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The INDEPENDENT, August 1, 2012
School board hears new school update
Chalk Talk
Chalk Talk is a column of information
about Vernonia schools. This column
was provided by Superintendent Dr.
Ken Cox.
It seems that summer is half gone, but as you can see from the
photo (below right) of the commons area of our new school, we
are still a long way from being ready for our Grand Opening on
August 21st. However, I am confident that we will be ready be-
cause of the dedicated work of our custodial staff, some addition-
al help from some inmates and volunteer community members.
We currently are waiting for the last of the flooring to be com-
pleted throughout the main part of the building. That should be
done this week and we will be able to start moving some of the
boxes from the commons to their correct locations throughout the
building.
We are going to be looking for some community volunteers to
help get the outside of the building ready for the Grand Opening.
Last week we had a group of local Cub Scouts help rake out the
landscaping that was done in front of the building, in preparation
for having some mulch blown in. If you have some spare time in
early August and would like to help, please contact Barb Carr at
the district office (503-429-5891 or bcarr@vernonia.k12.or.us).
Just a reminder, the Grand Opening festivities on the 21st will
start with some short speeches and a ribbon cutting ceremony at
10:00 a.m., followed by an opportunity to tour the building until a
light luncheon and another short program at noon. The building
will be open for you to tour all afternoon and we will have our first
Town Hall meeting in the new building from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m., with
dessert and some community thank you comments around 6:00
p.m. We look forward to having you join us to celebrate our new
schools and what has been accomplished by our community.
The Vernonia School District
Board of Directors met on July
19. The board heard from John
Donovan, of the Metropolitan
Group, that fundraising for the
new school is on target, with
$100,000 still to raise to get to
$40 million. The effort will then
move to raising money to re-
duce the debt the district in-
curred by taking loans to keep
construction going while the fi-
nal $4 million is raised, during
the next year or so.
Donovan also discussed the
Grand Opening day activities,
scheduled for August 21. The
activities include a community
open house from 5:30 to 7:30
p.m.
Superintendent Dr. Ken Cox
told the board that the move
day, July 10, was a success,
with 38 community volunteers,
33 staff members, 10 Intel vol-
unteers, 20 state inmates with
their two supervisors, and
many others helping empty the
old school buildings into the
new school. The inmates re-
turned the next day, and half of
them returned for a third day on
July 12. Cox estimated that 90
percent of the move was ac-
complished in those three
days.
Lunch prices for the 2012-
2013 school year will increase
by five cents (5¢) for grade
school and high school stu-
dents, while the middle school
student lunch will go up by 10¢
to $2.50. Middle school sports
fees also increased to $75.00
per sport/per child, and $35.00
for the Reduced Sport Fee.
Jim Krahn was elected to a
fourth year as chairman of the
board (The bylaws limit con-
secutive terms to four per offi-
cer). Cari Levenseller was
unanimously chosen as the
vice-chair.
Substitute teacher pay for
the next school year was set at
$162.00 per day.
The district determined they
would have to pay prevailing
wages for the demolition of the
old school buildings, so the
board approved the motion to
contract for the demolition at
prevailing wages.
Registration for middle and
high school students for the
2012-13 school year will take
place on August 22. September
4 will be the first day of school.
The next regular board
meeting will be held August 9
starting at 6:00 p.m.
VHS Cross Country team practice
set to start later this month
Vernonia High School cross
country practice will begin on
Monday, August 20, at 10:00
a.m. at the football grand-
stands.
Participants need to have
had a medical physical exam
within the past two years, and
have insurance, before practic-
ing.
The team had a great sea-
son last year, finishing a close
second place to Nestucca in
the Northwest League champi-
onships. “Our goal this year is
to win it outright,” said Coach
Byron Brown.
Pet of the Month
Find the pet that’s right for you at the Columbia Humane Society
2084 Oregon Street, St. Helens. Phone 503-397-4353
Open Mon - Fri 1 pm to 5 pm & Saturday, 11 am to 5 pm
Spencer is a little Chihuahua Mix,
weighing under 10 lbs with a heart
the size of a St. Bernard. This little
guy is all ears and sad eyes. He is
very sweet and gets along well with
other dogs. He was ready the first day
we got him to give you kisses and
show you that he loves you. He is
very appreciative of all that is given to
him and is waiting for his forever
home. The vets think that he is right
around 2 years old.
The Columbia Humane Society is a No-Kill non-profit shelter
dedicated to helping friends find each other since 1985.
This Month’s Pet is Sponsored by:
THE
INDEPENDENT News & Information you can use
Piles of items moved from the old schools rest in one area of the new school while the rest
of the school is finished. See Chalk Talk above for more information on the new schools.
Oregon gets waiver from NCLB law
Governor Kitzhaber and
Chief Education Officer Rudy
Crew have announced that
Oregon received federal ap-
proval for its Elementary and
Secondary Education Act
(ESEA) flexibility application.
With this approval, Oregon will
be able to tailor the mecha-
nisms of the ESEA, or No Child
Left Behind Act, to create a
more accountable and respon-
sive system that meets the
needs of Oregon students and
strengthens Oregon schools.
“This approval is a victory for
our state, our schools, and
most importantly our children,”
said Governor Kitzhaber. “We
have rejected the one-size-fits-
all mandates of past federal re-
quirements and come together
to create a home-grown sys-
tem of accountability and sup-
port that puts us firmly on the
path to our 40-40-20 goal of
greater educational success for
all Oregonians.”
Oregon’s waiver is the prod-
uct of months of work by more
than 120 education and com-
munity stakeholders, from
around the state, who helped
design the new framework for
college and career readiness,
school accountability and sup-
See NCLB on page 17