Medical marijuana dispensaries in Oregon are rallying to
support the measure on the November ballot that would
legalize, regulate and tax marijuana use by adults in the state.
Lane County dispensaries are sending representatives north
to a kick-off event for the group Dispensaries for Measure 91
at 5:30 pm Thursday, Aug. 28, at Opal 28, 510 NE 28th Ave. in
Portland. See voteyeson91.com to get involved. Why are
dispensaries supporting “competition” from legalized pot?
We figure it’s because established medical pot operations are
ready and eager to expand into non-medical pot, plus
Measure 91 specifically supports the continuation of the
Oregon Medical Marijuana Program. OMMP patients will
continue to pay their annual fees but will not pay the taxes
that will be imposed on non-OMMP patients. Meanwhile,
some 300 medical marijuana growers gathered in Portland
Aug. 22 to talk about lobbying the Legislature for regulations
and protections for their farming. Growers are concerned
about ambiguous laws that make them vulnerable to being
shut down and having their equipment and medicine
confiscated.
The annual Labor Day Picnic in celebration and support of
unions will be from 1 to 4 pm Monday, Labor Day, at Lively
Park behind SPLASH at 6100 Thurston Rd. in Springfield. The
event is hosted by Lane County Central Labor Council and its
affiliated organizations and will feature speeches by Reps.
John Lively and Phil Barnhart and Sens. Lee Beyer and Floyd
Prozanski. Barbeque foods will be provided but guests are
asked to bring side dishes. Call 736-9041 or email
pineojensen@gmail.com.
Mountain Rose Herbs is planning its next event in the Free
Herbalism Project with a free evening of herbal education
from 5 to 9 pm Friday, Aug. 29, at Mount Pisgah Arboretum.
One of the speakers will be Michigan herbalist Jim McDonald
talking on “Aphrodisiacs and Energetics.” Botanist Heron Brae
will talk on “Wild Plants for Food and Medicine in the Seasonal
Cycles.” See mountainroseherbs.com or call (800) 879-
3337, ext. 183.
Eugene Sudbury School was burglarized the night of Aug.
24 and about $5,000 worth of art supplies, computer
equipment, books, toys and games were stolen. A pressure
washer was also taken. Sudbury is an independent K-12
alternative school at 2370 Parliament St. in southwest
Eugene. “It’s such a devastating loss to our program to have
some of these unique educational resources taken,” said
Director Demian Schwartz in a press release. “Especially in
that we serve some really high-needs students and low-
income families who only thrive in our setting.” An account
has been set up at gofundme.com/EugeneSudbury to try to
replace the stolen items before the students return for school
next week.
The American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) of Eugene
has changed its name to Lane Youth Soccer Association
(LYSA), breaking away from the California-based AYSO after
47 years. Sounds like the Eugene group was feeling overly
restricted. No word on whether the Springfield AYSO will also
go independent. “In reality, nothing on the field has changed,”
says Joel Andersen of LYSA in a prepared statement. The new
website for the group is laneyouthsoccer.org and Andersen
can be reached at 521-8100.
4J SCHOOL BOARD PLANS
TO TIGHTEN CURRICULUM
ADOPTION PROCEDURES
With the new school year kicking off Sept. 3, Eugene
School Board 4J wants to reformat its current curriculum
adoption process. After three years of using College Pre-
paratory Mathematics (CPM) in the district, the board has
not yet actually voted on the official adoption or rejection
of the controversial middle school and high school CPM
curriculum. Part of this revamp includes reconvening the
Instructional Policy Council, which according to board
members has not met for years and once played a role in
choosing district curriculum.
CPM, called “one of the leading high school math
programs nationally” by 4J Superintendent Sheldon Ber-
man while criticized by the 118-member Facebook group
“CPM Math in Eugene,” was phased in during the 2011-
2012 school year. Parents and teachers took issue with the
implementation of CPM when the district spent $469,404
in bond and general funds without officially adopting the
curriculum, in addition to other reasons.
The district has delayed adopting CPM, although all
4J high schools except Sheldon will use CPM through the
CELEBRATING 50 YEARS
OF OREGON WILDERNESS
From old-growth forests to dynamic desert landscapes,
Oregon’s legacy of diverse ecosystems lives on through its
protected wilderness areas. That’s exactly what Oregonians
will celebrate Sept. 3 for the 50-year anniversary of the Wil-
derness Act, which protects around 2.5 million acres across
48 sites in Oregon and 110 million acres total nationwide.
While observances will be happening all over the U.S., the
weeklong celebration in Eugene will be classic Oregon fare:
talks, hikes and beer.
Wilderness areas “provide Americans with their natu-
ral heritage that we all associate with wild open spaces and
beautiful landscapes,” says Chandra LeGue of Oregon Wild.
“That’s something that’s always been a part of the American
psyche.”
Designated wilderness areas allow hunting, fishing, hik-
ing and other recreational activities but differ from national
parks and state forests in that they aren’t developed. Gener-
ally there are no roads, bathrooms or buildings.
This makes for ideal habitat for endangered species like
salmon and marbled murrelet, as well as for undisturbed for-
ests and prairies. It also ensures clean drinking water such as
level of Algebra 2 this year, according to a memo that 4J
Director of Secondary Education Randy Bernstein sent to
board members.
The memo says, “At Sheldon High School, all teach-
ers will use CPM if required to do so. However, if given
the choice in 2014-15, some would continue to use CPM
as their core curriculum while most would use their for-
mer curriculum, perhaps supplementing it with … CPM.”
Parent Abby Gershenzon says that she and her daugh-
ter were “extremely unhappy” to find out that South
Eugene High School added another grade of CPM this
school year. She and other parents say they have recently
written to school board members and principals about
CPM with no response.
4J Communications Coordinator Kerry Delf says that
the Instructional Policy Council, which used to bring
curriculum decisions to the board and consisted of par-
ents, teachers, administrators and board members, hasn’t
met in years because limited funds kept the district from
adopting new math curriculum more recently. She says
the board plans to “review and update all its curriculum
adoption procedures.”
4J School Board Chair Mary Walston says of the IPC,
“The committee wasn’t as vibrant as it should have been.
It’s nobody’s fault; it just happened.”
Board members and Delf say the board will continue
to discuss the matter of CPM throughout the school year.
— Amy Schneider
Eugene’s water source, the McKenzie River. According to
Oregon Wild, protected wilderness areas cover a quarter of
the meandering McKenzie.
The Omnibus Public Land Management Act, signed by
President Obama in 2009, added thousands of acres to ex-
isting wilderness areas. Most recently, groups like Oregon
Wild, Oregon Natural Desert Association and the Sierra
Club’s local Many Rivers Group have worked towards get-
ting Congress to add Devil’s Staircase Wilderness, Wild
Rogue Wilderness and Crater Lake Wilderness to Oregon’s
protected areas.
LeGue says that the 50th anniversary of the act is the
perfect opportunity for people to learn more about the indi-
vidual importance of these proposed wilderness areas, and to
appreciate the ones we already have.
The Obsidians, a local group of outdoor enthusiasts, will
lead hikes through the Mount Jefferson, Three Sisters and
Waldo Lake wildernesses and more throughout the week of
Aug. 30. The week will also include an Oregon Wild film
screening, guest speakers and a happy hour at Ninkasi host-
ed by conservation organizations.
To pre-register for the Obsidian hikes, go to obsidians.
org. For more information on Wilderness Celebration activi-
ties, go to wkly.ws/1t1. — Anna V. Smith
Arriving By Bike hosts its fifth annual Cycling Celebration
from 1 to 4 pm Saturday, Aug. 30, at 2705 Willamette. Falling
Sky Brewing will provide the new Mash Transit Ale created by
Falling Sky to celebrate LTD’s national award for “Best Transit
District.” Pedal Powered Music will provide the music. Other
businesses participating include Cascadian Courier Collective,
J-Tea bike cart, Grey Matter Jugglers, Open Air Cinema and
Vanilla Jill’s Frozen Yogurt bike cart. Contact Paul Moore at
954-3843 or paul@arrivingbybike.com.
A presentation on Oregon public benefit companies by
Ed Gerdes, vice president and general counsel at Cafe Yumm!
will be at the Greenlane Sustainable Business Network’s
monthly meeting at 11:30 am Wednesday, Sept. 3, at the
Eugene Hilton. Lunch available for purchase.
A free workshop titled “Organize to Optimize Your Small
Business” will be at 6 pm Thursday, Sept. 4, at the Eugene
Public Library. Productivity consultant Jan Lehman will
share practical ways to optimize time, space and effort.
Sponsored by LCC Small Business Development Center and
SCORE. Call 682-5450.
HELLS CANYON
WILDERNESS
PHOTO: TRASK BEDORTHA
6
A ugust 28, 2014 • eugeneweekly.com