Natalie’s latest news coverage
- Proposal would remove requirement that boys’ bathrooms and charter school restrooms have free tampons, sanitary padsSenate Bill 246 would backtrack on Oregon’s Menstrual Dignity Act, which was passed in 2021. Read the full story via Oregon Capital Chronicle here.
- Legislative proposal would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in local school board electionsHouse Bill 3206 focuses on the elections that impact teens the most. Read the full story on Oregon Capital Chronicle here.
- Proposals in Oregon Senate aim to ease educator shortageTwo bills are focused on removing barriers to entering public education and addressing burnout. Read the full story on Oregon Capital Chronicle here.
- Young people are speaking up in the state Legislature. Are adults listening?Two Oregon senators are inviting young people to committee meetings, asking them to talk about the environment, child welfare and other issues. Photos and story by Natalie Pate on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
- Kotek proposes $13.5 billion for education but critics say more is neededExperts say the state needs to spend even more to keep schools running as they are, let alone improve them. Read the story via Oregon Capital Chronicle here.
- Education Writers Association: How to Cover Student Achievement Losses and Full Pandemic RecoveryNatalie Pate helps journalists understand and make the most of the Education Recovery Scorecard. This database compares student achievement losses amid COVID-19 and shows which student groups were most affected by disrupted learning at theContinue reading “Education Writers Association: How to Cover Student Achievement Losses and Full Pandemic Recovery”
- Dozens of legislative bills address curriculum, parent choice, teachers and moreA look at about 30 education bills among more than 100 proposed this session, which ends in June. Read the story via Oregon Capital Chronicle here.
- State high school graduation rate up slightly in 2022State data released Thursday show 81.3% of students last year graduated in four years compared with 80.6% the year before. Read the story via Oregon Capital Chronicle here.
- Eater PDX: 10 Food Bills to Follow in Oregon’s 2023 Legislative SessionThe 2023 Oregon legislative session kicked off on Jan. 17 in Salem. Over the next five months, lawmakers will consider hundreds of proposed bills, many of which could impact how people access, handle, produce, andContinue reading “Eater PDX: 10 Food Bills to Follow in Oregon’s 2023 Legislative Session”
- Learning to Read Behind the Fence: The path to prison is often paved by illiteracy. Yet many prisoners aren’t being taught to readAbout 15% of adults in Oregon prisons read below an eighth-grade level, an analysis by the Statesman Journal found. Nationwide, an estimated 70% or more of incarcerated people can’t read at the fourth-grade level. It’s notContinue reading “Learning to Read Behind the Fence: The path to prison is often paved by illiteracy. Yet many prisoners aren’t being taught to read”
- Behavioral incidents spiked in Salem-Keizer schools as discipline measures changed. How is the district responding?Dec. 2022: An investigation by the Statesman Journal found that throughout the 2021-22 school year, major disciplinary incidents — including physical threats, fights, computer misuse, sexual harassment and other aggressive behaviors — increased in Salem-KeizerContinue reading “Behavioral incidents spiked in Salem-Keizer schools as discipline measures changed. How is the district responding?”
- Despite more teachers and fewer students, Oregon schools still struggle with staff shortagesOct. 2022: Starting before the pandemic and continuing over the past few years, schools and education advocates in Oregon and nationwide have rung the alarm bells about a growing teacher shortage. They’ve cited low pay,Continue reading “Despite more teachers and fewer students, Oregon schools still struggle with staff shortages”
- Nightmare Factory: The annual extravaganza is more than a haunted house for the Oregon School for the DeafOct. 2022: After being closed for two years due to COVID-19 restrictions, Salem’s premier haunted house is back. But the Nightmare Factory isn’t any ordinary haunted house. It also serves as a learning opportunity forContinue reading “Nightmare Factory: The annual extravaganza is more than a haunted house for the Oregon School for the Deaf”
- In-person school board meetings in doubt after investigationSept. 2022: Yelling during public testimony, arguments between attendees and board members, and an altercation in the parking lot at the Aug. 9 Salem-Keizer Public Schools board meeting led to an indefinite virtual-only option for public participation.Continue reading “In-person school board meetings in doubt after investigation”
- District rejects second book ban request, keeps ‘Gender Queer’ in local high schoolsJuly 2022: A second request to have a book removed from Salem-Keizer Public Schools libraries has been denied. Earlier this year, members of the local parents’ group Salem Keizer We Stand Together took issue withContinue reading “District rejects second book ban request, keeps ‘Gender Queer’ in local high schools”
Follow My Blog
Get new content delivered directly to your inbox.
Natalie Pate 