Latest news with #Eberspacher
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Former educator announces bid to succeed Penner on Nebraska State Board of Ed
Angie Eberspacher of Beaver Crossing is the first announced 2026 candidate for the District 5 seat on the State Board of Education held by Kirk Penner of Aurora, who says he will not seek a second term on the board. (Candidate photo courtesy of Eberspacher campaign | Penner photo courtesy of the Nebraska Department of Education | School bus photo by Rebecca Gratz for the Nebraska Examiner) LINCOLN — A former educator announced a campaign Wednesday for the Nebraska State Board of Education to succeed Kirk Penner of Aurora, who helped conservative candidates organize and win more races for the board in recent years. Angie Eberspacher of Beaver City, a former member of Educational Service Unit 6, seeks to represent District 5 on the Board of Ed. While on the ESU board, Eberspacher said, she was a strong voice for fiscal responsibility and an advocate for students and teachers. She eventually served as chair. She said she is dedicated to ensuring a 'quality education' for all students. Eberspacher is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with dual degrees in elementary education and early childhood education. 'I'm committed to supporting today's students and helping ensure the next generation has every opportunity to succeed,' Eberspacher said in a statement. District 5 on the State Board consists of Butler, Clay, Fillmore, Franklin, Gage, Hamilton, Jefferson, Nuckolls, Pawnee, Polk, Richardson, Saline, Saunders, Seward, Thayer, Webster and York Counties, as well as portions of Lancaster County (south Lincoln and surrounding communities including Denton, Sprague, Hallam, Roca, Hickman, Firth, Bennet and Waverly). The eight members of the State Board of Education generally oversee the Nebraska Department of Education. Terms in office are for four years. Eberspacher said she plans to visit communities across her district to listen and focus on how to improve literacy and proficiency scores, recruit and retain quality teachers and strengthen academics. She said she also wants to be 'a voice for all parents' and promote spending restraint. In 2023, Eberspacher testified at the Nebraska Legislature in support of a handful of conservative-led proposals, including opening up teachers or librarians to possible criminal penalties for distributing 'obscenity,' prohibiting certain medical care for minors with gender dysphoria, outlawing drag shows for minors, creating a 'Parents' Bill of Rights' in education and allowing public dollars to follow students to private K-12 schools (the 'My Student, My Choice Act'). Eberspacher and her husband of 36 years, Curt, own a farming operation in rural Beaver Crossing. The family has three adult daughters, a son-in-law and a granddaughter. Penner on Wednesday confirmed to the Examiner that he is not seeking reelection. He has given his 'full endorsement' to Eberspacher and said her experience and dedication 'make her the right choice to continue advocating for students, parents and educators across the district.' The race is officially nonpartisan, but Penner and Eberspacher are both Republicans. She previously worked as a spokeswoman for the Nebraska Republican Party. Penner was appointed to the State Board in December 2021 and won election in 2022 with 55% of the vote. The State Board of Education is currently split 4-4 between Republicans and Democrats. The split has led some to advocate for giving the governor more control over the education bureaucracy. A January vote for board chair required 54 votes in January. 'I am excited to run for the Nebraska State Board of Education and hear from voters across District 5 about their vision for education in Nebraska,' Eberspacher said. 'I'm running to support Nebraska's students, teachers and parents, and to work toward a stronger education system for everyone.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Bellingham's DUI cases keep stacking up. Time to launch a dedicated court?
Bellingham Municipal Court has seen an influx in cases across the board in recent years. There was a 33% increase in cases filed from 2023 to 2024, according to the State of the Court address presented to the City Council. One contributor to this rise in caseloads is the center of a new initiative underway: adding a dedicated DUI court. Bellingham Municipal Court saw 392 DUI-related charges in 2024. Of those, 35% had multiple charges in Washington. The court has already had 146 citations related to driving while intoxicated between January and April this year — equal to at least one every day, according to Bellingham Municipal Court Director Tami Bennett. Bennett explained that the proposed DUI court would be a therapeutic court aimed at providing individuals with 'targeted treatment plans' and increased supervision. She said this would ideally reduce the risk of future impaired driving and improve public safety. Washington has 131 treatment courts across the state, according to the most recent data available from the National Treatment Court Resource Center. Eight of these courts are specifically focused on DUIs. Bellingham Municipal Court's endeavor to create a DUI court is still in its 'infancy stages,' Bennett said, and the court is mostly focusing on research and planning. 'Building a strong foundation of information and strategic planning will allow us to create a sustainable program once it is ready to be established,' Bennett said. One resource that the court is utilizing is the DWI Courts Guiding Principles from All Rise, previously called the National Center for DWI Courts. The guiding principles provide insight on best practices ranging from clinical assessments to case management to community partnerships. Jim Eberspacher, director of the organization's Impaired Driving Solutions division, said DUI courts are based on the fact that repeat offenders often have underlying substance use or mental health issues. If these problems are treated, the risk of future DUI citations typically decreases. 'If we don't treat the symptoms of their behavior, we can't really ever expect them to change that behavior,' Eberspacher said. Eberspacher said DUI courts use a 'wraparound approach' to both hold people accountable and give them the treatment that they need. These courts are not geared toward first-time offenders, and can actually increase the likelihood of future DUIs among individuals who would otherwise self-correct. He highlighted the importance of knowing the population that the DUI court will target. It's important to look at data and determine the needs and resources of the community before actually implementing the new court, Eberspacher said. All Rise often works with judicial systems seeking to add DUI courts to train them and help them plan their program. All of their recommendations are research-based. 'We're always excited to see a jurisdiction begin to look at the idea of implementing a DUI court,' Eberspacher said.
