The University of Findlay is inviting high school juniors and seniors to attend its 16th Annual Pharmacy Summer Camp.

The overnight camp is open to high school students who will be juniors or seniors in the fall of 2023.

UF says the camp is a unique opportunity for high school students to explore career options, learn about the role of pharmacists in the healthcare system, and get to know University of Findlay faculty in the College of Pharmacy.

College of Pharmacy faculty will lead hands-on experiential learning sessions and learn about medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, compounding, and research.

There are two sections of the camp offered to work with campers’ schedules, Wednesday, June 21-23, 2023, and Monday, June 26-28, 2023.

For more details about the 16th Annual Pharmacy Summer Camps or to register, click here.

Governor DeWine has signed a bill that could help alleviate teacher shortages across Ohio.

House Bill 554 allows the state board of education to issue two-year temporary educator licenses to people who let their teaching certificates expire.

This is only for those who do not have past disciplinary measures on their teaching records.

Education professionals aren’t sure how much relief this will provide for teachers.

But they say the bill does remove barriers for those who want to re-enter the profession.

The Findlay Income Tax Department is in the process of distributing the annual income tax filing reminders for the 2022 tax year.

The 2022 income tax return filing deadline is Tuesday, April 19, 2023.

All individuals and businesses that are subject to the City of Findlay income tax, as well as the Village of Arlington, Mount Cory, Vanlue, Carey, Mount Blanchard or Jenera income tax will receive a postcard in the mail in the coming days as a reminder to file their 2022 municipal income tax return.

Payments and completed municipal income tax returns can be placed in the secure, drive-up drop box in the east curbed island of the Findlay Municipal Building’s West Crawford Street parking lot F, accessible about one-half block west of South Main Street.

An additional secure drop box is located in the vestibule of the Municipal Building’s Dorney Plaza entrance.

Payments and returns may also be mailed to the Findlay Income Tax Department at P.O. Box 862, Findlay, OH 45840.

If you file your Federal income tax return electronically using an income tax preparation software program, such as TurboTax, Free Tax USA, etc., be aware that these applications do not provide any information electronically to the Findlay Income Tax Department for municipal income taxes.

Individuals and businesses will still need to file directly with the office.

For assistance, taxpayers can call 419-424-7133 or visit the Tax Department in room 115 on the first floor of the Municipal Building at 318 Dorney Plaza.

Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The number of Republican governors banning TikTok on government devices is growing and now includes Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

FBI officials are concerned about TikTok owner – the Chinese company ByteDance.

There are concerns over the potential for the Chinese government to collect U.S. user data.

Governor DeWine signed five executive orders moments after being sworn in for his second term.

One of those executive orders bans the downloading of any applications owned by certain Chinese companies onto state-owned electronic devices.

AEP Ohio is proposing a new plan to improve the reliability of power grids but it would mean a price hike for customers.

AEP Ohio filed a six-year electric security plan application.

If approved, the utility would invest $2.2 billion in projects during a six-year period, starting in June of 2024.

The money would be spent on improving aging equipment and investing in technology to make the power grid more reliable.

The average monthly rate increase for customers would be two percent, or four dollars, during that six-year term.

That’s about an extra $48 a year.

American Red Cross chapters across Ohio and the nation are working to increase blood donations.

The Red Cross says there are fewer blood drives held between Thanksgiving and the New Year, and that’s why January is National Blood Donor Month.

“What we do from a blood collection standpoint is so critically important,” said Rachel Hepner-Zawodney, Executive Director of the Northwest Ohio chapter of the American Red Cross.

“We collect more than 40 percent of the national blood supply.”

Among the local blood drives coming up, there will be one at the Red Cross in Findlay at 125 Fair Street on Friday, January 13^th and at Arlington High School on January 17^th.

Click here for other blood drives and for more details on giving opportunities.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has signed a bill into law that requires voters to show a photo ID at the polls and makes other changes to elections in Ohio.

House Bill 458 requires Ohioans to have a photo ID to cast their vote in person, limits drop boxes to one per each county’s board of elections, and shortens the timeframe for mail-in ballots to be received, among other changes.

Republicans in support of the changes say they’re necessary to prevent voter fraud, while Democrats say the changes will only add more barriers for Ohioans when they vote.

The governor issued the following statement after signing the bill.

“Elections integrity is a significant concern to Americans on both sides of the aisle across the country. At the same time, I have long believed that Ohio does a good of administering elections, as we have provided ample opportunities to cast votes while avoiding the problems we have seen in recent federal elections in other states.

“I appreciate the General Assembly working with my Administration on changes to House Bill 458 to ensure that more restrictive proposals were not included in the final bill. Legislators included our suggestions to expand access to valid photo IDs and to maintain Ohioans’ ability to cast absentee ballots without the more restrictive identification requirements that were debated.

“I believe with the enactment of the new election integrity provisions in House Bill 458, this matter should be settled, and I do not expect to see any further statutory changes to Ohio voting procedures while I am Governor.”

Two overpass projects along State Route 15 are scheduled to be completed in 2023.

One of the projects will construct an overpass on County Road 180 over State Route 15 near Findlay and the other will be at County Road 169 and State Route 15 near Vanlue.

The projects are designed to improve safety and reduce crashes at the intersections.

Hancock County Engineer Doug Cade says a study was conducted looking at the number of crashes along State Route 15 in Hancock and Wyandot Counties.

He says the intersection of State Route 15 and County Road 180 has become more and more dangerous as the traffic count and speeds have increased.

During the past five years Cade said 28 crashes have occurred at the intersection resulting in several injuries and one fatality.

Traffic will no longer be able to access State Route 15 from County Road 180 once the overpass is completed.

The Ohio Department of Transportation says the projects are slated to start in the spring and be finished by the fall. More exact dates will be released later.

During construction, both County Road 180 and 169 will be closed at State Route 15.

ODOT expects State Route 15 to be open with lane restrictions during construction of the overpasses.

Due to safety concerns, ODOT says County Road 8 will also close at State Route 15 during the project, and ODOT supports removing access there permanently but that’s a decision for the Hancock County Board of Commissioners.

In preparation for the project, in 2021, Hancock County improved County Road 172 for better access to the State Route 15 interchanges on U.S. 68 and State Route 37.

Students in Findlay City Schools will be getting some days off over the next couple of weeks.

The school district says there will be no school on Thursday, January 12^th, Friday, January 13^th and Monday, January 16^th.

Thursday and Friday are staff training days and Monday the 16^th there will be no school in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Click here for the full school district calendar.

A new trial date has been set in the case of Michael Zacharias, the former Findlay priest accused of sex trafficking offenses involving minors and adults.

His trial was set to begin on February 6^th in U.S. District Court in Toledo but has now been moved back to May 2^nd.

Zacharias, the former pastor at St. Michael The Archangel Parish in Findlay, was arrested in August of 2020 and indicted in October of that year.

The offenses Zacharias has been charged with allegedly involve boys from Catholic schools in Toledo.

The charges he’s facing include a total of five counts; two counts of sex trafficking of a minor by force, fraud, or coercion; two counts of sex trafficking an adult by force, fraud, or coercion and one count of sex trafficking of a minor.

“This defendant is accused of using his status and position as a religious and community leader to seek out troubled minors and exploit their personal challenges for his own satisfaction,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman.