Letter to the Editor: October 2026

I want to thank you for having the courage and fortitude in these days to start a local newspaper. I look forward to you keeping us informed about local issues.

I have had to wait this long to respond to your first issue. I was so upset when I first read the comments of the Canby Superintendent of Schools in your first issue. Yes,"fewer numbers of educators " will be "heading into the school year." But nowhere in the article does it state that they anticipated 200 less students also. Oregon, not just Canby, is going to have to address this problem. Fewer students entering the education system at all levels will contribute to the financial woes the colleges are also experiencing. 

I watched the Oregon City school district face budget cuts in the 1980s. It is almost always the arts, industrial arts, and music departments that suffer when there are budget cuts. That does not contribute to a "commitment to provide quality education." I respect the superintendent for not trying to cram down the budget by having repeated elections as Oregon City did. They resubmitted the budget every month until it passed in August, when opposing voter numbers were fewer. 

I have grandchildren in this district and am a reading mentor at one of the elementary schools, so I do appreciate the work most educators do; however, having grown up in a town that continues to decline in population, this problem of declining student enrollment is going to take patience and hard work to solve. 

Thank you for the hours you spend at your work.

Marilyn F

Canby resident