Winnebago County News Briefs

Chronicle Media

Embrace winter’s beauty through outdoor exploration and indoor inspiration at University of Illinois Extension’s Winter Trails & Naturalist Tales on Saturday, Feb. 23.

ROCKFORD

RPS 205 to Celebrate All-City Fine Arts Week

Rockford Public Schools will celebrate fine arts across the district and the city through All-City Fine Arts week March 5-9.

The inaugural Fine Arts Week launched last year, and district leaders, staff and students are looking forward to another weeklong celebration of arts in the district and the community.

The community is invited to attend several events that celebrate the arts:

March 5: All-City Choir Festival
March 6: All-City Band & Orchestra Festival
March 7: All-City Art Workshops and Gallery Walk
March 8: All-City Theatre Workshops
March 8: Fine Arts Hall of Fame Awards
March 9: All-City Elementary Music & Art Festival

ROCKFORD

IceHoggs defenseman captains All-Star team

Rockford IceHogs defenseman Andrew Campbell became the first player in team history to serve as captain during an AHL All-Star game as the Central Division finished 1-2-0-0 in the recent Lexus AHL All-Star Classic at the  MassMutual Center.

The Central Division dropped the first two contests of the showcase, falling 4-2 to the North Division and 3-1 to the Atlantic Division, before salvaging a victory in their final game of round-robin play with a 5-3 win over the Pacific Division. Campbell skated in each of the Central Division’s three games and logged a shot on goal.

The IceHogs blue liner also starred in the 2019 All-Star Skills Challenge on Sunday, finishing second in the CCM Hardest Shot event with a 99.5 MPH slap shot. His impressive blast was just shy of Lehigh Valley forward Greg Carey, whose shot clocked in at 100.4 MPH for the Eastern Conference.

ROCKFORD

Foundation helps fund ‘Coding with Robots’

Rock Valley College has received a $30,000 grant for “Ozobot: Learn Coding with Robots” workshops. The grant was awarded with support from the Barber-Colman Management Fund of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois.

“Ozobot: Learn Coding with Robots” empowers children and adults to learn to code anywhere they go, create adventures, play games, and solve problems. The grant funds will be used to purchase 600 Ozobot robot building kits to serve 600 students in grades K-8.

“Only one in seven K-12 schools in the Rockford region offers computer science courses, while businesses in Illinois post four times more computer related jobs than all other job types,” says Chuck Konkol, RVC Associate Professor of  Computer Information Systems.

“One goal of the Ozobot curriculum is to expose elementary and middle school students to computer science careers before entering high school and making important decisions about their futures.”

The “Ozobot: Learn Coding with Robots” offers students the opportunity to connect classroom learning to real world problems and career opportunities, develop critical and creative thinking skills, experience “real-world” hands-on learning, enhance interest in and engagement with STEM, experience a curriculum based on Next Generation Science Standards, experience project-based learning opportunities, develop basic literacy in the language of technology, coding and robotics, and work effectively in teams.

ROCKFORD

Winter Trails and Naturalist Tales

Embrace winter’s beauty through outdoor exploration and indoor inspiration at University of Illinois Extension’s Winter Trails & Naturalist Tales from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 23.

Winter Trails & Naturalist Tales will be held at Torstenson’s Education Center, 13735 Cook Road, Pecatonica, and includes two “naturalist tales” keynote speakers, a “winter trails” outdoor guided hike, and lunch. This years event will focus on oak trees and coexistence.

The first naturalist tale will focus on Oaks: Adaption & Decline. Olvia Rauen, Forester – Iowa & Illinois, National Wild Turkey Federation, will discuss how they survive in rough conditions, the countless critters that depend on them, and the causes of their disappearance from our landscape.

The second naturalist tale will be all about Coexistence. Whenever you reside you have the potential to witness animals in your surroundings. Your yard and garden naturally create habitats for wild things from pollinators to predators.

After lunch, U of I Extension Master Naturalist volunteers will lead you on a fun and educational winter hike through Torstenson’s landscape. Use your new tracking skills to look for telltale signs of resident wildlife and practice identifying animal tracks, all while enjoying the serene beauty of the winter trails. Please dress for all types of weather.

Winter Trails and Naturalist Tales costs $25 per person and includes lunch, two keynote speakers and a guided outdoor hike. Pre-registration is required by Feb. 20.

 

 

–Winnebago County News Briefs–