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Siuslaw News Florence, Oregon Wednesday, October 2, 2024 Number 40 • 133 years

No truth to school gun rumor by TONY REED The Siuslaw News

Present at the contract-signing were, in back, left, retired principal Larry Martindale, Donna Heinen, Chase Olsen, retired Boys and Girls Club director Chuck Trent, Aric Sneddon, Kathy Ward. In front, Heather Stafford, Kay King, Andy Grzeskowiak and School Board Chair Brian Lacouture.

Whitmore Classical Academy School moves forward after contract signing By TONY REED The Siuslaw News

With the Sept. 18 signing of a contract and agreement between Siuslaw School District and Siuslaw Valley Charter School (Whitmore Classical Academy), officials are working out the details to hire a head of schools and find a building in Florence.

SVCS President Kay King said the two sets of documents were signed during a vary congenial meeting Sept. 18. The contract was approved by the board, with one no vote, made because SVCS does not yet have a Head of Schools position filled or a building to house the classrooms.

“We do have a plan,” she said, noting that the job of Head of Schools has been posted for some time and has generated interest. “That just takes time to find the right fit so we are now proceeding with a candidate that we are excited about.”

She said once that’s secure, they can prioritize the search for a building. “There are not many buildings in Florence that would meet our need,” she said, “so we’ve identified one

See CONTRACT, Page A4

Elders and Youth Celebrate 5th Anniversary of Local Climate Strikes in Florence Submitted by Mike ALLEN Florence Climate Emergency Campaign

The Climate Strike in front of the Florence City Hall on Sept. 20 was a great success drawing 24 climate activists to the event that not only celebrated the completion of five years of strikes, but participated in a global climate strike called for by Greta Thunberg. A special feature was the appearance of Pam and Rob Vergun and their daughter Miko. Miko is a litigant in the Juliana vs United States case that asks the courts to protect the environmental rights of everyone, but most importantly our children. Pam is Elders Climate Action Project Manager for Elders Promote the Vote (EPTV). She conducted her Friday morning

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News — A2 Sports & Lifestyle — B1

phone bank session from a host home in Florence. Strike organizer Mike Allen with his wife Pat thanked all those present and the many more who attended the strikes over the past five years. He also thanked the local, state and international strike sponsors that include: The Florence

Opinion — A3 Classifieds — B4-B5

Friends of Florence

FUN AND GAME DAY FUNDRAISER

Climate Emergency Campaign, Florence Indivisible, Florence Area Democratic Club, Elders Climate Action Oregon Chapter, Third Act Oregon, Fridays for Future, Environment and Human Rights Advisory, and Youth Climate Courts. Allen invited representatives from the various sponsor groups to give

updates on the work each is doing to address climate change. Among them was Storm Kurth, a senior at Siuslaw High School. Storm said the Environmental Club formed last year now has 15 members and plans to do outdoor projects such as scotch See CLIMATE, Page A4

October 16th,2024 $15.00 per person Florence Elks Lodge

Rumors that a Siuslaw Middle School student brought a gun to school sometime this month were likely exaggerated from other rumors that police say are unsubstantiated. Police Chief John Pitcher said there was not a handgun taken to the school, but a rumor that a student planned to do so. “We’ve investigated that and our school resource officers worked on that and worked with the school but there was never any active threat to any students or staff,” he said. “The resource officer and the school have gone through the school’s process to make sure everyone is safe. It was taken care of properly.” School District Superintendent Andy Grzeskowiak seconded the information. “In this case, it was all rumor and nothing was substantiated, but plenty of people went to social media and never reported to the school and that was what caused the fervor. We had people claiming to have knowledge because they had heard it second and third hand. Had the first people who heard it said ‘this is a rumor I heard and this is what happened,’ we could have jumped on it way earlier.” He said because it was circulated, different variations of the story grew as it was passed around. “If people have those kind of safety concerns, the best way to get it addressed so we can work on it os report it directly to the school administration,” he said. “If it comes to the district office, I can get it to the principals. They can start with me or go directly to the building principals.” Grzeskowiak said in his career, he has dealt with other situations where a rumor spurred many variations of the information, creating confusion and trepidation. He said the sooner the district has accurate information, the faster it can engage with law enforcement to determine if a threat is credible and deal with it.

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