Yesterday, it was announced that the city’s news channel, ATXN, and the Austin-Travis County EMS won a Lone Star Emmy Award for their collaboration on a public service announcement about the city’s Shattered Dreams program. That video, which won in the Children/Youth/Teen Program category, can be viewed here. According to a statement about the honor, “Shattered Dreams is a two-day, school-based program that promotes responsible decision-making among high school students regarding underage drinking and impaired driving by showing them how irresponsible choices can end in tragedy. … ATXN Station Manager Keith Reeves, Senior Producer/Videographer Jonathan Uhl and Video Production Specialist James Williams presented Austin-Travis County EMS with their National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences EMMY statuette for their Co-coordinator/Technical Advisor role in the ‘Shattered Dreams’ production filmed during the Vandergrift High School Shattered Dreams Program. EMS Chief Ernesto Rodriguez and EMS Chief of Staff James Shamard accepted the award on behalf of Austin-Travis County EMS.”

How is the new City Council doing? Ask that question, and you will probably get a variety of answers. This summer, Julio Gonzalez conducted a survey aimed at quantifying Council’s performance, and the data he collected is now online, available here. According to that data, the highest number of participants – 25 percent – identified Council Member Greg Casar as the most effective member, followed by Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo, who received the support of 21 percent of respondents, then Mayor Steve Adler, who won 13 percent. Overall, the highest percentage of people (19 percent) gave Council a “1” on a scale of 1 to 10 — “1” being poor, “10” being excellent — with Council getting an average rating of “4”. Gonzalez’s next survey, which assesses the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, is now open. Full disclosure: Gonzalez is a member of the Capital of Texas Media Foundation’s board of directorsFriends of the Austin Monitor.

This Saturday, City Council Member Ann Kitchen will host a transportation-focused town hall meeting at which she promises “an update on City Council activities, particularly the recently passed budget and coming transportation infrastructure projects” as well as appearances from representatives of the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the city’s Transportation Department and the Austin Fire Department. The meeting will take place Oct. 10, from 10 until 11:30 a.m. at the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders.

During Monday’s board dialogue meeting about the school-to-prison pipeline, Austin Independent School District Trustee Paul Saldaña pointed out that AISD’s teacher demographics do not mirror its student demographics. He said that most students in AISD will not see a minority teacher, and “you can’t be what you can’t see.” Saldaña said there are more than 6,000 teachers in AISD, and fewer than 25 percent are minority teachers. Using a school from his District 6 as an example, he added that 72 percent of the teachers at Paredes Middle School are classified as white, but more than 90 percent of its students are classified as African-American or Hispanic. Saldaña said that the disparity is a specific outcome that the district has control over, and he encouraged diversity among staff as well as students.

It appears that Travis County’s legal battle with a group that puts on an annual outdoor music festival will be more badminton than calcio fiorentino. A source familiar with the case tells the Austin Monitor that Euphoria Music and Camping Festival is no longer seeking separate hearings for an immediate temporary restraining order and injunction against the county’s new policy restricting the event’s hours of operation. Instead, after collegial discussions between lawyers for both sides, the festival operators have decided to pursue only a single hearing for a permanent injunction, to be scheduled on Wednesday, Nov. 4. Until then, it appears that we shouldn’t expect any smash-mouth legal jockeying to draw out the case or otherwise attempt to move it to the court of public opinion. Rats.

Travis County commissioners approved an $80,500 contract on Tuesday for a novel approach to handicapped-parking enforcement. For a startup fee of $8,500 and 12 monthly payments of $6,000, Access Empowerment, a nonprofit corporation, will train volunteers and equip them with a smartphone app that they can use to issue citations to drivers illegally parked in a handicapped space. During previous discussions of the proposal in recent weeks, large numbers of disabled Travis County residents showed up to advocate for the program. Commissioner Gerald Daugherty and Precinct 3 Constable Sally Hernandez are both credited as its leading backers. Just before the unanimous vote on Tuesday, Daugherty commended the county’s attorneys for ironing out the legion of potential legal liabilities in the arrangement. “Let me just say that this has been a long haul,” he said. “But I do think that we’ve done the right thing.”

Keeping with tradition, today’s City Council Mobility Committee meeting will feature a discussion about Transportation Network Companies (e.g., Uber and Lyft). This week, the committee is likely to be met with a petition as well. An Austin Monitor reporter found a petition in her own inbox Tuesday, calling out Council Member Ann Kitchen (who chairs the Mobility Committee) by name. The call to action from Uber urged riders to #KEEPAUSTINUBER and read, in part, “For more than a year, you’ve relied on Uber to connect you to a safe ride at the touch of a button. You’re not alone. More than half a million people have opened the Uber app in Austin to catch or provide a ride. But today, the Uber you know and love is being threatened by a new plan pushed by Councilmember Ann Kitchen. Over the last year, ridesharing has driven Austin forward by increasing transportation choices, reducing drunk driving, and creating many economic opportunities for working families. Councilmember Kitchen’s plan would reverse this progress and destroy ridesharing as we know it. … Act now before it’s too late!”

City Council is seeking qualified applicants for a position on the board of managers for Central Health, formerly known as the Travis County Healthcare District. Central Health works to create access to health care for uninsured, underinsured and low-income residents of Travis County, and the Council is looking for applicants who demonstrate a commitment to that mission in addition to meeting a list of other qualifications as well. The chosen applicant will serve a four-year term on the nine-member board beginning Jan. 1, 2016. Applicants must complete a Boards and Commissions application (either online or in person at the City Clerk’s Office), submit a resume describing their qualifications and write a statement of intent explaining why they want to serve on the board. The application deadline is Friday, Oct. 23 at 5 p.m.

Since we announced it so long ago, a reminder may be in order that we will hold our latest discussion in our “Beer, Brains and Betterment” series tonight. Austin Monitor Publisher Mike Kanin will take a look at “The State of Austin Music” with City Council Member Greg Casar, Austin Music People’s Jennifer Houlihan, local artist Tee-Double, Transmission Events General Manager Bobby Garza and South by Southwest Brand Development honch/former city of Austin Music Commission Chair Brad Spies. The event will take place at the North Door at 6:30 p.m. It is free and open to the public, but RSVPs and more information are available here.

Over the past several months, the Austin Independent School District board of trustees has heard many residents’ opinions on Hyde Park-based Robert E. Lee Elementary’s namesake. Monday’s regular meeting was no exception. A total of 26 residents spoke in favor of changing the school’s name, citing reasons ranging from the Confederate general’s stance on race relations to concerns that the name could cause families to avoid attending schools within the district. Supporters said that a petition to change the name had garnered 500 supporting signatures. Other schools were also briefly mentioned in Monday’s discussion regarding the appropriateness of AISD schools bearing the names of Confederate leaders. They include Sidney Lanier High School, located off Payton Gin Road, and John H. Reagan High School, located off Berkman Drive. In addition, District 1 Trustee Edmund Gordon added Travis High School and former Johnston High School to the list of schools with questionable namesakes when he asked AISD staff to provide more information about the circumstances surrounding each school’s naming and the cost of renaming schools. At-Large Board Member Kendall Pace mentioned that Dallas Independent School District had already confronted similar issues and recommended reaching out to learn about its name-changing policies and process. Board President Gina Hinojosa said the board will begin discussing school name changes at its 6 p.m. board dialogue meeting on Nov. 2. The board will work on developing a public participation process to seek nominations for alternate names. Possible action will be taken on the issue Nov. 23.

If you were unable to attend last week’s CodeUPDATE event, which provided information about CodeNEXT‘s efforts to rewrite the city’s land development code, members of the CodeNEXT team want you to know: It’s not too late. Video from the “Sound Check” presentation is now available online. And, to make it easier to follow along from home, here is a copy of the presentation.

Former Travis County Democratic Party Secretary Vincent Harding has been sworn in as the organization’s new chair. According to a statement about his election, Harding was overwhelmingly selected on Sept. 30 by the party’s Executive Committee of Precinct Chairs. On the topic of his election, he said, “I am truly honored to be the youngest person ever elected to serve as chair and only the second African-American. I know that I stand on the shoulders of giants, and I am committed to opening doors for those who will follow me. I look forward to working with all of our elected officials, precinct chairs, activists and anyone else who wants to come into the broad tent of the Democratic Party as we pursue liberty and justice for all.” Harding replaces outgoing Chair Jan Soifer. He has already moved to plan TCDP’s next forum, on the topic of immigration.