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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 22, 2014)
News Women UNCF Fair continued from page 1 ‘Politicians must put aside partisan bickering, advocate for women, and take action to improve women’s health by moving forward with a proactive health equity agenda’ — Alliance for a Just Society Executive Director LeeAnn Hall nificant, and that even the two states that received A’s in every area could improve. “In 28 states, the uninsured rate for black women was at least 10 percent higher than for women overall; in 17 states, it was at least 20 percent higher,” according to the report. “The disparities were even wider for Latina women: in 49 states, the uninsured rate for Latina women was at least 20 percent higher than for women overall; in 44 states, it was at least 50 percent higher; and in 18 states, it was at least twice as high.” Specifically, the report called out the hypertension rate for Black women nationally; the diabetes rate for Latina women; asthma rates for Native American women; and the infant mortality rate for Black, Hispanic and Native Amer- PHOTO BY SUSAN FRIED Those with the worst scores by and large are states that refused President Barack Obama’s offer of expanded Medicare coverage, including Texas (#50), Montana (#49), Georgia (#48), and Florida (#47); Nevada (#46) did expand federal coverage. The study tracks racial disparities in community health as they are impacted in three areas: health coverage for women; women’s access to care; and women’s health out- comes. This year’s report indicated racial disparities remain sig- Omari Fletcher 17, Ilea Roberts, 16, Janelle Brown 16 and George Harris III, 16, talk with a representative from Clark Atlanta University during the United Negro College Fund Black College Fair 2014, Saturday, Oct. 18, at the Northwest African American Museum. ican women. “This report card shows Oregon has an average record on women’s health. Though this is better than a failing grade, it’s not nearly good enough for women and the families that depend on them, and especially for women of color,” said Darlene Huntress, executive director of Oregon Action. “These grades should serve as an urgent call to action for Oregon leaders,” she said. “It’s time to get past political gridlock and take concerted action to improve women’s health.” The report includes a detailed list of policy recommenda- tions, including: Implement Medicare expansion in all states that have failed to do it; invest in community-based outreach and insurance enrollment strategies targeted towards women of color and low-income communities; and push for better competition and oversight on health plans offered through the marketplace. Read the rest of this story online at www.theskanner.com OSU continued from page 1 instrumental in highway construction and road improvement projects. Tebeau was responsible for mapping many Oregon cities, counties and urban areas. He also served as an engineering instructor at Chemeketa Community Col- lege most of his life. Among his many professional and civic honors, Tebeau was inducted into OSU’s “Engineering Hall of Fame” and received the College of Engineering’s “Oregon Stater Award” in 2010. He was also recog- nized by the Oregon Northwest Black Pioneers for his contributions to Oregon. A well-known family man, Tebeau and his wife Genevieve had seven children. Their family grew to 13 grandchildren and eight great, great grandchildren. Tebeau died on ‘Bill dedicated his time to helping each of us prepare for the exam and challenged us to be better engineers and to continue learning’ July 5, 2013 in Salem. Genevieve Tebeau and daughters Deni Williams and Janine Roland attended the event. At the ceremony where over 100 people gathered, OSU President Ed Ray, remem- bered Tebeau as a humble man of great accomplishments. “Bill Tebeau is clearly an outstanding example of the exceptional impact our alumni make every day,” said President Ray. “He was a proud member of Beaver Nation throughout his life.” Ray reminded the audience of Bill Tebeau’s motto: “Make it a great day,” with an emphasis on Make. Tebeau’s motto is posted in large letters in the entry way of the new building. Paul Mather, ODOT’s Highway Division Administrator, also remembered Tebeau at the ceremony. “I remember meeting Bill early in my career as many of my OSU classmates and I were studying to pass the professional engi- neering exam,” said Mather. “Bill dedicated his time to helping each of us prepare for the exam and challenged us to be better engineers and to continue learning through- out our careers.” Tebeau Hall has housing for 280 students in suites and apartment-like rooms with many conveniences, including modern kitchen and laundry facilities and a student health clinic. This is the second Residence Hall at OSU to be named in recognition of an African- American. In 2002, the university opened Halsell Hall in honor of Carrie Beatrice Halsell (Ward), the first Black female stu- dent to graduate from OSU in 1926. Born in Salem, Oregon, Halsell earned her degree in Commerce and served as a faculty member at South Carolina State College. Absences continued from page 1 “Missed days means missed learning, leading to lower test scores and a reduced likelihood of graduating from high school,” the report says. “In a recent study, Oregon kindergarteners or first graders with high absenteeism rates were not likely to catch up to their peers’ test scores by 5th grade. “Oregon cannot meet its ambitious gradu- ation goals, or eliminate the achievement gap, without addressing chronic absen- teeism.” Tackling the problem means looking at the reasons behind the absences. The report says children miss school for many reasons. Some children face barriers to attending such as lack of transportation; chronic ill- nesses such as asthma, anxiety, depression and other mental health issues; fear of bul- lying and lack of healthcare. Some students don’t want to attend school because they are ‘Missed days means missed learning, leading to lower test scores and a reduced likelihood of graduating from high school’ uncomfortable in the environment, the instruction doesn’t engage them or because they are struggling academically. And some parents simply don’t realize that absences are a problem even if they’re for a good rea- son. Frequent moves, unstable housing and poor housing conditions are connected to increased absences, the report found, along with a history of traumatic events in the family and parents who suffer from depres- sion. “Recent research is examining how one or more adverse childhood experience such as residential instability, parental divorce or separation, witnessing domestic violence, involvement with child protective services, jailed family members, substance abuse among family members, community vio- lence, having unmet basic needs, mental and physical disorders among family mem- bers, and caregiver death put children at a risk of severe attendance problems, aca- demic failure, severe school behavior concerns, and frequent reported poor health. Children in these circumstances experience regular emotional pain, may become aggressive, and are closed to new learning – all behaviors that can result in misunder- standings among educators and other caregivers.” Oregon’s high rate of child hunger is also a major concern, the report says. “In 6-12 year olds, a lack of food has been associated with absenteeism, as well as poorer math scores, grade repetition, and tardiness,” it says. “In Oregon, 16 percent (1 in 26) of households with children are food insecure or hungry. This means that potentially on average across all schools at least one child in every Oregon classroom does not know where they will get their next meal. Read the rest of this story online at www.theskanner.com October 22, 2014 The Portland and Seattle Skanner Page 3
