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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 2015)
Polk County News Polk County Itemizer-Observer • October 21, 2015 15A Produce: Giveaway is every Friday Continued from page 1A “(For) a couple dinners a week we get the vegetables here,” she said. “It helps out a lot. Everything just seems to go up.” The Doyle family is just one example of many in the community. Flynn said 90 families had stopped by Fri- day’s giveaway little more than halfway through its two-hour window. The numbers range from 70 to 120 families in a typical week, representing about 350 to 450 people. Creekmore said that was what Varney and Kester had hoped for the program. She said Varney had to step away due to health con- cerns. Kester, a longtime volunteer in Dallas and Falls City, died suddenly in July. But their vision contin- ues through the work of or- ganizers such at Creekmore and Flynn who have taken the reins in their absence. “Really we owe every- thing to Angie Varney and Wayne Kester,” Creekmore said. The success of the pro- gram has caught the atten- tion of Marion-Polk Food Share. Creekmore said the organization is studying the successes in Falls City look- ing for ways to help families in similar rural communi- ties where access to fresh produce is limited. She said a component she believes is key to suc- cess is having organizers and volunteers with a con- nection to the community and who can create a wel- coming environment. That hasn’t been a prob- lem in Falls City, where the weekly giveaway has be- come something of a social event. Creekmore said she’s seen people stop to talk with friends or make new ones after receiving their food. The group has until February to make a recommendation By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer People go through the line at the weekly giveaway. Need help? • The Friday produce giveaway is held at Mountain Gospel Fellow- ship Church, 303 N. Main St., Falls City. • For more informa- tion: 503-787-8037. That wasn’t an expected outcome, but important nonetheless. “It’s huge,” Creekmore said. “That’s how you make it successful.” Resident Myron Yancey agreed, saying that is one of the reasons he likes to make the weekly trip to Mountain Gospel. He takes what veg- etables and fruit he will use, but sees others who have more of a need for the pro- gram — both nutritionally and socially. “There are some people out here who really depend on it,” Yancey said. “I see it as a benefit to the commu- nity, probably in more than one way.” Flynn said the program will continue to expand. It’s now seeking a grant through the Salem Hospital Founda- tion to hold cooking classes teaching people how to pre- pare the produce they re- ceive at the giveaway. “A lot of the time, we have people asking us, what’s this and what do you do with it?” Flynn said. He said they’ve put to- gether a cookbook with recipes using some of the more unusual items such as rutabagas and some vari- eties of squash, but they want to take it a step fur- ther. “It’s not enough. Giving somebody a recipe is great, if they know how to cook,” Flynn said. “If they still don’t know what to do with a rutabaga or bok choy, they won’t do anything with it.” He said they sent a pre- liminary description of what the cooking classes would provide and are wait- ing to find out if they are in- vited to submit a full appli- cation. If the program is asked to apply, it would find out if it was awarded the grant around the first of the year. Creekmore said even if the giveaway doesn’t receive the grant, it will keep look- ing for ways to help. The rapid growth of the pro- gram — and the response of volunteers willing to lend a hand — is proof the give- away is desperately needed, she said. “It’s amazing,” Creek- more said. “It’s blown our minds.” State report cards released Itemizer-Observer staff report SALEM — The Oregon Department of Education released report cards on schools and districts statewide last week. This year the annual re- port will be missing an overall ranking for schools due to switching to new Smarter Balanced state as- sessments last spring. Overall rankings will be brought back next year after the second year of testing provides year-to- year comparison scores Fifth-year task force looking for options to keep programs and data. The multiple-page re- ports provide plenty of in- formation about student demographics, test scores, academic programs, en- rollment levels, class size, per pupil spending, and graduation rates. A mes- sage from the superinten- dent is included with each report. As a method of compari- son, this year’s report cards show how schools and dis- tricts performed on state assessments alongside those of similar size and demographics. “Student learning is about so much more than a single test score, and these report cards help to paint a more complete picture about the work our schools are doing to support stu- dent success,” said state Deputy Superintendent Salam Noor. For more information or to access school and dis- trict report cards online: http://www.ode.state.or.us /data/reportcard/reports. Solution on Page 5A IMAGINE Our Communities without our LOCAL NEWSPAPER! Thank the businesses who advertise in the Itemizer-Observer. without them... AAAAAH! I n t e r e s t e d i n a d v e r t i s i n g ? C a l l 5 0 3 - 6 2 3 - 2 3 7 3 DALLAS — A task force formed to examine and im- prove so-called fifth-year programs is working toward a recommendation in hopes of keeping them as an op- tion for students. There’s still plenty of time before the group has to offer its recommendation in Feb- ruary. But Dallas High School Assistant Principal Brian Green fears some in the Oregon legislature have already made up their minds against the programs. “I can speak for Dallas in that it would be devastating if the fifth-year programs were to go away,” Green said. Fifth-year programs allow students to defer receiving a standard high school diplo- ma to pursue an advanced diploma and attend classes at a community college. Be- cause they are still consid- ered high school students, the state school fund pays for expenses. Dallas’ pro- gram, Extended Campus, is the largest in Polk County, but Central and Falls City also have programs. In the last legislative ses- sion, a bill aiming to phase out the programs died in committee, but another bill created the task force to offer Got News? The Itemizer-Observer is always looking for unique story ideas in the areas of general news, education, features, personality pro- iles, sports and business from throughout Polk County. Share your idea by call- ing us at 503-623-2373; drop a note to us at P.O. Box 108, Dallas, OR 97338; or send an email to ionews@polkio.com. Education solutions about concerns for financing and equity. Green is on the commit- tee and said there are legiti- mate concerns about fi- nancing — and ways to ad- dress those problems, such as tapping into federal grants and limiting them only to students who truly have financial need. He also sees issues with one of the options for re- placing fifth-year programs, the Oregon Promise. That program offers free commu- nity college to students, but one of the requirements is students have to earn at least a 2.5 GPA. “One of the concerns I have about the minimum GPA is that we have certain students who are not very successful their freshman and sophomore years,” Green said. “They are able to turn it around and do really well but because of their freshmen year, how they started their high school, they don’t hit that 2.5 GPA. It would exclude a fair amount of students who have proven successful at the college level.” Based on this year’s en- rollment, 24 of the 69 stu- dents participating in Ex- tended Campus couldn’t be part of Oregon Promise. “I’m absolutely confident that the majority of those students will be very suc- cessful, if not all,” Green said. Another part of Extended Campus that has proved helpful to students is its counseling assistance. That’s one of the reasons 80 per- cent of enrollees continue to their second year in college. Oregon Promise does not offer that, Green said. “I think that is the biggest part that is left out,” he said. Green said so far, the task force’s meetings have been productive, but he hopes that work isn’t for nothing. “If they have their minds made up that they are going to do away with these pro- grams, I’m not so sure how much our input is going to be taken into considera- tion,” he said. “I’m hopeful that they are going to look into our recommendation and be thoughtful when de- ciding whether or not to do away with fifth-year pro- grams.” West Valley Housing Authority will hold their Work Session Meeting on Wednesday, October 28, 2015 beginning at 11:30 a.m. at 204 SW Wal- nut in Dallas, Oregon. The Regular Meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 28, 2015 at 12:30 p.m. at 204 SW Walnut in Dallas, Oregon. An Executive Session pursuant to ORS 192.660 will be held immediately following the Regular Meeting. Agenda for the meeting is posted on the Housing Authority website at www.wvpha.org. The location for the meeting is handicapped accessible. Please advise the West Valley Housing Authority if you need any special accommodations to attend the meeting. For information, please call 503-623- 8387, TDD 1-800-735-2900. Planning a Holiday Bazaar? We can help! The Itemizer-Observer will be publishing a comprehensive list of all the holiday bazaars and art & crafts sales in Polk County on Wednesday, October 28th. This feature will be designed for our readers to keep throughout the holiday season. We will publish the information for your event at no charge. If you wish to have your bazaar published any other time during the holiday season you must purchase an advertisement. Deadline to submit your event information is Friday, October 16th. So hurry and get your bazaar information to our office today! Event organizers who want more exposure than will be provided in the October 28th issue are encouraged to call one of our advertising representatives at 503-623-2373. Contact: Dawn Ohren 503-623-2373 or e-mail: dohren@polkio.com Itemizer-Observer 147 SE Court St., Dallas
