COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL JUNE 6, 2018
Kennedy
from A1
teenagers stand huddled in the
field behind the gardens, wait-
ing.
Math and science teacher
David Heritage counts down
from three and they all watch.
There are no bells at Kennedy
to signal the end of class, and
today disappointment marks
the distinction. The rocket that
Heritage had planned to send
off into the skies stands firmly
on the ground. It will have to
wait until he can supply it with
new batteries or make the re-
pairs himself — because while
maintenance is happy to help
at Kennedy, part of the learning
experience is being hands-on
and taking care of things your-
self. Like when, a week before,
Vicki Costello’s class pulled on
gloves and picked up shovels
to weed the garden area while
wrestling with stubborn black-
berry bushes and springtime
allergies.
Learning
opportunities
aside, maintenance will be
there this summer when Ken-
nedy gets a new home eco-
nomics room and a library.
It’s two projects South Lane’s
maintenance head Matt Al-
len has on his to-do list, along
with overseeing technological
and security upgrades around
the district, the redesign of the
community pool, and the con-
struction of the new Harrison
Elementary School and early
learning center that will sit in
the footprint of the old porta-
ble buildings Kennedy used to
call home. The projects are be-
ing funded with a $35 million
bond passed by voters in 2016.
While original estimates called
for approximately $19 mil-
lion to go to the construction
of Harrison, the new school’s
price tag has already increased
to nearly $24 million, elbowing
out funds for the other proj-
ects.
When estimates for the re-
design for the pool came in
roughly $700,000 more than
what the district had set aside,
a community group stepped
forward to begin fundraising,
aided by the district’s commu-
nication’s office, which had also
created a new logo for the pool
and attended city council meet-
ings to discuss the project. The
early learning center that will
sit in Kennedy’s old footprint
will house Head Start, a fed-
eral program aimed at educat-
ing children from low-income
families prior to kindergarten.
According to the district’s ma-
terial outlining the bond funds,
the building will receive just
over $1 million.
Head Start has yet to con-
tribute to the construction.
Resolution 1711, passed by
the South Lane School Board,
cut Kennedy’s Delight Val-
ley moving budget, funded by
the bond, from $412,000 to
$200,000.
“I think one of the import-
ant things to understand is that
on pregnant students. It does,
however, stipulate that special
needs funds must be used on
special needs students. The dis-
trict also receives funds from
the federal government for
students who are considered
homeless under the McKin-
ney-Vento Act. In South Lane,
those funds are used to pay a
portion of Brandi Baker-Ru-
dicel’s salary. And while Bak-
er-Rudicel is considered a Ken-
and to our school district to
make sure that Kennedy came
to Delight Valley and had an
environment where those kids
could learn best. So we used a
lot of the bond dollars, and not
a lot of the dollars — but a per-
centage of the dollars — was
dedicated to making sure that
Kennedy was not an elementa-
ry school anymore but Kenne-
dy High School.”
With the early learning cen-
“It’s a major upgrade.
Not as much mold.”
—Toa Mageo, Student of the Month from Kennedy,
drawing laughter while responding to a question from the
South Lane School Board regarding how he felt about the
move to the Delight Valley campus (May 7.)
we try to make sure that all of
our kids in South Lane School
District have the best educa-
tional opportunities possible.
That’s really, really important
to us,” said Garrett Bridgens,
Communication Coordinator
for South Lane School District.
“And we do that through a va-
riety of ways.”
Statewide, school districts
are struggling to maintain
services as budgets contin-
ue to shrink. While the state
passed a historic $8.2 billion
education package during the
2017 legislative session, edu-
cators requested $8.4 billion
and warned that school days,
teachers and programs were
still at risk. South Lane, like all
districts around the country,
receives funds for each student
that attends school. In the bud-
get adopted at the May school
board meeting, South Lane re-
ceives an ADM (Average Daily
Membership) of approximately
$2,514 per student.
Students who are consid-
ered special needs students are
weighted, meaning the district
receives more money based on
the number of special needs
students it has. The same is
true for pregnant and parent-
ing students, students who are
facing poverty, or who are En-
glish-language learners. Preg-
nant and parenting students
are worth double. So are spe-
cial needs students.
The state does not require
that funds districts receive
for pregnant students be used
nedy teacher, she also serves
students at Cottage Grove High
School.
According to Peter Rudy
with the Oregon Department
of Education, McKinney-Ven-
to funds are distributed
through competitive subgrants
and in Oregon, those grants
are released on a two-year cy-
cle. South Lane School District
is not currently a subgrantee,
and therefore does not receive
funds.
Stacked side-by-side, alter-
native school students tend to
earn more money even though
the total amount of funds a dis-
trict gets is eventually divided
equally among students. As a
result, enrollment numbers at
alternative schools, compared
to traditional high schools,
cannot fund the cost of keeping
the lights on. However, alterna-
tive high schools traditionally
educate the majority of stu-
dents facing pregnant, parent-
hood, special needs, homeless-
ness and other obstacles.
This year, Kennedy, which
began with 94 students, had
six pregnant or parenting stu-
dents; 36 of those students
were considered to have special
needs, and 33 were homeless as
defined by McKinney-Vento.
“And it’s not just about fund-
ing, state school funding and
how we do that,” Bridgens said.
“We want to make sure our kids
have the best opportunity pos-
sible. And so, when we moved
out to Kennedy, it was really
important to our school board
Another dental visit?
Turns out, you have better things to do with
your time.
ter taking its place on Taylor
Ave., Kennedy made the move
to Delight Valley, a former el-
ementary school, and the dis-
trict made several changes to
the campus that had previously
housed younger children. For
example, sinks and toilets had
to be adjusted in height. In
addition, $25,000 was spent to
ensure that Kennedy students
were able to receive hot meals
in place of the cold lunches that
had been bussed in to the loca-
W
hen Posthumus got to
Cottage Grove High
School, she felt lost in a sea
of faces and ended up failing
most classes her freshman and
sophomore years. Faced with a
choice of what to do, she elect-
ed to go to Kennedy as a last
resort.
“I was told, ‘Don’t go to Ken-
nedy, it’s a terrible school,’” she
said. “And then I come here
and it’s completely different.
Like, there’s so many more op-
portunities.”
Once at Kennedy, the small-
school environment allowed
her to thrive. Behind by two
years in credits, she made
them up and took care of her
remaining credits so that she
can walk across the stage this
weekend to receive her diplo-
ma — something that once
looked like a dream that was
impossible to reach.
“My success is definitely
through Kennedy,” she said.
“My Kennedy family is prob-
ably the best support I have
because they know, ‘Hey, you
mess up and that’s okay as long
as you fix it. If you continue to
do it then it’s your choice. But
if you want to work better, we’ll
help you with the tools that you
need.’ And that’s what I love
about Kennedy.”
For Posthumus, she has
not only gotten on track ac-
ademically but also has seen
her school help her through
struggles in her personal life.
Through guidance from trust-
ed teachers that understand
her, she has navigated diffi-
cult relationships in her life.
An involved student, she de-
signed the logo for Kennedy’s
sweatshirts, works on crew and
makes sure that her fellow stu-
dents respect their teachers.
“I’ve had a couple words with
people and been like, ‘Um,
they’re doing their job. They’re
paid to do this, they’re not be-
ing disrespectful. They’re ask-
ing you a simple thing. It’s rea-
sonable. They’re your teachers.
They’re here to teach you. They
just want to see you go down a
good path,’” she said.
She still feels, though, that
she is viewed in a negative light
from parents, people around
the community and even mid-
dle schoolers who share the
same bus as Kennedy students.
“I think people really need
to look more into Kennedy in-
stead of just judging us because
some of us aren’t all the same,”
she said.
S
chools across South Lane
County receive grant mon-
ey from various sources at the
See KENNEDY A11
Worship
Directory
DRAIN:
HOPE U.M.C.
131 W “A” St. Drain, OR
541-315-1617
Pastor: Lura Kidner-Miesen
Fellowship & Song: 11:30am
Potluck Lunch: 12:00pm
Worship: 12:30pm
Delight Valley
Church of Christ
33087 Saginaw Rd. East
541-942-7711
Pastor: Bob Friend
Two Services:
9am - Classic in the Chapel
10:30am - Contemporary in the
Auditorium
COTTAGE GROVE:
6th & Gibbs Church of Christ
195 N. 6th St. • 541-942-3822
Pastor: Aaron Earlywine
Youth & Families Pastor: Seth Bailey
Service times: 9am & 10:30am
Sunday School: 9am for all ages
Christian Education
Nursery for pre-k - 3rd Grade
www.6thandgibbs.com
Calvary Baptist Church
77873 S 6th St • 541-942-4290
Pastor: Riley Hendricks
Sunday School: 9:45am
Worship: 11:00am
The Journey: Sunday 5:00pm
Praying Thru Life: Wednesday 6:00pm
Calvary Chapel Cottage Grove
1447 Hwy 99 (Village Plaza)
541-942-6842
Pastor: Jeff Smith
Two Services on Sun:
9am & 10:45am
Youth Group Bible Study
Child Care 10:45am Service Only
www.cgcalvary.org
Center for Spiritual Living
700 Gibbs Ave. (Community Center)
Rev. Bobby Lee
Meets Sunday 3:00 p.m.
cslcottagegrove@gmail.com
Church of Christ
420 Monroe St • 541-942-8565
Sunday Service: 10:30am
Cottage Grove Bible Church
1200 East Quincy Avenue
541-942-4771
Pastor:Bob Singer
Worship 11am
Sunday School:9:45am
AWANA age 3-8th Grade,
Wednesdays Sept-May, 6:30pm
www.cgbible.org
Cottage Grove Faith Center
33761 Row River Rd.
541-942-4851
Lead Pastor: Kevin Pruett
www.cg4.tv
Full Childrenʼs Ministry available
Service: 10:00am
We know your time is valuable. That's why we've invested in CEREC
tion on Taylor Ave. That’s be-
cause, according to the Oregon
Healthy Teen Survey, just over
26 percent of Kennedy stu-
dents felt there wasn’t enough
money for food, compared to
17.8 percent statewide. As a
result, many students were eat-
ing less than they should have
while at home.
First Baptist Church
301 S. 6th st • 541-942-8242
Interim Pastor: Reed Webster
Sunday School 9:30am
Worship Service 11:00am
Youth Wednesday 6:30pm
cgfi rstbaptist.com
First Presbyterian Church
3rd and Adams St
541-942-4479
Pastor: Karen Hill
Worship: 10:00am
Sunday School: 10:00am
www.cgpresbynews.com
Hope In The Grove
700 E. Gibbs • 401-855-5668
Pastor: Wayne Husk
Sunday services:
Worship: 9am
Coffee Fellowship: 10:15am
Bible Study: 10:30am
Hope Fellowship
United Pentecostal Church
100 S. Gateway Blvd.
541-942-2061
Pastor: Dave Bragg
Worship: 11:00am Sunday
Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday
www.hopefellowshipupc.com
“FINDING HOPE IN YOUR LIFE”
Our Lady of Perpetual Help
and St. Philip Benizi
Catholic Churches
1025 N. 19th St.
541-942-3420
Father: Joseph Hung Nguyen
Holy Mass:
Tue-Thu: 8:30am; Sat:5:30pm
Sun: 10:30am
Confession: After daily mass,
Sat. 4-5pm or by appointment
St. Philip Benizi, Creswell
552 Holbrock Lane
541-895-8686, Sunday: 8:30am
St. Andrews Episcopal Church
1301 W. Main • 541-767-9050
Rev. Lawrence Crumb
“Church with the fl ags.”
Worship: Sunday 10:30am
All Welcome
Seventh-day Adventist Church
820 South 10th Street
541-942-5213
Pastor: Kevin Miller
Bible Study: Saturday, 9:15 am
Worship Service: Saturday, 10:40
Mid-week Service: Wednesday, 1:00
Trinity Lutheran Church
6th & Quincy • 541-942-2373
Pastor: James L. Markus
Sunday School & Adult Education
9:15am
Sunday Worship 10:30 am
Comm. Kitchen Free Meal Tue & Thur
5:00pm TLC Groups
tlccg.com
United Methodist Church
334 Washington • 541-942-3033
Pastor:Lura Kidner-Miesen
Worship: 10:30am
Comm. Dinner (Adults $5,
Living Faith Assembly
Kids Free)
467 S. 10th St. • 541-942-2612
Worship Services Sundays: 9a & 11a 1st & 3rd Monday 5-6:00pm
Youth Worship Sundays: 11a (all ages umcgrove.org
welcome)
“VICTORY” Country Church
Mondays: 5:30p (6th-12th grades)
913 S. 6th Street • 541-942-5913
Pastor: Barbara Dockery
Non-Denominational
Worship Service: 10:00am
Church of Christ
Message: “WE BELIEVE IN
1041 Pennoyer Ave
MIRACLES”
541-942-8928
Preacher: Tony Martin
CRESWELL:
Sunday Bible Study:10:00am
Sunday Worship:10:50am & 5:30pm Creswell Presbyterian Church
75 S 4th S • 541-895-3419
www.pennoyeravecoc.com
Rev. Seth Wheeler
Adult Sunday School 9:15am
Old Time Gospel Fellowship
Sunday Worship Service 10:30 am
103 S. 5th St. • 541-942-4999
website www.creswellpres.org
Pastor: Jim Edwards
Sunday Service: 10:00am
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10A
in the newspaper. If your congregation
would like to be a part of this directory,
please contact the
Cottage Grove Sentinel
@ 541-942-3325