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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 10, 2018)
Program offers college credit now College Now gives kids a head start By Zach Silva zsilva@cgsentinel.com On Monday night at the South Lane school board meeting, Cot- tage Grove High School principal Mike Ingman accompanied by science teacher Leilagh Boyle and world language teacher Krista Scoggins made a presentation to the board showcasing the opportu- nities that students have to get college credits while in high school. “Academically Cottage Grove High School is one of the top in the county, at least. And it’s not debatable. Nobody ever says oh no it’s not. We have the numbers, we have the data to show it’s one of the top academic high schools in our county,” said Ingman. The three programs that CGHS utilizes to make this happen are AP classes, Willamette Promise and College Now. CGHS offers AP courses in calculus, chemistry, world history, biology, language and literature. After taking the year-long course, the students pay an $88 fee to take a test. Students on free and re- duced lunch have their test fees waived. Based on the score the students get back, they are then eligible for credit at colleges and universities across the country. With College Now, the school is teamed up with Lane Communi- ty College, Chemeketa Community College and Rogue Community College students can enroll in a number of courses and get from one to six credits. Ingman noted that each credit is worth around $100. The school provides 41 offerings with LCC. These courses of- fer anywhere from one to six college credits. The classes, that are taught by 11 different teachers at CGHS, range from general chem- istry to restaurant operations to video game development. Last year, the school added Willamette Promise, a program run by Willamette ESD. The program began four years ago and en- tered Lane County last year. Through Western Oregon University, Oregon Tech and Corban University, students can receive college credits in a number of courses. At CGHS, there are currently three classes that offer Willamette promise: biology, public speaking and Spanish. Scoggins teaches the Spanish class and last year had three stu- dents earn eight credits in fi rst and second year college Spanish. “We ask our kids to get better everyday, so why would we ask less of ourselves?,” said Ingman. “We’re just trying to get better and try to provide a better education for the kids in our building.” Bank forecloses on zombie house By Caitlyn May Two outstanding warrants, fi ve cats and a whole lot of rats. That's what the city of Cottage Grove found in a house on 6th St. after beginning abatement as part of a new lease agreement con- jured up to help stem the growing concern over zombie houses. The house on 6th was the subject of several city council meet- ings after it was discovered that the owner had stopped paying the mortgage and moved out of state leaving the home in the hands of squatters who were causing a sanitation issue in the neighborhood. The city refused to turn water on at the residence but the inhabitants were able to obtain other utilities including electricity. "This is really the last option," City Manager Richard Meyers told the board Monday night concerning the city's lease agreement with the former, legal owner of the house. Under the terms of the agreement, the city pays $12 per year to take possession of the house and begin remediation on the property. Meyers also informed the board that the clean-up process was not going as planned. "Our regular pest guy actually got nauseas and had to leave the house," he said. "The swarm or colony or whatever its called rats is still there." The infestation, Meyers said, is so extensive, the city is altering its abatement plan. "We don't want to go in and take all the garbage piles out and the rats scurry into the neighbors' yards and into the sewer system," he said. The city will reportedly remove one layer of trash, set traps and allow exterminators to come in before removing another layer of trash. The cycle will continue until the house--which still has approximately $95,000 left on its mortgage--is clean; a process that is expected to last a few weeks after several individuals were found living in the dwelling, including the attic space. City attorneys drew up the lease after several failed attempts to contact the bank regarding the status of the house. Since signing the lease last month, Meyers told the board that the bank has begun the foreclosure process. "It can be a long process," Meyers told The Sentinel, "so we will probably still have the lease this year but we're doing minimal repairs and clean-up because we don't expect to get much of that back," he said. He also noted that future use of the house could be limited due to city codes after city offi cials have been inside the facility. "Unless the things we know are bad are fi xed, that can lower the value of the house as well," he said. Councilman Ken Roberts asked if the city is considering ap- proaching other zombie homes in the same manner. However, Mey- ers noted that there is no way to know how many of those homes are currently in Cottage Grove. Submitted by Lil Thompson As the year begins, so does another great Rural Art Movie Jan. 27 beginning at 5:30 p.m. with dinner followed by Bingo at night, this Saturday, Jan. 13 at Lorane Grange. Come eat deli- 6:30 p.m. It's back on Saturdays, do hope to see many if you there. cious homemade soup while visiting at 6 p.m., then antics and School is back on full schedule. Any questions, check with the an interesting animation feature on equality. A good night for a schools. date or watching with friends, leave the under 12 at home. Bring Just a reminder, we gave a great school district! If you know a dessert to share. of anyone who would like a quality education in a small school Lorane Grange meets the third Thursday of the month, Jan. 18 setting with small class sizes, have them call the district offi ce at at 7 p.m. Their dinner and bingo night is scheduled for Saturday, (541) 935-2100. More Students of the Month YONCALLA YONCALLA MIDDLE SCHOOL MIDDLE SCHOOL Fiona Strickland is a 3rd Grader at Yoncalla Elementary School. She is the daughter of Stacey Atwell-Keister & Sean Strickland. Her hobbies are drawing and dancing. Fiona always has a smile on her face and an uplift ing attitude. She has an excellent work ethic and is a positive infl uence for her peers. Fiona wants to be a dancer when she grows up. HAILEY ORR-COLLINS Hailey Orr- Collins is a 6th grader at Yoncalla Elementary School. She is the daughter of Michelle and Travis Collins. Her hobbies include reading fantasy books, playing basketball and volleyball, playing with her baby brother and playing the fl ute in the school band. Her favorite hobby of all is drawing “a lot”. Hailey puts her best eff ort in all academic areas. Math is her favorite subject. She is great role model. She is friendly to all, respectful to peers and adults, and is always positive & cheerful. Hailey would like to be either a professional volleyball player or a veterinarian when she grows up. She can’t wait to go to college- only seven more years to go. Maybe Yale! YONCALLA YONCALLA MIDDLE SCHOOL MIDDLE SCHOOL FORREST (MAX) HELMHOLTZ Forrest (Max) Helmholtz is a Kindergartener at Yoncalla Elementary School. He is the son of April & Gale Helmholtz. His hobbies are playing with his tracks & trucks and he loves to play with his big sister. Max was chosen by his teacher because she says he is a very hardworking and that Man is willing to try new things and approaches new tasks with a willingness to “TRY”. He is a good friend to everyone and has a big heart. He is respectful, responsible, and strives hard to follow the classroom rules. He a delight to have in class. He wants to be a Cop when he grows up. 11A City council wrap-up cmay@cgsentinel.com LORANE NEWS FIONA STRICKLAND COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL JANUARY 10, 2018 Sapphira Ruiz-Weight is a 4th Grader at Yoncalla Elementary School. She is that daughter of Jess and Sarah Ruiz-Weight. Her hobbies include reading and doing craft s. She loves her cats, kittens and dogs. Sapphira always meets “expected” behavior inside and outside of the classroom. She’s an excellent citizen by being kind and considerate to all. She cares about her academics and shows great pride in her work! When she grows up she would like to be a zoologist. She also wants to travel to Egypt, India and Mexico. SAPPHIRE RUIZ-WEIGHT By Caitlyn May cmay@cgsentinel.com The Cottage Grove City Council met Monday, Jan. 8 for a regularly scheduled meeting spanning yearly awards, up- dates on road work and housekeeping items. Nuisance City Manager Richard Meyers informed the board that the city has cleaned-up its nuisance ordinance to refl ect changes to the "Person in Charge." The change comes af- ter the city's entry into the real estate business by leasing a zombie house on 6th St. Cycle Oregon The popular bike race was forced to cancel its event for the fi rst time in its history last summer after wildfi res spread through Oregon but cities are not walking away empty handed. The organization allowed registered riders to either collect their fees or opt to donate them to the cities along the route. Those funds came before the board on Monday for groups like the rotary club, chamber of commerce and police fund meant to reimburse the groups who had expend- ed funds to help set-up, feed or otherwise interact with Cy- cle Oregon cyclists. The chamber received approximately $6,000, the rotary club $3,000 and the police fund $1,000. The funds must pass through a government agency or non-profi t organization. Mr. President Councilor Jake Boone was re-elected as the city council's president by a unanimous vote motioned by councilor Amy Slay. Swinging Bridge Outspoken residents present during the discussion con- cerning the repair of the Swinging Bridge last year made themselves clear: any replacement must swing. However, according to councilor Garland Burback, some residents may be changing their tune. Burback informed the council that several of his neighbors and people in the community have asked if the city can simply replace the bridge rath- er than wait for funding and further planning to allow the bridge to swing. Meyers told the board that city engineers are currently working on designs for the bridge and could include options that would not move. Calendar for a cause Councilor Amy Slay has produced a calendar of local of- fi cers for the Cottage Grove Police Department. Funds from the sale of the calendars will go toward planning the next Kickin' it with the Cops event this summer. The event--held for the fi rst time last year--is meant to serve as a way for community members to meet local law enforcement. Calen- dars are $15 and are available at the Cottage Grove Police Department. YAC The Youth Advisory Council was invited by Happy Val- ley to take part in the Youth Advisory Council Day at the state capital on Feb. 9. Unfortunately, several YAC mem- bers are involved in school sports and are unable to attend. Meyers told the board he was hoping to plan a separate YAC day in the future specifi cally for the Cottage Grove group. Awards Grocery Outlet, high school athletic director Gary Rob- erts and Cheryl Bord were awarded certifi cates from Mayor Jeff Gowing as outstanding examples of businesses and res- idents in Cottage Grove. See page B12 for complete cov- erage. ONE STOP SHOP for all your advertising needs DIGITAL websites • email-blasts search engine optimization PRINT newspaper • magazine • logos business cards • brochures • labels banners • postcards • direct mailers INTERACTIVE social media •internet marketing S entinel C ottage G rove 116 N. 6th St. • 541-942-3325 www.cgsentinel.com S entinel C ottage G rove 116 N. 6th St. P.O. Box 35 Cottage Grove, OR (541) 942-3325 fax (541) 942-3328 www.cgsentinel.com
