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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (March 21, 1985)
2 SANDY (Ore ) POST Ihur» Mot 21. 1985 (Sec 1) The Sandy Post Editorial & Opinion Chris Hale general manager Scott Newton editor Cedar Ridge needs a vice principal The Sandy Elementary D istrict’s budget committee made a good decision last week in deciding to include money for a vice principal at Cedar Ridge in the proposed 1985-86 budget. The exchange between budget committee members — which includes board members — the adm inistrative staff and parents was an example of public debate at its finest. Although budget committees are supposed to determine a dollar amount and not set policy, the line is inevitably blurred. Freeholder Larry Buck went into the meeting pretty well determined that Cedar Ridge could get by another year without a vice principal, but later changed his mind Buck was taken aback upon learning that the school could save about $39,000 by eliminating the position. A cost of $30,000 was discussed as a salary, and some people were visibly sur prised to learn the total — with benefits — came to $39,000. Dennis Traxler, board member, made the motion to eliminate the item from the budget. One reason he gave for be ing against the concept of an added adm inistrator was the declining enrollment expected at the junior high the next cou ple of years. Budget committee members also heard from parents, who expressed a desire for a more effective disciplinary program. Sandy Grade School principal Darrell Shepherd said the ad m inistrators at other schools had made sacrifices because they saw the need for more support at Cedar Ridge. The vice principal would be in charge of discipline, among other responsibilities. Dorothy Mills, board member, feels that by taking care of discipline problems at the junior high level, perhaps they can eliminate some problems at the high school Thinking of the school systems as a whole — instead of just looking at one d istrict’s needs — is commendable. When Traxler asked M ills if the public would buy the idea of another administrator, she said, “ We ll have to sell it to them.” T raxle r’s motion to eliminate the position forced the budget committee members to make tough decisions. They were faced with a vote that exemplifies the dilemma facing education in Oregon, quality education versus fiscal conservatism A vote for the vice principal might suggest to some voters that the budget is fat. After all, the first assump tion most people make — regardless of the validity of that assumption — is that the administration of any governmental agency is top-heavy. Approving the motion to eliminate the position had potential for good public relations. On the other hand, there was a clearly stated need for a vice principal. The vote was tied, at 5-5, and so the motion died. We reserve the right to comment on the budget, which was approved by the budget committee by a 9-1 vote. The budget w ill increase 2.6 percent but the levy rate w ill go up 10 percent. A public hearing w ill be held in April Regardless of what happens at that time, we agree that the vice principal’s position belongs in the budget. Junior high students live in a world where they receive m ix ed signals during a time when they are already going through physical changes Some added guidance from a trusted adult would be a good step forward. That leaves us with one last thought. Some junior high and high school students today do fight, some experiment with drugs and some are sexually active. From hearing some peo ple talk, though, one would think it is not safe to walk through the halls of Cedar Ridge or Sandy High School. The fact of the matter is a m ajority of young people are stu dying, playing sports, earning m erit badges and holding jobs. The decision to hire a vice principal does not indicate a pro blem of unmanageable proportions It is simply an effort to try to deal with a problem before it requires Draconian measures. And that is how a school district should be dealing with its problems. L etters to the editor Morrison has qualities for position on board The freedom of choice or the right to choose is not only an honor but a privilege here in America. For tunately we have the opportunity to exercise that right when it comes to the selection of school hoard members When I look at a candidate I look for someone who is truly for the good of the children in all aspects of school, especially quality education Next I look for qualities such as leadership, honesty, enthusiasm and integrity in that pt'rson Well, that's quite a hill to fit hut we are lucky to have such a person running for the W elche School board p o sitio n number three on March 26 tie r name is Dawn Morrison and I urge you Io please exercise your right to choose the kind of person whom you would want to have an ac tive hand in determining your child's educational future at Welches Audrey Fonseca Rhododendron Buss is well qualified This letter is in support of Paul Buss for the SlIHS hoard position I have known Paul for the last one and a half years and find him to he a very thoughtful, honest and hard working person I feel that he is well-qualified to serve on the school board His previous experience on the Cottrell Grade School budget committee and SUHS budget committee give him ex perience in school affairs. Paul brings business experience and "savvy” to the board I urge a you to vote for Paul Buss on March 26th Jerry Ford Boring Policy on letters Letters to the editor should be typed, double spaced and signed An address and telephone number should also be provided, although on ly the name of the letter w riter and the city or area he is from w ill be published le tte r w riters may also wish to in clude a title or office held if it is ap propriate considering the subject matter of the letter The news deadline of noon. Tues day is also the deadline for letters to the editor L etters to the editor Quote misrepresents; examine budget Last week the Sandy Post publish ed an article in which I was quoted at the first meeting of the Sandy Elementary School District budget committee as saying, “ . . .'kids are getting a better education' in other schools.” While I dispute that exact quote, the article also failed to show that I immediately qualified the statement I did make by noting that any failures in our schools were not due to the quality of the teaching staff, or administration. I went on to say that I have been, and remain, very satisfied with the level of in struction my children are receiving in the district's classrooms My con cern was instead with the worsening financial situation in the schools, due in part to the flagging economy and the resulting decreased tax base in our county. Never at any time did I mean to imply our children are being instructtonally shortchanged Generally speaking I feel that The Post, through its editor, is doing a good job of reporting the news of our community, and this incident has not diminished my feelings for the ser vice it is providing. On the subject of the grade school’s budget. I would like to say that in the three years that I have served on the budget committee, and during the several years before that when I closely followed its work, this last session proved to be the most d if ficult that I can recall The budget committee, composed of the board of education and fiv e freeholders (citizensi, struggled this year with a number of serious problems, not the least of which included a declining tax base and reduced state revenue. Both the committee and the ad m in is tra tio n spent many hours debating, examining, and critiquing the proposed budget until the com mittee finally settled on a con siderable number of cuts. The resulting budget, reflecting a modest 4 5 pet cent increase, is, in my estimation, a good one that still allows for a sound teaching environ ment We are. however, after several lean years, perilously close to losing the gams our district has made in the past Remember that the people who ex amined, revised and cut this budget are also taxpayers, homeowners, and parents, and were appointed or elected by you to represent the best interests of our schools and our com munity Sometimes voters, including myself, are inclined to simply let issues slip by without really attemp ting to understand or examine them. I hope the voters of the community w ill take the time to examine the budget, and bring any questions they may have to either the board of education, the administration, or budget comm ittee members We have done our job to the best of our a bility Now it is tim e for you to do yours and examine our work W illiam W l-enon . chairman Sandy Elementary budget committee Let’s try Dawn Morrison for their handling of this purchase. A job well done! John King Sandy Many people already know who they're voting for on March 26. Many people do not realize the school board election is so soon Many do not know who or how many the candidates are and there are many more who could care less about any of it. To the remaining few of the in terested voters in our district may I recommend Dawn Morrison as my candidate of choice. With three children in Welches School, Dawn has proven a tireless worker in and for our community. She has served as president of the M t. Hood Preschool Coop, she reorganized the Welches Parent Teacher Organiza tion, and has been a Brownie and G irl Scout leader. With her rare w it, varied skills and talents, and plain old common sense, this candidate is running for the school board position for only one reason — to add what she can to make our school the best it can be for our kids. Dawn is not seeking to become a " p illa r " of the community, nor is she interested in social prestige. She’s not adding a political feather to her or her husband’s cap and she's w ill ing to do and say whatever is necessary fo r the good of our children. Crazy idea you say? Never been done like that before? Let's try it! Dur kids deserve Dawn Morrison Vicki Kram er Welches Swails best for Sandy High ‘Critic’ says job well done I feel the role of complainer and/or critic must have balance. In other words, when you feel things aren’t right, speak up; however, when things are right, be equally generous with praise. At the SlIHS board meeting March 11. the board considered purchase of a metal shears The administration secured three bonefied bids from re p u ta b le ve n d o rs E ach bid represented a competitive machine capable of doing the job. The board reviewed each bid, then discussed in detail the advantages and disadvan tages of each machine The board q uestioned Lynn Sondenaa. shop instructor, concern ing every aspect of the purchase, in cluding a used machine, safety ad vantages. maintenance, etc They even discussed strength of the floor to support the machine and a detailed discussion of how it would be used and supervised In my view, no stone was left unturned to get the best machine. The instructor, Lynn Sondenaa. ob viously knew his subject well and had explored every aspect of the invest ment I feel the board and ad m inistration should be commended Having known Jerry Swails for the past 25 years and having first-hand knowledge of his activities in the school systems and community, we support him as the best candidate for the position as board member of the Sandy Union High School. He has always been involved with the youth of the community, be it Boy Scouts, G irl Scouts, 4-H Club or members of the various high school athletic teams He has always been concerned that the students at Sandy High obtain a good basic education so that they would be prepared to take their rightful place in the working world For many years Jerry had ex perience in business managing his own plumbing and heating contrac ting business and at the same time devoted a great deal of effort and time to community activities such as service as president of the Chamber of Commerce, F ire Department, Dad's Club and City Planning Com mission Jerry's whole fam ily, including his wife Helen, along with their four children, have been involved in these activities and w ill give him their complete support All four children have graduated from Sandy Union High School. We feel as concerned as he is Jerry w ill work very hard to get the maix- mum educational value for the dollar spent and w ill c o n trib u te the necessary tim e to accomplish the job. We urge the citizens of the .Sandy Union High School D istrict to support Jerry Swails. Olin V. Bignall Joyce M Bignall Sandy Buss isn’t a ‘yes’ man Over the past year. I have had the opportunity to become acquainted with and work with Paul Buss through CQE Paul is now running for the open position of the board of directors for Sandy High School, and there are several reasons why his candidacy deserves the support of the voters of our district. Paul has demonstrated his com mitment to the youth of our com munity by the years he has already devoted to good schools by serving four years on the budget committee of Cottrell Grade School, and the budget committee of Sandy High School for the past two years However, it is important to point out that Paul has never been con- sidered a "yes m an," or a “ rubber stam p," to the administration of either school. As an individual with a sizeable property tax b ill himself, he is concerned about the tax burdens all of us face, and w ill constantly work to help achieve the most cost ef fective use of our tax dollars. The election of Paul Buss w ill pro vide a positive influence in our school board, and as one who is not satisfied with the status quo, Paul w ill con tinue to work to bring about needed changes without the disruption of the educational process that we have seen advocated by some in our com munity. School board candidates can be judged not only upon their past per formances, but also upon the associa tions which advocate their election. Look at the past performance of Paul Buss, and the past record of those who oppose him, and I'm sure you w ill agree, Paul Buss is the man we need Mel Lamm Sandy Buss and SUHS are on course Sandy Union High School has been moving in the right direction these past few years There is still a lot of work to do and we feel that the board needs the best qualified people to get the job done, therefore we urge you to vote for Paul Buss for position number one on March 26 — that's THIS TUESDAY, folks' Nick and Shirley Roth Boring ‘Problems’ was informative We want to thank the Cedar Ridge Parent Group for sponsoring the re cent forum. "Problem s Our Children A re F a c in g ” We though the speakers presented their information in a concise and well informed man ner We left that evening with a bet ter understanding of how we as parents might better cope when our children become teens We also feel we got a change to know Roberta Hutton that evening, and we feel very happy that she is in charge of our high school She im pressed us as a person who can deal with the problems of teenagers in an open and capable manner. Our thanks to the Cedar Ridge Parent Group and especially to Ann Marie Amstad and Pauline Moore for making it all happen! Maggie Lowery Donna Stuart Michele Riggs
