The March of Dimes Ride For Babies begins at 10:30 a.m. Sept 25 at Meijer, 4990 Houston Road in Florence, and ends at the Kentucky Speedway in Sparta.

"After we arrive at the tracks, we will take three victory laps around the Kentucky Speedway,'' John Banchy, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky March of Dimes Chapter. "This is the only time motorcyclists will be allowed on the tracks. This 40-mile ride is open to the public and will take place rain or shine.''

Registration begins at 9 a.m. The event costs $30 per rider and $15 for a passenger.

Premature birth affects more than 460,000 babies in the U.S. every year, Banchy said.

"We just don't know why,'' Banchy said. "The March of Dimes has committed to raise $75 million for research to try to find a cure. We are committed to this cause. The good part about this ride is that we have a lot of volunteers passing our literature about the ride.''

Banchy said the March of Dimes launched a five-year campaign in 2003 to address premature births.

For information, call 513-769-3588 or e-mail jbanchy@marchofdimes.com or go online at www.rideforbabies.com.

Named outstanding educator

Mark Raleigh, director of the Chapman Career Technical Education Center at Holmes High School, has been named Kentucky's 2004 Outstanding Career and Technical Educator.

Raleigh was cited for promoting and encouraging faculty and students to participate in the various Career and Technical Student Organizations.

The award was given in July by the Kentucky Association of Career and Technical Education at its annual meeting in Louisville.

More 1,500 career and technical educators from across the state attended.

Raleigh has run the Chapman center for five years. During his tenure, he helped open the center to students from Dayton, Newport, Lloyd, Ludlow and Holy Cross high schools in addition to students from Holmes.

Raleigh also served on the committee that developed the Industrial Education Program Assessment Instrument, which is used by state officials to evaluate other high school programs.

Positively Kids

A book to be released this month titled Whisper Writing: Teenage Girls Talk About Ableism and Sexism in School gives the student's perspective on the school system.

The book was written by Melissa Jones, an assistant professor in the College of Education at Northern Kentucky University in Highland Heights.

The book covers issues of sexism and ableism, which is discrimination against the disabled in education. It tells the stories of three young women who were placed in a special-education program because of behavioral problems.

"My goal for the book was to get the student's perspective on the school system and how it is structured and to help educators to look at some of the programs and practices currently in place," Jones said.

On the dean's list

Northern Kentucky students making the dean's list at several colleges in the spring included the following:

Martin Kuchle, son of Roger and Martha Kuchle, Fort Mitchell,and Christopher Hegge, son of Teresa Radcliff, of Crescent Springs. Both students are at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Terre Haute, Ind. Hegge is majoring in mechanical engineering, and Kuchle is majoring in electrical engineering.

John H. Colebrook, son of John and Mary Colebrook, Fort Thomas, made the dean's list in the spring quarter at Bucknell University, Lewisburg, Pa.

Sixteen students from Northern Kentucky made Xavier University's spring dean's list. They were Mary Clark, Anna Pranger and Marcie Stayton of Covington; Tara Boothe, Elizabeth Bueter and Lauren Ferrell, Fort Thomas; Michael Engel, Amy Schroeder and Virginia Wilson, Florence; Robert Anderson, Ludlow; Meghan Gleason, Jennifer Kreger, Mindy Kuhlman and Julia Wilbers, Fort Mitchell; Jay Johnson, Crestview Hills; and Lisa Henke, Alexandria.