oh wow- here is the system my DD H.S. used. It can be hectic but did work. Get plain paper bags -grocery size. Number them. Put long tables as a work space and also to keep the students on one side and the adults and bags on the other side. Be sure the bags are in numerical order in and then break them into 4 to 6 piles with a couple of adults working each pile. Now when the student comes up you put all of their belonging into a numbered bag-frequently friends or couples want to share a bag. You put the bag's number on a piece of paper and hand it to them and you ALSO ask them if you can magic marker it somewhere on their arm (usually the guys but the girls like it on their palm). Then you line the bags up behind the tables on the floor. So- if you had 200 students you will have around 140-160 bags. Make you rows about 30 long and have about 5 rows. I think it would be helpful to have a sign on the floor and on the back wall giving the numbers that should be in each row. IF they do get out of order then you need only seach 30 numbers not all 160 to find the bag. Yes, the clothes get wrinkled. Yes, they come back again and again and ask for their bag to get a cell phone out or their comb. The important thing is that the bag is handed to them to get their own item out and then it is PUT BACK in numerical order. Yes the adults are exhausted by the end of the evening and there are always a couple of confused/lost bags. It is crazy at the very end and you need to make sure that the students do not break rank and come behind the table. It is a tried and true system as long as the adults maintain control. DD usually had 350-500 at a dance. Only once was it too difficult and that was a prom and the space we had was to narrow and the kids all crowded the tables and there was too much going on in too small of a space. And then one adult will try to change the system mid-way with a "better idea" (and I am sure there are some but let's wait till next time). Anyway-this is the only way I have seen it done. Good luck! It is loads of work but so much fun to see the students and to be helpful. Most are very polite although some forget their "pleases and thank-you's" but a little nudge usually reminds them. Hope this was helpful! I thought this system was nuts the first time I worked coats-but it does work.

Latest new report says the shooter had been a graduate student, but was not enrolled for this semester. The same report said he had two pistols and a shotgun, but had used only one of the pistols. The police has recovered only one of the pistols - whereabout of the other pistol is unknown at this writing. One report said one of the pistols was a Glock. One of the wounded, taken to the hospital, has died. Other Information: Northern Illinois University is at DeKalb, IL. Normal Ill. Univ. is much farther south at Bloomington/Normal, IL. After the state of ILlinois was organized, about 5 teacher colleges were established scattered over the state. These were to produce teachers for grammar (grades 1-8) schools, or Normal schools. One of these was the teacher college at Normal, IL; another was at Charleston, IL. That was many years ago, and today, a number of those colleges have grown into Universities. The town of DeKalb, IL is named after Baron DeKalb, a mercinary who fought on the side of the new United States against Great Britian in the Revolutionary War. Baron DeKalb, as he called himself, was German born and a soldier for hire living in France. He came with Lafaette and his armada of ships when Lafaette came to the aid of George Washington. DeKalb was presented to Congress and given a title of Brigdier General and immediatly sent off to war. DeKalb did not live long thereafter; He was killed in an military engagement. A monument was errected in his honor, the only foreign national so honored in that war. Baron DeKalb was not a real Baron by royal decree. It was a title that he gave himself since he believed that he deserved this title owning to military services that he had performed. Information on Baron DeKalb can be found in the World Book Encyclopedia.

geez, you get an apology, even saying your son "deserved better" than he himself had done, which is certainly placing all the blame for the incident squarely to the his own shoulders--exactly what an apology should do. But somehow that's wrong too? (you wrote: "It really seemed to be insulting towards himself." -- what did you want him to do, make excuses?) I have to say that I think it's churlish in the EXTREME to criticise someone for their APOLOGY. He even went to lengths to make sure the letter would be the sort of thing your son could keep in his files and show to someone as a letter of recommendation, etc. I'd call that a pretty graciously written letter. And yet you can still criticize it? He wrote the letter without prompting from you, right? You bet your bippy you should give him credit for doing that. Some people wouldn't bother with the letter. He made a MISTAKE. I for one do not believe that he'd deliberately leave your kid off for mention because of something that happened between you and the principal *9* years ago. Or even 2 years ago. Teachers and principals are capable of separating parents from children, and they see the children so much more clearly than they see us. Plus in the intervening 9 years, I'm sure he's had more parents than you say worse things to him--why would he remember with any strength? It's obvious you're determined to hate this guy, since even the appropriate gestures he makes are met with such scorn. I wasn't there 9 years ago (which is a long time to hold a grudge on EITHER side), and I don't know all the other incidents--maybe he is a crumb, or maybe he's just sort of easily confused. But I'm sorta feeling sorry for this guy--even when he DOES do it right, he's in the doghouse. I'm w/ Arkansasgardenboy: I hope you will find closure to this and not hold a grudge any longer. I suppose my comments won't do anything to further that, and I'm sorry if I've chosen wording that's harsher than I intend.

we will never get a ban on all guns, it's unfortunate but true :-/ We can get a ban on clips, magazines and drums and some semi-automatics and enact other laws for mental health, liability of ownership, enforce existing laws not being followed (severe punishments for lying on applications) and stop exemptions from background checks at gun shows. banning all guns is too late, the horse is out of the barn and in the next country by now, chicago is a great example of that. I do think that making the ammo for semi-automatics cost hundreds of $$ will end alot of drive-bys and mass shootings, if people want to waste to time to reload their own bullets there is nothing you can do to stop that thou. I do support legal, responsible gun ownership of non semi-automatics with some laws applied. in some states you may only have 3 bullets in your gun for hunting, I believe GA is one of them. why have rules like that for hunters (which are ok by me) but allow semi-automatics to be used to shooting people? that is crazy! we need to make gun owners legally liable for what happens w their own guns and force them to take proper precautions (safety locks and real gun safes) in order to keep their rights. they need reminding that severe laws restricting their gun rights are just a pen writing away thru executive order! the Conn shooters mother got what she deserved for having hundreds of rounds of ammo laying around, multiple guns including semi-automatics also left out when she had known for years her son had mental problems. I can't think of a more appropriate end for her, she is exactly what the NRA would love to sweep under the carpet. we have all sorts of rules & regulations for getting a driver's license & owning a car, we should have similiar tests of ability, liability insurance and renewal laws concerning guns. things will be changing in this country, if you don't believe it you must have missed what happened on Nov 6 when the largest ground game ever organized in US history changed things forever. my focaus had already turned to 2014 but for now I am using my time and $$ for this cause. Can you just imagine how we can change the culture of violence in this country if we all want to imagine a future w/o it! in the last year, who really has not had a twinge of concern (even if it's just a thought) going to a mall or movie theatre now...that is a culture of fear & violence. ~ liz