District 102 Discusses "Big Departure" in Park Junior High Class ...

Students at Park Junior High may be getting yet another change to their daily class schedule next year. The change would be the fourth in four years at the school, as the board discussed the possibility of moving toward block scheduling at a Thursday night District 102 Board of Education meeting.

Board members and Park staff spent almost three hours discussing the proposal, which would reduce the number of classes a student would take from seven currently to five. The classes would be broken up into four 90-minute classes with an 11-minute advisory period at the end of the day. Students would have 90 minutes of math and reading/language arts instruction each day, and would alternate between 90-minute blocks of social studies and science every other day. Students would also receive 45 minutes of physical education and foreign language instruction each day as well.

The impetus for the scheduling change comes from teacher dissatisfaction with the current scheduling model adopted by the board last year. The change created a total of nine periods that Park Junior High Principal Phil Abraham said has left staff without enough time to prepare, overwhelmed with the number of classes and left without enough time to set up and complete projects during the shorter class times.

Reaction to the proposed scheduling change was divided. A science teacher and a math teacher at the school were supportive of the longer class times, while a teacher at Lyons Township High School worried that block scheduling did little to prepare students to the structure of LT.

Kelly Paetsch, a music teacher at Park, said she was worried about the new schedule, and said her concern was that it would not provide enough time for her to get to know her students, or evaluate their progress.

Under the new schedule music and art would be taught for three weeks of each 12-week trimester as part of their language arts class. Music would be taught to seventh-graders and art would be taught in eighth-grade.

Abraham and Vice Principal Joe Gage said there would be a benefit to students in integrating the arts and language arts material for a deeper understanding of the material.

Despite a suggestion by Abraham that he would like to move quickly with the plan if approved, the board indicated it would rather take additional time to study the proposal and get more information and feedback.

Board member Dawn Aubert said that more time was needed, especially to get feedback from students and from parents, telling board members she had heard from families who had had a difficult time adjusting to the longer class times.

"This is a big departure," Aubert said.

Other board members agreed and worried about keeping kids engaged in 90-minute blocks of class time.

"The board wants to be a tough audience," Board member Jennifer Comparoni said in agreement, and added that parents were going to be even more skeptical as it would be the fourth change to the schedule in as many years.

The board did not give a date for the next time it would discuss the proposal, but board members could continue the discussion as soon as their next meeting at Forest Road School on Feb. 23.

To see the presentation to the board, click on the PDF document in with our pictures.

Source: http://lagrange.patch.com/articles/district-102-discusses-big-departure-in-park-jr-high-class-schedule

gilad shalit john edward psychic john edward psychic headless horseman headless horseman brandon lloyd brandon lloyd

M.I.A.?s Fiance Denies That They Are No Longer A Couple

The fiance of rapper/singer M.I.A. has brushed off rumors the couple has split, criticizing the media for reporting “unfounded gossipy nonsense”. The Paper Planes hitmaker, who notoriously flipped her middle finger during her Super Bowl performance with Madonna last weekend, was alleged to be living a separate life from her longtime love Benjamin Bronfman, the [...]

Source: http://www.celebritymound.com/m-i-a-s-fiance-denies-that-they-are-no-longer-a-couple/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=m-i-a-s-fiance-denies-that-they-are-no-longer-a-couple

northern lights maksim chmerkovskiy aurora borealis s.978 larry ellison go ask alice go ask alice

Change Management Elements | Business Management Life

February 8th, 2012 Filed under: Business Change Management ? Business Management Author

>The 3 Elements of Change Management

About Change Management

I?ve read books and articles over the years to try and help me improve my management techniques around all aspects of project work, especially Change Management. There are some very good articles on Change Management around from some very experienced Project Managers. There are also some very good industry standard methodologies which will attempt to guide you through the ins and outs of Change Management, amongst other things, and they are also very good.

Will any of these articles, books or training courses remove the challenges of Change Management ? I don?t think so. Remember this always ?Projects are about People? and then you?ll always be sure to blame the right aspect of project management on it?s core failing ? it?s always the people that catch you out.

Lets briefly look at the three core elements of Change management then, that make this a special sort of headache for all project managers. In doing so lets first distinguish between change brought on by the nature of the project and change within the project. We?re interested here in Change within the Project ? which is Project Change Management. More about the reasons we make change and use project management to deliver that change in another article.

The 3 Elements of Change Management:

1. Causes and Drivers of Change

2. Impact of change and getting agreement

3. Implementing change in the project (or program)

Well that wasn?t too painful was it? If only life was this simple. If you take these basic elements and build a simple process around them you?ll get a reasonably workable process flow which identifies basic causes of change, such as;

Change Management of Planned Changes ? for example;

• agreed upgrade in a solution as part of a strategic program who?s conclusion was announced after the project started.
• value engineering where the project has an opportunity to embrace a new approach to the advantage of the whole project, to reduce costs etc..
• unplanned business growth requiring an expansion (or contraction) of the final solution.

Change Management of Unsolicited or Unplanned Changes;

• Client decides part way through delivering a project that they don?t have enough meeting rooms and require a re-design of floor space to accommodate more.
• Increase in scope of the conference facilities after they have been built, to include new/additional technologies.
• change in senior management who decides he wants the floor plan changed to meet his ?new needs?
• - my favorite ? a complete re-stack (re-shuffle of trading teams) of a trading floor because the wall of screens from one team block the main view out of the building, a week before go-live.

Change Management of Emergency Changes;

• Fixes to critical components as a result of damage caused through some uncontrolled event ? accidental flooding or collapse of some critical infrastructure.
• Changes to critical components brought on by poor planning and failure to predict accurate requirements. You got caught out! ? yes it happens.
• Impact of dwindling resources (budget) forcing the need to adjust the solution quality or schedule etc.

There are other elements to Change Management ? at a higher level it?s the communications before, during and after projects. Within the project it?s about managing expectations and being able to predict or foresee the impact of a required outcome, and ?coax? your customer along the right path to retain their support and the momentum in delivery.

Change Management is an essential Control component of any project. You will need the following ingredients in place to make change work;

1. An agreed and signed-off scope of work clearly defining the deliverables and constraints

2. A agreed (and proven) change process which will take a change input (request) and provide:

• Complete description of the change
• What?s driving the change
• Impact on schedule, cost and quality (final deliverables)
• Who raised the change request
• Who approved it
• When it will happen
• Who will action it
• If change is denied, then a sign-off to that intent.

3. A communications forum where Changes are regularly reviewed and all impacted parties are present for comment.

4. An appointed Project Board or Steering Committee where there is the authority to approve changes that impact the project beyond the authority of the project manager or project team to decide on.

Remember ? Change Management is all about people. You need to identify the change and it?s impact and then get the right people to agree to approve or decline the change request based on facts and credible experience (sometimes).

This sounds easy but on small projects people can get very protective of their ?perceived control? or authority and the project manager may become hamstrung to make basic decisions or to manage the sometimes unreasonable requests for changes from customers staff. On large projects Change Management can and often does become a full time job with a dedicated team doing nothing else but review Change Requests and facilitate the right communications forums and approval meetings.

Basic Change Management Process flow

Process ->

Recognize Change request ->

Document it ->

Review it ->

Analyze Impact ->

Present to Change board->

If approved, re-plan program to include.

If denied, close it and get on with life.

Of course, this is just one view of Change Management based on 30 years of delivery experience. Each Project Manager will have there own view but I doubt that any experienced Project Manager will argue with the above but would embellish it with there own invaluable experience to put more ?meat on the bone?.

Source: http://www.businessmanagementlife.com/business-change-management/change-management-elements/

rick perry gaffe rick perry gaffe graham spanier graham spanier penn state board of trustees brett ratner jerry sandusky

'Idol's' auditions are its weakest, sappiest link

Thousands lined up in Houston for a chance to become the next "American Idol" on Aug. 26, 2011.

By Craig Berman

?The Voice? picked up a huge post-Super Bowl audience on Sunday night, throwing down the gauntlet in the reality-show race for ratings and making the case that watching four celeb judges turn their chairs around at pivotal moments in auditions is must-see TV. ?American Idol? responds this week by moving out of its own audition episodes and into the Hollywood round.

And thank heavens for that, because the auditions are the one part of the singing show experience that ?Idol? perennially gets wrong. They?re always long and brutal. (Who thought that people would want eight hours of musical job interviews, anyway?) But this year?s tryouts set the bar for unwatchable episodes.

?Idol?s? auditions blatantly manipulate audience emotions by playing up the life stories of people who will eventually wind up being stealth eliminations in Hollywood, getting the viewers to care for a few minutes about folks they will never hear from again. It?s just a nonstop series of home videos with the occasional two minutes of music sprinkled in-between.

This year?s were the worst, because the episodes were so formulaic that?the show?looked like it had been done on autopilot: The credits begin. Ryan stands in front of a big crowd. The judges walk into the hotel. Steven Tyler shows up dressed in something random that he fished out of the costume closet and says something wacky. All three agree on the first singer, who usually moves on. Commercial break. Touching footage of the obstacles that the next contestant faces. Repeat for 60 minutes.

?Idol? made a conscious choice this year to avoid the truly terrible auditioners. We had the occasional Phong Vu, who was?bad enough to be pitiable, but there was a pronounced lack of random folks with big dreams, big egos and tiny voices who existed in previous seasons to give former judge Simon Cowell his recommended daily dose of mockery.

The current trio of judges doesn?t have the cruel streak, so adding more of those people would be pointless. But with the absence of the truly horrible, the show doubled down on the waterworks, turning the first seven episodes of ?Idol? into a stretch of can-you-top-this sob stories.

At some point, all of those tearjerkers run together. We?ll see someone this week in Hollywood and be thinking, "Wait, is that the single mom from San Diego who works five jobs and brought along her daughter? Or the one from Portland, whose husband was a basketball player and cheated on her? Or the one from St. Louis, who brought her daughter in to dance with her? Or someone else entirely?"

Oh, well, never mind, she just got eliminated.

Based on the editing at least, that approach works. If you?re someone looking to try out next year, forget about the voice lessons. Create yourself a backstory that gets J.Lo to tear up, and you can move right ahead to planning that trip to the next round. But as for the viewers, it just makes for incentive to DVR and fast-forward the episodes until we finally get some drama in Hollywood.

Did the "Idol" auditions work for you this season? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page!

Want more "Idol" during "Idol"? Follow @CraigBerman as he live tweets each show!

Related content:

Source: http://theclicker.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/02/06/10331387-auditions-remain-american-idols-weakest-sappiest-link

diners drive ins and dives hangover cure lebron james engaged auld lang syne end of the world 2012 leap year pink martini

Why retailers need to embrace mobile internet in stores | Business ...

Mobile use in retail stores

There are now plenty of surveys which show the growth of mobile usage in retail stores:?

• An iModerate survey found that more than half of smartphone owners are using the internet in stores, with price comparison, checking store locations, and hunting for discounts the most common reasons.?
  ?
• Our Mobile Planet data sees 24% of UK smartphone owners taking their phones shopping with them in order to compare prices and inform themselves about products.
  ?
• A Toluna/Econsultancy survey from May last year found that?19% of 2,000 online respondents had used their mobiles to compare prices?and look at product reviews while out shopping.

Why do consumers use mobile in store??

There are two main reasons:

Price comparison

This is usually the main purpose of using mobile in stores, which makes perfect sense. The state of the economy means that customers are more price sensitive than ever, and mobile is the perfect tool for the job.?

What's more, there are often huge savings to be made. If I'm looking at a TV in an electrical retailer, it's quite possible I could save ?100 by checking for the same product on Amazon.?

Looking for reviews

This is another common reason to reach for the smartphone when in store, and this is a behaviour that high street retailers should encourage.?

Checking for a review of a product is a sure sign of purchase intent. It means they like the look of a product, and are perhaps just seeking some reassurance.?

The threat for retailers

The problem for retailers is that, whatever the quality of service in store and the range of products on offer, shoppers always have the option of checking prices on their mobile phones and heading online, or to another high street retailer to make the purchase.?

This 'unbundling of the shopping experience', and the threat from online retailers is described in detail here by Ashley Friedlein.?

There are a number of mobile apps and websites that enable in store shoppers to check and compare product prices, but Amazon?s mobile products represent possibly the biggest single threat to offline retailers.??

Using the barcode scanner on the app, customers can easily check the products they are looking at in store on Amazon?s site.?

Since Amazon is often cheaper, with a variety of delivery options, this can pose a real threat.?

How can offline and multichannel retailers meet this challenge??

Don't block internet access

I've seen a few stories around, which are difficult to substantiate, about retailers attempting to put obstacles in the way of customers with smartphones.

This could be counter-productive, and is certainly not the kind of tactic a forward-thinking retailer should be using.?

Offer reviews at the point of sale

Retailers with reviews and ratings on their websites can easily bring this information into stores to help push products.?

If a digital camera is recommended for the casual photographer, and has an average review score of five stars from 35 reviews, why not use this information??

I like the recommendations that can often be found in bookshops and wine merchants, which have been written by staff. They can help customers decide what to buy, and also have a personal touch that can appear more trustworthy.?

In the same vein, retailers could combine online opinions with staff recommendations and other third party reviews.?

Make sure you have a mobile site or app

If customers are going to pick up their phones and look for reviews, persuade them to use your site for this. Promote it in store.?

If you can provide the reviews they need, then customers won't have to use competitors' sites where they might find a better deal.?

Better still, provide them with a link on the store shelf where they can find reviews, or maybe a QR code or barcode to scan and view further information.?

Comet provides a great example of this with its recent barcode scanning app.?The purpose of the barcode scanner is not necessarily to allow price comparison while in competitors' stores, though I'm sure Comet won't mind if customers are doing this.?

Instead, the main purpose is to make it easier for customers to see enhanced information on products on the shopfloor.

Comet promotes this in store, and the site and app have some very comprehensive product pages replete with reviews and expert buyer's guides, allowing customers to access this information when they need to see it.?

Better still, it means they don't have to visit Amazon to find out.?

It works too. Mobile now accounts for 10% of Comet's traffic, and the retailer enjoys an advantage in this area over multichannel rival Currys/PC World.?

Mobile vouchers

For retailers that offer voucher codes online, allowing these codes to be redeemed in-store is one way to increase footfall, and maybe do some cross-selling when they arrive.?

In conjunction with wi-fi, retailers could even target customers when they are using their mobiles in store.?

NFC / mobile payments

NFC technology is yet to capture the public imagination, but it does give consumers another payment option for those times when they suddenly realise they have forgotten to get cash out and they are already at the cash register with their shopping.

Make sure they can access the information they need

This is where wi-fi comes in. It's about making the mobile experience easier for customers.?Instead of relying on variable 3G connections, providing internet access means they can browse reviews, scan?QR codes, and use AR apps like?Blippar?to their heart's content.?

Let's say a customer wants to see a review. If their 3G signal is poor and they can't find what they want, will they still buy that camera??

Providing wi-fi means that they can easily access the information, while it also allows them to download your own app.?

Wi-fi and efficient customer targeting?

Wi-fi in store also provides a way to capture customer details and target them with offers. In fact, customers would be willing to receive some offers in return for the convenience of decent wi-fi.?

Tesco recently introduced this in its larger stores. It does require a slightly clunky registration process which involves entering clubcard numbers, but the retailer is then armed with your purchase history. If Tesco can sweeten this process with a discount or two, it may well be worth the effort.?

According to the ODR survey embedded below, 74% of respondents would be happy for the retailer to send a text or email with promotions.

They're in store, when better to sell them breakfast cereal or push a promotion??

House of Fraser recently ran a promotion in conjunction with O2, using free wi-fi,?which aimed to drive incremental sales in the run up to Christmas. John Lewis recently added wi-fi to its stores.?

In an excellent guest post from last year, Dave Wieneke looked at how mobile can be used to enhance the in-store experience for consumers, as well as providing?retailers with some precision tools to target the mobile customer.?

A blend of location and personalisation can make life easier for customers, while allowing retailers to target customers with relevant offers and recommendations.?

One great example of this came from the French Casino supermarket chain. Its iPhone app allows users to compile shopping lists before heading to the store, where they can use their mobile to scan and pay for items in store.

This is useful for the customer, but also provides the retailer with a wealth of information of the customer's preferences and shopping habits.?

Combine this with technology like Tesco's in-store 'sat nav' app?and you have the ability to target customers in real time, according to their location.?

Let's say the customer is entering the dairy aisle. They bought a particular brand of butter last week, and there's an offer on that this week. It's just five yards away.?

Customers already have the smartphone and tablet technology in their bags and pockets that makes this possible, it's just a question of adapting to this and making it easier by providing wi-fi.?

Mobile isn't going away, and the retailers that adapt to this trend quickly and use it to improve the customer experience will have a big advantage over their competitors. ?

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!

Source: http://www.encarolina.com/why-retailers-need-to-embrace-mobile-internet-in-stores

don t ask don t tell repeal michelle le steve o greg giraldo greg giraldo bob hope mariano rivera

Tips For Generating Your Home Based Business Entirely Lucrative ...

Regardless of whether you are just starting your own house concern, or you?ve been in business getting a, it is possible to something totally new you can commence to boost community. The market place is generally transforming, and it is critical to switch to stay significant color is it. The advice in this posting can aid.

Function a group schedule of weeks every day. Though it is true you need to be bendable to deal with the needs of your visitors, operating a set schedule will assist discipline you to ensure that your work could get carried out on-time. Moreover it will allow you to plans creations and take care of workflow ahead of time.

A superb work from home business thought constantly be sure to be patient. There are numerous individuals who open an enterprise because they want to make a great deal of quick cash. This classically never ever occurs. Children preserve sufferer and encouraged, good results will cross your path.

Don?t forget taxes. As a personal-employed people you may be down in a different income tax bracket, and you may have to wages new income taxes that you simply don?t prior to. Be aware of what taxes that you?ll be responsible for, and begin putting funds to one side so that you do not have trouble at tax season. The choice is yours of keeping abreast of adjustments in the tax laws and regulations.

One of the reasons why many individuals elect to become involved in work from home business is so that they get more the perfect burn creating young children. Nevertheless, as their business develops, additionally they effortlessly end up in predicaments during which their children hamper their ability in order to operate correctly. Just because it is a home business however does not mean that a childcare professional, nanny or daycare heart is out of the question. Don?t ignore these resources just because of the fact that it?s a home-based business!

By keeping the suggestions in the following paragraphs to function, it is help keep your home based business thriving. What on earth kind of community you own or just how much experience you?ve, you can still really benefit from these ideas. Use what matches your needs, as well as your concern continues to prosper.

For information regarding business plan writers, swing by Tarsha X Conkwright?s web page immediately.

Tags: business

This entry was posted on Monday, February 6th, 2012 at 8:16 pm and is filed under MUSIC. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

Source: http://www.eranostra.com/2012/02/06/tips-for-generating-your-home-based-business-entirely-lucrative-4/

yahoo.com/mail david nelson david nelson frank miller 60 minutes oobleck justin timberlake marine corps ball

Slingshot Babies, Naked Candy and 'Rocky': What Was the Best ...

From the Hyundai factory workers singing an a capela version of the Rocky theme song to the sexy-and-they-know-it M&Ms, the Super Bowl commercials offered plenty to talk about.

Like the "Imported from Detroit" Chrysler spot that featured Clint Eastwood.

Or the armagedon scene where only those who drive Chevys appear to have survived.

And the Doritos slingshot baby, which, by the way, we are told Lahser High School graduate Nate Daniels helped produce (he says no babies were harmed in the making of the commercial, by the way).

Advertisers paid an average of $3.5 million for each 30 seconds of Super Bowl air time according to USA Today.

Just so you can be ready for the Monday morning water cooler, here's a look at a few talked-about commercials from the night.

What are we missing? Tell us and we'll add that video to our story, too.

Source: http://troy.patch.com/articles/slingshot-babies-naked-candy-and-rocky-what-was-the-best-super-bowl-commercial

penn state football schedule carrier classic j edgar hoover j edgar hoover jonathan papelbon jonathan papelbon trisomy 13