Oregon school superintendents warn about Trump administration actions quietly affecting budgets

By NATALIE PATE/Oregon Public Broadcasting

Superintendents from seven of Oregon’s largest school districts released a joint message Wednesday calling out recent federal actions they say have harmed local communities.

The school district leaders argue their commitment to their communities is at odds with the realities of the current American political climate.

That goes for major issues dominating national headlines, such as the fear of deportation in local schools. But the Oregon school leaders said they especially want to draw attention to other issues that may fly under the radar for some. These issues include diminished food access for students, fewer advocates for children in foster care, and cuts to Head Start, to name a few.

“More than 144,000 children in our state are already facing hunger, and the crisis is only getting worse,” she went on. “Decisions made in D.C. are showing up as empty plates in Oregon, and it’s our children who are going without.”

Andrea Castañeda from Salem-Keizer, Gustavo Balderas with Beaverton, Travis Reiman from Hillsboro, Colt Gill in Eugene, Iton Udosenata for Tigard-Tualatin, and Steve Cook at Bend-La Pine all took part in the video along with Armstrong.

The message comes as President Donald Trump marks his 100th day in office. While Oregon’s electoral votes went to Kamala Harris last November, some of these districts, such as Salem-Keizer, include areas with significant support for Trump.

Still, Superintendent Castañeda in a press conference Wednesday said talking about the health and wellness of families shouldn’t be like “touching some electrified line of politics.”

“It is possible to say we need our families to be healthy, we need our kids to be fed, we need the bonds of neighborhood to hold — and that is not a political statement,” Castañeda said, adding that she hopes the unified message gets people to have more conversations about what is going on.

“I think that’s a statement that could be accepted in Bend. It could be accepted in Salem. It could be accepted in Klamath Falls,” she said. “That resonates because it’s about an underlying ethical value that I believe almost all Oregonians hold.”