Corvallis schools could lose $5 million in funding due to proposed state budget

By ALEXANDER BANKS News Contributor

Governor Tina Kotek’s proposed state budget released at the beginning of the year could lead to a loss in funding for Corvallis schools.

Governor Kotek’s $9.9 billion proposal is $400 million more than the projections proposed in December. Conversely, the budget would be $400 million less than the $10.3 billion needed to adequately fund schools in Oregon, according to the Oregon to increase their budgets and programs. However, the money is beginning to run out although the problems still remain.

The Oregon School Boards Association reported fall test results showing many students behind in core classes, while teachers are also reporting increased numbers of students struggling socially and emotionally.

“District leadership, staff, and school board members are currently advocating for increased state funding for K-12 education,”

Furthermore, although a loss of $5 million would equate to 50 staffing positions, none of the staffing positions included in the reduction are teachers, according to Noss.

“The behavioral staff changes due to budget reductions are all at the elementary level,” Noss wrote. “In making these decisions, our district considered how to most effectively address behavior, assessment, and health room support at the elementary level while making necessary staffing reductions.”

Cheldelin middle school.

According to Noss, many of the staff affected by budget cuts will continue to have other positions in the district. Furthermore, recruitment will slow down while staffing positions will be reviewed based on necessity. Corvallis School District will review and make decisions on how to use the remaining temporary funds that will run out on June 30, 2024.

Linn Benton Community College reported they will be eliminating the Computer Science and Criminal Justice programs from their curriculum at the end of the 2023-24 academic year, due to budget cuts. According to the school, current students will only have 15 months to finish their degree.

“This has been a very difficult time,” Lisa Avery, LBCC president, said in a press release. “Despite the challenging climate, I know LBCC will continue to fulfill our mission of economic empowerment for our students and our communities.”

LBCC also plans to cut three full-time librarians and raise tuition by six percent, approved by the LBCC Board of Education. In addition, the Adult Basic Skills program, which helps adults develop skills in arts, math, science and more, will be redesigned and operated on a lower budget, according to an LBCC press release.

The LBCC Faculty Association claims the administration violated its contract by not including faculty members in the decision-making process, which would have allowed them to present alternative solutions to budget cuts, according to the Albany Democrat-Herald. The college has projected a revenue shortfall of $4 million by 2025.

Local Business

consistently use across Linus Pauling and

Corvallis businesses band together to succeed during the summer

How businesses stay afloat during the summer, through nonprofits and other organizations

By JAMES KELLEY News Contributor

During the summers in Corvallis, it can be hard to draw customers into a local establishment, with most Oregon State University students at home. To mitigate losses, coalitions between restaurants and businesses use this time to facilitate events, work on infrastructure, and engage in policy design with the city.

With nearly 25,000 Oregon State University students, roughly 40 percent of Corvallis’ overall population departing for home in June, businesses brace for the months to come. Because students make up a tremendous fraction of the workforce in Benton County, their absence represents high rates of turnover among local businesses as well as a need for customers during the summer.

In summers past, struggling with turnover and finding stable employees have been primary goals for hard-pressed businesses.

“A lot of restaurants have to work around student’s schedules in general, but during

Richmond created the Greater Corvallis Restaurant Association in early May to lobby for policy proposals and provide input to city government on the needs of restaurants in the area. The organization is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit. Much of the work that he does is directed towards networking with organizations like Visit Corvallis and other restaurants to ensure that their needs are met.

“Time after time, I heard restaurant owners complaining about the new outdoor seating policies that the city proposed,” he said, referring to the policy that the city requires permits for restaurants to provide outdoor seating in city-owned parking lots. “A lot of the complaints, to the city’s credit, was not because of the city’s fault, but there was a huge lack of communication between the city and the businesses in downtown and on Monroe."

Richmond will be submitting a policy proposal to the Corvallis City Council to create a year-round outdoor seating program, which will help businesses that are especially active during the summer.

One such organization is the Corvallis Area Restaurants and Bars Alliance, run by Michele Colomb, who founded it officially in April largely in response to the pandemic. Colomb said she has seen the need for such an alliance to persist beyond the pandemic, however.

“The pandemic itself is, for the most part … on its way out, but then I realized that restaurants were still struggling with sourcing product, retaining employees, overall still struggling financially,” Colomb said. "The CARB Alliance … will focus on promoting, marketing, education, encouraging culinary tourism, event planning, and networking.”

Colomb also oversees the Facebook group Corvallis Culinary Connections, which was created to crowdsource information in a social media platform that was pertinent to COVID guidelines in 2020. Today, it works to help the public and local restaurants to communicate better with information related to hours and events.

Tourism is another industry affected by low residency during the summer. Visit Corvallis, whose main priority is to draw in tourists, has a challenging job

Christina Rehklau is the executive director of Visit Corvallis. She oversees strategizing and promotion, which entails providing regular events that engage the public and

“Something we’re thinking about doing is highlighting more happy hours or trying to encourage people maybe to do an activity,” Rehklau said. “For those that … have a lot of student business, I think it is coming up … with an event that might entice a different audience to come during the summer months.”

The summer provides locals with the opportunity to go dine at restaurants and bars that, during any other time of year, would be crowded with students. Although it does not necessarily make up the deficit, it is certainly a sustainable force for local businesses.

As organizing businesses go, the Corvallis Chamber of Commerce has been facilitating events under the leadership of Simon Date for four years, who resigned in May. Date led the chamber through the pandemic and was recently offered a job as the executive director of the Oregon Youth Soccer Association, leaving the chamber under the leadership of Shalena Cardineaux.

“(My) favorite part … (was) getting to know all the … businesses that have become friends over the past four years,” Date said. “It’s an awesome community.”

The chamber under Cardineaux will be lead just the same or better than it has been, according to Date.

This summer should be no different than summers of the past. With business coalitions providing residents with several events that will draw out the public and bolster sales, the success of Corvallis’ vibrant community remains of paramount importance.