When Scott May announced he is resigning his job as head football coach Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) High School after 11 years at the helm, it didn’t take long for the rumor mill to start up and speculate who May’s successor will be.
Hamilton Southeastern School Board President Matt Burke addressed those rumors at the Wednesday night board meeting.
“There is a group of individuals in the community who believe the decision has already been made,” said Burke. “I think what they are implying from that is they don’t like what they believe that predetermined decision is going to be. And it’s fair to say a decision has not been made.”
School administrators, in answer to a question from board member Terry Tolle about the status of the head football coach opening, said the position was posted Wednesday morning.
This is a chance to support a new organization formed to support local fire and police departments. The fund raiser is set for Wednesday, November 8th, at Four Day Ray, 5:30-7:30pm. You can learn more about the 50 club by listening to a podcast recorded in August 29th, at this link
Below is a news release with more details on the 50 Club:
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Fishers Police Department and Fishers Fire Department would like to express our sincere appreciation to the Fishers Fifty Club, which was officially established June 27, 2017.
The primary goal of the Fifty Club is to raise funds to support the families of Fishers firefighters and police officers in the event of a catastrophic injury or line of duty death of an emergency responder. These funds are raised through drives and events organized by the members of the club and dispersed to the family in a timely fashion for immediate needs.
Fire Chief Steve Orusa expressed his “gratitude for the generosity of these members of our community in the thoughtful, impactful approach to caring for our responder’s families.”
Police Chief Mitch Thompson added, “It is an honor to see our men and women’s professionalism and contribution recognized by our community and an avenue of relief for our responders knowing their family will be cared for in the event of their death in the performance of duties.”
Founding of this chapter of the Fifty Club is James Ratliff, Steven Lutz and Richard Block. Having set the basis for this chapter, they are now accepting other business and philanthropic members of the community to join them as the founding donors of the organization.
The public is invited to attend a Mix and Mingle fundraising event on November 8 from 5:30pm to 7:30pm at Four Day Ray Brewing. FDR is located at 11671 Lantern Rd.
There has been no line of duty police officer deaths in the history of Fishers Police Department and one line of duty Fishers firefighter death of Raymond “Bud” Moulder on October 13, 1967. Bud left behind a wife and five children while saving the life of another firefighter as his last act in this world.
Teachers in the Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) school system voted to ratify a new contract bargained with the school administration. The Hamilton Southeastern Education Association (HSEA) and officials representing the school corporation reached a tentative agreement in October. Teachers voted on that contract November 1-3.
HSEA President Janet Chandler tells LarryInFishers once teachers votes were counted, the pact was ratified. The school board will vote on the contract at the regular meeting Wednesday night to put the final seal of approval on the new agreement.
The contract extends for two years. covering the calendar years of 2018 & 2019. At the October 25th Hamilton Southeastern School Board meeting, Superintendent Allen Bourff outlined the main provisions of the agreement. The contract includes:
–In 2018, teachers will receive an average pay increase of 2.73%, with salaries ranging from a low of $40,158 up to high of $79,085.
–In 2019, the average salary increase will be 2.66%, with the low $40,158 and the high $79,751.
–There will be a group of teachers not always falling under the increases described above due to what is described as a”reset,” which is an effort to increase the pay of newly hired teachers who suffered pay caps during the tough budget years.
–Health insurance premiums will not increase in 2018, but 2019 premiums will depend on what the school system experiences in health claims, and that data is not known yet.
–Teacher compensation for extracurricular activities will not change in the current 2017-2018 school year, but the school corporation will inject $17,500 into that money pool during the 2018-2019 school year.
–The administration Power Point presentation says this contract will increase teacher compensation by just over $6.4 million during the 2-year duration of the pact.
There will be a large number of Fishers-area Colts fans traveling toward Lucas Oil Stadium November 12th to watch the home team take on the Pittsburgh Steelers. Fans are asked to bring along any used or unused cell phones, which will be used for domestic violence victims.
The Verizon Wireless Hopeline program allows individuals to donate no-longer-used wireless phones and accessories that directly benefit their local communities. Verizon turns these devices into support for local domestic violence organizations and programs.
Wireless phones and accessories – in any shape and from any carrier – can be donated on game day from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. outside Lucas Oil Stadium entrance gates where up to 30 volunteers will be assisting in the collection.
The fan donations will directly benefit survivors of domestic violence who live in transitional housing at Coburn Place in Indianapolis. Since opening in 1996, Coburn Place – which serves residents throughout Indiana – has provided 564,907 days and nights of housing to 708 adults and 1,148 children.
“Coburn Place wouldn’t exist to offer safe and secure housing with access to meaningful resources without donations like these,” said Julia Kathary, president and executive director of Coburn Place.
(Note: Previous versions of this story said the collection was for unused cell phones…in fact they will accept any cell phone, no matter how used)
When it was announced that the city would sink $7 million into revamping the area of the Municipal Complex between the Amphitheater and City Hall, it was clear the construction timeline would be tight. City officials want the area completed by mid-May 2018.
City spokeswoman Casey Cawthon says work on the Amphitheater upgrade could begin as early as this week. So, if you are around the City Hall, you will soon see crews beginning to work around that area.
This project includes a redesign of the parking configuration for Amphitheater events. Also included are plans to move the stage further out to allow for more arts events, such as plays and space for an orchestra. The Amphitheater roof will be aligned consistent with these changes.
Ratio Architects is designing the plans for remodeling the Amphitheater.
I am in the middle of a project, traveling the state of Indiana instructing the Indiana University Tax Practitioner Institutes. But I have kept my eye on the unveiling of the House Republican leadership tax proposal, released just days ago.
There is a lot to digest there and I won’t put you all to sleep by going over all or most of it. But I do want to comment on one part of this plan that could have a major impact in charitable organizations, nation-wide and locally.
In order to take a deduction for charitable contributions, you must be able to itemize your deductions. That means your Schedule A total deductions, part of your individual federal income Form 1040, must be higher than your standard deduction in order to enjoy the benefit of taking a tax deduction for charitable giving on your income tax return.
The House Republican tax legislation would double the standard deduction. This would be a major tax benefit for those regularly taking the standard deduction because they don’t have enough Schedule A deductions available.
However, the Tax Policy Institute estimates that under this tax proposal, 84% of those currently itemizing their deductions would switch to taking the higher standard deduction. With fewer taxpayers itemizing, fewer returns would glean any tax benefit from contributing to eligible charitable organizations.
That would be a major challenge to tax exempt organizations under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. Fewer of their donors would benefit from a tax deduction as a result of their donations.
According to a story broadcast on National Public Radio (NPR), Una Osili, of the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, estimates this change would lead to a reduction of up to $13 billion a year in charitable giving, with 28 million fewer Americans itemizing their returns. Osili says it doesn’t mean these people would stop giving, just that they’re likely to give less.
It is very important to note that this is just the opening proposal in a long legislative process. This measure must be marked-up (meaning, details written) in the House Ways and Means Committee. It must go through the House Rules Committee which will decide how many, if any, amendments will be considered once the legislation is considered on the House floor.
There are reports that members of the Senate Finance Committee are already working on a major re-write of any measure coming from the House. So we are a long way from any actual final tax bill.
However, where the plan starts is also very important, so we all need to pay close attention to this. Anyone involved in a local Fishers-area charitable organization needs to know that this part of the tax proposal, if part of a final bill (assuming there is one in the end), contains this doubling of the standard deduction without any changes in the charitable giving deduction rules, it would have a major impact on your fund-raising.
By the way, I recorded a podcast with my colleagues working with me on the IU Tax Practitioner Institute. It was recorded before the House tax proposal was released. You can listen to that podcast at this link.
Saturday was a busy basketball day at Fishers, as the Tigers hosted the Fishers Classic.
The event featured a whole slate of varsity and junior varsity games. The
Tigers and Hamilton Southeastern both took on teams from Ben Davis and
Southport, and both programs’ varsity teams went 2-0 on the day.
In their first game, the Tigers cruised past Southport 66-39. Fishers led 19-8 after
the first quarter, then 30-24 at halftime.
“I thought the kids played really well,” said Tigers coach Lauren Vail. “We
came out against Southport and played really well early and then had a little bit of
a lull in the second quarter.”
But any hope of a Cardinals comeback was squelched when the Tigers scored 22
points in the third period. Vail said that her team came out “and really played the way
that I know we’re capable of doing” after halftime.
Kenedi London led Fishers with 20 points, followed by Toni Grace with 18 and
Ali Gerka with 11.
In their second game of the day, the Tigers took care of Ben Davis 54-41. Fishers
led 13-7 after the first period, then ran away with the second quarter, leading 37-17 at
halftime.
It was Grace’s turn to score 20 points in this game, which she did, including a 9-of-
12 effort from the free throw line. Tamia Perryman added 10 points.
Vail said her team “came out and really rebounded the basketball well early, which
helped us to get out and run in transition. Ben Davis put a lot of pressure on us in the
second half. We were able to hold on and secure that win, so that was nice.”
Southeastern played Ben Davis first, and used a big third quarter to get a 60-57 victory
in its first game of the season. The Giants led 27-24 at halftime, but the Class 4A No.
4 Royals powered through the third quarter, scoring 21 points to take a 45-38 lead.
Southeastern then held off the expected BD comeback in the fourth period.
Sydney Parrish opened her sophomore season with a double-double, scoring 21
points and grabbing 11 rebounds, in addition to four steals. Amaya Hamilton had 10
points and seven boards. Molly Walton yanked eight rebounds and handed out four
assists.
The Royals sailed past Southport 65-30 to run their record to 2-0 for the day, and
their season. A big second quarter turned a 16-8 lead after one period into a 35-12
advantage at halftime.
Parrish scored 16 points, while Tayah Irvin added 12. Walton pulled 13 rebounds,
followed by Parrish with eight, Irvin with six and Erikka Ededuwa had five. Walton
also made five steals.
“I thought defensively we were pretty solid throughout the whole game,” said HSE
coach Chris Huppenthal. “It’s a good way to start the season, playing a fast team like Ben
Davis, and then coming back against Southport. We saw some good things, some
things that we’re going to look at on film and then try and get better through the week and
get ready to play next weekend.”
Adam & I review the film Lucky, the final performance for the late actor Harry Dean Stanton. Our guest this week is Hannah West, director and producer of a short film on the local opioid epidemic, “Not in Vain.” You can view her film at this link.
Local shoppers stroll through the Winter Fishes Farmers’ Market
The Fishers Winter Farmers’ Market moved this year from the Billericay Park building to Holland Park, allowing more space for vendors and shoppers. The first event of the season on November 4th drew more vendors and a number of shoppers to the new location.
The Farmers’ Market will continue each Saturday 9am-12 noon throughout the winter season.
Fishers’ Matt Wolff (8) was responsible for three touchdowns in the Tigers’ 28-7 sectional championship win over Pike Friday at Reynolds Tigers Stadium. Wolff threw two touchdown passes to Isaiah Dunnuck in the first half, then ran the ball in to score in the third quarter. Reporter photo by Kirk Green
Hamilton County Reporter
There’s no better place to avenge a regular-season loss than in the sectional
championship game.
Fishers did just that on Friday. The Tigers won the Class 6A Sectional 5 title by
beating Pike 28-7 at Reynolds Tigers Stadium. This marks the third sectional championship for Fishers in its still-young football history; the Tigers also won in 2010 (on
their way to a state title) and in 2012.
Fishers will host Ben Davis for next week’s regional championship.
The Red Devils beat Fishers 43-0 in Week 2 of the regular season. According to
John Harrell’s website, there are eight teams that avenged regular-season losses in the
sectional, and the Tigers’ victory was the biggest swing of all – 64 points.
“I feel like we were capable of playing this way,” said Fishers coach Rick Wimmer.
“It’s kind of the way we have to play. We have to control the ball. We’re not going to
score a lot of points, but we possess the ball and not give the other team too many
possessions, too many opportunities and we’re playing good defense.”
The Tigers scored a touchdown each quarter. The scores in the first half both were
on short passes from Matt Wolff to Isaiah Dunnuck. The duo connected on a five-yard
pass play late in the first period, then on a six-yard throw with 1:40 left in the second.
The Tigers scored a touchdown each quarter. The scores in the first half both were
on short passes from Matt Wolff to Isaiah Dunnuck. The duo connected on a five-yard
pass play late in the first period, then on a six-yard throw with 1:40 left in the second.
The Tigers’ defense stepped up big time. Pike averaged 33 points per game coming
into the sectional final, but Fishers allowed the Red Devils a lone touchdown in the third
quarter. The seven points Pike scored was its lowest output of the season.
“Defensively we didn’t give up big chunk plays for touchdowns,” said Wimmer.
“We planned much better. Guys just playing better. Our defensive coaches have done a
tremendous job of getting problems fixed that we had early in the year. They get a lot
of the credit for this one. We’ve been playing better and better defense the last few
weeks.”
Wimmer also credited the offensive line for playing well, saying that his offense is being “pretty efficient.” The Tigers were almost perfectly balanced between the two
phases: Fishers rushed for 132 yards and Wolff threw for 126 yards on 9-of-17 passing.
Scally ran for 98 yards.
“Best game our offensive line has played,” said Wimmer. “That’s the first time
this offensive line played together, and this is what we thought we’d be getting to.”
