March-April 2024 Events

Monthly Board Meeting and School Referendum Program via zoom - All members are invited

Friday, March 8, Noon, LWV of Beloit Board Meeting,open to any member.

Friday, March 8, 1:00 pm, School Referendum Discussion
Speaker: Dr. Garrison, SDB Superintendent
The spring election is coming up!! Be informed on the referendum!

Frequently Asked Questions-School District of Beloit 2024 Referendum

Follow the Zoom link below for both times:

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86519971336?pwd=AxhXXLilZAsYZj4b8XQjaOvmPHQya6.1
Meeting ID: 865 1997 1336
Passcode: 368236
One tap mobile
+13092053325,,86519971336#,,,,*368236# US
+13126266799,,86519971336#,,,,*368236# US (Chicago)

LWV Supports the School District of Beloit Referendum

Steve Howland has sent a letter to the editor of the Beloit Daily News on behalf of the LWV of Beloit. (Not yet published.)
See the full letter on theLWV of Beloitweb page.

Excerpts:

The Board of the Beloit League of Women Voters is supportive of the school referendum that will be on the ballot on April 2nd. This position is in line with the Wisconsin League of Women Voters' positions on adequate financial support for public schools in our state.

Test scores, absenteeism, and behavioral issues grab our attention, but do we listen to more than the outrage?

Lack of transportation to and from schools for students isn’t just the student’s problem, it’s a community problem. Lack of stable and secure housing isn’t just a problem for our schools, it’s a community problem. Do we listen to the reality of over 500 students classified as homeless? Do we listen to the complaints of students and parents about the lack of transportation to get to school? Do we listen to the testimonies of some of our student-athletes who endure racist taunts at other schools, and plead for people to show up in the stands and support them? Do we listen to reports on health challenges, especially mental health challenges, that our students, their families, and school faculty and administration are facing?

Candidate Forum - Beloit School Board and City Council

Thursday, March 14, Kolak Education Center, 6:30 pm School Board, 7:30 City Council

 

The LWV and the NAACP—Beloit Chapter will be hosting back-to-backcandidate forums on Thursday, March 14, at the School District of BeloitKolak Education Center, 1500 4 th St.

 

Starting at 6:30 p.m., the SchoolDistrict of Beloit Candidate Forum will be held. There are three candidatesrunning for two seats on the board. The forum will be livestreamed by goingtohttps://youtube.com/live/sT_ieMBNdjg?feature=share

 

At 7:30 p.m. the City Council Candidate Forum will begin. There are fivecandidates running for four seats on the council. The forum will be live-streamed by going tohttps://youtube.com/live/WybrghhgGWo?feature=share

 

All candidates have been invited to participate. Questions may besubmitted for consideration for the candidate forums by sending them tobclwv2010@gmail.combefore March 13.

The Air We Breathe

Wednesday, March 6, 6:00-7:30 pm, via Zoom or in person at Nature at the Confluence

To attend via Zoom link you must registerHERE.
Nature at the Confluence, 306 Dickop St, South Beloit, IL
Join local community scientists in person or online as we take a closer look at theimpacts of air and environmental pollution and the cost to our community andhealth.The Healthy Climate WI, LWV-Beloit—Sustainability Committee, and Natureat the Confluence invite you to attend:
Speakers: Brittany Keyes, Pablo Toral

Voter Service Report

Thursday, February 22, Clinton High School
Thanks to Anne Bua-Demus and Deb Fallon for having a voter service table for the highschool students at Clinton to assist 18-year-olds to register to vote.

Monday, March 11 and Wednesday, March 13, Beloit Memorial High School will bevisited by League members and others to assist BMHS students to register to vote.Thanks to Deb Fallon, Susan Adams, Burnay Grady and others.

Tuesday, March 12, Turner High School will be visited by League members who will beassisting students to register to vote. Thanks to Susan Adams and Deb Fallon.

Sunday, March 24, Souls 2 the Polls, sponsored by the NAACP—Beloit Chapter andthe City Clerk: Register to vote or cast your absentee ballot after worship services.11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Beloit City Hall

Community Health Assessment - Community Conversations

Tuesday, March 26, 5:30-6:30 pm at the Beloit Public Library

The 2024 Community Health Assessment team is hostingCommunity Conversationsaround Rock County to capture community input through lived experience and residents' stories. Community Conversations focus on engaging members of a community to discuss what helps and hinders community health. Similar to focus groups, Community Conversations are often guided discussions with a small group of individuals from similar backgrounds. They generate knowledge that can then be used to inform decision-making. Information learned in the community conversations will be used to inform the Community Health ImprovementPlan.

The Beloit Community Conversation will be held on March 26th, from 5:30-6:30pmat the Community Room in Beloit Public Library and will beco-sponsoredby the LWV-Beloit. Refreshments will be provided for attendees.
Questions can be sent to Christine Streich viaemail HEARCoordinator@co.rock.wi.usor by calling 608-757-5440.

If you are unable toattend a Community Conversation, please take theCommunity Health Survey(English)(Español)to provide your input.

State Constitutional Amendment Proposals--VOTE NO

Forum on Tuesday, March 5, 6:30-8 pm via Zoom

Why Do State Constitutional Amendments Matter?
Two proposed amendments to the state constitution regarding election administration will appear on the ballot for the April 2 Spring Election. This virtual forum will address the procedure for amending the state constitution, the specific language being proposed, and the potential effects if these amendments are passed.

The public is invited to this virtual forum hosted by LWV Dane Co: You must registerHEREto receive the Zoom link.
It will be held virtually March 5, from 6:30-8:00 pm.
Speakers:
David T. Canon,Professor Emeritus, UW–Madison Department of Political Science
Nicholas Ramos, Executive Director, Wisconsin Democracy Campaign
Eileen Newcomer,Voter Education Manager, LWVWI

More details.

Sustainability Progress in Beloit

Beloit is making progress on Sustainability and is compilingGreen Tierbaseline data.

Brittany Keyes and Susan Adams were invited to meet with City Manager Jerry Gabrielatos and PattiMiller who is the Emergency Management Coordinator. We met on December 19, 2023 to discuss thepath forward for sustainability work in Beloit. Prior to the meeting, we were sent the work that hadbeen done so far on the Green Tier program that Beloit joined in October 2021. City staff collectedbaseline data for 2023 on as many metrics as they could for all categories outlined by Green Tier. Theplan is that these will improve as we make progress on our sustainability goals.

We discussed progress so far, where we’d like to go, and devising a plan to get there. We didn’t go overthe details of the initial data, but instead discussed what the best next steps may be: whether thisshould be more citizen driven, city driven, or a combination, and who may be helpful in this endeavor.

Brittany and Susan are excited the city is moving forward in a collaborative way. Stay tuned for moreinformation as we proceed.

 

Submitted by Susan Adams

Forward Together

 

The Leagues of Woman Voters of Beloit and Janesville came together on February 17 to hear speaker Sara Finger of Embolden WI talk about being a health advocate for women’s health. Sara was very motivating and encouraged all who attended to get involved with advocating for women’s health as well as getting out the vote!!
Thanks to all the Beloit League members who attended—Beloit was well-represented.
You can see a recording of the programHERE.

City Council Presentation forWomen’s History Month

The Beloit League is honored to receive recognition for Women’s History Month at theBeloit City Council meeting on March 4 at 7:00 p.m. Tune in!!

Indoor Market Success on February 24

On Saturday, February 24, Chris Nelson, DianaSummers, and Bette Carr provided voter service information at the Indoor Farmers’Market, and also provided a children’s activity. Thank you to Chris and her husband, Fred Burwell, for providingthe monarch butterfly game, information on the monarch, bookmarks, and pollinatorseeds. Children enjoyed playing the game and learning about monarchs. Also, a thankyou to Connie Matusiak for providing coloring sheets for the children at the market. Newmember Helen Werner stopped by and introduced herself, and we got to meet her twochildren!! Welcome Helen.

How the Ho-Chunk Resisted Removal

Tuesday April 30, 20246pm - Hedberg Public Library, Janesville

 

Presentation by Stephen Kantrowitz, Plaenert-Bascom Professor of History at UW-Madison

Nearly two hundred years ago, the United States seized the Wisconsin homeland of the Ho- Chunk people and demanded that they leave the region forever. But despite repeated military efforts, many Ho-Chunk people remained or quickly returned from exile. How did Ho-Chunk people resist and defy the government's policies, and why was that resistance successful? Join us as we learn about the long and difficult history of U.S. policy towards the Ho-Chunk and other Native Americans.

More aboutStephen Kantrowitzand the bookCitizens of a Stolen Land.