The Illinois Liquor Control Commission is launching a new underage drinking awareness/enforcement program that targets and holds accountable those who sell alcohol to minors. Under Tracking Alcohol in Illinois (TrAIL), local authorities will report emergency room visits involving underage drinkers, thus beginning an investigation into the source of the alcohol. Specially trained personnel will then have authority to ticket the adult buyer of the alcohol, the establishment and purveyor of it, or both.

Through the Grow Your Own Illinois program, instructional aides, paraprofessionals, and volunteer parents working in Chicago Public Schools with high teacher turnover rates now have the opportunity to become fully licensed and certified teachers. A combination of $3 million in state funds, school district resources, and college and university initiatives will absorb the costs associated with teacher training. Program leaders hope to have 500 new teachers in school by next year and add 1,000 by 2016.

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership aims to bring jobs to Northern Virginia by helping companies faced with the increased pressures of global competition find a cost-effective solution to maintain operations in Virginia. The Distributed Services Initiative is touting the benefits of moving their back-office operations to several lower-cost in-state communities rather than outsourcing abroad. Program officials point to the presence of an educated labor force that could instantly help businesses with software testing, accounting, and technical and customer support.

A variety of programs at one San Antonio school has helped educators to increase school attendance and dramatically reduce in-school violence. More than 180 students at Harris Middle School are participating in one of those programs, San Antonio Fighting Back, in which students form "social contracts" with each other to discourage violence, as well as smoking, drug use, and graffiti. School administrators recently won the National Youth Crime Watch of America Casey Award for their efforts.

Federal funds will enable some of Illinois's first responders to have the chance to attend college for free. Program participants can receive degrees in management, business, and organizational behavior, among other offerings, at Benedictine University and Springfield College in Illinois. Officials believe that the program will serve as a recruiting tool for new police and fire personnel as well as help current first responders perform more effectively.

New Mexico, one of seven states to receive funding to initiate a program geared towards screening individuals at risk for substance abuse, is touting the program as a success. Under the Screening, Brief Intervention, Brief Treatment and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) program, behavioral health specialists work with doctors and nurses to provide the screenings at routine visits to health clinics. Those who are identified as at risk for addiction are offered three intervention options, differing in length of treatment. So far, more than 23,000 people have been screened, of whom about 20% have received treatment.

While many schools offer on-line courses, this fall Washington will host the state's first entirely virtual public school. Insight Schools, a Portland-based company, will partner with Quillayute Valley School District to create the Insight School of Washington. This digital learning environment is an option for learners with physical disabilities, home-schooled children, and drop-outs, among others. Each student will receive a laptop and printer, funds to help pay for for Internet service, access to live teachers, and a complete state-certified high school curriculum.


A partnership between the Chicago Board of Education and a private business will enable all fourth- and fifth-graders in Chicago's public and private schools to take part this fall in "total immersion education," designed and run by Experiencia World. Fourth-grade students will study topics related to the environment, while fifth-graders will learn about civic life. After 40 hours of classroom lessons, students will be involved, with their parents, in interactive simulation games at a facility that offers a replicated outdoor habitat and a make-believe city.

On Friday, May 26, at 2:00pm EDT, the National City Network will host an online chat with Claire Reiss of the Public Entity Risk Institute to discuss liability for volunteers during disaster recovery.

Carol Coletta, the host of Smart City™ , talks with national and international public policy experts, elected officials, economists, business leaders, artists, developers, planners and others in this weekly, public radio talk show. 

Newsletter produced by: Alexander Dworkowitz, Brendan St. Amant, and Vanessa Ruget (researchers and writers); Joellen Secondo (editor).