Vol. 17, No. 9
“Voice of the Upper Nehalem River Valley”__________________ May 2, 2002
Superintendency
dominates agenda
On the lookout...
Hamblet appointed
to board vacancy
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This bald eagle photographed at Vernonia Lake is half of a pair that apparently are nest-
In the area north of Vernonia. Eagles usually visit the lake early in the
, but may be frequently seen (at least by those who have an “eagle” eye) riding
the afternoon thermals while hunting tor dinner.
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City budget shows tentative increase
Despite O regon’s bleak eco
nomic forecast, the City of Ver
nonia will remain on track as it
develops plans for a new
w astew ater treatm ent facility
and continues to improve its
parks.
The proposed 2002-03 bud
get presented by City Adm inis
trator and Budget Officer Mike
Sykes last Monday to the bud
get com m ittee, is “tig h t” al
though it reflects an increase of
about nine percent in anticipat
ed G eneral Fund revenues,
from $729,918 for the current
year, to $796,829. The opera
tive word is “anticipated,” be
cause that increase includes
funds from grant applications
that have not yet been ap
proved. Additionally, Oregon
law requires local government
agencies to adopt a balanced
budget by June 30 of each
year, but doesn’t require the
state Legislature to complete
its fiscal adjustments by that
date. What will happen to eco
nomic development funds at
the state level is still unknown,
except it is reasonable to as
sume there will be significant
reductions.
The proposed budget in
cludes a three percent cost-of-
living increase for most em
ployees, as is incorporated in
the current union agreements.
The General Fund will have to
pick up a larger percentage of
administrative costs from the
water and sewer fund to help fi
nance expenses that will be re
quired to upgrade the City’s
wastewater treatment facility.
This proposed budget in
cludes preparation of a plan
that outlines design and costs
for a new treatment plant to re
duce discharge of treated
wastewater into the Nehalem
River during summer months.
Also included in the pro
posed budget are major im
provements at Airport Park, to
construct a restroom and 25
campsites.
The next budget committee
meeting will be May 13.
After interviewing three can
didates on April 11, Darrell
Hamblet was the unanimous
choice of the Vernonia School
District Board of Directors, who
appointed him at a special
meeting, April 18, to fill the po
sition vacated by Jeff Blum.
The board also approved a
list of qualities and qualifica
tions to be used in the search
for a new district superinten
dent, then continued with a
workshop to develop the m e
chanics of the interim superin
tendent search.
To develop information the
board can use in seeking a new
superintendent, two meetings
were held April 10th— one with
district staff and administrators,
the second with com m unity
members. Facilitated by Diane
Harr, of the Oregon School
Boards Association, the groups
produced extensive lists of the
qualities and qualifications they
felt were important in a superin
tendent. Each group was asked
to identify positive attributes of
the district and w hat the
schools do especially well that
should be continued and, sec
ondly, to identify the challenges
facing the district. Finally, Harr
asked the groups to identify the
personal qualities and profes
sional qualifications they felt
were necessary to meet the
challenges facing the district.
Harr presented a list of all
comments generated by the
two groups. These lists will be
used later, during a superinten
dent search, and may also be
used to develop board and su
perintendent goals.
Harr also used comments
from the groups to develop a
short list of qualities and qualifi
cations for a superintendent
that would meet the specific
needs of the Vernonia school
district. Harr noted that many of
the attributes are common to
many districts and that one in
dividual cannot meet all of them
at a high level of expertise. The
board will use the qualities and
qualifications identified to help
find a candidate who fits the
d is tric t’s personality and to
match the district’s needs to
candidates’ strengths.
Personal qualities the district
will be searching for include
consensus building, accessibil
ity, trustw orthiness, and ac
countable written and verbal
communication skills. Innova
tive and creative leadership,
strong student advocacy along
with visible, active participation
in the com m unity were also
identified as desirable qualities
for a new superintendent. The
staff groups emphasized a de
sire for an approachable, trust
worthy and consistent leader.
The board agreed that the dis
trict needs a superintendent
with a good sense of humor.
The groups' lists of profes
sional qualifications were ex
tensive: Ability to motivate and
encourage staff, knowledge of
Please see page10
Hazardous Waste Collection
A Household H azardous
Waste collection will be held
May 4, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00
p.m. at the St. Helens Fire Dis
trict training facility in McNulty
Industrial Park, just off Gable
Road in St. Helens. The event
is free to all Colum bia County
Residents.
Toxic household wastes in
cluding solvents, paints, brake
fluids, anti-freeze, fluorescent
lights, household cleaners, bat
teries, m iscellaneous chem i
cals, and household and gar
den chem icals will be accepted
at the site. Mercury thermome
ters may also be exchanged.