4A • February 10, 2017 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com
Views from the Rock
ASPIRE, job fair nurture
homegrown expertise
I
n years past, the role of
public works director
might have been taken
by the guy driving the
front loader. Now, it re-
quires two degrees.
Cannon Beach’s City Manag-
er Brant Kucera has experience
around the country. He was re-
cruited from a long-time career in
Pennsylvania.
The new fi re chief, Matt Bene-
dict, was recruited from across the
state.
The county manager, Cameron
Moore, crossed the country from
Mahomet, Illinois.
Other industries in Clatsop Coun-
ty — from hospitality to our hospitals
— recruit candidates on national job
boards.
The same holds true in the news-
paper business. I wouldn’t be here to-
day if it wasn’t for an ad on a national
journalism job posting site. The Daily
Astorian includes staff with backgrounds
from coast to coast. In December, we had an
opening in Cannon Beach for a reporter. Our
newest hire will be moving here to cover Can-
non Beach news in late March from Belling-
ham, Washington.
When Kucera was asked at the City Coun-
cil’s January goal-setting retreat at Tolovana
Hall if he was going to advertise locally to fi ll
the public works director position, a councilor
asked if that would include ads in local outlets.
Kucera shook his head, no.
The days of moving through the ranks, ap-
parently, may be over.
Two degrees as director Dan Grassick pos-
sesses are not necessarily required but would
be a plus. “The expectation is you come here
with experience,” Kucera said.
Did cuts reduce talent pool?
The same day as Grassick’s departure was
announced, so were Oregon graduation rates.
Although Seaside High School grad rates
have climbed more than 5 percent in the last
fi ve years, in 2015-16 the percentage dipped a
point to 74.4, slightly below the state average
of 74.8 percent. The nation’s top states typ-
ically graduate more than 90 percent of their
students.
Measure 5 was an initiative passed in No-
vember 1990 to rein in rising property taxes.
Proponents argued the measure wouldn’t harm
public schools and could even help struggling
rural schools by forcing the state to spread out
income tax collected from wealthier parts of
Oregon.
According to the October 2006 issue of Or-
egon Business, the fi rst 16 years of Measure 5
and Measure 50 reduced local revenues by $41
billion.
“If there’s one lesson Oregonians, and the
nation, can learn from the passage of Measure
5, it’s this: you can’t improve school funding
with a tax cut,” NPR wrote in their 2016 report-
ing series “School Money.”
According to the October 2006 issue of Or-
egon Business, the fi rst 16 years of Measure 5
and Measure 50 reduced local revenues by $41
billion.
The results could be interpreted in the state’s
graduation rates, as higher education’s share of
the state’s general fund declined from 14 to 7
percent by 2001, NPR reported.
Cuts locally as well as statewide impact our
talent pool down the road.
Residents recall that the closing of Cannon
Beach Elementary School in 2013 was not so
much a result of the tsunami fears, but because
costs of running the elementary school to its
smaller school population were not being met.
The tsunami risk was almost an after-thought
in the rationale.
A budget shortfall of $1.55 million prompt-
ed the closing, as costs for Cannon Beach’s 80
students were higher than other elementary
schools. Cannon Beach’s costs stood at $8,900
per student, with costs at Seaside Heights and
Gearhart ranging from $6,100 to $6,300.
The elementary school closing immediately
prompted residents to pursue alternate options
— largely through donations and grassroots
support — to provide an elementary school ed-
ucation for Cannon Beach students.
These are only now coming to fruition, as
the Cannon Beach Academy plans to open in
the fall for students in kindergarten through
second-grade classes.
Meeting the need
In Clatsop County, “Clatsop Vision: 2030,”
a community profi le developed in 2014, leaders
asked the following questions:
How can Clatsop County increase its overall
high school graduate rates?
• How can the county increase its emphasis
on post-secondary education as the economy
continues to move beyond traditional natural
resource and blue collar jobs?
• How can the county increase participation in
Publisher
David F. Pero
Editor
R.J. Marx
Sales/Advertising
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Betty Smith
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John D. Bruijn
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Requirements for the
position of Cannon
Beach public works
director at www.
ci.cannon-beach.
or.us/executive/
page/public-works-
director-job
Urban
wineries
bring a new
vibe to the
wine scene
UNCORKED RAMBLINGS
STEVEN SINKLER
S
CANNON SHOTS
R.J. MARX
‘This isn’t about
funneling students
into roles they’re not
inclined to do — it’s
about providing them
the confi dence to pursue
options, whatever their
career goals may be. ‘
post-secondary education in some parts of the
community, including the Hispanic communi-
ty?
• What are the prospects for establishing a
four-year higher educational institution pres-
ence or extension in the county?
Administrators and top offi cials are well
aware of the need to produce homegrown,
self-sustaining educational opportunities that
can lead to the fi lling of top jobs.
Among the leaders, Clatsop Economic De-
velopment Resources is at the fore. The organi-
zation’s director Kevin Leahy is a crusader for
kids and education and a co-sponsor of the Feb.
22 Clatsop County Career and Job fair.
The event aims to fi nd and retain good em-
ployees from small businesses to the largest
employers in the county and region.
The fair focuses on three areas for employ-
ers: hiring now for immediate positions or for
summer jobs; looking for committee and skilled
employees to fi ll career technical, trades, voca-
tional and apprenticeship positions.
More than 700 students and adult job-seek-
ers are expected to attend the event at the Clat-
sop County Fairgrounds.
Along with giving young people the oppor-
tunity to meet employers, the program offers
resume critiquing and mock interviews with re-
al-world questions: “Why should we hire you?”
and “Where do you see yourself in fi ve years?”
At the high school level, ASPIRE coordi-
nator Matt Bisek in Seaside is a familiar face
on the county’s civic breakfast circuit. Bisek is
dedicated to advocating for young people and
introducing them to careers and options they
might never have considered.
A confessed under-achiever when he was
in a large high school in Minnesota, Bisek
blossomed at a small college in Joliet, Illinois,
where he learned business and leadership de-
grees.
“I felt like nobody cared in high school,
then I went to a really small college and was
really motivated by how a personal touch can
motivate a person’s life,” Bisek said at a recent
meeting of the Seaside Downtown Develop-
ment Association. “I got sick of where making
money was the point of the job, and got my
master’s in educational leadership to get a job
like this, where I feel like I’m making a differ-
ence.”
ASPIRE is a mentoring program that match-
es trained and supportive adult volunteer men-
tors with students to develop a plan to meet
education goals beyond high school.
Funded by the state, ASPIRE is designed to
help kids transition from high school to what-
ever they want to do after, whether it’s been de-
signed to help kid go to college, get a job or go
into a trade, Bisek said.
Contributing writers
Lyra Fontaine
Rebecca Herren
Katherine Lacaze
Eve Marx
Nancy McCarthy
CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
The Cannon Beach Gazette is published every other
week by EO Media Group.
1555 N. Roosevelt, Seaside, Oregon 97138
503-738-5561 • Fax 503-738-9285
www.cannonbeachgazette.com • email:
editor@cannonbeachgazette.com
FILE PHOTO
Students at the 2015 Clatsop County Job
Fair.
R.J. MARX/CANNON BEACH GAZETTE
FILE PHOTO
Matt Bisek invites Kevin Leahy, execu-
volunteers to men- tive director of Clat-
tor area students. sop Economic Devel-
opment Resources.
The program is director to high school se-
niors, but “we’re trying to get enough volun-
teers to start earlier, junior or sophomore,”
Bisek said. “You work with a small number of
students throughout the year and assist them
in the process of whatever they want to do —
making dreams come true, to put it in a sunny
light.”
At Seaside High School, he said, there are
only two counselors for 450 students. “That’s
where ASPIRE comes in,” Bisek said.
The program pairs students and volunteers
by interest, or have experience in the fi eld
they’re interested in. Bisek invited mentors to
contact him to volunteer on a weekly, month-
ly or fl exible basis. “Every single mentor we
bring in is an incredible asset,” he said.
As we look to develop the next generation
of leaders, the good news is that ASPIRE and
CEDR are not alone among resources. Work-
Source Oregon provides “quality information
and informed choices” for local job-seekers.
And employers themselves, frustrated by the
expense and risk of bringing in candidates from
long distances to fi ll vacancies, are enthusiasti-
cally recruiting along the coast.
This isn’t about funneling students into
roles they’re not inclined to do — it’s about
providing them the confi dence to pursue op-
tions, whatever their career goals may be.
LETTERS
• • •
The Clatsop County Career and Job Fair
takes place Wednesday, Feb. 22, from 9 a.m.
to 4 p.m. at the Clatsop County Fairgrounds.
To register as an employer to participate in the
career and job fair, call Linda Wyss at Work-
Source Northwest Oregon offi ce at 503-325-
4821, ext. 234, or email linda.l.wyss@oregon.
gov, or visit clatsopjobfair.com.
For more about the ASPIRE program,
visit www.oregonstudentaid.gov/aspire-vol-
unteer-mentors.aspx. For more information
about getting your child connected with the
ASPIRE program, or for information about
becoming an ASPIRE volunteer at Seaside
High School, contact Matt Bisek at mbisek@
seaside.k12.or.us; 982-200-7106.
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be reprinted or copied without consent of the owners.
uddenly, Portland has become
one of the hottest wine regions in
Oregon. While Portland is tech-
nically inside the Willamette Valley,
the wineries located there don’t have
their tasting room surrounded by acres
of beautifully manicured vineyards to
add to the experience. Instead, these
“urban wineries” typically work out
of cinder block buildings with roll-up
garage doors opening to their industrial
looking tasting room. The vibe can
range from energetic to frenetic, but it’s
always fun.
Two of my favorite urban wineries,
Angel Vine and D’Anu, make their
precious beverages at Urban Crush,
located in Portland at 2025 SE 7th Ave.
Winemakers Ed Fus (Angel Vine) and
Joe Williams (D’Anu) have worked
together for years to make wines which
complement each other. Angel Vine is
the only Pacifi c Northwest focusing on
zinfandel. Ed Fus sources his fruit from
some of the most well-known vine-
yards in the Columbia Valley, including
Stonetree and LeCollines vineyards. I
really enjoy Angel Vine “The Hellion”
Red Blend, which is a delicious blend
of primitivo, petit sirah and zinfandel.
Named after one of his daughters,
the Hellion is big, bold and unapolo-
getic. If you’re grilling a ribeye, you
might fi nd The Hellion is a wonderful
companion. The D’Anu lineup offers
more classic Oregon selections such
as pinot gris, chardonnay and pinot
noir, with wines that hail more from
Washington, such as sangiovese and
cabernet sauvignon. D’Anu 2014
Chardonnay earned double gold medal
recognition from judges at the Savor
Northwest 2016 wine competition,
held here in Cannon Beach. This food
friendly chardonnay delivers tropical
fruit fl avors with a soft mouthfeel and
would be a wonderful pairing with
Dungeness crab.
Another of the hottest Portland
urban wineries is the Teutonic Wine
Company, located at 3303 20th Ave.
SE. Teutonic is known for their crisp
Mosel-style white wines, but they also
offer a selection of Burgundian infl u-
enced pinots. My current favorite of
theirs is Teutonic Battle of the Cracken
Pinot Noir, which is a delicate fruit
forward pinot. This wine would be a
perfect companion with grilled salmon
or portobello.
If you haven’t visited an urban
winery yet, you should defi nitely do
so. I’ve had people tell me it’s not
the same as going to a winery with
vineyards. While that is true, don’t
hold that against them. If you’re a
beer drinker, when was the last time
you went to a brewery surround by
acres of hops? For those of you who
drink gin, rum or tequila, does your
favorite distillery have sugar cane or
agave growing out back? Probably
not. So, don’t hold urban wineries to
a different standard. These downtown
producers of liquid nirvana just might
knock your socks off.
If you’d like to taste some of these
urban wines, stop by the Wine Shack
Tasting Room on Saturday, Feb. 18,
from 1 to 5 p.m. and try them for your-
self. See you at the Shack.
Please don’t drink and drive.
THE NATIONAL
More tourism?
I live on what shall remain a
nameless street in the heart of Cannon
Beach. There is one other family liv-
ing full time on my street, and the rest
of the housing in my “neighborhood”
is taken up with vacation rentals and
absentee ownership. I am very well
aware of the housing crunch, and the
lack of affordable housing here on the
North Oregon Coast.
My hometown is Astoria. In the
spirit of nativism, and as my I see
my home town increasingly caught
See Letters, Page 5A