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TIDE LAND
Next week: ‘Tillamook County Student Spotlight’ section
DAIRY LOCAL BROTHERS OWN THE ONLY GRADE-A DAIRY GOAT FARM IN TILLAMOOK COUNTY, PAGE A8
SEE WHAT OUR LOCAL STUDENTS ARE UP TO THIS YEAR
Headlight Herald
TILLAMOOKHEADLIGHTHERALD.COM • SEPT. 4, 2013
LONGEST RUNNING BUSINESS IN TILLAMOOK COUNTY • SINCE 1888
Tillamook schools see big changes By Sayde Moser
smoser@countrymedia.net
A new year at the Tillamook School District means some new goals, new challenges – and 33 new hires. The new employees “bring a lot of great opportunities” for the school district, said Supt. Randy Schild. Among the new hires are 11 certified teachers. Schild said the district was able to recruit more staff this year than in the past three years combined. Many of the new hires are replacing retirees or employees who have
moved to other districts. “It was really a buyer’s market,” he said. For some of the elementary school positions, the district saw more than 100 applications. “We’ve found an amazingly vast level of experience,” Schild said. The newcomers will help the district reach some of its long- and short-term goals, including full-day kindergarten, which is new to Tillamook this year. “That’s a huge step for our district,” said Schild. Last year, Tillamook offered two full-day kindergarten classes on a trial basis. “What we found was, the kids who were in the full-day
classes were reading at benchmark by the end of kindergarten,” said Schild. “Those who were taking half-day classes, [only] about half of those kids were [reading at benchmark]. “So we really took that as a sign that we need to be doing full-day classes.” Why is the ability to read early so important? Because, Schild said, students who aren’t reading at benchmark in third grade are three times more likely to drop out of high school. “There is a direct correlation with reading at third grade and
Demographic changes in the last 13 years: • Tillamook schools have lost 16% in total population (365 students – $2.3 million) • Tillamook schools have lost 37% in Caucasian student population (812 students – $5.1 million) • Tillamook schools have gained 321% in minority student population (447 students – $2.7 million) your success as a student,” he said. “So we as a district really have to put our resources into making sure
BACK TO SCHOOL
our kids are hitting that third-grade
See TILLAMOOK, Page A7
Nestucca schools to 5-day week By Sayde Moser
smoser@countrymedia.net
Neah-Kah-Nie emphasizes the importance of preschool By Sayde Moser
smoser@countrymedia.net
INDEX Classified Ads...............B5-8 Crossword Puzzle............ B2 Fenceposts....................B3-4 Letters.............................. A4 Obituaries......................... A6 Opinions........................... A4 Sports.......................A11-12
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“It’s like an alphabet soup from the Oregon Department of Education,” says Neah-Kah-Nie School District Supt. Paul Erlebach. He’s talking about the multitude of state-mandated changes this year, including Common Core State Standards, Smarter Balance Assessment tests, proficiency-based grading, new state report cards and more. “It’s all really great stuff,” Erlebach clarified, “it’s just all coming at us all at once.” The new state standards require students to learn more at an earlier age. On top of that, the new assessment tests are eliminating multiplechoice answers and requiring students to explain the reasoning for their answers. The new report cards are more comprehensive and “parent-friendly,” he said. Yet because of the report cards’ cost, many districts aren’t sending to students’ parents – although “we will be,” said Erlebach. The Neah-Kah-Nie district also stands out from other Oregon schools in its ability to offer pre-school. “A lot of school districts are just moving towards funding full-day kindergarten,” said Erlebach. Neah-Kah-Nie has been offering full-day kindergarten for years. Last year, for the first time the district had a licensed teacher running the program. This year, school officials have extended the program to two sessions and are hoping to reach 40 youngsters. Erlebach said there were 19 students in preschool last year, seven more than the year before. “In two years, we’ve almost doubled the number of kids we’re reaching,” he said. “That’s an investment that will pay off big-time when these kids are further along in school.” See NEAH-KAH-NIE, Page A7
Photos by Sayde Moser
Top: Owen Johnson emerges from the school bus at Garibaldi Grade School.
Above: Catey Fry joins her classmates for their first day of school.
For the first time in three years, Nestucca Valley School District will have a five-day school week. “We had made a decision [to shorten the school week] years ago based on financial reasons,” said district Supt. Kathryn Hedrick. “We’re in better financial shape now, so we can afford to return to five days.” And just in time, too. “The fourday week really harmed our students’ progress,” Hedrick said. Test scores have dropped across the board, particularly at the elementary level, she said. “We felt strongly enough about the correlation of test scores and four-day weeks to make the switch. It’s what’s best for our students.” To accommodate the additional day, start times have changed as well. The elementary building is up and going at 8:15 a.m., and lets out at 2:52 p.m. High school starts at 8 a.m. and runs until 3:07 p.m. The five-day week has shortened class time by about 45 minutes each day. As for parents’ acceptance of the longer week, no problem, says Hedrick. “About two years ago, we had a visioning process where the community clearly told us they wanted to switch back to five days a week. We weren’t able to implement that change last year, but we’re excited to make it happen this year.” As for the students, “Of course they liked the four days,” Hedrick said. “But the truth is, kids like school. They just have to pretend like they don’t.” The extra day is part of Nestucca’s strategic plan to improve the district’s educational performance. “Parents will be seeing our report card in about a week,” Hedrick said. “What they’ll see is, we’ve made See NESTUCCA, Page A3
Answer to ‘over-clamming’ expected soon By Joe Wrabek
jwrabek@countrymedia.net
In mid-August, the Tillamook County commissioners sent a letter to state Department of Fish & Wildlife Director Roy Elicker questioning whether clams are being overharvested in Netarts Bay. ODFW’s shellfish program leader, Steve Rumrill, said the agency will have an answer for the commissioners next week. Rumrill’s responsibility is statewide. Clamming occurs in the Alsea, Yaquina, and Coos bays, he said, as well as Ne-
tarts and Tillamook bays. Permits are required for harvesting clams, he said. Commercial harvesters must have a fishing license as well. They are required to send information in when they harvest, and also report to the agency when they sell the clams, which provides a check on the numbers actually taken. ODFW doesn’t monitor the actual clamming. “It’s the responsibility of the Oregon State Police to take a look and make sure the [clammers] are taking See CLAMMING, Page A3
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Photo courtesy of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
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1813 5th Street, Tillamook (South and directly behind Safeway)