DECEMBER 6, 2017
Portland and Seattle Volume XL No. 10
25
CENTS
News .............................. 3,8-10 A & E .....................................6-7
Opinion ...................................2 Dr. Jasmine ......................9
Calendars ........................... 4-5 Bids/Classifieds ....................11
CHALLENGING PEOPLE TO SHAPE A BETTER FUTURE NOW
RAINIER BEACH
HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE
Community partners working on two major
construction projects — the Multnomah County
Central Courthouse Project and the Gladys McCoy
Health Department Headquarters — anticipate
filling thousands of positions for the projects.
The Skanner News Staff
C
ommunity partners working on
two major construction projects
– the Multnomah County Central
Courthouse Project and the Gladys
McCoy Health Department Headquar-
ters — are seeking workers.
See COURTHOUSE on page 3
A little boy talks to Santa about what he wants for Christmas at the Rainier Beach Community Center Dec. 1. The Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc,. Lambda
Alpha Zeta Chapter offered free photos with Santa as part of the Rainier Beach Merchants Association “Light up the Beach” Rainier Beach Community
Holiday Open House. More then two dozen businesses in the Rainier Community participated. Customers could stop by the businesses for free hot
chocolate or cider, pictures with Santa, music and dance performances and food samples.
KairosPDX Receives After-School Grant
Charter receive Children’s Levy funding to boost learning in STEM
By Melanie Sevcenko
Of The Skanner News
FREDDIE ALLEN/AMG/NNPA
T
CBC Chairman Cedric Richmond (D-La.) and a group
of CBC members met with FBI Director Christopher
Wray about the “Black Identity Extremists” report.
This photo was taken during a recent ceremonial
swearing-in event for the 115th Congress in
Washington, D.C.
CBC Question
FBI Director
Members seek clarification
on ‘Black Identity
Extremists’
page 8
Zimbabwean Musician
in Exile in Eugene
page 7
he Portland’s Chil-
dren Levy has helped
one charter school
start the academic
year off on the right foot.
Its support will continue
throughout the next two
school years, as the Levy
has gifted KairosPDX —
whose K-5 student body is
75 percent youth of color
— with $200,000 for its af-
ter-school STEM program,
which incorporates the
fields of science, tech, engi-
neering and math.
The goal of the program
is to get historically under-
served students interested
in these areas at a critical
age.
According to the Depart-
ment of Commerce, em-
ployees of STEM jobs have
among the highest earn-
ings, charted at 26 percent
more than non-STEM jobs.
Growth in these sectors is
also looking up, currently
holding the lowest unem-
ployment rate over other
industries.
By introducing children
to these fields early on,
the hope is to encourage
lifelong learning and even
career opportunities as
adults.
One component of Kai-
ros’ after school program
is called Project Breaker.
This fall, it gave students
the chance to participate in
a design challenge through
a partnership with Con-
struct Foundation, a public
organization which helps
modernize teaching and
learning models in Ore-
gon.
“We aim to introduce stu-
dents to the steps of the de-
sign thinking process and
mindsets that designers
use to solve messy prob-
lems,” said Erin Bray, Proj-
See KAIROSPDX on page 3
‘A Christmas Carol’ Brings Together
Actors of Color
The Portland Playhouse production runs
Dec. 6 – 30
The Skanner News
P
ortland Playhouse’s award-win-
ning mainstay “A Christmas
Carol” is returning this holiday
season with a diverse cast and
an artistically forward take on the
Dickens classic.
Due to renovations at the theater’s
northeast home (in the former Mt.
Sinai Baptist Church building), the
show will be taking up residence at
the Hampton Opera Center at the
base of the Tilikum Crossing.
The production officially opens
Dec. 6 and will run until Dec. 30.
As with previous years, the Play-
house’s “A Christmas Carol” features
several actors of color — including
Charles Grant in his returning role
as The Ghost of Christmas Present.
The non-traditional casting choices
See PLAY on page 3
PHOTO BY BRUD GILES
Pre-apprenticeship
programs seek those
looking to start or shift
careers to the building
trades
PHOTO BY SUSAN FRIED
Workers
Sought for
Upcoming
Construction
Projects
Actor Charles Grant as the Ghost of Christmas
Present in Portland Playhouse’s production of “A
Christmas Carol.”
