The Press-Dispatch
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The Press-Dispatch Local Wednesday, June 21, 2017 A- 5 GOT NEWS? Call 812-354-8500 or email news@pressdispatch.net "I would have loved to have seen the building up in the air by now, but that's the way buildings go, at times," Houtsch said. "We're hoping that we can get it at least op- erational by the 9th of August, we'll be fin- ished. It might not be painted. The drywall may not be completely finished, the doors might not be on in the interior – but we're really hoping that, in the next week or so here, things really get moving and we can get to the point where we can open this building for the first day of school." Houtsch said that Jeffer- son Township Trustee Cindy Ridao's discovery that the Jefferson Town- ship Community Center's lease with the Jefferson Township had expired in 2012 – which prevents the community center board from subleasing the facility – would have little impact on Otwell Miller Acade- my, despite the fact that the charter school planned to use the community center's kitchen, dining and gymnasium facilities. "That doesn't really affect us, the school, Otwell Miller Academy, the Friends of Ot- well," Houtsch said. "Yes, we would love to be able to use this building as our din- ing room, kitchen and gymnasium, but if it comes down to it and we can't, then we'll just have to go with Plan B." When asked what Plan B was, Houtsch said that Friends of Otwell Elementary rep- resentatives were in the process of contact- ing food suppliers. "We're just getting into the process of talking to somebody about that," Houtsch said. "We could feed the kids at school. We don't see that that's a problem." "Hopefully, that won't come to that," Houtsch added. "Hopefully, we'll get a lease signed with the community center again." Otwell Miller Academy school director Rick Fears told the group that he had been working on student enrollment since being hired last month. "What I'd like to get out tonight is we needed student enrollment numbers yes- terday," Fears said. "That's going to drive everything we do in the school. We have to have our numbers, because the number of students drives your staff." Houtsch noted that the Friends of Otwell Elementary board members had received a 10 -page to-do list from Grace College, con- taining approximately 10 to 12 items on each page that need to be addressed be- fore the school can open. "We're trying to make sure that every- thing is done that needs to be done so that we can actually open the school as we go forward," Houtsch said. "Elisabeth and I have been having bi-weekly phone calls with Grace College for about an hour or so, to help answer their questions. They want to know where we're at, what the prog- ress is and things like that, on the list. As soon as we get Mr. Fears away from his driving duties, then we're going to get him on those phone calls, too, because it takes more than one person to get this going and to get through that list." Luff informed the group that a board of directors for the Otwell Miller Academy needed to be formed, and that anyone in- terested in serving should let her or any Friends of Otwell Elementary board mem- ber know before the next public meeting on Monday, July 17. "Please understand, if you wish to be a part of the school board, you will need a background check," Luff said. "It's re- quired by law to have a background check. All of this needs to be accomplished in the next month, because we need to hold a board meeting for the school." Luff announced that the school board will be comprised of three members of the Friends of Otwell Elementary's Board of Di- rectors, two teachers, two parents and two students, adding that Rhodes would be as- suming the presidency of the Friends of Ot- well Elementary while Houtsch – who will remain on the Friends of Otwell Elementa- ry's Board of Directors – will become presi- dent of the Otwell Miller Academy's board. In addition, individuals are needed to fill vacant positions on the Friends of Otwell El- ementary's Board of Directors, Luff said. "So if you would like to be on either of the boards, let us know, and if we have enough people, then we'll have elections," Houtsch said. "That way, everything will be above board and legal and all that stuff, so that we can go forward." "As we said a long time ago, as the old saying says, it takes a village," Houtsch add- ed. "And we need some more villagers to help us out on these boards and stuff as we start moving forward and transitioning in- to that." Some of the meeting's attendees, how- ever, were critical of actions taken by the Friends of Otwell Elementary's board thus far, including the decision to enter into a contract with Morton Buildings of Jasper – at which, according to former Pike County Sheriff Jeff Clements, Houtsch's son-in-law is employed – to build the school. Rhodes, however, defended the board's actions. "The reality is, is that although every- body gets to have their opinion and gets to voice their opinion, often times everybody doesn't get their way," Rhodes said. "For a lot of different reasons, that sometimes has to be sacrificed because you don't have the time to take a poll, get everybody togeth- er and take a ballot. That's why they have things like the executive board." "Now, I'm not here to defend anything in the past," Rhodes said. "Everything has been done by a proper vote. When people needed to be excluded, they excused them- selves and did not vote." Another attendee asked why phone calls were not being made to the parents who have registered their children, asking them to help, in various ways, to get the school up and running. "Why can't we pick up a phone and say, 'Hey, can you help with this? Can you help with that? '" she said. "We can't just rely on the few people that are in this room." "I personally have been told by parents that they don't want the fact that their chil- dren are on our registration list made public knowledge," Rhodes replied. "We couldn't possibly make it public knowledge, because our parents are terrified that their children are going to be terrorized at other times and other places by adults who maybe don't feel the same way we do." "We need those people to step up, but we can't get them to do that," Rhodes added. "That's what I'm trying to tell you." Luff, when asked how many children had been registered, reported that 34 out of the 92 students that pre-enrolled in kin- dergarten through fifth grade had regis- tered thus far. "These parents need to step up and start helping, and now that we're starting to get them actually registered, hopefully, that all happens, and we can do that," Houtsch said. "Because they will be required to do a cer- tain amount of hours." Friends of Otwell Elementary board member Josh Byrd subsequently addressed the meeting, starting by saying, "I know not everything that has gone on is right." "There's so much going on, these guys can't even keep it straight," Byrd contin- ued. "There's stuff that I've disagreed with that I voted for because we have to have a school in this town. I know it's not going to suit everybody in this room. There's no possible way." "But all we can do is keep trying and keep pushing," Byrd added. "And long as every- body sticks together, we'll keep going for- ward. We can't start splitting apart. We've got to come together. If there's someone wanting to get involved, they need to step up and get into it deep, do what they can to make this thing go." Houtsch interrupted Byrd briefly to note that he and Byrd would likely be at the construction site within the next cou- ple of days, grading gravel to get it ready for the concrete. "Because the concrete guy can't get to it," Houtsch explained. "Mike had access with Morton," Byrd said. "He took full advantage. I realize the price may not be right ... but I had to vote for it because that was our option. Time was against us." "Time's still against us," Houtsch said. "It's still against us," Byrd continued. "That's all we can do, is try to hold togeth- er here, and do the best we can." "I've said from the very start, I'll do the best that I can, and if it's not good enough, I'm sorry," Houtsch said. "But I'm doing the best that I can." Rhodes told the group that they needed to do whatever needed to be done to stay on course. "We have got to make sure that our par- ents are bolstered and steadfast," Rhodes said. "This is not a time for them to show fear in the face of the enemy. We have to understand that we can have all the build- ings in the world and all the bells and whis- tles, all the best teachers, and we still have to have students." "So if you know some of those parents, if you know some of those registered fami- lies, then please let them know that things are progressing, and we need them to show up," Rhodes concluded. OTWELL Continued from page 5 Save the Date!! 2017 Jr. Golf Camp July 19-21 • 9 am - 11am Located at Prides Creek Golf Course Open to all boys and girls entering grades 4-8 Sponsored by Petersburg Kiwanis Club Registration forms available at Prides Creek Golf Course For more information, call 812-354-3059 Five OVWI arrests reported this week By Andy Heuring Two people were arrested for drunken driving after they were involved in separate accidents in the last week. They were just two of five OV WI arrests in Pike County. Casey D. Ashby, 31, of 843 S. CR 325 W., Petersburg, was arrested after he was in- volved in an accident on Ayrshire Road at 10 :18 p.m. Saturday. Pike County Sheriff's Sgt. Dallas Killian said he and Deputy Paul Collier were noti- fied of a hit and run accident on Ayrshire Road (CR 375 S.) near Muren Road (CR 50 E.). Sgt. Killian said while Deputy Collier went directly to the scene, he drove south on Highway 57, then went south on Merid- ian Road and saw a vehicle matching the description of the fleeing vehicle. Sgt. Killian said he turned on his emer- gency lights and drove to the center of the road beside Ashby, but Ashby slowed and drove into the ditch and around him. Killian pursued Ashby, but said he didn't stop and continued for about 1.5 miles, when he stopped abruptly. According to Killian, he immediately no- ticed the strong odor of alcohol while talk- ing with Ashby. Killian's report stated when he asked Ashby why he didn't stop, Ashby said he "didn't hit anyone." It also stated he couldn't perform any field sobriety tests because of Ashby's high level of intoxica- tion. Ashby was taken to the Daviess Com- munity Hospital, where he tested 0.27 per- cent, which is more than three times the legal limit for blood alcohol content in In- diana. He was taken to the Pike County Jail, where he was preliminarily charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated and endangering another person, leaving the scene of an accident and resisting law en- forcement in a vehicle. Thomas R. Culbertson, of rural Win- slow, called 911 at 10 :18 p.m. to report the accident. Culbertson told police he was driving on Ayrshire Road when he saw a white pickup stopped in the middle of the road, and as he approached it, the pickup backed up, sideswiping his vehicle and then it drove away. An Elberfeld man was arrested after po- lice responded to a report of a motorcycle crash at Jordan Park in Spurgeon. Russell C. Georges, 35, of 8633 S. SR 57, Elberfeld, was arrested following a 1:30 a.m. motorcycle crash. Pike County Sheriff's Deputy Buck Seger said he was dispatched to a motor- cycle crash at Jordan Park in Spurgeon, in which the driver of the motorcycle had left the scene. According to police reports, Aaron Ma- son called 911 to report a woman had come to his door and said she had been in a mo- torcycle accident and wanted to go home. The woman was identified as Teri Nuhring. Mason said she told him she was riding on the back of a motorcycle that had crashed. Spurgeon Town Marshal Ray Brooks re- sponded to the park and said he located a motorcycle's instrument cluster and an in- surance card of Georges. However, the mo- torcycle and Georges were gone. Deputy Seger said he and Marshal Brooks went to Nuhring's residence and on the way found a motorcycle in a ditch. They then found both Nuhring and Georg- es at Nuhring's residence. Seger said Georges told him he lost con- trol of the motorcycle and crashed near the park. According to Seger's report, Georg- es told him he left the scene because he had been drinking and didn't want a DUI arrest. Seger said he noticed the smell of alco- hol while talking with Georges, who failed field sobriety tests and was taken to the Pike County Jail, where it was determined he needed to be cleared by medical staff before being admitted to the jail. He was taken to the Daviess Community Hospital, where he would not allow treatment of his wounds. He was then transported to Me- morial Hospital, where emergency room staffed checked his wounds and cleared him to be jailed. Georges refused a chemical test. He was preliminarily charged with operating a ve- hicle while intoxicated (refusal), leaving the scene of an accident and possession of paraphernalia. A Milltown man was arrested early Mon- day after police stopped him on Ayrshire Road for not have taillights or a license plate on his boat trailer. Brian K. Williams, 51, of Milltown, told Deputy Seger he didn't think he had to have a plate for the trailer. Deputy Seger said he noticed Williams' speech was er- ratic. He failed two of three field sobriety tests and initially said he would take a chemi- cal test, but then changed his mind and refused the test, saying he would test pos- itive for marijuana. He was transported to the Pike County Jail, where he was preliminarily charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicat- ed, (refusal) and driving while suspend- ed, prior. A Petersburg man was arrested after police stopped him for failing to dim his headlights. Roger W. Roach, 44, of 1290 Lake Min- nis Ct., Petersburg, was stopped by Dep- uty Seger at 11:38 p.m. on CR 550 N. A f- ter Roach failed to dim his lights, Deputy Seger turned around to pursue him and no- ticed something being thrown out the pas- senger side window. Seger said he locat- ed a can of beer that was still cold. Roach pulled over near the Lake Minnis Court and told Seger his dimmer switch wasn't working properly. Roach failed two of three field sobri- ety tests and tested negative on a porta- ble breath test. Roach was taken to the Da- viess Community Hospital, where he test- ed positive for marijuana. According to Deputy Seger's report, Roach claimed he had not smoked marijuana, but had been around someone who was smoking mari- juana. Then later he said he hadn't smoked marijuana "today," but had smoked recent- ly. He was taken to the Pike County Jail, where he was preliminarily charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated. A Jasper man was arrested last Wednes- day after police said they saw his vehicle rolling backwards down a hill after stop- ping at an intersection. Kenneth Wright, 56, of 392 S. Third St., Jasper, was arrested at 6:30 p.m. Wednes- day, June 14 by Sheriff's Sgt. Dallas Killian. Sgt. Killian said he was driving south through Winslow when he saw a car on Union St. stop at the intersection with Highway 61 and then begin to roll back- wards down the hill. Killian said he turned around, but by then Wright had pulled on- to Highway 61 and was heading south. He pulled into the liquor store parking lot and as Killian drove north, Wright then turned around and started heading north. Killian said Wright nearly came to a stop as he turned onto Union St. and then when he turned onto Oak St., he was completely in the wrong lane. Killian said when he turned on his emer- gency lights, Wright put his hand out the window and waved him around, but kept driving until he pulled into a residence on Lafayette St. Wright failed field sobriety tests and was taken to the Pike County Jail, where he tested 0.27 percent for alcohol content, which his more than three times the legal limit of 0.08 percent. He was preliminarily charged with oper- ating a vehicle while intoxicated. Killian added, "Wright was extremely cooperative throughout this entire pro- cess."