VAULTING TO STATE
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SATURDAY, MAY 17, 2014
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Special need for new class BY CHELSEA DAVIS The World
Robin O’Neill plays in the Bay Area Hospital lobby. By Alysha Beck, The World
SWEET MUSIC
MYRTLE POINT — Rigorous new academic standards are unfair to special needs students, say local education officials, prompting a classroom that will teach the curriculum at a manageable pace. The Myrtle Point and Coquille school districts are joining forces this fall to create a Middle Learning Center, a class for 10-12 special needs students in grades 7-12 who need help in reading, writing, math and social studies. After the districts combined their special needs programs this year, the teachers recognized a gap: Several students are struggling in the new, state-mandated Common Core State Standards. Teachers are preparing their students now for the Common Core-aligned Smarter Balanced assessment next spring, a benchmark so much higher than the current Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, or OAKS, that state officials admit it will be difficult for most students to attain — the Oregon Department of Education predicts only 35 percent to 40 percent of students will pass the new exam. ODE communications director Crystal Greene told The World last fall that drop is due to a change in measurement, not student learning or achievement. “I wish in education that we would settle on something and have the opportunity to implement it,” Myrtle Point schools Superintendent Bruce Shull said. “People who have been in education for 30, 35 years have seen these things come and go and come back again. It’s very frustrating. When people look at accountability and don’t see the results immediately, they change it. Really, all it does, is it delays achievement. We’re retooling and retraining all the time and teachers get frustrated.” Wayne Gallagher, Myrtle Point’s special education director and
Bay Area Hospital music therapy program strikes a chord of healing BY EMILY THORNTON
Making music
The World
COOS BAY — Soft harp and flute music wafts through the air. There is a feeling of relaxation. No, it’s not an exclusive spa. It’s Bay Area Hospital’s main lobby during midday Thursdays. The melodious notes began about a month ago, according to Robin O’Neill, who plays the harp, guitar, Native American and silver flutes, and the banjo. She’s been playing the instruments for the past 15 years for therapy and said she’s excited for the program at BAH. “I think it’s just huge for Bay Area Hospital to take this step,” O’Neill said. “A prescription can do a lot, but there is a point where music can heal so much.” Music therapy, as it’s called, has already taken root at larger facilities such as PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend, O’Neill said. She said a group of a half-dozen or so volunteer musicians would meet in two weeks to “discuss how much further they wanted to go” with the
To donate a baby grand piano, contact volunteer coordinator, Laura Williams at 541-269-8083. Listen to music in the Bay Area Hospital main lobby: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Thursdays.
program. She said they were looking for pianists and a baby grand piano. They’d also welcome other musicians, she said. “I’m so excited,” O’Neill said. “I’ve been wanting to do something like this all my life.” O’Neill has been playing music for the sick and elderly at Life Care Center at Bay Crest Village and other places, so she knows its healing power, she said. O’Neill said she goes to work and notices a huge difference in the residents. “If I go in and play harp, they (caregivers) say, ‘We didn’t have to use medicine,’” O’Neill said. Lynda Cole, a nurse, also was instrumental in getting the music therapy started. She said she waited until much of the remodeling
was finished at the hospital before she approached CEO Paul Janke. After Janke’s approval, she said a group of individuals visited Riverbend to see how they run their program. “It’s a two-tiered theme for right now,” Cole said. “We’re getting grants and fundraisers to be able to go to individual rooms. Bigger hospitals have therapeutic rooms. It’s one of my dreams to get that going eventually.” There is a certificate, the Music for Healing and Therapy Program, that several of the performers want to get, O’Neill said. Cole said she hoped to be grandfathered in because she’d been playing so long. Cole said working as a nurse prepared her for many situations, so she knew that music helped. “You have to be really in tune for what’s working and not working,” she said. Reporter Emily Thornton can be reached at 541-269-1222, ext. 249 or at emily.thornton@theworldlink.com or on Twitter: @EmilyK_Thornton.
SEE CLASS | A8
Port dredging bill passes big hurdle BY THOMAS MORIARTY The World
COOS BAY — Small ports on the South Coast are one step closer to getting a long-term guarantee of much-needed dredging funds. Federal lawmakers filed a conference report Thursday reconciling House and Senate versions of legislation that would guarantee dredging funds for almost a decade. “With this legislation, we will ensure that harbor maintenance dollars are spent on harbor maintenance,” Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Springfield, said in a press conference Thursday. The bill, known as the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014, would force 100 percent utilization of the Harbor Maintenance Trust
Fund. The fund, fed by an import tax on marine shipments, is intended to be used for regular dredging of shipping channels. The Congressman has criticized Congress in recent years for what he’s described as inappropriate use of the fund, which has left small ports like Port Orford in a precarious position. Port Orford hasn’t been regularly dredged for several years, and the sediment buildup has forced fishermen to only launch their boats at high tide. Ports ranging from Brookings-Harbor to the Port of Siuslaw have also been affected by the lack of maintenance dredging. The House bill would guarantee that small ports would SEE DREDGING | A8
Ladies Luncheon raises $35,000 for Boys & Girls Club The World
INSIDE
COOS BAY — Green-haired children belted out the words to “Oompa Loompa.” But, they weren’t at Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. They were at the Boys & Girls Club of Southwestern Oregon 17th annual Ladies Luncheon on Thursday. About 500 showed up and were
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expected to bring in about $35,000 during the event, said Rob Miles, resource developer for the club. He said it costs about $1.2 million per year to operate the club and they count on donations from the community. “We always need money,” Miles said. The luncheon is the club’s thirdlargest fundraiser, Miles said. Those who attended the event
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DEATHS
BY EMILY THORNTON
Join the Club For information on the Boys & Girls Club of Southwestern Oregon, call 541-267-3635 or visit great-futures.org.
enjoyed it. “It was a blast,” said Jenna Valley, a student at the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology. Valley said she volunteered to take kids from the club on a trip to
Addis Reppeto, Coos Bay Leon Hardy, Coos Bay Elma Donaldson, Coos Bay Miller Chappell, North Bend Steven Hensler, Guadalajara, Mexico
intertidal pools this summer. For those in the club, it was a lifesaver. Chelsey Corum, who was named Youth of the Year, spoke at the luncheon. Corum said she couldn’t have made it without a refuge like the club to escape her rough home life. People needed to know about the club, said Nora Terwilliger, luncheon attendee.
Tamie Kelly, Lakeside Leo Kiander, Congress, Ariz. Fredda Young, North Bend Roger Johnson, Bandon Gaya Rasmussen, Coos Bay Bonnie Koreiva, Coos Bay
“The luncheon reminds women in the community that it’s important,” Terwilliger, who’s attended for years. “They all have different versions of how they were saved,” said Cindy Ball, president of the club. Ball said she enjoyed the volunteer job during the past four years. “It’s a very rewarding position,”
Theodore Abeyta, Coos Bay Candace Standlea, North Bend Linda Miller, Coquille Tony Johnson, Coquille
Obituaries | A5-6
SEE LUNCHEON | A8