2 The Clackamas Print
Wednesday, Oct. 27, 2010
WORK: Hiri ng slow
Budget in decline
By David Spears
The Clackamas Print
Unless you have been on a sabbatical studying the
burrowing habits of earthworms in Outer Mongolia
for the last few years, then you have probably noticed
the economic storm gripping America.
Unemployment rates are up, housing prices are
down. State unemployment is around 10.6 percent
and economic uncertainty “is certainly the word of
the day,” according to Oregon’s Office of Economic
Analysis. This new economic reality has proven a bane
to budgets everywhere, and Clackamas Community
College is no exception. As Courtney Wilton, Vice
President of College Services, explained it, “As the
state loses money, the school loses money.”
A deeper look at the numbers is very informative.
Again turning to the Office- of Economic Analysis,
their latest information warns that “Oregon will also
see a non-starter recovery in terms of job growth.
Weakness remains in housing and commercial real
estate and many financial institutions are still holding
questionable assets.”
Oregon is ranked the 44th state in terms of non-farm
job growth according to the same report. Oregon’s
general fund projections have decreased $377.5 mil
lion since the last forecast and over $1 billion since
the end of the last legislative session’s economic
forecast.
Despite a robust 14 percent growth in enrollment
this year, the college is losing state funding faster than
it can replace it with the increased revenue from more
students. State support dropped from $500 million
in 2007-2009 to $417 million in 2009-2011. It could
continue to drop.
“You can do only two things really, make budget
cuts or raise tuition. So do you keep raising tuitions
or keep cutting the budget? You can only realistically
raise tuition so much, and practically speaking we
look at what we can continue to cut without impacting
the education students get,” Wilton said.
The college has been forced to do both. The school
has left around 26 open positions unfilled and laid off
20 employees over the last biennium. Wilton com
mented that every position is under intense scrutiny.
Wilton’sown office is not immune to such scrutiny4, it
is one secretary short because they found they could
get by without that position.
Tuition has also been raised $12 per credit hour
over the last biennium to try and offset some of the
budget gaps.
“The tuition raises have affected my budget
because Pell Grants have gone down,” said Sean
Huggins, a student at Clackamas.
Huggins added that if not for the generosity of
his grandparents, his own personal economic state
would be far worse.
In spite of the hard economic numbers, not all
departments and projects of the school have felt the
slashing budget. A bright spot is the Veteran Center
run by Veteran Affairs Coordinator Greg Myers.
Myers explains that, thanks to two federal grants,
he has “more than enough” to budget the needs of
the center, which has been able raise over $580,000
with the help of grants and private contributions.
“This is unprecedented for a community col
lege. This usually (is a) university level thing,”
said Myers.
Even with the success of the Veteran Center,
the economic realities are still present. The grants
that are paying Myers salary are due to expire next
July. The job fairs the center was able to host for
thousands of local veterans will be at jeopardy
unless Myers can find more funding. He was able
to keep tiie cost of the fairs low by networking
with local businesses to share the expenses, but
without federal funding, he is not sure if they will
happen again.
It all comes down to the fact that when the state
loses money, the school losesjnoney.
Continued from Page 1
to
Another Work-Study student,
Adina Reitz had a similar perspec
tive on the process up until the
point of actually getting a job. She
and her husband both qualified for
Work-Study, but with two children
and a full class schedule, they real
ly needed flexible working hours.
“We talked to them right from
the beginning about a non-profit
organization that my husband and
I are both volunteering for (as a
Work-Study option) ... but they
drug it out... and kept going back
on tilings they had said,” she said.
At the time of the interview, her
husband was continuing to vol
unteer for a Work-Study position
he was lead to believe would be
History of State Funding for Community College
John Petty Clackamas Print
Kari Tate does her daily work
in the green house.
Years
Clackamas Community College
ÍÍ
He pretty much I
everybody, j
Katie Hovanic I
Circulation Coordinali
approved, but he hasn’t ye| s
getting paid.
Rather than one group |
blame for this unusual shd
Work-Study students, it’s al
nation of circumstances t
likely lead to this situation!
on tiie fact that jobs an
able and eligible students Id
access to funding, it seems f
eligible students are prq
seeking jobs even with i
provided to them by frnan
One possible explan
this development is the r
a large influx of new st
CCC that has been re
enrollment services. These
may be unemployed and se
be retrained, making the
likely to be inexperience
lege processes.
The other piece to th
is the fact that policy sui
when eligible students are |
to give up their Work-StiT
to a waitlisted student ■
vague. There are currently |
dents on the Work-Study■
according to Stauffer.
|
Most of those studei®
expect to get a job this \ ca®
added that she was recen
permission to release
establishing a deadline fi
students to get a job by I
Now that the deadline ha
many job-ready students,
able to get positions qui
end the employment gap.
Seasoned adult program offers history from the sou
Survivors of the Holocaust share
their memories in sessions at the
Oregon Institute of Technology
By Conni Gaunt
The Clackamas Print
Ever had a history lesson that was boring? An
event on Nov. 3 for the Fall Seasoned Adult Education
series will not be that; it may possibly be the very
best, live history story by two Europeans who sur
vived World War II.
Valerie McQuaid, originally from Great Britain,
came to the U.S. in her twenties with her mother. She
worked and earned two master’s degrees in the U.S.
through the years, and before she retired, became
Clackamas Community College’s head librarian.
McQuaid has been the volunteer program coor
dinator for the Seasoned Adult Enrichment Program
■ “for the past two years, with the help of about five
volunteers and Jann York (of the Harmony Center),”
said McQuaid. Jeannie Davidson, coordinator of
North Clackamas Community Education and Senior
Programs, said, “(The) senior education has been
going for 18 years.”
The series began Oct. 6 and will run through Nov.
21. The sessions begin at 9:30 a.m. and usually run
for a few hours, often with refreshments. One session
costs $3, $15 per season term or $30 for the year.
Each year, the Seasoned Adult Enrichment program
runs in the fall, winter and spring, with seven events
per term and an optional theater event they advertise.
Most sessions will be held at the Oregon Institute of
Technology building in room 191, located at 7726 SE
Harmony Road in Milwaukie. For the least walking,
the closest , entrance is at the southwest entrance of
the OIT Building, on the Harmony Campus.
Events scheduled include a presentation from a
director of Stop Oregon Litter and Vandalism, and
two matinee performances of Clackamas’ theater
department’s production of “Leading Ladies,” a play
about two Shakespearean actors, on Noy. 14 and 21.
Tickets for the show are $8 for seniors with no extra
charge at the door.
Leif Terdal, from Norway, and Bill Brun, from
Denmark, will share their WWII memories on Nov. 3.
Their story is part of the Holocaust story.
“(I) was a young child when (my) community arid
country were attacked in April 1940 by the German
Nazi’s, when they invaded Norway and Denmark
simultaneously, at 5 a.m.” said Terdal.
“The Norway government never surrendered to
the Nazis,” he said, even though Norway’s ia
was dwarfed with only 7,000 soldiers in com!
to Hitler’s 350,000 soldiers. Terdal’s story®
courageous Norwegian resistance to Nazism®
“The Nazi’s goal was to torture, impriso®
all Jews and desecrate or destroy their syn®
and punish, torture, imprison or kill any No®
who helped them,” Terdal said.
I
There was a section at Auschwitz that ®
brave underground Norwegian resistance ®
and Protestant and Catholic clergy who resist!
sent there as well.
I
On Oct. 27, 1941 at midnight, four-)®
Terdal, his mother, two brothers and othe]
their community made. their escape from N]
trolled Norway in a 50-foot fishing boat. Th
attacked by machine gunfire from a Nazi air
miles after they left the shore. One of their c
killed, the boat was badly damaged and wate
into the boat. “Mother quoted Psalm 23, praj
believed the Lord was with (us), no matter!
come,” Terdal said.
For the rest of the story, join them Nov. 31
part of history.
For info on the Enrichment program, visit
depts.clackamas/edu/comed/season.asp, look!
back of the Clackamas College fall schel
classes or call York at 503-594-0640.
x
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