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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 21, 2017)
schools december21 2017 School Board Report At the December 14, 2017 School Board Meeting: 62.3% of freshman students on track in 2016-17, much lower than the Or- egon average of 83.4% and comparison schools of 82.3%. Underwood later pro- vided the Board with samples of student report cards for the ON-Track for Stu- dent Success program which allows 9 th grade students and their parents to see whether a student is On Track, Nearly On Track, At Risk, or Not On Track to graduate. Underwood told the Board Se- nior Speeches are scheduled for Wednes- day, January 10. Public Comment – Jennifer Rau and Darrold Mushatt told the Board they were disappointed in the way staff han- dled a situation at school, when both of their daughters were touched inappropri- ately by another student. Both parents said they were not notified of the inci- dent by the school. Rau suggested the district needed to better educate students about inappropriate touching and Mush- att said the District needed to be better on communication with parents about all issues. Annual Audit Report – Nick Miller of Pauly, Rogers, and Co., P.C., provided Student Reports – Kaylee Bartolo- the Board with the annual audit report mucci, an 8 th grade leadership student for fiscal year 2016-17. Miller reported provided the Board with a detailed up- that the audit found no issues with the date on Middle School activities. She District’s financial reporting told the Board about fall sports, a Bless- ing Bags project to provide supplies to Fall Sports Report – Athletic Director homeless people, and discussed current Gordon Jarman provided the Board with curriculum being studied in classes. a report on Fall Sports activities at both the Middle School and High School. Building Reports – Elementary School Jarman reported that the Middle Principal Aaron Miller provided the School had seven students participate in Board with a written report. Miller club cross country, led by Sadie Gump, reviewed work in the first year of the Delaney Draeger, Peter Hahn, and Max Response To Intervention and instruc- Anderson; the football team, led by Levi tion (RTIi) program, covered by a four Richards on offense and Jeremiah Ar- year grant to improve Core reading; in- royo on defense, was 5-1 on the season; formed the Board that classroom awards and the volleyball team, led by Emma are being well received by students in Rylands, Kortnie Adams, and MVP classrooms that respond to and meet Brooklyn Walters, only lost one match at expectations for clean classrooms and the end-of-season Seaside Tournament. bathrooms, and hallway and cafeteria Jarman reported that High behavior, as part of the Positive Behav- School volleyball finished 2 nd in the ior and Intervention Supports (PBIS) Northwest League and once again quali- program; and introduced 20% and 100% fied for the State Playoffs, but lost in Meetings – 20% Meetings focus on low- the first round. The cross country team est performing students to help de- velop intervention plans and 100% Meetings focus on all students in a particular grade level to look at trends to determine effective teaching methods. High School/Middle School Principal Nate Underwood For fast cash! provided the Board with a written report. Underwood reported that the Vernonia High School 2016- 17 graduation rate was 84.8%, up from 69.8% the previous year and significantly above Oregon’s average of 74.8% and comparison schools of 80.7%. Underwood told the Board research shows that data for Fresh- man On-Track-To-Graduate is the most telling indicator of high 2245 Baseline St., Cornelius (Across from Fred Meyer) school graduation rates; the data Open everyday tracks attendance, academic suc- 503-530-8119 at 10 a.m. State Licensed PB-0388 cess and behavior. VHS reported Don’t Sell it! Pawn it! Baseline Pawn, Inc. Meyer’s Auto Body Board Approves OSBA Nomination and Bylaws – The Board nominated member Greg Kintz as Regional Oregon School Board Association (OSBA) Rep- resentative; Kintz has represented the re- gion for numerous years and is up for re- election. The Board also approved new bylaws, as the OSBA is reorganizing as a Non-Profit Corporation. Board Accepts Retirement of Sher- man-Heath – The Board accepted the retirement of Instructional Assistant Roxanna Sherman- Heath, effective Jan- uary 31, 2018. Board Considers Agenda Re-order – Board Chair Brett Costley presented the Board with a proposed re-order of the meeting agenda for consideration. Changes included moving Public Com- ment towards the end of the meeting, and adding Monitoring Board Perfor- mance as a way to self-check their work. Costley asked the Board to review his proposed changes; the Board took no ac- tion. Superintendent’s Report – Superinten- dent Aaron Miller told the Board that the PCC Dual Credit program has been very beneficial for students and the District. Miller updated the Board on the Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) program that all five Columbia County School Districts are working on. Miller in- formed the Board the the County has received a $68,000 grant from CareO- regon to implement the program during the 2018-19 school year, and said Dis- trict representatives have been traveling around the state to see how other schools are implementing the program. Miller provided an update on Bond projects. He said trophy cases have been purchased and the Mist School roof replacement project is going out to bid. He said the welding shop construc- tion is being planned for the summer of 2018, and new classrooms and the foot- ball field/track construction is planned for the summer of 2019. He said he is reviewing new sound and video equip- ment for the gyms and Commons. Miller provided new Procedur- al Handbook pages for Administrative Chain of Command and Student Behav- ior. This new project is ongoing and will provide staff with consistent expecta- tions on how to handle interactions with students. Miller said he is researching op- tions to fence the grandstands at Green- man Field in order to protect the District against liability until the City decides whether to repair the roof or remove it. Vernonia Students of the Month November 2017 Elementary School Jessika Marine Front row (left to right): Aubrie Morrison (1st), Aiden Achondo (K), Bella Leach (2nd), and Weston Dennis (K) Back row: Malaki Erb (3rd), Silas Hunter (3rd), Momi Leininger (5th), Robyn Naron (4th), and Andre De Field (5th) Grade 7 Jessika is known as a motivated, dependable and trustworthy student who is also very friendly. She plays volleyball and is also on the cheer squad. She volunteers at the Fire Department and also participates in her church’s youth group. In her spare time she likes to study, spend time with her family, help take care of her six younger siblings, read, and do art. MacKenzie Fassold We go the extra mile for you 493 Bridge Street VERNONIA • 503-429-0248 welcomed new coaches John Roady and George Spaulding and placed several runners on the All League First Team. The football team finished third in the Northwest League with a 4-5 record and placed numerous players on the All League Teams. Jarman noted in his report that the lack of usable covered bleachers at the football stadium was detrimental and would like to see the District resolve this issue. 17 Grade 12 MacKenzie is the co-chair of the Project Based Learning class and also helps with art projects throughout the school. She is a member of the National Honor Society. She is involved with the youth group and helps with Vacation Bible School at Vernonia Christian Church. She competes on the track and field team. In her spare time she likes to read, draw, and do art, and also loves spending time in the outdoors. She has been accepted to both Portland State and University of Portland for next year to study Criminal Justice and plans to attend Law School. Sponsored by State Representative Brad Witt
