Invitation to big media event October 30

Norwood Promise and UC Blue Ash invite you to a media event at 5:00 p.m., Tuesday, October 30, at the Norwood Middle School Auditorium on Sherman Avenue.  Amazing details of this new partnership will be shared!   Please attend and show your support and let the media outlets know how important this program is to the Norwood community.

NCS rated EXCELLENT for second year in a row!

Guest blog by Superintendent Rob Amodio

 The Ohio Department of Education has posted the final report card designations for all public schools in the state of Ohio. For the second year in a row the Norwood City School District has been designated by O.D.E as EXCELLENT!  Williams Avenue Elementary became the first school in the history of the district to be designated as Excellent With Distinction! Over the last three years the staff and students have led the district to exponential growth in all areas of academic growth!

Congratulations and job well done to each and every staff member, student, parent and community member who have placed so much passion, effort into making our district a truly EXCELLENT school district.

Listed below are the ratings for each individual building as well the district wide for the last three school years.  Congratulations again to all on a job well done!!

High School
2010 Effective 9/12 indicators 97.1 PI
2011 Excellent 11/12 indicators 100.4 PI
2012 Excellent 11/12 indicators 101 PI

Middle School 

2010 Effective 3/6 indicators 93.1 PI
2011 Excellent 5/6 indicators 94.6 PI
2012 Excellent 5/6 indicators 97.5 PI 

View Elementary 

2010 Effective 7/10 indicators 90.8 PI
2011 Effective 7/10 indicators 93.9 PI
2012 Effective 9/10 indicators 99.4 PI 

Sharpsburg Elementary 

2010 Effective 6/10 indicators 93.2 PI
2011 Effective 6/10 indicators 90.8 PI
2012 Excellent 8/10 indicators 95.3 PI

Williams Elementary 

2010 Continuous Improvement 3/10 indicators 86.7 PI
2011 Effective 5/10 indicators 92.1 PI
2012 Excellent With Distinction 10/10 indicators 97.3 PI

District 

2010 Continuous Improvement 16/26 indicators 92.7 PI
2011 Excellent 20/26 indicators 94.7 PI
2012 Excellent 23/26 indicators 98.3 PI

Rob Amodio

Superintendent

Norwood City Schools

Norwood Service League Celebrates 95 years with The Great Norwood Micro-Q

After 95 years of service to the Norwood community, the Norwood Service League is throwing a party to show their appreciation for the legion of donors, volunteers and Norwood citizens whose contributions have made the Service League’s mission possible. The Great Norwood Micro-Q will take place Saturday, October 13 from 5 to 9pm at 5229 Montgomery Road, in the parking lot of CVS, across from The Mound Café. The public is invited to the free admission event that will feature food from City Barbeque, voted #1 barbeque in Cincinnati; a choice of four outstanding microbrew beers selected by Norwood’s own Dan Listermann of Listermann Brewing Supply; and music from the wildly popular Robin Lacy & DeZydeco.

The event is being held to thank supporters of the Service League and to help raise awareness of the League’s mission “To help people in need, connecting them to resources that improve their lives and provide help out of poverty.” Norwood Service League Director, Lupe Hoyt invites everyone to join in the festivities. “We’re so grateful to the many people who have, over the years, contributed their time, their dollars and their energies to help us carry out our mission,” said Ms. Hoyt. “We’ve worked so hard for so long, we thought it was time to take an evening to celebrate the Service League and, indeed, the entire city of Norwood that we serve.”

Ms. Hoyt would also like to thank the companies and sponsors who have helped make The Great Norwood Micro-Q possible including CVS, United Dairy Farmers, Rumpke, City Barbeque, CVS, Listermann Brewing Supply, Robin Lacy & DeZydeco, Sweets by LaDawn, Seek and gyro. “An organization like the Norwood Service League does not exist without its supporters,” said Ms. Hoyt. “From our event sponsors to the hundred of individuals and companies that have donated dollars and goods to support services such as the Norwood Food Closet, our long-standing food bank, our GED programs and our full range of traditional social services offered by our staff, we are truly blessed.”

The Great Norwood Micro-Q will offer pulled pork sandwiches, side dishes, desserts and a choice of four unique microbrews for sale. There will also be a raffle drawing. In addition, the first 25 people to confirm their attendance and one guest by October 1 will receive two free City Barbeque dinners. To confirm your attendance contact the Norwood Service League at norwoodserviceleague.org or at (513) 924-1200.

If you are not one of the first 25 people you can still enjoy dinner with your family. Dinner prices: Adult $ 7.50, Senior $ 6.50 and Children (12 and under) $ 5.00. Donate one can of food to the Norwood Food Closet and receive $ 1.00 off the price of your dinner.

Vote YES on Issue 18

Guest blog by Keith Moore, Council-at-Large

  

Issue 18 is a renewal of the City of Norwood’s general operating levy.

It is NOT an increase, just a renewal.

According to the Hamilton County Auditor’s Certificate, if the levy passes, it will bring in $1,333,390.00 per year. It will cost the owner of a $100,000 house $79.33 per year.

Currently, the levy costs the owner of a $100,000 house $79.33 per year.

So why does the city need this levy? Revenues are down – way down. Here are the General Fund revenue numbers for the last few years:

            2009:   $22 million

            2010:   $19.9 million

            2011:   $18.8 million

            2012:   $18 million (estimated)

A big part of the budget crunch this year comes from the State, which cut Local Government Funds and eliminated the Personal Property Tax and the Estate Tax.

The City’s employees have managed to squeeze every dime to keep us operating, including major contract concessions on wages and staffing levels that have saved millions of dollars. Of course, the City has also closed the smaller swimming pools and suspended the annual street repair program. We have made cuts across the board, but we have kept every department open and operating so far.

Things should be better in the years to come. The economy is slowly improving, and we can all see the new projects going up. There are more projects in the planning stages. But we won’t begin to see the budget impact from those new projects until late next year, and for most, in 2014 or later. And we have a lot of ground to make up to get back to where we should be.

Losing this levy would have a major impact on our ability to maintain the services we have now.

Please vote YES on Issue 18.

Community meeting next Thursday

Ward 1 Councilperson Sarah Allan and Council-at-large Keith Moore are co-hosting a community meeting next Thursday, October 4th at 7:30 p.m. at the Norwood Community Center at 1810 Courtland Avenue at the corner of Carter Avenue.  Everyone is invited to attend and find out about the exciting new developments and projects in Norwood.  They will provide information about Issue 18, which on this November’s ballot.

Invitation to Norwood Republican Club Candidates’ Night

Join the Norwood Republican Club as 

we welcome local candidates for

office at our 2012

Candidates’ Night 

Monday, September 24 at 7:30 p.m.

Norwood Community Center
1810 Courtland Avenue
Norwood, Ohio

Judge Pat Fisher
Wayne Lippert
Ted Hubbard
Joe Deters
Leslie Ghiz
Judge John Williams
Pete Kambelos
Rob Goering

And others to be announced….

Alert: have you seen this vicious Norwood dog?

This Channel 12 report asks the public to contact the SPCA or the Norwood Police if anyone has information about a vicious dog that attacked a puppy on Drex Avenue near Norwood View Elementary last Wednesday night.  Bevin Kennedy says the dog attacked her springer spaniel and kept attacking after she screamed and even followed them across the street to their home.  She believes the dog is a pit bull or boxer mix with a brindle coat.  The description is similar to that of a dog that attacked and killed Bart Stonebraker’s dog in the front yard of his Warren Avenue home this past February. 

Please be on the lookout for this dog and teport any sightings immediately to the Norwood Police or SPCA.  Until the dog is caught, we all need to take extra precautions for our pets’ safety as well as our own.

NHD: First case of West Nile Virus in Norwood

Guest blog by Brad King

I just wanted to let everyone know that the Norwood City Health Department has just been informed by the State Health Department that we have our first case of West Nile Virus in the City of Norwood.

West Nile Virus (WNV) is a viral disease affecting the central nervous system that can be transmitted to humans by mosquitoes. It is important to note that most people who are bitten by an infected mosquito will never become sick. Everyone, however, should be aware of the symptoms of WNV. Symptoms may develop 2-15 days after someone is bitten by an infected mosquito.

No Symptoms in Most People. Approximately 80 percent of people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with WNV will not show any symptoms at all.

Milder Symptoms in Some People. Up to 20 percent of the people who become infected will display symptoms which can include fever, headache, body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Symptoms can last for as short as a few days, though even healthy people have been sick for several weeks.

Serious Symptoms in a Few People. It is estimated that approximately one in 150 (fewer than 1 percent) persons infected with West Nile Virus will develop a more severe form of disease. The severe symptoms can include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. These symptoms may last several weeks and neurological effects may be permanent.

The Norwood City Health Department recommends that residents follow the plan of DRAIN, DUNK, and PROTECT to reduce the mosquito population and prevent mosquito bites:

DRAIN

• Look for and drain sources of standing water on your property – litter, tires, buckets, flower pots, wading pools and similar items that could create standing water and become mosquito breeding sites.

• Frequently change water in bird baths and pet bowls.

• Drain small puddles after heavy rainstorms.

DUNK

• Apply mosquito larvicide, sometimes called mosquito “dunks,” to areas of standing water that cannot be drained. The “dunks” are environmentally safe and won’t harm pets. You can purchase them at your local hardware store.

PROTECT

• Cut your grass and trim shrubbery.

• Make sure screens in windows and doors are tight-fitting and free from defects.

• Wear long sleeves and pants during peak mosquito hours – dawn and dusk.

• Use an EPA-registered insect repellent such as those containing DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus. Always follow the directions on the package.

Staff from the Health Department have been out in the community advising people of the plan to help prevent the spread of the disease.

For more information on how to prevent the spread of West Nile Virus, please contact the Norwood City Health Department at 458-4600. You can also visit www.odh.ohio.gov and search West Nile virus or go to http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/wnv_factsheet.htm

Brad King, M.P.H., R.S.
Health Commissioner
Norwood City Health Department
458-4600

Limited time only: Free Spay/Neuter Voucher

If you hurry, you can get a free spay/neuter voucher that covers a $35 surgery cost & mandatory $10 rabies vaccination for cats at Ohio AlleyCat Resource Clinic (OAR)  and United Coalition for Animals Clinic (UCAN.

Send a letter of request for voucher(s) with self-addressed stamped envelope to:

The Scratching Post
6948 Plainfield Road
Cincinnati, OH 45236

Processing takes 7-10 days.

Flu shots at the Norwood Health Department

The Norwood Health Department is conducting 3 flu shot clinics starting today at 2059 Sherman Avenue:

Tuesday, August 28,  from 1:00 - 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday, September 12, from 1:00 - 4:30 p.m.
Wednesday, September 19, from 1:00 - 4:30 p.m.

The cost is $20.00 for traditional flu shot and $25.00 for nasal Flumist or the NEW Intradermal shot. Payment can be made with cash or credit card. Some insurances now accepted.

This week at the Norwood Branch Library

 Tuesday, August 7

Family Movie Day

Cool off and enjoy your last few days of summer by watching a fun family film at the library!

2:00 p.m., Families

Saturday, August 11

Books Alive! For Kids

Get excited about music and celebrating the world around you with Books Alive! For Kids

Enjoy:

·         What a Wonderful World, the book by George Weiss who wrote lyrics for the song made famous by Louis Armstrong.

·         An interactive performance by trumpeter Wesley Barnfield

·         A related craft

3:00 p.m., Children & Families