Story by Michelle Gates, courtesy of The Canyon Weekly

School funding - and lack thereof - was the most talked about topic at last week's Education Summit.

Local parents and residents joined area officials for the North Santiam Chamber of Commerce's event on Oct 19 at Gates Fire Hall. The summit brought together community leaders to talk about the future of education in the Santiam Canyon: what challenges schools are facing and how they can be solved.

"Enrollment is declining in a lot of small schools - you've gotta do more with less," said State Representative Sherrie Sprenger. "I understand what it's like to live in - and be from - a smaller school. There's continuity there, there's history there, there's roots there - and that's important. I understand why schools are so important to the community."

Area representatives from the Mill City and Lyons public schools and several local private and charter schools came to speak about the canyon's education climate. Several of them indicated that their biggest challenge is funding.

"How can we educate our students to have the standards they need to compete locally and globally," said Principal Joni Gilles from Regis High School, who said that they are restructuring their fee plans to help parents with private school tuition.

As students come to us with diverse needs, (funding) remains a challenge.

They, like many area schools, are constantly seeking new ways to get the job done.

"We're finding ways to wear different hats," said Principal Jeri Loftus from the public Mari-Linn School in Lyons. Principal Loftus is also the Director of Special Education for the district. "We're always looking for better ways to use resources. It doesn't cost money to change our attitude or look for new ways to do business."

"One of those ways is through community involvement," said Principal Loftus. Brad Yates, Superintendent of the Santiam Canyon School District, agrees. "It's our partnerships that make if work, like dedicated staff who do things on their own time," said Superintendent Yates. "At Gates Elementary, over 1,000 hours of volunteer service was logged. They also partner with Mike Long and the Youth Benefit Golf Tournament, the Missoula Children's Theatre and many local businesses," said Yates. "We can't survive without their donations."

One common request at the Education Summit was simple - and easy for community members to fulfill. "Drop a note to the Principal or teachers at your school. We're about building our future, our kids. If we know we're doing great things, it helps us do a better job,â" said Principal Jeri Loftus.

A performance from the Mill City based Canyon Critters Academy highlighted the night. A video of the Education Summit is available online at www.canyonvideos.com.

The North Santiam Chamber of Commerce would like to thank the following participants: Emcee Susan Patterson, Regis High School Principal Joni Giles, Mari-Linn School Principal Jery Loftus, Lourdes Charter School Principal Linda Duman, Oregon Connections Academy representative Misty Unrau, Santiam Canyon School District Superintendent Brad Yates, Canyon Critters Academy representative Angie Fencl, State Representative Sherrie Sprenger, Santiam High School's Future Business Leaders of America students Rebecca, James and Maria and Advisor Debbie Fawcett, and Mike Reding of SCTC and Ken Cartwright for documenting the event on video. Thank you for making it a great night!