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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 18, 2016)
Page 10A East Oregonian PATTERSON: Had a lair for identifying talent Continued from 1A ground that included working at a radio station, heading a community weekly newspaper called the Lebanon Express and managing a Fred Meyer store. Patterson started with the East Orego- nian in 1984, working as EO general manager until 1993, before becoming the corporate general manager in Salem as well as the general manager of the Capital Press until 1996. He served as corporate general manager until his retirement in 2005. Brown said Patterson was a ierce champion for his community. He served as Pendleton Chamber of Commerce president in 1991. He helped launch the Round-Up City Development Corpora- tion. “He always had Pendleton on his mind,” agreed Mike Short, a commercial lender with Bank of Eastern Oregon and current president of the RCDC. “He knew the players and knew the pulse of the community.” Patterson had a lair for identifying talent. Marissa Williams, tapped by Patterson as general manager for the Blue Mountain Eagle at the tender age of 25, found a mentor in “the gentle giant.” Though she was far down the ladder as editorial assistant, he credited her for work experience in advertising at the Bend Bulletin and as a restaurant owner. He saw promise in the young woman. Patterson faced some pushback from board members concerned about her age, but he convinced them. Williams now serves as regional advertising director for the East Oregonian and the Hermiston Herald and as publisher of the Wallowa County Chieftain and the Blue Mountain Eagle. She said Patterson’s mentoring made the difference. “It was important to make him proud,” she said. East Oregonian Publisher Kathryn Brown described him as a “positive force” who loved Pendleton and wanted it to grow. She also credited Patterson’s stubborn belief in her for persuading her to work for her family’s newspaper business after her irst career as a nurse practitioner. He had earlier convinced a then-college-age Brown to do a summer internship at the EO where she spent time in every department from the press room to the newsroom. Former EO Editor Mike Forrester prized Patterson’s professionalism, eclectic work experience and his intel- ligence, but admitted he occasionally knocked heads with leaders of the fami- ly-held company. “Pat had a strong personality and worked for a family of strong personal- ities so not every day was a love fest,” Forrester said. “I think we may have beneited more from that relationship than Pat did.” Steve Brown (no relation to Kathryn) remembers Patterson getting out latent work tension as a member of the EO’s city league volleyball team, sometimes knocking his employees and fellow players down in his rush to get to the ball. Volleyball aside, Brown knew Patterson supported him and the other reporters. When the EO purchased some laptops, Brown remembers being upset that his superiors wouldn’t let him take the expensive machines out of the news- room on assignment. He approached Patterson, who was then the company general manager. “I told Patterson I felt like I was forced to use the equivalent of stone knives and bearskins,” Brown said. Soon, his phone rang. It was Patterson with news about the laptops. He kept it short. “That won’t be a problem for you anymore,” he said. Tuesday, October 18, 2016 OFF PAGE ONE SCIENCE: Last subject in state to switch to Smarter Balanced Continued from 1A create a life-sized replica of a blue heron’s nest, but he said the project he enjoyed most so far was one that involved heating glass and bending it. “Science is my favorite subject,” he said. In addition to hands-on labs, McElroy and the other science teachers also use silly YouTube videos, catchy songs, games, art and other methods to help the material sink in. The goal is to cater to a variety of learning styles, from restless “talented and gifted” students to those with learning disabilities or language barriers causing them to lag behind in their reading skills. “For a long time, education has said that if you can’t read, you can’t learn, but we’ve shown that’s just not true,” McElroy said. On Monday morning in Kent Barnes’ classroom, students in an engineering class were using Popsicle sticks and other craft items for an assignment to make skyscrapers with working eleva- tors that can lift an army action igure at least 12 inches. The science state test has included a growing number of engineering questions in recent years. Barnes, who has taught at Sandstone for 10 years, said each of the teachers has their own style of instruction, and his tends to be especially light-hearted. “I always have funny pictures on my tests, just to get the kids to relax, because some kids are not test takers,” he said. One of his favorite methods was creating timed competitions that helped the students have fun while also motivating them to make sure they learned the material so they could win. “Get them to care, and once you get a kid to care they will do amazing things for you,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what level they’re at, they will succeed.” Kimo Gabriel, who has taught science for Hermiston School District for 27 years, said the teachers always share state testing results with their students, right down to comparing them with other schools and breaking down scores by subgroup. “I say, ‘Hispanic boys and girls passed at 91 percent this year,’ and you can see the pride on their ABOVE: Seventh-grader Jocilyn Tusten constructs a Stellar’s jay nest in a science class Monday at Sandstone Middle School in Hermiston. LEFT: Eighth-grader Aeric Allbee works on making a great blue heron nest during a science class. Staff photos by E.J. Harris faces,” he said. Gabriel said the district has fostered a culture where doing well on science state tests is an expecta- tion instead of merely a goal. “It’s like a winning sports program,” he said. “It’s like Pendleton football — for years, if you played Pendleton football, you were expected to win. It was a tradition. It’s the same here.” If students are struggling to pass, he said, he blames himself instead of the student and looks at what he can do to better his instruction. All three Sandstone science teachers said they share fun project ideas, helpful YouTube videos and other strategies freely with any teacher who asks. If one person’s students returned weaker test scores on a certain unit, they ask the others what they did to get the information across. “There’s a mutual respect,” Barnes said. The district’s middle school science teachers at both schools all follow the same two-year calendar of instruction for seventh and eighth graders, who learn in blended classrooms. “Even though our styles are different, they’re getting the same thing,” Gabriel said. McElroy said they have “the best paraprofessionals in the state” assisting the students in special programs, and adminis- trators that are always willing to greenlight a trip to the hardware store for more supplies. They also have help from teachers of other subjects willing to create crossover projects. As students begin studying the peri- odic table, for example, they will write reports in their language arts classes about the element they chose to research in science, while in social studies they will study the regions where their element is mined. Science is the last subject in the state to switch from the OAKS test to the Smarter Balanced assessment, but the teachers said the OAKS test has become increasingly interactive to mirror Smarter Balanced. When the switch comes, Gabriel said, the relationships the teachers have built with the students and their efforts to make learning fun will come through. “It’s a human occupation,” he said. “The most important thing is relationships, and knowing how to teach 12- to 13-year-old kids.” ——— Contact Jade McDowell at jmcdowell@eastoregonian.com or 541-564-4536. CENTENNIAL: Post ofice employs nine city carriers, four rural carriers Continued from 1A middle of the sorting loor. Birdsell said a subterranean railroad ran from the current tracks to the Umatilla River, with trains stopping just underneath the cage to drop off mail. While features like the rail service and the federal agencies are long gone, the building still holds federal court on the second loor and is an important mail hub for Eastern Oregon. The post ofice’s role has diminished in recent years as the U.S. Postal Service has made the recent decision to move Pendle- ton’s processing capabilities to Portland. “Do we like it?” Birdsell said. “Not really. But we still sort mail for 52 cities.” The Pendleton post ofice employs nine city carriers and four rural carriers to transport mail to the masses. Even when the carriers are Staff photo by E.J. Harris Guests tour the federal courthouse during the 100 year an- niversary of the John F. Kilkenny Post Ofice and Courthouse building on Monday in Pendleton. off on Sunday or for a holiday, Birdsell said there’s someone working back at the ofice to continue handling the mail that comes through town. “There’s not a time when we’re not working,” she said. Working many of those days for more than a third of the postal building’s lifespan was Craig Kosting, who retired from the postal service last year after a 39-year career. Kosting, 60, started working for the post ofice in 1976 as a 20-year-old and fell in love with the work. Talking near the area where he used to pick up mail for his routes, Kosting said he’s delivered mail to every house in Pendleton. Kosting said the biggest change the post ofice has undergone is the move toward automation. While he used to take pride in coming back to the ofice with no mail left in his truck, he said automated sorting means some misplaced mail will undoubtedly ind its way into his bag. But even then, Kosting said what kept him coming back all these years was the people on his routes, which became his family. ——— Contact Antonio Sierra at asierra@eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0836. For more information, call 1-800-962-2819 2x3 EXAMPLE Celebrate your loved ones in our We are so proud of you for serving your country. VETERANS DAY TRIBUTE Love Evelyn, We are so Joe proud and of you Cheryl for serving Free Example: Honoring those who have served and those who are currently serving our country! They’ve served our country with courage and honor. They’ve left behind loved ones to risk their lives while protecting our country. They’ve defended our freedoms and ideals. They make us proud to be Americans. Help us honor them. J OSEPH S MITH your country. Day SALUTE TE 1x4 EXAMPLE J OSEPH B. D AVIS Staff Sergeant Joel Davis US Marines Veteran Example This special section will print in the Hermiston Herald on Nov. 9 and in the East Oregonian on Nov. 11, 2016. There is NO CHARGE to be included. Bring us or send in photos of servicemen, servicewomen or veterans, along with the information in the form to the right, by November 3. Thank you for your service! Love Evelyn, Joe and Cheryl If you’d like to purchase a larger space to include a special message, border, lags, or stars and stripes, rates are $40 for a 1x4” space or $55 for a 2x3” space. Private party only. Please call 1-800-962-2819. Love always Marcy, Julie & Emily Service Person’s Name Military Branch Your Name Your Address Your Phone Number Military Rank Currently Serving Veteran (Check One) Deliver to: East Oregonian 211 SE Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 Hermiston Herald 333 E. Main. Hermiston, OR 97830 or e-mail to classifieds@eastoregonian.com
