Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (June 30, 2004)
Happy 4 th of July! Good in the Neighborhood Holiday celebrations planned with blues and fireworks Annual event puts local communities in good light See Focus, pages B2 and B3 ‘Citv of Roses See photo essay, Page AS A ^lortí¿tnó (Ohsmìcr Established in 1970 Committed to Cultural Diversity Volume XXXIV • Number 25 www.portlandobserver.com Wednesday • lune 30. 2004 Jefferson ® FOCUS Moving ahead on two plans to boost success by J aymee R. C uti T he P ortland O bserver Two groups are moving for ward in plans to boost achieve ment at Jefferson High School serving north and northeast Portland. The school board recently ado p ted a plan to rem ake Jefferson into a school within a school, divided into the School of Pride, apreparatory academy for freshmen and sophomores and School o f Champions for advanced studies, designed for juniors and seniors. Meanwhile, a group of com munity members were approved fora planning grant by the state to research the possibility of re lie v in g P o rtla n d P u b lic Schools of Jefferson altogether and converting it into a charter school. Com m unity leaders in both o f these efforts are rising to the forefront o f the debate, Tony Hobson o f Self Enhancement, Inc. supports a plan to turn Jefferson into a charter school as a vehicle to raise academic standards. 'V ' Portland School Board Co-Chair Lolenzo Poe takes a moment to meet Pierre Dembo at Jefferson High School. | I I ! though their goals appear to coincide. “You make something smaller can focus on kids" said Lolenzo Poe, co- chair of the Portland Public School board and Jefferson High School alumni. “The district has some responsibility and if the competency of teachers and instruction is there, then Jefferson will reach it s goal.” Tony Hopson, executive director of Self Enhancement, Inc. and fellow Jefferson grad, thinks students will excel when the community gets involved. “ I t’s not the a p p ro a c h ; i t ’s the people,” Hopson said. “ I d o n ’t believe that it (sm aller schools) will be the sys tem that will make the difference. It will be the teachers that work in that system and the leadership in the adm inistration that guide the process and how they involve the rest o f us: the com m unity and parents.” He says the advantage of a charter school is handpicking leadership, from the principal and administration to the teachers and students. H opson’s organization will open SEI Academy, a charter middle school, in the fall. Poe says he’s willing to consider what ever solutions are necessary to bring stu dents up to state benchmarks. “I am in favor o f what will get those kids the greatest academ ic gains and experiences as those kids can have. If the district can ’t deliver and a charter dem onstrates itself to be a viable op tion, then yes, it’s som ething we have to consider,” said Poe. “The goal is to get these kids educated.” Poe says many factors contribute to challenges in educating Jefferson stu dents, beyond the school program itself. continued on page A6 photos by M ark W ashincton ^T hk P ortland O bserver Road Map to Educational Options School choices bring unique learning opportunities by J ohanna S. K ing T he P ortland O bserver Navigating your way through the public education system can be a dif- ficult task. “From alternative to charter, from magnet to other special program s, picking the school that is the right fit for your child can be a major frustra- tion, says Lew Frederick, inform a- tion officer of Portland Public Schools, “There are many discrete differences betw een the educational program s that each school uniquely offers to their students,” Frederick said. “It can be hard to see that and make the best choice.” Expect each school to have a blendec mosaic o f differences and realize thal children’s destinies are ultim ately al hand. A lternative and charter school program s exist to provide students more individual attention and more flex- ibility while catering to a student's w ide-ranging learning styles. The common objective is to offer students and their fam ilies’ meaning- ful choices that meet the different learning needs and educational in ter ests o f all students, according to Kathy ™nt,nued V ° n P“8< Destination Northeast Portland Al Roker stops at Hannah Bea’s for pound cake and gab Hannah Bea's Pound Cake and More owner Anita Smith shares her cookbook recipes with Al Roker during a taping of his ‘Roker on the Road' show on the Cable Food Network. NBC Today Show w eather man AI Roker made northeast P o r tla n d ’s H a n n a h B e a ’s Poundcake and More a stop on h is ro v in g c o o k in g sh o w , “ Roker on the Road,” on the Cable Food Network. Roker stopped in at Hannah B ea'sat3969N .E . MartinLuther King Blvd. last Saturday to cook salm on croquettes with chef Saan Patterson and sample the r e s ta u r a n t’s fa m o u s pound Hannah Bea's ChefSaan Patterson (from left), and restau rant owner Anita Smith share recipes with Al Roker during his culinary trip through northeast Portland. PHOTOS BY D avid P i . e < h i ? continued on page A 6 T he P ortland O bserver 11 ” took in a w hop ping $21.8 m illion in its first three days, becom ing the first docum entary ever to debut as Iraqi Court to H o lly w o o d ’s to p Charge Hussein w eekend film . Saddam Hussein will be trans M oore’s assault on ferred to Iraqi legal custody and President Bush’s ac face charges in an Iraqi court this tions after the 2001 week - but he w on’t goon trial for terrorist attacks, won months and he will stay in a U.S.- the top honor at last run ja il because the co u n try m onth'sC annes Film d o esn ’t have a suitable prison, Festival the prime m inister said Tuesday. T,Wcek¡n TheReview Fahrenheit 9/11 No. 1 at Box Office Michael M oore's “Fahrenheit 9/ Supreme Court to hear Medical Pot Case The U.S. Suprem e C ourt agreed to d ecide w hether the federal L f SHBJB ■HH| H H ve.ouled « to n . w hich have medical m ari|iiana laws siim lar to Cali form a's al lo w in g patients to grow . mat 11 liana h av e a d o t i o i s i t a Bush Interviewed in CIA Leak ominendation F e d e ra l in v e s tig a to r s q u e s tioned P resident Bush for m ore than an hour as the in v e stig a tion into the leak o f a CIA o p e ra tiv e ’s nam e reached into the O val O ffice. Army Calls Up Retired Troops U.S. Hands Power to Iraq Army i, preppr- ' * 1 ° "°" > 5,600 retired and d is charged soldiers who are not m em bers o f the N ational Guard or Reserve that they will be in voluntarily recalled to active duty for possible service in Iraq or Afghanistan, Army officials said. The U.S.-led coalition transferred sovereignty to an interim Iraqi governm ent two days early M on day in a surprise move that ap parently caught insurgents off guard, averting a feared campaign of attacks to sabotage the his toric step toward self-rule.