|
NOV
9 2004
* Dearborn Heights: Students
warned about strangers lurking online
Parents warn their kids about strangers. But
strangers can also exist on the Internet. About 200
first-, second- and third-graders at Madison Elementary in
Dearborn Heights learned that lesson in an Internet Safety
Workshop sponsored by SBC. Kids sat cross-legged on
the floor while they watched an interactive Internet game
that had them picking the right answer to questions such as:
What would you do if you find a Web site with pictures or
words your parents and teacher wouldn't like? What if
someone on the Internet asks you for personal information?
Source: Detroit Free Press, http://www.freep.com/money/tech/internet9e_20041109.htm
*
Royal Oak, Oakland County: Tower boosts
communications
A 256-foot communication tower is going up behind the Police
Department to help connect all of Oakland County's rescue
and public works employees. The tower will be part of a $32
million system made up of 36 transmitters covering the
900-square mile county. It will connect first responders
from 41 police departments and 39 fire departments, allowing
them to speak to one another during emergencies when several
agencies are involved. In addition to providing
communication across jurisdictional lines, for the first
time ever it will allow police officers to talk to each
other and receive dispatch information simultaneously.
Source: Daily Tribune, http://dailytribune.com/stories/110904/loc_tower08001.shtml
NOV
10 2004
* Washtenaw County: What's the
2-1-1? Services and more
Starting Monday, Washtenaw County residents can
call one phone number to find any of more than 200 social
services agencies - from a food bank to transportation help
to mentoring programs. Or, they can find a place to
volunteer. The information line known as 211 can be
dialed as a seven-digit number, 477-6211, during its first
phase, when it will be staffed from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday
through Friday. Eventually, once accreditation is received
from the Michigan Public Service Commission and the
Association of Information and Referral Services, the line
will operate around the clock and will be available by
dialing just 2-1-1.
Source: Ann Arbor News, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-10/110027220490310.xml?aanews?NEA
*
Genesee County: New IMA (Industrial Mutual
Association) Web site lists local recreational activities
A new Web site, www.geneseereczone.org,
lists upcoming recreational activities in Genesee County.
The site is administered by the Industrial Mutual
Association and includes postings from about 15 nonprofit
groups, municipal organizations and school districts. What's
currently on the site is likely just the beginning,
administrators said. The IMA hopes the new site eventually
will act as a one-stop source for recreational activities
from all municipal organizations, nonprofit groups and
county school districts. The site also will eventually allow
for participating groups to communicate more effectively,
permitting them to list help-wanted or equipment
advertisements and group e-mail, among other possibilities.
Source: Flint Journal, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-24/110010373510750.xml?fljournal?NEF
*
Roscommon County: Roscommon County joins
missing-person system
Roscommon County's law enforcement agencies have joined a
new program - "A Child is Missing" - designed to
find lost children and Alzheimer's patients faster. The
program telephones people with a recorded message, alerting
them that someone is missing in their area. Claudia
Corrigan, vice president and national expansion director for
A Child is Missing, said Roscommon County is one of the
latest Michigan municipalities to join the program. Other
area police departments enrolled include those in Tuscola,
Huron and Clare counties, she said. Lt. Mark Chapman of the
Roscommon County Sheriff's Department said the program seems
a good fit for rural Roscommon County since it asks for the
public's help in a local area, rather than blanketing the
entire state with an "Amber Alert."
Source: Bay County Times, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1100103301324690.xml?bctimes?NENE
*
Marquette County: County part of broadband project
The Marquette County Board joined the state Tuesday
in taking the first step toward extending high speed
Internet availability to every household in the county. In
September, Gov. Jennifer Granholm unveiled the Digital
Divide Investment Program. The DDIP aims to spur broadband
investment in geographic regions where high-speed Internet
service is unavailable or unaffordable. Marquette County and
the authority will now solicit qualified vendors to
implement broadband service throughout the county. The
authority will offer loans to support installation efforts
in the greater county area. Grant funds will cover the cost
of project expenses in townships with more than 50 percent
low to moderate income households. According to the
proposal, West Branch, Ewing, Republic, Michigamme and Wells
townships qualify.
Source: The Mining Journal, http://www.miningjournal.net/news/story/1110202004_new08-n1110.asp
NOV
11 2004
* Birmingham and Royal Oak:
Schools try e-mail parent-teacher meetings
As moms and dads across metro Detroit sit down this
month to hear about their children, at least two Oakland
County schools are trying something different.
Birmingham's Groves High School and Royal Oak's Shrine
Catholic Academy sent letters home this month, suggesting
that parents with highly achieving students skip the
parent-teacher conferences. Instead, they recommend parents
e-mail teachers for updates on their child's progress.
E-mail is not new to the world of education. Teachers and
parents said they are using e-mail instead of the phone more
often when communicating about students. But critics,
including the Michigan Education Association, said replacing
parent-teacher conferences with e-mail is going too far.
Source: Detroit Free Press, http://www.freep.com/news/locoak/parent11e_20041111.htm
NOV
14 2004
* Charlotte: Cyber Teen project
Every Tuesday and Thursday for 12 weeks, after school at
Charlotte Middle School, a new community service project for
teens has been taking place. Cyber Senior Cyber Teens
provides a unique opportunity for senior citizens to learn
how to use computers and access the wealth of information
available on the Internet, aided by teen coaches. "The
uniqueness of this project's intergenerational approach
builds on the computer expertise of the seventh and eighth
graders and provides an opportunity for a personal
relationship between two different generations," said
Mona Ellard, project coordinator. "This is one project
where the teens have more knowledge and skills than the
adults. And for the teens this is their first experience
with sharing their personal talents and time through
community service."
Source: Charlotte Shopping Guide, http://www.hometownlife.com/Hometownlife/NewsSearch.asp?pageType=Story&StoryID=66122;
Related article: Lansing State Journal, http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041119/NEWS05/411190314&SearchID=73190746523631
*
Ann Arbor: Magnet programs outlined - All are
designed to emphasize the use of technology in classes
Saving endangered corals, reconstructing crime scenes and
designing computer games could be part of the curriculum for
some students when Ann Arbor's new high school opens in
2007. These are just a few of the projects that will be
offered under the auspices of four magnet programs being
developed for the new school. The programs, which ultimately
will enroll 400 of the school's 1,600 students, include
environmental issues; health sciences/ biomedicine/
biotechnology; digital arts, design and communications; and
forensic research and biotechnology. Rosemary Wilson, dean
of business and computer technologies at Washtenaw Community
College, along with representatives from the Ann Arbor Area
Chamber of Commerce and the Washtenaw Intermediate School
District, gave feedback on occupational trends to the design
team as it developed the magnet program areas. In addition,
district officials visited a magnet school in Fresno,
Calif., as well as Cass Tech in Detroit to get ideas.
Source: Ann Arbor News, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-10/1100430710109820.xml?aanews?NEA
*
Bendle: Tech passes the test in Bendle
More than 600 laptop computers were distributed to
students in third through eighth grade at West Bendle
Elementary and Bendle Middle schools. Peggy O'Keefe,
Bendle's director of instruction, said the investment was
easy to justify when looking at how a pilot group of 145
students performed when they got the machines last year.
"Right away, it improved their writing and
problem-solving skills, and when you do that, kids start
performing better all across the MEAP test," she said.
"You wonder how much these can be used realistically,
but I see a math class doing problems online and knowing
right away if they're doing things right, and there are
fifth-graders asking if they can do a book report in
PowerPoint presentation. It amazes me what they can
do." O'Keefe said attendance increased in pilot program
classes after the computers debuted in February, and
students were noticeably more excited about their lessons
when the laptops were in use.
Source: Flint Journal, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-24/110044022557020.xml?fljournal?NEF
NOV
15 2004
* Port Sheldon Township: Township
supports countywide wireless system
Port Sheldon Township officials hope a county plan could
bring wireless broadband services to the rural township. The
township board Thursday passed a resolution of support for a
countywide wireless broadband network. Mark Knudson, an
Ottawa County planning official, said the plan would benefit
county residents and commercial businesses. The benefits of
a countywide system would be lower user costs, fewer
antennas and portability. Private businesses will fund the
entire cost of the project. However, county officials will
work together to target areas for antennas, help with
permits and organize all of Ottawa County's municipalities.
Source: Muskegon Chronicle, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1100533514295600.xml?muchronicle?NETR
*
Dearborn: Robot makes the rounds
Rosie, as she is known around the emergency
department, has been tooling the halls of Oakwood Hospital
and Medical Center in Dearborn for six months. The
fifth-generation remote-presence vehicle developed by
California-based InTouch Health is one of 10 such robots in
operation in hospitals around the country and the only one
in Michigan. Rosie enables an Oakwood doctor in
another part of the hospital or another part of the world to
talk to patients in the emergency department even if the
doctor isn't there in person. The full potential of the
robots is beginning to be explored. In the future, a
pediatric cardiologist at Detroit's Children's Hospital of
Michigan could consult with an emergency department
physician at Oakwood in the middle of the night. An
oncologist at the University of Michigan could look at a
tumor on a patient in Petoskey.
Source: Detroit Free Press, http://www.freep.com/news/health/robot15e_20041115.htm
NOV
16 2004
* Troy, Sterling Heights, Metro
Detroit: E-mail helps residents get the jump on crime
Now, thanks to e-mail, residents, community groups and
businesses in some communities, including Troy and Sterling
Heights, can get regular notices about crime activities in
their neighborhoods. In Troy, an e-mail is sent daily, while
in Sterling Heights, it goes out weekly. The Troy Police
Department and community can communicate back and forth
about crime trends affecting specific neighborhoods and
share information about public safety, crime prevention,
street closings, community events and more.
Source: Detroit News, http://www.detnews.com/2004/technology/0411/16/B01-5752.htm
*
Flint: Baker student gets seniors connected
Kudos to Baker College of Flint student ConTina Williams,
who organized a September workshop to help seniors
understand computers and the Internet a little better.
Williams, 32, of Flint is an open systems major at Baker and
a member of the BakerNet club. Eight people from local
homes and a couple of walk-ins from the community attended
the workshop. After Williams' presentation on the inner
workings of the Internet, she and lab aides Sara Bruce and
Jackie McGuire helped the seniors learn basic computer
hardware identification and basic computer usage. They
learned how to access e-mail, surf the Internet and use
search engines. Each participant created an e-mail account
on Yahoo to practice.
Source: Flint Journal, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1100623825183420.xml?fljournal?NCSA
NOV
17 2004
* Grosse Pointe Farms: Farms
adds new information to Web site
Grosse Pointe Farms' city leaders have been adding
new information and more frequent updates to the city's web
site, which can be found at www.ci.grosse-pointe-farms.mi.us.
At Farms City Hall, Assistant City Manager Matthew Tepper
has been charged with making changes and updating the site.
He’s been working with Farms City Council members Douglas
Roby and Charles “Terry” Davis — members of the
city’s technical committee — on how to improve the site
and evaluate potential changes. The city has had a Web site
for the last four or five years, but revamped it last year
to make it more user-friendly. It’s a process officials
are continuing now. Recent visitors may have seen council
meeting agendas and minutes, a calendar of events, rubbish
collection updates or presidential election results —
which Tepper said were made available that night, after the
city’s unofficial counts came in.
Source: Grosse Pointe Times, http://www.candgnews.com/editorial/2004/november/17/grossepointe/gpf%20web.html
NOV
18 2004
* Lansing: Lansing students
take part in worldwide GIS Day activities
A group of Lansing high-schoolers learned about mapping
technology that does everything from help paramedics find a
home to chart local results for the presidential election.
The STAR Institute, run by Lansing Community College and
located in the Lansing School District's Hill Center for
Academics and Technology, held seminars on the Geographic
Information System software. The event was part of GIS Day,
a worldwide event principally sponsored by the National
Geographic Society. Groups such as the Lansing Police
Department, Tri-County Regional Planning Commissions and
Ingham County Health Department conducted sessions on how
the software benefits society.
Source: Lansing State Journal, http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041118/NEWS05/411180339&SearchID=73190746425476
*
Hartland: Hartland teen selected as student argonaut
Valerie Wilson, 14, the only student from Michigan
to participate in the national JASON Project, as a student
argonaut in an expedition called Disappearing Wetlands to
study the threatened areas of Louisiana. The JASON
Foundation for Education was founded in 1989 by Dr. Robert
Ballard, the researcher who discovered the HMS Titanic. The
foundation sponsors yearly expeditions for selected
students, who then relay information back to central sites
for use in fourth- through eighth-grade school science
programs. Valerie said she likes hands-on science
experiences and experiments. She will use these skills
during the JASON expedition to guide students through live
and interactive satellite broadcasts in wetland research
activities. She also will share her discoveries via online
chats and journals. Michigan students will be able to watch
Valerie and interact with the expedition team through a live
satellite link between a Madison Heights JASON site set up
in the Lamphere school district.
Source: Detroit News, http://www.detnews.com/2004/livingston/0411/18/C05L-8862.htm
*
Warren: Students become authors on the Internet
Without agents, publishers or contracts, students at Warren
Consolidated Schools have worked to write stories and peddle
them to the world. As part of the Authors in Autumn program,
students at the district’s 15 elementary schools are
writing together, using an online journal (called, in
Internet terms, a blog). “The important part of the story
writing is that it’s not just whether or not the students
contribute to the story,” said Cahris Kenniburg, technical
production specialist for Warren Con. “It’s more the use
of technology to enhance the learning environment.”
Students from kindergarten to second grade are working on
one story, and grades three to eight kids are writing a
different one. Teachers can pull the story up online,
read it to their classes and then work with their students
to add to the story.
Source: Sterling Heights Mirror, http://www.hometownlife.com/Hometownlife/NewsSearch.asp?pageType=Story&StoryID=67182
*
Washtenaw County: College on Demand is new WCC
venture
WCC is going global. A new program called College on Demand
combines the convenience and flexibility of distance
learning with the personal touch of a classroom instructor.
It's open not only to Washtenaw County students but to
students around the country and even around the world. The
program, launched this fall to a test group and opened last
week to the general public, has WCC President Larry
Whitworth seeing green. He hopes the college will someday
clear more than $1 million a year from COD, revenue that
would be used for general operations.
Source: Ann Arbor News, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-11/110081041168740.xml?aanews?NEA
NOV
19 2004
* Macomb County: New video
recording system eases circuit court workload
Macomb Circuit Court Judge Donald G. Miller is the
fifth Macomb Circuit judge to get an in-court video
recording system. It's the latest word in courtroom
video systems, with 11 microphones located strategically
around the courtroom to pick up every word, and five
in-court cameras to record every piece of action and drama.
Miller gushes over some of the unique features, such as a
video recording system in his conference room that could be
used to take depositions or testimony if the statements
couldn't be taken in court. Television monitors are located
in the judge's chamber and four other rooms. It not only
enables court personnel and visitors to view proceedings
without being in the court, it also allows Miller and his
staff to see who enters the court when it is not in session.
Source: Detroit News, http://www.detnews.com/2004/macomb/0411/19/D05-9588.htm
*
Traverse City: TNT (Traverse Narcotics Team) receives
grant for new computers
Traverse Narcotics Team officers will be able to
find information a little faster thanks to a grant from
Cadillac Area Community Foundation. The CACF awarded TNT a
$4,000 grant for the purchase of three new computers. TNT
board members as well as TNT Commander Chet Wilson, were in
attendance to accept the check. "This was heaven sent
for us. Our computer equipment is approximately five to six
years old. It would not support the new computer reporting
systems we have to work from," Wilson said.
Source: Cadillac News, http://www.cadillacnews.com/articles/2004/11/19/news/news08.txt
*
Carson City: Teaching technology
Elementary technology teacher Angie Vandewarker travels to
the elementary schools in Carson City, Crystal and
Hubbardston to teach students about technology --
specifically computer use. Vandewarker tries to cater
to all learning styles by singing computer songs while
playing her musical keyboard and requiring a hands-on
approach for students and their computers. Carson
City-Crystal Area Schools recently held the Thank Goodness
for Technology Week, which is popular with parents and
grandparents, according to Vandewarker. "It's a bridge
between the community and the education world," she
said. "We want the parents to see what the children are
doing. Several of them say to me, 'Can I come to your
class?'"
Source: The Daily News, http://www.thedailynews.cc/articles/2004/11/19/carsoncity/gaz02.txt
NOV
21 2004
* Grand Ledge: City upgrades
data technology
The city is replacing its information technology system by
replacing city hall, city hall annex, and public service
department workstations, connecting the city hall annex
workstations to the city hall computer network, and
installing a high speed cable modem for use by city hall,
city hall annex and the police department. A wire will be
run from city hall, annex office, and police department,
effectively networking all city operations. The cable modem
will allow the city to place the city assessor's data on its
Web site, as well as other public information.
Source: Grand Ledge Independent, http://www.hometownlife.com/Hometownlife/NewsSearch.asp?pageType=Story&StoryID=67753
*
Oakland County: Online penalty payment procedure
proves popular with ticket holders
Local speeders and scofflaws are moving quickly to pay their
penalties electronically. After less than a year in
operation, Oakland County's 52nd District Court "Pay
Tickets" online service has reached the half million
dollar mark and is being hailed as a success. Since
Dec. 9, 2003, nearly 5,000 tickets have been paid online,
representing total fees of $500,000. Approximately 55
percent of all tickets paid online were from the 52-3
District Court in Rochester Hills," said Judge Julie
Nicholson. "Those individuals who utilized the system
were able to pay their tickets without having to travel to
the courthouse and taking time off work."
Nicholson also credits the "Pay Tickets" online
feature with reducing customer and vehicle congestion at the
courthouse. It also enables the court to reassign personnel
to more pressing cases, she said.
Source: Rochester Eccentric, http://www.hometownlife.com/Hometownlife/NewsSearch.asp?pageType=Story&StoryID=67459
*
Walkerville: Walkerville will soon be an on-ramp to
the information superhighway
Hilda Legg, an administrator from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, came to Walkerville with a check for nearly a
half-million dollars that will pay for a tower as well as 10
broadband computers at the high school that local residents
will be free to use. The $444,363 check also will cover the
costs of the wireless broadband Internet for the school
system and village offices. The money came from the USDA's
Rural Development program, which gave out $8.86 million in
"Community Connect" grants to bring high-speed
wireless Internet to 16 isolated communities nationwide.
Wireless technology provides Walkerville pretty much the
only hope of getting beyond dial-up Internet carried on
phone lines that in this age is considered tediously slow
and limited.
Source: Muskegon Chronicle, http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-5/11010357105090.xml?muchronicle?NEM
*
Oakland County: High tech system helps fight crime
An ambitious technology plan seven years in the making will
soon bring Oakland County criminals, judges and prosecutors
together -- though the individuals will likely be miles
apart. The county's top crime fighters on Tuesday will
unveil the nearly $7 million OakVideo arraignment system,
which will allow real-time interactions with criminals,
prosecutors, judges and police officers via a secure fiber
optic connection. Ferndale's Police Department and district
court have tested the project during the past few years, but
the system will eventually link about 100 Oakland County
police departments and district and circuit courts with the
county prosecutor's office in Pontiac.
Source: Detroit News, http://www.detnews.com/2004/oakland/0411/23/E05-11241.htm
NOV
22 2004
* Monroe: Property info on city
Web site
Property information was quietly uploaded to the
city's Internet site after Monroe City Council members
debated the issue and took no action earlier this year. The
issues spurred opposition from council members and residents
as some thought the information, which includes sales
prices, tax bills, even pictures, should be kept only at
Monroe City Hall. Supporters of the initiative said it would
cut down on the number of daily phone calls from real estate
agents and banks that constantly need property information
from the city. The information also was to be the first
steps in a broader plan that would eventually have citizens
actually conducting city business online, such as paying
water bills or signing up for recreation programs. The
information is searchable by address or parcel number. No
names are on the site.
Source: Monroe Evening News, http://www.monroenews.com/articles/2004/11/22/news/news01.txt
|
