Category Archives: Progress

Contractors at TowerPinkster have been busy at Lowell schools this fall, making progress on the bond projects passed by voters in 2019.

At Lowell Middle School, exterior foundations and footings are being poured for the addition on the west end of the school and interior wall footings are starting to go up. Workers have also cut into the masonry around the band room door in preparation for future demolition to connect the addition to the existing building.

The two-story addition will add classrooms and collaboration spaces for project-based learning.

At Alto Elementary School, construction to add five additional classrooms to the building is nearly complete.

Voters approved the $52.1 million bond in May 2019 to fund infrastructure upgrades and improvements. Other projects addressed in the bond include improved parent drop-off and bus circulation at the middle school and Murray Lake Elementary, outdoor athletic improvements and updated technology and furnishings.

Read more from the original source:

Bond projects making progress in Lowell - School News Network

In comparison to previous offseasons in which Jerry Dipoto was ostensibly trying to build a winner (2016, 2017, 2018), things have been comparatively quiet this offseason as we head into a season where the team needs to show improvement on the field. There was no blockbuster deal on day before Thanksgiving (or day of). No splashy position players have been signed or traded for yet. No international players have been wooed to join us in Seattle. No, Jerry said he was going to sign some relievers, and by gum, thats exactly what he has done. Is this a new era of truthiness for Jerry Dipoto? Only time will tell, readers.

So while we wait for something surprising to happen, or get further lulled into a false sense of security, lets do a progress report of sorts. Obviously it is still quite early and plenty more could happen between now and mid-February, but for the sake of discussion, lets roll with what weve got so far.

To the polls!

Thats all I got! Sound off in the comments if I missed any options you were looking for or if you have any further offseason stragetic thoughts. Lets hear it!

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FanPost Friday: Offseason progress reports and polls - Lookout Landing

Its noteworthy, perhaps historic, that the winner of the 2020 U.S. Soccer male player of the year award is a 22-year-old midfielder who, after standing out for struggling Bundesliga side Schalke 04 in the spring, became the first American player to sign for mighty Juventus.

Its equally noteworthy that Weston McKennie, whos played 13 times and already scored twice for the Bianconeri, beat out U.S. teammates at Barcelona, Chelsea and RB Leipzig for the American games most prestigious honor.

After a couple down years for the mens national team program, not only has the player of the year award recouped some of its luster, its also become much tougher to win. And that trend is likely to continue as more U.S. players climb the club pyramid in Europe and play games at the highest level. MLS players are eligible as well, of course, but the bar for contention has been raised considerably.

Its yet another sign that the USMNT has entered a new era.

McKennie, 22, won the award after being named on 44% of the ballots cast by national team coaches, players who were called up to the USA in 2020, members of the U.S. Soccer Federation board of directors and Athletes Council, MLS and USL head coaches, media members and former players and administrators, according to the USSF. Each voter selects just one nominee. Last years winner, Chelseas Christian Pulisic, finished second with 27% of the vote and Barcelonas Sergio Dest placed third at 14%. The other finalists were Tyler Adams (RB Leipzig), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders) and Gyasi Zardes (Columbus Crew).

McKennie was informed Friday after training in Turin by new National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee Carlos Bocanegra, who met McKennie in 2006 when he was a child growing up at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. McKennie has said that meeting, which also included Landon Donovan, sparked his dream to play for the national team.

I want to thank everyone for this huge honor. Its been a journey, especially through these difficult times during the pandemic, McKennie said. Our fans have stuck with us throughout and we really appreciate it. Hopefully in 2021 we can have many more memories together.

The pandemic limited the USA to four friendlies in 2020, and only two of those came during a FIFA window and were open to players based in Europe. McKennie started and excelled in those October games, a 0-0 draw at Wales and a 6-2 win over Panama. But this was a year in which club performance was going to take precedence, and McKennies was good enough at Schalke to earn the move to Juventus. Once there, he attacked the opportunity. Hes made eight starts already, including three in the UEFA Champions League, and there are reports that Juventus is ready to make his loan from Schalke a permanent transfer.

McKennie is the fourth-youngest recipient of the award, which was first handed out in 1984. He finished third last year, but the 2019 honor was a two-man race between Pulisic and Morris. It was an uneven period for the USA as coach Gregg Berhalter looked to get comfortable and implement his system during his first year in charge.

U.S. Soccer

The Americans advanced to the Concacaf Gold Cup final but were beaten by Mexico on a frustrating night outside New York City. Then there was the embarrassing Nations League defeat to Canada in Toronto. By years end, only Pulisic and Morris really stood out. Pulisic tallied three goals and three assists at the Gold Cup and then completed his move to Chelsea, for which he scored five times. Morris was outstanding for Seattle in MLS, notching 13 goals and eight assists, but no one else really staked his claim during a year of national team transition.

Goalkeeper Zack Steffen was named player of the year in 2018, an even stranger period marked by coach Dave Sarachans interim tenure, a lot of friendlies and a voting dynamic that saw Adams and McKennie split the exciting European prospect vote. Steffen started in five of the USAs 11 games and backstopped the Crew to the MLS Cup quarterfinals as he was named MLSs goalkeeper of the year. In 2018, that was enough.

The year before, untainted by the USAs World Cup qualifying failure, Pulisic won the first of his two awards with a ridiculous 94% of the vote. That type of landslide wont happen again. That year, the voting was an indication of crisis. This time and in the future, its likely to reflect the unprecedented growth and progress of the American player pool.

Read the original here:

USMNT's Progress, Growth Reflected in Evolution of Player of the Year Voting - Sports Illustrated

Volunteers help pack dozens of swag bags to be handed out Saturday, Dec. 19. Photo courtesy of Eddie Purpose

Free masks, hand sanitizer from noon to 3 p.m. at both Safeway locations in Federal Way.

Local organization Progress Pushers will be holding two personal protective equipment grab-and-go events this Saturday in Federal Way.

Progress Pushers, founded in mid-2018 by Eddie Purpose, mentors youth and young adults who have been impacted by the criminal justice system. By doing so, the group strives to provide local youth with job readiness skills, civic engagement tools, leadership development and more.

From noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, the team will be handing out free masks and hand sanitizer, swag bags and turkeys as supplies lasts At both Federal Way Safeway grocery store locations (1207 320th Street and 2109 SW 336th Street).

The events are funded in part by King County, Federal Way Youth Action Team, Federal Way Black Collective, and Build 2 Lead.

For more information about the event or Progress Pushers, email info@progresspushers.org or call 253-431-7195.

Photo courtesy of Eddie Purpose

Excerpt from:

Progress Pushers to host grab-and-go PPE events this... - Federal Way Mirror

MAGOFFIN COUNTY, Ky. (WTVQ) With major construction progress and another large federal financial allocation, 2020 was a year of success for the Mountain Parkway Expansion project.

In June, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet was awarded a $55 Million federal INFRA grant that will help to fund what will be the fifth segment of the Mountain Parkway Expansion to go under construction the Wolfe County segment.

The Mountain Parkway Expansion is important to modernize a critical Kentucky route, and increase access between Eastern Kentucky communities and the rest of the state.

The progress the Mountain Parkway team has made this year in securing federal funds, advancing a new segment of the project, and moving forward with work on two active construction sites has brought the project team closer to completing work on the Parkway, and providing an improved high-speed corridor to Kentucky drivers, said Gov. Andy Beshear.

The Morgan and Magoffin County West segments underwent significant construction during 2020, with the two segments accounting for 12.8 combined miles of active construction.

The Morgan and Magoffin County West segments together account for one of the largest stretches of construction our teams will work on while widening the Parkway, said KYTC Secretary Jim Gray.

Morgan County

Crews are working on the two final bridges that will pass over KY-134 at approximately the 60.5 and the 62.3 mile markers. Teams began construction in late October on what will be the final bridge to be built on this segment of the Parkway.

In addition to ongoing bridge work, crews have completed the excavation near the Morgan-Magoffin County line, and are now paving this section of roadway, before opening it to traffic by mid-December.

The Morgan County segment stretches from the Lee City/West Liberty interchange, near Helechawa (Exit 57), to just west of the Cutino-Hager Road overpass.

The anticipated completion date for this segment is Summer 2021.

Magoffin County West

The Magoffin County West segment of the Parkway runs from west of the Cutino-Hager Road overpass to west of the Middle Fork of the Licking River Bridge, covering about 4.6 miles of roadway.

The planned improvements include widening the Parkway to four lanes between mile markers 65 and 69.6, making safety improvements that include eliminating a sharp curve at Kernie Hill, and adding an interchange at KY 3046 (Kernie-Ova-Seitz Road) to provide local Parkway access.

Excavation continues as the primary focus for crews on the Magoffin County West segment. Though most of this work cannot yet be seen from the Parkway, crews are actively moving materials in areas not visible from the roadway. As of Nov. 27, crews had excavated over 1.4 Million cubic yards of material on this segment.

Teams have finished constructing the fourth box culvert that is required for this section of the project. Once completed, crews will have built a total of six box culverts to aid in water flow along this section of the Parkway.

The anticipated completion date for this segment is Spring 2023.

Wolfe County

Right of way, utility work, and relocation activities all kicked off this summer and will continue through 2021 as teams prepare this segment for construction in the coming years.

The Wolfe County segment of the Parkway will run from the end of the four-lane section on the Mountain Parkway near Campton, at mile marker 45.8, to just west of the Lee City/West Liberty interchange (KY 205), at mile marker 56.8.

The improvements to this segment will include widening the Parkway to four lanes, reconstructing the existing Campton interchange (KY 191) to allow full eastbound and westbound access to and from the Parkway, and modernizing the Hazel Green interchange (KY 1010) to improve safety and mobility.

The Wolfe County segment is scheduled to be let for construction in 2022; the anticipated completion date for this segment is 2027.

The Mountain Parkway Expansion is a 46-mile transportation improvement project that will create a wider, safer connection between Eastern Kentucky and the rest of the Commonwealth.

It is a key transportation project designed to close the only gap in a 400-mile, four-lane, high-speed corridor for commerce and mobility across Kentucky. The project will widen 30 miles of the existing parkway to four lanes and extend the parkway between Salyersville and Prestonsburg.

See the original post here:

Mountain Parkway marks year of progress - ABC 36 News - WTVQ

Bill Atkinson|The Progress-Index

Don't plan on standing in front of or behind state Sen. Amanda F. Chase in any line to get the COVID-19 vaccine she does not want it.

Chase, one of two announced Republican candidates for the 2021 gubernatorial nomination, said she does not plan to get the vaccine, and posted a link to a Washington Times article claiming a nurse who got the vaccine fainted during a press conference in Tennessee to talk about the first vaccinations there. This week, the first wave of Pfizer Inc.-manufactured vaccines were given out to healthcare workers in all 50 state per Centers for Disease Control protocols.

"Thank you, Washington Times, for not hiding this story," Chase posted. "Allow the people to fully educate themselves on the COVIDvaccine thats rolling out to our healthcare workers and let the people make an informed and educated decision."

As for her own choice, Chase concluded the post with, "I will not be getting the vaccine,"

The Times, a traditionally conservative-leaning news outlet, reported that nurse manager Tiffany Dover was explaining how the vaccine was being administered when she fainted at the podium 17 minutes after getting her shot. But the article goes on to say that doctors at the hospital where she works said the fainting spell was not related to the vaccine but to an existing condition Dover has, which she confirmed in the article.

Chase whose Senate district includes the city of Colonial Heights has been an outspoken critic of Virginia's response to the pandemic and restrictions placed on social gatherings, the wearing of face masks and public accessibility, In her campaign around Virginia, Chase is appearing at rallies where social-distancing is not practiced, and no one including the candidate herself is wearing a mask. Her campaign mantra over curbing the spread has been, "Educate, not mandate."

Politicians from both sides of the aisle have promoted the safety surrounding the vaccine. Vice President Mike Pence was vaccinated Friday morning, and former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama have vowed to be publicly vaccinated.

A spokeswoman for Del. Kirk Cox of Colonial Heights, who also is seeking the Republican nomination for governor next year, said Friday that while Chase may not be in the line when the vaccines are given to everyone else not associated with front-line healthcare or LTC residents, her candidate will be.

"At some point down the road, when the vaccine is more broadly available to the public, Delegate Cox would have no issue getting vaccinated," Cox press secretary Kristin Bennett said.

Bill Atkinson (he/him) is the news director of The Progress-Index, located his hometown of Petersburg, Va. He is also the breaking-news coordinator and has been known to "nerd out"over political news coverage and history. Contact Bill at batkinson@progress-index.com, and follow him on Twitter at @BAtkinson_PI, and subscribe to us at progress-index.com.

See more here:

Governor hopeful Chase says she does not plan to get the COVID vaccine when it is her turn - Progress Index

Treasury yields were little changed on Friday as leaders on Capitol Hill scrambled to put the finishing touches on a U.S. stimulus deal.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was flat at 0.926%, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond also held steady at 1.671%. Yields move inversely to prices.

Congress on Thursday appeared to draw closer to reaching an agreement over a coronavirus aid package, with both major parties citing progress.

Lawmakers have run short on time to pass government funding and a pandemic rescue package before federal funding lapses at 12:01 a.m. ET on Saturday.

On the data front, third-quarter currency account balance data will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, with leading index figures for November scheduled to follow slightly later in the session.

There are no major U.S. Treasury auctions scheduled on Friday.

Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar rose just over 0.2% against a basket of currencies to trade at 90.001 on Friday, marginally above a more than two-year low.

The U.S. dollar index is down 1.28% week-to-date, on pace for its fourth negative week in five.

CNBC's Jacob Pramuk contributed to this report.

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Treasury yields are flat as investors monitor progress over fiscal stimulus - CNBC

The 2013 animated film The Croods, about a cave family in a fictional prehistoric era, was pretty enjoyable, made a decent amount of money and even got an Oscar nomination. It wasnt surprising that DreamWorks Animation decided to greenlight a sequel.

That it took seven years to do so is, but The Croods: A New Age got caught up in a crazy cycle of corporate acquisitions, director changes and shifting priorities. It was even flat out canceled at one point. And this all happened pre-pandemic. By the time it was released at Thanksgiving, it couldnt be seen in states (like Illinois) where theaters had to close.

The Croods: A New Age: 2.5 out of 4

But its certainly a lot of drama for a silly animated sequel thats neither terribly special nor all bad. Directing duties transferred from Chris Sanders and Kirk DeMicco to first-time director Joel Crawford. This time around we meet up with the Crood clan Grug (voice of Nicolas Cage), Ugga (Catherine Keener), Gran (Cloris Leachman), Eep (Emma Stone) and her boyfriend Guy (Ryan Reynolds) on the search for a new place to live, somewhere they dreamily refer to as Tomorrow.

And they do stumble upon a Tomorrow of sorts: a walled-in community with farming, tools and comforts, things that are wholly foreign to the rag-tag survivalist cave family. All of this progress is thanks to the not-so-subtly named Bettermans Hope (Leslie Mann), Phil (Peter Dinklage) and their daughter Dawn (Kelly Marie Tran).

The Bettermans look, to put it bluntly, like modern urban hipsters on vacation in Indonesia. With mom in a tasteful shift dress and turquoise jewelry and dad with a man-bun, sandals and an open shirt, it seemed like we were about to discover that this isnt prehistoric times at all and maybe the Croods had been living in some deranged social experiment to mimic the conditions of primitive peoples. Dont worry, they arent. Its simply that this fantastical prehistoric society has gotten even more cartoonish and over-the-top.

These two families do not mesh together particularly well, with one valuing privacy, tidiness and progress and the other being, well, crude. You can already guess the misunderstandings, the hurt feelings and where it all eventually ends up, and its a journey with a good heart. Some kids might even take some comfort in relating more to one family or another, or, as Dawn discovers, wanting what the other family has.

There is some clear imagination and talent behind this world, although the aesthetic wont be for everyone. The Bettermans home is colorful and imaginative and will no doubt be a visual feast for youngsters, especially the gadget-curious and treehouse fans. And there are some genuinely funny moments, and a bit with punch monkeys that will likely produce giggles and then, depending, a follow-up conversation about punching.

It might not be as novel as the first, but its essentially harmless, if a little chaotic, fun for kids and doesnt need to be anything more than that.

Originally posted here:

The Croods: A New Age: Progress passes by the cave family in OK sequel - Chicago Sun-Times

A shorter version of this column has been published byAxios.

There is a lot to be very worried about when it comes to vaccine hesitancy, but there are also reasons to be optimistic. The shares of hesitant groups that appear totally dug in are relatively modest for a new vaccine people have not seen administered safely in their communities, and many of the reasons people are reluctant to get vaccinated are remediable if they get more information from sources they trust.

Four groups jump out from our new KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor project as vaccine hesitant: Republicans and rural Americans the Trump base, parroting the presidents COVID denialism; Black adults, and essential workers. In every case more members of each group says they will get the vaccine than say they will not. The shares who are currently hesitant range from 42% for Republicans to 33% for essential workers.

Those are still big numbers, but it appears they can be reduced with more information. For example, 71% of Black adults who are now hesitant say its because they are worried about side effects. Once they learn they are mild and confirm that as people are vaccinated they may worry less. The same is true for the 50% of vaccine-hesitant Black adults who worry that they will actually get COVID from the vaccine, another top concern.

25% of Republicans currently say they will definitely not get the vaccine. But that leaves three quarters of Republicans who may get the vaccine under various circumstances: 28% of Republicans say they will get it as soon as possible; 33% want to wait and see; and 10% say they will get it only if its required.

Among essential workers a group that is a particularly important target of vaccination efforts because of their high risk of exposure to the virus 28% say they will get the vaccine as soon as they can and 36% want to wait and see; another 14% say theyll only get it if required for work or other activities, and 18% say they definitely will not get vaccinated. Hesitant essential workers have a variety of worries: Half (51%) are worried about side effects, and a similar percentage dont trust the government to make sure the vaccine is safe and effective (50%).

There could be setbacks if there are adverse events that receive wide press coverage that spook already apprehensive groups and these will have to be managed well by public health leaders. States will also need to allocate vaccine supply equitably to inner city and rural areas and assure distribution in those areas that is accessible for traditionally underserved populations. Distrust of government and institutions in communities of color will remain a real barrier.

It will take effective messaging and information efforts utilizing credible messengers and digital communications techniques to reach these different groups, targeting their different worries about the vaccine. No one message or single messenger is likely to be effective. If those efforts are funded and implemented it does appear that real progress can be made to reduce hesitancy among the most resistant groups.

Link:

Real Progress Is Possible On Vaccine Hesitancy - Kaiser Family Foundation

European stocks made significant gains on Wednesday, as the European Union reported progress toward a post-Brexit trade deal.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 SXXP, -0.35% rose 0.8%, the German DAX DAX, -0.27% was 1.5% up, while the U.K.s FTSE 100 UKX, -0.33% also enjoyed gains, as it rose 0.9%.

Across the Atlantic, signs of progress over a new U.S. coronavirus stimulus package also buoyed investors. A bipartisan group of lawmakers unveiled a new proposal earlier this week and a group of Democratic and Republican leaders met face-to-face on Tuesday night a move welcomed in the markets. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the group had agreed lawmakers should not leave Washington for the holiday break without a deal on coronavirus aid and fiscal 2021 government funding.

Investors are also patiently awaiting an update from the Federal Reserve on its bond-buying program, after U.S. retail sales fell 1.1% in November economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a 0.4% decline.

Read: U.S. stocks flatline on decision day for Fed and fiscal stimulus

The pound GBPUSD, -0.38% continued its climb, rising 0.3% to $1.3496 briefly hitting a two-year high after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said there was a path to an agreement now. She added that the U.K. and EU had found a way forward on most issues, but the discussion on fisheries was still very difficult, according to the Twitter TWTR, +2.27% account of EU spokesman Daniel Ferrie. U.K. and EU leaders had promised to go the extra mile on Sunday and extend talks into this week. A deal must be agreed and ratified by Dec. 31 to avoid a no-deal scenario.

European markets have opened higher this morning buoyed by the twin prospect of a U.S. stimulus deal coming to pass alongside the prospect of a U.K.-EU trade deal, with the only unknown as to which one might get agreed first, said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.

As Germany entered a new lockdown on Wednesday, there were some encouraging signs for Europes largest economy in the form of economic data. The closely-followed flash composite purchasing managers index climbed to 52.5 a two-month high.

Decembers flash PMI reassuringly showed that German economy still on a relatively stable platform, at least up until the middle of the month. However, the impending harder lockdown threatens to put pay to some of the resilience we have seen so far, with more sectors set to be impacted by the new tougher virus containment measures, said IHS Markit associate director Phil Smith.

However, Germanys Ifo Institute cut its 2021 economic growth forecast for the country from 5.1% to 4.2%, it said on Wednesday.

European banks were in the spotlight, as the European Central Bank lifted a ban on dividend payments but maintained restrictions on payouts. French bank BNP Paribas BNP, -1.09% fell 2.3% and Dutch bank ABN Amro ABN, -1.70% slipped 1.4%.

Shares of Altice Europe ATC, soared 23%, as the French telecom and cable group said its billionaire founder Patrick Drahi raised his offer to take the company private to 5.35 per share from 4.11.

Excerpt from:

European stocks rise on Brexit progress and U.S. stimulus hopes - MarketWatch