Each day members of our community quietly celebrate milestones, achievements and accomplishments—big and small. This department highlights these triumphs for the community.
If you’re sending a submission, include all details that apply: individuals’ names, details of the milestone and a contact name and phone number. If you have photos, send them. The submission deadline for March is Monday, Feb. 15. For best results, email editor@midcountymemo.com or mail submissions to 3510 N.E. 134th Ave., Portland, OR 97230. Call 503-287-8904.
Last month, Menlo Park Elementary Teacher Sierra Peters and her third-grade students were just some of the nearly 1,000 students and teachers who received free dictionaries courtesy of the Northeast Portland Rotary Club. Students, from left, are Grace Alderton, Elizabeth Cortez-Palma and Nathan Perez.
COURTESY OLLIE LUND
Northeast Portland Rotary gifts in the form of dictionaries are passed out by member Ted Vogelpohl. Students pictured are, from back to front, Pricila Ortiz Romero, Ion McKnight, Brandon Willingham, Cali Lee Delahunt and Ashlyn Coliron. The club meets Tuesdays at Kings Omelets in Gateway.
COURTESY OLLIE LUND
Rotary gets the words out to DD third-graders
The Northeast Portland Rotary Club has more than doubled its distribution of dictionaries to area third-graders to nearly 1,000 copies this year. For many years the club concentrated on Parkrose schools including Prescott, Russell, Sacramento and Shaver elementary schools. Last year St. Therese, Portland Christian and Columbia Christian schools third graders also became beneficiaries of the program.
This year Ventura Park, Earl Boyles, Cherry Park, Menlo Park, Gilbert Park and Gilbert Heights elementary schools in the David Douglas School District were added.
Annette Sweeney, Parkrose Middle School principal, left, Lesley Bossert, Parkrose High choir director, and Keija Lee, Parkrose Middle School band director, show off the certificate for a $2,000 grant from the Grammy Foundation.
COURTESY CASSY PINARD
Grammy Foundation selects Parkrose
Parkrose schools received a $2,000 Grammy Foundation grant last month. The Grammy Foundation cultivates music appreciation and offers these grants to influence the lives of students by opening the windows of opportunity that music can provide for their futures. Lesley Bossert, Parkrose High choir director, and Keija Lee, Parkrose Middle School band director, accepted the grant on behalf of all Parkrose students. Funds will be used for instrument repairs, sheet music, music theory and sight-singing apps.
MHCC pursues bond
The Mt. Hood Community College Board of Education will place a 20-year general obligation bond in the amount of $125 million on the May 2016 ballot to fund classroom and lab spaces, safety and security upgrades and other district needs.
The list of projects proposed by the board include building a workforce and applied technology center on the Gresham campus; rebuilding and expanding the Maywood Park campus to meet the demand for entry-level and worker training opportunities in Gateway and Parkrose; seismic upgrades and upgrading and improving safety and security infrastructure; and securing $8 million in state matching funds for additional support for the workforce and applied technology center.
The campus was built to serve fewer than 10,000 students. Current annual enrollments exceed 25,000. The board cites student population as a critical reason for these upgrades.
“This is absolutely a crucial moment in the history of Mt. Hood Community College,” said MHCC’s president Debra Derr. “Here in our 50th anniversary, we need to take the necessary steps to make the college ready to train the workforce of tomorrow. By being responsive to the needs of business and industry, while still responding to the desires of the community, MHCC can take a step forward as one of the premier community colleges in the state.”
The estimated tax rate will be $30 per $100,000 of assessed value. An oversight committee, made up in part by community and business leaders, will be formed to oversee the funds to ensure they are spent as promised.
To learn more, visit mhcc.edu/bond.
Last month, James Trujillo resigned from the Parkrose School District Board of Education. Parties interested in filling the rest of his term can call board secretary Andrea Stevenson at 503-408-2114.
COURTESY JAMES TRUJILLO
Parkrose school board vacancy created by member’s early resignation
The Parkrose Board of Education is accepting applications to fill the vacancy resulting from the resignation of James Trujillo from position #2. According to Trujillo’s letter of resignation, family responsibilities and related increased time demands do not afford his “continued participation as an elected official.”
The remaining term for this position will be filled by appointment. It runs from Feb. 23, 2016, through June 30, 2017. The new two-year term (July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2019) will be filled by election.
To serve on the Parkrose School Board, one must be qualified to vote in the district and have resided in the district for the period of one year immediately preceding the appointment.
Interviews of qualified applicants will take place at the school board meeting at the district administration office, 10636 N.E. Prescott St., Monday, Feb. 22, at 6:30 p.m. Applicants will be notified by Feb. 18 if they have been selected to interview.
Applications are available at do parkrose.k12.or.us/index.php?id=560 and are due by 5 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16. Completed applications should be submitted to Board Secretary Andrea Stevenson at the district office by mail, in person, via fax to 503-408-2140 or by email to andrea_stevenson@parkrose.k12.or.us. For more information, contact Stevenson at 503-408-2114.
