Belleville District 118 will host a free family dinner and workshop Thursday to help parents learn tips about how to help their young children develop and learn.

Any family that resides within District 118 with a child five years old or younger is invited to attend. Babysitting will be available.

The workshop will be from 5-8 p.m. Thursday at the West Junior High School - Abraham Lincoln School complex at 820 Royal Heights Road in Belleville.

Those interested in attending are asked to call the District 118 Pre-K office at 233-2515.

Granite City School District 9 teachers Lisa Smith and Betty "Kiki" Cochran have earned the highest credential available to American educators by recently becoming National Board certified teachers through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

National Board President and CEO Ron Thorpe praised Cochran and Smith's accomplishment.

"National Board certification represents the pinnacle of professional accomplishment in teaching," Thorpe said.

Cochran is a Title I teacher at Niedringhaus School. She holds a bachelor's and a master's degree from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and additional certification from McKendree University. Smith is a Title I teacher at Wilson Elementary School. She has bachelor's and master's degrees from SIUE. Both will be recognized Jan. 22 at the District 9 School Board meeting.

National Board certification is achieved through a rigorous, performance-based, peer-reviewed assessment of a teacher's skills and content knowledge. The certification process takes one to three years to complete.

East St. Louis School District 189 faculty and men from the metro-east and St. Louis area who serve in leadership positions on Tuesday hosted an all-male mentoring forum for male students.

The purpose is "for men to reach out to young men and guide them in the right direction," Demario Bell, principal at District 189's Ninth Grade Center said. "We want to provide encouragement and leadership skills. We'll talk about everything from grades, behavior, the importance of attendance in school and, most importantly, how to grow up to be a young man."

According to the Federal Mentoring Council, positive benefits of mentoring include better academic performance, school attendance and more positive attitudes as well as decreased likelihood of illegal drug and alcohol abuse and violent behavior. Mentored students also get along better with their parents and have a much higher likelihood of going on to college.

Men who participated in the event included: Host Earl McDowell; St. Clair County Associate Judge Walter C. Brandon; East St. Louis Police Chief Michael Floore; motivational speaker Dale Martin; St. Clair County probation officer Christopher Belt; fitness advisor and motivational speaker LaGrant Suggs; Gerald Johnson, funeral director at Serenity Memorial Funeral and Cremation Services; Tyrun Johnson, clinical counselor, East Side Health District; Master Sgt. Victor Dorsey, Scott Air-Force Base; and James Clark, vice president of Community Outreach, Better Family Life.

Millstadt District 160 will hold registration from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. Feb. 6 and 7 at the Millstadt Primary Center, 105 W. Parkview Drive.

Registration is for kids who will be 5 years old by Sept. 1. Parents must bring three forms of proof of residency, the child's birth certificate and Social Security number. Immunization forms will be given to parents at registration.

Parents are asked to call the school at 476-7100 to schedule an appointment. For additional information, go to the district website, www.millstadt.stclair.k12.il.us.

School leaders said they are conducting early registration to try to plan ahead for how many classrooms they will need in the fall.

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