December 2, 2016 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com • 9A
Cannon Beach Academy celebrates progress
Charter school
plans to open in
fall 2017
By Lyra Fontaine
Cannon Beach Gazette
Community members of
all ages gathered at Chamber
Hall to celebrate the Cannon
Beach Academy’s uncondi-
tional charter application ap-
proval by the Seaside School
District board.
This major step brings the
school closer to opening in
fall 2017.
“We have come a long
way,” board President Kellye
Dewey said at the academy’s
November potluck dinner.
“Hard work from the start is
now paying off for our fam-
ilies and our community.
There still remains tons of
work ahead, but our approved
charter without conditions is a
milestone that needs to be ac-
knowledged and celebrated.”
The Cannon Beach Acade-
my formed in 2013 after Can-
non Beach Elementary closed.
The school district had denied
two of the school’s proposals,
and withdrew its conditional
approval for another proposal
earlier this year.
The academy and school
district worked together this
year on the charter applica-
tion. Before getting approved,
the academy clarified certain
aspects of its financial plan,
with revenue to be generat-
ed primarily through district
funding, pledges, fundraising
and grants, board members
said in October.
LYRA FONTAINE/CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
Residents gathered in Chamber Hall to celebrate the Sea-
side School District’s unconditional approval of the Can-
non Beach Academy charter application.
LYRA FONTAINE/CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
Cannon Beach Academy board members Patti Rouse, Barb Knop, Sally Steidel, Phil Sim-
mons and Kellye Dewey with Jeneé Pearce-Mushen, Yohali and Alondra, who translated
for Spanish speakers in the audience.
Not having a school in town is a ‘major logistics
issue’ in the event of an emergency.
Ryan Dewey, parent
“We want to thank you all
for being here and helping us
start this from the ground up,”
Dewey said. “We wouldn’t be
where we’re at without you all.”
Moving forward
The academy can now start
to finalize financial details,
apply for grants, plan for en-
rollment, prepare the school
building and start hiring staff,
according to board members.
With its approved charter, the
academy can apply for state
Department of Education
charter school implementa-
tion grants that will be avail-
able in the spring.
“If we can dig down and
find the drive to take us to
the finish line so we can open
those doors for the first day of
school, we will be so grate-
ful,” Dewey said. “Imagine
the smiles on those kids’ fac-
es. We are not only providing
this school for our commu-
nity, but also a choice in ed-
ucation, which is what every
child deserves.”
Dewey and board mem-
bers Sally Steidel, Barb Knop,
Patti Rouse and Phil Simmons
were available for the audi-
ence to answer questions.
South County clash over timber lawsuit
Timber from Page 1A
“They were very coopera-
tive and saw the value in our
acquiring the parcel,” Morgan
said. “I think setting up an ad-
versarial relationship with the
state of Oregon and the Ore-
gon Department of Forestry
is a bad idea. I can see this
dragging on years and years.
The only entity that is going
to benefit is the law firm rep-
resenting the counties.”
Lianne Thompson, who
represents South County on
the Board of Commissioners
and serves on the Forest Trust
Land Advisory Committee, is
in favor of the county’s inclu-
sion in the lawsuit.
‘How do we fulfill
our obligation as
elected leaders
and be good
stewards for these
resources if we are
not at the table?’
Lianne Thompson
Thompson said opting out
would deny the county an op-
portunity to “negotiate to pro-
tect our resources.”
Thompson said she wants
the county to have a say in the
legal dispute. “We are forest
trust land counties so we’re
automatically part of it,” she
said. “We would have to affir-
matively say we don’t want to
be part of it, in which case we
would have no say.”
Opting out, she said,
would leave Clatsop County
out of future decision-mak-
ing. “If you’re a part of the
lawsuit and sitting at the ta-
ble and you get up and walk
away, you’ve denied yourself
a voice in whatever happens,”
Thompson said. “How do we
fulfill our obligation as elect-
ed leaders and be good stew-
ards for these resources if we
are not at the table?”
Thompson said she listens
to both environmental groups
and timber companies.
“The timber industry is not
monolithic,” Thompson said.
“If you see them as the enemy
and all the same, that doesn’t
allow for effective negotia-
tion.”
Jenee Pearce-Mushen and
two local children, Yohali and
Alondra, translated Dewey’s
words for Spanish speakers.
A “fundraising mountain”
created by artist Bill Steidel
will serve as a marker for
funds raised by the acade-
my. Board members thanked
Steidel for contributing his
original artwork.
“I think you’ve all noticed
that we have a mountain,
and we do have a mountain
of work to do,” said Sally
Steidel, adding that the piece
of art will be placed some-
where in town.
Getting ready
The academy’s grade lev-
els will start with kindergarten
through second grade, then
add a grade each year. The
board will recommend 17 to
21 students per class.
A contract will likely be se-
cured with the school district
by the end of the year, and en-
rollment could open in March.
Getting the building ready is
one of the top priorities, Knop
said. Because the academy’s
conditional use permit expired,
board members have turned in a
revision for the Planning Com-
mission to review in December.
The school is temporarily locat-
ed at 171 Sunset Blvd.
With potentially vulnerable
bridges between Seaside and
Cannon Beach, not having a
school in town is a “major lo-
gistics issue” in the event of an
emergency, parent Ryan Dew-
ey said.
“It’s not about my kids’ in-
dividual experience,” he said.
“It’s for the community. If
you don’t have a school, grade
school kids, parents and grand-
parents in a community, it’s
not a community. It’s a resort
town.”
The potluck gathering also
celebrated voters approving the
Seaside School District’s $99.7
million bond measure to relo-
cate schools out of the tsunami
zone.
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