FROM PAGE ONE
A6 — THE OBSERVER
SCHOOLS
GOVERNOR
Continued from Page A1
Continued from Page A1
language between schools
and law enforcement is a
crucial aspect of making
emergency responses in
schools more effi cient.
“It’s critical that we agree
on the same vocabulary
terms for emergency situa-
tions,” he said.
IMESD led a region-wide
eff ort in 2016 to encourage
all school districts in the
area to adopt the same secu-
rity terminology that could
be used in the event of an
emergency. This Standard
Response Protocol, cre-
ated by the “I Love U Guys”
Foundation, aims to improve
communication between
school administrators and
law enforcement offi cers in
emergencies.
Although not every dis-
trict has
adopted this
new termi-
nology, Mul-
vihill cred-
ited local law
enforcement
for their con-
Hernandez
tinued com-
mitment to
school safety.
“I cannot
be more
impressed by
the response
of law
Mulvihill
enforcement
at this time,” he said. “Their
commitment to schools in
this area has been stunning.”
Union County Sheriff ’s
Offi ce Deputy Justin Her-
nandez, a school resource
offi cer for the La Grande
School District, is plan-
ning to attend the August
summit. Hernandez said he
is looking forward to seeing
what protocols are becoming
standardized across the state
and country, and how La
Grande schools can keep up.
“I’m looking forward to
seeing what we can imple-
ment in the La Grande
School District,” he said.
The La Grande school
district currently uses the
Run, Hide, Fight protocol
and does not have standard-
ized terminology it uses
with the Union County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce. Hernandez
said he is curious about the
foundation’s terminology
and hopes to learn more
about how eff ective it is in
school settings.
“We are always wanting
to evolve, grow and build,
especially when it comes
to safety,” he said. “Any-
thing that is going to give
us the upper hand and that
will give kids a safe learning
environment and teachers a
safe teaching environment,
we want to implement it.”
Mulvihill is hopeful that
the summit will strengthen
the relationship between
school districts and their
local law enforcement agen-
cies. As for school safety,
Mulvihill made clear his
goals for the summit.
“I hope the districts are
going out into this school
year with confi dence that
they have put in the time
to make sure everything is
secure and safe.”
opponents as leaders of an estab-
lishment that has brought Oregon
to where it is today, and that
the state needs new solutions to
chronic problems such as home-
lessness, a lack of housing and
mental health services, and eco-
nomic insecurity.
“It’s a little bit ironic to me to
constantly hear my opponents on
the stage be (aghast) on how hor-
rible Oregon is on this and that
and the other — ‘We’re 50th (in
the country) on this and we have
to work on that,’” Drazan said.
“They’ve been in charge. We
got here because of their voices.
There are not two other people in
the state with more power than
them besides the governor herself
and maybe the senate president.”
Johnson, a Scappoose resident
who was a Democratic state sen-
ator before resigning to run as a
unaffi liated candidate, empha-
INSKO
Continued from Page A1
Programs developed
during Insko’s tenure
include the expansion
of academic programs
like agriculture entre-
preneurship, reorganiza-
tion of EOU’s academic
colleges and the addi-
THEATER
Continued from Page A1
camps and other commu-
nity theater venues.
“I’m grateful for being
recognized by a group of
people who really under-
stand what it is that I do,”
Hale said.
Freddie and Myrna
Gershon founded the
Freddie G Fellowship
to recognize and cele-
brate exceptional the-
ater educators, who are
given the opportunity to
live the Broadway expe-
rience and interact with
qualifi ed professionals
through master work-
shops taught by staff at
Music Theatre Interna-
tional and iTheatrics at
the 52nd Street Project
building in New York
City.
“Without teachers
there is no Broadway
Junior,” Freddie Ger-
shon stated on the MTI
website. He is MTI’s
co-chairman and, with
wife Myrna, underwriter
of the Fellowship.
“Myrna and I feel
strongly about teachers
and their signifi cant
role,” he said. “This
week gives us an oppor-
tunity to immerse them
in experiential skills
they can take home, inte-
grate with their students
and pass on to other
teachers.”
The recipients of the
Freddie G Fellowship
were announced at the
iTheatrics Junior The-
ater Festivals in February
2020, but training was
delayed until July 2022
due to the pandemic.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 2, 2022
Jaime Valdez/Pamplin Media
Three candidates for governor speak during a debate hosted by Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association at Mount Hood Oregon
Resort in Welches on Friday, July 29, 2022. From left are Tina Kotek, Betsy Johnson and Christine Drazan.
sized that she represents a middle
ground between what she described
as extremes on her political right and
left, noting Drazan’s pro-life stance
on abortion and positing that Kotek
is a part of a progressive left that is
responsible for mounting problems.
“Oregonians are distrustful of the
radical right and they are terrifi ed of
the progressive left … What could be
more diff erent and impactful than a
governor with an allegiance only to
Oregonians and not to a party agenda
or special interests?” she said.
Kotek, a Portlander who was the
speaker of the house for nine years
prior to winning the Democratic
nomination, framed herself as a can-
didate who seeks solutions rather
than simply rejecting the status quo.
“No matter what the other candi-
dates say today, there are no quick
fi xes. There are no miracle cures to
take on these large challenges. Only
hard work is going to allow us to
ensure that every part of our state
can thrive,” she said.
On the issues, Drazan clarifi ed
that she considers Joe Biden to be
the fairly elected president of the
United States — despite eff orts from
members of her party to sow distrust
in the 2020 election results — while
also stating that she would maintain
the current gun and abortion laws
in place in Oregon and expressing
opposition to Gov. Kate Brown’s
executive order directing state agen-
cies to reduce carbon emissions.
Regarding her and her colleagues’
decision in 2020 to walk out of the
Capitol to combat Democrats’ cap-
and-trade proposal while she was
the House minority leader, she said
she may have supported some form
of policy incentivizing businesses to
reduce emissions — but not in the
form proposed by Democrats.
tion of two new deans,
securing funding for the
new fi eldhouse, the addi-
tion of men’s and wom-
en’s wrestling, lacrosse,
and baseball, renovations
and upgrades to buildings
across campus, the Rural
Engagement and Vitality
Center, a reorganiza-
tion of the school’s diver-
sity, equity inclusion and
belonging programs, and
the just-launched Moon
Shot for Equity project
to eliminate achievement
gaps.
“Tom was a nontra-
ditional president with a
background in operations
and fi nancial manage-
ment, but it proved to be
exactly the kind of lead-
ership we needed,” said
EOU Board Chair Richard
Chaves. “Tom’s pas-
sion for Oregon coupled
with a strategic education
and fi scal plan brought
together everyone under
one vision, which has led
us to the strong position
we are in today. He set a
high bar for our next pres-
ident, but we are confi dent
we will attract a high cal-
iber leader who can con-
tinue to advance the path
forward putting the people
and students of Eastern
Oregon fi rst.”
Eastern Oregon Uni-
versity’s board of trustees
will begin transition plan-
ning for the university at its
upcoming annual retreat,
already planned for Aug.
8-9 in Boardman.
“We learned really neat
things from each other, but
the most important thing
was the bond that we made
with the six of us together
— so valuable to me,” Hale
said. “These are people
from all over the country
that are doing what I do and
have similar issues and joys
and problems. For us to get
together and work through
those things together was
very valuable.”
While in New York, Hale
and his colleagues attended
a special master class led
by Tony Award-winning
director and choreographer
Jeff Calhoun and partici-
pated in classes covering
many aspects of musical
theater. Hale and the other
Fellows were immersed in
Broadway, attending pro-
ductions of “Between The
Lines” and “Beetlejuice.”
They also observed a devel-
opmental workshop per-
formance of “Beetlejuice
Junior.” There the Fel-
lows were invited to expe-
rience Broadway as the-
ater insiders, off ering their
feedback to the develop-
mental process from their
perspective.
go through Freddie’s com-
pany. He’s been a legend
in New York and is highly
respected.”
While in New York
City, Hale said he took in
three Broadway perfor-
mances, one on the night of
his arrival to the city and
two other performances that
were part of the four-day
MTI sponsored training.
“They basically spoiled
us for a few days and gave
us some extraordinary
learning opportunities,” he
said.
The MTI master classes
were designed to energize
and inspire theater educators
so that when they returned
to their communities, they
could share their enhanced
skills and tools of the craft
with other teachers and
young performing artists.
“The thing I brought
home that is most important
is the connections and rela-
tionships that I built while at
the Freddie G experience,”
he said. “I was able to meet
with these other fi ve Freddie
G recipients and really
establish a connection that
will be invaluable to me as I
move forward.”
As a recipient of the
Freddie G Fellowship, Hale
also received a $5,000 grant
to be utilized by Hale for the
promotion of theatrical arts
and education in his home
community. Hale said the
funds went to fi nish a new
dance and rehearsal studio
at the Hale-Turner Theater.
“We call that space the
Opera House Studio,” he
said. “It includes space
with a new fl oor, mirrors
and air conditioning. It’s
a nice little practice area
we can use for the purpose
of rehearsing and learning
choreography.”
Hale’s teaching career in
Union County began at the
Elgin Opera House shortly
after moving to Elgin in
2006. There, he produced
and directed his fi rst pro-
duction in December 2007,
and afterward founded the
Friends of the Elgin Opera
House.
Since then, he has taught
hundreds of children on the
Elgin Opera House stage.
He has mentored some who
wanted to learn how to
direct and facilitated other
theatrical arts training for
his cast members.
In late July, Hale con-
ducted his annual summer
theater camp, this time with
95 theater students. This
has been one of the largest
enrollments of youth partici-
pants in this program to date.
Energize and inspire
Music Theatre Interna-
tional, which sponsors the
specialized training for the-
ater teachers, is one of the
top theatrical licensing com-
panies in the world. Hale
had worked with MTI many
times over the years in his
role as artistic director at the
Elgin Opera House.
“If we wanted to perform
‘Annie’ on our stage, we
had to go through MTI to
do that,” Hale said. “More
than half of the shows we
do at the Elgin Opera House
Charles & Eileen
Stewart
10304 A 1st St.
Island City, OR
cstewartpc@gmail.com
541.910.5435
Pay cash or
Rent
1st Thursday to of own
the month starting
June 2nd
Authorized
Dealer
1st August
Thursday 4th
of for
the our
month first
starting
June 2nd
Join us
Thursday
event
Sip,
Shop,
Repeat,
Local
Sip, Shop, Repeat, Local
The evening starts at the Chamber Office, 207 Depot Street
The evening starts at the Chamber Office, 207 Depot Street
where you pick up your insulated tumbler and participating
where you pick up your insulated tumbler and participating
businesses
map for a $10 donation. Participating businesses will
businesses map for a $10 donation. Participating businesses will
be be
open
5pm-8pm,
of different
different
open
5pm-8pm, serving
serving samples
samples of
beverages
promotions
beverages and
and offering
offering discount
discount promotions
2022 Union County Fair Schedule
Wednesday, August 3
8:00 am Fair Opens
8:30 am FFA/4-H Swine Conformation - market followed by
breeding Beef breeding immediately following swine show with
½ hour break FFA/4-H Beef Breeding & Dairy follows Swine
Show
8:30 am FFA/4-H Sheep Conformation - market followed by
breeding Goats immediately following sheep show with ½ hour
break FFA/4-H Meat Goat Conformation – market followed
by breeding
10:00 am Exhibit Booths Open
10:00 am - 11:00 am Lego Time (Small Stage)
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm Countryfied (Large Stage)
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm Carla’s Fiddle School (Small Stage)
4:00 pm FFA/4-H Market Steer Conformation
5:00 pm Open Class Sheep & Meat Goat Show Open Class Beef
& Dairy Cattle Show (immediately following beef show)
5:30 pm Talent Show (Small Stage)
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Countryfied (Large Stage)
10:00 pm Fair Closes
Thursday, August 4
8:00 am Fair Opens
8:00 am Free Breakfast Sponsored by The Observer
8:30 am FFA Swine Showmanship followed by 4-H Swine
Showmanship 8:30 am FFA Sheep Showmanship followed by
4-H Sheep Showmanship Goats immediately following sheep
show with ½ break FFA Meat Goat Showmanship followed by
4-H Meat Goat Showmanship
9:00 am DeLong Applications due at Livestock Office
9:00 am Feed and Growth Records due at Livestock Office
10:00 am Exhibit Booths Open
10:00 am - 11:00 am Lego Time (Small Stage)
11:30 am - 12:30 pm Blue Plate Special (Small Stage)
2:00 pm ADGA Open Class Sanctioned Dairy Goat Show
NO EARLY CHECK IN)
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm Lynque Oveson (Small Stage)
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm Tiller’s Folly (Large Stage)
4:00 pm -5:00 pm Alka Mahdi (Small Stage)
4:00 pm FFA Beef Showmanship followed by 4-H Beef
Showmanship
6:00 pm - 7:00 pm Becky’s Dance Studio (Small Stage)
6:30 pm 4-H Archery Competition – Fair Horse Arena
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Alka Mahdi (Small Stage)
8:30 pm - 10:00 pm Tiller’s Folly (Large Stage)
10:00 pm Fair Closes
Friday August 5
8:00 am Fair Opens
8:00 am FFA/4-H Dairy Goat Showmanship followed by
breeding – Sheep/goat arena
9:00 am 4-H Citizenship Award due at 4-H Office
9:00 am ADGA Open Class Sanctioned Dairy Goat Show
10:00 am Exhibit Booths Open
10:00 am 4-H/FFA Livestock Judging Contest (beef/sheep ring
bleachers)
10:00 am - 11:00 am Lego Time Championship (Small Stage)
11:30 am FFA Round Robin
1:00 pm Delong & Ruth Becker Award Interviews
1:30 pm 4-H Round Robin
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm Ripple Effect (Large Stage)
2:30 pm - 4:30 pm Wasteland Kings (Small Stage)
3:00 pm Pee Wee Show
4:00 pm Fair Parade Line Up
5:30 pm Fair Parade Downtown
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm Parade (Downtown La Grande)
6:30 pm Mutton Busting & Stick Horse Race - Mavericks Arena
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Wasteland Kings (Small Stage)
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Mutton Busting, Goat Tying, Stick Horse
Race (Mavericks Arena)
8:30 pm - 10:00 pm Ripple Effect (Large Stage)
7:30 pm 4-H Ice Cream Social – 4-H Exhibit Building
8:30 pm - 10:00 pm Teen Dance Sponsored by UCSCC &
La Grande Wrestling
10:00 pm Fair Closes
Saturday, August 6
8:00 am Fair Opens
10:00 am Exhibit Booths Open
10:00 am - 11:00 am FFA Awards (Small Stage)
11:00 am - 12:00 pm 4-H Awards (Small Stage)
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm 4-H Revue Show (Small Stage)
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm Sage & Stone (Small Stage)
3:30 – 5:00 pm Auction Buyers Appreciation Dinner & Check I
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm Brewers Grade (Large Stage)
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm Cory Peterson (Small Stage)
5:00 pm - 8:30 pm Jr. Livestock Auction (Livestock Barn)
7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Cory Peterson (Small Stage)
8:30 pm - 10:00 pm Teen Dance (Outside-Designated
Location)
8:30 pm - 10:00 pm Brewers Grade (Large Stage)
10:00 pm Fair Closes
Sunday, Aug 7
9:00 am - 12:00 pm Static Exhibit Pick up for Open Class &
4-H exhibits