I’m writing because I really care about Newberg, and hope you can help. The upcoming school board election is critical for Newberg’s future. There is a far-right group that has poured a lot of money into school board and city council elections. When the school board …
Read MoreNewberg School District Finances: Background
As we wait for Newberg School District to release the results of the financial audit for 2021-2022, here is some background information about what to expect from a financial audit and some context from previous years. Here are the takeaways: ______________________________________ School Finances are really …
Read MoreCellos, Empathy, and Society
The C string of a cello, when perfectly tuned, vibrates 65.4 times per second. If the cellist places their fourth finger correctly on a perfectly tuned G string, that G string will also vibrate sympathetically with the C string, also at 65.4 times per second, …
Read MoreNewberg’s Graduation Data
There are not many ways to measure or compare different school districts in Oregon. One is test scores, but with unreliable tests and more and more families choosing to opt out, test scores are not fool proof. Another measure is graduation rate, where each district …
Read MoreAdvent Caroling Madness Hall of Fame—2022
Here are all the winners of our voting over the years! 2013 O Come, O Come, Emmanuel The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles Angels We Have Heard On High Pentatonix Joy to the World Aretha Franklin Original Christmas Song Breath of Heaven, Amy Grant …
Read MoreBest 90’s Christmas Song—Finals
Windham Hill and Adam Sandler watch their valiant, improbable runs come to an end. Celine Dion, the plucky 15 seed with a stunning voice and a boring arrangement, takes on Take 6 in the finals. Get your votes in by 7 pm PST on Christmas …
Read MoreHow to order Finding Hildegard
ebook Amazon ($4.99) is the only option for getting the ebook version of Finding Hildegard. Print version I love supporting local bookstores! Finding Hildegard is available on Ingram Spark, which means you can go to your local bookstore and ask them to order it for …
Read MoreBest 90’s Christmas Song—Round 3
My last minute entry, Take 6’s Hark the Herald Angels Sing, is the highest remaining seed…and it’s a 5! I can’t decide which is the biggest surprise for sure, but it’s probably Windham Hill. My seeds were hugely wrong compared to your voting. Vote fast! …
Read MoreBest 90’s Christmas Song—Round 2
I am not going to lie. I am in shock. All four Amy Grant songs were defeated. Only one Steven Curtis Chapman song advanced. Koskela Family Nostalgia™ is on life support and I’ve checked in with my #1 Amy supporter. Now we are speeding up …
Read MoreNew City Council
Tuesday’s special election for Newberg City Council did not go as I was hoping. This morning I met with Derek Carmon, one of the newly elected councilors, at his request. I am grateful for his time, his desire to meet face to face, his commitment …
Read More