Local News Briefs Tuesday 6/23/15

The storm that moved through Fond du Lac County Monday morning dumped some torrential rain and was accompanied by strong winds. But other parts of the state got much more damage. Wisconsin Emergency Management officials say early yesterday afternoon 32,000 residents were without power. Downed trees and power lines were reported in Dane, Grant, Green, Iowa, and Lafayette Counties. In Grant County several sheds and outbuildings were destroyed in Cassville, Platteville and Hazel Green. Trees fell on homes and roads throughout the county.  In Lac du Flambeau in Vilas County a woman was struck in the head by a tree branch and was taken to a local hospital.   

Sentencing Set For Jackson Culvers Robber

The 25-year-old man shot by police while he was trying to rob the Culver’s Restaurant in Jackson will be sentenced in Washington County Court on  September 1st. John Rehlinger pled no contest to attempted 1st degree intentional homicide and 1st  degree recklessly endangering safety. According to the criminal complaint, Rehlinger was wearing a werewolf mask when he pounded on the back door of the Culver’s in October of 2013 and demanded entry. He attacked a Culver’s employee who answered the door and was eventually brought down by a shot from a deputy. Under the plea agreement, prosecutors will not be able to ask for a prison term of more than 22 years. He was also charged with the armed robbery of the Willow Creek BP in Germantown in September of 2013. In addition, armed robbery and drug related charges are still pending against Rehlinger in Waukesha County.

FDL School Board Notes

The Fond du Lac School Board approved an annual contract and an annual appointment during Monday’s meeting. The contract was with CESA 6. CESA 6 is a cooperative educational service agency, which District Superintendent Jim Sebert says provides several services to the district throughout the school year. He says that includes a grant writing consortium and they have a learning and assessment center. The Board also approved the appointment of Frank Endejan as the expulsion hearing officer. Sebert says seven students were expelled during the past school year. He says most of them had to do with brining alcohol, drugs or prescription medication to the school and sharing it with other students.The board also approved a field trip to France for a High School French class. French Teacher Shelle Shipper will be taking her students to France March 28th through April 9th of next year. Most of the trip will be during the spring break.

FDL Metro Area Ranks High In Information Related Job Growth

The Fond du Lac metro area or Fond du Lac County continues to experience impressive job growth in Information-related jobs. According to NewGeography.com, the Fond du Lac metro ranked 20th in Information job creation in 2015 (2014 data) out of 336 metros ranked in the nation. This was a drop from 13th last year.  In terms of the 173 small metros, the Fond du Lac metro ranked 7th. That was a drop of one spot from last year’s rankings. In Wisconsin only the Janesville-Beloit metro ranked higher at 1st. Jobs in the Information Sector include such occupations as software developers, research scientists, database administrators, computer programmers, analysts, cybersecurity, and web developers. The regional wages for these occupations range from mid-$40,000 to mid-$80,000 per year.

IRS Scam Persistent

The Lieutenant of Detectives for the Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Department says the IRS scam continues to persist. Lieutenant Cameron McGee says the threat that a real IRS official may be on the other end of the phone can really throw a person. He says they continue to ask for payments on gift cards and on other forms of payment or threaten arrest. McGee says the IRS won’t call you to threaten some type of legal action. He says they would send you a letter with numbers to call if there is a problem. He says tax time isn’t the only time scammers use the IRS scam. He says it occurs all the time and he gets a number of complaints every week.

Tech College Option

Moraine Park Technical College officials say tech school is a good option for those who want to get into jobs quicker after high school. Mike Miller is the vice president of the MPTC District Board. He says there challenge is to get parents to consider technical college instead of a four-year college to get to work quicker. MPTC President Bonnie Baerwald says parents are welcome to visit the campus or hear one of the presentations at an area high school. She says tech college is also a nice option to save some money before you transfer to a four-year school or to work while you finish up a degree.

Buttermilk Festival Turns Twenty Seven

The Buttermilk Festival at Buttermilk Creek Park in Fond du Lac kicked off its 27th season with the Fond du Lac Symphonic Band last Wednesday night. Mary Arthur is the business manager and executive secretary for the band and publicizes the concert series. She says they actually played there for several years before the band shell was built in 1988. She says the concerts are free and they bring in some enormous talent for it. She says they do accept free will offerings and have major donors who make the concerts possible. Dorf Kapelle makes its 19th Festival appearance Wednesday night. On July 1st the Milwaukee Symphony Band performs. All concerts start at 7:15 p.m. and in the event of rain would be moved to the Fond du Lac County Fairgrounds Expo Center. For more on the concert visit the Fond du Lac Symphonic Band website.    

Gottfried Summer Art Program Begins Tomorrow

The Gottfried Prairie and Arboretum, located on the grounds of UW-Fond du Lac, is offering a four session art summer program for youth ages 8-12 interested in learning about the connections people have with nature. Sessions will run each Wednesday from 10 a.m. to noon on June 24, July 1st , July 8th and July 15th at the prairie shelter, east parking lot of UW Fond du Lac, 400 University Drive, Fond du Lac.    Each week the students will explore a different environmental theme and art project, using the grounds of the Prairie and Arboretum as inspiration. Nature walks and activities will help encourage kids to get out in nature!  Student art projects will be displayed for the community at Prairie Fest, July 25th, a FREE family-oriented environmental education event with activities for all ages. Space is limited.  Registration fee is $20 to cover art supplies. To register, contact Tracy McDermott at wiscotmcd@hotmail.com to register or for more information.