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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (May 2, 2018)
LOCAL WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018 Hermiston pulls elementary schools from statewide Battle of the Books Local students have competed for 36 years By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN STAFF WRITER Hermiston’s schools have been enthusiastic competitors in the state- wide Battle of the Books competition, but they won’t be at next year’s event. The district’s five ele- mentary school principals have chosen to withdraw from the statewide com- petition, stating that one of the books on the elemen- tary school reading list is incompatible with the dis- trict’s curriculum. The elementary school principals sent a letter to parents stating that the novel “George,” by Alex Gino, was not appropri- ate for their third- through fifth-grade students, based on their adopted human growth and development curriculum. The book, which is not described in the letter sent home to parents, is about a child who is born male and known to all as George, but identifies as female and pre- fers the name Melissa. The book details how Melissa comes out to her best friend, and eventually to others, through the help of a school play. The letter stated that Hermiston’s middle and high school teams would still participate in the statewide compe- tition. Hermiston’s ele- mentary school teams will instead participate in a district-wide competi- tion, reading a list of titles compiled from books read in previous years. The letter also stated that if the statewide list for the 2019-2020 school year was deemed appropriate, the elementary schools would once again par- ticipate in the statewide program. Hermiston School Dis- trict elementary librarian Kristi Smalley said she was aware of the process, but she was not involved in the decision to pull the elementary schools from the statewide program. She said the decision, based on the subject mat- ter of the book, was up to the administrators. Hermiston’s elementary students have been heavily involved with the program in past years, with a team SCHOLASTIC CORPORATION “George” by Alex Gino is the story of a transgender boy and part of the Oregon Battle of the Books curriculum for 2018-19. The Hermiston School District has opted to not participate in the statewide competition because of the subject matter. from Highland Hills plac- ing 16th at state this year. The letter noted that Herm- iston School District has been involved in Battle of the Books for 36 years. Smalley said the pro- gram would look roughly the same from the ground level, with students still competing and reading, and answering the same types of questions. “The misalignment with the curriculum really needs to be the focus,” she said of the book. “There are a lot of hot-button issues that could misconstrue this, but we need to focus that this is a reading program.” She said administrators did discuss Hermiston stu- dents not reading “George” but remaining in the state competition. “I advised them that we can’t just not use one title, because the children would still be exposed to those questions,” she said. “But I’m really glad the district was looking out for the well-being of children.” Smalley said the book was not available at the ele- mentary school libraries. She said while parents were not included in the decision, the only feedback she had heard from parents so far had been positive. She acknowledged that the book’s placement on the statewide list had been controversial. “There was a lot of input given to the state commit- tee on this title that, in my opinion, fell on deaf ears,” she said. The letter to parents was signed by principals Jake Bacon, Jerad Farley, Kevin Headings and Christie Petersen, and interim prin- cipal Bryn Browning. HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3 Father drowns while saving son By PHIL WRIGHT and JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN STAFF WRITERS Juan Carlos Armenta Madrigal gave his life the evening of Wednesday, April 25 to save his son from drowning in the chilly water of the Columbia River at the Umatilla Marina. The boy survived but Madrigal, of Umatilla, did not. He was 35. The boy is a second grader in the Umatilla School District, and has a sibling in the district in fifth grade. Umatilla Police Chief Darla Huxel said an offi- cer at 7:12 p.m. received the emergency call to respond to two people drowning at the marina. Madrigal, his wife and 7-year-old son were fish- ing on the northeast corner of the property, Huxel said, a popular spot where two culverts allow the Colum- bia River to flow into the marina. “That’s right in front where the current comes in the marina,” she said. The water there is too deep to stand in, she added, and lately the McNary Dam, about a mile upriver, has released a lot of water, mak- ing for a swift current. “You can definitely see the current going through there,” she said after visit- ing the site again Thursday morning. The boy slipped and fell into the water, and the father jumped in after him. Neither knew how to swim, Huxel said, and they were not STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS A pair of culverts jut out into the Umatilla Marina near the popular fishing spot where Juan Carlos Armenta Madrigal drowned while saving his son April 25 in Umatilla. wearing life jackets. Madrigal tried to heft his son out of the water, but the flow moved them along the marina. Several other peo- ple nearby jumped into the river to help. They dragged the father and son to nearby docks, where fire and rescue per- sonnel worked to revive Madrigal, but to no avail. He died at the scene. Huxel said the son went to Good Shepherd Medical Center, Hermiston, for treat- ment of hypothermia. She did not have an update on his medical condition. Recent outdoor tem- peratures in the area have reached the 80s, but online data from the Fish Pas- sage Center shows the aver- age daily temperature of the Columbia River at McNary Dam is 49.3 degrees. Sgt. Dave Johnson of the Umatilla County Sher- iff’s Office said the marina is a great place to fish, but he offered a word of warning. “If you take your child near water, put them in a Coast Guard-approved life vest,” he said. Huxel said shore anglers generally don’t wear life jackets, but the best practice is to wear the personal flota- tion devices while on or near water. There is a free-to-bor- row life jacket station at the Umatilla Marina, and John- son said the sheriff’s office and others are trying to add stations at the ramp just above the McNary Dam and at Hat Rock. He also said the sheriff’s office provides water and boating safety classes on request. Call 541-966-3600 for a schedule or to request one. There have been a few drownings on the Colum- bia River in the past sev- eral years. Last September, an Irrigon man drowned at Warehouse Beach while showing some colleagues how to swim. And in sum- mer of 2015, two Morrow County teens drowned in the same stretch of the Colum- bia River, a month apart. Cold temperatures of the water can often catch swimmers off guard, espe- cially on hot summer days. The cold water can lead to cramping, which can leave even an adept swimmer unable to move. Fast cur- rents and wind can also sur- prise swimmers and tubers. Lawmakers test geography with Hermiston hearing By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN STAFF WRITER Civic leaders and educa- tors asked visiting lawmak- ers Wednesday, April 25 to remember the eastern side of the state as they consider how to help students. “One trend I’ve seen in my state work is that geog- raphy matters,” said Uma- tilla School District Super- intendent Heidi Sipe. “The only way to ensure that rural students with all the tal- ent and none of the access can succeed is to ensure partnerships.” The 14 members of the Joint Interim Committee on Student Success visited Hermiston High School as part of the listening tour they hope will help them shape education in the years to come. The legislators were in the middle of a three-day session in Eastern Oregon, where they met with students in Baker, Union, Umatilla and Morrow counties. They continued on to Arlington Thursday. Rep. Barbara Smith War- ner, co-chair of the com- mittee, said they met with a range of students, mostly high schoolers, and asked them what their schools were doing well and what they’d like to see improved. “We’re not looking for principals’ pets,” she said. “We want students that are engaged, and not so engaged. Students in spe- cial education, English Lan- guage Learners.” Speakers at the event shared successes of local schools, but highlighted some of the challenges. “With this focus on stu- dent success, at some point we’re going to have to talk about funding,” said Herm- iston City Manager Byron Smith. “Tax compression is an issue for us, for schools and the city.” Smith said the city of Hermiston lost about $232,000 to compression this fiscal year. “It limits the ability of local jurisdictions to work on their own problems,” he said. Smith asked the panel for any help they could offer. “Maybe there’s a solu- tion that allows us to work on these problems locally,” he said. Local educators talked about the benefits of STEM programs and supporting early learning programs. Smith Warner said they started the listening sessions in Lane County in March. She said they eventually hope to take the information they’ve gathered and work it into a package similar to the transportation package that was passed in 2017. RE-ELECT LARRY GIVENS U MATILLA C O . C OMMISSIONER • P OSITION 2 Experience, Honesty, Accountable For the Citizens of Umatilla County Learn fr om the Past, Live in the Present, Plan for the Future The Land The People DRAWINGS FOR PRIZES FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY Online registration & race information at WWW.BUTTECHALLENGE.COM Our Heritage Authorized and Paid for by Re-Elect Larry Givens Committee 84462 Ringer Rd. Milton-Freewater, OR 97862 All proceeds benefit THE HERMISTON CROSS COUNTRY PROGRAM Thank you for your support!
