2C COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL FEBRUARY 28, 2018
SUPPORTING
CGHS tops Lane grad rates
BY CAITLYN MAY
cmay@cgsentinel.com
The Oregon Department of Education an-
nounced that the state—which has routinely
fallen to the bottom of the list regarding gradu-
ation—has made the single largest improvement
in graduation rates in eight years with an overall
average of just under 77 percent; up from 75 per-
cent last year.
Cottage Grove High School padded the aver-
age, reporting 95.98 percent of its seniors as on-
time graduates.
“All our staff in South Lane is working hard to
ensure our kids succeed,” said South Lane School
Board Chair Alan Baas of the report. “From our
elementary schools, to our middle school and at
the high school level, it is clear that our priority
is ensuring all our kids are succeeding and getting
the support they need.”
District-wide, South Lane’s average hovered
around 76 percent, on track with the state average.
No other school in the district, other than Acade-
my Charter (which reported three seniors) met a
50 percent on-time graduation rate. Child’s Way
came in at 36 percent and Kennedy High School
scored 20 percent. Academy Charter reported 100
percent.
“For the third time in four years Cottage Grove
High School has the highest four-year graduation
rate of any comprehensive high school in Lane
County,” a press release issued by South Lane
Communications Coordinator Garrett Bridgens
read.
State offi cials attribute part of the overall per-
centage jump in graduation rates to the improve-
ment in the number of Latino graduation rates
around the state. Students who identify as Latino,
approximately 20 percent state-wide, saw an in-
crease of just over seven percentage points over
the course of the last three years.
However, the increase in Oregon’s rate still
falls short of the national average. The state’s
graduation rate has been ranked as the third worst
for the last two years, falling short of the top three
spots which all earned between 88 and 90 percent
graduation rates.
Statistically, schools around South Lane, such
as Kennedy High School, see improvement in the
fi ve-year graduation rate that is not included in
the state's on-time graduation rate. Because the
state of Oregon is mandated to provide public ed-
ucation to students until the age of 21, students
who drop-out of traditional high schools often
fi nd their way to schools such as Kennedy to
complete their education after being enrolled in a
South Lane high school for more than four years.
M
r
s
.
Dimock's
kindergarten and
fi rst grade class
just fi nished a unit
on communities.
They
studied
how communities
are
developed
and why certain
buildings
need
to be where they
are. They fi nished
up their unit with a walk around Cottage Grove. They visited the
Cottage Grove library for story time, the Cottage Grove police
station and Stacy's Covered Bridge restaurant. A special thank you
to Kim at Stacy's who served the students a fancy lunch of spaghetti
or chicken strips with sides. She also gave them a walk around in
the commercial kitchen.
We just fi nished our fi rst round of STEAM Fridays with great
success. Students and teachers alike were thrilled and excited by the
concepts they were learning and the hands-on approach. The next
week, everyone switched to a new teacher and a new concepts. We
are still looking for helpers during this time so if you are interested
call the school offi ce. Our next step in this year’s STEAM endeavor
is meeting with a representative from JEMS. He will be helping us
further formulate and deepen our program for next year.
NEWSPAPERS IN EDUCATION
Thank you to the
following supporters:
Ruth Ackley
Irene Bauder
Angie Borigo
James and Carol Brownson
Cindy Conrad
Russell and Lee Cooper
Robert and Mary Currier
Bob and Janette Dill
Long Family
Jeffrey & Karen Freeman
Kathryn Flynn
Jean Furguson
Mary Gabrielle, MD
James & Barbara Grant
John and Donna Mansfi eld
Lonny Perini
Ron Pupke
Elaine Roberts
Emily Settlemeyer
Donna Shepherd
Robert Swaringin
Jan Thompson
Randy Turpin
Carol Volesky
Scholarships
Continued from C1
selves with hard work.”
OCF awards about 3,200
scholarships to a wide range
of students each year. Avail-
able scholarships include those
for people interested in vary-
ing subjects, from a variety of
schools and with an extensive
range of backgrounds.
See the complete list of
available scholarships at http://
oregonstudentaid.gov. An elec-
tronic application form and in-
structions on how to apply are
also available there.
London School will be sponsoring a Family Heritage Night
on March 21. Families can choose photographs, heirlooms,
illustrations or other items to display in the Family Heritage
Museum.
February Students of the Month
LONDON
SCHOOL
School’s February Student
of the Month. Isabella
consistently has a positive
attitude and is a wonderful
classmate to all. She knows
hoe to be a good friend. Bella is
always willing to lend a hand.
She does a fantastic job on
all her classwork and always
goes the extra mile with her
assignments. In addition to
her exemplary school work,
Isabella is also a dedicated
equestrian and rides weekly.
Congratulations Isabella!
ISABELLA
KEATING
HARRISON
ELEMENTARY
Abby is a great role model
for the all of Dorena school.
She is always friendly
and willing to help others
when needed. Abby is on
Dorena student council
and is a representative on
the SLSD student advisory
committee. Abby takes
great pride in her school
and takes responsibility for
taking down the lag at the
end of the day. A bby does
ABBY
DOUGHERTY
Isabella Keating is London
541-345- 7570
DORENA
ELEMENTARY
an awesome job and
continues to grow as a
leader in the classroom.
ARIEL
FITZGERALD
Ariel is a very little person
with a very big heart. She
brings it to school with
her every day. Her heart
is so big, that she always
has a smile to share, a kind
word to say and a two little
hands to help. Ariel’s big
heart helps her to do big
work. She gets smarter
every day, doesn’t stop until
the job is done and when
it is, she is ready for the
next one. Ariel, thank you
for sharing your big heart
with the kids and adults at
Harrison School. You make
us want to be more kind,
STARFIRE
JACK SPRATS
2795 MOSBY CREEK RD, COTTAGE GROVE
510 E MAIN ST, COTTAGE GROVE
4237 W. 5th Ave • Eugene
(541) 942-0168
(541) 942-8408
TRUCK & EQUIPMENT REPAIR
WWW.STARFIRELUMBER.COM
WWW.JACKSPRATSBRATS.COM
ELKTON
HIGH SCHOOL
KENNEDY ALT.
HIGH SCHOOL
LINCOLN MIDDLE
SCHOOL
Emma
Walker
is
an
outstanding 4.0 student at
Lincoln Middle School. Her
teachers say she is a leader
who participates actively
and interacts with her
classmates in a positive way.
Emma is kind and always
willing to help others. Her
friendliness, integrity and
work ethic make Emma a
great contributor to the LMS
community.
EMMA WALKER
2775 Row River Rd • 541-942-4415
bradschevy.com
Jake
has
persevered
through half of the school
year with outside
commitments. He has come
in and worked hard on
Friday’s to make up work.
Brooke a freshman at Elkton
high School is a caring, kind
and sensitive student. She is
enthusiastic, hardworking,
and intelligent. She always
does her best. She is fun,
curious and always positive.
She is an honor roll student
and gets along well with all
staff and students.
BROOKE CARTER
JAKE ALLEN
Cottage Grove Sentinel
SHERRY DUREST-HIGGINS
116 N. 6th St. • 541-942-3325
www.cgsentinel.com
78314 OR-99, COTTAGE GROVE
(541) 942-0151
WWW.DUERST-HIGGINS.COM