school district torced to cut start
to balance budget
B o fj 3 1 o W a t s o n
U o f 0 Le*spa~or Li brary
L u j e n a , OR <) < M 3
A proposed reduction in staff
to help offset over a $1 million
deficit in the schools for the
1999-2000 school year will
eliminate over 17 full-time
teaching
positions in the
Morrow County School District
next
year,
according
to
information released from the
district following a special board
meeting at Sam Boardman
Elementary
School
last
Thursday, Jan. 13.
The district is recommending
district-wide cuts in PE, art and
counseling positions at the
elementary level and vo-ag and
Spanish programs at the senior
high level.
Additional cuts, particularly in
south-end schools, also bring the
student/teacher ratios closer
district-wide. The last several
years, the south end schools have
had a significantly lower
student/teacher ratio than the
north end schools.
VOL. 119
NO. 3
8 Pages
Wednesday, January 19,2000
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Morrow County citizens of the year named
The Heppner Chamber of
Commerce named the citizens of
the year for 1999 at its annual
Town and Country Banquet
Thursday, January 13, at the
Heppner Elks Club.
basketball and softball.
Estes "is committed to helping
not only her own kids, but many
kids, and encouraging them to do
their best," said the presenter,
who compared her to the
"Energizer Bunny".
Estes, who is married to
Heppner Fire Chief Rusty Estes,
has two sons, Chad and Eric.
citizenship. She participated in
v o lley b all,
b ask etb all,
cheerleadmg and track, with
particular success as a long
distance runner, and is a member
of student council, Outdoor
Club, OSSOM and Wildhorse
Club.
A student representative to the
Chamber of Commerce Board of
Directors, Kahl is also active in
her church and is known for
singing the National Anthem at
ball games, as well as
community service.
Kahl is the daughter of Bob
and Marianne Kahl of Heppner.
Sam Bellamy
Sam Bellamy, Lexington, was
named man of the year for his
"unceasing devotion and untiring
effort" for the betterment of the
Morrow County Fairgrounds.
Bellamy, who has been a
member of the Morrow County
Fair Board since 1995 and chair
since
1996,
has
been
instrumental in the building of
the new Wilkinson Arena,
"planning fund raisers, rounding
up volunteers, clearing the
grounds and putting up red iron,"
said presenter Bill Kuhn.
Bellamy and his wife, Mary
Kay, have been married for 26
years and have three sons, Clint,
Cody and Travis. Bellamy is
active in the First Christian
Church where he is an elder.
Walter Pilgrim
Educator of the year, Walter
Pilgrim, was lavishly praised by
41 current and former students
for his "humor in the classroom,
discipline, real caring, fairness
and generosity," and especially
for taking a personal interest in
students. In addition to his hard
work in countless fund raisers,
Pilgrim has chaperoned dances,
ski trips, numerous senior trips
and other outings and has
provided assistance to student
body treasurers over the years.
Pilgrim, who is from Alabama,
spent three years teaching there
before coming to Heppner High
School, where he has taught
business education for the last 28
years.
Cyde Estes
Woman of the year, Cyde
Estes, is a native Heppnerite,
delivered by Dr. Wallace Wolff
and graduating from Heppner
High School.
Estes is active in the Heppner
High School Booster Club, the
Blue Mountain Community
College Foundation, the Morrow
County Recreation District, the
city of Heppner Planning
Commission and the Soroptimist
club, in addition to helping with
tournaments at the Willow Creek
Country Club and coaching girls'
Abby Kahl
Youth Recognition Award
winner Abby Kahl was praised
for
her
contributions
of
"significant effort and energy to
the life of our town through
service and accomplishment at
school and throughout the
community."
Kahl, who is a senior at
Heppner High School, is a
member of the National Honor
Society, and has received awards
in drama, PE, skills contests and
Delpha Jones
Lexington resident Delpha
Jones was awarded the Lifetime
Achievement award.
Jones was praised and gently
kidded by presenter and former
county judge Louis Carlson, for
her sense of humor, directness
and "take charge attitude."
Jones has been active in
numerous
clubs
and
organizations over the years,
especially the Morrow County
Historical Society and the
Grange.
Jones, who is a
correspondent with the Gazette-
Times, reports on Lexington
events, the Historical Society
and the Grange, in addition to
other news items.
Jones and her husband Cecil
have two grown children,
Charlene Whitney and Ken
Jones,
and
several
grandchildren.
The business of the year award
was presented jointly to Cal and
Bev Sherman, who served the
community for decades at Cal's
Service Center, and Devin Oil,
represented by Dick Devin and
his wife, Denise, who bought the
business from the Shermans.
Stressing the themes "transition
and family" the Shermans and
the Devins were honored for
working together "to keep a
service in our community which
might
otherwise
have
disappeared and created a
community crisis."
The Shermans first opened the
business as an Atlantic Richfield
continued page 2
Superintendent Bruce
Anderson said earlier that the
district cannot make the schools
equal, because smaller schools
still require a certain number of
teachers to operate, but added
that the district will strive to
make them more "equitable".
The board is considering
seeking voter approval of a
district levy option which could
give the district an additional
$500,000. The consensus of the
board at the Jan. 13 meeting was
to make the cuts now and then
add positions back, if voters do
indeed approve the levy option.
A suggestion that the district
spend the $1 million ending fund
to balance the budget was
discussed, but the board was
reluctant to do so. Anderson
explained that spending the
ending fund would give the
district a financial "double
whammy". The district would
then have to borrow money with
interest until tax monies come in
and, at the same time, would lose
around $25,000 in interest on the
$1 million the district would
have had in the bank.
Anderson said that spending the
ending fund balance can be
compared to an individual taking
all of his money out of a saving's
account and spending it all,
eventually having no funds for
living expenses or emergencies,
which
would
necessitate
borrowing.
Heppner Elementary School
would take the biggest hit of all
the schools in the district. The
proposal would cut four-and-a-
third teaching positions from
Heppner Elementary School-
two classroom teachers, one PE
teacher, a half-time reading
teacher, a half-time counselor
and a one-third time art teacher.
One full-time custodian and a
three-fourths time office assistant
would also be cut at HES.
HES currently has 228 students
in kindergarten through sixth
grade with a student ratio of
12.79 students for each teacher.
The state average for a school
that size is 19.5 students to one
teacher. The student/teacher ratio
at HES after the cuts would be
16.28 to one.
Heppner Junior/Senior High
School would lose 3.5 teaching
positions—a full-time vo-ag
teacher, a full-time PE teacher, a
half-time social studies teacher,
half-time Spanish teacher and a
half-time counselor.
HHS (grades nine-12 with 151
students) and HJHS (grades
seven-eight with 62 students)
have a combined 213 students
and
a
12.88
to
one
student/teacher ratio vs. a state
average of 15.20 to one. With the
cuts, HHS/HJHS would have a
student/teacher ratio of 18.45 to
one.
lone Schools would lose two
and a third teaching positions—
one full-time tech ed teacher, one
full-time classroom teacher and a
one-third time art teacher, in
addition to a half-time office
assistant and a half-time
custodian.
lone Elementary School (grades
kindergarten-five) currently has
62 students for an 11.27 to one
student/teacher ratio vs. a state
average of 15.70 students to one
teacher. The proposed cuts would
bring the student/teacher ratio up
to 14.41 to one.
lone High School (grades/nme-
12 with 67 students) and lone
Junior High School (grades six-
eight with 38 students) have a
combined 105 students for a
studenLteacher ratio of 11.03 to
one. The state average for
schools that size is 15.20
teachers to one student. Cuts
would increase the student-
teacher ratio to 12.47 to one.
Sam Boardman Elementary
and Riverside High School in
Boardman and A.C. Houghton
Elementary School in Imgon
would each lose two teaching
positions. RHS would lose a full
time vo-ag teacher and a full
time Spanish teacher. SBE and
ACH would each lose a full-time
counselor and half-time art and
PE teaching positions.
SBE (grades kindergarten-five)
has 436 students for a 17.1 to
one
student/teacher
ratio,
compared to a state average of
20.5 to one. Cuts would increase
the ratio to 17.79 to one.
RHS (grades nine-12),
currently with 478 students, has
a student/teacher ratio of 18.38 to
one, compared to a state average
of 17.10 to one After cuts, the
ratio at RHS will be 19.61 to one.
ACH (grades kindergarten-
five) currently has an enrollment
of 374 for a student/teacher ratio
of 16.25 to one, vs. a state ratio
of 20 to one. After cuts, the ratio
at ACH would increase to 17 to
one.
Columbia Middle School m
Imgon would lose one new full
time teaching position.
CMS (grades six-eight)
currently has 364 students for a
16.55 to on«, student/teacher
ratio. With the new position
eliminated, the ratio would
increase to 17.33 to one, vs. a
state average of 17.3 to one.
Administration would also cut
funding for one and a half
positions-a half time assistant
superintendent and half-time
computer technology support
staff, both of which will be paid
in the future by the Education
Service District in order to
compensate the district for
services ESD provides at other
schools, and a half-time business
manager position.
Anderson said that because
the number of retirements and
resignations prior to the next
school year is not yet known, the
district can not yet determine
how many or which teachers will
actually be cut. Seniority is also
an issue. Some teachers may also
be transferred to other schools
within the district, he said.
(Student/teacher ratios do
not include counselors or
learning center students and
staff.)
BEO donates to assisted living
Gail Hughes, vice-chairman of Willow Creek Valley Assisted Living,
accepts a check from Darrell Raver, branch manager of the Bank of
Eastern Oregon Heppner Branch. The bank donated $5,000 to WCV AL.
which is in the process of raising funds to eventually establish an assisted
living center in the Heppner area. A new sign marking WCVAL's
progress was erected downtown near the Christmas tree with the help of
Raver and Tom Wolff. Nancy Vander Does painted the sign; Columbia
Basin Electric donated the plywood; BEO donated the paint and
Pettyjohn's donated the posts.
Colt basketball signups Jan. 23
All Heppner students in third,
fourth, fifth and sixth grades are
invited to sign up and be a part of
the Colt basketball program on
Sunday, January 23, at the
Heppner Jupior/Semor High
School gym, from 1-3 p.m.
Some changes are being
proposed to make improv ements
to the program. A short meeting
for the parents will be held to
explain the changes.
According to organizers, "the
goal is to focus on the teaching
of basic fundamentals and to
build a strong program from
grade school through high
school."
All parents are invited to attend.
The Colt players will participate
in different basketball stations in
the gym, set up and run by
Heppner High School players.
Parents are asked to pick up
their children at 3 p.m. A
coaches' meeting and draft will
follow sign-ups.
Any adults who would like to
be a leader (coach) in the Colt
basketball program,
should
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contact John McCabe, 676-5231 ;
Chuck Matteson, 676-5250; or
George Naims, 676-9252 or 676-
9970.
Anyone who has coached
before and would like to continue
should contact one of the above.
There will be no Colt basketball
on Super Bowl Sunday, Jan. 30.
Coaches will contact the players
on their team with a schedule
that will begin on Sunday,
February 6.
HEDC
annual meeting
The Heppner Economic
Development Corporation will
hold an annual meeting at the St.
Patrick Senior Center on
Tuesday, January 25.
Light refreshments will be
served at 5 p.m. The meeting will
begin at 5:30 and include a
review of the past two years,
revision of by-laws, nominations
of board members and proposals
of goals for 2000.
Speaker will be Loyal Bums,
lone, representing ICABO.
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