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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8, 2022
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APPEAL TRIBUNE
Auditors
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Student Success Act as schools prep
funding plans
With COVID-19 impacts, looming
changes in locally elected leadership
and unaddressed critiques from past
audits, officials said, they want to call
attention to these possible issues before
they become widespread problems.
"While most audits look at the past,
... this systemic risks analysis and re-
port is designed to head off problems
before they occur," Oregon Secretary of
State Shemia Fagan said at a news con-
ference.
“We need to not see a gap for stu-
dents of color," she said. ”We need to not
see a gap for students who don’t speak
English as a first language. We need to
not see a gap for students who are in
high poverty schools or high poverty
communities."
Oversight and support
The 2019 act, which focused on im-
proving results for low-income and his-
torically underserved students, set new
accountability standards and estab-
lished a corporate activities tax to pro-
vide new revenue to K-12 education
statewide.
It placed a large amount of control in
the hands of local districts, allowing
them to prioritize spending their alloca-
tions on issues most important to their
communities. But it also expanded
ODE’s capacity for oversight and district
support.
Background: How Salem-Keizer
Public Schools spent its first year of Stu-
dent Investment Account money
Oregon principal auditor Scott Learn
said the audit team's focus in the latest
report − specifically described as not an
audit − is to ensure Oregon leadership is
focused on the statewide plan, not
"adding a lot of new complexities to the
work that ODE and districts have to do."
To be more successful than past ef-
forts, auditors said, ”strong state leader
monitoring" and support of the Oregon
Department of Education are crucial.
State leaders must ensure the state
education department closely monitors
and reports on school district perfor-
mance, effectively scrutinizes district
spending and quickly discloses chal-
lenges in program implementation, au-
ditors said. They also suggest state
leaders must think long-term instead of
generating multiple, separate programs
and priorities for the state education de-
partment and districts to address.
Other suggested actions include in-
creasing standards for rapidly growing
online schools, authorizing the Depart-
ment of Education to collect student da-
ta to increase high school graduation
rates and supporting ODE’s efforts to
improve K-12 standards and ensure dis-
tricts are complying with them.
Here are the five risks auditors iden-
tified as key potential areas of weak-
ness, as presented in the report:
Risk #1: "Performance Monitoring
and Support" − Performance monitoring
is crucial to school improvement. State
leaders and policymakers must work
with ODE to ensure monitoring of dis-
trict performance and state support
when needed to promote success.
Risk #2: "Transparency on Results
and Challenges" − To foster account-
ability and timely adjustments, leaders
and policymakers must require thor-
ough reporting of school improvement
results and challenges.
Risk #3: "Spending Scrutiny and
Guidance" − Leaders and policymakers
should support ODE in providing more
analysis of school district spending,
helping districts focus spending on stu-
dent support and offset rising costs.
Risk #4: "Clear, Enforceable District
Standards" − Oregon’s Division 22 stan-
dards for K-12 schools lack clarity and
enforceability, allowing low perfor-
mance to persist. To increase account-
ability for state funds and student suc-
cess, leaders and policymakers must
balance local control of school districts
with reasonable, enforceable stan-
dards.
Risk #5: "Governance and Funding
Stability" − Reforming education is a
complex, long-term effort, requiring
leaders and policymakers to set clear
goals and foster a long-term focus. A
large number of separate programs, un-
realistic timelines, and frequent
changes in funding priorities and lead-
ership can undermine reform efforts.
Read the full report at https://
sos.oregon.gov/
audits/Pages/recent.aspx.
Evelyn Klopfenstein, 13, spends time with Emmy Arana and the horses at Acres of Hope on in Salem. The non-profit organization allows youth going through mental
health struggles and trauma to connect with horses as a way to heal. ABIGAIL DOLLINS / STATESMAN JOURNAL
Ranch
Continued from Page 1A
and a kid that just can’t even talk ---
they’re so anxious or there’s something
bad going on in their life or at school …
they just open up and start talking for
hours straight and not even realize it,”
said Justin, who works as the ranch’s fa-
cilities manager.
Acres of Hope opened in July of
2020, but CEO and session coordinator
Emmy said the vision for the program
was prompted by God seven years ago.
The organization initially launched on a
5-acre property the couple owned in
West Salem before they purchased their
current ranch property.
Arana, who dealt with trauma as a
teenager, said she was able to connect
most with her faith being with horses.
As a former middle school teacher, Ara-
na said she has a special place for teens.
“Middle school, high school, and
even into college is a pivotal time in your
life,” Arana said. “They don’t want to be
micro-managed, they don’t want to be
told what to do. They just want to save
space for somebody to hear them, and
they will change the world. They are
thinkers, they’re authentic, they’re gen-
uine.”
There’s a great need for services for
teens, she said, and the stressors of the
pandemic added an extra layer of chal-
lenges.
“There’s a lot right now, unfortunate-
ly, going on in the mental health world
with teens and depression, so we love
hanging out with these kids,” Arana
said.
Word of the program has spread like
wildfire. Within three or four months of
opening, Emmy and Justin had to start
putting teens on a waitlist. The program
currently has 46 youth; another 45 are
on a waitlist.
More recently, the organization has
started getting referrals from school
counselors, Salem Health hospital, doc-
tors, clinics, parents, and a handful of
counseling offices.
To apply, families fill out a form on-
line explaining their situation and Ara-
na sends families the waitlist form.
Anxiety and bullying at school are
among some of the top issues, Arana
said.
Arana will prioritize kids on the wait-
list with the most “acute” cases.
The ranch offers three programs, de-
pending on the youth’s needs. Individ-
ual sessions pair the teen with a mentor
and horses; group sessions allow teens
to interact with peers; and teen time is
an evening bible study program.
Mentors, also called session leaders,
meet with youth once a week allowing
Emmy Arana
takes the reigns
off Kimber.
Kimber is one of
several horses
used in a
non-profit
organization
that allows
youth going
through mental
health struggles
and trauma to
connect with
horses as a way
to heal. ABIGAIL
DOLLINS /
STATESMAN
JOURNAL
them to talk and develop a relationship
while the teen spends time with horses.
During sessions, the teens are taught
how to halter, lead and care for a horse.
Justin and Emmy say while horses
cannot speak, they have the ability to
communicate with the teens by respon-
ding to their actions and emotions.
“A horse is a mirror to your soul,” Em-
my said. “The horse is going to respond
to what the youth brings to the table,
whether it is timidity, whether it’s over-
confidence, whether it’s too much ener-
gy.
“And so we get to look at their emo-
tional awareness, regulation and confi-
dence. The horse needs a leader be-
cause they’re a herd animal,” she said.
At the start of their mentorship, the
teens fill out a self-evaluation form to
identify areas that they believe need im-
provement, such as self-esteem, re-
sponsibility, self-control and independ-
ence. The youth measure their growth
by revisiting the form periodically.
The length of time the teen spends in
the program varies depending on their
needs. Teens may “graduate” to group
sessions or start coming every other
week. Most teens are in the program for
about a year.
Since the program is a ministry, Em-
my Arana says another hope is for teens
to develop a relationship with Jesus,
though there is no expectation.
“It’s a place for them to relax and take
a deep breath and disconnect, and be
able to have conversations with people
who will listen,” Justin said. “It’s ex-
tremely therapeutic.”
Emmy Arana said Acres of Hope is
meant to be paired with other types of
counseling and resources for children
and families. And while it’s “therapeu-
tic,” the ranch is not meant to be therapy
or diagnose a child.
“Acres of Hope is not going to fix the
world,” she said. “Acres of Hope isn’t a
one-stop-shop. We have this hope that
all these other organizations that are
doing amazing things in our community
--- we all work together … and refer
these kids to other services that can be
helpful.”
The couple said the organization has
so far stayed afloat, and has kept the
program free to families, thanks to do-
nations and support from the commu-
nity.
Justin estimates the cost for one ses-
sion averages $75 to $100, but donors
and sponsors, such a The Angels in the
Outfield, help cover sessions for teens.
“We’re just now being able to show
true impact,” Justin said. “We’re literally
saving kids’ lives.”
Acres of Hope Youth Ranch
Interested in signing up for the
mentorship
program?
Interested
youth may apply for the program at
acresofhopeyouthranch.org/our-
program.
To donate to Acres of Hope Youth
Ranch,
visit
acresofhopeyouthranch.org/donate.
Those interested in signing up to volun-
teer with the organization, can visit
acresofhopeyouthranch.org/volunteer.
Virginia Barreda is the breaking
news and public safety reporter for the
Statesman Journal. She can be reached
at
503-399-6657
or
at
vbarreda@statesmanjournal.com Fol-
low her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.