An estimate for the cost to abate asbestos found in the shuttered Lincoln School recently should be available as early as sometime this week, according to Steve Mitzel, operations director for Ashland School District. The cost to remove asbestos would be separate from the as yet-unknown cost for structural repair.
Fall colors? How about crimson red and white for Ashland High School? Autumn took a Grizzly turn as the annual AHS Homecoming Parade made its way through downtown Ashland. The Grizzly football team will face the Mazama High School Vikings from Klamath Falls at 7 p.m. Friday for the homecoming game.
The anonymous donor of $890,000 to Ashland Schools Foundation in December 2024 amid upwards of an $8 million structural budget deficit has prompted a $10,000 contribution to the foundation from Emmy Award-winning talk show host Kelly Clarkson, who is matching a $5,000 donation from Scholastic.
The Oregon Department of Education released 2024-25 Oregon Statewide Assessment System scores (OSAS) earlier this month, with the numbers showing overall gains for Ashland schools and students testing above the state average in English Language Arts (ELA), math and science, but also declines in math scores among some middle and high school students.
Ashland School District plans to contract with a Eugene-based firm to “shore up” the 1948 wing of the shuttered Lincoln School building, which the city fire marshal ordered shut days before the beginning of the school year in August.
An anonymous $890,000 donation to the Ashland Schools Foundation not only helped ease the district’s budget crisis — it sparked a wave of gratitude that caught national attention. The community’s response, especially from students, led to a feature on the Kelly Clarkson Show, set to air on Oct. 16.
Students returned to seven district campuses across the Ashland School District for the first full day of school Tuesday, Aug. 26.
Classes start for all Ashland students on Tuesday, Aug. 26, as the 2025-26 school year kicks off and, with it, some new leadership at Ashland schools, including new interim principals Francisco Lopez Atanes at Ashland High School and Susan Hollandsworth at Helman Elementary School.
Ashland School District officials plan to make arrangements over the weekend to relocate an alternative education program from Lincoln School to Ashland High School following the emergency closure of the nearly 100-year-old building after an annual inspection by the city fire marshal turned up severe structural issues.
UPDATE: The Lincoln School in Ashland was closed on Thursday by the city’s Fire Marshal following a fire inspection. The closure impacts two educational programs housed at Lincoln. The district is working to contact families about where their children will attend classes on Monday.
The Oregon Legislature is meeting this week to consider some major cuts to current spending levels as a large revenue deficit looms. That’s because the state’s tax code automatically replicates new federal tax cuts, including ones passed by Congressional Republicans this summer that will reduce state revenue
Michael O’Looney: Trump and the Texas Legislature are responsible for a partisan power grab that has unleashed bitterness and partisan vindictiveness, all in an effort to subvert an electoral system for partisan ends.
Councilor Bob Kaplan: While the cost of delivering kilowatt-hours to our homes has risen, Ashland Electric has been able to hold our rates steady with just one increase of 5.1% in 2021. I’m sorry to say we’re due for an increase, but fortunately it’s not likely to match recent increases elsewhere.
An estimate for the cost to abate asbestos found in the shuttered Lincoln School recently should be available as early as sometime this week, according to Steve Mitzel, operations director for Ashland School District. The cost to remove asbestos would be separate from the as yet-unknown cost for structural repair.
“We are still here” was the theme for Saturday’s Native American Heritage Celebration at Southern Oregon University, hosted by the SOU Native American Student Union (NASU) and SOU Native Nations Liaison Kenwanicahee (Kenwani) Kravitz (Madesi Bandi, Pit River Nation Winnemem, Nomtipom and Nomsus Bands Northern Wintu).
As Oregon lawmakers stare down a deficit of at least $373 million over the next two years — and brace for the possibility of a bigger shortfall in the state’s next quarterly revenue — they asked state agencies to create lists of ways to cut 5% of their approved budgets.
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