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.
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