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CHRIS KATTERJOHN Commentary: Early learning is key to success

It was encouraging to see Gov. Mitch Daniels and Indiana Superintendent of Education Suellen Reed team up recently to offer a plan by which school districts might share resources to free up extra money that could pay for more teachers and classroom resources. One option suggested for the freed-up funds was statewide fullday kindergarten. While multiple uses for the money can be found, it’s clear an emphasis on kindergarten is a good way to go, as most experts now agree…

Schools push financial literacy: Programs teach students the importance of investments, how Wall Street works

Fourth-graders at Crooked Creek Elementary School recently made $250 by making poinsettia-topped pens and selling them to parents and teachers. Middle school students at Thomas Carr Howe Academy learn the value of putting a few dollars away each week, so the mind-set of compounded savings will be instilled before they grow older. And, last month, a team of high school students from Fort Wayne won a statewide stock-market-simulation contest by growing a hypothetical $100,000 investment 55 percent in 10 weeks….

New airport control tower has a blind spot: More than 300 feet of runway obscured by FedEx hub will be closed, dozed to give controllers view

Indianapolis International Airport this month will launch a highly unusual project-shortening a runway. Perhaps just as odd is the reason: Controllers in the airport’s new air traffic control tower, opening next spring, won’t be able to see the southern 324 feet of the 7,604-foot crosswind runway. The FedEx hub is in the way. “The control tower needs to see the surface of the runway,” said John Kish, manager of the $1 billion midfield terminal construction project that necessitated the new…

NOTIONS: Resolved: No dropping the ball after the ball drops

Does your January break With a master plan? A savvy scheme? Sophisticated strategies and tactics? Or will you wing it, Taking each day as it dawns, Making the most Of each passing moment? Do you begin with an honestly clean slate? Or do lingering regrets, (Unsaids and undones), Cloud your New Year’s premiere? Was the year just past a good one for you? Did it enrich your mind and spirit? Did you enjoy good health? Did you give and get…

City ups fees for planning petitions: Old charges weren’t enough to cover department’s costs

Developers and companies in the construction industry might be unpleasantly surprised the next time they seek a zoning change or construction permit in Indianapolis. On Jan. 1, a new fee schedule kicked in for many of the functions of the city’s Department of Metropolitan Development, raising the cost of seeking zoning changes, variances and construction permits. In some cases the jump in fees is dramatic, while other fees will change little or not at all. However, the overall effect on…

Indianapolis and neighbors need one vision, one voice:

Cincinnati USA. Charlotte USA. Indianapolis – Marion County – Indiana. Who is throwing the right welcome mat out to the world? In the first two examples, those regions have said to the entire planet: “We are open for business. Come talented people-bring your companies and organizations to our area; bring your families to our schools; live, work and play in our thriving community.” Our region,” they say, “located at this juncture of latitude and longitude in the USA, wants you…

EYE ON THE PIE: Cost-of-living is with us, not in the stars

“I saw your column last week about the cost of living and I think you are a fool.” That was among the kinder messages on my mental answering machine, the one that records the thoughts I imagine readers have after reading my columns. All I had done was explain that the major differences in living costs in different places are related to housing. Housing prices reflect income levels, the benefits of living in different places, and the limitations on building…

Arts groups target young audiences: Research, events focus on luring new patrons

When you’re trying to lure 20-somethings to your door, it apparently helps to offer booze and cheap seats. Those are common themes of new programs at several local arts organizations concerned with cultivating new audiences and patrons to replace the aging baby boomers. Two cases in point: Jagermeister, a liquor usually happily forgotten by the over-30 crowd, is a sponsor of Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra’s upcoming Happy Hour concert series. At Phoenix Theatre, audience members on the first Thursday of every…

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: King for a day on fixing the property-tax system

Well, I’ve finally been caught. Despite my best efforts to appear decisive and get straight to the point, one of my readers accused me of being just another equivocating, twoarmed economist in a recent column I wrote on taxes. You know the type. On the one hand this, and on the other hand that, never sticking their necks out and reaching a conclusion. That person will be back in this space this week, doing his best to pretend not to…

Education, work force key hurdles to new economy:

Having recently returned to Indiana after a 15-year absence, I see a region filled with both challenges and opportunities. The Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, the organization I’ve returned to serve as president and CEO, is focused on long-term economic prosperity for our region. To this end, our people are our most valuable resource. Unfortunately, central Indiana faces a significant challenge in making our human capital match our goal of a knowledgebased, 21st-century economy. Indiana ranks 46th in the educational attainment…

Startup fills growing drug-trial niche: Indianapolis-based Anaclim focuses on recruiting minority patients

A new Indianapolis company plans to attack the chronic shortage of minority patients in drug trials armed only with 11 employees and the wisdom of a couple Eli Lilly and Co. executives. However, the founders of Anaclim believe they’ll find ample success by focusing exclusively on the growing push for diversity in the $10 billion contractresearch industry. Anaclim, which occupies a mostly empty office at Intech Park, could double its staff quickly and start raking in eight-figure revenue within three…

ABDUL-HAKIM SHABAZZ Commentary: A news event that hit close to home

I’ve been writing professionally for nearly 20 years and this is the hardest column I’ve ever had to write. Originally I planned an end-ofthe-year piece with some snappy one-liners and tongue-incheek observations about local and state issues. Thursday, Dec. 22 at 9:45 a.m. that changed. I was in the Capitol on my way to one of Gov. Mitch Daniels’ weekly media sessions when my cell phone rang. It was a phone call from my producer telling me that 18-year-old James…

INVESTING: These foreign markets are ripe for investment

Because I spent part of the Christmas weekend packing for a vacation that will take my family out of the country, I was thinking about the foreign investing landscape a little. China is still the most overused buzzword to come down the pike since “Internet,” but there is a lot more depth to the overseas picture than just China. As good investing should always be about finding the best risk-adjusted returns possible, I want to spend some time digging into…

New ATA shares harder to land: Public offering not expected as airline exits bankruptcy

You probably wouldn’t want to buy shares of the first discount airline in recent years to file bankruptcy reorganization-not unless you’re a short-seller or a relative of Norman Vincent Peale. Not in this airline climate. But even they won’t have a chance to buy shares being issued in ATA Holdings Corp. after the Indianapolis airline emerges from Chapter 11 as early as next month. ATA was delisted from Nasdaq shortly after it filed for bankruptcy in October 2004. Old shares…

SPORTS: The good, the bad and the hoped for in sports

Even with some disappointments sprinkled in (Ron Artest, Purdue football and no state teams in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament), 2005 was an outstanding year for sports in Indiana. But 2006 will be even better. In that vein, we look back, and we look ahead: Best local sports stories of 2005 1) The passing of the funding mechanisms at the state and local levels that led to the Sept. 20 groundbreaking for Indiana Stadium. While Reggie Miller’s retirement from the…

AGENDA INDIANAPOLIS 2006: City made progress in some areas, but top priorities require more work

The wheels are beginning to turn on a multi-county transit plan, now that the Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority is mostly in place. The authority, charged with coordinating and, ultimately, administering a regional transit system, was formed at the end of 2004, about the time IBJ asked readers to rank the most pressing issues facing the city. The results of the survey, published last January, revealed public transportation and congestion issues as the largest concern, followed by the need for…

What’s up his sleeve?: New park director plans ice skating, street performers

He can do card tricks with the verve of a Brooklyn street hustler. He knows how to levitate. And for his biggest trick yet, he wants to transform White River State Park. It’s no short con. It doesn’t involve sleight of hand. Meet Bob from these increased attractions.” In addition to the Eiteljorg, the Indianapolis Zoo, White River Gardens, Indiana State Museum, Victory Field and NCAA Hall of Champions call the park home. At least one community activist, and one…

STATEHOUSE DISPATCH: Short legislative session may be eventful, for a change

We’ve all become lulled into assuming that the so-called “short” session of the Indiana General Assembly in the even-numbered years is the political equivalent of the practice of medicine: First, do no harm. In election years, lawmakers are reluctant to do much beyond that which they must do to protect public health, safety and treasury. The short session originated as a vehicle for handling emergencies arising between the odd-numbered-year budget sessions, and many legislators-particularly those seeking re-election-didn’t see much cause…

Diversity is theme at IU med school:

Health care disparities and access issues are among the topics to be discussed this month when the Indiana University School of Medicine hosts its fourth annual Diversity Week. The week, which runs from Jan. 15 to Jan. 20, will include daily presentations at noon in the Emerson Hall auditorium on the IUPUI campus, according to school officials. Events begin Jan. 15 when IUPUI hosts its 36 th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Dinner at the Indianapolis Marriott downtown. The keynote…

Drug costs on chopping block: M-Plan introduces pill-splitting program

Indiana’s second-largest insurer, M-Plan Inc., welcomed some of its customers to the new year with a pill-splitting program that can chop prescription drug costs in half. The Indianapolis-based health maintenance organization became part of a growing crowd of insurers endorsing a money-saving concept long practiced by doctors and patients. However, pill splitting still stirs a healthy dose of concern over safety in some corners of the pharmaceutical world. “I’ve had arguments with insurance companies about this for years,” said Skip…