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Few stocks avoid effect of housing, banking woes: Wall Street pessimism spreading across industries

Nineteen central Indiana companies have seen their stock prices fall more than one-quarter from the 52-week highs-a plunge that largely reflects pessimism over the strength of the economy. The pullback has hammered some of the top-performing Hoosier companies in recent years, including shopping mall owner Simon Property Group Inc. (off $46 a share, or 38 percent) and school operator ITT Educational Services Inc. (off $52, or 39 percent). Former highfliers often take the biggest tumble when investor sentiment turns bearish….

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Fellowship’s formula could grow teachers: Indiana piloting program aimed at boosting math, science educators

Four Indiana universities have been chosen to participate in a prestigious new national fellowship program aimed at increasing the number of math and science teachers while serving as the pilot program for overhauling education nationwide. The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, of Princeton, N.J., selected Indiana as the first state for its program. It chose IUPUI, Ball State University, University of Indianapolis and Purdue University to launch the one-year fellowships and churn out the first wave of new teachers. The…

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Commentary: Community service is a public investment

Greg Ballard’s election as mayor of Indianapolis continues his admirable career of public service. Considering his background, it comes as no surprise that he is interested in reviving the “Front Porch Alliance.” Through this historically faith- and volunteerdriven civic partnership, with a little imagination, Mayor Ballard could create a national model of community service. The concept of compulsory community service is not a new one. William James proposed national service in his 1910 essay, “The Moral Equivalent of War.” He…

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Community education keeping up with business: Lawrence Township, other districts making classes more convenient

Thirteen years ago, long before the current commotion over escalating property taxes in Marion County, a local public school superintendent became embroiled in a similar uproar. Residents of Lawrence Township in 1994 challenged former district leader Bernard McKenzie to rein in what they perceived as excessive spending of taxpayer funds. He responded by creating the Lawrence Township Community Education Program as a testament to the citizens and their support. Today, it has grown to serve about 6,000 people annually and…

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Financial Planning Titles: A list of acronyms after an adviser’s name might look impressive, but those seeking credible advice need to sort through designations

inancial F Planning Titles A list of acronyms after an adviser’s name might look impressive, but those seeking credible advice need to sort through designations Investing your money is overwhelming enough already-especially with all the available options-without having to fret over whether a financial adviser has the credentials to keep your retirement account afloat. Sure, there are a litany of fancy titles financial planners can earn that may help ease your concerns. But what do they really mean? With more…

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Schools bring business into the classroom: Students learn from CEOs, race-car drivers, others

When Marian College asked racecar driver Michael Crawford to help launch the school’s entrepreneur-in-residence program and mentor students about realworld business, he wasn’t sure if it was such a great idea. “My hesitation was I didn’t want to pursue it right away,” Crawford said. “What happens if I go out of business? That would be embarrassing.” But he decided to do it because he believes his experience as an entrepreneur is more realistic than anything the students will read about…

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Children’s Theatre Institute getting its own stage: Space will host its plays, other performing arts groups

After nearly nine years of moving from stage to stage, the Children’s Theatre Institute is building its own 300-seat theater in hopes of becoming a hub for educational performing arts programs. The Indianapolis-based institute already has raised most of the $350,000 needed to transform 7,000 square feet of space at the Gene B. Glick Junior Achievement Education Center into a theater. Construction is under way. Our “vision is to do a full season of interdisciplinary performing arts in the space,”…

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VIEWPOINT: The trouble with public schools: Too public

The problem with public education is that it has become too “public.” Back in the days when boards of education possessed all power over construction of school facilities, a few boards around the state were far too eager to build elaborate educational and athletic palaces when functionally and technically efficient classrooms were all that were really needed. The outrage from a handful of property taxpayers finally reached the Statehouse. (The outcry over a proposed football facility in the Carmel-Clay School…

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Late action complicates tax planning: AMT legislative fix may mean delays

Expect the early tax-filing season to be a little muddy in 2008-and a tax package already received by mail from the Internal Revenue Service doesn’t mean you’re off the hook. While many Indiana taxpayers are now protected from additional federal taxes for another year thanks to late action by federal lawmakers in mid-December, millions will have to wait until February to get tax refunds in the mail because of that congressional delay. On Dec. 19, Congress gave final approval to…

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Of battles won and trouble ahead: Peterson says state action key to city’s future

Democrat Bart Peterson leaves office in early January after two terms as mayor of Indianapolis. Succeeding him will be Republican Greg Ballard, a former lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps who parlayed property-tax outrage into a surprise win. As Peterson, 49, prepared to leave office, he sat down with IBJ. The following is an edited version of the interview. IBJ: You didn’t expect to be stepping down this year. What was the most significant priority you had planned for…

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‘ Set the bar high’: LESSONS LEARNED KEVIN TEASLEY President, GEO Foundation CEO, 21st Century Charter Schools

KEVIN TEASLEY President, GEO Foundation CEO, 21st Century Charter Schools Kevin Teasley didn’t have clear-cut expectations when he and a small group of reform-minded dreamers opened 21st Century Charter School in 2002. The publicly funded-yet-independent schools were brand new in Indiana, and no one really knew what came next. Would 21st Century’s one-room schoolhouse approach draw talented teachers? Would students respond to a different kind of education? Organizers had high hopes, to be sure, but they operated more on instinct…

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Local Sallie Mae executive leaving

June McCormack, the top-ranking executive at Sallie Mae's Fishers operation, is leaving the student loan giant, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company and McCormack are negotiating a severance agreement, the company's Dec. 12 SEC filing said, but her departure date was not disclosed. McCormack has led the 2,300-employee Fishers […]

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Why state’s job growth is better than neighbors’

For the past week or so, I have been flooded by phone calls from colleagues in Illinois and Michigan, chortling over a new marketing campaign launched by Hoosiers. The privately financed billboards and radio spots ask businesses and residents whether they are tired of high taxes and unresponsive government. If so, they are invited to “Come on IN” to Indiana. It’s high-order fun this holiday season. Indiana sits as a small island of growth in the Midwest, and it is…

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A&E: Actors Theatre of Indiana goes green

Frog is confident. Toad is selfdoubting. Frog gets mail. Toad doesn’t. Frog is willing to take some risks. Toad is cautious. Frog looks funny in a bathing suit. Toad looks funnier in a bathing suit. And then there’s an actionpacked fight sequence in which … No, that doesn’t happen. Frog and Toad are friends. They love each other. They are happy when the other is happy. But then the villain comes to town, a giant … Nope, no villain. Over…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Commission’s reforms are just what Indiana needs

The recommendations of the Shepard-Kernan report are a tonic to anyone who cares about local government efficiency and improved local services. The commission r e c o m m e n d e d changes to the way Indiana’s government provides local services. Our current system looks much like a pre-statehood government, where services are provided in a disconnected fashion with budgetary decisions answerable to state bureaucracies, not local voters. It is this organization of government that has caused much…

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Local chocolate firm leads organic pack: Endangered Species enjoys soaring sales, employment

While Hershey, Pa., may be considered the chocolate capital of the United States, Indianapolis is home to one of the fastest – growing and most fascinating makers of the sweet treat. Though it was founded in Oregon in 1993, Endangered Species Chocolate Co. has achieved most of its growth since being acquired and transplanted to Hoosier soil in 2005 by Wayne Zink and Randy Deer. Curt VanderMeer joined the company shortly after it came to Indianapolis; he became the third…

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Commentary: Here’s a script Capra would love

I am going to chat with Angelo Pizzo, author of the best sports film of all time. Pizzo is the writer and coproducer of feature films “Hoosiers” and “Rudy.” He and I will debut “Mickey’s Corner,” a project patterned after TV’s Bravo Network program “Inside the Actor’s Studio.” The conversation will happen Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center, 6701 Hoover Road. Why don’t you drop in? Pizzo grew up in Bloomington and stayed home for his…

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EDITORIAL: ‘Tis the season to help others: Don’t forget charities when giving

‘Tis the season to help others Don’t forget charities when giving If our early December snowfall didn’t get central Indiana’s bells jingling, the overflowing mall parking lots should make it clear: Santa Claus is coming to town, and he’s bringing plenty of credit-card-toting elves with him. The National Retail Federation predicts Americans will spend almost $475 billion on holiday-related purchases this year, up 4 percent from 2006. That’s a lot of fruitcake. Our economy could use the boost, no doubt…

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Commentary: A foreign investment that is sure to pay off

As the year draws to a close, the business community remains focused on taxes and the health of the economy. The governor’s privatization of the Indiana Toll Road generated a windfall of $3 billion. If managed properly, that money should fund Indiana’s road and bridge repair work. However, perhaps we should consider investing some of the interest to radically change our stature in the global economy. Canada possesses coastlines along the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic oceans; has abundant natural resources,…

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PROFILE MICKI STIRSMAN: Education at heart of growth Continued training is part of her biz plan

PROFILE MICKI STIRSMAN Education at heart of growth Continued training is part of her biz plan Your face might be Micki Stirsman’s canvas. Instead of applying paint to paper or molding clay into sculpture Stirsman and her staff use their artistry to transform their clients’ appearances. The Speedway native is owner of Salon 01, a business she started with a $10,000 contribution from her grandmother that has grown into a million d o l l a r- p l u…

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