ArcelorMittal, the world’s leading steel company, is encouraging local residents and across the country to take steps toward a healthier lifestyle by supporting National Walking Day on Wednesday, April 3, 2013. In Burns Harbor, East Chicago and New Carlisle where ArcelorMittal has local facilities, employees will participate in walking events this week.
National Walking Day is the American Heart Association’s nationwide call to action for Americans to get more physically active. ArcelorMittal is supporting National Walking Day in Indianaby hosting walking events near local plant sites for their employees, providing healthy living resources and encouraging other local companies to let their employees wear sneakers to work on April 3 in order to take a walk during the day.
 
“According to the American Heart Association, walking is the single most effective form of exercise with one of the lowest dropout rates. National Walking Day is the perfect time to start incorporating a brisk walk into your daily routine to achieve better heart health,” said Steve Thompson, Manager - Health and Safety Compliance, ArcelorMittal USA. “ArcelorMittal is proud to walk side-by-side with the American Heart Association to support National Walking Day and encourage more Americans to improve their cardiovascular health.”
 
Heart disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the United States. On National Walking Day, a day where hundreds of thousands across the nation take steps to improve their health, Americans are encouraged to spend at least 30 minutes of their day briskly walking.
 
While physical activity is critical to being healthy, less than 50 percent of adults get enough daily exercise. Adults need at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week to see the health benefits of physical activity such as lower blood pressure, improved bone health, weight maintenance after weight loss, better sleep, and more energy.
 
The workplace can play a key role in health and wellness. Americans work 164 more hours a year than two decades ago, and sedentary jobs have increased 83 percent since 1950. Health problems cost corporate America nearly $226 billion annually in productivity losses. On National Walking Day, companies across the country are asked to allow employees to wear sneakers to work on April 3 to go for a walk. Americans are also encouraged to take a walk with family members, friends, and neighbors after work hours.
For more information on National Walking Day and a free downloadable tool kit with health tips and resources to host a National Walking Day event at your workplace or in your community, go to www.startwalkingnow.org
 
About ArcelorMittal
ArcelorMittal is the world's leading integrated steel and mining company, with presence in more than 60 countries.
 
ArcelorMittal is the leader in all major global steel markets, including automotive, construction, household appliances and packaging, with leading R&D and technology, as well as sizeable captive supplies of raw materials and outstanding distribution networks. With an industrial presence in over 20 countries spanning four continents, the Company covers all of the key steel markets, from emerging to mature.
 
Through its core values of sustainability, quality and leadership, ArcelorMittal commits to operating in a responsible way with respect to the health, safety and well-being of its employees, contractors and the communities in which it operates. It is also committed to the sustainable management of the environment. It takes a leading role in the industry's efforts to develop breakthrough steelmaking technologies and is actively researching and developing steel-based technologies and solutions that contribute to combat climate change.
For more about National Walking Day and it's many benefits listen to our interview with Ryan Johnson, Communication Director, American Heart Association at the following link:
http://www.regionnewsteam.com
 
For more information about ArcelorMittal, visit www.arcelormittal.com.
 
About the American Heart Association  
The American Heart Association is devoted to saving people from heart disease and stroke – America’s No. 1 and No. 4 killers. We team with millions of volunteers to fund innovative research, fight for stronger public health policies, and provide lifesaving tools and information to prevent and treat these diseases. The Dallas-based association is the nation’s oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke. To learn more or to get involved, call 219.996.4958, visit heart.org   or call any of our offices around the country.

(http://www.heart.org)
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Read more: Arcelormittal Supports National Walking Day, April 3rd

The future of the South Shore Line may have just gotten brighter.  The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA) and the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) have chosen URS Corporation to develop a strategic business plan for commuter transit in northern Indiana.
 
The two organizations will split the estimated $550,000 cost of the plan, which is expected to be complete in early 2014. The RDA Board of Directors approved funding for its half of the study during its quarterly board meeting today. This follows NICTD, whose Board signed off on the project in late March
 
“Connectivity to Chicago is key to the economic health of the region,” said RDA President and CEO Bill Hanna. “This plan will help us to maximize the job creation and economic development potential of the South Shore line.”
 
Mark Yagelski, NICTD Board Chairman and LaPorte County Council President, said that NICTD is looking forward to having the RDA/URS team help chart a course for future strategic investment that will enhance Northwest Indiana’s access to Chicago.
 
Items and issues that URS will address as part of the strategic plan include, but are not limited to:

• Strategies for increased ridership
• Transit-Oriented Development
• Access to airports and recreational destinations
• Public/private partnerships
• Expansion of service

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Read more: RDA Approves Transit Plan Partnership with NICTD

Lake County Coroner Merrilee D. Frey is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying and locating the family of an unidentified white male, weighing approximately 220 pounds, six feet one inch tall, with long salt and pepper hair. On Sunday, March 31, the Coroner’s office responded to a call at the location of Hawthorn and Ridge Road in Munster, at the river bank where the victim was discovered.
Frey states, “He was wearing a brown T shirt with “Dickies Brand Work Wear” on the front, and underneath was a long sleeved white T shirt. He was wearing tan cargo pants with a black belt and on his feet were black and yellow Air Jordan tennis shoes”. Frey continues, “The victim has several tattoos located on his upper left chest, just above his left knee, on his right forearm, on his upper right arm, on his right ankle and across his back. “The public can help us tremendously in assisting us with any additional information to help us identify him”.

Coroner Frey states, “Anyone with information is urged to contact Investigator Brandon Artim at our office at 219-755-3265.”
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Read more: Coroner Seeks Help to Identify Victim

The Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor is celebrating the opening of the 2013 international shipping season this week with the arrival of two vessels. The first vessel arrived Monday carrying liquid fertilizer from the Baltic Sea region for local farmers while the second will deliver a shipment of steel from the Netherlands later in the week. 
On March 22, the St. Lawrence Seaway opened its locks for ocean vessels from around the world to enter the Great Lakes and deliver cargo to U.S. and Canadian ports for the 55th annual international shipping season. The 2,340-mile deep draft waterway is open to ocean vessels from mid-March through December, connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the heart of North America. More than 180 million tons of cargo are shipped through the Great Lakes each year, generating 227,000 jobs and $35 billion in business revenue.
"Some people would consider it a challenge to operate a port 700 miles from an ocean," said Rick Heimann, port director at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor. "But the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway provide Indiana companies with a tremendous advantage by bringing ocean ships right to their doorstep at the crossroads of America. The economic and environmental benefits are tremendous when you consider one ship can haul more than 900 truckloads of cargo."
The "Sloman Herakles" arrived in Indiana yesterday on its maiden voyage to North America carrying 12,860 tons of liquid fertilizer for Frick Services. The German tanker ship was built in 2012 and is one of many new ships built specifically for Great Lakes shipments. Four shipping lines recently announced plans to launch 31 new Great Lakes vessels by 2016.
Later this week, the Federal Welland will bring 5,100 tons of steel coils from the Netherlands. The ship is owned by the Canadian-based Fednav Group, the largest ship operator on the Great Lakes and parent company to Port of Indiana terminal operator, Federal Marine Terminals. The Fednav group is adding 22 new ice-class bulk carriers worldwide, nine specifically designed for the Great Lakes and many which are designed to consume 20 percent less fuel and produce 20 percent fewer emissions than their predecessors. 
"The massive investment our shipping partners are making into Great Lakes vessels demonstrates their confidence in the future growth of this market," Heimann said. "We share their perspective that the Seaway will play an important role in the continued recovery of our nation's manufacturing and agricultural sectors."
The Ports of Indiana is a statewide port authority that operates a system of three ports on the Ohio River and Lake Michigan in Mount Vernon, Burns Harbor and Jeffersonville. For more information, please visit www.portsofindiana.com.

( http://www.portsofindiana.com/ )


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Read more: First Ships of the 2013 Season Arrive at the Ports of Indiana

The Hobart vs. Highland game to begin the High School Challenge will be played at 4:30 p.m. today as scheduled. However,  Matt Frieman, Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations for the South Shore Railcats says the second game of the doubleheader, Calumet vs. Hebron, has been postponed and a make-up date has not been announced. 
No reason was given as to why the second game has been postponed. 
According to the Railcats website, the High School Challenge is a unique opportunity for high school players and coaches from Indiana and Illinois to play a game at beautiful U. S. Steel Yard. The teams also raise money for their school by selling tickets to their game. Fans may purchase tickets by contacting the individual schools or at the gate on the day of the games.
The High School Challenge has been a memorable experience since 2003, when Lowell's Ryan Basham hit the first home run in the history of the ballpark, according to the site.
The 11th Annual High School Challenge, Presented by McDonald's, Bosak and BSN Sports will welcome 36 teams, playing 18 games in a span of 11 days from April 1-20 at U. S. Steel Yard.
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Read more: The 11th Annual High School Challenge Set To Start Today

Brian Bosma. the speaker of the Indiana House has come out of surgery and according to a release from Bosma's office the surgery " went well."  The release goes on to say that "He (Bosma) is now resting comfortably at the hospital."

The Indiana House Republican Caucus yesterday said they were notified Monday night of tests conducted earlier on Monday that confirmed Bosma had contracted an infection in the knee that he had replaced last summer, requiring immediate surgery.

 
Governor Mike Pence and his wife Karen earlier today expressed concern when they learned of Bosma's condition and, "are praying for a successful surgery and swift recovery.

Speaker Bosma is a leader we deeply respect and a personal friend, and we look forward to his return to serving Hoosiers in the coming days."
According to the Republican Caucus, Bosma remains in high spirits, and has a tremendous support system, including his fellow leaders in the House and Senate.  He will miss about a week of work to recuperate after his hospital stay.

 
 Indiana Speaker of the House, Brian Bosma

(photo provided)
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Read more: Indiana House Speaker's Surgery went well

The 2013 South Shore Air Show has been canceled. President and CEO of the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority, Speros Batistatos says due to the sequester they will not be able to hold the airshow. Batistatos says in the meantime they will continue to assist and promote other great regional events, and focus on their 30^th anniversary, will a great deal of special events in July. As for the possibility for the air show to come back in 2014, he says it is too early to say at this time, but it is on their minds.
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Read more: 2013 South Shore Air Show Canceled Due to Sequester

An investigation continues into the death of a man found dead due to a gunshot, whose body was pulled from a home whose garage was on fire Sunday. Gary Police Public Information Officer Corporal Gabrielle King says officers were dispatched to the five-hundred block of Taft Street, initially for a fire, and then for shots fired, and arrived at the scene to find the garage fully engulfed in flames. Corporal King says fireman later located a body, and an autopsy was performed Monday on the man whose has not yet been identified, with the cause of death being due to a gunshot.
Corporal King says anyone who may have been in the area around 7pm, or shortly thereafter, on Sunday, is asked to please contact the Gary Police Department, and ask for Detective Lorenzo Davis, at 881-4738.
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Read more: Gary Police Seek Help in Sunday's Taft Street Death

Indianapolis, IN - Governor Mike Pence shared the progress of his legislative agenda on higher education at the Kent Weldon Conference for Higher Education today. Pence told participants that Indiana must address the demand for a more educated workforce in order to compete for jobs in the future.
 
Opening address at the Kent Weldon Conference for Higher Education
Governor Mike Pence
April 2, 2013
 
As prepared for delivery:
 
Getting Kids to College and through College
Making College More Affordable and Indiana More Prosperous
 
Thank you, Teresa, for that kind introduction. And thank you all for inviting me to kick off your conference today.
 
College Affordability and the Economy
My focus since even before my first day in office has been jobs. Indiana is in a strong position compared to many of her neighbors, but our economy is still struggling. Unemployment remains above 8 percent, and that must change.
 
At the same time, employers I talk to tell me that they have jobs open, but they can't find qualified employees.
 
The solution to these two problems is the same: education. We must recognize that education is critical to our success in job creation. Our state's education system, and particularly its higher education system, will play a key role in Indiana's economic development, because they will provide the well-qualified employees companies need to be successful.
 
If we want to get Indiana's economy moving again, we have to continue to push for students to pursue higher education.
 
In today's economy, higher education is more important than ever. Bridging the skills gap is now the biggest hurdle we have when we're trying to convince companies to relocate to and expand in Indiana.
 
Our business climate is competitive with any state in the nation, but employers need assurance that if they open that new office or manufacturing site in Indiana, they'll be able to fill it with a workforce ready to meet the demands of the modern economy.
 
Those demands are constantly increasing. Complete College America tells us that in 2020, 58 percent of jobs in Indiana will require a college degree or career credential. In Indiana, only 36 percent of Hoosiers have an associate's degree or higher. That's a 22 percentage-point skills gap that we need to close in seven years.
 
It is well known that higher education is the key to job opportunities and a high income trajectory. So why do about 1,000,000 Hoosiers have at most a high school diploma?
 
Cost is a major hurdle for many students. Today, Indiana is ranked 45th in the nation in terms of the state's cost per four year degree, with an average cost of $85,833 per four year degree awarded. The national median is $68,140.
This is due, in part, to the fact that students are not progressing toward on-time graduation
 
The statewide on-time graduation rate for all Indiana public college students was 23 percent last year, and only 13 percent of our 21st Century Scholars graduated on time. The national average for on-time graduation is about 31 percent.
 
Legislative Agenda on Higher Education
My administration is already working on this problem, with input and ideas from the leadership of many of the state's higher education institutions. We are focused on three main goals:
 

1. Making college more affordable by focusing the state's funding on programs that decrease the cost of degree completion. 
2. Rewarding Hoosier college students who graduate early or on time. 
3. Rewarding colleges and universities that increase on-time degree completion and provide clear pathways for students to finish their degrees on time.

 
We have legislation currently moving that will help address these issues. In fact, just yesterday, the House passed Senate Bill 532 with bipartisan support. The bill allows the Indiana Secondary Market for Education Loans to provide direct loans to Indiana students to satisfy financing gaps created by the increasing costs of higher education and the shrinking pool of federal dollars available to students. The bill also allows ISM to provide financial education programs to students that will help them make responsible decisions about how to pay for higher education.
 
Indiana Secondary Market's view is that the best student loan is the one a student doesn't have to take. I agree. And that's why we're supporting another bill this session that will help increase on-time graduation rates and reduce the costs students incur by having to extend their time in a higher education program by another year or more.
 
House Bill 1348 has passed the House and is now pending in Senate Appropriations. The Senate Education Committee members gave the bill unanimous support last week.
 
We had a lot of great input on this bill from Commissioner Lubbers and the Commission on Higher Education, particularly in reforming student financial aid to incentivize students to stay on track so they can graduate on time.
 
This bill requires public colleges and universities to commit to on-time degree pathways for each student seeking an associate or bachelor's degree. Many institutions here today are already doing this, and I commend you for your efforts to give your students a clear path to graduation. But we have to ensure all students enter higher education with a plan for obtaining a degree and not for merely accumulating credit hours. Because we know that it is a degree that provides currency in the marketplace.  
 
We believe that if the students do their part and complete the classes in their degree maps, but they reach a point where they cannot take a class because the institution does not offer it when the student needs it, the institution should either make another course available or bear the cost of the extra class instead of the student.
 
If students do everything they need to do to make progress toward gradation, they should not be forced to extend the time it will take them to graduate because a required class is unavailable. Each year a student remains in higher education, it costs the student $50,000 and it deprives our state of a productive member of the workforce.
 
We also believe we should reward college students for on-time and early graduation by reallocating a portion of existing student grants to return a portion of the cost savings the state recognizes to the student. So we've included some incentives that go straight into the student's pocket -- $1500 for early graduation from a bachelor's program and $1000 for graduating on time. For an associate degree, students will get a bonus of $1250 for graduating early, and $750 for graduating on time.
 
We also have House Bill 1005 on remediation moving. This is another agenda bill designed to help control the cost of higher education by ensuring high school students enter college prepared for college coursework.
 
Many of you are painfully aware that about one-third of our high school graduates require some form of remediation after high school. We know these students will take longer and spend more to obtain degrees due to the extra time and cost of postsecondary remediation, but that's IF they continue on to complete a degree at all.
 
According to Complete College America, of the 46.4 percent of two-year college freshmen in Indiana who required remediation, only 9.2 percent will graduate within three years. Of the 12.4 percent of freshmen students enrolled in four-year programs who required remediation, only 41.2 percent graduate within six years.
 
We must do better. When we hand students a high school diploma, they and their families assume it indicates they're ready for postsecondary coursework. And yet one of every three students who arrive at one of our colleges or universities learns they have to take remedial classes that don't count toward a degree just so they can be ready to take credit-bearing courses. And then we wonder why so many students have trouble graduating within four years.
 
We have to continue to demand high standards and accountability in our K-12 education system. It's the right thing for our kids, and it's the right thing for our state. And that's why our administration supports House Bill 1005, which is a bill that will significantly reduce the number of students who require postsecondary remediation. It will provide K-12 educators with tools to identify in high school those students who are at risk of requiring remediation - and provide them with the opportunity to get the extra help they need before they graduate and head to college or the workforce.  
 
Conclusion
Companies are already being drawn to Indiana because they know they will find a workforce here that has a strong work ethic. Hoosiers work hard and take pride in a job well done. But workforce matters and having access to well-educated employees can make or break a company's decision.
 
Just recently, I joined executives from GEICO as they announced their decision to bring as many as 1200 new jobs by 2016. The key to their decision to locate in Indiana was our strength in insurance education, with programs at Ball State University, Indiana State University and Butler University, as well as outstanding business programs at many of our other institutions of higher education. GEICO was attracted by Indiana's skilled workforce.
 
Ultimately, getting more students to college and THROUGH college is good for them and good for the whole state.
 
I want Indiana to be the best place to get a job and the best place to grow a business. As we look to the future, both of those goals depend on more Hoosiers seeking and completing a college degree.
 
Thank you for your partnership as we tackle this challenge. We look forward to continuing to work together with you to help Indiana be the very best it can be.
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Read more: Pence on Legislative Agenda for Higher Education

Four people are charged in the death of a 14 year old Merrillville boy, who was shot in the head Wednesday evening at his home in the 75-hundred block of Marshall Street, and who died Friday, just before midnight, at a Chicago hospital. 22 year old Anthony Addison, 21 year old Joshua Addison, 18 year old Kevin Brown, and a 16 year old are charged with murder, and criminal gang activity in the death of Depree Mims. Authorities say the shooting was gang related. A press conference is scheduled for tomorrow at 2pm, at the police department.
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Read more: Four Charged in Death of Merrillville Teen