Æ1?e g lo r ila u h flD bsem er
April 26. 2 0 0 6
Page AS
Ockley Green Arts Magnet Grows
Student and parent
involvem ent rises
O ckley G reen M iddle Schtxtl in north
Portland is thriving and grow ing with the
arts this year. Funded by the U.S. D epart­
ment o f Education, a m agnet program was
established to attract students to the arts
and technology com ponent o f Beach,
C hief Joseph, O ckley G reen and Jefferson
schools.
C ertified arts teachers, technology
equipm ent and renovations to the O ckley
G reen building were included in the pro­
gram. The auditorium was transform ed
into a theater, a recording studio will be
placed in the band room , and a m ultim edia
lab o f digital equipm ent and laptops will be
available to all students.
There has been increasing and consis­
tent research on the impact o f arts educa­
tion on student achievem ent, school cli­
mate and parent involvem ent. It shows
O ckley G reen student test scores have
risen since spring 2005 an average o f 10-
15 points. Student discipline issues have
decreased substantially w hile parent in­
volvem ent has increased.
The arts are only one m ajor factor in the
change happening at this m iddle school.
S tate-of-the-art technology, com puter
labs, and innovative teaching tools like
the Smart Board are changing not only the
way students are taught, but more im por­
tantly, how they com m unicate their own
learning and accom plishm ents.
W ord gets around. Students from other
schools in the area have transferred into
the Ockley Green program because o f what
the school has to offer. A dditionally.
O ckley Green is accepting kindergarten
through grade eight, beginning in the fall.
Parents have already com pleted applica­
tions for their elem entary students.
Jorge C ruz, a 1999 graduate o f O ckley
G reen M iddle S chool, is now d irecto r o f
photo by
M ark W a s h im ; ton / T he P or i land O bserver
Dance class students Freddy Jackson (from left), Nathaniel Jones, Dequandre Johnson, Maranda Brown and Denaya Brazzle are finding success in the new
arts and technology curriculum at Ockley Green Middle School in north Portland.
after-sch o o l program m ing. O v er 50 p er­
ce n t o f the stu d en ts at O ck ley p a rtic i­
p ate in his program that su p p o rts te ac h ­
e r s ' cu rricu lu m and has ad d itio n al e n ­
h an cem en ts to the sc h o o l’s arts p ro ­
g ram s, such as A frican d rum m ing and
drill team.
“ S tu d en ts can take tw o arts electiv es
every d ay , but they still m ay not get the
classes they had hoped fo r,” C ruz said.
“O u r program o ffers m ore o p p o rtu n i­
ties b ey o n d the school d a y .”
Carrying around his drum sticks during
lunch, one student expressed his passion,
saying, “My dad was a m usician. I’m go­
ing to be one, too."
Pier Park, New Pool Funded
Pier Park Pool in the St. Johns
com m unity may continue to serve
generations o f north Portland resi­
dents.
The pool was pulled from the
scrap pile from last y ea r's city
budget after a w ave o f protests on
word it was going to close this
year, but the Parks Bureau facility is
now supported into the future with
M a y o r’s T o m P o tte r's re c o m ­
m ended budget for 2006-07.
The m ay o r's budget also taps
$3.8 for a new indoor p<x>l at the
East Portland C om m unity Center,
which would becom e P ortland’s
only public pool east o f 82nd Av­
enue.
“This is an excellent proposed
budget for Portland Parks & Recre­
ation,” said City Com missioner Dan
Saltzman. “It m aintains our staffing
levels and reinvests savings into
tackling ourdeferred maintenance.’*
Candidate Loses Public Money
(AP) — Portland A uditor Gary
Blakmer has ruled that council can­
didate Emilie Boyles is ineligible
for public cam paign money and
has dem anded that she return
$I45.(XX).
photo by I saiah
B o uie / T he P ortland O bserver
Johnny Garcia, a burgeoning artist and Roosevelt High School sophomore, joins his parents Jose
and Luisa, to display his animation clay sculpture during an art reception last week at Albina
Community Bank in the St. John s neighborhood.
Dear Deanna!
M y p a s to r, w ho h a p p e n s to be
m y h u s b a n d 's b e st frie n d , h as
w re c k e d o u r c h u r c h . H e d i ­
v o rce d h is w ife an d a y e a r la ter,
m a rrie d h is w if e ’s first c o u sin .
H a lf th e ch u rc h d o e s n 't c a re
an d o th e rs a re try in g to fire
him . It w o u ld n ’t be so bad but
th e p a s to r h a s c h ild r e n w h o
n o w h av e to d e a l w ith th e ir
a u n t b e c o m in g th e ir s te p ­
m o th e r. I d o n ’t s u p p o r t th is
b ut I 'm fo rced to c h o o s e sid e s
b e c a u s e o f m y h u s b a n d ’s
frie n d sh ip w ith him . W h at d o I
d o ? - P ra y in g fo r P e a c e ; P a o li,
P enn.
Dear Praying:
Jessie Jackson w ent half on a
b ab y but he c la im e d to be a
p reacher m an not a saint. If the
p astor w as legally div o rced then
h e ’s privy to m arry a cousin, a
ch air o r a card b o ard box. Y es it
looks strange and there m ay be
m ore to the story such as w hy he
got divorced and did the cousin
play a part. A s a C hristian w ife,
y o u ’re c o m m itte d to s u p p o rt
paintings, ceram ic m asks and tiles
w as c re a te d by stu d e n ts in a
R oosevelt art p rogram , created
last y e a r and ta u g h t by R ick
G raves.
A lbina branch m anager Renee
Andre said the bank is giving young
artists a chance to grow their c o n ­
fidence and share R oosevelt’s tal­
ent with the com m unity, and look
forward to sharing the space for
other groups.
Ask ö
ab o u t w ho I really am . Instead,
p eo p le call m e a d o g , they call me
a p lay er and w om en are upset
w hen things d o n 't go th eir w ay.
W hy do the honest guys h av e a
hard tim e w hen the liars are on
easy street? -D w a y n e P.; M e m ­
phis. T enn.
Dear Dwayne:
Real People, Real Advice
An advice column known for
its fearless approach to reality
based subjects!
y o u r h usband and avoid getting
caught up in d ram a w ith the hell
raising m em bers o f the church.
If y o u r p asto r is not fornicating
and can still d eliv er the W ord,
then get o v e r it and keep it m o v ­
ing.
Y o u ’re a fo o l w ith c o m m it­
m e n t issu es an d slim re sp e c t
fo r w o m en . Y o u r b e h a v io r is
n ot re sp o n sib le an d is n o th in g
to b rag ab o u t. W h en it co m e s
to lo v e, life an d re la tio n sh ip s,
th e r e is n o h o n e s ty a m o n g
c h e a te rs , no p o in ts fo r p la y e rs
an d no h ig h fiv es fo r in fid e lity .
A lia r is o n ly on e a sy stre e t u n til
th e y are re v e a le d an d th e n all
h eck b re a k s lo se an d th e y tru ly
d e s e rv e it. D o y o u r s e lf a fa v o r
a n d g et a new g a m e b e c a u s e
th is o n e is w eak.
A sk Deanna is written by Deanna
M. Write Ask Deanna! Email:
I'm a co n fessed w o m an izer with askdeanna I ® yahoo.com or 264
m any d ates and d o n ', plan to S. LaCienega Blvd. Suite 1283
change. I feel I should be given a Beverly Hills, CA Vt)2l1. Website:
Dear Deanna!
paign for a food bank she runs.
A m ong other expenses, Boyles
paid her 1 6 -y ear-o ld d a u g h te r
$ 12,500for Internet marketing work.
C andidates m ust pay the going
market rate for such work.
Showtime 2006
16th Annual Benefit Concert
Young Artists Find a Gallery
The w ork o f over 100 Roosevelt
H igh S chool stud en ts is on d is­
play through the en d o f M ay at
A lbina C om m unity B a n k ’s St.
Jo h n ’s branch, 8040 N. Lom bard.
T h e v a rie ty o f art, in c lu d in g
Blackm er ruled that Boyles vio­
lated the public financing code by
taking out a y ear’s lease on her
southeast Portland cam paign head­
quarters — a former restaurant that
she planned to use after the cam ­
NO! KIDDING! CHOIR
in Concert
with special guest
NORMAN SYLVESTER
A ¿so featured
S p a n k H o p k in s , drums
A n n e W e is s , acoustic guitar
R e n a to C aran to, saxophonists
Art A le x a n d e r , congas
T o m M c L a r en , bass
J a c k ie H arry, soprano
R o s ie L o v in g s , alto
K aren S te n z e l, alto
J oi S to n e , soprano
Friday, April 28
7:00 PM
Augustana Lutheran Church
2710 NE 14th
Portland
P r o c e e d s w ill b e n e f it
th e c h o ir ’s m u s ic
to u r in g p r o g r a m
Tickets
io advance or at the door
$15
Contact:
Janice H opkins
showtim e/« noki ddingchoir.com
503-280-9034
pa, on the back for being honest
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