Image provided by: Clackamas Community College; Oregon City, OR
About The print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1977-1989 | View Entire Issue (April 6, 1983)
Monologue Idle Hands J. Dana Haynes Editor In Chief It comes as a surprise to no one that the economy is in a mess, despite the President’s pristine Pollyanna nonsense about happy days being here again. The plain and simple truth is that a few economic factors (which are as nebulous and sorcerous to the common man as is the Neilson Ratings) are on the rise, from ‘horrible’ to ‘very bad.’ In the meantime, people nation-wide are unemployed and there seems to be precious little the government can do for them, or that they can do for themselves. Now, Clackamas Community College is working on a plan that just may help several hun dred unemployed citizens of the metroplex. It is called Take Charge Day, and will be held at the College on Saturday, April 16. Those of us who have been around the cam pus for a while have seen many worthwhile pro jects, such as the Retired Seniors Volunteer Pro gram and the community education system. In fact, social programs have become a permanent and prominent facet of the College. However, in the three years I have attended this school, I do not remember seeing a more far-sighted or social ly responsive program than Take Charge. The idea came from Mt. Hood Community College, who in turn got the plan from the Henry Ford College of Detroit. It is an entire day dedicated toward helping the victims of the reces sion (or depression, depending on your level of poverty). The idea is not to find jobs for the unemployed, but to provide options. “Options” seems like a relatively commonplace word. However, it is the options in life that most quickly fade when a person or a family is faced with unemployment. There will be four components, called tracks, to Take Charge Day. They are: (1) Focus on people who are without jobs, but who possess certain skills. Many of these people have been employed all their lives and have never had to face a job interview or write a resume. This track will focus on how to find work, where to look, how to approach a possible employer and other job-search skills. (2) Focus on people who are umemployed and without moneymaking skills. Most of the peo ple who will be helped by this track are right out of high school and/or still living at home. Of course, the best way to help someone like this is to educate them and give them career training, and that has always been the prime responsibility of the community college system., (3) Focus on people who would like to become self-employed. The Randall Hall gym nasium will be overrun with self-employed people on Take Charge Day. They will discuss ways for the unemployed to make extra money at home, such as baby-sitting, freelance writing and jewelry stone setting. (4) Focus on families that have gone from two-incomes to one-income. The problem in these families (and there are a great many of them in this county) is that they are used to living on an economic level that suddenly becomes beyond their means. For them, the secret is in learning to live on less. This track will focus on budget adherence, fix-it-yourself projects and ways to keep the cost of living down. Take Charge Day is a terrific program, and the College is expecting as many as 800 people to show up. However, to handle that many, volunteers are needed. Anyone who wishes to help is encouraged to contact the Job Placement Center, ext. 213, 214. Volunteers can work two- hour shifts, doing various chores. This is a chance for those of us to take the helm and have an effect on the troubles that beset our society. This is where Clackamas Community earns the name “Community.” Page 2 Libraries: endangered species in need of monetary protection Doug Vaughan News Editor Public libraries are a value to every citizen. It is a place where unlimited knowledge can be gained for no cost. Yet this is one area that has been hit with rough economic times and is suffer ing. Libraries are being affected nationwide as well as locally. On top of being crippled, there is no help being given to them. In fact, President Reagan has cut all federal funds for public and academic libraries. The figure allotted to libraries was around $80 million last year, but was removed from Reagan’s 1983 budget. Locally the crunch has also been noticed. The majority of a library’s funding is done at the local level, and the recession’s effect on property tax bases has been tremendous. Multnomah County’s one area that has been hit badly by this epidemic. Multnomah’s library system has taken reductions in every aspect the past few years, yet next year it will face another cut—a tragic 26 per cent. This cut is larger than almost every other cut in the county-funded programs. Worst of all, it is in a place that will severely hurt everyone. Cuts in any institution will be felt'by every citizen. The public library is a place where anyone can go and have access to information and ideas which most likely will help that person in some way. The affect in Multnomah County has been a shutdown of the libraries for a week, the first ever shutdown of this sort in the 119 years they have existed—even during the depression. The libraries are preparing for future cuts in staff by one-third, the shutdown of some of the operating branches and a possibility of a shorter operating week. But there is a bright spot in Clackamas County and I am glad to hear it. Recently, County residents passed by 56 percent a three- year library levy totaling $4 million. It will raise $1.3 million annually to support Clackamas County libraries. The support of our libraries is important. To reduce funds for them will only hurt ourselves. Hopefully, Clackamas County residents will con tinue to support their libraries in the future and ward off the tragedy that has crippled other countries’ systems. Dialogue single activity . disables College as has is worth had three of these already, with disasterous results. Scheduling was halted, the job placement center was rendered useless, the counseling center area was useless, the whole C.C. was useless for the time of the . . . “Show.” And what of the college placement visitors we had on campus last Lip Sync? I am sure that the opinions taken But, when a Lip Sync is totally the Lip Sync done, it it? We have bad for image fallacies Editor: Dear There has been an unfor tunate rumor that has been in circulation here at CCC this spring. Rumor has it that another Lip Sync contest is in the works. Now college is for every body. And programming for students should reflect that. That is also true. THE PRiNT, a member of the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association, aims to be a fair and impartial journalistic medium covering the campus community as thoroughly as possible. Opi nions expressed in THE PRINT do not necessarily relect those of the College administration, faculty, Associated Student Govern ment or other members of THE PRINT. Clackamas Community College, 19600 S. Molalla Avenue, Oregon City, OR 97045. back to the various universities that were on campus that day were simply superb. Consider ing that it’s hard to tell people about your school, or universi ty, as you have been invited to do, with a bunch of screaming people twenty-five feet away. How many times are we going to be “April Fools?” Students come and visit CCC from different area high schools, and see what? Over glorified rock and roll? Come on, let’s face reality. We will continue to appear as a “High school with ash trays” as long as we allow such farces to go on. The money in staff wages, and facility upkeep alone could have most likely paid for a healthy tuition waiver for some kid that would like to go to school next year, and who won’t get a chance. A lot of people were unable to do anything during the lip sync. It’s unfortunate that our representation of the students is so poor as to allow such pro gramming to occur. It is also hard to convince the communi ty to give their hard-earned taxes to an institution that doesn’t effectively use them. Sure, the money used for the contest itself isn’t public funds. But wasted staff time, hence wasted wages sure is. There is a lot that could be improved without the negative things such as lip sync. What comes next, Mud Wrestling in the cafeteria? Sincerely, Robert Fisher Vice-President PHI-BETA LAMBDA Clackamas Community College