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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (June 4, 2020)
schools/in other words june4 2020 11 Schools Update: Vernonia Family Academy Moves to K-12 By Superintendent Aaron Miller Continuing on its quest to meet the needs of a diverse population of stu- dents and families, the Vernonia School District (VSD) is excited to announce the addition of grades 9-12 to the Verno- nia Family Academy (VFA) alternative education program. To support the program’s in- crease in population and course offer- ings, an additional teacher has been add- ed to the VFA team. Ms. Laura Blacker brings with her a wealth of experience and resolute dedication to the students and families in the Vernonia community. As a team, Ms. Blacker and Mrs. Taylor will collaborate to create a sustainable and rigorous high school program while continuing to enhance the success of the Kindergarten-8 th grade VFA students. As students in the Vernonia School District, the VFA high school students will have access to Vernonia High School (VHS) services such as col- lege guidance counseling, extra-curricu- lar opportunities, and rigorous online programs with advanced placement and college ready courses. The Vernonia Family Academy works together with the Vernonia School District to prepare students to be college and career ready by opening the doors for all to discover the world of endless possibilities. If you would like more informa- tion about the Vernonia Family Acad- emy, you may contact Debbie Taylor at dtaylor@vernoniak12.org, Laura Black- er at lblacker@vernoniak12.org or Su- perintendent Aaron Miller at (503) 429- 5891. The Hobo Corner: Oh The Hobo Hubris By Jack Kauppila Hey Everyone – It’s Jack here, from the Hobo Bakery in Vernonia, my new hometown. How’s your Starter? Were you inspired by my last column to start your own bubbling mass of yeasties? Is it a healthy, growing tri- umph, or are you looking at a grey gob of goo, wondering if you can ever use the bowl again? Well, either way, good on you for trying. And if you didn’t try, good on you too – I don’t know if I can stand the competition! Because… The VERY NEXT DAY, after I shared my VERY EXPERT OPINION on starting YOUR VERY OWN STARTER, I returned to the bakery to find a VERY UNHAPPY HOBO STARTER stand- ing in the middle of the kitchen. Wow, this sounds like a really cool children’s story: Jack and the VERY UNHAPPY HOBO STARTER. I can see the cover with a little one-eyed baker cowering before a huge, gloopy glop of ferment- ing dough – wait, was this on a Scooby Doo? Lemme get back to you on that later. For now, I had a bucket of run- ny, over-active, underfed, hanging-on- for-dear-life yeasties right there on the counter where I left them 12 hours be- fore. OH THE HUMANITY! OH THE HUBRIS! I had gotten cocky, overcon- fident, excessively prideful, and neglect- ed to feed or water my Hobo Starter I felt so awful. All those beauti- ful little creatures that could have built glorious monuments to gluten, cathe- drals to crunch and chew, that is, a Hobo Olive. Or Hobo Garlic. Or anything! What a sad end to the short, frantic life of a yeast! Hold on, I feel another chil- dren’s book coming on… And so the recovery began. I meditated on the lost yeasties. I prayed for the lives of those remaining, and for a strong, healthy Hobo Starter to make beautiful Hobo Boules. And then I freaked out a little, because I just added 12 hours to a process that already takes 20 hours or more and it was all due in 17! I did the math. It did not compute. Then I found my way back to the breath. I remembered a practice from meditation master Thich Nhat Hanh: Breathing in, I am calm. Breathing out I smile to my eyes. Breathing in I am calm. Breathing out I smile. Repeat... At this point it only takes a few breaths and I’m smiling to my eyes and thinking myself quite a silly monkey to get so upset. And, since there’s noth- ing to it, but to do it, I got to work on bringing My Hobo Starter back from the brink. Since I can’t seem to throw any- thing away (just ask my Sweet Sweet Mary) I made one small bucket with my normal proportions of starter, flour and water. Then I made a giant bucket of all the rest and gave it a big drink of water, a good handful of Whole Wheat and Rye flour and a big bunch of Strong White flour. Then I gave it a long, luxurious massage filled with all my best inten- tions for the yeasties’ future and a prom- ise that they would be treated far better than their lost cousins. Then I had to wait. There’s just no rushing it for me, because, as De Niro says of his overcooked steak in Raging Bull “It defeats its whole purpose!” So, after a few apologetic phone calls to re- schedule deliveries, I settled in for the night. 3 am comes really early. That’s why most of the time I sleep till 4, but this particular morning I had to meet my new colony of yeasties and make some bread! Oh man, those little yeasties came back nice! I used the whole small bucket to catch up on the bread I owed, and borrowed from the big bucket to re- grow the small bucket. And, over the last few weeks it has been brilliant! As the big bucket matures and gets more and more sour, I can borrow from it to supplement my regular starter and make up some interesting flavor profiles. Lesson learned – again! I was so proud, so confident in my starter. I think I even called it bullet-proof. And then I murdered about a bojillion yeasties because I was too busy thinking I’m ALL THAT, rather than just doing what I’m supposed to. Since the opposite of Hubris is Humility, I humbly remind myself that if I say I am, I’m not. And that Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but think- ing of yourself less. Well, that’s all from the Hobo Corner this month. We’re happy to be- gin reopening with reduced weekend hours and we would love to see you! Let me know if there’s anything I can make for you. Peace and Happy Happy Toast- ing, Jack Vernonia School Board Meetings are held on the second Thursday of each month. The next School Board Meeting is scheduled for June 11 at 6:00 pm. Please check the District’s website for updates/changes at www.vernonia.k12.or.us