2 the clackamas print
news
Wednesday, Nov, 18, 2009
NAMI struggles to find members
By Annemarie Schulte
Associate News Editor
NAMI on Campus, Clackamas’
college version of the National
Alliance on Mental Illness organiza
tion; has officially been on campus
for half of fall term. Now, Kathy
Fredrickson’s club, still a little green,
is thriving because of her vision and
hope to help others through what
she has been through: the throes of
mental illness.
At the club’s second meeting, a
student member an<L Fredrickson
met to discuss the club’s progress.
VP Dale Chambers was not present,
nor did anyone else show up. Two
people have joined the club. A few
promise to, W haven’t yet It.seems
that Fredrickson and NAMI are still
battling the stigma of mental illness;
it shows in the low attendance at the
NAMI connection meetings.
Still, Fredrickson remains as
bright and optimistic as ever, show
ing her strength.
Much like Adam Goldstein on
his MTV show, “Gone Too Far,”
where Adam intervenes in addicts’
lives and tries to help them recov
er, Fredrickson puts herself in the
middle of other people’s strug
gles with mental illness when she
struggles from it herself. A heroin
addict, DJ AM (Adam Goldstein)
died tragically from a drug overdose
on August 28, 2009. Speculations
that the show killed him continue
to circle throughout the media and
the psychology profession. Was it
too soon to put himself in the same
situations that he had just recovered
from? Some say the show and being
around other addicts using drugs he
had just overcome addiction from
caused him to relapse, according to
the New York Times. He was in too
deep and got much closer to drugs
than he should have; fee temptation
was so strong it eventually overtook
him. It took immense strength to get
as far and help as many people as he
did. Doing what Fredrickson does,
and what Adam Goldstein was able
to do, takes self-control and determi
nation to help others.
Which raises fee question, how
long should a person be recovered
from an illness before they begin
trying to help others?
Tim Pantages, an addiction coun
selor, said “AA doesn’t really have
an official opinion on when some
one is allowed to become a sponsor...
The general rule of thumb, I’d say, is
that a sponsor should have at least a
full year of sobriety, but generally
speaking, fee longer they have, the
better sponsors they’ll be.”
. In NAMI, Fredrickson, who acts
as a mentor, is counseling people
who may already be recovered or
are more recovered from mental ill
ness than she is.
Fredrickson tells of an incident
that happened about a month or two
ago, a testament to fee fact feat she
still battles mental illness every day
of her life.
Fredrickson said she had a ter
rible day. She walked into a man’s
bedroom that was in fee home for
recovering people that she works
for. There happened to be a knife
there on fee bedside table and before
she was aware of it, Fredrickson
began cutting her arm, not hav-
'ian Steele Clackamas Phi
Kathy Fredrickson discusses meeting dates with a fellow NAMI member during NAMI’s second
meeting this term.
ing any control over what she was
doing.
Fredrickson says that NAMI is
about finding other ways to deal
with mental illness and hard days by
not doing negative things. She turns
her negative and weak experiences
into helpfill and encouraging aspects
to help people struggling wife men
tal illness. Fredrickson says she
opens up about her struggles with
her illness to other people and that
she is often thanked for doing so.
Fredrickson has been involved
wife NAMI for about eight years
and continues to deliver their mes
sage wherever she goes. She says fee
goal is just to help people, regardless
of if they come to fee club or not
“The goal is more than just fee
club itself; I want the support system
that people can see us, and feel free
to come talk to me,” she said.
Fredrickson says people ofte
contact her while walking to class
and she says she is able to helptha
feat way.
“We want the word out, we a
here,” Fredrickson said.
Fredrickson added feat studeu
need to realize, “There is help a
there. If we don’t have it, wed
get it”
Controversial measures tax wealthy and bring money to public fundii
By John Hurlburt
Co-Editor in Chief
state’s general fund is used to
fund K-12 education, corrections
and human services.
Community. college budgets
The two bills have already
statewide have been getting passed through state legislature
beat like a piñata at fee end of in May of this year but through
a birthday party this year; fee out the summer, business inter
only difference is that what’s left est groups -such as Oregonians
inside isn’t candy but a substance Against Job-Killing Taxes, were
resembling despair.
' able to raise enough signatures to
The current budget Oregon has get fee bills sent to fee voters of
allotted for community colleges
Oregon.
in the 2009-2011 school year has
Pat McCormick, media con
already dropped from $500 in tact for Oregonians Against Job-
the 2007-2009 biennium to $450 Killing Taxes, said businesses
million. Now there is a possibility have not been fighting taxes or
colleges like Clackamas may end additional funding for fee state.
up with even less cash than they
Businesses have been fight
were promised earlier this year ing these two bills, however,
when fee budget was published.
because they believe fee bills
A referendum taking place this will be affecting Oregonians
coming January will be a crucial and fee job market in nega
moment not only for Clackamas tive ways.
but community colleges and pub
“We can’t get out of
lic services all around fee state. In this hole in Oregon until
the upcoming vote, measures 66 we raise more private sec
and 67 would raise taxes on the tor jobs and we cannot do
wealthy and businesses statewide this by taxing the business
in order to support fee general. es which offer those jobs,’
fund.
McCormick said.
According to Courtney Wilton,
McCormick says that the bills
vice president of college services, would raise taxes paid by busi
fee bills combined will generate nesses an additional 37 percent;
an estimated $733 million to help in his opinion an increase of this
support Oregon’s general fund.
proportion would have an impact
About three quarters of fee that would not be productive.
Clackamas Print
The Clackamas Print
19600 S. Molalla Ave.
Oregon City, OR97045
503-657-6958, ext. 2309
“This increase of more than
a third comes at a time when
the business community is suffer
ing the worst recession since fee
Great Depression,” McCormick
added.
John Wykoff, government
relations office» for Oregon
Community College Association
(OCCA), believes it would be
hard for many junior colleges to
handle any more funding cuts.
“With enrollment levels as
they are, it would be very difficult
to deal with,” Wykoff said.
According to Wykoff, fee aver
age full time equivalence (FTE)
for community colleges through
out the state has increased 15 per
cent from last year, yet funding
G eneral F unds
has dramatically fallen.
Wilton warns that more reduc
tions in budget might affect
this upturn in enrollment.
“It’s possible if we have to
RECT I ON
make large budget reductions
that might impact enroll
ment. You can’t continue
to support as many stu
dents wife less money,”
Wilton said.
These bills allow
community colleges
to retain $24 million
that fee state has already
allotted to them in order to
keep fee current budget in
balance.
If fee two bills fail to
pass, Clackamas would
lose more of its funding
and almost inevitably be
forced to make more cuts.
These cutsNvould not be
the first Clackamas has
Illustration by Kayla Berge Clackamas Print
Co-Editors in Chief: Kayla Berge and * Ad Manager: Meredith James
Design Editor: Kelsey Schneider
Staff Writers/ Photographers:
Copy Editor: Kayla Calloway
Erik Andersen, Dale Balbi,
News Editor: Abigail Neet
, Chrlos Calderon, Matt
Associate News Editor:
Garrison, Jessica Foster, Jessica
Annemarie Schulte
Homer, Javierh Montero,
A&C Editor: Matthew Ostergren
John Petty, Brian Steele, Mark
Sports Editor: Mark Foster
Sunderland, Steven Weldon
PhotoEditor: John Shufelt
John Hurlburt
Web Editor: Brad Heineke
Production Assistants:
Jaime Dunkle, Corey Romick,
Jessica Sheppard
Journalism Adviser:
Melissa Jones
trimmed recently. March of tn
year a budget shortfall of $131
million caused fee school to 11
off 20 employees, raise tuitiq
and cut its drafting department. |
Alyssa Fava, Associate^
Student Government presides
says that this referendum w
be a decisive moment in our col
lege’s future.
“Since Clackamas has alreaJ
budgeted for this money, if I
lose it, the effects will be defl
mental,” Fava said.
ASG is not legally allow!
to take a stance on bills subml
ted for a referendum. ASG I
however holding two events!
order to allow students to becol
more informed about fee upcofl
ing vote.
The first event called “Facl
Out Loud” will be held Mondi
Nov. 23 and will involve team
of students scattered throughoj
campus yelling facts about |
upcoming bills. The event will I
visible at different times scatter!
throughout fee day.
The next day, Tuesday, Nol
24, there will be a formal debal
at noon followed by a question
and answers session at 1 pl
where students can pose qua
tions about the upcoming vol
and its effects.
G oals : The Clackamas Print aims
to report the news in an honest,
unbiased, professional manner.
The opinions expressed do not
necessarily reflect those of the
student body, college adminis
tration, its faculty or The Print.
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