Briefs: Highway 20 speed enforcement, 'READY FOR HIRE' program, upcoming meetings

USA TODAY NETWORK
·3 min read

Ohio joins 11 states in 'Highway 20 Speed Enforcement Project'

COLUMBUS — On Sept. 13, troopers from the Ohio Highway Patrol joined law enforcement partners across the country as part of the ongoing “Highway 20 Speed Enforcement Project.”

The “Highway 20 Speed Enforcement Project,” started by the Iowa State Patrol, has grown into a nationwide effort among state police, state highway patrol and local police agencies to promote traffic safety and reduce crashes across the 12 states that U.S. 20 runs through.

U.S. 20 spans nearly the length of the country from west to east, running from Newport, Ore., to Boston. In 1989, U.S. 20 was determined to be 3,365 miles long, making it the longest highway in the country, although as of 2020, various projects have slightly shortened its length.

The “Highway 20 Speed Enforcement Project” is a bimonthly collaborative effort, taking place on a select day with a two-hour initiative in the morning and a two-hour initiative in the evening. During this past initiative, 68 officers across the country made 475 contacts with the motoring public. Of those, 288 resulted in citations, 180 warnings were given and five motorists were assisted.

Specifically, in Ohio, U.S. 20 covers 259 miles, crossing through the Ohio Highway Patrol’s Findlay, Bucyrus, Cleveland and Warren districts. During the Sept. 13 project, 33 troopers from nine posts issued 83 citations, 57 warnings and assisted 11 motorists.

The public is encouraged to call #677 in Ohio or 911 to report drug activity, and dangerous or impaireddrivers.

'READY FOR HIRE' summer and after-school programs continue in 2023

In June 2022, the Ohio Department of Education selected and awarded $89 million in Summer Learning and Afterschool Opportunities Grants to 161 community-based partners out of more than 700 applications from across the state. Locally, $1.9 million was awarded in two grants to SPARC (Succeed, Prosper, Ashland, Richland, Crawford) Council, one to create summer programming in summer 2022, 2023 and 2024 and one to create after-school programming, with fiscal oversight from Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center.

Students learn how to operate a drone during READY FOR HIRE programming.
Students learn how to operate a drone during READY FOR HIRE programming.

The 2023 "READY FOR HIRE" Summer Program took place in Crawford, Richland and Morrow counties, with each county partnering with local businesses and organizations to provide students with a variety of evidence-based career readiness activities and opportunities including paid summer internships.

Bucyrus Public Library, Abraxas and FIRST schools in Richland County, and Selover Public Library in Morrow County will continue the READY FOR HIRE program into the school year. In addition, students will have opportunities at Crestview High School in Richland County and the Tomorrow Center in Morrow County.

Upcoming meetings:

● North Central State College Board of Trustees, 5:30 p.m., Gorman Room (165), Fallerius Technical Education Center, NCSC, 2441 Kenwood Circle, Mansfield and via Zoom. To attend via Zoom contact the Stephen Williams at swilliam@ncstatecollege.edu or call 419-755-4811.

● Bucyrus Board of Zoning Appeals, 4 p.m., Oct. 3, Council Chambers, City Hall, 500 S. Sandusky Ave., Bucyrus

Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum

This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: Highway 20 Speed Enforcement Project, READY FOR HIRE update, meetings