Our View:

Date: April 13, 2012 Section: Opinion

The Daily Chronicle editorial board offers this week’s thumbs up and thumbs down:

Thumbs down: To the continued silence from former DeKalb City Clerk Steve Kapitan. It’s been more than two months since Kapitan resigned his elected clerk position. We have the city’s version of what happened: Kapitan resigned because he couldn’t keep up with Open Meetings Act requirements regarding closed session minutes. But Kapitan hasn’t offered his side of the story. As someone who campaigned for the public’s trust and vote to put him into the position, he owes DeKalb residents an explanation for why he quit before his term expired.

Thumps up: To educational entities working together. The Kishwaukee College Board of Trustees met with the Sycamore School District 427 board this week to develop partnerships and strengthen the student pipeline. The Kish board has held a similar meeting with the DeKalb School District 428 board, and we wouldn’t be surprised if joint meetings with other districts in the community college’s service region – which includes the Genoa-Kingston, Hiawatha and Rochelle school districts – are on the horizon. Kishwaukee staff members want to improve the college-course placement rate of high school students entering the college to decrease the remedial work that is needed. It’s a worthy goal, and working in collaboration with local school districts is a step toward improving those rates.

Thumbs down: To the thief or thieves who stole the DeKalb Pubic Library’s huskie statue. The missing four-legged item stood outside of the library’s doors and greeted all who entered the building. The statue was painted blue with a little girl reading a book at night and during the day. The words “It’s always the right time to read” are painted on both sides of the statue. The huskie was part of Huskies on Parade, the 2008 public art project that brought decorated fiberglass huskie dogs to the DeKalb community. That project benefited a scholarship fund in honor of the five students who died in the Feb. 14, 2008, shooting at Northern Illinois University. The library just wants the dog back. Whatever the reason for the theft, you’ve had your fun; bring the dog back.

Thumbs up: To a wider sense of “community.” Ten members of Boy Scout Troop 33 in DeKalb spent their spring break in Harrisburg helping people whose homes were damaged or destroyed by a February tornado. The troop has become famous for its service trips, including several trips to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and to Galveston, Texas, after Hurricane Ike. Wherever the need takes them, the boys treat everyone like their neighbor. It’s an attitude of which we could use more.

Thumbs up: The efforts of Pioneering Healthier Communities, a group trying to secure a $64,000 grant to create “a more walkable and bikable community” and increase the number of community gardens. The grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is focused on trail improvements, including linking routes and installing signs to show the direction and distance of the trail. Pioneering Healthier Communities is a cooperative effort among municipalities, park districts, the YMCA, hospital and school districts to promote community health. Great things can happen when we all work together.

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Published in Daily Chronicle on April 13, 2012

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