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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (July 18, 2019)
schools july18 2019 13 School Board Report Superintendent Report – Superintendent Aaron Mill- er told the Board he did not intended to hold any Com- munity Chats this year due to lack of participation dur- ing the last year, except for meetings in Mist. Rather than meet every month, the Board asked Miller to hold just two Community Chats during the upcoming school year. Miller asked Board members to notify the ad- ministration ahead of time if they are unable to attend meetings. Miller provided the Board with a letter he has sent concerning the District’s completion of their wet- land mitigation project on the Mill site that off-set the school construction project. Miller said the District has worked on, and monitored the site for seven years. Miller said, while the District’s responsibility for the wetland is completed, he plans to work with the City, who owns the site, to continue to have students work at the site and use it to hold field trips. Miller said the District has begun purchasing curriculum for the At-Home School Program, which has 45 participants, of which 30 are newly enrolled stu- dents to the District. Miller told the Board there are seven high school interns working through the YTP program, su- At the July 11, 2019 School Board Meeting: Board Discusses Vacancy – The Board discussed the process for filling one vacant seat and is now accepting applications for the position. (See full story on front page.) Board Approves Substitute Teacher Pay – The Board voted unanimously to establish substitute teacher pay at $188 per day. Board Approves Meeting Schedule – The Board voted unanimously to approve the schedule for Board meetings for the 2019-20 school year. All meetings are scheduled for the second Thursday of the month at 6:00 pm, with meetings in October and April to be held at the Mist School; all others will be held in the Schools Library. The Board has reserved January 30 and April 30 for potential workshops if needed. Board Approves New Hires – The Board approved the following new hires recommended by Superinten- dent Aaron Miller: Kathryn Dalton - special education, Jenna Schwartz - 4 th grade, Ian Hunt - 5 th grade, Jen- nifer Gamache - HS health/physical education, Olivia Keister - HS foreign language. pervised by Mr. Benassi, and another seven students working through the District’s Internship program. Students are working in various jobs in the school, around the community, with the VSD in custodial and grounds maintenance, at the Upper Nehalem Water- shed Council, at the Summer Meals Program, at Cedar Ridge, and for the City of Vernonia. Bond Update – Superintendent Aaron Miller provided an update on Bond projects. Miller said interior painting by volunteers and staff is taking place at the Mist School, and said car- pet, doors, window shades, ceiling repairs, and lighting installation will take place. Miller said installation of playground equipment and cement work will take place at a later time. Miller said construction of the metal shop/ welding shop is on track to start at the beginning of the school year. Miller said design work for the classroom ad- dition is being completed and plans are to open the new art classroom at the start of the 2020-21 school year. Miller said lighting and a scoreboard will be installed prior to the 2019-20 school year at the new football field/track. He said other electric infrastructure for future grandstands, restrooms, and other needs, will be installed at the same time. Elected Board Members Take Oath of Of- fice – Three Board members took the Oath of Office following their election in May. All three were already currently serving on the Board. Current Chair Greg Kintz and Steve Whiteman were re-elected, while Brittanie Roberts won her seat as a write-in candidate after she failed to file paperwork on time to be on the ballot. Board Elects Officers – The Board voted to re-elect Greg Kintz as Chair and Stacey Pel- ster as Vice Chair. Superintendent Aaron Miller reads the Oath of Office to elected Board members Brittanie Roberts, Greg Kintz, and Steve Whiteman. Board Chooses Committee Liaisons and Assign- ments – Board members selected District Com- mittees they would like to serve as the liaison to, and other assignments. Susan Wagner will serve as liaison to the Safety Committee and also serve on the Negotiations and Facility Committees. Steve Whiteman will serve on the Negotiations Commit- tee. Greg Kintz will serve on the Negotiations and Policy Review Committees. Brittanie Roberts will serve on the Policy Review and Facilities Com- mittees. Stacey Pelster will serve on the Facilities Committee. Melissa Zavales will serve on the Ver- nonia Education Foundation Committee. Legislative Wins for Oregon’s Children As we look back over the 2019 legislative session, there were many wins for Oregon’s families and chil- dren, but also a number of misses, par- ticularly around child abuse prevention and intervention efforts. Children First for Oregon annually develops the Chil- dren’s Agenda with 110 partner orga- nizations representing a wide range of policy areas impacting child well-being. The 2019 Children’s Agenda included 63 legislative concepts with four priority issues. Legislative wins included three of the four Children’s Agenda priorities: • Renter protections ending no cause evictions • Universally offered home visiting for families with newborns • Early learning investments creating the Early Learning Equity Fund and fully funding Early Intervention/Early Child- hood Special Education Additional legislative wins in 2019: • Student Success Act with a significant new dedicated funding source for Or- egon schools, along with investments in early learning, mental health supports for students, school meals, and improv- ing outcomes for historically marginal- ized students • Youth Sentencing Reform to create a youth justice system with redemption e rm an DM D Vernonia Dental D h . r C r h p o is t M er . h S c eu 622 Bridge Street Vernonia, OR 97064 phone (503) 429-0880 -- fax (503) 429-0881 and rehabilitation at its core • Youth Suicide Prevention plans in ev- ery school district • Paid Family and Medical Leave • Driver Licenses for All so all parents can get to work and get their children to school • Significant investments in affordable housing • New investments in child welfare in- cluding recruitment, training, and better supports for foster families • Earned Income Tax Credit increased and renewed to help move families out of poverty • A new statewide system of care for children that will better provide assess- ments, behavioral health services, and other supports for children with the greatest needs However, there were some dis- appointments with legislation that didn’t continued on page 17 Vernonia School Board Meetings are held on the second Thursday of each month. The next School Board Meeting is scheduled for August 8 at 6:00 pm in the Schools Library.