14
schools
november27
2012
Meet the Exchange Students
Victor Garcia-Cortes is a junior from
Spain where he lives near Madrid and
is living with the Castro Family. Victor
played running back and kicker on the
Logger football team this year and is
trying out for basketball and plans to run
track. He says he has traveled around
Europe and to Mexico and the United
States where he visited Florida, Boston
and New York. Victor says that Verno-
nia is big compared to his very small
home town in Spain. He says he likes
all the trees around Vernonia and how he
and his friends can walk to do things.
Victor will return to Spain to finish high
school. He plans to attend college but is
not sure what he would like to study.
Hanna Hoffer—is from Germany near
Munich and is living with the Gump
Family. A senior, Hanna is on the VHS
Cheer Squad. She will try out for bas-
ketball and says she would like to play
softball in the spring. This is her first
time visiting the United States, but her
host family has already taken her to visit
Boston. She has also traveled to Italy,
France, Austria, Croatia, and Slovakia.
Hanna likes that Vernonia is so small.
“Here, everybody knows each other
which is kind of nice.” Hanna also likes
that she can walk almost anywhere she
wants to go. Hanna will return to Ger-
many and finish high school and then
second largest city in Norway and is liv-
ing with the Rethwell family. Silje is a
senior who ran cross country this sea-
son and is trying out for basketball and
VHS foreign exchange students (left to right) Victor Garcia-Cortes,
Silje Jacobsen, Lukas Tartler, and Hanna Hoffer.
will run track in the spring. Silje has
traveled to Croatia, Greece, Sweden,
Denmark, and the Czech Republic. She
has also visited the United States before
and saw New York, Hawaii and Las Ve-
Silje Jacobsen—is from Bergen, the gas. Silje says Vernonia is quite differ-
hopes to go to college abroad, maybe
even in the US or in Great Britain. She
would like to study architecture or may-
be International Studies.
School Based Health Clinic continued from front page
and teachers is that we don’t do the everyday school
nursing—handing out band aids, that sort of thing-we
do what you would take your kid to the doctor for,”
says Sherrie Ford of the Public Health Foundation of
Columbia County. “What that does for parents is, it
reduces them getting that call from the office, once they
have already arrived in Hillsboro for work, to come
back to pick up their kid and then back to Hillsboro
to the doctor and then home.” Ford goes on to ex-
plain that a SBHC program saves parents commuting
time and they keep kids in class longer because they
are only sitting in a waiting room for moments when
school staff can call them out of class when the nurse
practitioner is available.
A part-time school nurse, along with trained
school district staff will continue to be on campus to
handle day-to-day needs, like dispensing medications,
but will work separately from the SBHC. All records
will be kept separately.
Ford is a member of the SBHC Planning Com-
mittee and is the SBHC Program Manager for the Pub-
lic Health Foundation. The Public Health Foundation
is the public Health service for Columbia County. Ac-
cording to Ford, the Public Health Authority is granted
by the state to each county government who then have
the option of providing it themselves through a depart-
ment or contracting it out. In Columbia County those
services had been contracted to the Columbia Health
District, which was recently dissolved. It is now con-
tracted through The Public Health Foundation of Co-
ent from where she is from, but says she
likes it that it is so small and that people
know each other. Silje plans to return to
Norway to study in high school one more
year and then start University to become
an engineer or maybe just spend some
time traveling.
Lukas Tartler is a senior from Germa-
ny about 30 miles north of Munich and
is living with the Ward Family. Lucas
played tight end and linebacker for the
football team this year and is trying out
for basketball and hasn’t decided be-
tween baseball and track in the spring.
Lukas says he thinks he has seen a bit
of Europe having visited every country
that borders Germany as well as Spain,
Italy, Greece, Croatia, and Slovania.
This is his first trip to the US. Lukas is
from a town about the same size as Ver-
nonia, but he goes to school in a much
bigger city. “For me that is new,” says
Lukas. “What I really like is that people
are so friendly—they are open and will
show you everything.” Lukas says he
will finish high school and then attend
University, hopefully in the US, where
he would like to study something techni-
cal or science related.
lumbia County, a non-profit 501 (c)(3). “It’s all the into consideration when planning for the clinic was
same staff and the same structure but the governance taking place. One policy decision was who exactly
has changed,” explains Ford about the change from the would the clinic serve. The decision was made to in-
Health District to the Health Foundation.
clude all siblings of students in the school district and
There are two other SBHCs in Columbia Coun-
continued on page 19
ty-in Rainier and St. Helens. The
Public Health Foundation of Colum-
bia County is the sponsor for Rainier
and the Vernonia SBHC’s. Funding
for the program comes from the state
through the Public Health Founda-
tion. As the sponsor, Public Health
can raise income by billing insurance
and grant funding has also been se-
cured. A sliding scale is available
for families without health insurance
coverage, but Ford says no student
will be denied service because of an
inability to pay.
As the sponsor, Public
Health also contracts with Oregon
Health and Sciences University for
the provider and assumes the medi-
cal liability and medical oversight.
The school district provides the fa-
Vernonia High School Alumni Once again challenged
cility.
the VHS Varsity in the annual Alumni Volleyball Game. The
The Planning Committee
game raises funds each year for the Zach Rumboltz Memorial
has been instrumental in creating
Scholarship Fund. This year the 2012 Varsity squad left with
the policy framework for the SBHC.
bragging rights after defeating the Alumni 2-1.
Several key policy issues were taken
Alumni Volleyball Game
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