Testing has become quite controversial in education. We often hear about students’ test scores or teachers reporting test results. Then in social groups, you might experience people discussing that there is too much testing imposed on our children in schools. Is there a misconception?
In early January, I wrote a column explaining the reasons I planned to get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as I was able.
When the word “environment” comes up in mixed company (and in this case, I mean Republicans and Democrats), it generally doesn’t take long for the conversation to devolve into an argument abou…
When I was in middle school, I thought Mulan was the coolest Disney princess, but I related most to Belle. I felt a kinship with the woman more delighted by a castle’s giant library than its w…
One harsh reality of the pandemic often goes unnoticed: the continued need for foster parents.
In 1962, our community took on the courageous challenge of opening one of the first community colleges in Oregon. In the nearly 60 years since Blue Mountain Community College first opened its …
Over the last several months, we have witnessed history happening in our country that has not happened since the Civil War. It is United States history in the making.
Rural Oregon is facing a difficult post-COVID economic recovery. The $1.9 trillion federal coronavirus relief package will undoubtedly help, but without addressing some long-standing barriers …
Years ago, when my brother was a young Cub Scout, members of his troop each came home from an activity with their very own goldfish, to the surprise of their parents.
In America’s culture wars, words are the weapons of choice.
In a year like this, we have learned to celebrate the small milestones.
As I interviewed Hermiston School District’s band and choir teachers last week about the challenges of teaching such an interactive subject virtually, I asked what it had been like to have suc…
Four new paws have been padding around our house recently. Biko, an almost 6-month-old German shepherd/Siberian husky mix, made the Malgesini pack whole again this past weekend.
A few days ago, I wrote about what I believe is the foreseeable and inevitable insolvency of Blue Mountain Community College under the present model of operations and funding.
One of the annual events I enjoy covering for the newspaper is the Hermiston Chamber of Commerce’s Distinguished Citizens Awards.
In 1962, when Wallace McCrae was selected as the first president of Blue Mountain Community College, John F. Kennedy was president of the United States. Fertility rates were high and Baby Boom…
As I logged onto Twitter last week there were Texans dying of hypothermia and carbon monoxide poisoning as millions of people were without power in a winter storm, but it was just one of the s…
Businesses that have not yet applied for the first or second draw of the Paycheck Protection Program need to do so before March 31.
The inventions of internet and cable television have been bad for newspapers’ financial health, but they have also been bad for news consumers’ mental health.
They say things happen in threes.
A week and a half ago, as I wandered up and down the line of vehicles at a COVID-19 vaccine clinic in the Hermiston High School parking lot, a driver exiting the line rolled down his window an…
Writing is a lifelong skill.
As a descendant of the Emerald Isle, I am always open to a raucous donnybrook. So, last week when the state unceremoniously diverted the 600 doses of life-saving COVID-19 vaccine away from my …
This coming weekend, on Feb. 6, is the one-year anniversary of Umatilla County’s worst flood in living memory.
Lost in the news surrounding a new presidential administration last week was the first day of the 2021 Oregon Legislative Session.
With the United States bringing in a new administration, one of a different political party, some changes in trade policy and strategy could be expected. As the Biden administration takes shap…
With the development of vaccines for the coronavirus and distribution underway, there may be an end to distance learning just around the corner. This said, there are still many children strugg…
As the COVID-19 vaccine rollout begins to put a post-pandemic world within our reach, it is time to start giving some thought to what that world should look like.
As images emerged from the U.S. Capitol being overrun by a mob on Wednesday Jan. 6, many sparked a sense of horror among those watching.
As the dust is still settling on my 2020 calendar, I recently reflected on the year that was. Many people have described the events of last year as “unprecedented times.”
As the first vaccines for COVID-19 are distributed to those at the front of the line, Americans are — rightly so — being given a choice about whether to receive the vaccine themselves.
For the third time since March 2020, Hermiston School District teachers and staff are preparing to launch a new educational system for our students.
What a year it has been.
It’s been a tough year.
School this year looks like something we might have seen on the cartoon show “The Jetsons” from the 1960s. Students of all ages are spending hours on electronics.
This month, as people of many faith traditions celebrate holidays focused on peace and love, it feels particularly important to fully embrace the ideals those holidays have come to stand for.
Each year, Time Magazine famously dubs a particularly influential person or group of people as its “Person of the Year.” While Time went with president-elect Joe Biden and vice president-elect…
One gig I would never want to do is serve as Santa Claus.
Anyone who has had children, younger siblings or nieces and nephews has probably witnessed some variation of this scene before: A toddler tears the wrapping paper off a Christmas present and, …
I’m sure many have heard the phrase “Cash is King.”
It’s been a beautiful fall in the Columbia Basin so far, but it feels inevitable that the first icy roads of the season for Hermiston aren’t far off. Already, the mountain passes east of Pendl…
Dyslexia — what is it?
This has been an incredibly challenging year for the Hermiston School District, and especially for our students and families. So much of their learning and growing experience is about being to…
In my years of interviewing people in Hermiston, there are certain phrases I hear over and over again. One is that Hermiston is a “very giving community.”
One thing I appreciate about the month of November is that numerous people in my Facebook newsfeed are posting daily about something that they are grateful for. It has been especially refreshi…
In March I wrote a column called “Things to be grateful for in the age of COVID-19.”
This week we celebrate Veterans Day, honoring those who have served our country through military service.
Though cliché to say, it is true, elections do have consequences.
By the time you read this, voting deadlines for the Nov. 3 election will be over in Oregon and preliminary results will have been announced.
Albert Einstein once said that the world as we have created it is a process of our thinking and that it cannot be changed without changing our thinking.
A pet peeve among journalists is when people ask, “Why isn’t the media covering this?” about a topic that every major media outlet in the country has, indeed, covered with multiple articles.
The fall season brings another opportunity to join together for breast cancer awareness.
On May 7, 1955, Reverend George Lee was shot and killed by an unidentified assailant while driving his car.
While the Hermiston Herald does not write endorsements for political candidates each election, I will offer up an endorsement of what doctors and public health officials around the world are b…
For the better part of the past six months, I haven’t even set an alarm clock. That all changed last month, as I was asked to fill in for a couple of weeks while one of my former colleagues wa…
