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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 14, 2016)
Polk County Education 14A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • September 14, 2016 Track results come back good By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — Results from testing on Dallas High School’s track revealed this it is harder that Internation- al Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) guide- lines. Those standards apply only to facilities hosting in- ternational sanctioned meets, said Kevin Mon- tague, Dallas School Dis- trict’s facilities manager. “ We are structurally sound,” Montague said and noted that IAAF recom- mendations state that track surfaces can last eight to 10 years under heavy use con- ditions. “Our track is not ex- tensively or heavily used.” Montague received the testing results last week from Gary Logsdon, the vice president of sales for Beynon Sports, the compa- ny that installed the track in 2004. IAAF recommends sur- face have “force reduction” between 35 and 50. On that scale, concrete is consid- ered zero and above 50 is too soft. Logsdon said 17 areas of the track were tested, on the inside lanes, and lanes four, five and eight. The in- side lanes tested at an aver- age of 27.17. Lanes four and five averaged 31.18. Lane eight averaged 30.64. More recent patches test- ed at 42.33 and 38. “In summary, the surface at Dallas High School tests harder than the IAAF rec- ommendation of 35,” Logs- don wrote in an email to Montague. “However the track at Dallas High School or most any other high school does not meet the IAAF recommendation. He said the track is in good condition, given its age. The company does rec- ommend resurfacing every 10 to 12 years. Logsdon volunteered to test additional facilities in Salem that are made of the same material completed in the last five years for fur- ther comparison. “He’s going to give us that data so we can really put it into perspective instead of just guessing,” Montague said. Superintendent Michelle Johnstone said the district’s Citizens Oversight Commit- tee will review the informa- tion this week. The district’s new athletic trainer will be asked for feedback as well. “We know that’s been a concern with injuries to kids,” she said. Athletic Director Tim Lar- son said Monday he didn’t know if coaches had seen the assessment yet. Johnstone receives raise By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — The Dallas School Board approved Su- perintendent Michelle John- stone’s first year perform- ance evaluation and a 3 per- cent raise Monday. The raise matches the per- centage given to employees in the current budget. “In our opinion, and through the collection of ev- idence, Dr. Johnstone has displayed excellent per- formance throughout the year and has many signifi- cant accomplishments for her first year as superinten- dent for Dallas School Dis- trict,” said a statement writ- ten by Jon Woods, the board’s chairman. The board praised John- stone’s leadership through a number of issues that arose during her first year, includ- ing student privacy issues, special education compli- ance litigation, policies on carrying concealed weapons on school grounds and test- ing for lead. Board members also said she has continued to build on a foundation of “collabo- ration, professional learning communities and strong in- structional practices.” “I just appreciate your first year and your leader- ship,” Mike Bollman, a member of the board, said on Monday. Woods suggested the 3- percent increase, which was unanimously approved. Search continues for youth missing from Monmouth Nathaniel Banfield was reported as a runaway to the Monmouth Police Department on Aug. 24. He was last seen on Aug. 17 in Mon- mouth by his mother. Banfield, 17, also uses the names Nick Jackson, Junior and Junior Gallop. He has blond hair, dyed black, and sometimes shaves his head. Banfield has green-blue eyes, is 5-8, and weighs 160 pounds. Banfield lives with his father in Aumsville, and had spent the sum- mer in Monmouth with his mother. Banfield Anyone with information about Banfield’s whereabouts should call Monmouth Police Department at 503-838-1109. JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer Caleb Harris started as principal at Whitworth Elementary School this year. He worked at Oakdale Heights Elementary School for the last eight years. Harris joins Whitworth Hopes to help make school more relevant for kids By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — Caleb Harris and the staff at Whitworth Elementary School have an overarching goal of making school relevant for chil- dren. Harris, who was the prin- cipal at Oakdale Heights Ele- mentary School for the last eight school years, took over at Whitworth, a fourth- and fifth-grade school. “I gave my teachers per- mission to think outside the box and question why we are doing what we are doing,” Harris said Monday. “We want kids to be en- gaged. We want them to think. We want them to want to come to school and to learn, and not just have the ability to regurgitate infor- mation, but to apply the in- formation.” Harris said students at Whitworth are at the stage in their education where they build on the foundational concepts they have been given in their first four years of school. “They are still at a stage in life where they are still really excited about learning and figuring out what they are going to do,” Harris said. Whitworth teachers and staff are meeting that chal- lenge by integrating new sci- ence and math lesson plans, P r o j e c t L e a d t h e Wa y (PLTW). All teachers attended vol- untary training over the summer. Fourth-grade teachers have committed to teaching at least two of the four PLTW modules. Fifth-grade teachers will incorporate all four. PLTW has students work- ing in groups on problems that don’t necessarily have one right answer, something Harris sees as one of its strengths. “It going to create a differ- ent approach, I think, to learning,” Harris said. “It’s going to force kids to really struggle and not be success- ful the first time … which is a great life lesson. How many times in life do we say, ‘Well that didn’t work out, so what am I going to do next?’” Those concepts and skills fit well with the science and technology opportunities being developed at LaCreole Middle School and Dallas High School. Perhaps best of all, the teaching strategy helps an- swer the age-old student question: “When will I use this in life?” “Teachers want to make it (school) relevant, and they want kids to understand how this applies in the real world,” Harris said. Harris said he’s already seen PLTW activities hap- pening just in the first week of class. “They are trying to apply some of those things to just think differently about how we educate kids,” he said.