Month: April 2016

It’s now spring and the help-wanted signs are sprouting. “The most recent numbers we have are from March, and those numbers all pointed to a really high hiring demand; right now there is well over 4,000 new ads for Deschutes County,” Damon Runberg, state economist for the Oregon Employment Department, said Tuesday. Data from the

To mark National Public Health Week, which runs April 4-10, the Crook County Health Department is hosting two events to celebrate and inform our community about public health. NewsChannel 21’s Lauren Martinez was in Prineville today to look at the public health issues in the community, and a dramatic improvement in one measurement. According to

SMART, Start Making A Reader Today is grateful to our business partners and corporate sponsors. To date we have raised more than $50,000 toward the purchase books and to recruit, screen, train and support volunteers who read one hour a week with students in PreK-3rd grades. In the 2015-16 school year we have received financial

The Professional Snowsports Instructors of America – Northwest, a ski association comprised of professional skiers throughout the Northwest has recognized one of Oregon Adaptive Sports’ very own, Kellie Standish as Rookie of the Year. This very active division provides high quality educational resources and standards towards improving ones teaching skills to better satisfy the needs

Over 400 library and information professionals will be gathering in Bend for the 76th annual Oregon Library Association conference April 20 – 22. Many of the attendees will be exploring Bend before, during and after the conference. The main events, including a keynote by Sari Feldman, president of the American Library Association, will take place

Residents in the small eastern Deschutes County town of Brothers, population of about 90, are gathering signatures to submit to the Oregon Department of Transportation to lower the current speed limit of 55 mph through town. Jerrie Hanna, who owns the Brothers Stage Stop with her sister, Dixie, said Tuesday all of the drivers on

Oregon State University and Benton County health officials said they are working collaboratively to contain an outbreak of a possible norovirus infection on the OSU Corvallis campus, which began March 30 and by Tuesday had infected 50-60 students, most of whom live in residence halls. Although laboratory testing is still in progress, the symptoms reported

The Deschutes National Forest reminded the public Tuesday that some roads in the Tumalo Winter Range Cooperative Area, which usually reopen in April, will remain closed due to an overlapping closure for thinning and forest restoration work in the West Bend Project area. These roads will not be reopened due to public safety concerns until

The 2015 Distinguished Knighton Award for best performance audit in the extra-small audit shop category has been awarded to the Deschutes County Internal Audit Program by the Association of Local Government Auditors (ALGA). The award will be formally presented to Deschutes County Internal Auditor David Givans at ALGA’s Annual Conference in May. The report, Light

Despite increasing for the past month, Oregon’s retail gas prices are the cheapest they’ve been to start the month of April since 2009, AAA Oregon-Idaho reported Tuesday. For the week, the national average for regular unleaded adds a penny, to $2.05 a gallon. The Oregon average also gains a penny to $2.18, which is 54

Central Oregon nonprofits and schools were awarded a total of $100,000 Monday morning by Facebook in their latest annual round of community grants, and Crook County High School received a large chunk of the funding. Several programs at the school will share more than $40,000 in this year’s grants. School officials said it’s money that

Steve Amen, executive producer and host of Oregon Public Broadcasting’s Oregon Field Guide, will provide the commencement address at the Oregon State University – Cascades commencement ceremonies on Sunday, June 12. “Steve is a champion for Oregon’s natural wonders,” said OSU-Cascades Vice President Becky Johnson. “For more than three decades he has made it a

Central Oregon Partnerships for Youth (COPY), a program of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, is offering a class to prepare volunteers to become mentors for children with an incarcerated parent. After initial training and comprehensive background checks, volunteers are matched with a child in Bend, Redmond, Sisters or La Pine that share similar interests and

A new party will be listed on Oregon’s May 17 primary election ballots. The Independent Party of Oregon has its own ballot, giving voters three major parties to choose from for the primaries. “We want people to be aware of what’s on their ballots, or what’s not on their ballots and not be surprised,” Deschutes

Bend police on Monday released four more security camera photos in hopes of finding a man who smashed his way into the Columbia Bank on Northeast Third Street the evening of March 16 and left a short time later, apparently without taking or damaging anything inside. Two of the photos show the suspect as he

The Deschutes Land Trust announced Monday the start of its 2016 Walk + Hike series. From April to October, Land Trust volunteer naturalists lead more than 120 free walks, hikes, and bike rides at various Land Trust-protected lands. Participants can explore birds, wildflowers, or geology while hiking along Whychus Creek or in the forests of

Last week, the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Office released a report revealing the 2015-2017 Democrat-approved budget only dedicated 10.4 percent of Oregon’s all funds biannual budget to K-12 education, Rep. Tim Knopp, R-Bend, and other Republican lawmakers lamented. Despite a 7.3 percent increase in the total budget over the last biennium and claims by Democrats that

Oregon highway traffic always picks up as winter gives way to spring, but a recent rash of fatal crashes puts added emphasis on the National Distracted Driving Awareness Month campaign. Joel McCarroll, traffic manager for ODOT in Bend, said Monday, “In the spring, you start to see an uptick in overall traffic. People are out

On March 24th, Dr. Shirley Metcalf, President of Central Oregon Community College addressed the annual Soroptimist International of Bend “Live Your Dream” Awards Banquet. Three COCC students, Aleshia Detweiler, Becky Pomeroy and Ana Torres were this year’s recipients. All three have overcome great difficulties while being the heads of their households. Now, each is on

Deschutes County Clerk Nancy Blankenship and Jackson County Clerk Chris Walker have teamed up with NBA players E.J. and Kyle Singler – both Oregon natives – to encourage young voters to participate in the electoral process. Kyle Singler played for South Medford High School, Duke University and currently plays small forward in the NBA for