LPHS to offer a debate club

LP High School has a team or club for just about ever student- from foreign languages to bass fishing.  Soon students who enjoy a good argument will have a place to sharpen their skills.

Starting with the new school year the school will be offering debate club.  It’s the brainchild of English teacher Jill Hoelzer and was warmly received by new Activities and Athletics Director D’Wayne Bates.  The school board agreed to it Wednesday night.

Bates says that research shows that students who are involved in debate teams have strong academic performance and critical thinking skills.  He says LP would be the only school in their IHSA conference to offer it.

In its first year the club will debate in-house and find other teams to watch debate.  By the third year they would like to have a team in the IHSA.  LP hasn’t had a debate team since 1969.

Verizon trouble update 10:25

Are you a Verizon customer? You might have expericenced a problem with your phone sometime Wednesday afternoon. According to KWQC TV in Davenport, a switch failed at the Rockford site early Wednesday afternoon, causing problems at some 93 towers. Speaking with a Verizon Customer rep about 10:25pm Wednesday, AM 1220 WLPO learned the switch was fixed about 10pm. However, the rep told AM 1220 WLPO, customers were still experiencing some problems and the company was working to correct them.

Fun Day to raise money for Peru Pool Fund

The children of Peru don’t have a public swimming pool of their own but a day in the park will help them eventually have one.

A fun fair Saturday is the latest fundraiser by Friends for Peru Pool.  They’re trying to collect money to replace the old pool which has been closed for three seasons.

Activities begin at 11am in Centennial Park and include bouncies, face painting, a dunk tank and food.  It wraps up at 2pm.

Listen to the interview at the AM 1220 WLPO News Page.

Police still looking for man in a white van

If you’re a white man driving a white van there’s a good chance somebody is afraid of you and possibly calling the police.  Police have been keeping an eye out for a man in a white van since a girl in Peru told police that a man in van possibly tried to kidnap her.

That happened Tuesday afternoon.  Police Chief Doug Bernabei says that since then they have investigated several white vans but none matching the description given by the girl.  He’s hoping an adult who may have seen the interaction with the girl could call the police to explain or better yet, the man in the van will call to explain.

The van was described as full-size, white with no side or back windows.  The man was white with no hair age 40-50 with a chubby face and yellow shirt.

severe thunderstorm watch till 1am Thursday

A new severe thunderstorm watch has been issued affecting ONLY LaSalle County until 1am.  The Watch area covers basically northeast Illinois.

IVCC budget includes operating shortfall

The new building going up at Illinois Valley Community College accounts for a fourth of their budget.  The budget for the new year totals $47 million including $12.5 million for the Peter Miller Community Technology Center.
The IVCC Board of Trustees looked at a tentative budget Tuesday night.  College President Jerry Corcoran says that even without the project, the budget would have them spending more than they plan to take in.

He says their operating budget would have been balanced except for a one-time IT cost.  The board will vote on final budget when they meet in August.

Semi Carrying Pork Spills Load Near Utica

A semi carrying frozen pork overturned just east of Utica.

Just after 5 yesterday morning, Andrew Borg of Iowa hit a construction patch hole on eastbound Interstate 80 and went into a ditch.  The crash caused about 40 thousand pounds of pork to spill out of the trailer.  The meat was considered contaminated and taken to a landfill.

Borg was taken to St. Elizabeth Medical Center where he was treated and released.  He was ticketed for improper lane use.