The White Salmon Valley School District and the White Salmon Valley Education Foundation have recently received a variety of grants to support student achievement and well-being.  The district’s free after- school program for at-risk youth, A-List Adventures, received $347,000 of additional 21st Century Community Learning Center funding for the next two years for a new high school program and additional after-school support for existing programs.  A $23,800 “No Child Left Inside” grant from the Washington State Office of Recreation and Conservation will enable students in sixth to eighth grades to attend outdoor education programs.  A $15,870 grant from both the Washington State Arts Commission and the White Salmon Arts Council will provide artists-in-residency programs in the district.  A $5,000 grant from the Boeing Company will provide mental health and wellness support for students, while a $2,000 grant from the Klickitat County Community- Clinical Linkages Group via the Cambia Health Foundation will help fund Sources of Strength, a suicide prevention program, at Columbia High School.

As students return to Oregon classrooms for another school year, state health and education officials are asking people to do their part to slow the spread of COVID-19 so students can stay in school.  Appearing in a Tuesday press conference with Governor Kate Brown…Oregon Department of Education Director Colt Gill said everyone holds some responsibility to achieve a full-time in-person school year.  He asked Oregonians to wear a mask and get vaccinated to help achieve that goal.  Dr. Dana Braner, physician-in-chief at Oregon Health & Science University children’s hospital, said a return to in-person school is essential, not only for children’s education, but for their physical and mental health as well.  Although the school year has just begun, a few Oregon schools have already had to close or delay their start due to student and staff quarantines because of COVID-19 cases.

The Oregon Health Authorty’s newest modeling offers some encouragement that the spread of COVID-19 is slowing, but it requires more adult Oregonians to get vaccinated and following statewide safety mandates.  During a Tuesday press conference with Governor Kate Brown, state epidemiologist Dr. Dean Sidelinger says decisions made in the next few weeks will determine whether COVID numbers actually do go down.  He continued to push for everyone to get vaccinated, wear masks in public settings, and practice social distancing.  Sidelinger says hospitals are reaching a saturation point where health systems are not able to provide care to everyone arriving at their doors.

Volleyball Hood River Valley def. Columbia, 3-1 Dufur def. Ione-Arlington 25-8, 25-12, 25-20 South Wasco def. Mitchell-Spray-Wheeler 25-14, 25-22, 25-15 King’s Way Christian def. Stevenson, 25-19, 25-20, 25-23 Klickitat Glenwood def. Condon-Wheeler, 3-0   Girls Soccer Scappoose 6, The Dalles 0 Trout Lake 8, Umatilla 0  

Starting this weekend, The Dalles Bridge will be closed from Thursday nights at 8 p.m. through Monday mornings at 6 a.m. through Memorial Day weekend 2022 to facilitate a bridge deck replacement project.  Peter Murphy of the Oregon Department of Transportation says a number of different closure options were considered for the project, but this was determined to cause the least disruption.  Murphy added ODOT has worked with the Army Corps of Engineers to allow emergency vehicles to cross at The Dalles Dam when needed.  ODOT is recommending the Biggs Junction Bridge to the east to provide access across the Columbia River when The Dalles Bridge is closed.  

Columbia Gorge Community College has decided to postpone its Saturday ribbon-cutting for two new facilities on its campus in The Dalles.  CGCC ‘s Dan Spatz said with hospitals at capacity and new infections anticipated to peak in the next week or two, there is too much risk in gathering people together to hold a formal opening ceremony for the Columbia Gorge Regional Skills Center and the Chinook Residence Hall.  He added based on RSVPs to date, the event would already be well past the maximum number of attendees recommended by health officials even with masks and social distancing.  The college will reschedule a recognition or dedication event for the two facilities when conditions allow.  The buildings themselves will still open on time.

Columbia Gorge Orchestra Association is staring a new monthly music series called Music from the Global Village.  Association artistic director Mark Steighner says the inspiration for the series came from an online class he taught on world music.  The first concert will be this Sunday featuring Boka Marimba performing music from Zimbabwe and southeastern Africa.  It will take place at 2 p.m. outdoors at Hood River Valley Christian Church.  No tickets are required, but donations will be accepted.

September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and the Hood River County Prevention Department will be observing it on Thursday by putting up multiple signs on the Hood River County Library lawn with messages of hope.  Prevention Department director Belinda Ballah says they want to destigmatize talking about suicide.  The signs will also be at the Hood River campus of Columbia Gorge Community College and Hood River Valley High School.

The Oregon State House and Senate Committees on Redistricting will hold virtual public hearings on the future of Oregon’s congressional and legislative district maps starting Wednesday and continuing through Monday.  Hearings for residents of Oregon’s Second Congressional District will take place Wednesday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.  Hearings open to residents of any congressional district will be on Monday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.  For log-in information, go to oregonlegislature.gov/redistricting.

A community reception for the three finalists for the Hood River City Manager position will take place Tuesday evening at six in the Stratton Rose Garden above Overlook Memorial Park.  The three finalists:  Jeffery Durbin, who has been a Town Manager in Colorado, current Beaverton director of community services and engagement Abigail Elder, and current Sisters City Manager Cory Misley, are all scheduled to be there.  A fourth finalist, Charlie Bush, accepted a job with another city.  The candidates will be interviewed on Wednesday and Thursday, with the Hood River City Council expecting to make a final selection on Friday.