NIU shooting tragedy proves - There is more to life than sports

by ANDREW DREISCHARF The Independent

As a graduate of Northern Illinois University, I never thought the horrible events that took place in DeKalb Thursday, Feb. 14, 2008, could ever happen there.
NIU was, in fact, the last place I would ever think of something like that happening. Unfortunately, it just shows us that senseless acts like school shootings can occur anywhere. It left me sad, confused and feeling for those affected by the tragedy.
The NIU tragedy is definitely the saddest event I’ve actually been connected to. There is more to life than sports, and sadly, sometimes it takes an event like this to remind us sports fans of that.
I was at home sitting in a chair getting ready to head off to Vernon Hills for the Marian Central Catholic High School girls basketball regional title game when I received a text message from my friend Rick Mell that said, “I’m ok.”
I thought nothing of it and shrugged it off as “Rick being Rick.” Rick is a senior at NIU.
Two minutes later, my mom came into the room and told me to turn on the TV. When I did, I was shocked, scared and worried as soon as I realized what was going on.
My parents, both NIU graduates as well, and I found ourselves glued to the TV for the next two hours before I had to leave. Though I was affected by the news when it happened, it didn’t really hit me until I was driving home from Vernon Hills and listening to WGN in the car.
Hearing people who witnessed it and their accounts was almost too much for me.
I felt really sad for the victims and current Huskies. No one should have to experience such a tragedy. It hurt me that kids who were just doing what they were supposed to be doing by going to class and learning had lost their lives. It hurt me that a place I had considered safe for 4 1/2 years was not. It also hurts me that someone could do such a thing.
I spent 2000-2004 at NIU and it was such a wonderful experience and a great place to be. Cole Hall is a place pretty much every undergrad has had at least one class in. It’s used for math classes, film classes, Spanish exams and much more. Basically, it’s used for mass lectures.
I had probably eight to 10 classes in Cole Hall, and at least three in the room where the shootings occurred. I was in state of shock and disbelief. How could something like that happen at NIU?
There was no clear answer, and their still isn’t for me. There probably isn’t for anyone. Just like there weren’t answers after Columbine, 9/11 or Virginia Tech. It’s just a tough and sad situation for anyone who went or goes to NIU, or even for people who didn’t.
The outpouring of support and sympathy for the victims and for NIU has been amazing. I am in shock over that as well, but it’s a shock of happiness, gratitude and of how much people do care when horrible things happen. Support has come from all over from everyday people, Woodstock High School, The Independent, presidential hopefuls, sports teams, radio stations and even celebrities.
“Your thoughts and prayers go out to them. It’s a shocker, it’s just devastating,” said New Jersey rocker Jon Bon Jovi.
His band Bon Jovi was scheduled to rehearse for their U.S. tour at NIU’s Convocation Center the day of the tragedy. They were moved back to Nebraska when the shootings occurred and NIU was locked down.
The Chicago Blackhawks wore NIU ribbon decals on their helmets in their game against the Colorado Avalanche Feb. 17. The Chicago Bulls wore NIU T-shirts instead of warm-ups during their game at New Jersey Feb. 20. The Chicago White Sox announced they would wear NIU ball caps for their first spring training game in Arizona this week. The caps will then be autographed and sent to DeKalb to be auctioned off to benefit a scholarship fund in memory of the five students who lost their lives. White Sox General Manager Kenny Williams and Manager Ozzie Guillen wore NIU hats the first day of camp as well.
“It is our way of showing a little bit of support and understanding,” Williams said. “While it’s a simple gesture on our part, we just want to let the NIU community know that it continues to be in our thoughts and prayers.”
WGN Radio’s Steve King and Johnnie Putman dedicated a whole night of programming just to let NIU alumni, students and DeKalb residents call in and talk. It was like an NIU therapy session for anyone who needed it. It made me cope better knowing I wasn’t alone in my feelings and thoughts.
To me, things like this mean a lot. Yes, I know they don’t really fix anything. But it does make this Husky feel a little better knowing that people care and call attention to the victims and what happened.
This week NIU President John Peters said that Cole Hall would be become a memorial. I think that’s the right thing to do. It would be too hard for people to try and learn in the building. I know it would be hard for me, too.
I applaud my alma mater for responding so quickly to take action and warn those at NIU of what was happening.
I would also like to thank everyone for their kind words, support, prayers and sympathy that I received. It means so much. Thank you.

Connections make shooting difficult to bear

by MIKE NEUMANN The Independent

“Shooting at NIU.”
That’s all it said. There were no explanations and little information available. As I write this today, not much has changed in that regard. Sure, we have the names of the victims and the gunman, but any logical reason this event occurred is not available. In this case, it will never be available, simply because a logical explanation for such a tragedy cannot exist.
When I read that text message sent to me at 3:56 p.m. Feb. 14, less than an hour after gunshots rang out in Cole Hall, I quickly turned to the Internet and flicked on the radio for more information. Over the course of that night, and well into early Friday morning, I clung to my laptop.
Not even three years ago, I was taking a photography class in the basement of Cole Hall. Not once during my time at Northern Illinois University did I fear for my safety, even with increases in school shootings that seem to have occurred ever since Columbine. It wasn’t going to happen at my school, not at NIU.
And yet, less than three years later, I sit here writing this column. It’s strange, really, the different reaction one has to a situation when he has connections to it.
When I heard about the Virginia Tech shootings last April, I was sad for the victims and all those involved. I was no less sad for the NIU victims, but that sadness was mixed with a sense of anger that made this news altogether different for me to absorb.
I’ve thought about my connection to NIU a lot recently. Sure, it is my alma mater, and no graduate wants something like this associated with his or her school. It’s the deeper connections I have, however, that have rattled me the most.
All of the close friends I made in college have since graduated or moved on. For the first year or so after my graduation, I’d take frequent trips back to NIU to visit friends. DeKalb had become a home during the time I spent there, and home is never easy to leave for good, especially when it’s only about an hour away.
But something happened the following year. My friends at NIU, along with weekend trips to DeKalb, became few and far between. Most of those I knew had moved on in their professional careers. Some are engaged or married. Some have bought houses. Because of that, it seemed like my connections to the university had vanished. That changed when I received that text message.
Within minutes I was able to recall at least a half-dozen acquaintances from my days as a student at NIU. Until Feb. 14, I had not thought about the freshmen students during my senior year, who are, for the most part, seniors themselves now.
Watching the news that night, there was an interview with a student I had worked with at The Northern Star, NIU’s student-run newspaper. She had been in Cole Hall during the shootings, but was able to escape without injury.
It wasn’t that long ago, I’ve realized. I’m sure others in my graduating class are feeling the same thing as we remember our former classmates still attending NIU.

Please tell us, where does it end?

by ANDREW DREISCHARF The Independent

Two recent bits of news caught my eye in the past month and I don’t like either: the Illinois High School Association opposing Illinois House Bill 4582 and the Chicago Cubs deciding to auction off their new seats during the 2008 season instead of selling them.
One word comes to mind: greed. One question comes to mind: where does it end?
Currently there are counter suits between the Illinois Press Association and the IHSA over the IHSA’s partnering with a photography company from Wisconsin which has exclusive rights to photographs from IHSA state level events. In turn, the IHSA is barring any publication from taking its own photos at these events and holding the rights. Photos taken at a public event no longer belong to those that take them. It’s wrong. I find it hard to believe that the IHSA would provide more high quality school coverage than a local publication can.
“I don’t understand how you can place ownership on a photograph,” said Woodstock High School Principal Corey Tafoya.
Any reporter or photographer entering an IHSA state-level event must sign an agreement that any photos taken at the event don’t belong to the person who took the photos, and that they can only be used once. That is a clear violation of the First Amendment, something the bill would address.
But recently, the IHSA sent a memo to high schools in the state telling the schools to uphold this policy.
“This hurts the IHSA more than it helps them. The small town publications really help the schools, and the photos are needed to illustrate the action,” said Tafoya. “It’s really important for the hometown papers to keep doing what they do.”
It’s not fair to the people who read smaller publications and the athletes those publications benefit. Pictures help to tell those stories by capturing both emotion and action. Many people, especially in smaller towns like Woodstock, depend on smaller publications to receive their local sports news. The IHSA is trying to change that.
“In the end, I think it will fall,” said Tafoya. “It doesn’t make sense to me and I don’t know how they can do it.”
The proposed bill doesn’t say that the IHSA or a school can’t partner with a specific company to have official photos; it just says that pictures can’t be owned. The IHSA’s response is that they aren’t restricting publications from reporting the news. However, without photographs, it does affect it greatly. It diminishes the story being told.
Communities appreciate the local coverage residents get. When a team does well, no longer can photos be re-used to commemorate a season or great accomplishment. Instead, a parent, athlete, school or student must contact the IHSA for a photograph. Their options, selections and quality is limited. The IHSA also seems to believe small publications are getting rich off the photos they take. It’s simply not the case.
The other thing that upsets me about the whole thing is that the company the IHSA has partnered with is from Wisconsin. I have nothing against Wisconsin. It’s a fine state. What I do have against it, though, is hiring an out-of- state company to do something that could easily be done at home.
What’s next? Broadcasting rights, schools selling their own team logo apparel to raise money for the school? Where does it end?
The IHSA is trying to own sports. This is not professional sports or even college athletics. This is high school sports, which are still pure and not about making money. That’s exactly what the IHSA is trying to do: make money.
The other thing on my mind is the recent renovation that took place to fix the field at Wrigley Field in Chicago. I have nothing against the renovation, and I welcome it. Anything that improves the ballpark is wonderful. I don’t have a problem with 70 new seats that were added for this coming season either.
What I do have a problem with is how those seats will be obtained. These 70 new seats will be up for auction on a game-to-game basis. No season ticket sales and no individual game sales will be offered.
Sure, some of the money made might go back into the team, but it all won’t. If the money being made off these auctions were for charity, this would be a moot point. Simply put, the Cubs have found a way to make more money off their fan base, which includes me.
My question to this practice is also: where does it end?
What’s stopping the Cubs or any team that has success at auctioning off 70 seats at 81 home games from expanding the practice? What’s stopping them from now auctioning off the first three rows of the bleachers or the first two rows of every section? It’s greedy and not needed.
As if professional sports already hadn’t become enough of a cash cow, between the escalating cost of a ticket, and everything else at a stadium that is marked up, it’s becoming nearly impossible for fans of the game to enjoy it in person.
The old day trip with the family to the ballpark is now reaching the cost of a small vacation. It all seems about making money in the current sports world. No one cares about the people who care about the game. They just care about making more money.
We see it over and over again. Owners will cut corners to save a buck. They don’t care if the team is bad. The fans will keep coming. It’s wrong and sets a bad precedent.
If this practice continues, what’s to stop a college or even a high school from auctioning off the first five rows of stands for a football game? The cost of going to any event is high enough as it is. Why must the bottom line for ownership keep increasing when the product given isn’t? Enough is enough.
Where does it end?

IHSA hits homerun with random drug testing

By Andrew Dreischarf The Independent

It was late Monday, Jan. 14, when it was announced that the Illinois High School Association had voted to start random drug testing for all high school athletes in fall 2008. I was in my bed trying to get some sleep when I heard the report on the radio. I thought to myself, “Hey, this time the IHSA got it right.”
Illinois becomes the fourth state along with New Jersey, Florida and Texas, to use random drug testing during the post season of every sport at every class level. The idea is to catch those who are cheating and to keep sports more fair and clean.
When there are so many questionable things being thrown around about the IHSA — signing with a company from Wisconsin to be the only company that can take official photos, and therefore, be the only ones who can reprint photos, or the current system that uses a multiplier for smaller high schools when it comes to the post season— the IHSA has hit a homerun with the random drug testing.
Sports organizations have been under pressure for years about their sport being clean. While being 100 perfcent clean is probably never going to be a reality since the drug makers will always be one step ahead of the testers, this will help.
With the recent release of the Mitchell Report in baseball, the issue of athletes using performance-enhancing drugs has been thrust back into the spotlight. Unfortunately, steroid use happens at the high school level. It would be naïve to think otherwise. I’m sure it’s not as rampant as it is at the professional sports level, but it does happen.
Sports are supposed to be fun. I will never say sports are fair or are supposed to be fair. They aren’t, and they never will be. But they should be fun. How fun is it if the guy on the other side is on drugs? I’d be scared, for example, if I knew the guy I was supposed to block in football was all ’roided up. Sports lose their fun when cheating is involved. Drugs are cheating. Plain and simple. Anytime you use something to get a competitive edge that isn’t legal, it’s cheating. Work out all you want, but the second you take a drug to aid that, it’s cheating.
The data from studies on what steroids do to the body should be enough motivation to sway anyone from using now, but unfortunately, it doesn’t. Alarmingly, more and more young athletes abuse performance-enhancing drugs to try and get a competitive advantage.
The risks and consequences of using anabolic steroids far outweigh the benefits. Sadly, it might take until players from baseball’s “steroid era” start experiencing health problems from their abuse before this generation sees what steroids can do to someone.
There’s a reason the NFL has had strict drug testing for awhile. It keeps the game clean and makes it better. Baseball missed the boat, and it seems that they are trying to make up for lost time by now conducting investigations and trying to find those who were cheating. The MLB didn’t seem to have a problem, nor did anyone really, when Mark Maguire and Sammy Sosa were shattering homerun records. No one batted an eye. Now that baseball has many fans back, they’re trying to make things right in their eyes. You can’t change the past. The only way to fix the future is to fix the present.
High school sports are much simpler and purer. The decision to randomly test student-athletes in Illinois during regionals, sectionals and championships is a great start. Taking out athletes on drugs makes the game better for the athletes who are doing it right and playing fairly. It also makes sports at the high school level safer. It’s not fair when a baseball player has been taking steroids to get a competitive edge. It’s not fair to the school, the team and even the athlete. Athletes should be getting by on hard work and natural talent. Not with a needle in their body.
The random drug testing is fair since every post-season player will be eligible to be tested. If they aren’t cheating, there shouldn’t be anything to hide. Tests will be looking for anabolic steroids, but will also find any illegal drug. The message from the IHSA is clear: play the game, but do it right.
While some oppose the idea of drug testing at the high school level because of privacy issues, I need to ask “Why?” Unless athletes are cheating, they have nothing to hide. The athletes who are playing clean should be proud that they are representing their school, team and selves well. I have so much respect for the kids who go out there and try their hardest even though they might not be the best than I ever will for an athlete who is using drugs to get ahead. They’re cheating so many people if they’re using steroids.
As a baseball fan, I am hurt to find out that so many players I cheered for growing up appear to be cheaters. It stinks. And while I feel baseball has no one to blame but itself because it didn’t have steroids, HGH, and other things named as illegal in it’s collective bargaining agreement, and it didn’t test for drugs, and it didn’t do anything when people said steroids were being used, the players should take some blame as well.
The fact that it got to the point where players had to cheat to get ahead is sad. It’s even sadder now when you think about all the players who got passed over or lost a job to someone who was cheating.
A lot of people are feeling robbed and betrayed. But instead of trying to go back and change history, the past should be used as a learning tool for the future. The future is what the IHSA is looking at. I applaud them for it. The future of high school sports in Illinois will continue to thrive and only get better by sports staying clean to the best of the current ability of testing. The athletes who are doing what’s right will reap the benefits. They will play their games safer, and it will be fun. There will be no worries about someone who is cheating getting an upper hand. Hopefully, this also motivates any athlete who is abusing drugs to stop before it’s too late.

‘The Bears are close,’ but to what?

By ANDREW DREISCHARF The Independent

“The Bears are close,” said Chicago Bears general manager Jerry Angelo this past week.
I ask: Close to what?
I feel saddened and find it hard to believe that this Bears team was in the Super Bowl just 11 months ago. I sat at home this weekend watching the playoffs and thinking to myself: Why aren’t the Bears here? The answer is pretty clear. The Bears have so many holes going into the 2008 season that it would be like trying to patch a crack in the Hoover Dam with spackle.
For a season that was supposed to be better than last, the anti-climatic loss to the Colts in Super Bowl XLI was bad enough. Sitting through the 2007 season was gut-wrenching. Not that much changed from February to September of 2007, but the results and regression of the club were some of the hardest things I can remember.
Injuries were the main culprits that did the Bears in this season. In a 16-game season, you’re not going to survive with many of your key players out with injuries. Mike Brown was lost in the first game, and it seems the defense as a whole never recovered. Tommie Harris’ knee continues to be an issue. After having offseason surgery, he came back in 2007, but he still seemed to be hurt. He went from an incredibly explosive defensive tackle to a player who was flagged multiple times for false starts and seemed to be a step behind everyone else.
Nathan Vasher, a top cover cornerback missed 10 games with a nagging groin injury. Even when he returned, it was clear he was nowhere near 100 percent and was placed on the injured reserve list soon after. When he returned against the Minnesota Vikings in week 14, he intercepted a pass and helped Brian Urlacher make one as he threw a block on wide receiver Robert Ferguson. With Brown and Vasher missing most of the season, the Bears’ secondary unit seemed to suffer the most as this once- top defense found itself at the bottom of most statistical categories.
Even defensive captain and fan favorite Urlacher was hurt this season. An arthritic back impeded Urlacher’s play for a good part of the season. It was only the last few games of the season that he seemed to look like his old self.
Capping off all the injuries was the loss of two offensive starters-running back Cedric Benson and quarterback Rex Grossman. A broken fibula knocked out Benson, and another leg injury sidelined Grossman for the season just when both players finally started to look good.
However, injuries were not the only cause for the lackluster outcome of 2007.
The three-headed monster known as the Chicago Bears quarterback controversy once again reared its ugly head in 2007. Grossman started the season poorly only to be replaced by Brian Griese. Once Griese struggled, Grossman was given the starting nod back before getting hurt and being replaced by Kyle Orton for the remainder of the season. It was not only a season of “good Rex, bad Rex,” but it also applied to Griese, who seemed lights out one game and terrible the next.
Things will only be more complicated this offseason as Grossman is an unrestricted free agent, and the Bears hold the No. 14 pick in the April draft. Many big names will be available in the draft, but in recent years many of the quarterbacks who are great in college don’t have games that translate well to the NFL-style of play. There also will be quite a few big-name quarterbacks available via free agency, including Cleveland’s Derek Anderson. He had a career year of sorts for the first half of 2007, before falling back to earth. Buyer beware is what I say. A player who has a standout contract year often regresses back to mediocrity after signing a large contract.
Unfortunately, the quarterback position isn’t even close to being the Bears’ top problem. Keep in mind that when the defense is healthy, Grossman and Orton have both made it to the playoffs just fine.
The biggest issue in 2007 seemed to be the overnight aging process of the offensive line. The oldest in the NFL seemed ancient this season. Olin Kreutz, like Urlacher, failed to make the Pro Bowl for the first time in years. The line couldn’t block for either quarterback or the running game. Like an overused turnstile on the subway, the Bears’ offensive line let defensive linemen through to the unsuspecting player in the backfield. A 35-year-old Ruben Brown and a 34-year-old Fred Miller clearly showed their age. Rookie Josh Beekman never cracked the active roster as he struggled in practice. Kreutz and John Tait seemed to be the only ones trying, and at times both appeared sluggish and tired from carrying the weight of their teammates.
The trade of running back Thomas Jones to the New York Jets didn’t help matters.
Grossman, linebacker Lance Briggs, special teams standout Brendon Ayanbadejo and speedy wide receiver Bernard Berrian are all unrestricted free agents. All four could be gone at the drop of a hat to the highest bidder.
Angelo and head coach Lovie Smith always seem to say the same things to the media: everything is fine, and we’re comfortable with the team we have. How can they be comfortable with a team that missed the playoffs after making the Super Bowl the season before and every team in their division has only gotten better?
I say it’s time to finally make a splash in the offseason. Spend the money it takes to make the Bears an elite team, or at least try to. The Bears are notoriously thrifty for being one of the wealthiest and most followed teams in the NFL. Doesn’t this loyal fan base deserve better? Re-sign those key players. Go after the top free agents and do not settle for those on the second tier because they’re cheaper. Trade up in the draft to get your man instead of trading down and settling for what’s available to save some money.
You may think we’re close to a Super Bowl, but unless things change soon, I say we’re closer to having the top draft pick. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Expand sport spectating options

by Andrew Dreischarf

With the new year, many people are making changes. Some try to save money, others will try to lose weight and some look to try new things. As a sports fan, I say try attending new sporting events.
Since starting the job of sports editor, I have attended sports I never had before and I’ve enjoyed them all. I’d be lying if I said that I was an avid follower of volleyball, golf, swimming and wrestling before working at The Independent. After attending each of these sports about two or three times, I started to understand them and appreciate them. The athletes are exceptional.
Another thing I’ve noticed is that people attend the boys varsity games at a much higher frequency than the girls games. I’d like to see people give the girls teams a chance, too, in 2008. I think you’ll like what you see. For example, both the Marian Central Catholic High School and Woodstock High School girls basketball teams are really worth watching in person. Seeing good basketball played should make instant fans. I know people traditionally attend boys games, and that’s awesome. All I’m saying is give the girls games a try, too.
On another front, while I’m trying to get you to check out new sports and the girls teams, check out the sub-varsity teams as well. These athletes work just as hard or harder than the varsity, and some are quite good. If possible, before you head out to that next varsity game at MC or WHS go a little earlier and check out the game that precedes it.
This doesn’t just apply to high school sports either. In 2008, give teams outside of Woodstock a chance if possible. Surprisingly, the hottest sports ticket in Chicago at the moment is for the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL. Yes, you read that correctly.
The team no one seems to have paid attention to for the last 15 years is the most exciting to watch and attend at this time. So go down to the United Center and check out hockey. If you don’t need to be right behind the glass of the rink, there are some pretty decent seats for not a lot of money. On most game nights, students with a valid student ID can get in for just $8. Sure, you’re at the top of the arena, but at the United Center, there isn’t a bad seat. This is how I started going to hockey games.
To me, hockey was always the hardest sport to follow on television. However, once I started attending games, I not only was able to stick with the action in person, but I started to understand the game better. That’s the case for sports like volleyball and wrestling, as well. By actually attending these sports, you start to get a feel and a better understanding for them. Also, if you have a question, ask a fan. More often than not, they’ll be very helpful. They usually are just happy to help a potential fan understand the sport as well.
For the first time in many years, tickets for the Chicago Bulls are available through means other than brokers and Ebay due to the team’s poor start. So if you’ve never experienced an NBA game in person, 2008 might be the best chance to go and experience the atmosphere of a pro basketball game. Despite the Bulls not having the best team this season, the games are still very fun to attend, and you can do what many people in attendance at NBA games do, go to a game and watch the visiting superstar. I’m guilty of this. I’ve gone to Milwaukee Bucks games quite a few times to see either the Bulls or to see Kobe Bryant or LeBron James.
Then there’s always baseball. Whether you are a Cubs, White Sox or even Brewers fan, a day at the ballpark is always a good time. Perhaps, if you’ve never gone to a baseball game, now is the best time to give that a shot. Tickets can be hard to get at times, but, with each team having 81 home games, the chances are a little better. I try to go to games for the Cubs, White Sox and Brewers every summer. Each team’s stadium is a different atmosphere, but all are great. With the Cubs you have Wrigley Field, and all the fun places surrounding it.
With the White Sox you have a wonderfully revamped US Cellular Field and tailgating is allowed before the game, and, with the Brewers, you have Miller Park and tailgating, as well. To me, Miller Park is worth the trip alone. It’s one of the best newer facilities in all of sports. It’s also one of the cheapest tickets, if you attend a non-marquee game. Sorry fellow Cub fans, a trip north of the state line will cost quite a bit because your eam commands higher pricing.
That brings us to the Bears. Football, as I’ve noticed in Woodstock, is loved by many people. The high school games are always packed full of fans.
If you can snag some Bears tickets in 2008, by all means, please go. It’s an amazing time. However, these tickets are the hardest to come by. I myself haven’t gone to a game in a few seasons. There’s nothing like more than 60,000 football fans going crazy for their favorite team.
In 2008, if you can, please try new things, especially sporting events that you might not usually attend. Please try them at all levels as well. Unlike the pro teams, it doesn’t cost a lot to see high school games, and it’s a lot of fun. The wonderful student athletes in the area deserve your support. I hope to see you out there in 2008.

Government Day

The Leadership Greater McHenry County Class of 2008 is one-third through our year and it's been a dizzying experience, chalked full of wonderful informational about the county that I wouldn't have gained otherwise.
This month's session was on local government. We first met with State Senator Pam Althoff and State Reps. Mike Tryon and Jack Franks. They offered great insight into the Springfield disaster known as the governor, including plans to recall his position, or maybe even begin impeachment proceedings. They were full of dirty details about the CTA train wreck. How long do you think you have to work at CTA to be eligible for full pension for life? The answer is 31 months. How ridiculous is that? No wonder the CTA is in trouble.
Then McHenry County and township government officials presented information such as what the county recorder actually does, what's involved in county planning and development, the transportation department, clerk's office and we also heard from McHenry County Board Chairman Ken Koehler about what his position entails.
Our afternoon was spent at Crystal Lake Municipal Center where we role played (and some of us thought we would die laughing at some of our classmates' acting abilities). You see, we were divided into four groups of planning and zoning commission, city council, developers and neighbors. We performed a case study based on a true development proposal that occurred in Crystal Lake in the 1990s.
I wish I could do justice to the leadership program here but I fall short. I can tell you that I was forced to miss the November session on education because my husband had half his foot amputated that day (due to diabetes-related complications) and I was devastated. I asked classmates to take notes for me because I didn't want to miss anything. I also missed the camaraderie and friends I've made through the program.
Next month's session is on health care. That will be great, too, I'm sure!

Two high schools double the great sports

by ANDREW DREISCHARF The Independent

Growth presents possibility for two sets of great public high school competitors

When it was first confirmed that Woodstock North High School would be fielding its own athletic teams when it opens in the fall, I immediately thought it was a good idea.
The population of the Woodstock area is increasing. This means more students and more student athletes, hence the reason for building a second public high school in Woodstock.
With more students, the talent pool of student athletes in the area will be much deeper. Therefore, it’s great that both schools will have their own teams. I always say it’s better to have two good teams than one.
However, it doesn’t mean both Woodstock High School and WNHS will have great teams right away. WHNS won’t even be fielding varsity teams until 2009, and, even then, the oldest players on the teams will be juniors. Come 2010, WNHS will have a senior pool of players.
Both schools might struggle for awhile. No new school is ready to compete overnight, and, in return, WHS will have slightly fewer students to make up their teams at first.
Exact enrollment for both high schools is unknown and cannot be predicted. This also in no way is saying a team of juniors can’t succeed, because they can. It’s just not something that happens often.
For any athlete, at any level, it’s all in what the athlete makes of an opportunity. Athletes, when presented with any opportunity or challenge, must step up.
Other newer high schools have gone on to see great things happen athletically.
Prairie Ridge High School in Crystal Lake is a prime example. Its teams might not have been great right away but now are a force to be reckoned with in the Fox Valley Conference in almost every sport.
Where I grew up in Buffalo Grove, the high school I attended, Stevenson in Lincolnshire, simply got too large. Forcing Vernon Hills to build its own high school.
Until then, students in Vernon Hills were attending Stevenson, Mundelein High School and even Libertyville High School, depending on where they lived. All those high schools boasted great sports programs. It was only a matter of time before Vernon Hills High School was either on par or better than other schools in its conference.
The reason for its success was the same as other schools. They had great players who were coached well at younger levels and then moved on to high school. The same can happen in Woodstock.
The only difference I can see here is the size of enrollment at each school. My graduating class had roughly 800 students. My younger brother’s class had more than 1,000 students. It was very easy to find 50 athletes to field a football team that was competitive.
Woodstock being smaller, it might not be as easy. But as long as the number of students moving to Woodstock keeps increasing there’s no doubt in my mind that there will be two very competitive high schools here.
There are other advantages for student athletes by adding a second high school. There are more opportunities. When the talent pool is so tight, like it is now with a crowded high school in Woodstock, it might discourage students who don’t feel they are good enough to make the team.
With two schools, the number of spots on teams at each school may encourage more students to try out for a team. More teams means more roster spots available. The talent pool in no way is decreased or diluted, but, in fact, actually expanded and opens the door for more potential student athletes.
The most important thing for a student athlete is opportunity, and a second high school increases opportunities for all. It’s not just students who will be given more opportunities.
A second high school also presents new opportunities for coaches.
I fully expect to see two very good high school teams in each sport in Woodstock once WNHS has a senior class.
The new rivalry created in town will be a lot of fun. One of the best things about building Vernon Hills High School was that my high school had a new rival. The fact that Stevenson and VHHS were so close geographically made it all the more exciting.
There’s nothing like the feeling of beating your closest rival. It’s nice to have bragging rights for the season. How much fun will a Woodstock High School vs. Woodstock North High School games be? I think it will be awesome.
In the end, everyone wins: the two high schools, the students and the fans. It will take time, and people will need to be patient. There might be some rough seasons ahead for both high schools.
In time, when everything gets rolling more great students move into the area, there will be two very good and well-respected sets of teams that call Woodstock home. Twice as many schools means twice as many games for sports fans like me to attend and twice as many teams to follow. I can’t wait.