Shawnee

September 05, 2012 • BY BRENT STEWART, THE SOUTHERN

WOLF LAKE — After two years of working on their own, Shawnee High School students want to join forces with other schools to raise awareness about the Mississippi River levee system and flooding that often plagues the area.

This week, Shawnee High School government and history teacher Jamie Nash-Mayberry sent out letters to a number of school districts that border the Mississippi River in Southern Illinois, asking them to take part in a levee school alliance.

In 2010, a letter writing campaign by Shawnee High School students to their government representatives resulted in a levee summit featuring U.S. Reps. Jerry Costello, D-Belleville, and John Shimkus, R-Collinsville; representatives from U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Mark Kirk; as well as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Another letter writing campaign by Shawnee High School students in fall 2011 helped The Preston Drainage and Levee District and Clear Creek Drainage and Levee District secure a grant from the Delta Regional Authority to offset a shortfall in a more than $500,000 levee repair project in Union County.

This past school year, the class researched the use of wing dikes and other similar river training structures on the middle Mississippi River by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and whether these structures have any effect of flooding in that region.

They presented their findings to Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon on April 20. Simon subsequently invited the students to again present their findings in Carlyle on Dec. 5 at a meeting of her river council.

Nash-Mayberry said she already had interest from some districts.

“The kids will be ambassadors for their schools,” Nash-Mayberry said. “They can come and learn from my students about how we raised awareness and then take those techniques back to their schools and teach the rest of their (classmates.)”

Nash-Mayberry said she hoped the levee school alliance can be formed by October and meet with whoever Costello’s successor is in the 12th congressional district race in November.

“There’s strength in numbers,” Nash-Mayberry said.

Illinois State Bar Association Law-Related Education Newsletter©

ILLINOIS SCHOOL SUCCESS STORIES

CIVICS IN ACTION

SHAWNEE HIGH SCHOOL

Should our schools develop future community leaders and active citizens who will make a difference? Shawnee High School, headquartered in Union County in far Southern Illinois, is doing just that. Its students investigated a local issue, brought together local, state and federal officials, found solutions, and then the students helped raise $100,000 toward a solution. The school has only 160 students, 65% of whom are low income, and one teacher, Jamie Nash-Mayberry, for all its social studies courses, but it is preparing youth to be active citizens and community leaders.

Two years ago, their teacher made the students aware of potential flooding of homes, farm land and other properties due to the deteriorating levees surrounding their communities. The students devoted about one class day a week over two years to studying this issue. They consulted experts from the Corps of Engineers. Southern Illinois University and local and state officials. The students invited their state and federal legislators to hold a summit in the community to address the flooding problem and when the summit seemed delayed, they wrote Oprah Winfrey asking her help. While Oprah did not respond, the students’ letters attracted press attention. After the story appeared in local newspaper and on the local television, the legislators set the summit date. Eventually, the summit produced some potential solutions and some grants. When the local levee commissioners needed help securing their portion of funding for a new drainage system, they came to the students. The students tapped into the resources they had developed and were able to help the levee district secure the needed $100,000 in funding. The students, working with the art department, also designed and sold T-shirts with the funds going to the levee district. The school district recently honored the students and their teacher for their contributions to the community.

These students learned the need to keep public officials informed of local problems, the willingness of these officials to respond, and the difference that collective citizen advocacy can make. To know whom to contact, these students had to learn the roles of the various branches of government and the interplay among local, state and federal officials. To be effective, these students conducted original research, gathered and processed information, thought critically,

spoke and wrote persuasively, and collaborated and worked as a team. The students also learned the power of the media to highlight an issue as well as the limits of the media when it gets the facts wrong. Their teacher reports that they experienced the value of “giving back” to their communities. These students possess the knowledge, skills, and civic dispositions necessary for effective citizenship.

There are many models for involving students in becoming effective citizens and we will feature some of those in the following months. Ms. Mayberry and Shawnee High School met the challenge of teaching citizenship with nothing more than a creative teacher, a supportive administration, willing students, and a few hundred dollars for one field trip. This school is fulfilling its mission “that all students acquire and use knowledge, skills and behaviors necessary to become productive and successful members of society.”

Illinois State Bar Association Law-Related Education Newsletter©

Enyart meets with student flooding experts

WOLF LAKE — As he continues a tradition set by his predecessor to get young people politically educated and active, U.S. Rep. Bill Enyart’s said he visit Tuesday at Shawnee High School was more than just a cordial chat.

He visited for an hour with Shawnee High School representatives of Mississippi River Levee School Alliance Team and was briefed about flooding issues that have plagued.

Those problems have been illuminated by the high school students under the guidance of Shawnee social science teacher Jamie Nash-Mayberry.

“I came down to Shawnee (High School), and they presented me with the research they have done. It was a great meeting,” Enyart said.

The students hosted an initial summit in December 2010 at the high school that drew ranking officials from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and federal lawmakers to talk about the National Levee Safety Act of 2007.

At a second summit hosted at Shawnee, federal and Delta Regional Authority officials talked about funding sources to repair levees.

Enyart said he talked with students and Nash-Mayberry about his first piece of legislation — The Mississippi River Navigation Sustainment Act — designed to improve efforts to maintain commercial river traffic in times of drought and flood and to protect jobs.

Within the bill are provisions to give the Army Corps “increased ability to aid research on the river,” Enyart said.

Some of those provisions are authorizing funding for more extreme weather management study, improving tools for river forecasting, expanding flexibility for the Army Corps and creating an environmental pilot program.

Shawnee Senior Nick McMahan said Enyart’s bill “is a good thing,” but it raises concerns about the building of more wing dikes, which Shawnee students researched in the fall.

Nash-Mayberry said students also expressed concern and asked questions about the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 with high insurance premiums for new flood plain level home policies.

Another senior Andreu Gerardi said Enyart encouraged students to continue their political activism by “speaking out rather than having other people speaking out for you.”

Senior Austin McAllister spoke to Enyart about the spring floods of 2011 and how his family had to temporarily relocate, including their cattle.

“He (Enyart) seemed surprised how much we knew,” McMahan said.

May 01, 2013 6:00 am • BY SCOTT FITZGERALD, THE SOUTHERN

SHAWNEE STUDENTS ATTEND STUDENT LEAD TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE

WSIL TV SIT Coverage

CARBONDALE -- Students across our region spent Saturday teaching others about technology. More than a hundred students turned out for the Students Involved with Technology Conference at Carbondale Middle School.

The event encourages students to teach the hands-on technology tools they've learned or enjoy using. The conference comes at a time when there's a big push for more technology in classrooms.

"Without the proper training of the teachers and the staff, it makes it difficult for them to have to walk into a classroom, have equipment, expect to know what to do with it. So we're going get the kids involved and have them help the teachers out a little bit," says Kurt Strothmann, an SIT volunteer.

Volunteers helped the day run smoothly, but all the presentations were prepared by students in third through 12th grades. It's the second year Carbondale Middle School has hosted the statewide event.

Check out pictures from the local conference

Information for next years conference:

Students Involved with Technology Conference (SIT) 2014

School Board Honors one of Shawnee's Best

The 2012-2013 recipient of the Shawnee’s Best award is Dan “Rod” Wilson.

Dan “Rod” Wilson was born and raised in Wolf Lake, Illinois. He attended Shawnee Schools from Kindergarten through 12th grades. He graduated from Shawnee High School in 1983. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Excelsior College in Albany, New York and Masters of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix.

Master Sergeant Wilson entered the Army in 1989 as a Combat Cameraman. He provided photographic and journalist coverage of training and events that affected the entire realm of Central and South America. Master Sergeant Wilson was hand selected to serve as a Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Search and Recovery team member for the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory from 1992-1997. He deployed to Australia, China, Russia, Korea, Japan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines and made multiple deployments to Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia in search of missing service members from WWII, Korean War, Cold War, and the Vietnam War. During his tenure at the Central Identification Laboratory, Master Sergeant Wilson captured, cataloged and edited 39,925 images used by the branches of U.S. Government to formulate foreign policy and substantiate Missing in Action personnel identification efforts, and was personally associated with cases that returned 46 service members to their families.

Master Sergeant Wilson also served at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, in Belgium from 1999-2007. There he made several Combat Deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and seven African Countries. From 2007-2009 he served at the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (Airborne), Ft. Bragg, NC. From there he deployed to Afghanistan, Kuwait, and Qatar as part of the Global War on Terrorism.

Master Sergeant Wilson retired from the Army in 2009.

For the last three years he served as a Military Subject Matter Expert in the Middle East. There he trained Coalition Soldiers and Civilians deploying to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other hotspots throughout the region.

Master Sergeant Wilson has received several Commendations for his photographic achievements from dignitaries such as the former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Henry H. Shelton and other numerous domestic and foreign military officials.

Master Sergeant Wilson awards and decorations include Defense Meritorious Service Medal, two Meritorious Service Metals, four Army Commendation Medals, two Joint Service Achievement Metals, an Army Achievement Metal, Army Superior Unit Award, six Army Good Conduct Medals, two National Defense Service Medals, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Medal, and the NATO Medal, Airborne Wings, Air Assault Wings, and the Combat Action Badge.

Master Sergeant Wilson is the son of Dan Wilson, Wolf Lake and Joan (King) Wood of Grand Tower who presently resides in Port Orange, Florida. His sister Kimberly Benefield serves the community as a Pharmacist in Anna.

Master Sergeant Wilson is married to Supattra Wilson and lives in Fayetteville, NC with their two sons, Andrew (14) and Alexander (7).

Shawnee District #84 extends its most sincere appreciation to Master Sergeant Wilson for his years of service to our country. Congratulations Master Sergeant Wilson on being named “Shawnee’s Best”!