REGION
Saturday, March 5, 2016
East Oregonian
Smith named Walla Walla Superintendent
By JENNIFER COLTON
East Oregonian
“When you’re looking
for leadership and growth,
there are only a few school
districts in the region, so you
Hermiston
Deputy
can’t pass up opportunities,”
Superintendent Wade Smith
he said. “This was a big
has accepted the position of
family discussion before I
superintendent for the Walla
even put my name in the hat,
Walla School District.
but my family is incredibly
“It’s bittersweet,” Smith
supportive. They understand
said Friday. “It was kind of
this is part of working in
surreal this morning. It’s
education. The next adven-
been a great experience in
ture in our life started last
Hermiston, but this was too
night.”
good an opportunity to pass
In addition to the Walla
up.”
Walla position, Smith was
The Walla Walla Public
DOVR D ¿QDOLVW IRU WKH VXSHU-
Schools Board of Directors
intendent position in the
unanimously named Smith Smith
that district’s new superin-
From April 2011 until Pendleton School District.
tendent during a meeting October 2012, Smith led the 7KH UHPDLQLQJ WZR ¿QDOLVWV
Thursday night. Smith’s Hermiston School District for that position are Ontario
last day with the Hermiston and was named deputy High School Principal Andy
School District is June 30, superintendent upon Maioc- Kovach and Pendleton
School District Assistant
and he will begin the Walla co’s return.
Tricia
Walla job on July 1.
“What a great ride,” Superintendent
$ ¿UVW JHQHUDWLRQ FROOHJH Smith said of his nine years Mooney.
Michelle Monkman, the
student, Smith’s career in Hermiston. “All the
began as a chemistry teacher things that we’ve done for Pendleton School Board
in the Long Creek School kids — not just the capital chair, said the board hopes
District before becoming a construction improvement, to make a decision Tuesday
principal at Heppner High but when it comes to closing whether to offer the position
School. After two years as the achievement gap with to one of the candidates.
Smith said either posi-
assistant superintendent for our Latino students and our
the Morrow County School students in poverty. There tion would have been an
District, he came to Herm- have been a lot of great “excellent” opportunity but
iston nine years ago as an things that have happened the Walla Walla position is
assistant superintendent.
since I’ve been here. This uniquely aligned with his
In 2011, Smith, then is a community that rallies skills and experience.
“I am going to miss the
assistant superintendent for around their youth, and I’m
support services, was named sure they’ll have no problem Hermiston community, the
Hermiston School District’s ¿QGLQJ RXWVWDQGLQJ IRONV WR administration, but on equal
footing is the excitement
Administrator of the Year. take over.”
That same year, he became
Smith said the Walla to assist Walla Walla doing
the interim superintendent Walla position is a way to some extraordinary things. I
when Fred Maiocco was take the next step in his think the stars have aligned
deployed to Kuwait for 18 career but remain in a rural in that community with a
months with the U.S. Army region he and his family board and a community
ready to take the next step
reserves.
love.
and do something amazing,”
he said.
Smith will submit a
resignation to the Hermiston
School Board of Education,
and Maiocco said the district
will begin advertising for a
replacement next week. The
position will be for assistant
superintendent; however, the
GLVWULFWLVVWLOO¿QDOL]LQJZKDW
specialization that position
will be for. Smith was hired
as assistant superintendent
for human resources, and
Maiocco said the position
morphed
with
Smith’s
VSHFL¿FFDSDELOLWLHV
³1RRQHZLOO¿OOKLVVKRHV
exactly — they are huge
VKRHV WR ¿OO ² EXW ZH DUH
excited about this opportu-
nity,” he said. “Obviously,
replacing Wade is going to be
a very big chore for us, but I
think Walla Walla will thrive
under his leadership.”
Smith said his family
will move to Walla Walla,
including his two children
and his wife, Marianne, an
art teacher at Hermiston
High School. Maiocco said
the entire family has been an
asset to Hermiston.
“They (Walla Walla) could
QRWKDYHPDGHD¿QHUFKRLFH
I think it’s an opportunity
for Wade and his family.
Marianne is an extraordinary
teacher, and she will be just
as hard to replace as Wade.
They will be missed, but we
wish them the best.”
———
Contact Jennifer Colton
at jcolton@eastoregonian.
com or 541-564-4534
Educators ‘play’ to learn skills during workshops
By JENNIFER COLTON
East Oregonian
ages and levels.
The presenters also talked
about what makes a “great”
recess, such as having at
Ninety-three percent of
least 20 minutes of time and
3DFL¿F 1RUWKZHVW VFKRROV
not taking recess away as a
with Playworks reported a
punishment or for academic
decrease in disciplinary inci-
reasons.
dents; 93 percent reported an
Four school districts —
improvement in academic
8PDWLOOD 6WDQ¿HOG (FKR
success, and 98 percent
and Morrow County —
reported and improvement
have already expressed an
in school climate — all
interest in bringing training
because of play. Friday,
and Playworks coaches
educators worked together
into the local schools. Play-
to bring those skills to local
works will host a three-day
schools.
EO ile photo
training and demonstration
“We have a vision that Playworks 101, was one of four workshops presented
Umatilla’s
McNary
one day, every child in Friday by the InterMountain Education Service District. at
America will have the The four workshops focused on innovative concepts in Heights Elementary next
week. Blasher indicated that
opportunity to play every education.
to fund a hub for Eastern
day with safe and healthy
play,” workshop presenter social competence in chil- between recess and class. Oregon would take about
Jon Blasher said Friday. dren with autism spectrum On Friday, the educators eight schools involved in
and
“Growth both discussed the science Playworks coaching.
“We really believe that the disorder
Mindset,”
which
focuses behind play and took an
“Cost-wide, it’s very
power of play can bring the
on
non-cognitive
skills
such active approach in hands-on reasonable,” said Brandon
best out in every kid.”
Blasher is the executive as resiliency, perseverance game training. The educa- Hammond, principal at
GLUHFWRU IRU WKH 3DFL¿F and self-management as key tors played “band-aid tag,” Boardman’s Windy River
Northwest chapter of Play- ingredients for engagement, IRU H[DPSOH D PRGL¿FDWLRQ Elementary. “Culturally, if
ZRUNV D QDWLRQDO QRQSUR¿W motivation, social and on the traditional tag game we’re going to start this, I
designed to bring safe and emotional wellness and meant to keep all students think we need to start off on
engaged and involved the right foot. We want to
inclusive, structured play academic achievement.
At
Playworks
101,
partic-
instead of making one child create a culture.”
to students in low-income
ipants
covered
the
length
of
“it.”
———
schools. His workshop,
“Tag can have the same
Contact Jennifer Colton
Playworks 101, was one of the InterMountain district,
four workshops presented from Heppner to Helix to amount of cardio as running at jcolton@eastoregonian.
Friday by the InterMountain La Grande. They discussed a mile, but it’s fun,” Blasher com or 541-564-4534
Education Service District. EHQH¿WV UHZDUGV DQG FKDO- said. “It’s all about getting
every child to play every
The
four
workshops lenges with recess.
“The big thing that I’m day.”
focused on innovative
Participants in the work-
concepts in education. The ORRNLQJ IRU LV FRQÀLFW UHVR-
lution,
so
the
incidents
from
shop
ranged from paraedu-
largest, ACEs and Trauma
Informed Care, brought the playground don’t spill cators to superintendents and
together 450 educators from over to the classroom,” said from preschool through high
across Eastern Oregon to Carter Wells, superintendent school. Those ranges opened
discussed adverse childhood at the Union School District. the door for discussions in
The comment prompted PRGL¿FDWLRQ DQG VWUDWHJLHV
experiences, services and
supports. The other work- discussion and strategies to make play accessible and
shops included promoting for smoothing the transition interesting to students at all
Processor,
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Page 3A
BRIEFLY
Kiwanis
playground closed
until further notice
PENDLETON —
Pendleton Parks and
Recreation has closed the
Kiwanis Playground on
Southeast Byers Avenue
until further notice after
staff discovered some
cracks and missing bolts in
the equipment.
Parks Director Donnie
Cook said they fenced
off the playground on
Friday and contacted the
manufacturer to replace
any missing parts. There is
no estimate of when they
will be able to reopen.
“The main thing is we
just don’t want anybody to
get hurt,” Cook said.
The playground was
¿UVWEXLOW\HDUVDJR
Cook said the work will
help to make the area safer.
Snowpack holds
steady after warm
February
Despite a warm
February, mountain
snowpack remains normal
for this time of year across
northeast Oregon.
The Natural Resource
Conservation Service
released its March water
supply outlook report on
Friday, which shows the
Umatilla, Walla Walla
and Willow basins are at
101 percent of average
snow-water equivalent
— which measures the
amount of water contained
within snow. The Grande
Ronde, Powder, Burnt and
Imnaha basins are 104
percent of average, and
the John Day Basin is 108
percent of average.
Most basins expe-
rienced some mid- to
low-elevation snowmelt
during warmer periods
in the middle of the
month, according to the
NRCS. Higher elevations
continue to retain snow
for the time being.
With spring on the
way, the NRCS predicts
higher temperatures and
rain on snow could result
LQVLJQL¿FDQWO\PRUH
snowmelt.
“Temperature will
be the key indicator for
March snowpack devel-
opment and retention,”
said Scott Oviatt, Oregon
snow survey supervisor.
“Eastern Oregon
continues to see the best
conditions in the state,
due to cooler mountain
temperatures.”
For now, the NRCS
SUHGLFWVWKHPHGLDQÀRZ
in the Umatilla River from
April through September
will be 161,000 acre-feet,
or 105 percent of normal.
Overall, water supplies
in the basin are likely to
be below normal to near
normal this summer.
For more information,
visit www.nrcs.usda.gov.
Public invited
to discuss north
Highway 395
HERMISTON —
Members of the public
interested in improving
Highway 395 north of
Hermiston are invited to
a meeting of the Highway
395 N Committee.
The meeting will be
Tuesday, March 8 from
4-5:30 p.m. at the Stafford
Hansell Government
Center, 915 S.E. Columbia
Drive, Hermiston.
The advisory
committee is a collabo-
ration between property
owners and Umatilla
County that has been
meeting for more than a
year to discuss ways to
implement an economic
development study
prepared by E.D. Hovee
and Company in 2015.
Ideas the committee has
discussed for fostering
economic development
along North Highway
395 include road
improvements, formation
of a Local Improvement
District, landscaping
guidelines, infrastructure
improvements and zoning
changes.
Steve Watkinds,
committee chair and
owner of Columbia Court
Club on the highway, said
members of the business
community north of
Hermiston have worked
ZHOOZLWKFRXQW\RI¿FLDOV
during the process.
“This public-private
effort has been very
positive,” he said.
———
Briefs are compiled
from staff and wire
reports, and press
releases. Email press
releases to news@
eastoregonian.com
Tim & Annette Terraberry’s
Dinner & Auction
Sunday,
March 13th
4:00pm
Hermiston
High School
Commons
Tim is battling Cancer, so please
help support this wonderful couple.
Doors open 4pm • Tri Tip dinner buffet 5pm
Silent Auction • Tickets $35
Tickets may be purchased at the
Hermiston Chamber, American West Properties
and Oasis Vineyard Church. A table for 8 can
be purchased for $280.
If you have any questions or would like to
volunteer, please call or text Nancy Walchli at
541-571-1723.
hermistonhomeloans.com
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