ST. LOUIS (AP) — Andrew N. “Drew” Baur, a member of the St. Louis Cardinals’ ownership group, has died. He was 66.

The team said he died suddenly Sunday morning.  A cause of death was not given.

The local bank executive helped organize the original ownership group that bought the Cardinals from Anheuser-Busch in 1996. A lifelong Cardinals fan and native of St. Louis, Baur most recently served as chairman of Southwest Bank of St. Louis.

Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. says “Drew loved the Cardinals and was a great partner.”

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Click here to read the article on the Cardinals website.

For those of you who have read my previous blog entries, I have mentioned how lucky I am that every day I get to meet and work with interesting and inspiring people as the K¹² Online Community Manager. But because the reasons why families choose online education are as varied as you could imagine, it’s nearly impossible for me to truly explain just how amazing these people are and what makes them so passionate about online learning.

So, in an effort to convey how diverse and inspiring the K¹² family is, I created ‘Meet the K¹² Community’ – a regular blog series that will feature students, learning coaches, teachers, curriculum specialists and anyone else who plays a role in making online education a reality for children world-wide.

Without further adieu, here’s our first introduction…

Since it’s Washington’s Birthday aka President’s Day, let’s meet Amelia Jackson-Zaremba, a K¹² Sr Instructional Designer in History, and find out what made her pursue a career that combines history, education and technology.

What is your background?

I’m a native of Virginia and attended school in Virginia. I earned a B.A. Degree in His

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Gallaudet University’s Lady Bison come with the same hoopla as any other college basketball team: Cheerleaders rustle fistfuls of pom-poms; wild male fans in nothing but face paint and brightly colored Speedos rile up the crowd; and frustrated coaches lob high-pitched advice from the bench.

It’s not until the team huddles that you notice anything different about the Lady Bison. All the Gallaudet players are deaf or hard of hearing. The university, located in Washington, D.C., is the premier school for deaf students. Its women’s basketball team competes against mainstream — hearing — teams, and this year, it’s making a surprise run up the national rankings.

How Do You Play Basketball If You Can’t Hear?

Playing basketball would seem to require at least some hearing — for whistles, buzzers or the sounds of the ball. But the players say it’s not as important as you might think.

“We’ve been playing around 23 games,” guard Stephanie Weiss says, “so I feel like we know each other. We’re

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The ten minute test, in which children will read out up to 40 words to a teacher, will include a series of real and made-up words.

Nonsense words including zort, koob, dar, grint, pronk, gax and ploob are expected to feature in the test, which will be piloted in June before being tolled out in June 2012.

The idea has drawn criticism from literary and phonetics experts, however, who say the approach will confuse those beginning to read.

The UK Literacy Association described the plan was “bonkers” as the purpose of reading was to understand meaning.

The government said non-words were being included to check pupils’ ability to decode words using phonics – the reading system by where words are sounded out using letter sounds.

Non-words were being included to check that children were not just regurgitating memorised words, a spokesman for the Department for Education said.

But critics claim the test may mean that children who cannot read may still do well, while those who can read may be stumped. <

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Guest Blogger: Louise Baker

It can be pretty intimidating to move away from home for the first time, especially if you’re moving far away.

There’s a whole new world to navigate, and you’ll be away from your family for an extended period of time for probably the first time in your life.

Plus it’s often tricky to figure out what to bring with you. The basics are clear: clothes, computer, school supplies. Here’s a list of five key items that can help a lot.

1. Shower Caddy

Living in most dorms requires using a community shower. Some schools provide lockers, but even then it’s very helpful to have a caddy to keep your soap, shampoo, sponges, toothpaste, and toothbrush in.

This item can be of great use in keeping all of your toiletries together so you don’t lose them, and so one of your dorm-mates doesn’t snatch your soap.

2. Iron

For a lot of students, going to college is the first time they’ll have to do their own laundry. Not only that, bu

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By now, many of you have heard about some upcoming improvements to the Online School that are being developed based directly from feedback received from our families, which aim to improve the overall experience including the Math+ and MARK¹² Reading courses.

Good news! Be

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