Letters to the Editor 1/22/25

From the superintendant

To the Editor,

The recent school board meeting brought moments of reflection, gratitude, and optimism as the district celebrated its accomplishments and looked ahead to the future. The board began by honoring David Thorsett for his dedicated years of service as a school board member. In recognition of his impactful contributions, Thorsett was presented with a commemorative plaque, and board members expressed their heartfelt appreciation for his leadership. The meeting also welcomed Erik Benton as the newest board member through an official induction ceremony. Benton was warmly greeted by the board, symbolizing a new chapter of leadership and collaboration for the district.

Several key updates underscored the district’s progress. Pauly Rogers and Co. presented the audit results, which were positive aside from one actuarial detail. Importantly, there were no compliance issues or questioned costs. Highlights from various school initiatives included the success of elementary focus groups in advancing social-emotional learning, literacy pilot programs, and fostering stronger student-parent connections. At the high school level, the Youth Truth Survey revealed valuable insights, which will guide future goals. Additionally, the renewal of the Care Solace program, generously sponsored by the Round House Foundation, was celebrated for its critical support for our students, staff, and families.

The meeting concluded with updates on ongoing projects and future plans. Enrollment growth is on its projected path, discussions about potentially relocating the District Office to the SPRD building are underway, and the board approved the SSD School Calendar for 2025-2026. A new meeting start time of 5 p.m. was also established for all future regular board meetings. With a focus on continuous improvement and community engagement, the district is poised for a successful new year.

I encourage everyone to stay informed by subscribing to the weekly district newsletter at [email protected].

Wishing everyone a wonderful new year!

Curt Scholl

Superintendent

Fire danger

To the Editor:

Here we go again! Last week, my mailbox presented me with a 22-page set of papers from the Oregon Wildfire Risk Explorer titled Property Owner’s Report. The documents had been prepared by the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) and Oregon State University, et al. One document told me that my home and my property are classified as “High” for Property Wildfire Hazard and “Yes” for Within Wildland-Urban Interface. A paragraph outlined in red and in bold printing stated: “Only properties that are both high hazard and in the wildland-urban interface will be required (my emphasis) to meet enhanced defensible space standards (ORS 476.392) and home hardening codes (ORS 455.612).”

Required? That sounds pretty darn serious. So, I read all 22 pages and saw that a different document from the Oregon Building Codes Division tells me that “If you are in a high hazard area and in the wildland-urban interface: you do not have to do anything related to home hardening.” What? I just read that I did.

On Thursday, the same mailbox gave me The Nugget with the lead article, above the fold, “Sisters casts wary eye on fire danger” by Bill Bartlett. I think Mr. Bartlett was kind to use the word “wary” instead of “suspicious.” I am aware that the Oregon Department of Forestry produced a wildfire risk map in July 2022, which was met with so much immediate public backlash that it was removed five weeks later. The new 2024 wildfire risk map shows fewer areas in Sisters Country at high risk and more areas at low risk. That’s good, assuming the map is completely accurate. The documents I received mentioned in several places that it is illegal for insurers to use the risk map to determine insurance rates and coverage. Are you kidding me? That map is an underwriter’s dream come true. But it is illegal to use the risk map for insurance purposes, they say. Yeah, right. And it is illegal for me to drive over 55 mph on the highway.

I agree with the concept of defensible space and some home hardening ideas. There are simple things a homeowner or renter can easily do to minimize or totally mitigate the chances of dealing with a wildfire. The documents mention that an Oregon Defensible Space Code is under development by the Oregon State Fire Marshal as required by the Oregon State Legislature, and it may be applicable in the future to Oregon property owners. So, a question arises: who is going to enforce the Defensible Space Code and the home-hardening codes in the future once the appeals are over, the dust settles and the wildfire risk maps are a matter of normalcy. Should l expect to see a squad of ODF workers and OSU grad students coming onto my property with ladders and tape measures to see if my gutters are clean, my trees are 10 feet apart and my grass is less than four inches high?

The biggest code violation by me could be those darn ponderosa pine needles. Presently, they have been raked away over 100 feet from my home but that will last only until the next windy day.

Jim Cline

Biden’s accomplishments

To the Editor:

Here is just a fraction of Joe Biden’s historic and unprecedented accomplishments as our 46th President. It’s a testament to his vision for the longterm for America, and the hard work and commitment of his entire Administration.

At the same time, though, I also have to acknowledge that Biden, while working tirelessly to broker peace and pushing for a two-state solution, also made the unforgivable and inexplicable decision to continue giving military aid to Israel even after it became obvious Netanyahu was committing genocide against the Palestinian people. However, even with that dark stain on his legacy, I would hope the American people could still appreciate President Biden’s decades-long commitment to making things better for the American people. I believe his presidency is an example of how a democracy should work and in the future I trust his legacy will reflect that. It’s unfortunate the media focused more on gaffes or minor missteps or Republican rants about made-up crimes than what was actually accomplished.

The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act provided $1.2 trillion in federal funding over eight years aimed at overhauling the nation’s roads, bridges, railways, ports, utilities, internet access and more. The bill would make the biggest investment in America’s infrastructure system in decades, creating jobs and bolstering the economy in the process. It is the largest spending package on climate change in history and is predicted to bring into the economy $3.3 trillion in private investment over 10 years.

The Biden administration took on corporations by enacting corporate minimum taxes to ensure billion dollar companies can’t get away with paying zero dollars in federal income taxes, places a surcharge on corporate stock buybacks, and investments in the internal revenue services to ensure wealthy tax cheats pay their fair share.

The IRA allowed Medicare to negotiate prices with pharmaceutical companies for 10 drugs (for the first year and more every year after that) which will save the taxpayers $6 billion on prescription drug costs and consumers 1.5 million on out-of-pocket costs in 2026 alone.

The PACT Act is the most significant expansion of benefits and services for veterans in more than 30 years.

Regarding student loans, the Administration leaves office having approved a cumulative $188 billion in forgiveness for 5 million borrowers.

We’ll see what the next four years brings and what if any of these policies are left standing. Concerns about veterans, helping citizens with high grocery bills, healthcare costs, childcare, elder care, rent, student loans, corporate rip-offs — none of this is part of this next administration’s agenda. And do you think these people care at all about what happens to the people of Gaza? Their policies are essentially to enrich and empower a tiny segment of the population, which will end up harming everyone else. Understand, they have to pay for their massive tax cuts for the rich, which includes all the billionaires in this new administration, because to them you can never have enough. But really, how many rocket ships do you need?

Terry Weygandt