Page 8...The Portland Observer.„September 23, 1992
Aappointments To The Community
Corrections Advisory Board By
Governor Barbara Roberts
BY TONY WASHINGTON
Sam Pierce along with Ken Lerner,
John Herrera and David Cook were
appointees to the Community Correc
tions Advisory Board by Gov. Barbara
Roberts.
Since returning to Portland from
Los Angeles in 1987, Pierce has been a
dedicated com m unity activist. He
served on the committee to rename
Union Avenue to Martin Luther King,
Jr. Blvd. Pierce was also instrumental
in the passage of House Bill 2705 or the
martin Luther King School Holiday
Bill. The bill made history in that it
marked the beginning of all school dis
tricts in Oregon commemorating Dr.
King’s holiday. Along with helping to
write the amendments for the bill’s
passage, Pierce played a key role in
negotiating a comprom ise with the four
major state unions which kept the bill
from causing taxpayers any additional
monies. Originally the bill was esti
mated to cost millions of dollars.
Other community involvement in
cludes Co-Chair of the Youth Employ
ment and Empowerment Coalition with
Chief Joseph School Children
Get New Street Crossing
Children returning to Chief Joseph
school in north Portland this week are a
little safer, thanks to a new pedestrian-
activated crossing signal just installed
at N. Portland Boulevard and Delaware
Street.
Though budget constraints limit
new school signal installations toone or
two each year, the Chief Joseph site in
Arbor Lodge neighborhood made the
top of the city’s list for the 1992 fiscal
year.
“I’m very pleased we’re able to
help the kids at Chidf Joseph for the
start of this school year,” commented
Earl Blumenauer, commissioner-in-
charge of the Bureau of Traffic Man
agement, which oversaw the project.
“Last year, students at Brooklyn and
Sacred Heart schools in southeast Port
land benefitted from this type of “traf
fic calming” device. Our goal is to keep
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all children safe going to and from
school every day.”
Traffic accidents are the number
one killer and crippler of Oregon’s
children. Though child pedestrians are
involved in only a small fraction of all
traffic collisions, they repiesent a dis
proportionately high percentage of traf
fic fatalities.
In addition to installing pedes
trian-activated crossing signals near
schools, the Traffic Management Bu
reau is working with the Police Bureau
on a “School Safety Project” at five
targeted schools, The project includes
increased traffic and parking enforce
ment, safe walk maps and integrated
traffic safety curriculum for young
sters. Interested parents and teachers
can contact the B ureau of Traffic Man
agement for more information: 796-
5391.
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Professional and Qualify
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Jim Francesconi; Chair of Oregon Out
reach, Inc., an employment agency for
at-risk youth, directed by Becky Black;
and a recent appointee to the new Met
ropolitan Human Rights Commission.
Additionally, he is the current Execu
tive Director and co-founder of the
Minority Youth concerns Action Pro
gram, Inc. or MYCAP.
Says Pierce, “1 keep telling myself
every year that 1 am going to slow
down, but I haven’t figured out the
formula yet. But next year I will! Seri
ously!”
PORTLAND OBSERVER
‘ The Eyes and Ears ol the CommunHY’
Office: (503)288-0033
Fax#: (503)288-0015
Concern about the quality of their
indoor air has led some consumers to
purchase ozone generating air puri fiers.
These products can produce levels of
breathable ozone which can cause re
duced lung function, irritation and dry
ness of the eyes, nose, and throat, and
lung damage. According to American
Lung Association of Oregon Program
Director Joe Weller, “There arc better
ways to clean the air than using ozone
generating devices, controlling the
source of pollution, adequate ventila
tion and air cleaning systems which do
not generate ozone are safe and effec
tive ways to reduce indoor air pollu
tion.”
The Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) has set a maximum level of 0.05
ppm ozone that can be emitted by any
electronic device sold as medical equip
m ent However, those who buy equip
ment to generate ozone with the belief
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Many of us educators, parents and
taxpayers are forecasting the same fu
ture for this ill-planned exercise as we
did for those earlier mandated programs
that allegedly would place Oregon at the
fore front of the nation’s educational
establishment: “The New Math” & “The
Metric System ’. We note in passing that
at the time the state had some monies in
its coffers, and, thus, we survived the
esoteric experiments. Not so this time.
State S chools S u p erin ten d en t
Norma Paulus warns, “All hell is going
to break loose if educators try to change
the act”, lady, you have certainly got
that right. The quite possible disaster
could very well lead to a recall move
ment “The Act, like an elephant, ap
pears to have been designed by a com
mittee (or the state legislature)... by
1993,contemplates eliminating primary
grades in all schools.”
This seems to work very well in
nursery schools, but pray tell us exactly
what it is a parent shou Id expect in terms
of a “report card” (if any), or any other
type of structured assessment that might
be derived of an arbitrary and unstruc
tured process? According to a report by
Bill Graves of the Oregonian staff (9/7/
92, Metro), numerous middle schools
across the state are proceeding to “im
prove” in the same number of arbitrary
interpretations of education by legisla
tive fiat. Where will yourchild be placed
when changing districts or towns, or
moves to another state? How will new
comers to the state be evaluated?
What we have here is prime ex
ample of the logic so aptly put by
“Humpty Dumpty” in Lewis CaroU’s
classic, Alice in Wonderland: “Things
are what I say they are”. I seriously
doubt if this is going to be acceptable to
parents so grossly concerned about the
progressive levels of their child’s edu-
cation-along a time line prescribed by
all the authorities calling for American
parity by “Year 2000; algebra and ge
ometry competencies by these grades;
biology and other competencies by this
grade. That governor’s educational con
ference said that without this, “pupils
cannot possibly be ready fora meaning
ful high school cducation”.But, wait a
that they are “cleaning” the air are risk
ing damage to their airways and lungs.
“We cannot recommend the use of such
devices because of the possibility of
reaching elevated levels in enclosed
spaces. The concentration of ozone in
the air of a room depends on many
variables: distance from the source, rate
of generation, ventilation and am ountof
particulate matter in the air to react with
ozone,” said Weller. The Lung Associa
tion recommends that consumers ask the
retailer which air cleaning units produce
ozone and not buy those models.
The American Lung Association of
Oregon and its medical Section, the
Oregon Thoracic Society, ar dedicated
to fighting lung disease and promoting
lung health. The Lung Association’s
public health education, advocacy and
research programs are supported by do
nations to Christmas Seals and other
voluntary contributions.
Low Vision Service
Enhances Quality Of Life
A special service called low called
low vision care is available to help
those who have difficulty performing
daily living skills due to serious vision
impairment.
“Many individuals who have suf
fered some vision loss due to disease or
trauma find it difficult to perform day-
to-day tasks at home, socially, or in the
workplace, says John Smith,O.D., Chief
of the Low Vision Scrviceat the Pacific
University C ollege o f O ptom etry.
“These people can not have their exist
ing vision corrected, through conven
tional prescription glasses or contact
lenses, to the point where tasks of living
can be adequately performed,” he says.
As a result, common living skills such
as reading and writing, working in the
kitchen, watching television, or play
ing cards become difficult to perform.
The term low vision is used to
describe a serious loss of vision that
cannot be corrected through medical or
surgical procedures or with conven
tional eyeglasses. Through the use of
special devices including telescopic
lenses, magnifying and projection tools,
large-print materials, and custom light
ing systems low vision patients arc able
to maximize what remaining vision they
have and attain an improved quality of
life.
“Through low vision care, many
partially-sighted people can attend
school, hold jobs, participate in recre
ational activities and, in general, live
more independent lives’, says Dr. Smith.
Because of the specialized training and
costly equipment needed, many eye
care practitioners do not provide low
vision care.
To speak with a low vision doctor
and for a free informational packet,
please call the Pacific University Fam
ily Vision Center near you and ask for
the Low Vision Service: Portland, 224-
2323 and Forest Grove, 357-5800. A
sliding fee scale is available for quali
fying patients.
For Best Results "
Advertise in the Observer
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BY PROF. MCKINLEY BURT
Luna Association Cautions Against
Use Of Ozone Air Cleaners
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Education Update: Oregon’s
School Improvement Act
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minute, I’ve ye, to tell you what is in
store for many high schools.
For a number o f years, I have
exchanged correspondence with a num
ber of teachers around the state. A
recent poll indicates a universal dissat
isfaction with the “Oregon School Im
provement Act” and many echoes of
my observation that “some culprit(s)
has designed the ultimate paradigm
,To avoiding accountability”. There is
a consensus among us that under grow
ing pressures for a better educational
product from minorities, parents, gen
eral public and industry, certain educa
tors have circled the wagons and
mounted theclassic “Humpty Dumpty”
defense.
Already in some quarters we see
schools in the Marshall High School
mode, planning to Eliminate Grade
Levels, Grades And Classrooms. I am
quite serious. And, evidently, so are
Oregon’s proponents of the “New
World Order” in education. Scary, isn’t
it? Obviously the student or parent is
expected to explain all of this to the
college or scholarship source of their
choice.
I spoke last week to a clause in the
act, “Require high schools to certify
students who demonstrate initial mas
tery of academic performance stan
dards at About grade 10”. Here, we are
told there will be a ‘tracking” embed
ded in concrete, “Require high schools
by the fall of 1997 to offer programs
leading to certificates of advanced
mastery in “College Preparation” or a
“Career”. The “Careers profile” reads
well -- arts and communications, busi
ness and management, health services,
human resources, industry and engi
neering, and natural resources.
The protestations of the presiden
tial candidates “read well” also, but do
you believe them? Many of us are
questioning whether at the present time
our high schools possess a cadre of
teachers competent to move beyond
their original charge, mainly reading,
writing, arithmetic, history and geog
raphy (for which they say they do not
have enough time (since there is also
band, choir, health, physical ed, driver
ed, etc.). That is, “move beyond” in
terms o f leaching and advising in in
creasingly sophisticated technical ar
eas that they were not prepared for by
the curricula of their teacher colleges,
or by inclination necessarily (Dictio
nary of Occupational Titles-Industrial
Classification Manual).
It is that split or social bifurcation
into “career or college at the 10th
grade that disturbs most of us, espe
cially in this light o f who will be
making the decisions; provokes last
week’s statement,“...asegregation into
college-bound and career-bound un
derstandably makes minorities and
women quite nervous*. It would be so
much more reassuring if everyone in
volved had demonstrated a thorough
understanding of the role and mission
of the state’s “Community Colleges”.
In the press interviews and position
papers we have read so far, there seems
to be no discussions or correlative
developments that might head off the
conflicts and redundancies that must
surely result from alm ost parallel
courses.
For the counseling and directing
of those “concrete” fixed decisions
which will in most cases determine the
economic future and life-time earn
ings of a student, my colleagues and I
believe that community college-level
personnel should be involved in that
10th grade decision-making process;
If indeed that is the proper time for
such an event. In a September 2 article
in the Oregonian, Dr. Dale Parnell,
Commissioner of Oregon Community
Colleges, describes a “Tech Prep As
sociate degree program, “first out of
the starting blocks this year”.
This interesting discussion in the
Forum Section cites a “four-year edu
cational plan involving the last two
years of high school and two years in a
community college. We do hope that
all these diverse and enthusiastic ele
ments in the superintendent’s herd of
wild horses can be brought together in
some rational and coherent structure.
Before the next round of Measure 5
cuts hit us, and before more frizzly
little birds as well as loggers and tax
revenues become endangered. Contin
ued next week.
Reply To An Article By
McKinley Burt
On September 9,1992
Private Institutions w here ever they
arc and whether they are White or Black
makes little difference. All are making
changes to survive. Black Colleges, as
Mr. Burt pointed out, are not going into
mergers and bankruptcy as stated. The
only one That has closed because of
financial difficulty has been Bishop
College located in Dallas, Texas. Yes,
many small colleges are trying to sur
vive, but they are still alive and doing as
well as they always have. There are 112
Black Colleges, 60 of these arc private
ones, both large small.
The public is invited each year to
the “Black Colleges Conference” who
have representatives here to talk about
their schools, what they offer and to
answer any questions students and par
ents or any interested persons who would
like to have other information (as Mr.
Burt needs) about the levels of educa
tion, curriculum, financial status and
their continuing to survive.
At present these colleges are gradu
ating from 85 to 90 percent of black
students who attend as compared to a
lessor percent being graduated from
white colleges where they are usually a
number and do not get the attention
they need or the push to achieve as they
should. For Statics on this truth write to
“Ebony”’ as a good source or contact
the “Black Colleges Committee” of
Portland.
June R. Key, a Black College
Graduate and Co-Founder of the “Black
Colleges Committee”
The Black Colleges Conference
this year will be held at the Portland
Convention Center on October 4th be
ginning at 9 AM.
Golden
en O
Opportunities
For Seniors
The Retired Senior Volunteer pro
gram of Multnomah County has many
openings for interesting, rewarding vol
unteer positions for people 60 and bet
ter who wish to become involved in
their community. RSVP offers free
supplemental insurance coverage, lim
ited transportation reimbursement and
other benefits. R SV f is part of AC
TION, the national volunteer agency,
and is sponsored by Legacy Health
System at Good Samaritan Hospital
and Medical Center.
Some of the current opportunities
arc:
House Of Light (Aids patients and
families): Needs residential assistants,
office assistant and operations assis
tants for their residential care facility at
Villa Rose in North Portland.
Neighborhood Health C linics,
INC.: Looking for recordkeeping assis
tants to work with volunteer archivist to
alphabetize and archive patients’ files.
American Lung Assoc. Of Oregon:
Needs Christmas Seal volunteers. Help
process direct mail campaign returns
during Oct., Nov., early Dec. Work
must be done at office, 1776 S. W.
Madison st.
Urban League O f Portland: Needs
drivers for an automatic 15-passenger
van. Must have good driving record,
current drivers’ license and in good
physical condition to assist seniors on
and off van using an electric lift.
Chinese Social Service Center:
Needs volunteers to teach English con
versation, vocabulary and writing. 4937
s. E. Woodstock Blvd.
Drug Education Project, Ecumeni
cal Ministries of Oregon: Needs data
entry operator using computer IBM com
patible. Non-smoker. Southwest area.
Portland Impact: Needs drivers
using van or own car to transport elderly
people for activities and shopping.
Southeast area.
Call Helen Wahl, 229-7787 about
these and other opportunities.
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