Community members circle Sprague High School in prayer during a vigil on Sunday, Oct. 7 following a student’s suicide. (Courtesy/Shelby Lauderdale) On Sunday, they stood side by side, more than 1,000 strong, holding hands in a human chain that encircled Sprague High School. They were students, staff and alumni. They[Read More…]
Rachel Alexander
Thousands of Salem-Keizer students would attend different schools under boundary change proposal
New high school boundaries proposed under a draft boundary adjustment plan. (Courtesy/Salem-Keizer School District) Thousands of local students could be affected by attendance boundary changes proposed for more than half of Salem-Keizer schools. The plan, which will take effect next year, would also shift the district’s “feeder system,” which determines[Read More…]
Gun sat unreported at Salem elementary school for hours
Chalk words of encouragement greeted students at Four Corners elementary the morning of Oct. 4, the day after a 10-year-old student brought a gun to school. (Courtesy/Salem-Keizer Public Schools) An unloaded handgun sat undetected Wednesday by school officials in a student backpack for hours at Four Corners Elementary School. A[Read More…]
Salem elementary student brings unloaded handgun to school
The handgun seized from a Salem elementary school student on Oct. 3, 2018. (Courtesy/Marion County Sheriff’s Office) A 10-year-old student at Four Corners Elementary School brought an unloaded handgun to school Wednesday afternoon. Two other students saw the gun in the student’s backpack and reported it to an adult at[Read More…]
Uncategorized A dog, a volunteer and help for an ailing owner
Veternarian Nicole Hatch examines Wilson’s ears at a Sept. 25 appointment at VCA Keizer Veterinary Hospital. (Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter) For patients in hospice care, pets can be a source of comfort and love during the final months of life. But taking care of them is often difficult, and many patients[Read More…]
Uncategorized Willamette hospice program cares for four-legged family members
Wilson greets Willamette Valley Hospice volunteer Sharon Miller as vet assistant Rebecca Armstrong goes over the dog’s medication at an appointment Sept. 25 at VCA Keizer Veterinary Hospital. (Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter) As Sharon Miller escorted Wilson to his medical appointment, it was hard to tell the pair had just met.[Read More…]
Uncategorized Gilbert House Museum unveils new video production exhibit with help from Salem students
Sierra Langford, exhibit and facilities coordinator at the Gilbert House Children’s Museum, steps onto the stage in the new “Lights! Camera! Action!” exhibit, which opened this week. (Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter) Kids at the Gilbert House Children’s Museum can now step into a castle’s throne room or take a ride into[Read More…]
Uncategorized Salem puts roof over chronically homeless, then adds care
Tommy Green, 52, was homeless in Salem for 21 years before getting an apartment through the homeless rental assistance program. (Rachel Alexander/Salem Reporter) Last winter, Tommy Green was trapped in a cycle. Years of methamphetamine use and living on the streets had weakened his heart. “Black mold got in my[Read More…]
Uncategorized Chemeketa begins search for new college president
Julie Huckestein has led Chemeketa Community College since 2014 and will retire at the end of the 2019 school year. (Photo courtesy Chemeketa Community College) Chemeketa Community College is kicking off a search for its next president after Julie Huckenstein announced she would retire in June 2019. College leaders are[Read More…]
Uncategorized Salem grew faster than Portland last year, Census data shows
Calling Salem “western Oregon’s hottest city” might be overstating it. But Oregon’s capital grew by 2,369 people in 2017, Census Bureau data released Thursday shows. That’s a growth rate of 1.4 percent over 2016, putting Salem slightly ahead of both Portland and Eugene. Portland proper grew by about 1.3 percent[Read More…]
