Arizona Daily Sun from Flagstaff, Arizona • 6

From the Front Page A6 Friday, April 9, 2010 Arizona Daily Sun adailj sun.com IF YOU GO WHAT: Open houses for prospective FALA seventh- and eighth-graders, 2010-11 school year WHEN: May 6, 11. 13 and 18. all at 5:30 p.m. WHERE: Room 12 at FALAs current campus, 3100 N. Fort Valley Road ETC: An open house is mandatory for new families, and parents should reserve an open house spot by calling Mary White at 779-7223.

Current FALA families need not attend an open house. Admission gives siblings preference and is then by lottery if more students apply than there are places. FALA is tuition-free. ON THE WEB: www.flagarts.com New charter school in the wings Another charter school is considering setting up shop in Flagstaff. BASIS School, Inc.

is exploring the possibility of opening a grades 5-9 school in Flagstaff starting in fall 2011, with plans to eventually expand through 12th grade. BASIS Tucson, the public charter chain's flagship campus, has consistently been seen as one of the top high schools in the country. The Tucson school is currently in the top 10 among Newsweek mi U.S. News World Report's high school rankings. BASIS also operates a school in Scottsdale, which was named by BusinessWeek as Arizona's top high school for overall academic performance in 2008.

A third campus is set to open this fall in Oro Valley north of Tucson. The Flagstaff middle-high school, at grades 5-12, could serve 600-650 students total. A group of local parents has formed in support of a BASIS Flagstaff, and they encourage more families to show their interest in the BASIS program by attending an informational session on April 28 at Mountain School and an education documentary screening and session at the Orpheum Theatre in May. The free informational session will be Wednesday, April 28, at 6:30 p.m. in the gym at Mountain School, 311 W.

Cattle Drive. For more information on the movement to bring BASIS to Flagstaff, visit http:tinyurl.combasis-flag. Hillary DavisSun Staff Reporter FALA from Page A1 Daggett said the green design of the new facility wont feel very institutional. Its going to be quite beautiful, she said. The buildings will take advantage of natural light, and Daggett said she would be open to adding solar panels to the roof if the school can find the money.

However, last months fundraising gala was a success, drawing about 200 people and $13,000 in donations. The fundraiser allowed FALA to reach its $20,000 fundraising goal to secure a matching gift for the new campus. OPEN HOUSES IN MAY FALAs middle school will accept up to 50 students each in seventh and eighth grades, and interested families can now reserve spots for open houses in May. Administrators plan to hire four teachers for the middle school, one for each core subject of English, math, science and social studies. The school has re-set its total enrollment cap for 300 students, middle and high schools combined.

The small school, which started this year with close to 200 students and will graduate a senior class of 38 in June, focuses on creative arts and college preparatory academics. The Arizona State Board for Charter Schools approved FALA administrators request in March to add grades seven and eight as early as this fall. Currently, thefe are five other charter schools in Flagstaff with seventh and eighth grades: Northland Preparatory Academy, Flagstaff Junior Academy, Pine Forest, Montessori and Peak. NPA is the only charter that is currently 7-12. Sinagua is the only Flagstaff Unified district school with a 7-12 set-up, but that could FUSD to a two-campus, 6-8 middle school configuration next year.

Hillary Davis can be reached at hdavisazdailysun.com or 556-2261. change if the FUSD board ap- tion plan in June that would, proves a closure and consolida- among other features, move earlier version: 17 percent below 2005 levels versus 20 percent. So members of President Barack Obamas party would be able to say that theyve voted for a more -moderate bill that environmentalists also happen to like. A good start is getting started, said the Environmental Defense Funds Kreindler. Were decades behind at this point.

So, with elections coming, can the Democrats deliver a climate change bill? It doesnt look impossible. But with partisan divisions at a pre-election pitch, it will also depend on what else is on that table. only 17 percent of adults surveyed believe that Americans would be willing to make major cutbacks in their lifestyle to help save the environment. A Rasmussen poll released in mid-March said the majority of U.S. voters still believe global warming is a serious problem, but the number who think its very serious was at its lowest level in more than a year.

(Weiss, meanwhile, cites a February Pew Research Center for People and the Press survey that shows more people favor than oppose setting limits on carbon dioxide emissions.) The big question is whether enough Democrats and a few Republicans believe its a serious in later. The big question is if lawmakers think global warming is a serious enough problem to pass an energy bill now. Its going to be very different from the economywide cap-and-trade approach taken by Wax-man-Markey, said Environmental Defense Fund spokesman Tony Kreindler, referring to the bill that passed the House last June. And that difference may make the difference for passage this year, environmentalists say. The phased-in approach should help with some of the Midwestern Democrats, said Daniel Weiss, director of climate strategy at the Center for American Progress.

If industries CLIMATE from Page A1 A spokeswoman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, says Reid hopes the Senate will be able to take up bipartisan, comprehensive climate and clean energy legislation this year. Observers expect a bill authored by Sens. John Kerry, Lindsey Graham, and Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, to be rolled out the week of April 19. Its expected to call for reducing carbon emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020 though that target would only apply at first to electric utilities and maybe transportation fuels. Industries would be phased emissions are off the table for now, manufacturing states lawmakers could breathe easier.

Theres a clear path to getting a global warming bill enacted in 2010, said Weiss, who noted that Congress has approved major legislation before elections, including amendments to the Clean Air Act in 1990. But other Democrats have serious reservations about the legislation, said Bruce Josten, the U.S. Chamber of Commerces executive vice president for government affairs, and a pair of recent polls indicate that voters will need convincing that global warming deserves Congresss full attention now. In a Rasmussen Reports poll released Wednesday, enough problem to pass a bill this year. Supporters of the legislation in the Senate will need 60 votes to overcome a filibuster.

Weiss said he believes Graham will be effective in bringing Republican senators on board. The bill will also reportedly boost domestic energy production, which may attract backers. Theyre trying to put a full plate of options and incentives and cushions on the table, said the Chambers Josten. Democrats are looking at this falls elections with trepidation, and Rasmussens statement about being too aggressive is instructive. But on climate, its worth noting that the Senate bill now being discussed sets lower targets than an ON THE WEB MarketWatch: www.marketwatch.com ing and massages, which are currently not taxed.

If you can afford an $80 massage, then I think you can afford an extra 80 cents for a percent sales tax, Kennedy said. But Councilmember Scott Overton who is seeking his second term on the council to answer the I dont take positions on tax increases or tax decreases which we have never seen. I dont take positions as elected official. I think it is inappropriate, Overton said. CAMPAIGN from Page A1 The retired police officer clarified his statement after the meeting, saying he would support in some rare circumstances seizing private property if the city cannot make a property owner clean it up.

Arendt further said that houses seized by the city once cleaned up should be sold at below-market rates to build the citys affordable housing stock. Candidate David Evans, who runs a property management company, said he supports a PMO in concept but cautioned the city would need to balance private property rights against neighborhood values. My concern is how to write it and how to implement it fairly, Evans said. Council candidate Celia Barotz added she wants to see the ordinance driven by complaints, not city crews driving through neighborhoods looking for violations. Art Babbott, who left the Council in 2006 and is seeking another term, referred to several properties in Plaza Vieja that have been boarded up.

He said the city will need specific tools to help persuade those who own property but dont live in Flagstaff to keep up maintenance on their property. STATE SALES TAX HIKE BACKED Both mayoral candidates were in agreement later in the evening on the topic of a temporary one-, cent increase in the state sales tax. Mayor Sara Presler said she would vote for it, primarily because of the state programs it would help to fund programs in education and law enforcement. Its focus is on kids and cops, she said. Her mayoral rival, Council-member Joe Haughey, said he was lobbied by his own son an Arizona Department of Public Safety patrol officer to support it.

He said Dad, you got to vote for it because it maybe will save my job, Haughey said. Haughey said the temporary increase will act as a financial bridge while the Legislature, reorganizes its long-term fiscal strategy. Council candidate Bruce Kennedy, an employee with the state department of education, also supported the temporary tax. He said he also favored expanding the citys sales tax base to cover services like dog groom Joe Ferguson can be reached at jfergusonazdailysun.com or 556-2253. NUCLEAR from Page A1 The White House says the treaty will reduce the number of long-range deployed nuclear warheads by 30 percent, while also taking the two nations several strides forward in overall relations.

One year ago this week, Obama said after the signing, I came here to Prague and gave a speech outlining Americas comprehensive commitment to stopping the spread of nuclear weapons, and seeking the ultimate goal of a world without them. I said then and I will repeat now that this is a long-term goal, one that may not even be reached in my lifetime. "But I believed then as I do now that the pursuit of that goal will move us further beyond the Cold War, strengthen the global nonproliferation regime, and make the United States, and the world, safer and more secure, he said. Medvedev, who sat by Obamas side for the signing in an ornate hall of Prague Castle, said: "Here in this room a truly historic event took place. I believe that this signature will create safer conditions for life here and throughout the world.

Just a couple of months ago, (this) looked like mis sion impossible, Medvedev added, but now, this is a win-win situation. No one stands to lose from this agreement. The entire world community has won. But there were other tough subjects on the table as Obama and Medvedev convened for a one-on-one meeting at the castle, and then for the signing ceremony and a brief news conference. Obama and Medvedev were expected to discuss the thorny issue of sanctions against Iran to curb its nuclear program.

While Russia has signaled openness to the idea of supporting sanctions by the U.N. Security Council, Medvedev has not clearly stated how deeply committed he is to the actual imposition of sanctions. An administration official said shortly before the bilateral meeting Thursday morning that he did not expect any major pronouncements on that topic coming out of the meeting. My expectation is we are going to be able to secure strong tough sanctions on Iran this spring, Obama said after the treaty signing. "President Medvedev and I have been able to build up a level of trust that helped to facilitate our ability to work together jointly to present to Iran reasonable reason or no reason, wrote Brian McKeon, senior adviser to the National Security Council and deputy national security adviser to Vice President Joe Biden.

The withdrawal clause in the New START Treaty has a higher bar; it gives a party the right to withdraw if it decides that extraordinary events related to the treaty have jeopardized its supreme interests. The Russian statement does no more than give the United States fair notice that it may decide to pull out of the New START Treaty if Russia believes our missile defense system affects strategic stability, McKeon said. The exact terms of the entire agreement should become clearer by Thursdays end. Briefing reporters en route to Prague on Air Force One on Thursday morning, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said the full treaty and its protocols will be posted online sometime Thursday. The START agreement bodes well for cooperation between the U.S.

and Russia on missile defenses that have strained relations between the two in recent years, the leaders said. That relationship had started to drift, Obama said Thursday. "Together, we have stopped the drift. options that would allow it to clearly distance itself from nuclear weapons and pursue a path of peaceful nuclear energy. Medvedev said that any sanctions should be designed to achieve a goal, not simply to punish Iran.

Those sanctions should be smart, sanctions that are capable of producing proper behavior, Medvedev said. I have outlined our limits for such sanctions. as president of the Russian Federation will proceed from two premis es: We need Iran to behave properly and to maintain the national interest of our countries smart sanctions should be able to motivate certain parties to behavior properly. As Obama officials herald the new treaty as a sign of dramatic progress in U.S.-Russian relations, Russian officials have been issuing warnings that they could pull out of the agreement at some future date. Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov has publicly emphasized that Russian adherence to the treatys terms is linked to how the U.S.

acts on its missile defense program. In a blog post on the White House website this morning, the White Houses new point man on the ratification effort downplayed the warnings, suggesting that they are less significant than the actual language of the hard-wrought treaty. Most treaties have a simple withdrawal claqse, allowing a country to exit the particular treaty for any REGISTERED NURSES NEEDED The Northern Arizona Center Against Sexual Assault is in need of registered nurses interested in volunteering as Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners. SANEs volunteer to be on call for the center periodically in order to help victims of sexual violence in northern Arizona. The next SANE training session is scheduled for June.

We need more in the pool to share the load," said Kara Ransom-Wright, NACASA program coordinator. For more information on how to volunteer, contact Ransom-Wright at (928) 213-6112. was called away to serve a victim in her area, Pam Turner, a registered nurse who volunteers as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner for NACASA. She was the Arizona Daily Sun Citizen of the Year in 2008. After the rally, participants were invited to the Greenhouse downtown for a party with live music.

For more information about NACASA, visit www.north countrychc.orgcontentnacasa. Sophomore Hector Ramirez said his hope is that residents will understand that sexual violence is a silent and ongoing problem. Even if you dont know anybody who has been raped, I hope you will see the problem exists and want to do something about it, Ramirez said. As the crowd grew in Heritage Square, poets recited verses of power against victimization. And during the event, Mayor Sara Presler read a proclamation acknowledging April as Sexual Assault Awareness NIGHT from Page A1 Im happy with the gathering, Ransom-Wright said.

A lot of people worked hard at putting this event together, and I think the Flagstaff community cares about the issue. NAU freshman Emily Miller said that as a woman, she is afraid to walk the streets at night, and she knows many women who have been victims of sexual assault. "So, it seemed only natural to me to want to raise awareness about this," she said. Month. Coconino County Attorney David Rozema gave awards to two people who have dedicated countless hours in helping victims of sexual vio lence.

Loretta Posey, a victim advocate for Tuba City Social Services. She was not able to accept her award, because she Larry Hendricks can be reached at lhendricksazdailysun.com or 556-2262..