14
Wednesday,June9,2021
Columbia Gorge News
www.columbiagorgenews.com
Local student arts programs
funded through donations
Jacob Bertram
■ By Columbia
Gorge News
Four arts programs at
smaller schools in Klickitat
County were the recent
recipients of donations from
the Northshore Community
Foundation.
Wishram, Lyle, Centerville
and Klickitat schools were
awarded $552.50 each last
month to support their bud-
ding arts programs through
the local arts sponsorship
program, whose board
decided in April to allocate
donations received from the
Arts & Fusion event from
2019 to support young local
artists.
Tammara Tippel,
Northshore Community
Foundation executive
director said it was "extreme-
ly gratifying to be able to
deliver these checks and to
hear the excitement from
both teachers and students.
I learned how our $552.50
per school would provide
creative growth experiences
for children in my county and
felt an array of emotions that
came with the understanding
of the impact."
Established in 2016 and
operated by the Mt. Adams
Chamber of Commerce, the
Northshore Community
Foundation was created to
foster awareness and inno-
vation in Art, Agriculture,
Education, Health and
Sustainable Economy among
our residents by providing
grants, scholarships, educa-
tional programs and events
which feature and focus on
these aspects.
“Teaching Art is a pas-
sion, and being able to carry
out this important work is
very important to me,” said
Kristen Ringer, the secondary
arts, and fourth- and fifth-
grade teacher at Wishram
High and Elementary School.
“These funds will help us
continue to increase the
depth of our Arts program,
and this donation is greatly
appreciated.”
At Wishram school, the
In-house artist and paraeducator Jenn Armstrong poses for a group photo with ASB officers Carson Berdahl, Matt Gray, Layne Bruhn, and Evan Riley, as well as principal
Kristin Cameron and Northshore Community Foundation executive director Tammara Tippel.
Contributed photo
arts program serves second-
ary students, and with the
funding received, Ringer said
she plans to use it to offset
the cost of a kiln. With the
kiln, she said she’ll be able to
enhance her students’ learn-
ing experience and inspire
them to continue learning
about art.
Donations from commu-
nity partners are essential
to small school districts,
and can help us expand our
course offerings,” Wishram
Superintendent Mike Roberts
said. “In rural and remote
settings, our students face
a significant opportunity
gap that only the school can
combat.”
Klickitat School likewise
will invest in a kiln, said
Superintendent Brian
Freeman, with the donation
helping to offset the cost.
"We appreciate the com-
munity support providing
more opportunities for our
students to participate in the
Arts,” Freeman said.
Asked about a big dream
idea for further investment
in the school’s art program
future, Freeman replied that
the district would be inter-
ested in investing in a photo
lab, where “we could learn
to develop film and have a
Photography Lab Class.”
Likewise, Lyle School
District officials said the
funding will be used to repair
the kiln located at the school,
and invest in multiple art
supplies, construction and
watercolor papers as well as
printmaking and fiber art
supplies. They also intend to
publish comics that the stu-
dents have been working on
this spring, said Dallesport
Elementary School Principal
Lori Smith.
"This generous support
from the community allows
us to expand arts opportuni-
ties and experiences for our
students, adding immea-
surable value and pleasure to
their lives. Ultimately, it means
our students can dream a little
bigger," Smith said.
At Centerville School in
central Klickitat County,
Principal Kristin Cameron
said the funds would be
used for their yearly “Artist
In Residence” art program,
which normally sees a guest
artist arrive and teach art ac-
tivities to students. This year,
due to COVID restrictions,
Cameron said the program
has been modified to include
in-house artist and paraed-
ucator Jenn Armstrong to
provide students with art
experience. Using a butterfly
theme, students have re-
cently been involved making
flying origami butterflies with
the help of Armstrong.
“We will fly our butterflies
at our School Picnic on June
2. She will then work with
students and complete a
mural on our boiler room
wall; the wall that kids use at
recess for wall-ball and such.
Each student will have their
own, personalized butterfly
on the wall,” Cameron said.
A major hurdle for schools,
like many, is funding. At least
two of the districts, including
Lyle and Centerville, have
noted that their annual bud-
get for art activities are range
from $2-300 a year, making
the donations granted to the
districts higher than what
their budgets normally allot
to the programs.
“This funding helps us
tackle the next rung of our
whole school vision to rein-
corporate the Arts into our
students daily lives,” Roberts
said.
Legislature OKs $9.3 billion for schools after partisan debate
Peter Wong
■ By Oregon
Capital Bureau
The Senate approved the
budget, 23-6, on May 25.
The excess collections,
known as the “kicker,” were
A two-year, $9.3 billion
budget for state aid to public not mentioned during the
House debate.
schools is on its way to Gov.
The $9.3 billion in state
Kate Brown after a partisan
funds will be combined with
fight in the Oregon House.
The House passed the bud- a projected $4.6 billion in
get on a 36-20 vote, majority local property taxes for 197
school districts. The ratio is
Democrats for and minority
the reverse of what it was be-
Republicans against, after
Republicans failed to send it fore Oregon voters approved
back to the Legislature’s joint a series of statewide property
budget committee to add
tax limits in the 1990s and
$300 million for the two years shifted the burden of school
starting July 1.
operating costs from property
The extra money, and
taxpayers to state income tax-
more, is likely to material-
es, which account for more
than 90 percent of the state
ize anyway in a couple of
general fund. (The school
months. The state’s latest
fund also gets Oregon Lottery
economic and revenue
proceeds and marijuana
forecast, presented May
sales taxes. Some money
19, projects $664 million in
excess corporate income tax from Oregon’s new corporate
collections — which under a activity tax, which lawmakers
passed in 2019 and started in
2012 ballot measure go into
2020, also is included.)
the state school fund. The
Only the budgets of the
third-quarter forecast, sched-
Oregon Health Authority and
uled for Sept. 22, will yield
the Department of Human
the actual number.
Services, both of which get
federal grants, are larger.
Minority Leader Christine
Drazan of Canby, said the
aid budget should reflect
the $9.6 billion advocated by
GOP: More money
the Oregon School Boards
Brown originally proposed Association. “As we ask our
schools to bring kids back to
$9.1 billion in her 2021-23
have full in-person learning
budget, which she unveiled
Dec. 1, a slight increase from five days a week, they are
going to be bombarded with
$9 billion in the current
unknowns,” Drazan said.
two-year cycle that ends
June 30. She proposed to tap “The need for them to have
$200 million from the state’s the resources necessary to
create an environment where
education reserve, which
these kids can be successful
lawmakers had already
withdrawn $400 million from cannot be overstated.”
Rep. Greg Smith, a
last year to balance the bud-
Republican from Heppner
get during the coronavirus
who sits on the budget
pandemic. But since then,
committee, said boosting
the overall budget picture
the amount would be a true
has improved because of
bipartisan gesture in an
increased projections of tax
often-fractured House.
collections from two subse-
The May 14 vote of the
quent economic and revenue
forecasts, some savings from full budget committee was
budget cuts, and $2.6 billion 21-1. Sen. Chuck Thomsen,
in federal aid from President R-Hood River, was the lone
Joe Biden’s pandemic recov- dissenter, and also opposed
it May 25 when it came
ery plan.
up in the full Senate. One
Seven Republican
Republican was excused
representatives, including
from the committee vote.
The motion to send the
budget back to committee
failed with two Democrats
— Mark Meek of Oregon City
and Marty Wilde of Eugene
— joining 20 Republicans.
Earlier in the day,
Republicans attempted
but failed on a procedural
motion to put to a vote a
separate bill committing
Oregon’s 197 school districts
to reopen fully for the 2021-
22 academic year that starts
in a few months.
of the education budget sub-
committee, said.
Rep. Dan Rayfield, a
Democrat from Corvallis and
co-leader of the Legislature’s
joint budget panel, said
about $6 billion of a project-
ed $28 billion in general fund
and lottery spending for the
next two years is one-time
money.
He said he and McLain
worked for four months to
come up with the right figure
for school aid. “It is our job as
a legislature to find out what
is the Goldilocks porridge in
our budget that meets the
Amount defended
needs of our children, but
also at the same time, is a
Rep. Susan McLain,
sustainable budget that we
D-Forest Grove, said overall
can continue to operate on,”
education spending in the
Rayfield said.
new budget cycle is pro-
Rep. Andrea Valderrama,
jected at 51percent of the
D-Portland, leads the David
tax-supported general fund
and lottery proceeds, and the Douglas School Board and
is the newest member of the
state school fund accounts
Legislature, having taken her
for 32.4 percent.
District 47 seat on April 1 af-
“We are creating record
investments in public schools ter her predecessor resigned
this year,” McLain, co-leader under pressure.
TRASH TALK
Q. We need help with event recycling.
QA
Any ideas? Heather, Hood River
A. Heather, our program does offer free basic
assistance to event managers to help them plan for event
waste reduction and recycling. We also lend Clearstream
event recycling receptacles for diverting redeemable
bottles and cans. And for very small functions (15-30
people), we lend out “party buckets” with durable cups,
plateware and cutlery.
questions to:
(541)-506-2636 www.tricountyrecycle.com