2010 Molalla School bond

The Molalla River School Board has approved the school bond to rebuild the Molalla River Middle School. This is a major victory for the children of the school district. This is going to be a very close election and the kids need all the supporters they can get. Spread the word to your friends and family and lets do the right thing for our community. Even those who oppose this admit that the building is in horrible shape and something needs to be done. None of those opposed are willing to come up with reasonable solutions to actually do something. These are our children, we owe them a solution. Passing a bond right now will bring the most benefits to the taxpayers as well as the students. I will continue to post information on why this is the best decision for the community and provide additional information as it becomes available.

Who would pass a bond right now????

In these tough economic times, some may say “Why would anyone pass a bond right now”? This is a viable question. I have an answer, Sandy (Oregon Trail District), Vernonia, Sisters, Scappoose and the Salem-Keizer school districts would!

In 2008 Scappoose passed a $33.3 Million bond. Scappoose’s bond actually raised their taxes. It was a small increase, but an increase all the same.

Check out the details at : http://www.scappooseschoolbond.com/index.htm

In 2008 the Salem-Keizer school district passed the largest school bond in state history, $242.1 Million! This bond replaced retiring bonds and did not raise their property taxes.

Check out the details at: http://www.salemkeizer.us/bond/information/

Also in 2008 the Oregon Trail School District passed a $114.9 Million bond

Check out the details at: http://ortrailschool.schoolwires.net/19371031134540737/blank/browse.asp?a=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&c=56805&1937Nav=|&NodeID=141

In 2009 Vernonia passed a $13 Million bond. After devastating flooding the community took action to build a new school safe from flooding

Check out the details at: http://www.vernoniaschools.org/

In 2009 Sisters passed a $1 Million bond for programs and reduction of class sizes. This one raised taxes $0.75 per thousand for 4 years!

Here is a link to their site: http://www.sisters.k12.or.us/education/components/scrapbook/default.php?sectiondetailid=221

In 2009 the residents of Deschutes County voted in a $41.58 Million bond for Central Oregon Community College

Check it out for yourself: http://www.coccyes.com/

You may say “That’s all well and good but this is 2010. Who would be think that they could pass a school bond in Oregon this year”. Well… So far… Banks, Forest Grove, and Philomath…. and of course Molalla!

Philomath’s $29.5 Million bond for building repairs in their district passed in May and replaced expiring bonds, taxes were not increased.

OrPTI a wonderful resource for parents

orpti brochure

The Oregon Parent Training and Information Center is a wonderful resource for the parents of children with special needs. They offer training, information, and IEP partners to name just a few. Check out their website,  http://www.orpti.org/, they are also on facebook and twitter

Asperger Wallet Card

A link to this wallet card was sent out on the Portland Asperger’s Network Yahoo group today. This is a great item to have on hand for anyone with Asperger’s syndrome. I know that my son is prone to “melt-downs” and although MES had been so kind to him and always did a great job of calming him down, I don’t know how the middle school and the high school will handle those situations. I am very frightened to think of how things could quickly go bad if he is ever approached by a police officer, no matter the jurisdiction.

Click to access resources_aane_wallet_card.pdf

On Dec 5, 2006 an Autistic teenager was tasered by the Portland Police for pretty much behaving Autistic, which is very suspicious behavior for police; not responding to questions, not looking people in the eye.  http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1758156/posts. The comments on this article are horrible and show how little people know about Autism. So, I don’t recommend reading them. Worse, when I Googled “Autistic Teen Tased by Police” to find an article on this, you wouldn’t believe all the articles that popped up. They were all articles from around the country of autistic teens getting tased by police. It was horrifying!

PPS – Cutting 4.6 million in Special Ed and ESL

This is quite a bitter sweet day for the kids in the Portland Public School district. I am on some yahoo support groups with parents that have kids in the PPS and I am sure that they will be on this. It will be quite a battle and the district will probably see their legal fees increase. There are federal requirements when it comes to providing special education services. Districts try to stay out of trouble in this area because the feds can take away their funding of special education for noncompliance.

http://www.kgw.com/news/Portland-schools-find-a-way-to-save-PE-98830079.html

A Head Start For The New School Year

Now that the school year is just around the corner, it is a great time to begin preparing for any special education needs you believe your child needs. The State of Oregon has an Early Identification Program that is meant identify children with special needs in the younger grades to get them educational assistance early. In the states document “Behavioral Support, Intervention, and Discipline in Special Education” they state that “Providing proactive positive behavioral supports and interventions for students with
disabilities is a requirement under federal and state law if a students behavior is
found to impede his/her learning, or that of others. In considering disciplinary action
for students with disabilities found eligible under the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA), districts and agencies must follow a specific set of procedural
requirements as part of the process.” This statement is a reflection of the requirements of the state and the school districts under the IDEA.  I do have to say that none of my children received the benefit of early identification. All special education services were only provided after my personal requests (or by the US Department of Education making the district).

The best advice always it to educate yourself as a parent. This will give you insight into your child’s individual needs and what the school is required to provide by law.

If you believe your child is in need of services, I recommend the following activities before school starts

• Educate your self on your child’s individual issues. Wrightslaw (http://www.wrightslaw.com/) is a great informational web site for this. As well as sites specific to your child. I have a whole list of great sites about Autism, especially Asperger’s.
• Join a support group that focuses on your child’s needs. Yahoo has some networking groups that are great for this. You can hear some of the issues other parents are facing, ask your own questions, and get advice from some of the more experienced parents.
• Schedule evaluations; Psychologist, doctors, ect. You will not be able to get services without an educational evaluation, but it is good to have information from doctors to begin with. I have had the school tell me that they do not provide evaluations and that it was my responsibility to provide them. That is a lie and they will not provide services with out their own evaluations.
• If you do communicate with the district on your child’s always get it in writing!!! I will be following all my advice with this disclaimer because it is that important.

Parent Power

Hello, I am a parent in Molalla. The purpose of this blog is to discuss issues that are important to the children in our community. This is not a blog to talk about city, state, or national administration issues that are not directly related to the health, education, or safety of children. Any posts that are not related to the topic at hand will be deleted.

Until November, the building of a new middle school will be the most discussed topic. This is the #1 issue for the children in town at the moment.

And yes this blog is a response to Susan Hansen’s “Oregon First” blog. She should have used the name “Susan first” because that is the purpose of her rantings. They are completely self-serving.

Someone has to speak to what is best for the children. I am willing to fight for the kids in this town.

I believe that the parents deserve to know all the issues that are going on, especially with the schools. This blog is a place for parents to share information and support each other.

There are many issues hitting us right now and they aren’t all reported in the paper and the ones that are are watered down and one sided.