expected to cost $11.5 million. It will have 475 parking spaces. It should be open by February of next year. The public will be able to use the parking garage after 5 p.m. on weekdays and on the weekends.

Anyone reading local social media lately has likely run across a number of posts and comments about HSE Schools.

First, a group calling themselves “Fishers One” is organizing and posting online, first about the school board’s process for selecting the new HSE School Superintendent.  Other posts from the group have been critical of the SEL (social, emotional learning) program at HSE Schools and SEEL at the high school level (social emotional equity learning).

Another group has emerged online taking the opposite view, with the name of “One Fishers.”

As you can see, you need a scorecard to keep track of the players.

In his weekly video update, HSE Superintendent Allen Bourff addresses what he describes as “some of the misconceptions that have recently circulated online regarding the district’s social, emotional, learning (SEL), as well as the equity & inclusion work.”

Bourff describes SEL as a way to promote students’ life skills, needed for the work place, college or military service.  To Dr. Bourff, SEL includes conflict resolution, time management, communication, empathy and self awareness.

This is nothing new to public schools, according to Dr. Bourff.  “School’s have fostered students’ social, emotional development for years,” the superintendent said. “It’s been known as character development, sportsmanship or citizenship.”

He describes the SEL program in grades kindergarten through 8th grade as a research based program used by other Indiana school districts.

All the SEL lessons are available on the school district Web site using this link.

This is the first year high schools will be piloting SEEL content.  Each high school will take a slightly different approach to this  “We call it SEEL because in High Schools our equity coaches have partnered with the SEL coordinators to develop the content,” said Bourff.

Dr. Bourff then turned his attention to assertions HSE Schools are promoting Critical Race Theory in SEL and curriculum, saying this is not happening in the district, “it is not true.”

“Equity & inclusion work has been embedded in our district since 2004,” said Dr. Bourff in the video.  “The district considers its responsibility to create a safe space where students can grow academically and socially.  We work together as central office administrators, principals, counselors and teachers to prepare students for the future that awaits them.  It’s a collaborative effort.”

Dr. Bourff’s entire video posted Friday afternoon can be viewed at this link.

It’s time for the weekly road construction update from the City of Fishers.

Below is the full listing, as provided by the city:

================

The Fishers Police Department and the local YMCA are teaming-up to offer a Teen Academy this summer.

For details, see the news release below issued by the Fishers Police:

===============

The 19th session of the Fishers Police Department Teen Academy will be held in conjunction with the Fishers YMCA from July 19-23, 2021.  This year’s academy will be held at Riverside Intermediate in Fishers.  The Teen Academy is one week of law enforcement-type training that will allow teens to better understand how law enforcement works.

            The purpose of the academy is to provide teens with an opportunity to better understand police officers and, more specifically, to strengthen the relationship between the officers of the Fishers Police Department and the community.  Officers will provide an overview of the roles and responsibilities of FPD Officers and insight into some of the specialized units and skills within FPD.  Topics will include how to make a traffic stop, how the K-9 Unit works within the agency, the role of the Fishers Dive Team, how Crime Scene Investigators process scenes, and how to safely navigate social media and the internet. Students will have some classroom instruction and practical role play training each day.

The academy will begin with physical fitness at 9:00 each morning.  Participants will then attend informational sessions followed by practical hands-on training to reinforce the lesson(s) of the day.  Each day will end with a social activity between officers and students, and participants will be dismissed at 3:30 p.m.

            The academy is open to youth in junior high and high school.  Applicants must be enrolled in or planning to attend a junior high or high school in Fishers in the fall of 2021.  Each applicant is subject to a screening process; advanced registration is required.  Walk-ins will not be allowed.  There are a total of 40 spots available for this year’s academy.  Begin the registration process by submitting interest at this link, https://www.fishers.in.us/1331/Teen-Academy-Registration.  Once pre-registration and the background screening have been completed and an applicant has been approved for participation, applicants will receive an email from FISHERS, IN with final registration information and camp details.

            Registration is open April 30, 2021 through June 4, 2021.

We now know the approved start and end times of the school day in the 2021-2022 school year following a vote by the Hamilton Southeastern School Board Wednesday.  Elementary students will begin their day at 7:40am. Intermediate/Junior HIgh at 9:15am and High School at 8:30am.  The changes were made to accommodate the bus scheduling system, which helps in the budgeting for the coming school year.

The board was presented with new scheduling proposals for both high schools and two junior highs.

To review the proposal for the high schools, use this link.

Only two junior high school buildings are proposing new schedules for the coming school year, Fall Creek and HSE Intermediate / Junior High.  You may those tentative schedules at this link.

Administrators are also proposing Targeted Learning Time, replacing Smart Periods, as a way to address learning loss.  For more on that proposal, use this link.  The reference to SEEL stands for Social Emotional Equity Learning.

The board voted unanimously to allow students to keep their issued electronic devices this summer without an extra rental fee with the need for summer remediation programs.

The board gave final approval to the school calendars for the next two school years.

The 2021-2022 calendar is available at this link.

The 2022-2023 calendar can be found at this link.

When Janet Chandler began teaching at Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) High School, it was a mostly rural school with a relatively small student count.  She saw that change dramatically over the years.  Ms. Chandler is being recognized for her years of service to HSE Schools and her students.

Ms. Chandler was recently honored by the president of the Indiana State Teachers Association with the 2021 Hoosier Educator of the Year Award.  She is the president of the Hamilton Southeastern Education Association and will represent Indiana at the national-level as she competes with teachers across the nation for the National Education Association Foundation Award for Teaching Excellence.

The HSE School Board recognized Ms. Chandler with a trophy Wednesday night.

In addition to serving as the long-time President of the Hamilton Southeastern Education Association, Ms. Chandler coaches the Mock Trial and We The People teams at HSE High School.

HSE Schools produced a video in Ms. Chandler’s honor, which can be viewed on the school district’s Facebook page at this link.

After a summer of 2020 which mostly had us staying home, the City of Fishers has an ambitious list of events this 2021 summer season.  All events will be handled in close consultation with the Fishers Health Department.

It all begins in a few days, May1st.  There is plenty of parking in nearby garages.

Here is the list, as provided by the City of Fishers:

========================

Fishers Parks’ Summer Camps
Begins June 7
Still looking for the perfect summer camp for your child? Registration is ongoing for Fishers Parks’ annual summer camp program, which offers a wide variety of adventure with 19 camps in our parks, at the new Maker Playground at Hub & Spoke, at the AgriPark, and in HSE Schools. See a full camp lineup at playfishers.com/SummerCamp.