Statesman-Journal
Legislature
Special schools amendment in House proposal
May 30, 2007
An amendment was included in a house proposal to grant the Oregon Legislature control over the deaf and blind state schools.
House Bill 2263 moved out of the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday. The proposal included an amendment that would direct the superintendent of public instruction to make recommendations to the assembly regarding changes to the schools’ facilities.
The Department of Education announced May 18 that the Oregon School for the Deaf campus in downtown Salem would be sold. Programming for the blind students would be relocated to the Oregon School for the Deaf campus in northeast Salem by 2009. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Susan Castillo said the department would use money from the sale of the blind school to upgrade facilities on the deaf school campus.
Sen. Vicki Walker, D-Eugene, said the proposed amendment will allow the state legislature to rule on public policy regarding the state schools. Walker, who leads the education committee, said she continues to focus on another pending proposal that would create independent school boards for the two schools.
That proposal, Senate Bill 757, remains in the joint ways and means committee.
– Ruth Liao
May 29, 2007
This morning, the Senate Education & General Government Committee adopted Sen. Walker’s -A13 amendment to HB 2263. The amendment requires the superintendent to make recommendations to the Legislature on facilities for the OSD and the OSB. It removes superintendent’s authority to order a change in facility use by the OSD / OSB. It also specifies that the act takes effect upon passage.
With the passage of HB 2263 with the -A13 amendments, the Legislature will have the statutory authority to approve or reject the ODE’s decisions regarding OSB / OSD facility use or sale. The next step is Senate approval, and the final step for HB 2263 will be to go back to the House for concurrence. Rep. Buckley, Chair of the House Education Committee, will need to concur. Please ask advocates to let Rep. Buckley know about the postive impact of the -A13 amendments.
Please spread this exciting news! Thank you.
Regards,
Allison
Allison de la Torre, Legislative Assistant
State Senator Vicki Walker
Senate District 7 - Eugene / Junction City
900 Court St NE S210 ∙ Salem, OR 97301
Phone: 503-986-1707 ∙ District Phone: 541-302-9533
Fax: 503-986-1176
E-mail: sen.vickiwalker@state.or.us _<mailto:sen.vickiwalker@state.or.us>_
(mailto:sen.vickiwalker@state.or.us)
statesmanjournal.com
11:53 a.m.
No simple answer for deaf, blind school dilemma
Friday, May 25, 2007
Here’s a draft of Saturday’s editorial. Send comments to Barbara Curtin, the lead writer.
Two things appear inevitable about the fate of the Oregon School for the Blind and the Oregon School for the Deaf:
•The blind school will move to the campus of the deaf school, with the schools operating as two separate institutions under one administration in order to save money;
•Hardly anyone will be happy with the decision.
To be fair, Superintendent of Public Instruction Susan Castillo has no easy choices. Oregon has studied this problem for more than three decades without taking action. During that time, enrollment at the two schools has dropped, maintenance has been deferred, and the cost per student has soared.
Many advocates for the deaf and blind would prefer to keep the schools in their present locations. So would current employees, some of whom could lose their jobs if the schools operate more efficiently. So would many Gaiety Hill residents who like having the tranquil blind school as a neighbor.
However, the status quo isn’t an option. Rather than pour money after dwindling enrollments, the state eventually would pull the plug. Then Oregon would have no residential schools to supplement local districts’ services for children with disabilities.
State officials produced a rosy Q&A to market their decision and a timeline to justify how they made it. But they still erred in not involving more vision- and hearing-impaired people in the discussions and decision-making.
They also lost capital in the deaf community by mishandling the firing of Jane Mulholland, head of the deaf school, in late 2006. That makes merging the two campuses — a tough sell in good times — even tougher.
Although the deaf school campus has room for the blind school students, many problems remain. The campus will require extensive renovations and new construction. It is less convenient for mobility training. If a student is hit by a train on the nearby tracks, the decision will look terrible in hindsight.
Still, something must be done to ensure the schools’ survival. The cost per student will necessarily be high, but the state must take reasonable steps to operate the schools efficiently.
Jay Gense, who heads both programs until Patti Togioka starts at the deaf school on Aug. 1, makes a good case that some offerings need not be duplicated. Food service and maintenance are two examples. Teachers can train together, whether they use Braille or sign language with their students.
If Oregon were really forward-thinking and committed to serving these children, the state would sell both properties and develop a new campus. Why isn’t the state exploring that as the best option?
Consider: Even with tens of millions of dollars’ worth of work to remove asbestos, retrofit buildings to withstand an earthquake and make the campus accessible for blind children, the deaf school still won’t be ideal for either group.
The state has plenty of land here, counting the Oregon State Hospital property. Sale of two urban campuses might yield enough money to let the two schools start fresh in a facility designed just for them.
posted by Editorial Board