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Opinion: Students gets educated outside of high school |
On Nov. 17 I didn’t go to high school. No, I
didn’t skip class. Instead I loaded onto a school bus with 15 other
juniors from Newberg High School and headed to the Newberg Public
Library.
We are in a special program called Leadership Youth, and on that
day we spent our day learning about the past, present and future of
Newberg. Throughout the day we had several community members speak
to us about the history of the Newberg area.
We heard from Barb Doyle, who told us about the early citizens of
the Willamette Valley who we don’t often hear about: the Kalapuyas,
Native Americans who existed here for hundreds of years before they
were wiped out in the 19th Century by disease and forced off their
land by white settlers.
Sam Farmer talked to us about the determined Quaker pioneers who
founded Newberg, the city’s Friends churches and several of its
businesses. Leah Griffith told us about the library. We learned that
the library was a Carnegie library built in early 1900s, and it is
one of the few Carnegie libraries in Oregon that still occupies its
original building.
We also heard Dr. Paula Radich, superintendent of Newberg Public
Schools, talk about the increasing demands on our schools as well as
plans to build more schools in the future.
During the day we also learned about Newberg’s plans for the
future. Kris Horn told us about the Newberg Downtown Association’s
ambitious vision for the future of downtown Newberg and its
businesses. After a short walk to city hall, City Planner Barton
Brierly talked to us about the task of planning for the future of
Newberg and projecting where and how much it will grow.
We also learned that the city has a plan for the waterfront along
the Willamette River. Jim Bennett, the city manager, informed us
about the challenges of balancing a small budget while still
providing essential services such as water and police.
I found this day to be very informative and feel like I have a
better understanding of Newberg’s history. However, I still have
some unanswered questions about its future. Some of them are about
the Newberg-Dundee bypass, which will be constructed between the
current Highway 99W and the Willamette River. How will the decreased
traffic flow affect Newberg and Dundee businesses? How will it
affect the two communities’ livability and natural environment?
My other questions address growth. Most importantly, how will the
passage of Measure 37 affect the cities’ plans for the future? Why
does Newberg continue to tolerate street lights which emit more
light into the sky than on the ground, such as “acorn” lights? What
is the impact of the city’s rapid growth on the environment?
Finally, why does the Newberg School District have no plans for an
additional school in Dundee, which is also growing?
It seems to me that the communities still have some issues to
resolve, but for now they deserve credit for their hard work
planning for the future.
Michelle Adlong is a Newberg High School
student and Dundee resident |
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From
Dec. 15, 2004,
Newberg Graphic
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