Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 24, 1999)
^ r« < z r’ » *•< rr-s .’V Board Member Recognized for Public Service G overnor John Kitzhaber, in a sur prise announcement, today told State Board o f Education member Susan M assey she is the Oregon winner o f the “Education Hero” award sponsored by the U.S. D epartment o f Education. T he aw a rd sig n ed by U .S. E d u c a tio n S e c re ta ry R ich a rd R iley, reco g n izes those w ho u n d ertak e ex c ep tio n al activ ities to help c h ild ren learn. “ A s yo u b e lie v e in O re g o n sc h o o ls, y o u r frien d s in e d u c a tio n b e lie v e in y o u ,” K itz h ab e r to ld M a s s e y . T h e O re g o n S c h o o l B o a rd s A s s o c ia tio n , C o n fe d e ra tio n o f O re g o n S ch o o l A d m in istra to rs an d O r eg o n D ep a rtm en t o f E d u catio n e n d o rse d h e r n o m in atio n . “There are few people who can m atch Susan M assey’s dedication to public se rv ic e,” said S tate Schools Supt. Stan Bunn. “ She is a quiet but forceful leader in im proving O regon schools.” M assey, w ho lives in N orth Bend, is a form er teacher. She w as active in the N orth Bend PTA and served on the N orth Bend School B oard for 12 years. She w as appointed to the S tate B oard o f E ducation in 1991. She called attention to the need to M I strengthen character education in O r egon schools. A s an education policym aker, M assey said, “ Loneli ness stalks w here the buck stop. We all hunger in our schools for love, com fort and the support o f others. It Susan Massey is vitally important, as well, to remem ber to do our best in providing those things for the boys and girls who will take ourplaces in the next generation. N ew B eginnings here are currently an estimated 600,000 children in foster care and 70,000 available for adop tion in the U.S. W hile the adoption market for infants continues to soar - private agencies have long w aiting lists and charge up to $30,000 for a n ew b o m -o ld erch ild ren have am uch hardertim e finding homes. T ocounter the high costs and difficulties o f tra ditional adoptions, there has been a growing trend to organize gr oup gath erings that introduce children ages 3 to 17 to prospective parents. THE A D O PTIO N PICNIC chronicles the w eeks leading up to, and the m onths follow ing, one such event w hen the poignant “C IN E M A X Real L ife” docum entary debuts TH U R SD A Y , APRIL 8 (6:30-8:00 P.M.ET). Otherplaydate: April 21 (10:45 a.m.). T h e em o tio n al jo u rn e y for the h o p efu l p aren ts beg in s six w eeks before the picnic in T ylertow n, M is s is s ip p i, w h e n c o u p le s a tte n d “ p aren tin g se ssio n s” run by S y lv ia S essio n s, an ad o p tio n sp e c ia list and o rg an iz er o f the picnic. T he Photo: Kristine M. Anderson co u p les are ap p rised o f the jo y s, The poignant documentary The Adoption P/cnfc visits a summer's day picnic in Mississippi where foster kids trials and realities o f p aren tin g in available for adoption m eet prospective parents. general, and specifically o f children D eath.” T he p ro d u cer is A dam b est ch an ce fo r o ld e r fo ste r c h il w ho m ay com e burdened w ith p ro b call th ese g a th e rin g s “ m eat m a r Bullmore; editor, Andy Netley; camera, d ren to m eet in te re ste d p aren ts, k ets,” an d c o n te n d th a t som e c h il lem s req u irin g special patien ce and Stephen Standen; associate producer. m aking it w orth the em otional risk. dren m ay su stain serio u s em otional love. T he c o u p les see p h o to g rap h s Romaine Lancaster. ForCINEM AX: Joanna 1 lead, who also directed the d am ag e w hen th e ir h o p es for fin d an d learn a b it ab o u t the ch ild ren executive producer, Sheila Nevins; su America Undercover documentary. ing new h o m es are d ash ed if they th ey w ill m eet at the picn ic. pervising producer, Nancy Abraham; directslTJE ADOPTION PICNIC “Call O f the 45 ch ild re n at th e a d o p are n ot p ick ed . D efen d e rs e m p h a supervising editor, GeofBartz. ing Dr. Kevorkian: A Date with Dr. size that su ch p ic n ics m ay be the tion picnic, 30 find fam ilies. C ritics T N 'Reach For Success' EUGENE-M inority middle school students will get a firsthand look at college li fe on a major university cam pus during this year’s Reach for Suc cess” visitation day on Saturday, April 17, at the U niversity ofO regon. About 150 students o f color, their parents and school counselors from all over Oregon are expected to attend the free event, which is sponsored by the the UO Office ofM ulticultural Affairs, the Office o f Student Retention Pro grams and the Office o f Admissions. Registration begins at 9 a m . in the ballroom o f the Erb M em orial Union (EM U ), 1222 E. 13th Ave. on the UO campus. Participation will be lim ited to the first 150 students on a first- com e, first served basis, with a March 26 pre-registration deadline. Each year, the UO offers “ Reach for Success” to encourage and sup port African-American, Asian-Ameri can o f Pacific Islander, C hicano or Latino and N ative A m erican students in pursuing their educational goals. The program gives students and their families the chance to experience first hand the m any opportunities avail able in higher education. Jose R om ero, d irecto r o f special p ro ject for the W oodburn S chool D istrict and an U O alum nus, w ill d eliv er the keynote address at 9:30 a.m. in the EM U Ballroom. GANA S- stud en ts from E u g e n e ’s K ennedy M iddle S chool w ho are involved w ith a partnership-tutoring program w ith the U n iv ersity o fO reg o n -w ill p ro v id e en tertain m en t. U O faculty, ad m in istrato rs and g rad u ate stu d en ts w ill teach m in i classes on 14 d iffe ren t subjects, in clu d in g art, scien c e, b usiness, law , the In tern et and jo u rn alism . C am pus tours and sessio n s about ad m issio n req u irem en ts, financial aid an d ho u sin g also w ill be av a il able fo r students. W o rk sh o p s for p aren ts w ill a d d ress to p ics such as p aying for co lleg e, ad m issio n s o p tio n s, ca m pus an d co m m u n ity reso u rces, and “ h elp in g y o u r ch ild su c ce ed in sc h o o l.” T h ese w o rk sh o p s w ill be o ffered in S panish as w ell as E n glish. T hose p aren ts w ho request assistan ce in other languages at the tim e o f reg istratio n w ill be pro v ided in terp reters. ChildCare will be available for chil dren ages 30 months to six years. Free bus transportation will be provided from central locations in Portland, Salem and Woodburn on a space-available basis. For m ore inform ation, or to pre- register, contact the UO o f Student Retention Programs, (541) 346-1152. SAFE KIDS Week Starts with Children’s Safety Fair at the Zoo Children, parents and grandpar ents are invited to the O regon SAFE KIDS safety fair at the O regon Zoo in Portland from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, M ay 1. In keeping with this y ea r's theme o f Helping Every G en eration Care for Kids there w ill be interactive safety exhibits for kids and the adults o f all ages who care for them. Safety checklists good for dis count Z oo adm ission are being dis tributed through area schools and other locations. For information about other activities during SAFE KIDS W eek, visit the w ebsit at h ttp :// w w w .osp.state.or.us/SA FEkids. Sneak Peek To All 4 & 5 Yr. O ld C hildren!! Y ou and your parent/guardian are invited to a “ Sneak Peek” preview o f Fall classroom s. Bring 4 & 5 yr. Old friends and neigh- bore. D on’t forget their parent guardian. W e’ll m eet in the B oise Eliot li brary, 62 0 N . F remont, on F nday Apri 1 2 at 9 a.m. Y ou w ill be able to visit classroom s and see students learn ing, w orking and having a great tim e!! For your parent/guardian there will be an overview o f Pre-K and K inder garten program s. Ifyou are not registered please bring: Birth certificate • Im m unizations • P ro o f o f address • W e have 40 openings for K inder garten and approx. 60 for Pre-K See Y ou Soon!!!! Q uestions will be answered!! 916-6171 I i