Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day and it was an important opportunity to find ways to impact our community positively.  However, we should consider every day as a day to honor MLK by serving others the best we can, honoring the diversity of our community, and providing more support and opportunities for all.  Racial Justice, Education, Healthcare, and Work Force Development are just the tip of the iceberg of challenges faced, but we must work together for forward movement for our BIPOC neighbors and for all in the community.  In the upcoming Short Session we will continue our work forward. 

Superintendent Parker's Message -- January 14, 2022:

Dear FGSD Families, 

This has been quite the week – another in a long list of hard weeks. As we struggle to ensure that the district has enough teachers to safely conduct schools, we have made some tough decisions. On Monday we made the decision to pause in-person instruction at the high school and on Wednesday we made the same decision at the middle school. These decisions are disappointing for us and we know they are difficult for students, families and staff as well. When students are in classrooms with their teachers and classmates, they are in a better place to be supported socially, emotionally and academically. It remains our top priority to get students safely back into classrooms as soon as we have sufficient teachers ready to return to in-person instruction. 

We are hopeful that we can keep the elementary schools open as we monitor schools daily. In reviewing teacher/staff absences, the district utilizes substitutes and available district staff to fill in for those teachers who are out ill. With the middle and high schools in digital learning, we are utilizing those staff members who are not teaching, to cover needs at the elementary schools. At this time, the district does not have to make up any instructional time to remain in compliance with Oregon Department of Education requirements. 

During the next several days in digital learning, affected students can pick up cold lunch during their regularly scheduled lunch times at any of the following schools: FGHS, Harvey Clarke, Echo Shaw or NAMS. Please knock on the exterior door closest to the cafeteria.  

With the current surge in COVID19 cases, the Oregon Health Authority has released new K-12 guidance on contact tracing. In this guidance they are pausing the practice of sending emails and letters to families each time a person in a school tests positive for COVID19. However, staff in the buildings will continue to be notified. We will continue to notify all close contacts when there is an exposure to COVID19. Beginning today, the district's COVID19 Dashboard will be updated daily so families can quickly see the number of cases in each school. 

As we head into the holiday weekend, we thank all of you for your patience and support. Additionally, a special thank you goes out to all of our dedicated staff. Thank you for your hard work as you cover classes and as you quickly pivoted from in-person to digital learning in order to meet the needs of your students in this difficult, temporary transition. 

Be safe and be well. 

Respectfully,

Dave Parker

Superintendent

Updated COVID-19 Isolation and Quarantine Guidelines:

January 17, 2021 - On Thursday, Jan. 13, we shared a health and safety update with our students, staff, and families, which included information about our alignment with the CDC’s new guidelines for shortened isolation and quarantine. As a reminder, isolation is for people who have COVID symptoms or who have tested positive for COVID, regardless of vaccination status; quarantine is for people who have been exposed to someone with COVID. The chart below shows highlights of these new guidelines, for your reference. For more information, please see the full communication on our website. 

Note that close contacts due to an exposure in the household may be subject to different protocols; please follow all instructions provided to you by the Contact Tracing team (503-844-1784) for your/your student’s specific situation.

Forest Grove School District Will Not Pause Extracurriculars:

Athletics, theater and other extracurricular activities will continue in the Forest Grove School District — masked and distanced — as they have since the start of the school year.

• Forest Grove School District will continue the same policies from the start of the school year, which include a mask requirement indoors.
• They may limit spectators if the Oregon Health Authority provides further orders.

If you would like to read more, the original article by Dillon Mullan in the Forest Grove News Times is linked here.

PCC Foundation accepting scholarship applications:

The Portland Community College Foundation is accepting scholarship applications through Feb. 1st.

• Awards range from $700 to $5,000 per year.
• Any student who plans to attend the college can apply. Scholarships are available for students of all ages, backgrounds, and majors.
• The application poses two questions for 350-word essays: "What is your career goal and educational plan to meet this goal?" and, "What is your greatest strength or characteristic and how will this help you to be successful at PCC?"
• Decisions will be sent out in early June, and the scholarships will be available for use in the upcoming summer, fall and spring terms for tuition, fees and books.

All contests taking place in Forest grove School District high school main gyms can be viewed free via live stream on the NFHS Network. Type the school name into the search bar and select the event from there. 

For more information, contact scholarships@pcc.edu or 971-722-4382.

If you would like to read more, the original article by Dillon Mullan at the Forest Grove News Times is linked here.

Important Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance Program Updates:

Oregon Housing and Community Services will begin accepting new applications again for the Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance Program starting on January 26th.

This will be a limited reopening for three to five weeks, depending on the availability of funds. Households with the most need will have priority in accessing resources, not a first-come, first-served basis. 

Applications received on January 26th will be processed after applications received before December 1st. Tenants who apply on or after January 26th may receive safe harbor protections that prevent landlords for evicting tenants under their application is processed. However, those tenants should expect a delay prior to processing and payment.

More information is linked here.

Oregon House Democrats Elect New Caucus Leader, Speaker Nominee:

The following message is a Press Release from the House Democratic Caucus, sent Sunday January 16th, 2022.

Rep. Sollman is our new Senator!

Congratulations to Representative Sollman on her appointment to Senate District 15, which includes us here in House District 29. I have worked with Janeen for many years in the House and know that she will do a great job representing Western Washington County in the Senate.

I also want to take a moment to thank Senator Chuck Riley for his many years of public service to our area.  I have enjoyed working with him immensely, and I wish him all the luck in his much-deserved retirement. 

Hillsboro Mayor Steve Callaway to give virtual State of the City:

This year's event on Thursday, Jan. 27, will be livestreamed on Zoom and Facebook. 

The theme of this year's State of the City address is "We Love Hillsboro."

"Ask 100 people, 'What do you love about Hillsboro?' and you might get 100 different answers," Mayor Callaway said in a preface to the Jan. 27 program. "There's so much to love about our hometown." He added, "This year, we will celebrate all that we love about our community during the 2022 State of the City."

The livestream begins at 6 p.m. Jan. 27. The State of the City can be viewed via Zoom or on the City of Hillsboro's Facebook page.

You can read more about the State of the City in the Hillsboro News Times article, linked here.

Hillsboro officials plan year-round shelter:

The city is looking at a site near Dairy Creek for what would be the first all-year homeless shelter Hillsboro operates.

Hillsboro officials plan to create a new year-round homeless shelter on a property recently purchased by the city government.

Hillsboro has created temporary, seasonal shelters in the past, but this is the first time the city government has committed to opening a year-round option for hundreds of unsheltered people in the area. The property, located in the 300 block of Southwest 17th Avenue, is on the western edge of the city, north of Dairy Creek Park.

You can read more about the shelters in the Hillsboro News Times article, linked here.

Hillsboro Main Street Fire Resources

In light of the devastating fire along Main Street on January 2nd, I have provided a few resources to help support the recovery effort. I want to thank Hillsboro Fire & Rescue for keeping our community safe and quickly responding to the fire. I would also like to commend the Hillsboro community for coming together to aid those displaced in the fire.  

5 Ways You Can Help

• The Hillsboro Community Foundation has set up the Hillsboro Community Relief Fund to provide resources directly to those in desperate need. Donations can be made online and are tax deductible.
  
  
• Marcus Harvey, the owner of Portland Gear, has designed “Heart for Hillsboro” shirts and sweatshirts. Proceeds from the sale of these products will go toward the Hillsboro Community Foundation Relief Fund above.
  
  
• Insomnia Coffee is accepting donations of gift cards for essential items, such as gas and groceries, that will go directly to those displaced by the fires. Please drop off gift cards at the Downtown Hillsboro Insomnia location at 137 East Main Street.
  
  
• The Hillsboro Downtown Partnership is compiling a list of immediate needs for those affected and displaced by the fires. The list will be posted on the HDP Facebook page in the coming days.
  
  
• Other fundraisers are being planned throughout the community and will be announced through the Hillsboro Downtown Partnership. Be cautious of non-sanctioned fundraisers.

Statement from Mayor Steve Callaway
“Our community has been impacted by two fires this weekend: one that displaced 17 people within three apartments on Saturday, and another on Sunday that has visibly impacted our beloved Main Street. Our hearts go out to the families and all of the Main Street businesses affected by the fires. We and the community are here to support them in their recovery.”

In both fires, our firefighters did remarkable work. They stopped the apartment fire from spreading to other units. Their efforts to keep the Main Street fire from spreading was flat-out amazing. And it was a team effort with not only Hillsboro Fire & Rescue firefighters, but also our partners from neighboring agencies: Banks, Cornelius, Forest Grove, Gaston, Portland Fire, and Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue.

We are also grateful for our partnerships with NW Natural, PGE, the Red Cross, TriMet, and others whose help allowed us to respond to both of these emergencies and support those affected.”

For updates and video, visit the Hillsboro Fire & Rescue Department Twitter feed

*Thank you to Kimberly Culbertson for working with our office to provide the best resources possible.