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Education: Virtual Field Trips Broaden Student Experiences in Washougal

Field trips are often one of the most memorable learning experiences for young students.  The opportunity to go outside the classroom can be an exciting and impactful way to bring lessons to life. This is why Cape Horn-Skye Elementary first grade teachers, Darcy Hickey and Nicol Yung, decided to deliver the experience online.  

“The idea of having Virtual Field Trip Fridays came about from us as a team discussing how we could do something fun as a grade level and make it meaningful to the kids,” said Hickey.  “We chose Fridays because after a week of distance learning, we wanted the kids to have something fun and different to look forward to.  We set up a Zoom link for the entire first grade so all the students get to experience the field trip together.”

Students have participated in four virtual field trips so far this year.  “We have visited a dairy farm, an egg farm, an ice cream factory and a symphony,” explained Yung. “An upcoming field trip will be to attend a shadow puppet show.”

Each field trip is planned with a thought to science, literacy, and the arts. “For example, our trip to the symphony fell in line with our study of sound in science,” said Hickey. “We also love that it supported music standards.”  

A lesson unit in language arts involved fables, and since many centered around a farm setting, a virtual trip to an egg farm was arranged.  “Our trip was also a segue into doing a science experiment with eggs,” said Yung.  “Our art teacher, Alice Yang, was a special guest who joined us on our field trip to the dairy farm.  She led the students in a directed drawing of a cow.  The upcoming field trip to the shadow puppet show aligns with our study of light and shadows in science.”

“We want the kids to know and understand that despite the fact that we are in a remote learning situation, there are still many opportunities for them to experience and learn things about their world around them,” explained Hickey.  “We want them to know that they are still connected to the world and that they can participate in meaningful activities, experiments, literature and discussions about everyday things that are a part of their lives like eggs, milk, ice cream, light, and sound to name a few.”

Field
www.annrivers.com

Hickey and Yung strive to help students think about topics that they are familiar with more critically and on a larger scale. They provide hands-on science experiments and activities throughout the week that support the field trips.  For example, students were provided materials to do an experiment on how sound waves travel before the symphony.  For the upcoming puppetry field trip, they were given materials to create shadow shapes on the wall.

The most recent field trip to an ice cream factory on October 2nd also featured CH-S’s new principal, Brian Amundson, reading the book Should I Share My Ice Cream, by Mo Willems.  “This was a great way for our students to get to know Mr. Amundson since we aren’t in person right now,” said Hickey. “He also led the students through a STEM challenge.”

“The entire staff at Cape Horn-Skye is awesome,” said Amundson. “The creativity of the teachers and the ways they are finding to connect with students and families is amazing.”

The virtual time together this week ended with a surprise Dairy Queen gift card for a free ice cream. “We reached out to former School Board member, Teresa Lees, who contacted the manager of Cams DQ to ask about donating the 50 gift cards to our students,” said Hickey. “Donna from DQ was thrilled to be a part of this and didn’t hesitate to say yes.”

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Champ Pizza Expands Brand; To Open Third Restaurant in Camas

Camas, WA —Locally-owned Champ Pizza is opening up their third restaurant at the end of October at the former Little Caesar’s location at Lacamas Center on 3rd Avenue.

“We bought an existing franchise in 2019, and realized it was necessary to create our own brand, and Champ Pizza was born in February,” said Tyson Cook, Champ Pizza’s managing partner. “We opened the Salmon Creek location first, which was followed by the 162nd store in March.”

Cook said they purchased the Camas Little Caesar’s store to grow their brand, and seeing the support they get from Camas and Washougal customers this seemed like the right fit.

“I wanted a location closer to me, and I think we need more pizza in East County,” Cook said. “We made this deal happen pretty quickly. When I saw Little Caesar’s close, we just made a deal.”

Champ Pizza makes a quality pizza that’s ready fast with delivery and pickup options.

“We use 100 percent whole mozzarella cheese, we make dough daily made with buttermilk and Parmesan,” Cook said. “We bring in all our produce and slice it in house. We also offer premium meats — ham, pepperoni, sausage, bacon, etc. We don’t cut corners there. We pride ourselves on our service, we believe a customer deserves a quality pizza every time. We can deliver and be ready just as quickly as the competition. We will serve all of Camas and Washougal.” 

The planned opening date is end of October, as long as permitting and everything with the city goes well.

“We really want to be involved with the community and will continue our Athlete of the Month program,” Cook said. ”We will also give many teens an opportunity to have a good job.” 

  • Address: 3252 NE 3rd Avenue, Suite 9, Camas, WA 98607
  • Phone: 360.210.5262
  • Website: www.champpizza.com
Champ
www.artfuljuxtaposition.com
Champ
Champ Pizza makes all their dough in-house, with buttermilk and Parmesan.
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Camas School District Opens In-Person Learning to 350 Special Needs Students

Camas, WA — Camas schools are slowly — and methodically — opening up campuses to in-person learning amid a growing county and statewide spike of COVID-19 cases, said Superintendent, Dr. Jeff Snell today.

“We continue to use remote learning as our primary learning delivery model while serving small groups of students with highest needs in person,” said Snell.  ”The number of students receiving in-person services is ranging between 250 to 350 students district-wide.  Many of these students are served through special services and others have been identified with specific needs that can be addressed in person.  We are also bringing in small groups of some students at the kindergarten through 2nd grade level for some assessments.  Each of our schools is monitoring student engagement and identifying students with needs that might require in-person experiences, so as the weeks progress we will likely increase the number of students receiving in person services.  All of these opportunities are being provided in small groups following the guidance from our state department of health.”

Snell said the district is disappointed in the continued rise of cases in the community.  

“We are asking for the community’s help by continuing to follow the social distancing and mask guidelines,” Snell said. “We will be ready to start our transition to hybrid plans when our COVID levels consistently return to moderate. More details about our plan including timelines, resources, and presentations are available at http://www.camas.wednet.edu/covid-19/2020-fall-reopening/.”

Dr. Alan Melnick, Clark County Public Health Director, said his team looks at data every day, and in June he recommended the county re-open to Phase 3. At that time, the county had 19.45 cases per 100,000 residents, which was in the low range, and would have permitted schools to re-open had the timing been right. As of Wednesday, there are 95.6 cases per 100,000 residents, which is in the high range, based on Washington Department of Health guidelines.

Students
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“We do look at hospitalizations and capacity and up until now, and earlier in the year that was a problem when COVID-19 activity increases in the community there is a lag time and there is a long incubation period,” Melnick said. ”It can be as long as 14 days. So one of the things I’ve shown to our Board of Health is that with kids are less likely to get sick than adults, so why are we concerned about schools? Not all kids do so well. Certainly kids can get sick, but number two the schools are not an island and kids have a congregate setting in a school. They take the infection home to their parents and grandparents. So, we have to re-open with caution. There are proper protocols that need to be followed.”

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POLITICS 2020: Long Campaign Raises More Than $1.24 Million in Third Quarter

Vancouver, WA — Today, the Carolyn Long for Congress campaign announced that Carolyn Long raised more than $1.24 million during the third quarter of 2020 — bringing the total raised for the cycle to $3.5 million.

 The Long campaign emphasized they continue to raise significant resources without taking corporate PAC money. This quarter, the campaign was able to raise money from thousands of contributions — over 72 percent of which were local — reflecting a “strong, sustained grassroots support for Carolyn’s candidacy and her campaign to represent Southwest Washington in Congress.”

“Another impressive fundraising quarter continues to show the incredible grassroots support for Carolyn Long in Washington’s 3rd Congressional District. The district is ready for a fresh start and Carolyn is ready to deliver for the people of Southwest Washington,” said Abby Olmstead, Campaign Manager. 

“In these incredibly difficult times, politics-as-usual in D.C. just won’t cut it anymore—and folks in Southwest Washington recognize that,” said Long. “Washington’s Third Congressional District needs a leader who will put people over politics. Unlike my opponent, I will never take a dime of corporate PAC money. And the people of Southwest Washington will never have to wait in line behind a corporate lobbyist to talk to me.”

Carolyn Long is running for Congress in Southwest Washington (WA-03) for the 2020 election. She previously was the Democratic nominee for Washington’s 3rd District in 2018. She resides in Vancouver with her family and teaches at WSU-Vancouver. Long has served Southwest Washington for more than 25 years, as a WSU college professor and community leader. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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Inslee Loosens COVID-19 Restrictions on Movie Theaters, Restaurants, Sports

OLYMPIA — Gov. Jay Inslee Tuesday loosened restrictions on many activities, from movie theaters to restaurants, sports, and real estate, under his four-part coronavirus reopening plan.

This is the biggest movement forward after Inslee this summer stopped all counties from advancing to further stages of reopening. Inslee told reporters today he wasn’t resuming those county-by-county reopenings, but said Tuesday’s measures are “targeted things to show how we can do this in a safe way” as businesses continue to suffer financial losses amid the pandemic. 

Clark County, and Washington state in general have seen COVID-19 case spikes like many states across the United States. Inslee addressed that concern by saying he would make another push to encourage face mask use statewide, and said the new measures were a way safely open up a little further.

“We believe that if we continue to increase our use of masks, and we hope that we’re heading in that direction, that will allow us to make these shifts to allow more social interactions,” said Inslee.

Tuesday’s announcement loosens many restrictions, including on restaurants, which have been hard hit by Inslee’s mandates. Counties in the second-phase — including Clark — or in the third phase can now serve alcohol up to 11 pm.

Restaurants may also boost their table size to six in the second phase, and to eight in the third phase. The restriction on tables being limited to members of one household is lifted, which Inslee acknowledged was difficult to enforce, pitting restaurant workers against customers on a regular basis.

Clark County can now have movie theaters operating at 25 percent capacity, according to the new guidelines. For counties in the third phase, those theaters can open at 50 percent capacity. Facial coverings and six feet of distance between households will be required.

“Hoping to open on Friday night but still have a few things to confirm, I’ll have a plan in place by mid day tomorrow,” said Rand Thornsley, owner of the Liberty Theatre in Downtown Camas.

COVID-19
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Sports 

The new sports guidelines will align school related and non-school related sports guidance. Tournaments and crowds are prohibited in counties that aren’t in the low-risk category, but these guidelines will allow more school and non-school sports, both indoor and outdoor, according to a combination of local metrics. These metrics are aligned with state metrics for school opening recommendations. It also provides specific protocols for transportation, group size and facial coverings. 

Youth team sports and adult team sport guidance greatly expanded:

  • Youth team sports now includes both school and non-school sports, both indoor and outdoor
  • Adult recreational sports now includes both indoor and outdoor
  • Sports are now divided into risk categories

Counties are now categorized by COVID-19 activity level measured by new cases per 100,000 residents in the previous two weeks and the percentage of positive tests.

Whether or not a sport is allowed, and to what degree it is allowed depends on a  combination of the risk category for the sport and the COVID risk category for the county in which the sport is to take place.

Tournaments and spectators are prohibited in any county that is not in the low-risk COVID-19 category.

Low risk sports: tennis, swimming, pickleball, golf, cross country, track and field, sideline/no-contact cheer and dance, disc golf.

Moderate risk sports: softball, baseball, t-ball, soccer, futsal, volleyball, lacrosse, flag football, ultimate frisbee, ice hockey, cricket, gymnastics, crew, field hockey, school bowling competitions.

High risk sports: football, rugby, wrestling, cheerleading with contact, dance with contact, basketball, water polo, martial arts competitions, roller derby.

Nearly all of Washington’s 39 counties are in the second or third phase of the governor’s reopening plan. No county is in the fourth phase.

As part of Tuesday’s announcement, the real estate sector can hold open houses with numbers allowable for each county’s size-limit for gatherings. Meanwhile, other guidelines will allow libraries to offer some more services.

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Clark County Residents: Here’s How to Register to Vote

Registering to vote in Clark County is pretty simple, and there are several ways to do it. The Clark County Elections Office provides many options. To register to vote in Clark County, you must:

  • Be a U.S. citizen
  • Be 18 years old by the day of the next election
  • Be a resident of Clark County
  • Not be disqualified from voting due to a court order
  • Not be under Department of Corrections supervision for a Washington felony conviction

There are three ways to register to vote:

  1. Online if you have a Washington State ID or Driver’s License
     
  2. In Person at the Clark County Elections Office at 1408 Franklin Street, Vancouver, WA (map)
     
  3. By Mail with a voter registration form available by mail or download from the Office of the Secretary of State, or you may find them at the following locations:
  • Library branches
  • Public schools
  • City and town halls
  • Auto licensing subagencies
  • Driver licensing offices – register to vote when you apply for your driver license

You must provide all of the following information when you register to vote:

  • Legal name
  • Date of birth
  • Residential address in Clark County
  • Mailing address, if not the same as residential address
  • Washington driver license number, ID card number or the last four digits of your Social Security number
  • Signature

Registration deadlines during an election

If you are currently registered to vote in Washington state and would like to register to vote in Clark County: You may register to vote online, in person, or by mail up to 8 days before Election Day. If you miss the 8-day cutoff, you must come in person to our office at 1408 Franklin Street in Vancouver to register.  You have until 8 pm on election night to register to vote or update your address for the current election.

If you are not currently registered to vote in Washington state: You may register to vote online, in, or by mail up to 8 days before Election Day. If you miss the 8-day cutoff, you may register to vote up to 8 pm on Election Day as long as you fill out and submit your registration form in person at the Clark County Elections Office. 

Vote
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Stevenson Downtown Association Launches First-Ever Grant Program

Bricks & Clicks Grants Offer Up to $1,000 for Downtown Stevenson Businesses to Upgrade Facades or E-Commerce Platforms

Stevenson, Wash. — The Stevenson Downtown Association (SDA) announced earlier this week the launch of its Bricks & Clicks Grant Program to support local businesses in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications are available at stevensonmainstreet.org.

“The new Bricks & Clicks Grant Program encourages business expansion — and more importantly business retention — by providing resources to downtown merchants for facade improvements or e-commerce solutions,” said Executive Director Kelly O’Malley-McKee, who was hired in March as the SDA’s first employee. “We are thrilled to be able to award up to $1,000 per approved project in hopes of taking some of the sting our local businesses are experiencing right now.” 

Due to the economic impact of COVID-19 since the spring, projects underway or already completed may be considered for work that began on/after April 1, 2020.  

“While any approved applicant will be responsible for remaining costs above $1,000, this is a reimbursement grant,” said O’Malley-McKee. “So, in an effort to further support local, SDA will provide 100% reimbursement for approved project expenses that utilize Skamania County vendors and 75% reimbursement for any other vendors.”

Examples of acceptable “Bricks” projects could include exterior building remodeling and improvements, business signage and exterior paint that’s within the recommended city palette, as well as awnings, windows, doors, landscaping and more.

Examples of acceptable “Clicks” projects could include website hosting or domain fees for new sites, PayPal/ Venmo/ Square set-up for web-based software, or point of sale systems that integrate with online shopping, or shopping cart software like Shopify and others.

“Any software or e-commerce programs should support brick and mortar operations, as we will not fund applications that move a mode of business strictly online,” added O’Malley-McKee. “Remember, the goal is to retain businesses in our downtown district.”

Stevenson
www.clarkcountyrelocations.com

Applications are accepted by mail or online on a rolling basis through the end of 2020. All of the guidelines, requirements and grant application are available at stevensonmainstreet.org. 

The SDA will likely continue the Bricks & Clicks Grant Program beyond 2020 if it proves helpful to the community and additional funding can be secured. The local non-profit plans to announce a non-grant program in November to provide additional support to downtown restaurants and retailers during the shoulder season.

The Stevenson Downtown Association is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, affiliated with both Washington Main Street and Main Street America. This coalition of local business owners, public officials and community leaders work to promote and revitalize downtown Stevenson to support our local economy and small businesses.

As a Main Street America AffiliateTM, the Stevenson Downtown Association is part of a national network of more than 1,200 neighborhoods and communities who share both a commitment to creating high-quality places and to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development.

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2 Rivers Bar & Grill Launches New Brunch Menu — Beginning October 4

Washougal, WA — 2 Rivers Bar and Grill is launching a fantastic, delicious and well thought Sunday Brunch menu featuring many new dishes beginning October 4. 

Tim Fuhrman, a classically French trained chef joined 2 Rivers just two months ago, and he’s making a bold statement with these new offerings, which are only available — for now —  on Sundays from 10 am- 2 pm.

Here’s a summary of nine dishes:

Chorizo Jalepeno Scramble

Pepper jack cheeese, green onions, avocado, eggs, House potatoes and choice of bread.

“The scramble has some Southwest influence,” Fuhrman said. “We use brioche bread for the French toast and the raspberry purée is cooked raspberry. Made from scratch. You always want a wow factor with the French toast. It’s very visual.”

Croque Madame

Brioche bread, honey baked ham, bechamel sauce, cheese and topped up with fried egg and a chef’s choice seasoned vegetable.

“As a classically French trained chef most of my dishes are French,” said Fuhrman. “Classically country style French food. My French influence is why I introduced a couple dishes like that.”

Biscuits and Gravy

Housemade buttermilk biscuits with country white sausage gravy and house potatoes.

Brisket Ranchero

Slow cooked smoked beef brisket, black beans, avocado, enchilada sauce, screambled eggs, pico de gallo, creme fresh and cilantro.

Rivers
Brisket Ranchero

Smoked Canadian Bacon Benedict

Includes English muffin, poached eggs, Chef’s lemon hollandaise and House potatoes.

“The Benedict is inspired by mother who passed away from cancer,” said Fuhrman. “That was the last meal I prepared for her. The Hollandaise is thicker.” 

Florentine

Braised baby spinach, grilled tomatoes, fresh basil, avocados, toasted English muffin, poached eggs, Chef’s Lemon hollandaise and house potatoes

Corned Beef Hash

Peppers, mushrooms, green onions, house potatoes, poached eggs topped with Hollandaise sauce.

Smoked Wild Salmon Omlette

Wild salmon, green onions, capers, Brie cheese, creme fresh, eggs, house potatoes and choice of bread.

Strawberry and Chantilly Cream French Toast

Dipped in vanilla custard with raspberry compote, toasted almonds, pure maple syrup, candied lemon zest, topped with fresh raspberry and chantilly cream.

“I’ve been here at 2 Rivers two months,” Fuhrman said. “I opened a restaurant on Hawthorne. Before that I had been consulting nationally, and now I just want a nice spot to showcase my 30 years of experience. I’m more old school, I don’t need 13 things to make it beautiful. It’s not super fancy, but you will have great flavor and you can have a really good meal.”

2 Rivers Bar and Grill is located at 1700 Main Street, Suite 110, Washougal, WA 98671

Phone: 360.210.7987

To learn more, visit www.2riversbarandgrill.com

Rivers
Croque Madame
Rivers
Smoked Wild Salmon Omlette
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BREAKING NEWS: President Trump, First Lady Test Positive for COVID-19

BREAKING NEWS: President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for coronavirus, the President announced early Friday morning Eastern Daylight Time.

“Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!” Trump tweeted shortly before 1 am Friday.

The President had said earlier in the night that he planned to quarantine.

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Boeing’s 787 Manufacturing Move Has Implications for WA State Budget

It is official now — Boeing will consolidate its 787 manufacturing in South Carolina. This news has many implications for the state including a direct impact on the state’s budget outlook. Although the September revenue forecast didn’t make an assumption about what Boeing would decide, a downside risk to the forecast was if South Carolina was picked.

From the September revenue forecast:

“The potential consolidation of Boeing 787 production in South Carolina and resulting decline in Washington aerospace employment is also a major concern.”

Responding to the news that Boeing would likely pick South Carolina, the Governor said earlier this week:

“If this report is true, it would force a review of that partnership, including a hard look at the company’s favorable tax treatment.”

At Boeing’s request the legislature earlier this year repealed the preferential aerospace B&O tax rate responding to a World Trade Organization complaint. From the bill report:

“Beginning April 1, 2020, the preferential B&O tax rate for the manufacturing, wholesaling, and retailing of commercial airplanes, airplane components, and tooling is eliminated.”

The Governor said last year that approving those prior aerospace tax preferences was the equivalent of being “blackmailed” and “mugged.”

Boeing said this about its decision today:

“It became clear that consolidating to a single 787 production location in South Carolina will make us more competitive and efficient, better positioning Boeing to weather these challenging times and win new business.”

Boeing
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Although the September revenue forecast made no assumption about the decision Boeing would make, a deficit was already projected for this budget and a shortfall in the next budget.

Unlike during the great recession, state revenue is still increasing overall during the COVID pandemic. According to the September revenue forecast:

“Forecasted Near GF-S revenue for the 2019-21 biennium is now $50.022 billion, 8.6% higher than 2017-19 biennial revenue, and forecasted Near GF-S revenue for the 2021-23 biennium is $53.737 billion, an increase of 7.4% over expected 2019-21 biennial revenue.”

The bad news of course, this revenue growth is less than what lawmakers assumed when adopting the 2020 supplemental budget resulting in a projected budget deficit. Though more manageable than the original deficit estimate back in June, today’s details still should trigger the requirement in state law for the Governor or lawmakers to act now to balance the budget.

From the last week’s state revenue forecast:

“The September GF-S revenue forecast has been increased by $2.1 billion in the current biennium and $2.2 billion in the next. The forecast of GF-S revenue for the 2023-25 biennium has increased by $2.5 billion. This still leaves the GF-S forecast $2.4 billion lower than the February 2020 forecast for the current biennium, $2.1 billion for the next biennium and $2.0 billion for the 2023-25 biennium.”

As of today, the Office of Financial Management (OFM) does not currently have an updated GFS cash forecast for each month through the end of the budget (Sept-June) reflecting today’s revenue forecast. According to the state Treasurer, the GFS has run a cash deficit almost every day in September.

As a reminder, the Governor has a legal obligation to order budget cuts unless the legislature acts if a cash deficit is forecasted. It is clear that a special session is still warranted. 

By Jason Mercier
Director, Center for Government Reform

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