Good news for reopening schools March 07 2021
COVID-19 cases and deaths continue trending down after Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issues an executive order to reopen public schools.
Newly reported COVID-19 cases and deaths continued trending down two days after Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issued an executive order to reopen public schools in coming weeks.
Brown mandated on Friday, March 5, that public school students be back in classrooms before the weeks of March 29 for elementary students and April 19 for middle and high schoolers. Whether or not public schools should return kids to the classroom this spring is no longer up for discussion: the science and data is clear, schools can return to in-person instruction with a very low risk of COVID-19 transmission, particularly with a vaccinated workforce, Brown said in a letter to state health and education agencies.
March 05 2021
Graham Trainor is president of the Oregon AFL-CIO, the federation of labor unions representing more than 300,000 working Oregonians. Reyna Lopez is executive director of PCUN, representing farmworkers and Latinx working families.
In times of crisis, real leaders are forged.
During the year since Oregon s first confirmed case of COVID-19, countless examples of empathetic, worker-centered leadership have been showcased. When elected officials listen to workers, the policies they pass are stronger and more responsive to the needs of working families. For example, Oregon created and funded the Oregon Worker Relief Fund to ensure farmworkers who help put food on our tables and are least likely to have access to enough paid sick time could quarantine when needed.
March 05 2021
Elementary kids should be back by March 29 and middle and high schoolers by April 19.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced yet another new set of school re-opening guidelines on Friday, March 5, that mandates public school students be back in classrooms before the weeks of March 29 for elementary students and April 19 for middle and high schoolers. Whether or not public schools should return kids to the classroom this spring is no longer up for discussion: the science and data is clear, schools can return to in-person instruction with a very low risk of COVID-19 transmission, particularly with a vaccinated workforce, Brown said in a letter to state health and education agencies.
Clackamas Community College considers cutting programs
In effort to save $1.3 million, theater, nursing, horticulture and more are on chopping block
Clackamas Community College is considering cutting or reducing programs including theater, nursing, horticulture and many more.
The potential cuts come as the college is looking to reduce its budget by $1.3 million for the next fiscal year, according to spokesperson Lori Hall.
Clackamas has a structural budget deficit, Hall said, and has not seen enough revenue in recent years to cover the cost of operations because of declining enrollment, insufficient funding from the state and increasing expenses such as the Public Employees Retirement System.