schools
february21
2019
13
Schools Update: Measure 98 Expenditures
By Superintendent Aaron Miller
Last year voters approved Bal-
lot Measure 98 which provided extra
funding for school districts to support
students in the areas of career and tech-
nical education (CTE), college-level
opportunities, and dropout prevention.
For the 2018-19 school year the Verno-
nia School District (VSD) received over
$99,000 from Measure 98 funding, and
is spending these funds in each of the
three areas listed above.
CTE funding has helped make
improvements to the existing wood
shop, and provided materials for use in
this department. CTE in Vernonia has
also been enhanced through a paid part-
nership with the Hillsboro Chamber of
Commerce which enables our students
to participate in job shadow, and em-
ployee development services that would
otherwise be unavailable to our students.
In the area of college-level op-
portunities, our AVID (Achievement Via
Individual Determination) program is
now serving students in 8 th , 9 th , 10 th and
11 th grades. This program ramps up the
overall college-going atmosphere with-
in Vernonia High School and Vernonia
Middle School, as well as provides an
AVID elective where selected students
are able to further develop college-going
skills, attitudes and actions that help
prepare them for attending college and
furthering their post-secondary opportu-
nities following graduation.
The final area that the VSD has
utilized Measure 98 dollars is in helping
prevent high school students from drop-
ping out. We have hired a graduation
coach who helps high school students
School Board Report
At the February 14, 2019 School
Board Meeting:
Budget Calendar – The Board received
the Budget Calendar for year 2019-20
which shows meetings to review the
budget on May 2 and May 9 with a Pub-
lic Hearing and the Adoption of the Bud-
get on June 13. There are currently four
open positions on the Budget Commit-
tee. Anyone interested in serving should
contact Barb Carr at (503) 429-5891 or
BCarr@Vernonia.K12.us.
School Board Elections – Four seats on
the Vernonia School Board will be up
for election on May 21. (See details on
front page.)
Board Discusses Process for New Su-
perintendent – Current Superintendent
Aaron Miller has informed the Board
that he is considering retirement in the
next few years. The Board discussed
starting a process to prepare for the tran-
sition.
Board Accepts Resignation – The
Board voted to accept the resignation
of Board Member Katie Cook, effective
immediately. Cook’s seat on the Board
is up for election in May.
School Profile – Middle/High School
Principal Nate Underwood provided a
copy of the new Oregon school report
card, called “At-A-Glance School Pro-
file.” The report showed numerous sta-
tistics for the schools including: regular
attendance is slightly down; and students
on-track to graduate is up 17% but still
VERNONIA
C H I RO P R AC T I C C L I N I C, I NC.
VernoniaChiro.com
below the Oregon average.
Board Approves NWRESD Service
Plan – The Board voted to approve the
2019-20 Northwest Regional Educa-
tion Service District (NWRESD) Local
Service Plan and budget for the District.
The NWRESD provides programs for
school districts in Columbia, Clatsop,
Tillamook, and Washington counties,
including programs for students with
special needs, technology support, and
administrative support services.
Board Sets Transfer Limits – As part
of their annual duties the Board voted to
set a limit of 15 students who live out-
side the District who can transfer to at-
tend school here.
Board Votes to Approve Support for
Education Funding – The Board voted
to approve a Resolution from the Ore-
gon School Board Association (OSBA)
as part of their “Oregonians for Student
Success” campaign that will ask Oregon
Legislators to provide adequate funding
for state-wide education.
Board Approves Agreement – The
Board voted to approve an agreement
with PACE through the Oregon School
Board Association to provide Property
and Casualty Insurance Coverage for
Education.
Board Approves Education Hours Ex-
emption – The Board voted to approve
a recommendation from Superintendent
Aaron Miller to request an exemption
continued on page 17
monitor their credits toward graduation,
develop a college and career path for
their future, attend job fairs, as well as
to apply for scholarships and college en-
trance. All of these activities help ensure
students are on track to graduate.
In addition to our graduation
coach, we also have a team of educators
who attend regular 9 th Grade On Track
meetings and workshops. Studies show
that students who are on track to gradu-
ate after 9 th grade (i.e. they have earned
all the possible HS credits available to
a freshman) are significantly more like-
ly to graduate than those students who
fail courses as freshman and are not on
track to graduate. We believe this work
is making a marked difference in the
actions of our students and faculty, and
will continue to lead to higher gradua-
tion rates.
Finally, to help older students
who are struggling to meet graduation
requirements, we have contracted for the
services of Oregon Outreach, Incorpo-
rated (OOI). OOI is an alternative edu-
cation program which provides several
of our students with a modified school
day so they can focus on credit recovery
outside the normal setting of a 7-period
high school work day. This program has
been successful at providing an alterna-
tive setting where students are able to fo-
cus on the courses they need to graduate,
pass them, and earn their high school di-
ploma.
Measure 98 dollars were man-
dated by the people’s vote and students
in the Vernonia School District are reap-
ing the benefits of these expenditures.
Vernonia Students of the Month
January 2019
Elementary School
Paige Mendelsohn
Front Row: Clarissa McGuire
(K), Kristina McGuire (K), Alana
Watts (1), Gus Hunter (2), Maika
Borst (2) Back Row: Eli Hark-
son (2), Silas Hunter (4), Jayden
Josephson Hanner (5), Charlie
Campo (5), Mathew Meglen (2),
Noah Aguilar (2), Kylan Van
Lom (3)
Grade 7
Paige is known as a hard working and creative
student who goes above and beyond on her
assignments. She is also known for being kind
and compassionate to other students. Paige says
she enjoys learning about U.S. history in school.
She does track, plays saxophone in the band,
sings in the choir, and takes both art and shop
classes. In her free time she likes to draw and
take care of her ball python pet snake.
Hepner Forster
Grade 12
Hepner is a three-sport athlete who plays football,
is a captain and two-time qualifier for State in
wrestling, and plays baseball. He says he enjoys his
literature class the most in school. He plays
trombone, baritone, and tuba in the band, and has
participated in Robotics in the past. He says he
plans to enlist in the U.S. Air Force after graduation.
Sponsored by State Representative Brad Witt
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