News

By Lynn Binnie
Whitewater Banner volunteer staff
whitewaterbanner@gmail.com
November 23, 2020

At the regular, virtual board meeting on November 23, Whitewater Unified School District Administrator Dr. Caroline Pate-Hefty informed the members of the recommendations of the Walworth and Rock County Health Departments that in-person instruction be paused due to the rapid increase in COVID-19 infections in the area and the expectation of further increases related to the holidays. After hearing mixed comments from parents and teachers for nearly an hour, board members discussed various options but ultimately adopted the proposal that was offered by Dr. Pate-Hefty:
November 30 – No school; prep day for staff
December 1 – Virtual instruction begins
January 18 – Return to in-person instruction
Exceptions to the above: Early childhood and 4K will continue with five days per week in-person instruction, as will students who are recognized as having special needs due to learning style or lack of adequate Internet access.

The proposal was accepted on a 4-3 vote, with Thayer Coburn, Kelly Davis, and Jennifer Kienbaum opposed.

Addendum – Nov. 24

Last week both Walworth and Rock Counties had reverted to their Phase I COVID-19 guidance. In that phase, Walworth County Health & Human Service’s guidance, developed early in the pandemic, recommended that there be no in-person instruction for K-12 and higher education. Specific guidance that was provided last Friday by Walworth County was to consider using virtual instruction for at least one week after a holiday, though they felt it would be prudent to follow the 14-day quarantine period recommended by CDC. It is the first time that Walworth County has issued such a recommendation during the pandemic. Rock County’s guidance is specifically to pause in-person instruction for at least two weeks after a holiday. Following the full guidance would result in a return to in-person instruction for only seven days between Thanksgiving and the winter break. Jefferson County’s guidance has not changed; however, under their existing guidance schools would already have been pausing in-person instruction for a long time.

Several area schools have decided to pause in-person instruction for the holidays, including Cambridge (until January 25), Edgerton (Nov. 30-Jan. 18), and Milton (Nov. 30-Jan.15).

Dr. Pate-Hefty indicated that if the board decided to return to virtual instruction, she would recommend that the early childhood and 4K classes continue as is, and that face-to-face instruction time be increased for those grades using virtual instruction. A particular concern is the elementary students, whose attention can only be expected to be held to a screen for a reasonable period of time, but a proposed schedule has been developed that would provide more vitual teacher contact.

Six parents spoke in opposition to the proposal to return to virtual instruction. Some argued that students were safer at school, as evidenced by only one apparent in-school incidence of transmission. Concern was also expressed regarding virtual learning not being as effective as in-person and parents having to take time off work in order to care for children and assist with their learning.

Mandi Kolb, a 911 dispatcher, indicated that she has a child in elementary and another in Middle School. She stated that at work she is taking call after call related to COVID. Ms. Kolb stated that “we need to be kind and courteous and not blame the staff….We all want kids in school. The Board has the hardest job. It’s about the community.”

Kate McNulty, a Spanish and speech communication teacher at WHS, felt that every choice the board has made has been the “best of worse options.” She stated that she appreciated the proposal rather than to wait for serious illness. There are students who don’t feel safe. Recently she had only 9 students present of a class of 21. Rosalinda Martinez, ELL teacher at WMS/WHS stated that the health staff have worked tirelessly in doing contact tracing and notification. She has heard from many parents asking why school is still open.

Board member Kelly Davis stated that she feels the State has failed to provide leadership on the issue, pitting district against district. “Anything we do is going to be wrong,” she stated.

Member Jennifer Kienbaum stated that she has read every email and feels the frustration and anxiety from parents and staff. She has recently been visiting the schools and found good compliance with social distancing and following other guidelines.

Member Steve Ryan stated that a lot of districts that started full in-person are now going virtual. He was most concerned about reports that students do not feel safe going to school.

Member Thayer Coburn said, “We were willing to close in March; the numbers are far higher now.” He stated, however, that he wasn’t sure if all grade levels needed to be treated the same.

Member Casey Judd indicated that the new recommendations came out due to concerns with hospital capacity and lack of PPE.

It appeared that the three members who voted against the proposal might have supported pausing the Middle School and High School but either continuing full in-person or hybrid instruction at the elementary level.

In other business:

Brianna Pope was approved to be hired for Homeless Outreach under a three-year grant.

Approval was given to purchase an air cooled chiller for the High School at a cost of $293,600. The current original equipment chiller is water cooled, but according to Business Manager Matthew Sylvester-Knudtson, the advantages of air cooled equipment justify the additional cost of approximately $60,000.

The meeting adjourned at 9:00 p.m. The video of the meeting may be found here.

(Whitewater Unites Lives submission) Whitewater Middle School Builders Club students and the Whitewater High School Key Club students are WUL Hometown Heroes “For providing a service to the community by raking leaves at the school, Lima Cemetery, Calvary Cemetery, several residents’ yards, Whitewater Congregational Church, Culver’s, Whitewater Islamic Center, and Rollie Cooper’s farm.”

Both the Builders Club and the Key Club are a part of the Whitewater Kiwanis Breakfast Club family.

Benjamin Holzem, Associate Principal of Whitewater Middle School, who organized the event said, “Builders Club provides our students with the opportunity of getting out into our community and serving others. We are finding that it promotes leadership and good citizenship among our students. From that perspective this program is absolutely invaluable. It also provides our community with the opportunity of witnessing the efforts of the great students we have at Whitewater Middle School. We are genuinely proud of them and their efforts.  Forty students, including 31 from the Middle School and 9 from the High School worked hard.”

Other projects planned for the group include:  they are working the Kiwanis Poinsettia pick-up at the Middle School on November 24, the Humane Society of Jefferson County on projects TBD (likely a rabbit habitat), painting a mural at Washington Elementary, participating in future Spaghetti Dinners and Kiwanis Pancake Breakfasts, and working with Circle K (the UW-W Kiwanis Club) on cards for residents at Fairhaven. The students will likely come up with other ideas as they go along.

Following are names of some of the students involved:

2020 Rake & Run Attendance Document
Friday , November 6th (7:30AM-4:00PM)
Student Name	Grade
Alexa Arrendondo	6
Josalyn Selby	6
Brianna Valdez	6
Abigale McGarey	6
Payton Peacock	6
Pamela LeQuire	6
Emily Zeferino-Hernandez	6
Rachel Breiseth	7
Elora Wildermuth-Breitzman–WWUSD Student attending virtually	7
Emmanuel Cansino-Pena	7
Peyton Clark	7
Lucy Davis	7
Mya Graves-Koran	7
Ava Hensen	7
Jackson Repinski	7
Daniela Valadez	7
Lilly Huebanks	7
Willow Vogelsang	8
Alexia Virgo	8
Odette Romero-Bustos	8
Maritza Vidales	8
Estefany Reyes	8
Ariadna Gonzalez Cervantes	8
Aimee Servin	8
Jackie Franco	8
Isabel Aranda	8
Kaden Thorne–WWUSD Virtual Student	9
Rayne Caughlin–WHS F2F Student	9
Xander Jochims–WWUSD Virtual Student	9

WUL (Whitewater Unites Lives) is a locally-focused civil and human rights group that works to connect the people in our community and to create opportunities for all people to learn and support each other in our common humanity.   

 Anyone who would like to nominate a local hero of any age should send their nomination, with a short description, to whitewaterunites@gmail.com 

Readers share their vision.

The next few weeks are generally the most vibrant of the year. People look forward to gathering with family and friends near and far, shopping for just that right gift for that very special person and decorating the home and yard to dispel the fact that it gets dark by 5 p.m. now.

Although 2020 will be a year the history books will include for both its traumas and tribulations on a number of levels, the COVID-19 virus, in particular, has been the cause of an entire change of life for all of us. One of the “silver linings” to the COVID cloud has been the resurgence of the limitless creativity of our friends and neighbors in “working around” the changes in how we celebrate special events. You have seen them, we’re sure, that early “Heart Hunt” which had lots of our neighbors putting up wonderfully creative displays of hearts to let the community know we were all in this pandemic together; drive by birthday parties for young and old; classic vehicle parades to cheer up folks dutifully adhering to the “safer at home” requests; honoring special folks for going over and above for their neighbors.

Now, we’d like to ask the entire community to muster up their best creative ideas to decorate their homes and yards so that, despite the cancellation of several of our traditional celebrations, families would still be able to get in their cars and do a “neighborhood holiday road trip” to see lights, trees and displays that help us warm our hearts and once again bring smiles to faces we haven’t been able to see for a while. It will be a safe way for the community to share their Season’s Greeting. Perhaps there would be enough interest that reports could be filed with the Banner as to which streets should NOT BE MISSED! Or maybe folks can send in photos to the Banner so those who are unable to get out of their home can see what joy their neighbors are sharing.

A valuable local resource for picking up affordable decorations would be the Thrift Shoppe, 123 S. Church St. Per their Facebook page, “Give a call for your appointment. (262)473-3138 Wednesday & Friday 1-4 p.m. Saturday 10-2 p.m.”

We’ve already noticed folks who have taken advantage of the great weather we had earlier this month to put up their holiday decorations. Let’s continue to do that and turn those lights on right after Thanksgiving!

We wish you a very blessed holiday season!

Rick and Jeanine Fassl

Our thanks to Rick and Jeanine Fassl for submitting these encouraging suggestions.

— Our Readers Share: We hope that you might have something that you’d be willing to share.  Anything that’s been created by someone else should, of course, be credited, and you should ask their permission if you’re able. We cannot post copyrighted material without permission. We can’t guarantee that we’ll have space for all submissions, and contributions will be subject to editorial board approval. The one definite exclusion is anything politically oriented. We will assume that you’re willing for us to include your name as the submitter unless you indicate that you prefer to remain anonymous. Send to whitewaterbanner@gmail.com or click on “submit a story” near the top right of our homepage.  Thanks for thinking about this!

Music Mosaics Fall 2020 Ends With Tribute to Charlie “Yardbird” Parker

UW-Whitewater Department of Music – Faculty Jazz Tribute

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Music Mosaics series features an energetic tribute to jazz legend Charlie Parker. Tickets are on sale and can be purchased online by visiting tickets.uww.edu. Single viewer tickets are $13, and family viewing tickets are $26. Ticket holders will be sent a link to the performance via email on Tuesday, December 1, 2020, which they can use to access the performance until Tuesday, December 15, 2020.

Charlie Parker, the legendary Grammy Award–winning jazz saxophonist who, with Dizzy Gillespie, invented the musical style called bop or bebop, would have turned 100 this past August. The Faculty Jazz Ensemble performs a tribute to “Yardbird.” The ensemble includes Michael Hackett, trumpet; Matt Sintchak, saxophone; Robert Hodson, piano; Brad Townsend, bass; Devin Drobka, drummer; and special guest Sharel Cassity, alto saxophone.

So what is bebop, exactly? We asked Michael Hackett, Ph.D., UW-Whitewater’s jazz expert: “Bebop focuses on the improvisatory elements of jazz and turns up the heat. It features greater harmonic and rhythmic complexity, jarring syncopations, and more dissonant note choices than the jazz improvisations that came before. Bebop helped elevate jazz to the level of ‘art’ music, where the music was anything but utilitarian, and not intended to be popular.”

And yet, we are still celebrating this revolutionary subgenre today! The lineup for this tribute includes five pieces: “All The Things You Are” by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II, “Laura” by David Raskin and Johnny Mercer, and three of Charlie Parkers own creations, including “Moose The Mooche,” “Ko-Ko,” and “Relaxin’ At Camarillo.”

The creation of bebop is credited to two innovative musicians: Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker. “Parker and his friend Gillespie helped to revolutionize the language and harmony of jazz. Parker in particular was a revolutionary figure in jazz around the globe, changing the way virtually everyone approached improvisation and setting an almost impossibly high bar for technical excellence for jazz saxophonists. Nearly every jazz musician, saxophonists especially, revere him for the originality, creativity, and passion that he brought to his music. 2020 is the 100th anniversary of Charlie Parker’s birth, and we will celebrate his legacy through our performance,” says Hackett.

Music Mosaics events provide funds for music scholarships. Tickets are on sale and can be purchased online by visiting tickets.uww.edu. Single viewer tickets are $13, and family viewing tickets are $26. Ticket holders will be sent a link to the performance via email on Tuesday, December 1, 2020, which they can use to access the performance until Tuesday, December 15, 2020.

(Walworth County Div. of Public Health press release – Nov. 20) Walworth County Return to Phase One Guidance

Banner note: In Phase One, Walworth County’s recommendation is for there to be no in-person instruction in K-12 through higher education.

The Walworth County Division of Public Health is recommending the community return to Phase One of the Walworth County COVID-19 Phased Guidance. A 27% positivity rate, strain on health care systems, and an increase in the number of deaths contributed to this recommendation.

“Our data and metrics indicate that as a community we should move to Phase One of our Phased Guidance,” said Walworth County Public Health Officer, Erica Bergstrom. “When applied, this guidance helps increase physical distance and decrease the number of contacts associated with infected individuals.”

County health officials express that there is significant concern about spread of the virus during the holiday season as friends and family gather. This potential impact on top of the existing high level of spread has the potential to further stress our health care system. “We need to make sure that individuals are still able to receive the care they need, and it will take all of us as a community to ensure that cases of COVID-19 are minimized.”

In addition to the universal practices recommended across all phases, like physical distancing, use of face coverings, and avoiding large gatherings, Phase One guidance also recommends the following:

• Reduction in capacity to 50% or 25% based on facility type, size, and distancing ability
• Utilization of contactless and virtual services
• Utilization of curbside delivery and takeout services at restaurants, instead of in-person visits, as much as possible

Find the Phased Guidance document on the Walworth County website: https://www.co.walworth.wi.us/893/Phased-Reopening-Guidance

For more information please contact Walworth County Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health at (262) 741-3200, email walcoph@co.walworth.wi.us, follow-us on Facebook or visit us online at www.co.walworth.wi.us.

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(Rock County Press Release – Nov. 16)

Rock County Returns to Phase One of Reopening Plan

Banner note: In Phase One, Rock County’s recommendation for K-12 through higher education is “Provide virtual options and flexibility to shift to virtual. Transition to virtual school for a minimum of two weeks after any holiday or seasonal extended break.”

Rock County, WI – Health Officer, Marie-Noel Sandoval, announces today that Rock County is returning to Phase One of the Rock County Reopening Plan with some modifications. High community spread, rapid increases in the number of people testing positive, and rising numbers of hospitalizations and deaths are all factors that led to this decision.

Since November 1st, the Rock County Public Health Department has had reports of 2,364 individuals testing positive for COVID-19. This means that 30% of the total number of cases reported so far have been within the past 16 days. During October, there were more positive cases reported in Rock County than all of the previous months of the pandemic combined. There have also been 14 deaths due to COVID-19 reported since November 1st. The daily number of hospitalized patients has doubled since the beginning of the month. Rock County hospitals have stated that they are near their capacity and have reported critical staffing shortages.

What will change when we move to Phase One?

• Everyone should avoid gatherings of any size between individuals who are not members of the same living unit or household.
• Public and private gatherings, festivals, carnivals, fairs, concerts, parades, and contact/team sports should not take place.
• Schools should provide virtual options and flexibility to shift to virtual and transition to virtual school for a minimum of 2 weeks after any holiday or seasonal extended break.
• Libraries, faith-based services, office settings, restaurants, bars, retail establishments, service establishments, community centers, shopping malls, auctions, gym/recreational facilities, pools, and places of amusement should limit capacity to 25%.
• Salons, body art facilities, pet groomers, and spas should not allow walk-in clients.
• Outdoor playgrounds and garage/rummage sales should be limited to ten people or less.

The Rock County Public Health Department would like to thank everyone who is doing their part to slow the spread of COVID-19 in our community. Remember to wash your hands, wear a mask, watch your distance, and stay home as much as possible.

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Rock County Public Health Department serves Rock County citizens by collaborating with partners to ensure a healthy, thriving Rock County. For the latest information about COVID-19 in Rock County, visit the Rock County Public Health Department website at www.co.rock.wi.us/publichealth and follow us on social media @rockcountyphd.

Submitted by Sherry Stanek, Urban Forestry Commission Chair    

     2020 has certainly changed the order of many, many things!  In April of this year, the Urban Forestry Commission along with Brian Neumeister, Whitewater City Forester, were poised to celebrate Arbor Day on April 24th by dedicating a beautiful young oak tree at Cravath Lakefront Park to Karen Coburn for her years of dedication and hard work on the Whitewater Urban Forestry Commission, the last several of her years as Chairwoman.  Like many things, the coronavirus had other plans for all of us, so we decided to wait until things quieted down. As the UFC Chair who has tried to follow in Karen’s footsteps, I’ve decided that 2020’s Arbor day will be celebrated in November instead of April this year because we don’t want to wait any longer to honor her with this now virtual dedication! 

   The Urban Forestry Commission is a very dynamic and active group of volunteers that is tasked with overseeing the health of trees in our city and the education of the city’s residents on trees, birds, water quality and environmental topics in general. 

     Karen’s first big project was the successful educational campaign and organizing of the fundraising effort to construct a Chimney Swift Tower at Cravath Lakefront Park near the gazebo which has educated and been enjoyed by many in Whitewater.  Under Karen’s leadership, Urban Forestry spent a lot of time working to restore the Oak Savannah at Walton Oaks Park along with Wes Enterline of the UW-W Sustainability Office and his student volunteers. Karen organized several Main Street Festival UFC Events including games, education and crafts to engage and instruct citizens on the importance of the environment and everyone’s part in it. She also staged a great Bird Fair in celebration of International Migratory Bird Day at the Cravath Community Center which featured a huge banner painted with birds of many different breeds and sizes that attendees enjoyed standing in front of to figure out their own ‘wingspan.’  The entire community took part in painting a beautiful banner under the direction of Carol Yasko that depicted many many birds.  Both of these items are still available to share with our schools and community. Because of the hard work of the UFC under Karen’s direction, we have enjoyed huge attendance and lots of fun at all of our events.  Karen also oversaw the construction of a Purple Martin House which is dedicated to the late Jerry and Bunny Schoen at Minnieska Park and I’m happy to report that three pairs of Purple Martins successfully raised families there this summer!

   Karen Coburn continues to be as active a member of Whitewater as she can be during this health crisis and I’m very sure we aren’t done seeing the fruits of her labors in the future as well.  The City of Whitewater and the Urban Forestry Commission would like to thank her for all of her energy, tireless direction, education and all of the many hours that she spent leading the UFC in efforts too numerous to mention them all here. Karen has made this community a better place.  Please be sure and tell her thank you when you see her!

(UW-W Press Release – Nov. 20)

Campaign drives UW-Whitewater applications up 87 percent

About 4,300 prospective students applied to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in September and October during a no-cost application campaign, which waived the university’s application fee, an increase of about 2,000 applications from the same time last year.

“We’re excited to see such enthusiasm and interest in joining the Warhawk family,” said Jackie Briggs, director of admissions. “The application fee can be a barrier for some students, so by eliminating it during this timeframe, we were able to make the first step of the admissions process as easy as possible. And we appreciate our colleagues in Philanthropy and Alumni Engagement, who worked with us to make this opportunity possible.”

The campaign totals include applications for new freshmen and transfer students at both the Whitewater and Rock County campuses for the Spring, Summer and Fall 2021 semesters. On Oct. 31, the final day of the campaign, about 1,100 people applied, more than a four-fold increase over a typical weekend, which brings in about 200 to 300 applications.

Briggs notes that not all applicants will enroll because students apply to multiple schools and the higher education environment is extremely competitive. The focus is now on building relationships with prospective students and their families to show what sets UW-Whitewater apart.

With the COVID-19 pandemic limiting traditional campus visits, the admissions staff relies on virtual tours, regular emails, text messages and one-on-one communications from admissions counselors to show students how a high quality and affordable college education at UW-Whitewater can help them accomplish their academic, professional and personal goals.

“Ensuring a successful transition and first year for new students is one of our highest priorities. To this end, we offer a wide variety of programs and services to make this happen,” said Susan Johnson, assistant dean for student success in the College of Letters and Sciences. “One such opportunity is joining a learning community where students with similar interests enroll in a few shared classes, live together in the same residence hall and participate in out-of-class activities tied to the community’s theme. The research apprenticeship program is another opportunity for first-year students to get early exposure to their major by working with a faculty member on a shared research project.”

Another important key to student success is connecting students to support services like the tutoring center — offering more than 150,000 hours of free tutoring each year — and to the faculty in their chosen major.

“Our faculty choose UW-Whitewater because they have a commitment to undergraduate education. This is clear in the passion they bring to the classroom and the way they incorporate experiential learning, research and community engagement in their courses,” Johnson said.

The no-cost application campaign was generously funded by the UW-Whitewater Foundation.