Soapbox: Pay attention
Waubonsee Community College had input from professors when it designed its new Academic and Professional Center. The $13.2 million, 56,000-square-foot building -- which had its grand opening Friday -- has plenty of updated technology, including something called iClicker. It will allow professors to ask questions during a lecture and change midstream based on students' responses. Let's hope the profs don't take it personally, but they might find those lectures they've given for years might not work as well as they once thought. And students now have less of an excuse if they say they didn't understand the concepts.
Time to chill
This week's cool weather has made many of us think of fall -- and the cold that follows. But along with those thoughts, remember this: That same wickedly cold weather will spell the end of widespread road construction.
Brotherly love
Jake Thompson has had some tough breaks in his life, but the 4-year-old has plenty of people looking out for him -- starting with his brother, Sam Grant. Sam, a freshman at Batavia High School, has raised $5,000 toward research into Langerhans cell histiocytosis. Jake has the disease, but Sam and others are collecting funds to find a cure. You can help, too. Sunday is the first Histio Heroes 5K race in Batavia. Visit www.histioheroes.com.
Bored? Impossible!
Boy, if you can't find something fun or interesting to do today, you are a hopeless stick-in-the-mud. Take a look at the Three-Day Planner in Neighbor: It lists Festival of the Vine in Geneva, the St. Peter Barn Sale in St. Charles, a cemetery history walk, a schools fundraiser, farmers markets, a village party in Campton Hills, Buckwheat Zydeco playing at Fermilab, a Christian rock concert out in Sugar Grove, and the Elburn Fire Department is celebrating its 125th anniversary. Get off the couch.
Green thumbs, big hearts
The Daily Herald takes pride in organizing the Giving Garden, an 8-year-old program urging suburban gardeners to donate excess produce to area food pantries. But the project succeeds only through the bottomless generosity of area residents. Since July 1, the Giving Garden has attracted more than 60,000 pounds of produce; contributions may be made at various drop-off points through Oct. 1. Thanks to all who have taken the time and effort to make these nutritious foods available to those who rely on food pantries to feed themselves and their families.
Smart? You could say that
They are too many list here, but congratulations are in order to several dozen suburban high school students who have been named National Merit Scholarship semifinalists. Nationwide, there are 16,000 semifinalists. If that sounds like a large number, trust us: This is elite company; the vast majority of us do not want to get involved in any sort of quiz bowl or any other academic competition with these teens.
Outbound heavy on the Addams
Having one's name affixed to a Chicago-area tollway is a mixed honor; after all, on snarled-traffic days drivers may curse the honoree's name. And columnist Chuck Goudie is correct in noting that turn-of-the-20th-century social reformer Jane Addams might not have been a big fan of the tollway system had they been around at the same time. Still, the Illinois Toll Highway Authority's decision to rename the Northwest Tollway as the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway is refreshing. It's a high-profile way to remind Chicagoans of Addams' timeless work. And it's nice, finally, to see a woman so honored, taking her place alongside Kennedy, Ryan, Stevenson, Ike and Reagan.