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CGSENTINEL.COM
CGHS Principal
resigns
Iton Udosenata announces move to
North Eugene
By Zachary Silva
Cottage Grove Sentinel
Twenty-fi ve acts performed at Harrison's Got Talent on Saturday, April 29. Acts ranged from interpretive dancing to singing to drum solos. Performers in-
cluded: Annabelle, Deegan, Blake, Natalee, Colton, Teagan, Aurora, Kaela, Clara, Kylee, Kadence, Sidney, Zoey, Oceana, Byrnn, Chevelle, Dylan, Ava, Ariana,
Eliza, Charlese, Genesis, Kendra, Melissa, Eliza, Ethan, Isabell, Sara, Sarah and Sunni.
South Lane Mental Health works to
serve Cottage Grove
By Caitlyn May
cmay@cgsentinel.com
His name was
Jose.
He lived in a
hospital in Lex-
ington, Kentucky
that was nearly
200 years old
and at some point
before crossing
paths with Tom
Wheeler, a scal-
Tom Wheeler
pel was inserted
into his brain; a lobotomy. It rendered him
in a permanent state of childhood; leaving
him with intelligence of a seven-year-old
whose walls came equipped with holes a
man’s-height high. Remnants of the chains
that used to hold patients by the neck.
“It struck me,” Wheeler says. The hospi-
tal in Kentucky was his fi rst placement for
his Master’s program and Jose, his fi rst as-
signment. “A lot has changed since then.”
A lot and in some cases, not nearly
enough.
Wheeler is currently the executive direc-
tor of South Lane Mental Health but within
a year’s time he’s stepping down from the
post he’s held for 25 years and handing the
reins to someone else. Approximately 90
staff will continue to serve 2,000 patients
a year, fulfi lling the original mission of a
small church in Cottage Grove: to help the
mentally ill who live in the community.
“I’ve heard a saying, ‘If you go to Cot-
tage Grove, you’ll never go to the hospital
again,’” Wheeler said. “It’s not always true,
but we’re good at this.”
“This” is treating severe mental illness
that could lead to homelessness, criminal
records or other situations that may see peo-
ple ostracized from the community. Many
of the individuals residents have come to
know wandering downtown are clients of
South Lane Mental Health. And some ar-
en’t.
While South Lane staff may attempt
to engage with someone obviously in the
throes of undiagnosed or under-treated
mental illness, their patients are those who
seek help on their own or with the help of
local law enforcement.
“This is America and people have the
freedom to not ask for help,” Wheeler said.
But those who do want help would be
hard-pressed not to fi nd South Lane’s out-
stretched hand. The program is in the local
emergency room, counselors and admin-
istrators have a working relationship with
Cottage Grove police and anyone can walk
in off the street and ask for help. If it’s se-
rious, they’ll be seen that day. If they’re on
the Oregon Health Plan, costs may be mini-
mal and if they have private insurance they
can be connected with a private practice to
continue their treatment or counseling.
The facility is able to treat those with
Medicaid, even though the plan does not
cover mental health treatment, on a sliding
scale. Some of South Lane’s counseling and
treatment is given away for free based on
its budget for the year. It started with volun-
teers helping 50 patients per year. Now, as
Wheeler prepares to pass the baton, South
Lane Mental health sees 2,000 patients in
the same time span. It’s a number that could
free-fall under the current political climate
if the Affordable Care Act is repealed and
its replacement does not offer the same ser-
vices or funds.
“They’re talking about 50,000 people
maybe losing their health insurance in Or-
egon,” Wheeler said. “The 2,000 people we
see could lose their health insurance and
there are no amount of community bake
sales to make up that difference.”
While the threat of diminished client ser-
vices hangs overhead, South Lane will wel-
come more patients through its doors. After
having to turn residents of Douglas County
away, an agreement is in the works to allow
those seeking mental health services to fi nd
them in Cottage Grove.
“There are 90 staff here in Cottage Grove
and in Drain there isn’t a single counselor
who takes OHP. The closest one is in Rose-
burg,” Wheeler said. “But now, in the next
few months the county will allow us to bill
Umpqua Health Alliance and those people
can be served.”
That’s not to say South Lane Mental
Health is in the business of seeking out,
out-of-city patients. Despite public specu-
In front of a full
room of 30 commu-
nity members, the
South Lane School
District
School
Board met Mon-
day night for their
monthly meeting at
the District Service
Center.
The meeting be-
gan with some shock
from both board
members and those
in the audience when
Iton Udosenata
South Lane School
District Superintendent Krista Parent noted that Cottage Grove
High School principal Iton Udosenata would be leaving his post in
Cottage Grove to be principal at North Eugene High School.
“This opportunity with North Eugene… was a challenge that I
was ready for and while it is bittersweet to leave here, we’re excited
about the new opportunity to be principal at North Eugene High
School,” said Udosenata who attended North Eugene High School
as a student and has served as principal at Cottage Grove for four
years.
After this announcement, the meeting was back on track. Cottage
Grove High School student Savannah Palis updated the board about
what was going on at the school focusing on AP tests and a variety
of club activities.
The attention of the board then shifted to a presentation from Bo-
hemia Elementary School staff members. Principal Heather Brid-
gens, alongside fi fth grade teacher Ashley Olsen and fi rst grade
teacher Katherine Hawks, gave a presentation on Performance
Assessment Demonstration Sites (PADS), a program that through
the Oregon Department of Education is working to, according to
the ODE website, “provide performance assessment professional
learning and implementation support.” For this program, the school
received a $43,000 grant.
“The purpose of a performance assessment is three things,” said
Bridgens. “One to tell the story student learning, to gather informa-
tion to inform about the best next step will be for the student, and to
decide if the student has learned enough. Our current state assess-
ment system looks at number three, has a student learned enough
by the end of the year.”
As the group made clear, the goal of this is to assess students in a
way that also aids the learning process. Additionally, they identifi ed
that assessments should not be the most diffi cult part of the learning
processes but should be integrated into the learning.
Please see PRINCIPAL PG. A8
Pool reveals
future fi nancial
trouble
The Warren H. Daugherty Aquatic Center
costs
thousands to run each year and each
cmay@cgsentinel.com
year, it's coming up short of that cost.
"The city gives us $50,000 consistantly
but we do end up using our reserve fund to make up the difference,"
said manager Carrie McCasline.
McCasline gave a presentation to the Cottage Grove City Coun-
cil on Monday, April 24 detailing the costs associated with operat-
ing the pool and the relationship between its programs and revenue.
"The lap swims and open swim doesn't generate a lot of revenue
but it's what the community wants the most," she said.
McCasline went on to note that swimming lessons comprise a
large amount of the revenue being generated but due to the size of
the pool and safety requirements, classes are restricted to a certain
By Caitlyn May
Please see MENTAL HEALTH PG. A8
New York act Danny Fin-
gers will be at the Axe and
Fiddle on Thursday. PAGE A3
COMMUNITY
Swinging Bridge
The city water bill will now
let residents round up to
save the landmark. PAGE A9
INDEX
ENTERTAINMENT
Danny Fingers
Calendar ...................................... B11
Channel Guide ............................... B5
Classifieds ...................................... B7
Obituaries ...................................... A2
Opinion ......................................... A4
Sports ............................................ B1
AD 6x2
Please see POOL PG. A10
cgnews@cgsentinel.com
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P.O. Box 35, Cottage Grove, OR 97424
Corner of Sixth and Whiteaker, Cottage Grove
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VOLUME 129 • NUMBER 42