From left: Lynn McKinney, Sherri Hironaka, and Kelly Poe stand amongst the books and T-shirts soon to be given out to kindergarteners all around the county as part of the seventh annual StORytime event. (The Enterprise/Liliana Frankel) VALE – Covid worries meant that the Malheur Education Service District’s StORytime event,[Read More…]

VALE – The Oregon School Boards Association on Friday warned school board members across the state that any effort to defy state Covid mandates is “unacceptable.” The stern letter to 1,400 school board members and superintendents follows actions in recent weeks by school board considering or acting against mask and[Read More…]

Ontario Middle School principal Lisa Longoria. (The Enterprise/AUSTIN JOHNSON) ONTARIO – When Lisa Longoria was a senior at Ontario High School, she became a teen parent. “It was scary, but my mom taught me strong work ethic,” she said. ““I knew I now have a child, I’m going to have[Read More…]

Adrian High School (The Enterprise/FILE). ADRIAN – Mark Redmond, superintendent of the Malheur Education Service District, has been named interim superintendent of the Adrian School District, which last week fired superintendent Kevin Purnell after he attempted to implement Gov. Kate Brown’s mask mandate. The Adrian School Board made the decision[Read More…]

Kevin Purnell gives an emotional farewell to the Adrian community after the Adrian School Board fired him after meeting in executive, or closed, session for about 30 minutes on Monday, Aug. 30. (AUSTIN JOHNSON/The Enterprise) UPDATE: This story was updated to include additional details and photos from the meeting. The[Read More…]

A second-grader in Clarissa Helliwell’s Dual Language Program classroom at Nyssa Elementary School works on her selfie art project on the first day of the school year, Monday, Aug. 23. (The Enterprise/AUSTIN JOHNSON) NOTE: The Enterprise is providing this free to the community as a public service to keep residents informed.[Read More…]

ONTARIO – The Ontario School District $80,000 on outside investigators to look into complaints brought to the board, including allegations against board members that later resulted in censure votes. The costs were disclosed in invoices sent to the district by legal firms and obtained by the Enterprise through a public[Read More…]

Drew Barnes, automotive instructor at Vale High School, prepares for his students to come back to school during the last week of summer break on Thursday, Aug. 12. (AUSTIN JOHNSON/The Enterprise) UPDATED Aug. 24 with an interview with Scott Poncy. VALE – The school year is starting with Harper and[Read More…]

An Ontario student hits a piñata made by Yuliana Martinez and Becky Cuevas’s art class during the last day of summer school. (ANGELINA KATSANIS/The Enterprise) ONTARIO – “Can you see me?” asked Yuliana Martinez over the speakers. A “YM” icon flickered in gray on the large screen in front of[Read More…]

Cloth face masks. (The Enterprise/File photo) ONTARIO – State legislators representing Malheur County are pushing back on the state’s mandate that everyone in schools must wear masks now. They are asking for community town halls and one legislator wants Gov. Kate Brown to suspend the order. State Rep. Mark Owens,[Read More…]