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All students—Grades 6-12, Home-Schooled, OISD, Spring Street School, Oasis, OCS and Salmonberry -- from Tom Baldwin for Orcas Youth Chorus -- Choral singing is a team sport—it is impossible for an individual singer to make the sound of a group of voices. The harmony, the resonance of the collective, cannot be accomplished by the single
-- from Kate Schermerhorn and David Schermerhorn Jr. -- It is with immense heartache that we are writing to tell you that our father, David Ker Schermerhorn, who in 2008 made history sailing on the first foreign boat to enter Gaza Harbor in 40 years, died on Monday August 27 at age 89 from a
-- Tom Baldwin, for the School District Budget Advisory Committee -- Orcas Island School District (OISD) has some vitally important decisions to make in the very near future that will have long-term consequences—decisions necessitated by legislative actions taken over the past year in response to the McCleary Decision which required the State of Washington to
-- from Thomas Baldwin -- Orcas Island School District finds itself in a novel situation, distinct from what has been business as usual for years. They actually have money that will allow them to develop a budget for the 2018-19 academic year that does not include layoffs, temporary or otherwise. Further, they have been instructed
-- from Tom Baldwin for the Orcas Island School District Budget Advisory Committee-- We have had several comments and questions from the opinion piece we submitted (see https://theorcasonian.com/McClearyFix ) regarding the unintended consequences of the state’s intended fix for the McCleary decision. We will endeavor to respond to those questions here— 1. On February 15, we
--by Carol Sutton and Tom Baldwin -- Sometimes, the noblest of intentions can have devastating consequences. The case in point is HB 2242, the supposed fix to the McCleary Decision that was intended to (1) fully fund public K12 education in Washington, and (2) reduce dependence on local property taxes for public school funding. While
-- by Margie Doyle -- Orcas Elementary Students present a banner of appreciation to the Orcas Island School District Board At the board meeting on Jan. 25, the school board unanimously approved a three-year contract for Eric Webb as the Superintendent effective July 1, 2018. The contract provides for an annual salary of
-- from Tom Baldwin -- I am writing to encourage all residents of Orcas Island to vote FOR the Phase III school bond issue in the special election February 14. Mailing of ballots is scheduled for January 27th, next Friday, so we should receive them early the following week. Last fall, when the School Board was
-- by Margie Doyle -- Members of the community spoke of the need and benefits of an adequate classroom to accommodate the growing School Strings Music Program, at the regular Orcas Island School District (OISD) board meeting on Thursday, Aug. 25. Before nearly a dozen people made their comments, School Business Manager Keith Whitaker announced
-- from Maurine Barnett, MaurineTalksBooks.com -- Growing up in a small, WASPy town, I had no idea of what slavery was, and what black lives were like until I read Uncle Tom’s Cabin in sixth grade. It had a profound impact on me, and I began to support the civil rights movement in the 1960s. There are