Sean O'Harrow, PhD, will become the new executive director of the Figge Art Museum beginning August 20, 2007. O'Harrow, a U.S. citizen currently living in England, has been the development director for Catharine's College at the University of Cambridge, is an art historian with a strong background in business and finance, has taught art history and architecture at American and British universities, and has worked in several museums in the United States. He earned his undergraduate degree in History of Art from Harvard and his doctoral degree in History of Architecture from Cambridge, and his specific area of scholarship is late-15th and early-16th century English and French architecture.
The Iowa Machine Shed will host an Antique Tractor Pull on Sunday, July, 8 at 11 a.m. Fifty to sixty antique tractors will race down a 200-meter track, varying in age, make, and model, and the event is free to the public. To register your own tractor for the event, contact the Iowa Machine Shed at (563) 391-2427.
In 1973, David R. Collins founded the Mississippi Valley Writers' Conference, and continued as its chairman until his death in 2001. In 2006, the Midwest Writing Center's board of directors brought a national writing conference back to the Quad Cities, and because of its success, the center is again offering this unique learning opportunity, now called the David R. Collins Writers' Conference. On June 28, 29, and 30, the campus of St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa will host seven workshops, each providing 4.5 hours of instructional time. In addition to the daily workshops, there are opportunities for 30-minute critique sessions, and free evening events are planned for June 28 and 29. An awards reception will be held on June 30, recognizing outstanding workshop students, and a reception ticket is included with full tuition. For more information, visit (http://www.midwestwritingcenter.org).
The first Quad Cities Greyhound Adoption (QCGA) Golf Outing will be held on Monday, July 30 at the Hawthorne Ridge Golf Club, 621 State Highway 94, Aledo, Illinois. Don't miss out! Strings and mulligans are available for sale, and there will also be a 50/50 raffle, a cash bar, and lots of "greyt" fun! The event fee is $50 per person and includes green fees, a cart, and a pork chop lunch; if you can't attend, you can still show your support for QCGA's fundraising event through "donating a hole" sponsorship, prizes, or cash.To RSVP, or for more information, contact Michelle Brandt at (309) 558-8122 or (mjbrandt27@hotmail.com), or Jennifer Franklin at (563) 260-5760 or (jfranklin@mchsi.com). Event fees must be received prior to July 30, and can be sent to 9525 New Liberty Road, Maysville, IA, 52773 (please write "Golf Outing" on your checks).
The Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) held a ceremonial groundbreaking and tree planting on June 25 for the first commercial factory to manufacture Mirel plastics - a biodegradable, renewable plastic derived from corn. The effort is a joint venture between ADM and Metabolix Inc., a biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The plant, currently under construction, will produce 110 million pounds of Mirel a year, will be located adjacent to ADM's wet-corn mill in Clinton, Iowa, and will utilize corn sugar from the mill's existing operation as a feedstock for Mirel-plastics production. Construction is expected to be complete in mid-2008. The facility will provide 100 new jobs in Clinton.
Be careful when driving in Illinois! Starting in July, the State of Illinois will employ speed cameras in areas designated as work zones on major freeways. Under enhanced penalties passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Governor Rod Blagojevich last year, first-time work-zone speeders, including those caught on camera, will receive a fine of $375. Two-time offenders are subject to a $1,000 fine, including a $250 surcharge, and the loss of their licenses for 90 days. Drivers who hit a worker are subject to a $10,000 fine and 14 years in prison.
Trinity Regional Health System was recently recognized by the Illinois Foundation for Quality Health Care (IFQHC) for active participation and commitment to the Appropriate Care Measure (ACM) Improvement Initiative. The initiative focuses on ten quality-of-care standards for patients diagnosed with heart attack, heart failure and pneumonia, and provides quality-of-care guidance to its participants.
Eastern Iowa Community College may receive $350,000 for the creation of a center on sustainable energy, as part of funding for Iowa education and health care priorities in the FY 2008 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill. The Senate and House of Representatives still must pass thie bill before it is sent to the President.
On Tuesday, June 26, Iowa Public Radio joined a nationwide effort to draw attention to a recent Copyright Royalties Board (CRB) ruling that would significantly increase rates charged for the streaming of music over the Internet. Many Internet broadcasters and radio stations that stream their signals on-line have chosen to shut down their Internet music services on this "Day of Silence," to reinforce how damaging the newly-imposed and retroactive rates would be to Internet music providers. Although Iowa Public Radio will not turn off its music streams on June 26, it fully supports legislation in Congress intended to reverse the CRB ruling, and encourages citizens to take a stand on the issue.
Area public schools, volunteer groups, and local post offices are coordinating school-supply drives in the Quad Cities through the First Day Project: Quad City-Wide Student Supply Drive. During their routes, U.S. Postal carriers will pick up supplies at residents' mailboxes, which will then be sorted and distributed to students in need. The collection day for Coal Valley, Colona, East Moline, Milan, Moline, Rock Island, and Silvis is Saturday, July 14; collection day is Saturday, August 11 for Bettendorf, Blue Grass, Buffalo, Davenport, LeClaire, Pleasant Valley, and Walcott.
