Daily Archives: October 10, 2012

Class of 2013 student body officers at Liberty Ranch High School have unanimously voted to hold the school's second graduation at Memorial Auditorium.

The decision to hold last year's graduation there caused an upheaval among some school board members concerned with possible higher costs and accessibility of friends and family wishing to attend the ceremony.

To accommodate this school year's graduation location, the Galt Joint Union High School District board of trustees will vote tonight on whether to allow Liberty Ranch to switch graduation dates with Estrellita High School because of a scheduling conflict with Memorial.

Trustees will also be asked to approve the project costs for the graduation ceremony.

Any cost above $4,500 would be borne by the Class of 2013, according to a report to be discussed tonight.

The actual venue contract will come before the school board at a later date, according to Superintendent Matthew Roberts.

He said there was a school-level graduation committee of students, parents, administrators and teachers that researched venues this year. "It is my understanding that graduation has been set for this year," Roberts said.

Trustees Angela DaPrato and Kathleen Amos voted against holding last year's inaugural ceremony in Sacramento.

Amos said it would set a precedence for future graduating classes, and she took issue with holding the event outside city limits when there are city parks and other facilities available.

In the report regarding this school year's ceremony, Principal Brian Deis said students looked at four locations including not only the Liberty Ranch campus, but also Galt High School and the California Correctional Officer training facility on Twin Cities Road.

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Liberty Ranch 2013 graduation venue has been picked

More than 120 skaters from 14 colleges will compete in the Eastern Intercollegiate figure skating competition on Saturday and Sunday at the Liberty University LaHaye Ice Center.

(PRWEB) October 09, 2012

Liberty last hosted the United States Figure Skating Association regional competition in 2010. The event is free to the public.

We feel so blessed to be able to compete at our home rink again, said Tatiana Payne, Liberty figure skating head coach. We couldn't be more excited to welcome the figure skating teams from other universities coming from locations along the East Coast.

Seven skaters from Libertys team will compete: sophomore Katie Scuilla, junior Kelly Pollock, senior Nicole Hofmeister, and freshmen Fantasia Remonvil, Jenn Goette, Kelsey Reischl, and Amanda Delphia.

They will join skaters from Duke University, Penn State University, Cornell University, Boston University, Johns Hopkins University, East Carolina University, Fordham University, Northeastern University, Sacred Heart University, Towson University, New York University, Dartmouth College, and the University of Delaware.

The skaters will compete in more than 30 individual disciplines over the course of the two-day competition.

It should be a great event with a lot of skating talent, Payne said. This is definitely something that people from the community would love to come and watch.

Competition begins Saturday at 8 a.m. with the preliminary mens free skate. View the full schedule.

About Liberty University

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Liberty University to Host Figure Skating Competition This Weekend

Here's what matters regarding Liberty-Bakersfield's 28-17 upset of a Bakersfield team then top-ranked in the Central Section and No. 5 in the state:

It virtually guarantees the Central Section's Division I No. 1 seed will come out of the Tri-River Athletic Conference because of Central's 10-9 win at Liberty on Aug. 31.

Further, the TRAC has swept all games of significance against the Southwest Yosemite League -- Clovis beating Centennial (28-17) and Stockdale (37-6), and Clovis North defeating Frontier (38-21).

So, regardless if Central, Clovis North and Clovis -- now ranked Nos. 1-2-3 -- exchange wins in the TRAC, the D-I seedings will refer back to those key TRAC wins vs. the SWYL.

Some other D-I thoughts:

While the weather has finally cooled, three weeks of heat is about to arrive in the TRAC: Clovis at Central on Friday, Central vs. Clovis North at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Oct. 18 and Clovis North at Clovis on Oct. 26.

Defense under coordinator Kevin Johns continues to drive the turnaround at Clovis, which is 23-8 in three seasons after going 5-26 in the previous three.

Friday's 20-0 win over Clovis East was the Cougars eighth shutout since 2010. And this one was led by lineman Nick Nevills, linebacker Jordan Harper and deep backs Jason Black, Alan Crowley and C.J. Broussard.

Clovis marches into Koligian Stadium on Friday in a forward lean, having beaten the Grizzlies 21-7 and 26-0 last year.

For all his success at Edison, Ricky Manning has a problem -- Sanger.

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Andy Boogaard: Liberty's win over Bakersfield opened TRAC door

NEWARK, N.J. An internal audit by the Transportation Security Administration gave failing grades to agents at Newark Liberty Airport, adding to a long list of security concerns the New Jersey airport has dealt with.

The recently released audit found that Newark TSA agents followed proper pat-down procedures just 16.7 percent of the time and confiscated banned items from carry-on luggage just 25 percent of the time, according to CBS New York affiliate WCBS.

"Obviously that's a big problem," David Katz of the Global Security Group told CBS correspondent Marcia Kramer Monday. "Newark does seem to have more than its fair share of security issues."

Last May, Homeland Security officials said Newark Liberty was the worst of six major airports when it came to security breaches.

In June, TSA screeners were fired for sleeping on the job when they were supposed to be searching for explosives.

And in August, more than 100 flights were cancelled after a passenger made it through a checkpoint without being screened properly. The airport was similarly shut down for over an hour in April after it was discovered a baby wasn't properly screened.

Katz said he is worried the vulnerabilities exposed in the latest audit may be an open invitation to terrorists looking for a place to strike.

"If they see an area when perhaps we are not doing as good a job as we could, that's where they're going to go," he told WCBS.

The TSA said the report was a "snapshot in time" and that it was working on improving its security.

"This is an agency that evaluates its workforce constantly with an eye toward continuous improvement," a TSA spokesman said.

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TSA audit finds major security flaws at Newark Liberty Airport

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Liberty Mutual Insurance Group Benefits, the first group life and disability carrier to launch a mobile application to help employees conveniently manage multiple benefits using mobile devices, has extended the functionality of its MyLibertyMobile application to make life easier for new moms.

MyLibertyMobiles Report a Birth now offers a quick, convenient way for new mothers to activate their disability benefits using a smartphone or tablet following the birth of a child, allowing them to concentrate on the new priority in their life.

Weve harnessed technology so our customers employees can literally tap into their benefits in the hectic days following delivery, notes Jean Scarrow, chief operating officer, Liberty Mutual Insurance Group Benefits. Now, a new mother can complete the necessary steps through her mobile device.

Two-thirds of women of childbearing age use a smartphone, according to the Pew Research Center. It only makes sense to apply mobile technology to group disability programs, notes Scarrow.Mobile technology helps employers drive employee engagement by providing employees with greater convenience and flexibility at key milestones in their lives.

In addition to the new Report a Birth function, MyLibertyMobile also offers Report Intermittent Absence functionality, which allows employees to enter time away from work during approved leaves with any web-enabled mobile device.

More information on MyLibertyMobile can be seen at LibertyMutualGroup.com/Mobile.

About Liberty Mutual Insurance

"Helping people live safer, more secure lives" since 1912, Boston-based Liberty Mutual Insurance is a diversified global insurer and the third largest property and casualty insurer in the U.S. based on 2011 direct premiums written as reported by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Liberty Mutual Insurance also ranks 84th on the Fortune 100 list of largest corporations in the U.S. based on 2011 revenue. As of December 31, 2011, Liberty Mutual Insurance had $117.1 billion in consolidated assets, $99.3 billion in consolidated liabilities, and $34.7 billion in annual consolidated revenue.

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Liberty Mutual Insurance Mobile Application Lets Employers Help New Mothers Easily Activate Disability Benefits

PHOENIX & LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Western Alliance Bancorporation (WAL) and Western Liberty Bancorp (WLBC), referred to herein as Western Alliance and Western Liberty, announced today the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, and the mailing to Western Liberty stockholders, of a supplement to the proxy statement/prospectus provided to stockholders in connection with the proposed merger of Western Liberty and Western Alliance. The merger is to be voted on by Western Liberty stockholders at a special meeting of Western Liberty stockholders scheduled for 10:00 am on October 17, 2012 at Western Libertys headquarters in Las Vegas.

The additional disclosures supplement the disclosure contained in the proxy statement/prospectus filed by Western Liberty and Western Alliance with the SEC on September 12, 2012 and mailed to Western Liberty stockholders, and should be read in conjunction with the disclosures contained in the proxy statement/prospectus, which in turn should be read in its entirety. A copy of the supplement is attached to this press release.

The supplement has been filed in connection with a proposed settlement of a putative class action lawsuit that was filed in the District Court of the State of Nevada, Clark County, on September 21, 2012 by plaintiff David Raul against Western Alliance, Western Liberty and the directors of Western Liberty. The action alleges, among other things, that Western Libertys board of directors breached its fiduciary duties in connection with the board of directors approval of the proposed merger and that Western Alliance aided and abetted such alleged breach of fiduciary duties. The plaintiff seeks injunctive relief preventing the merger, an order rescinding the proposed merger in the event it is not enjoined, and damages as a result of the alleged actions of the defendants, including attorneys and experts fees.

The defendants believe this lawsuit is without merit but in order to avoid the costs, risks and uncertainties inherent in litigation and to allow stockholders to vote on the proposal to adopt the merger agreement at the scheduled special meeting, counsel for Western Liberty, Western Alliance and the other defendants have entered into a memorandum of understanding with plaintiffs counsel to settle the action subject to court approval. The settlement requires Western Liberty and Western Alliance to provide certain additional disclosures set forth in the supplement to the proxy statement/prospectus, but will not affect the merger consideration to be received by Western Liberty stockholders or the timing of the special meeting of the Western Liberty stockholders scheduled for October 17, 2012. If the Nevada court approves the settlement, the action will be dismissed with prejudice.

Nothing in this press release, the proposed settlement or the supplement to the proxy statement/prospectus shall be deemed an admission of the legal necessity or materiality of any of the disclosures set forth in the supplement.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

With $7.2 billion in assets, Western Alliance Bancorporation is the parent company of Bank of Nevada, Western Alliance Bank doing business as Alliance Bank of Arizona and First Independent Bank, Torrey Pines Bank, and Shine Investment Advisory Services. These dynamic organizations provide a broad array of deposit and credit services to clients in Nevada, Arizona and California, and investment services in Colorado. Staffed with experienced financial professionals, these organizations deliver a broader product array and larger credit capacity than community banks, yet are empowered to be more responsive to customers' needs than larger institutions. Additional investor information can be accessed on the Investor Relations page of the company's website, http://www.westernalliancebancorp.com.

About Western Liberty Bancorp

With $199 million in assets, Western Liberty Bancorp is a Nevada bank holding company which conducts operations through Service1st Bank of Nevada, its wholly-owned banking subsidiary, and Las Vegas Sunset Properties. Service1st Bank operates as a traditional community bank and provides a full range of deposit, lending and other banking services to locally-owned businesses, professional firms, individuals and other customers from its headquarters and two retail banking facilities located in the greater Las Vegas area. Services provided include basic commercial and consumer depository services, commercial working capital and equipment loans, commercial real estate loans, and other traditional commercial banking services. Primarily all of the banks business is generated in the Nevada market.

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Western Alliance Bancorporation and Western Liberty Bancorp Announce Filing of Proxy Statement/Prospectus Supplement