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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (May 17, 2017)
8A COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL MAY 17, 2017 ROTARY CLUB DONATES HELMETS TO CG KIDS Cora McClean does not want to suffer a concussion. cmay@cgsentinel.com She would also rather not have her brain “squeezed” out of her head by an inadequately-fi tting bicycle helmet. Enter Rainy Peak Bicycle Shop. With the support of the Cottage Grove Rotary Club, Rainy Peak is helping students like Cora ride their bicycles safely by giving away brand new helmets. The program, being facilitated by Lincoln Middle School, asks students to write a paragraph explaining why they need one of the limited number of helmets purchased by the rotary club. Luke Gifford, grade 6, wrote that his need for a helmet was trig- gered by his genorisity toward his sister. “My sister does not have a bike helmet. Well, she does but it fell apart so I gave her my helmet. Now I don’t have one.” Hailie Intros, also grade 6, laid out a clear, concise two-fold argu- ment explaining why she should be a recipent of a free helmet. “The fi rst reason,” she wrote, “is I don’t have one.” She notes that with- out a helmet, she can’t ride her bicycle or rollerblade; two things she says she enjoys. And while she believes safety to be important, she would also like to stop sharing a helmet with her brother. “We take turns,” she explains. The essays were due in late March and soon after, Chris Comp- ton of Rainy Peak traveled out to Lincoln to fi t approximately 20 winners with helmets. “That’s the neatest thing about what the rotary has done.” he said. “You can go out and buy a fair affordable helmet but one of the rea- sons kids won’t wear them is because they’re not fashionable. And you think it’s a piece of safety equipment, how fashionable does it have to be? But to kids, it matters,” he said. The helmets ranged in price from $40 to $60 and are expected to arrive in Cottage Grove at the end of this week. At that point, the rotary will reimburse Rainy Peak and Compton will be taking a second trip to Lincoln to give them to the winners. By Caitlyn May Lincoln Middle School students choose a helmet style and color after winning an essay contest held by the local rotary club and Rainy Peak Bicycles. Tuition Continued from A1 request for a tuition hike. The statement, in full, reads: The Higher Education Coordinating Com- mission’s decision yesterday to reject the Univer- sity of Oregon’s tuition plan is disappointing and creates uncertainty on our campus. If it stands, we will be forced to make even deeper cuts at the UO than are already anticipated, including cuts that will likely affect student support services, aca- demic programs, and jobs. While we would like the HECC to reconsider its vote, we are already evaluating additional budget reduction steps that can be taken if this decision holds and the state does not provide additional support for public higher education. No one wants to increase tuition, but the uni- versity is left with little choice given that tuition is the UO’s main source of revenue after decades of declining state support. Prior to the HECC’s vote, the UO’s tuition plan would have required more than $8 million in budget reductions next year, which would come on top of more than $6 million in cuts made in the previous fi scal year. I have steadfastly expressed my view that we will try to shield the academic part of our university from the impact of this year’s budget cuts, but if we are forced to limit our tuition increase to less than 5 percent, then that aspiration will likely be impossible. In the face of cost-drivers that institutions do not control—including retirement and health benefi t costs—Oregon’s public universities have been clear that signifi cant additional state support for higher education is necessary to keep tuition increases low and to maintain critical student support services. State legislators still have the opportunity this session to approve a higher-ed- ucation budget that prioritizes Oregon students and their families and makes the proposed tuition increase at the UO and other institutions unneces- sary.The state of Oregon deserves a world-class research institution like the UO. The HECC’s de- cision to overturn a tuition plan that was reached through months of inclusive campus engagement and careful deliberation by our institutional Board of Trustees, however, threatens our ability to de- liver on that promise for all Oregonians. We will continue to work with students, faculty, staff, and alumni to make the case in Salem that cutting higher-education funding and usurping campus independence will lead to untenable outcomes for the UO and all of higher education in Oregon. As we have said repeatedly, the UO stands ready and willing to provide HECC commission- ers with the information they need to reconsider their decision about tuition on our campus. This situation is very fl uid and time is of the essence, given that the fi scal year starts on July 1, but you have my commitment that we will communicate with the campus community as we hear more. I appreciate your patience and understanding." Schill was not available for any further com- ment. News of cuts has been long-coming with sever- al schools within the university announcing plans to reduce staff. The most recent, UO's School of Journalism and Communication announced plans to cut fi ve non-tenured faculty in an attempt to trim the budget. The school also announced that due to budgetary constraints, the Senior Portland Experience, a program aimed at readying students for the workforce, would not take place in 2018. In April, the university's largest school, UO's College of Arts and Sciences announced it would be cutting 21 non-tenured positions as well as 10 additional staff positions. The move would re- portedly save the school $1.7 million. Davis Shows N.W. CARNIVAL Bohemia Park • June 1,2,3,4 Open at 4pm Thurs & Fri at 2pm Open at Noon Sat. & Sun. Rides ~ Games ~ Food Single Ride Tickets $3.75 Book of 10 Tickets $32.00 (save $5.50) Ride all day for $25 Brought to you by the Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce Ride all day for $25