New stop signs added due to University construction

A three-way stop has recently been added to the intersection of First Street and Stadium Drive.

Two stop signs have been added south of the developing Ikenberry Commons due to the increased need for safety, according to a University press release.

“There are a number of pedestrians and cyclists who travel east and west, and in the past we encouraged people to use Gregory Drive as a main safe street, but there’s going to be continued construction,” said Morgan Johnston, transportation demand management coordinator for the University.

Johnston also said the University is opening Beckwith Hall on Gregory Drive, a residence hall with handicap accessible rooms. The new stop will ensure a safe route to the rehab building at Oak Street and Stadium Drive.

University alumnus hired at Urbana Middle School

Urbana School District 116 will welcome University alumnus Scott Woods as their new principal beginning July 1.

Woods is replacing Principal Nancy Clinton, who announced her retirement earlier this school year, according to a press release.

Woods said coming to Urbana and back to the University area was a big draw for him.

“I look forward to doing post graduate work after a couple of years,” he said.

Gayle Jeffries, assistant superintendent for Human Resources for the district, described the lengthy process of hiring a new principal.

“Typically what we do is post an ad across the country, across the state,” she said. “There were 46 applicants.”

From there the applicants were screened, interviewed and eventually two applications were sent to the central office. Jeffries said the superintendent made his recommendation last night and it was approved.

Champaign event hopes to ship 1 million meals to Haiti

Rick McNary spent years planning his first shipment of food to Haiti before delivering it last December — 285,000 packaged meals, since the January earthquake.

McNary’s nonprofit group, Numana Inc., has sent 8 million more. They were packaged up and shipped by 58,000 volunteers around the country. Now, working with the Salvation Army, he hopes to pull together 8,000 people to package up one million meals in Champaign on April 24 and 25.

McNary is a former pastor from Kansas.

He says he started working to fight hunger when a young girl he met on a trip to Nicaragua eight years ago whispered to him that she was starving.

McNary says the Champaign event coincides with others in San Francisco and New London, Conn.

Accused gunmen in triple slaying pleads not guilty

WHEATON, Ill. — A 24-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to charges he killed three members of a suburban Chicago family last month.

During a hearing in DuPage County on Wednesday, Jacob Nodarse entered his plea to 3 counts of first-degree murder, conspiracy, home invasion and obstruction of justice.

DuPage County authorities allege Nodarse carried out the slayings at the request of a friend, Johnny Borizov, who’d asked him to kill his ex-girlfriend and her family in their Darien home.

From Daily Illini and Associated Press reports