Austin Woodruff standing in front of his snow sculpture he created on his home in Mason, Ohio. / Provided by Stephanie Woodruff

Kate McGinty reports:

Austin Woodruff was shoveling the driveway of his family’s Mason home when he absentmindedly threw snow at the garage.

And it stuck.

Amused, the sophomore at William Mason High School picked up one handful of snow at a time, pressing it into the brick until it stuck. For the next four hours, he continued until it formed a mosaic over the garage.

His 19-year-old brother, Andrew, posted a photo to imgur on Thursday, a popular photo website — and it caught fire. It had nearly 250,000 views within 24 hours.

“I’m always looking at sculptural things on the Internet and I’m always trying to make something of my own,” Woodruff, 16, said. “So I like – sort of what I did here – taking different things and putting them together to make one unified piece of art. I didn’t think that it would grow so popular, but I’m really glad that people enjoy it.”

Eight Kings High School athletes will be playing sports this fall at college. They are: sitting, from left: Courtney Kelleher, Sydney Zinser, Madelaine Kuhn, Kristen Sevier; standing, from left: Jamison Williams, Andrew Lake, Robbie Frye, and Alex Ward Provided photo

Eight Kings High School seniors plan to continue playing sports following graduation.

The students participated in a signing ceremony yesterday before family, teammates, coaches, teachers, administrators, and friends. They join four other students who made commitments during last fall’s first signing ceremony.

There will be one more signing ceremony this spring.

Those who signed, their sport, and school they will play for are:

• Robbie Frye, soccer, Wittenberg University
• Courtney Kelleher, soccer, Duquesne University
• Madelaine Kuhn, soccer, Heidelberg University
• Andrew Lake, cross-country, Wright State University
• Kristen Sevier, cross country/track and field, Wright State University
• Alex Ward, football, Tiffin University
• Jamison Williams, football, Robert Morris University
• Sydney Zinser, soccer, Belmont University

Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis will speak at Mason High School Feb. 25. Enquirer file photo

The first in a series of Black History Month lectures at Mason High School begins Tuesday with the viewing and discussion of the movie 42.

The biographical film written and directed by Brian Helgeland tells the story of baseball great Jackie Robinson, a Negro League player recruited to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers, becoming the first African American to play in the major leagues.

The movie and discussion begin at 6:30 p.m., in the Harvard Room at the high school, 6100 Mason-Montgomery Road.

The movie is the first of four programs in The Souls of Black Folks programs organized by Mason African-American Students for Change.

All are free, open to the public, and will be held at the high school:

• Feb. 18, 6:30 p.m.: Performance by Central State Choir, in the auditorium
• Feb. 25: Presentation by Bengals head Coach Marin Lewis, Harvard Room and small commons
• Feb. 27, 6:30 p.m.: Spoken Word Night, featuring winners of the Mason poetry contest and Princeton High School poets, Black Box Theater

The Enquirer reports:

Here’s who filed for office as of 1 p.m. Wednesday to run for state, county and judicial office this year. If two people from the same party filed for the same seat, they’ll face each other in the May 6 primary.

The general election is Nov. 4.

Stay with Cincinnati.com and MasonBuzz today for updates and news about your 2014 races.

*Denotes incumbent

Federal

No U.S. Senate race in Ohio this year

U.S. Rep., 1st District

• Steve Chabot, R *
• Jim Prues, D

U.S. Rep., 2nd District

• Brad Wenstrup, R*
• Ronny Richards, D
• John Sheil, D
• William Smith, D
• Marek Tyszkiewicz, D

U.S. Rep., 8th District

• John Boehner, R*
• Matthew Ashworth, R
• Eric Gurr, R
• J.D. Winteregg, R
• Robert Edward Crow, D
• Matthew Guyette, D
• Tom Poetter, D

Ohio statewide offices

Governor / Lieutenant Governor

• John Kasich / Mary Taylor, R*
• Ed FitzGerald / Sharen Neuhardt, D
• Charlie Earl / Sherry Clark, L

Attorney General

• Mike DeWine, R*
• David Pepper, D
• Steven Linnabary, L

Auditor

• Dave Yost, R*
• John Patrick Carney, D

Secretary of State

• Jon Husted, R*
• Nina Turner, D

Treasurer

• Josh Mandel, R*
• Connie Pillich, D

Supreme Court, Race 1

• Sharon Kennedy, R*
• Tom Letson, D

Supreme Court, Race 2

• Judith French, R*
• John O’Donnell, D

Ohio General Assembly – House

27th District

• Peter Stautberg, R*
• 28th District
• Micah Kamrass, D
• Rick Bryan, R
• Angel Clark, R
• Jonathan Dever, R

29th District

• Louis Blessing III, R*
• Nathan Lane, G
• 30th District
• Louis Terhar, R*
• Mark Childers, D

31st District

• Denise Driehaus, D*
• Mark Auer, R
• Queen Noble, L

32nd District

• Christie Bryant, D

33rd District

• Alicia Reece, D*
• Mary Michele Fitzpatric, R

51st District

• Wes Retherford, R*
• Arnold Engel, R
• Gregory Jolivette, R
• Michele Decresce, D

52nd District

• Margaret Conditt, R*
• Cathina Hourani, D

53rd District

• Timothy Derickson, R*
• Suzi Rubin, D

54th District

• Peter Beck, R*
• Mary Jo Kubicki, R
• Paul Zeltwanger, R
• Rick Smith, D

62nd District

• Ron Maag, R*
• David Craig, R
• Ben Goldman, R
• Charlene Schneider, D
• Scott Pettigrew, L

65th District

• John Becker, R*
• Charlie Carlier, D

66th District

• Doug Green, R*
• Ken McNeely., D

91st District

• Cliff Rosenberger, R*
• Barb Cole, R
• Christopher Thobaben, D

Ohio Senate

7th District:

• Shannon Jones, R*
• Kelly Kohls, R
• Greg Meek, D

9th District:

• Joe Hye, D
• Catherine Ingram, D
• Dale Mallory, D
• Paul Sohi, D
• Cecil Thomas, D

Warren County

Ohio 12th District Court of Appeals, Judge (two to be elected)

• Robert Ringland, R*
• Robert Hendrickson, R*

County Commissioner

• Tom Ariss, R*
• Cathy Anspach, R
• Tom Grossmann, R

County Auditor

• Staci Morris, R
• Matt Nolan, R

Common Pleas Court, Judge

• Robert Peeler, R
• Andrew Sievers, R
• Benjamin Yoder, R
• Craig Newburger, D

Common Pleas Court, Juvenile/Probate Judge

• Joseph Kirby, R

Kings Athletic Director Phil Poggi will learn in May whether he has been selected Ohio’s top athletic director.

Poggi was named Athletic Director of the Year by the Southwest Ohio Athletic Directors Association. Officials from the 180 high schools in the southwest district – one of six in the state – nominated, and then selected, him for the honor.

Members of the Ohio Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association will select one of the six district winners as AD of the year in May.

“It was very humbling,’’ said Poggi, in his third year as Kings’ AD. “I’ve got an amazing team here. It’s not just about me; it’s about my team – from the administrative assistant to coaches to the athletes.”

This isn’t Poggi’s first award either. Last year he received an Award of Merit from OIAAA. Two years ago he received the d a Horizon Award from the Southwest Ohio Athletic Directors Association. Only ADs in their first five years in the position are eligible.

Before coming to Kings, Poggi spent two years as Aiken High School’s AD.

The Warren County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the public’s help in identifying a bank robbery suspect.

Officials say a man entered the Deerfield Township Chase Bank branch at 8605 Mason-Montgomery Road around 1 p.m. Tuesday and presented a note demanding cash from the teller.

The suspect, who’s described as between 20-30 years old and wearing a yellow plaid shirt and black knit hat, fled on foot.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Warren County Sheriff’s Office at 513-695-1280.

This graphic form the National Weather Service Wilimington office shows the snow and ice accumulation expected in our region. / National Weather Service / Provided

A messy and dangerous winter storm is expected to disrupt Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky starting tonight through Wednesday morning with a wintry mix of rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow.

The system, coming up from the southwest, has the potential to tangle rush hour traffic in the evening and Wednesday morning, cancel or delay schools and lead to power outages.

The National Weather Service has issued an ice warning for most of the area with the northern counties under a winter storm warning.

Both of the warnings are in effect from 4 p.m Tuesday until 10 a.m. Wednesday.

The ice warning covers Hamilton, Clermont, Brown, Adams counties in Ohio; Gallatin, Boone, Kenton, Campbell, Owen, Grant, Pendleton, Bracken, Roberston counties in Kentucky and Ripley, Dearborn, Ohio and Switzerland in Indiana.

The weather service warns a quarter inch to a half inch of ice is possible across the area.

“Travel will be extremely dangerous,” the warning states. “The ice will accumulate appreciably in a short period of time. Untreated roads and sidewalks will become a sheet of ice. Heavy ice accumulations will likely down some tree limbs and power lines.”

In addition to the ice, there could also be anywhere from an inch to 4 inches of snow, the weather service said.

To the north, Butler, Warren and Clinton counties in Ohio and Union, Franklin and Fayette counties in Indiana remain under the winter storm warning.

The weather service forecast calls for 2 to 6 inches of snow in those areas along with one tenth to one third of an inch of ice.

The most ice is expected around Downtown and south of the Ohio River.

“It might be the storm with the most ice we’ve had this year,” said meteorologist Scott Hickman. “A quarter of an inch of ice is pretty significant. It’s the worst thing you can drive on. It depends on the amount of ice, but there is a possibility there could be some minor power outages.”

Jennifer Edwards Baker reports:

A messy and dangerous winter storm is expected to disrupt Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky starting tonight through Wednesday morning with a wintry mix of rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow.

The system, coming up from the southwest, has the potential to tangle rush hour traffic in the evening and Wednesday morning, cancel or delay schools and lead to power outages.

The National Weather Service in Wilmington has put the entire region under a winter storm warning from 4 p.m. tonight until 10 a.m. Wednesday.

In Ohio, that covers Adams, Butler, Brown, Clermont, Clinton, Hamilton and Highland counties; Boone, Campbell, Kenton, Gallatin, Carroll, Mason, Bracken, Pendleton, Grant, and Owen in Kentucky and Switzerland, Ohio, Union, Fayette, Franklin, Dearborn and Ripley counties in Indiana.

The weather service calls for 4 to 8 inches of snow and up to a quarter of an inch of ice tonight starting around 5 p.m. through 10 a.m. Wednesday for Butler, Hamilton and Warren counties in Ohio and Ripley and Dearborn counties in Indiana.

Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties in Northern Kentucky, Clermont and Brown counties in Ohio and Switzerland and Ohio counties in Indiana should see 1 to 3 inches of snow and up to a quarter inch of ice.

The heaviest snow is expected to fall in northwestern Hamilton County and Butler and Warren counties, but a slight change in the storm track could produce “significant differences in these accumulations over a small area,” the weather service cautions.

The most ice is expected around Downtown and south of the Ohio River.

“It might be the storm with the most ice we’ve had this year,” said meteorologist Scott Hickman. “A quarter of an inch of ice is pretty significant. It’s the worst thing you can drive on. It depends on the amount of ice, but there is a possibility there could be some minor power outages.”

Further north and to the west in southeastern Indiana and Dayton, anywhere from 6 to 10 inches of snow could pile up.

Duke Energy officials say they won’t speculate in advance how many outages the region may undergo. But they are cautioning the public to make plans now in case their heat and lights go off. Check and make sure you are stocked up on supplies of flashlights, batteries, bottled water, non-perishable foods and medicine.

Families who have special medical needs or elderly members should closely monitor weather forecasts and make plans now to consider potential alternate arrangements, if needed, said Sally Thelen, a Duke Energy spokeswoman.

“I will tell you that significant icing would be our biggest threat to our lines due to the weight it adds to them, as well as to trees and vegetation that often falls on our lines during this type of weather,” she said. “Typically snow does not create conditions where we would expect to have widespread power outages; however, freezing rain combined with windy conditions, weakened trees and saturated grounds, along with deteriorating traffic conditions can impact our power delivery systems.”

Duke Energy has a detailed storm response plan, she said, and will spring into action once severe weather occurs.

The storm present a quagmire for road crews who also are closely monitoring the weather forecast but said they still aren’t quite sure of the exact timing of the snow, ice and freezing rain.

“Our trucks are loaded. We are ready to go,” said Hamilton County Engineer Ted Hubbard. “We are still trying to think about the exact detailed strategy. We are waiting to see what kind of storm we get this afternoon.”

On top of that, most counties are low on salt, he noted.

Hamilton County has 4,000 tons on hand to treat its 54 routes that cover more than 1,500 lane miles, including main thoroughfares like Colerain, Hamilton and Beechmont Avenues and River Road (U.S. 50).

Ideally, Hubbard said he would like 10,000 tons of salt. To stretch what he has, crews mix the salt with a sand grit-type material and then spray that with calcium chloride.

“With salt salt supplies as low as they are, we wouldn’t even consider sending them out now (to treat roads),” he said. “If we ended up with rain, you put that salt down, then the salt is gone.”

Counties are low on salt because this has been such a snowy winter, suppliers can’t keep up with demand.

“We’ve placed orders long ago, and they have not been filled,” Hubbard said. “We are getting some in, but it’s not coming in as rapidly as we’d like.”

Here’s the latest timeline of the storm:

• Arrive as snow anytime after 4 p.m. as temperatures hold steady in the low 30s.

• Snow will become heavy fairly quickly and continue into the evening.

• While snow falls Downtown and to the north, rain and freezing rain will pelt down south of the Ohio River in Northern Kentucky.

• That weather pattern will continue until 8 p.m. as warmer air moves in, bringing more freezing rain by 10 p.m. along and south of the Ohio River while the northern counties see more snow.

• Everyone will switch over to all snow overnight as temperatures fall into the upper 20s.

• Northern winds gusting up to 20 mph could lead to blowing snow Wednesday, making driving hazardous and reducing visibility.

• Temperatures will fall throughout the day Wednesday, which means the ice likely will not melt.

• The overnight low will plunge to 13 with wind chills in the single digits or near 0.

• Thursday will be partly sunny, but the mercury will struggle to reach the 20s.

• Thursday night’s low will fall back to the single digits.

• There’s more chances of snow this weekend Friday night through Sunday.

• Daytime highs will remain below normal for this time of year and in the 20s or low 30s with overnight lows in the teens.

Larry Cobb / Provided

Three people involved in a statewide crime ring involving credit card thefts from prominent businesses in Warren County have been sentenced to prison, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office announced Monday.

A Warren County judge Monday sentenced Larry D. Cobb, 55, to seven years in prison after he pleaded guilty to engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity.  Kristina M. Petty, 37, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in a pattern of corrupt activity and was sentenced to four years in prison.

In December, Deshawn Mitchell, 35, was sentenced to three years in prison for conspiracy to engage in a pattern of corrupt activity.   Last month, Jodie Petty, 31, who is in prison on related charges in other counties, was sentenced to community control.

The four individuals were part of a crime ring officials dubbed the “Office Creeper Case” that involved sneaking into dozens of companies and stealing employees’ credit cards and items left unattended on desks or in offices.

Kristina Petty / Provided

The crime ring spanned eight counties statewide and charged more than $100,000 in merchandise, officials said.  In Warren County, Procter & Gamble’s Mason Business Center and Cintas were targets.

Cobb, who acted as the primary thief, formed the criminal enterprise in 2012, authorities said. He and his co-conspirators used stolen credit cards to quickly buy electronics, gift cards, and other items they could sell for cash, special prosecutors with Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s office said.

“Larry Cobb and his co-defendants are professional thieves, plain and simple,”  Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell said in a statement.

“This case serves as a reminder to local businesses to re-visit their security policies and procedures to ensure that their employees aren’t victimized by unauthorized persons on their premises,” he said.

About 35 law enforcement agencies from across the state investigated the case with help from the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office and the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

Seven Hills senior gymnast Reena SenGupta hits the vault during a Dec. 10 meet at Cincinnati Country Day. / Mark D. Motz/The Community Press

Mark D. Motz reports:

They often take time, but circles usually come full.

Seven Hills Upper School senior Reena SenGupta began taking recreational gymnastics lessons at Kids First at age 6. At 8 she was competing in a rec program. By eighth grade she was on a club team with an eye toward competing in college.

But the Mason resident injured her elbow on a tumbling pass and missed her high school season as a Seven Hills junior.

During her recovery, she decided not to pursue gymnastics collegiately and left her club team – she was a Level 9 gymnast, training toward Level 10 – and left herself somewhat adrift.

“It was really hard after I decided to scale back,” she said. “I had a lot of time.”

She tried diving briefly, picked up yoga – “I hate running, but I needed to do something to stay in shape,” she said – and even entertained overtures to try out for lacrosse.

Instead she got a job at Kids First and now coaches the rec program where she began.

“It’s very cool to be back where I started,” she said

And to finish with her high school team. SenGupta is the lone returning senior for coach Sue Bone’s squad, the unquestioned leader of the group.

“Not only is she talented, she’s one of the nicest people you will meet,” Bone said. “She’s like having a third coach out there for us. She’s so supportive of our middle school team, of our high school team.

“She’s a big supporter of other teams. When somebody throws a great move or has a great routine, she’s really happy for them, leading the cheers and congratulating them. I think that’s pretty rare. She’s been a great captain of the ship.”

SenGupta takes the coaching angle seriously. She used her senior challenge project to educate herself in choreography.

“I was always more of a power gymnast,” she said. “I was a good tumbler, but not too strong at dance. I spent hours watching elite routines to see what they were doing. But I also watched a lot of dance companies and just modern dance to learn, too. It’s been a lot of fun.”

So much so that she’s taken over some of the choreography chores for the Stingers’ floor exercises.

“Her routines are far superior to mine,” Bone said. “Mine are all dated dancing styles. Hers are very modern and fresh moves.”

SenGupta said she loves to practice the balance beam – “When you do a backflip on the beam and you land in a stuck position, for just a second there you feel amazing, like ‘I’m an accomplished person,’” she said – but she doesn’t like competing in it. “Too nerve-wracking.”

She’s not satisfied with her bar routine, either, so with the city and district meets looming and her competitive career nearing an end, SenGupta plans to stick to the floor exercises and vault.

“I’m willing to try anything and I want to show (the judges) that,” SenGupta said. “My power and my tumbling (on the floor exercises) skills are better than my dancing, so I’m trying to show them I can do the dance elements, too.”

Mason head coach Rob Matula gives instructions during the Lady Comets basketball game against Kings, Wednesday, Jan. 15,2014. (Tony Tribble for the Enquirer)

By Marc Hardin, Enquirer contributor

Lakota West basketball coach Andy Fishman has a lot of respect for Mason, and even more confidence in his girls.

With top-ranked Mason already at the top of the Division I, Cincinnati 4 sectional bracket at the Southwest District girls’ basketball tournament draw, Fishman, with the third pick as the No. 3 seed, could have chosen to place his team in any of the other four brackets to avoid an early matchup against the Comets.

Fishman nixed that idea at Sunday afternoon’s draw at Lakota West and put the Firebirds (14-5), ranked No. 3 in the Enquirer area Division I coaches’ poll, in the Cincinnati 4 sectional, where they could meet top-seeded Mason (18-1) in the final Feb. 24 at Lakota East.

The sectional champion advances to the Harrison District and plays the Dayton 2 sectional winner. Lakota West opens tournament play Feb. 15 against Northwest (3-17). Mason’s opener is Feb. 20 against the Feb. 15 Sycamore-Harrison winner. Because they drew a bye, the Comets need one win to advance to the sectional final.

The Firebirds need two wins to make the final. Should they take their first game, they would next play either Glen Este (9-10) or Hamilton (5-15).

“There are several reasons why we did that,” Fishman said. “We love playing at Lakota East; it’s very familiar to us. Additionally, we’re looking at the path of least resistance to bigger and better things. We have a lot of respect for Mason. They beat us twice, and both were good games. But that’s the news. Potentially, we could have Lakota West-Mason.”

Mason coach Rob Matula chose the Cincinnati 4 bracket with the first pick.

“It’s not every year you get a 1 and a 3 seed playing in the same sectional,” Matula said. “But this gives us a chance to heal by taking a bye. I also did a little research, and the opportunity to get to the district championship against a Dayton team has been good for us in the past.”

Princeton, ranked second locally, had the No. 2 seed and drew into the Cincinnati 3 sectional at Lakota East. The Vikings (17-2) open Feb. 13 against Kings (3-14). A win would advance Princeton to the second round against Loveland (0-19), which drew a bye. No. 13 seed Colerain (12-6), No. 17 Seton (9-11) and No. 23 St. Ursula (4-14) are on the other side of the bracket.

“Mason is in one bracket, and two others match up with the top two teams from Dayton for districts. We match up with the other bracket,” Princeton coach Jill Phillips said.

If the Vikings advance, they would play the Cincinnati I sectional winner March 1 at the Harrison District. The top seeds in Cincinnati 1 at Kings are No. 8 McAuley (12-7) at the top of the bracket and No. 9 Walnut Hills (15-4) at the bottom.

No. 4 Winton Woods (16-3) drew a bye and is the top seed in the Cincinnati 2 sectional at Kings. No. 6 Mercy (14-6) is on the other side of the bracket.

The first day of sectional tournament play is Feb. 11 when No. 7 seed Talawanda (16-2) takes on Oak Hills (4-15) in a 6:30 p.m. Cincinnati 5 first-round contest at Harrison. No. 5 Mount Notre Dame (13-5) is the sectional’s top seed.

Other draw results have Wyoming (18-1) as the No. 1 seed in the Division II sectional at Withrow. New Richmond (16-2) is the No. 2 seed and McNicholas (12-8) is No. 3. Play starts Feb. 14.

Badin (8-11) is the top seed at the Division III sectional at Fairfield, which starts Feb. 13. Mariemont (13-7) is the No. 2 seed and Reading (14-7) is No. 3.

Fayetteville Perry (17-0) is the top seed in Division IV at Monroe. Felicity Franklin (11-4) is No. 2. Seven Hills (11-8) is No. 3. Play begins Feb. 13.

Wednesday is National Signing Day for football, field hockey, soccer, track and field/cross country and men’s water polo. We’ll have complete coverage online at Cincinnati.com/preps and NKY.com/preps.

• Chat with ScoutingOhio.com’s Mark Porter on Tuesday at noon

• Chat with University of Cincinnati football coach Tommy Tuberville Wednesday at noon

• Check out a list of area student athletes and where they’ll be signing letters of intent

• Send your Signing Day photos to us at SigningDayPhotos@gmail.com

• Look up past names using our Signing Day database

Howard Jackson works at the Butler County Sheriff’s Office Communication Center. / The Enquirer/Cara Owsley

Michael D. Clark reports:

A new Ohio grant program is allowing school districts throughout the state to beef up their emergency communications – in some cases, with nothing more radical than a simple panic button.

Since the December 2012 shooting deaths of 26 people – 20 students and six adults – at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn., Ohio and Kentucky schools have ramped up their security measures.

Most schools are fully prepared to call 911.

But the newest radio models also feature silent calls – panic buttons –to alert first responders, allowing instantaneous verbal communications with local police.

An Enquirer analysis of the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission’s new $12 million grant program, approved by the Ohio Legislature last fall, found that so far 34 of Southwest Ohio’s 49 school districts including the Mason and Kings school districts have ordered either security radio devices or secured doors, which are also available through the program.

Many schools have already enhanced school entrances to make it more difficult to access the buildings. The emergency radios, however, are a new tech twist in school safety.

Once installed, the Multi-Agency Radio Communications System, or MARCS, desktop radios will be tuned to dedicated emergency frequencies monitored by local police or county sheriff departments.

“When seconds count, immediate, timely communication with the schools through these radios can be crucial,” said Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones, who last year grabbed national media attention announcing his proposal to improve school security through arming retired police officers and having them substitute teach.

“The direct linking of school buildings with first responders through these radios can obviously be a great tool” in protecting schools, said Jones.

Most of Butler County’s school districts, in fact, have already taken advantage of the new state grants, which are $2,000 per building for school radios and $5,000 for better doors, joining more than 1,200 schools in Ohio recently applying for the security radios.

MacKenzie Curt, a mother of a Mason student in the nearby Warren County school system, is also glad the radios, which will be installed in all the district’s schools, are beefing up their protective measures.

“I worry every day when my kindergartner rides away on the bus since Sandy Hook,” she said. “As a parent, I understand that I cannot control everything that happens to my child as they grow more independent, but it certainly can’t hurt to add another layer of protection.”

Gina Gentry-Fletcher, spokeswoman for Butler County’s Fairfield Schools, which will soon have the radios, said “the tragedy at Sandy Hook reminds us that we can never be too careful.”

Cincinnati Public Schools, the largest in the region, is also considering applying for the radios.

Bill Moehring, director of school services for the city district, said “radio communication in a crisis is especially important because there are emergencies when cell phones and land-line phones, are ineffective or unavailable.”

“Direct communication to emergency responders allows for efficient and real time emergency communication,” said Moehring.

Rick Savors, spokesman for the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, said Sandy Hook revealed the deadly deficiencies in emergency communications at many other schools elsewhere.

“The tragic events of Sandy Hook and other school shootings around the country made the legislature very aware of the need and it’s very much on everyone’s minds,” said Savors.

The radios can be placed on a desktop in a centralized location such as the school’s main office where there are always school staffers nearby during school hours “so anyone can hit the emergency panic button,” he said.

Punching the button immediately opens an emergency radio frequency directly to local police, who then can dispatch the closest police officers, firefighters or other first responders to the school.

“It’s not a cure-all, but it will certainly augment what schools already have,” said Savors.

Butler County Sheriff Sgt. Monte Mayer said “we can communicate with the schools directly and bypass the phone system. And we can also use the radios to communicate with schools during lockdowns, tornadoes or other emergencies.”

So far, 426 of Ohio’s 613 school districts have been granted $6.5 million of the total grant fund.

Kentucky has had a different program for its 172 school districts, said Jon Akers, director of the Kentucky Center for School Safety.

Each district receives $9,000, plus an additional $3.25 per student, from the state to enhance school building safety, said Akers.

Local school officials, he said, may decide to use some or all of that money to set up their own radio communications in cooperation with local or county law enforcement.

Jones would like to see more done in his county but admits there is no single solution.

“The radios still aren’t as good as putting actual law enforcement resource officers in every school, but even that can’t guarantee to eliminate all school tragedies.”

Staff writer Jessica Brown contributed.

SOUTHWEST OHIO SCHOOL DISTRICTS USING STATE GRANTS FOR NEW RADIOS, SECURITY DOORS

Of Southwest Ohio’s 49 school districts in Hamilton, Butler, Warren and Clermont counties, 34 have already taken advantage of a new state grant to enhance school building security through purchasing emergency radios and security doors, said officials at the Ohio School Facilities Commission.

HAMILTON COUNTY: Deer Park; Finneytown; Forest Hills; Madeira; Norwood; Oak Hills; Reading; Southwest; St. Bernard-Elmwood Place; Sycamore; Winton Woods and Wyoming.

BUTLER COUNTY: Fairfield; Hamilton; Madison; Middletown; Monroe; Talawanda.

WARREN COUNTY: Carlisle; Kings; Lebanon; Mason; Springboro; Warren County Career Center, Wayne.

CLERMONT COUNTY: Batavia; Bethel-Tate; Clermont Northeastern; Felicity-Franklin; Goshen; Milford; New Richmond; US Grant; West Clermont, Williamsburg.

(Source: Ohio School Facilities Commission)

Mike Dyer reports:

Mason wrestling coach Craig Murnan said Wednesday night’s Division I, Region 7 title was a significant stepping stone for the Comets program.

The Comets are just one of the area teams going to Columbus next week for the state dual tournament Feb. 8 at Ohio State University’s St. John Arena.

“Our kids, coaching staff and community have been working towards this type of success for a number of years,” Murnan said. “We are excited to represent our community and school.”

Underclassmen helped Mason late in matches on Wednesday against Centerville. Murnan said freshman Colin Schuster (126 pounds) provided the biggest win of the night when he defeated a state caliber individual in Centerville’s Cameron Castro.

“The environment at Centerville was tremendous, the crowd was electric,” Murnan said. “The support from our Mason community and kids made this night a special experience for our student-athletes.”

The state dual pairings are expected to be released today.

In Division I, Region 8, Moeller defeated Harrison 49-21.

In Division II, Region 15, Wilmington defeated Ross 35-32 in the regional final.

In Division III, Region 22, Blanchester defeated Reading 48-27. Blanchester set a school record for most wins (22) in a season, according to athletic director Bryan Pennix.

Blanchester coach Scott Nicely said pins in lower weights were key on Wednesday night.

Junior Dan Peters (145 pounds) and senior Brandon Breezley (170) had key wins in their respective matches.

Other sports

GIRLS’ BASKETBALL: Mason plays at Princeton at 2 p.m. Saturday with the Greater Miami Conference title on the line. Mason (18-0, 10-0 GMC), which is ranked No. 14 nationally by USA Today, is ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press Division I state poll. Princeton (16-2, 10-0) is ranked No. 6 in the state poll.

United Way of Warren County is seeking volunteers to assist in a wide variety of community service programs and projects.

The independent nonprofit organization supports 53 nonprofit programs that help Warren County residents in areas like education, income and health.

The need for volunteers is ongoing through the year.  All volunteers receive training and support from United Way of Warren County staff.

For more information or to apply, call Jerry Langworthy at 513-932-3987 or email her at jlangworthy@wcuwl.org.

From left: Sam Epstein, George Clooney, John Goodman, Bob Balaban and Matt Damon in “The Monuments Men.” Provided

John Kiesewetter reports:

(Former Mason resident) George Clooney did an Ask Me Anything Q&A on Reddit during a break from shooting his new “Tomorrowland” sci-fi film on Tuesday with Judy Greer, Hugh Laurie and country singer Tim McGraw.

• George Clooney developed star power in Mason
• Win a day with George Clooney for $10

He was asked about his infamous pranks (and being pranked by Matt Damon), his movies and co-stars, motorcycles, basketball (“I’m sneaky fast”) and Tina Fey’s Golden Globes joke about starring in “Gravity” with Sandra Bullock (“It’s the story of how George Clooney would rather float away into space and die than spend one more minute with a woman his own age.”)

He started the session by saying: “Hello reddit, George Clooney here. I’m a filmmaker who’s worked on films you may know. I was also a guest star on The Golden Girls. I’m talking with you guys today from the set of Tomorrowland. And so sorry I am late, I was literally hanging from a wire as we were supposed to start this.”

It’s a lot of fun to read. Here’s the link. Enjoy!

Mason attorney Adam C. Sherman was named partner at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease this month.

As a member of the Cincinnati law firm’s litigation group, Sherman’s practice include commercial litigation, contract disputes, dealer terminations, trade secrets, copyright, privacy issues and fiduciary duties, among others.

His achievements include representing multiple defendants in one of the largest patent infringement multi-district litigation cases in history, involving 200 defendants and more than 50 patents in the field of automated call center technology, according to the law firm.

Sherman received his law degree from the New York University School of Law and his bachelor’s degree with high honors from the University of Michigan.

Warren County’s Area Progress Council is accepting nominations for its annual Project Excellence that recognizes educators from each school district in the county.

Since its 1988 start, 588 educators have been honored during at a spring banquet, this year set for May 7 at the Warren County Career Center. Each receives a cash award.

The program is funded through individuals, industries and businesses. The current endowment is valued at more than $1.2 million and the program has awarded $426,400 to date.

The awards honor those who demonstrate excellence in instruction, or teachers who have pioneered a teaching method. All nominees must hold a teaching certificate and work for the public school system.

Nominees will be judged on criteria determined by Miami University. All nominations are reviewed and evaluated by selection committees at each school district.

Nomination forms are available at the superintendent’s office of each district, any public school building, any public library in Warren County or any branch of the LCNB National Bank, National Bank and Trust, First National Bank or U.S. Bank. They can also be downloaded at www.OhioInfo.org

Completed nomination forms are due Feb. 28 and can be sent to Project Excellence, P.O. Box 802, Lebanon, OH 45036-0802 or apcpe@OhioInfo.org

Previous Project Excellence honorees are not eligible for the 2014 award.

Michael D. Clark reports:

State education officials have notified a former Kings schoolteacher accused of abusing special needs students that her teaching license may be revoked.

Amanda Kitcho, who was sued last week in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati by the students’ parents, has been told by officials at the Ohio Department of Education that she may lose her license as a result of the state’s investigation.

Their accusations include that she physically and emotionally abused students while employed by the Warren County school system.

In the notification sent to Kitcho and obtained Monday by The Enquirer, state officials accused her of shoving a student out of a wheelchair, shoving a classroom table while a student’s mouth was on the edge, taping a screaming student and leaving her in a bathroom and lying to the students’ parents.

Sent by certified mail to Kitcho on Jan. 24, the letter from officials states that the “State Board of Education intends to determine whether to limit, suspend, revoke or permanently revoke your five-year professional intervention specialist teaching license issued in 2009” based on the department’s investigation.

Kitcho, who taught at Columbia Elementary until she negotiated a resignation agreement with district officials in March 2012, did not answer calls Monday to her home.

In the federal lawsuit, attorneys for the parents said Kitcho “intentionally provoked and startled students into escalating behaviors … walled students behind dividers in the classroom, took food from the children’s lunches and deprived them of snacks.”

And Kings officials knew of the mistreatment but didn’t report it to law enforcement or inform parents that the district was investigating Kitcho, the suit states.

As required by law, Kings notified state education officials about Kitcho’s suspension and then resignation.

Valerie Browning, superintendent of Kings Schools, said “we just received notification from the Ohio Department of Education. We are happy that the Ohio department is following up on our complaint and conducting a thorough and fair investigation.”

Students at Kings Junior High will bring the story of Cinderella to the stage for three performances beginning Thursday.

The fairy tale story of how Cinderella meets her Prince Charming will be retold on stage at 7 p.m., Thursday through Saturday.

Watch as Cinderella, played by Ajah Tasker-Moore tries to get to the ball only to be foiled by her stepmother, portrayed by Gracie Bloomfield; and stepsisters, Portia, played by Shelby Malburg; and Joy, played by Addie Collins.

Cinderella’s fairy Godmother, played by Sabrina Sharpe, helps her get to the ball but issues a warning that her magic coach will return to a pumpkin at midnight.

When Cinderella leaves just before midnight, she loses a slipper that the prince, played by Dane Doebereiner, goes through the kingdom, door-by-door looking for Cinderella.

Other key characters are the herald, played by Shawn Render; the queen, played by Amber Mitchell; the King, played by Alec Freeman; and the chef, played by Calvin Meeker.

The townspeople, palace staff and ball guests are played by: Corrine Baber, Crissy Chavez, Maggie Engelhard, Maddie Feltner, Zoey Fitzgerald, Eliza Hammond, Jessica Harmon, Shelby Harvey, Amy Helms, Brooke Howard, Shannon Jelley, Nicole Klepcyk, Mallory Marchal, Haley Olberding, Grace Pansch, Hannah Robinson, Darby Schussel, Katelyn Sevier, Faith Shields, Bella Spleen, Shannon toggle, Megan Wagner, and Jessica Wright.

Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for children under the age of 12. They can be purchased at the door or in advance at the junior high school office, 5620 Columbia Road.

Advance tickets can be also be purchased by sending the amount of tickets requested, and a check made out to Kings Junior High School, to Kings Stagelighters, c/o Donna Griffen, 9043 Oak Dr., Loveland, OH 45140

Advance tickets will be available beginning at 6 p.m. at the will call table. Doors will open 15-20 minutes before the play begins. There are no assigned seats.

Information: 513-476-2483 or stagelighters@gmail.com

Mike Dyer reports:

Two Warren County football players have made college commitments:

Kings senior wide receiver Jamison Williams committed to Robert Morris Wednesday, according to Kings coach Andy Olds. Williams, who is 6-3, pounds, also had offers from Sacred Heart and Butler. Williams , who is 6-3 and 190 pounds, was the leading receiver in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference this season with 687 yards on 52 receptions.

Lebanon senior guard Erich Leichliter committed to Mount Union, according to Lebanon coach Shawn Lamb. Leichliter is 6-2, 290 pounds.

Swimming:

Brandon Mohaupt reports:

The Turpin girls’ swimming team took home first place honors at this year’s Eastern Cincinnati Conference Championship, finishing with nearly 100 points more than the second place Walnut Hills. Anderson rounded out the top three.

Turpin’s Shaylynn Spelman finished first in the 200 individual medley with a time of 2:15.55. Teammate Audrey Mooney finished second with a time of 2:17.07.

Turpin also finished first in the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 3:44.72.

Eastern Cincinnati Conference Championships

At Anderson

Team scores: 1. Turpin 352, 2. Walnut Hills 253, 3. Anderson 215, 4. Kings 200, 5. Loveland 194, 6. Milford 123, 7. Loveland 24, 8. Turpin 18, 9. Anderson 16.

200MR-Loveland 1:56.94; 200free-Randall (Loveland) 1:56.26; 200IM-Spelman 2:15.55; 50free-Etter (Kings) 25.52; 100fly-Sichterman (Kings) 58.59; 100free-Etter (Kings) 55.76; 500free-Martin (Anderson) 5:09.45; 200FR-Turpin 1:43.75; 100breast-Day (Loveland) 1:02.65; 100breast-Cashell (Walnut Hills) 1:10.56; 400FR-Turpin 3:44.72.

The Anderson boys swimming team took home the ECC Championship Saturday night edging out second place Turpin 349-317. Host team Anderson rounded out the top-three with a score of 290.

Walnut Hills cleaned up in the relays; edging out Turpin by .8 seconds to win the 200 yard medley relay and placed second in the 200 yard freestyle relay. They placed third in the 400 yard freestyle relay.

Walnut Hills’ Cooper Keener won the 100 yard backstroke with teammate Juan Mougan finishing in second place.

ECC Championships  at Anderson

Team results: 1. Walnut Hills 349, 2. Turpin 317, 3. Anderson 290, 4. Kings 187, 5. Milford 125, 6. Loveland 60, 7. Anderson 43, 8. Loveland 12, 9. Turpin 10

200MR-Walnut Hills 1:43.64; 200free-Carroll (Anderson) 1:46.71; 200IM-Hamilton (Turpin) 2:00.1; 50free-Matheus (Kings) 22.61; 100fly-Norton (Turpin) 54.74; 100free-Matheus (Kings) 48.87; 500free-Carroll (Anderson) 4:53.15; 200free-Anderson 1:31.43; 100back-Keener (Walnut Hills) 54.60; 100breast-Hamilton (Turpin) 1:02.58; 400free-Anderson 3:19.95.

Jennifer Edwards Baker reports:

 Winds are howling and temperatures are falling like a rock this morning as an arctic cold front pushes into Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, bringing the coldest air yet in what already is one of the most brutal winters in recent years.

The front will throw the mercury into the deep freeze over the next 48 hours, pushing the morning low to minus 13 by Tuesday with wind chills ranging from minus 10 to minus 35 degrees, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

The blustery, polar air will stick around through Wednesday morning.

Watch for gusting winds this morning. A wind advisory up early today was dropped at 5:30 a.m.

Winds whipped up to 49 mph just after midnight at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, the weather service reports. More than 2,000 people were without power in Clermont County, and nearly 300 more were out in Hamilton County earlier today, according to Duke Energy’s website. Those outages have mostly been restored.

It was 15 degrees with a wind chill of minus 3 at the airport at 6 a.m.. It’s 10 degrees with a wind chill of minus 4. We should slip to 5 degrees by lunchtime.

A winter weather advisory runs until noon for most of the region due to the likelihood for blowing and drifting snow, along with a strong chance that a flash freeze could lead to black ice forming on roads.

Some school districts closed today, including Cincinnati Public, which has about 6,000 students who walk to schools.

“We are really concerned about the falling temperatures,” said Janet Walsh, district spokeswoman. “When we made the call, it was int the 20s but dropping rapidly and predicted to drop more throughout the day with some pretty serious wind chills. So we we decided to really take those into account. We have to be concerned about not only getting kids to school but getting them home.”

With the forecast predicting even colder temperatures Tuesday, she said is it likely school could be canceled a second day in a row.

“It is not looking good for tomorrow,” she said. “We have not officially made the call yet. If we do have to close school, then we are in a situation of makeups. Today is our fifth and final calamity day. So we would be looking at making up a day at the end of the school year if, in fact, we have to close tomorrow.”

Light snow flurries could blow around this morning, accumulating to about half an inch.

A wind chill warning will go into effect noon through 10 a.m Wednesday for Bulter, Warren and Hamilton counties in Ohio and Ripley and Dearborn counties in Indiana as winds gust up to 39 mph and wind chills fall to negative 25 to negative 35.

In Northern Kentucky, Boone, Kenton, Campbell, Grant and Pendleton counties will be under wind chill advisory from noon Monday to 10 a.m. Wednesday. Wind chills there are expected to hit 20 below zero Monday night and Tuesday morning.

By 5 p.m. tonight, the temperature will be at 4 degrees – and then it will plunge overnight anywhere from minus 9 to minus 13 by daybreak Tuesday.

Wind chills will fall as low as minus 35, making this the coldest night so far this winter, according to the weather service.

As cold as that seems, it will not break any cold weather records today or Tuesday, the weather service predicts.

Those records likely will remain intact with minus 11 recorded on this date in 2003, and minus 18 recorded as the low on Tuesday in 1963.

The coldest temperature on record in Cincinnati was 25 below zero in 1977.

Tuesday will dawn sunny but brutally cold. The high temperature could squeak up to 7 degrees. Wind chills will feel as low as minus 20.

We’ll stay in the deep freeze Tuesday night as the low falls to minus 7 with wind chills as low as minus 18.

By Wednesday afternoon, the mercury will begin to rebound with a daytime high near 21 degrees. It will be mostly sunny.

The overnight low will fall to the lower teens.

Thursday will bring a welcome return to the mid-30s and more seasonal temperatures for this time of year. Daytime highs will remain in the 30s with overnight lows in the 20s the rest of the week.

Our next chance of snow will come this weekend. Snow is in the forecast Friday through Saturday and Sunday, when it could mix with a bit of rain.