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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 12, 2001)
<« »ni h I i 11 (.-< I io ( iiliiiml l>i\cisi(\ " v m .poi lInndohsci N cr.coii) December 12, 2001 (Tin' ^ o rtla n h (Dbsvrrtt'r SECTION “ffitidpinp P o -itta n d i C,o-nunu.nitie.i” n m nt u n i t u a I e it h a r Mothers Against Drunk Driving Beginning on Friday, Dec. 21 until N ew Y ear’s Eve, M others A gainst D runk D riving w ill be hosting the M ADD C ab program . This is a free service intended to provide a safe, sober ride hom e to anyone who may have had too m uch to drink and drive. It w ill operate nightly from 7:30 p.m. - 2 a.m. For more info., call 503-284-M A D D (6233) and ask for M arie Brown. Healthy Solutions for Loneliness The O regon H ealth & Science U ni versity will be giving an educational talk on “Healthy Solutions for Lone liness.” D uring the talk, the speaker will offer som e helpful solutions on how to approach feelings o f lo n eli ness and isolation that we all expe rience at different tim es in our lives. The event w ill be at the K ing C ity Tow n Hall, located at 15245 SW. 116th Ave., from 1 0-11 a. m. Call 503- 494-0060. Schools May Overhaul Desegregation Policy A two-decades old policy fails to balance schools, close achievement gap (AP) — A voluntary desegregation plan for inner city schools has failed to increase the racial mix or close an achieve ment gap between minority and white students, officials say. More than 20 years after the plan went into effect, Portland schools are more segregated than they were in 1980, said Deputy Superintendent Pat Burk, the school district’s senior academic officer. “I think it would be an appropriate time to evaluate the effectiveness of what we ’ re doing,” Burk said. The 1980 desegregation plan empha sized voluntary busing, enrichment pro grams to overcome the effects of poverty on achievement, and magnet schools to draw white students into predominately black neighborhoods of north and north east Portland. The city has spent tens o f millions of dollars to carry out the plan. But 11 of the 12 largely African American schools re ceiving money for desegregation still have a higher proportion of minority students than in 1980, officials say. In addition, gaps in reading and math scores between white and black students are nearly as wide as they were two de cades ago despite an increase in overall achievement for students of all ethnic backgrounds. Burk is pushing the school board to face. The plan was adopted in 1980 after federal courts began to reject mandatory busing to integrate schools. Portland was among many large urban school districts to switch to voluntary integration pro grams, even as more white families moved to the suburbs. There is nothing magic about being white, but it’s those schools that have better teachers, a better academic climate and kids who are all expected to go to college, —Gary Orfield of the Harvard Civil Rights Project. overhaul the plan before state funding expires in 2005. In 1997, Portland persuaded the Legis lature to pick up the bulk of the funding for desegregation, now about $7 million. The 54,000-student district— the only one in Oregon compensated for integration ef forts — convinced lawmakers that it car ried a burden other districts didn ’ t have to Gary Orfield of the Harvard Civil Rights Project said that segregated schools are almost always bad for minority children. “Nine times out o f 10, segregated schools will have concentrated poverty,” Orfield said. “T hat's almost the opposite o f the income of mostly white segregated schools. “There is nothing magic about being white, but it’s those schools that have better teachers, a better academic climate and kids who are all expected to go to college," Orfield said. He said research also shows that m i nority students in integrated schools do better on achievement tests and perform better in college. Portland test results this year show that both white and black fifth-graders have made gains in reading. But white students had higher average scores, and the average test score gap between the two ethnic groups had closed by only one point from 1998 and 2001. “We clearly have not eliminated the achievement gap,” Burk said. Steve Buel, who helped write Portland's desegregation plan as a school board member in 1980, said the board was heavily criticized for putting money into schools in minority neighborhoods to achieve equity. “T hat’s not a popular thing in this city,” he said. Haircuts for Kids I t’s holiday cheer w ith all the trim m in g s . N o rth an d N o r th e a s t Portland’s children will receive free haircuts ju st in tim e for the holidays thanks to the generosity o f 25 local hairstylists. The haircuts w ill be given on M onday, Dec. 24, from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. at The Salvation Army M oore Street Corps and Com m unity Center, located at 5325 N. W illiams. Ave. Huge flood lights installed by the National Electrical Contractors Association and the International Brotherhood o f Electrical Workers Local 48 and other volunteers make the historic Stemwheeler 'Portland'an evening attraction. The Women & Money Workshop The W om en & M oney w orkshop is a free event that provides basic fi n a n c ia l p la n n in g e d u c a tio n f o r i women. This is a one-day w orkshop I designed to help w om en take c o n - 1 trol o f their financial future. The I w orkshop will be held on Saturday, I Dec. 15, from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m . at the I B lack U nited Fund o f O regon. I o - 1 cated at 2828 NE. Alberta. Call 5 0 3 - 1 282-7973. Water Conservation Workshop The Com m unity Energy Project will I be holding a free w orkshop on W a - 1 ter C onservation. Learn how to take I control o f your water and sewer bills. I This w orkshop provides in fo rm a - 1 tion on how to detect and repair I leaks, w ater conservation ideas in I and around your hom e, plus details I on P o rtlan d ’s incredible w ater s y s - 1 tern. The workshop will be at 422 NE. I A lberta St. on T hursday, Dec. 1 3 , 1 ffo m 6 -7 :3 0 p .m .C a ll503-284-6827. 1 Hollywood Senior Center C elebrate the C hristm as holiday I w ith the H ollyw ood Senior C enter I as they venture up the C olum bia I G orge to have a fantastic dinner at I the Colum bia G orge H otel in Hood I River. T here is also the opportunity I to shop at D eck the H alls C hristm as I shop, w hich is close by. The event I w ill be on T hursday, Dec. 2-, from 3 I p.m. - 8 p.m. Call 503-288-8303. Salvation Army Gift Giving V olunteer elves for the Salvation I Army will sort, stock and distribute I thousands o f donated toys, c lo th - 1 ing and food at the C hristm as d is tr i- 1 bution center on Friday, Dec. 21 and I Saturday, Dec. 22 at 1625 NE. Sandy. I photo by H arold H utchinson for A ckroyd P hotography Historic Tug Made Into Evening Attraction A new glow sparkles each evening from the downtown waterfront, placing a piece of Portland history in spectacular view. The recent lighting of the stemwheeler 'Portland,' was made possible thanks to the National Electrical Contractors Asso ciation and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 48 and other volunteers. “W hen we w ere approached with the idea it was an exciting opportunity to use our professional contractors to help with som ething everyone who drives by dow ntow n at night can en jo y ," said Bill E llis of M cCoy Electric an d NECA c o n tr a c to r . “ T he Sternw heeler Portland is so large and visible that it reaches out to you and says. This is a part of P ortland’s his ing the next step and fully lighting the vessel was only a dream of the museum. A generous donation of nearly $50,000 in volunteer time, supplies and equipment made it happen. The floodlights will be automatically controlled to minimize energy usage and maximize the efficiency of the state of the art lighting fixtures that offer the latest in energy saving technology. Home Weatherizing Combats Rise in Energy Costs I Southwest Washington Humane Society The Home 4 the H olidays pet a d o p - 1 tion cam paign is still going on to I jlace orphaned anim als with loving I fam ilies and individuals during the I holiday season. H undreds o f pets I are available to adopt until Sunday, I Ian. 6 at the Southw est W ashington I Humane Society, located at 2121 St. I Francis Lane in Vancouver. Call 3 6 0 - 1 693-4746 tory’” . T h e ‘Portland’ was built in 1947 and is a classic Columbia River stemwheeler design, unique to the Columbia River system. She worked for the port for 31 years as a ship-assist tug before retiring. The Oregon Maritime Center and Museum has worked hard to restore the vessel and keep it in mint condition. Tak A volunteer from Portland General Electric fastens weather stripping to the door o f a southeast Portland home as part o f a campaign to help senior and disabled residents lower their energy costs. photo by J ohnny H i ff /T hf P ortland O bsfryfr I Armed with caulk guns and rolls of heavy-duty vinyl, 60 volunteers from Portland G eneral E lectric scattered through Portland Dec. 1 to weatherize homes o f senior and disabled residents. The event marked the com pletion of a yearlong effort betw een the utility and the Com m unity Energy Project to w eatherize nearly 60 hom es in Port land neighborhoods. In light o f the recent increase in energy prices, PG E has oolstered its participation in the project, which helps custom ers w ho need assistance trim their m onthly electric bills by installing energy efficiency measures. “M any o f these folks are on fixed incomes, so the savings they realize can be used for food, housing and other living costs. It’s a w in-w in situ ation - residents benefit and PG E e m ployees benefit by being involved in their com m unity," said Bob C haples, executive director o f the C om m unity E nergy P ro ject, h e a d q u a rte re d on A lberta Street in northeast Portland. The volunteers add w indow insula tion: sim ple fram es w ith heavy duty clear vinyl that fit over existing w in dow s. They caulk around w indow s, add foundation covers and take other sim ple steps to help keep the heat in and the w inter chill out. “This is a project that really touches the heart." said V ickie R ocker, PG E com m unity affairs representative.
