COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL AUGUST 8, 2018 7A
School board looks to move forward, discusses past
By Zach Silva
zsilva@cgsentinel.com
While Krista Parent was not
in the room, the former South
Lane superintendent was at the
heart of the school board’s con-
versation last Monday.
It marked the f rst of a two-
day school board retreat that fo-
cused on looking at the board’s
purpose and how to enter into
the transition process.
Th e most notable transition
the board is making is with the
departure of Parent as superin-
tendent. Last January, the board
announced Parent would re-
tire on June 30 following issues
stemming from an anonymous
letter given to the board that a
handwriting expert paid by a
local resident determined was
“probably” written by Parent.
Earlier in 2017, it was revealed
that Parent had entered into a
relationship with a South Lane
employee. She was cleared at the
local level with the school board
citing a lack of policy surround-
ing fraternization. Parent was
also cleared at the state level of
any wrongdoing. Kyle Tucker
served as acting superintendent
until the end of the school year
and opted out of applying for
the interim superintendent po-
sition.
Parent served as South Lane
School District superintendent
for 16 years and worked in the
district for 32 years.
Interim superintendent Larry
Sullivan along with Steve Kelley
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Association led a four-hour spe-
cial session as they primarily
discussed the board’s value and
how to move forward.
Th e meeting reached its cre-
scendo when the board was
prompted by the question “what
is being lost” – alternatively
framed as what are they letting
go of – from the past year as they
enter a new school year. Th is led
to each board member express-
ing personal feelings about Par-
ent in an open and honest man-
ner the likes of which had not
occurred in open session over
the past year.
“For me, personally, I lost any
conf dence in authority at the
top level. And I started spend-
ing a whole lot more time think-
ing of what does that authority
mean,” said board chair Alan
Baas. He continued saying, “my
experience as a board member
was sort of an ongoing experi-
ence of trying to f gure out how
an authority was being exercised
that didn’t somehow make sense
to me for what my duty on the
board was.”
Baas was not alone in refl ect-
ing on the role of a board mem-
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board member Merlene Martin.
“Th at is not how you treat some-
body that gave 32 years of their
life to this district. And I am
ashamed of us for that.”
Th e f nal member of the board
to speak was Jerry Settelmeyer.
“I worked with Krista as a
building administrator and we
worked really well together and
we really focused on getting a
lot of stuff done. I lost for re-
spect that grew over years. On
two sides of the same person.
Krista did some fantastic things
for this school district. Some re-
ally good, solid things. Includ-
ing making, in some respect,
making administrators way
more responsible for having to
be a good school district,” said
Settelmeyer.
“But I also lost respect for
Krista in that every year that
went on, more information was
controlled all the time. And I
saw that happen to the school
board. Saw that happen to ad-
ministrators. I do not feel bad
at all about losing that control.
Th at power, that way of doing
business. I do not feel good
about what I truly believe Krista
has done to herself in her life.”
When it was all said and done,
Kelley was pleased with how the
board had conducted them-
selves as part of the process.
“One of the things I’ve appre-
ciated is you’ve each expressed
something a little bit diff erently
in terms of what you’re losing
or what you’re letting go of but
yet you’ve seemed to do it with
respect even if you didn’t agree
with the person. You let them
share their loss and that was
so important,” Kelley told the
board.
Sullivan also believed that the
board was taking an important
step forward.
“Part of the transition as we
talked about today was identi-
fying what we’re losing. It’s not
just a superintendent, it’s how
we go forward,” he told Th e Sen-
tinel aft er the meeting. “And so
being able to identify where we
were, what we’re going to let go
of and where we’re going, takes
a lot of work and it’s certainly
emotional.”
Parent has since taken a posi-
tion with COSA as a professor
and Director of Leading and Li-
censure.
Cottage Grove’s Run CG plans ‘Beer
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“I’ve lost a certain amount
of faith in somebody who I
thought was doing a job partic-
ularly well. And I have also lost
the illusion that I was doing my
job particularly well. Or even
adequately,” said board mem-
ber Taylor Wilhour. “I feel like
what I’ve been doing in my time
on the board was aligned pret-
ty closely with what I was being
told I was supposed to be doing.
But in retrospect, perhaps, I and
we should have been doing a lot
more or a lot diff erently.”
Th roughout this period of the
meeting, emotions ran high as
a variety of diff erent opinions
were voiced.
“It’s really hard for me to sit
here and… hear people talk
horribly about a person that a
year ago they were giving praise
to but they give no benef t of the
doubt to now. I’m trying to let
go of the fact that this district let
somebody go aft er 32 years of
service who no doubt ended in a
bad manner but let her walk out
of this district with a retirement
card not signed by one of us and
having guards on her in her of-
f ce as she cleaned it out,” said
Back in 1978, the town of Cottage Grove
buzzed as crews arrived to f lm ‘Animal
House,’ a movie that would become an en-
during, if irreverent, classic. On Saturday,
Aug. 18 of this year, the town will come to-
gether to celebrate this fantastic anniversary
and attempt to recapture the record for the
“World’s Largest Toga Party” that Cottage
Grove f rst attained on the movie’s 25th an-
niversary in 2003.
Local running group Run CG organizes
events each year that showcase the beauty
and charm of the Cottage Grove area while
providing an atmosphere of fun and f tness.
Naturally, the group couldn’t wait to be part
of this year’s ‘Animal House’ celebration,
and they’re planning a race that’s sure to add
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excitement to the festivities.
Billed as a “Beer Mile, Toga Style” the
Brew Rush will take place alongside the par-
ty at Bohemia Park beginning at 2:30 pm on
Saturday Aug. 18. Several heats of runners
will drink a beer at each quarter-mile inter-
val of the race for a four-beer total. Th ey’ll
have brews of three diff erent strengths from
which to choose thanks to local sponsors
Plank Town Brewing, Pelican Brewing and
Goodlife Brewing.
According to beermile.com, the offi cial
resource for beer mile-related activities, the
earliest documented beer miles took place
in the late 1980s, and the races trace their
origins in part to various college campuses.
In the early 1990s, the emergence of digital
communication helped foster their growing
popularity and introduce a set of standard
rules. Today, beer miles are more popular
than ever, and the record times — four min-
utes, 33 seconds for men and six minutes,
eight seconds for women — are impressive
by any standard.
Of course, in Cottage Grove, participants
will have the added challenge of performing
the Brew Rush in a toga, which is required
for entry into the celebration. Th e full reg-
istration fee, which includes all four beers,
entry into the toga party, a toga kit and $10
food voucher, is $75. More information and
registration for the Brew Rush can be found
at www.runcgrun.com.
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