Oregon Still Struggles with Rural Poverty
Tuesday, September 09, 2014
Jake Thomas, GoLocalPDX Contributor
That number grew from the 14.3 percent living in poverty in 2009.
In some counties the poverty level has increased over a 10-year span. Poverty in Lane County, grew from 12 percent in 2000 to 22 perdcent in 2012, census data showed.
Malheur County, a remote part of the state that shares a border with Nevada and Idaho, had the highest poverty rate in the state in 2012, reaching 25.8 percent of the population. Only two years earlier the poverty was as high as 40 percent.
Many predominantly rural counties had high poverty rates. Already among the highest in the state in 2000, Coos, Douglas, Jefferson, and Wheeler counties had poverty rates that soared to 20 percent or more in 2012, according to census data.
But the problem isn't just confined to rural Oregon. Statewide, the poverty rate in Oregon was near 11 percent in 2000 and rose to 17 percent in 2012. Multnomah County, had a poverty rate of 18 percent in 2012. The lowest in the state in 2012 was held by Clackamas County, with a little more than 9 percent.
Overall, in 2013, more than 650,000 people--more than the population of Portland--lived in poverty.
“The story on the new economy is a story of greater gaps between the rich and the poor and a real deepening of poverty,” says Angela Martin, the executive director of Economic Fairness Oregon.
For children under the age of 18, things get worse. Nearly one in four children in Oregon, or 23 percent, live in poverty. Wheeler County fared the worst, with nearly 40 percent of children living in poverty, according to data from the Oregon Center for Public Policy.
Malheur County came in second with 35 percent, followed by Jefferson with 34 percent.
According to census data, two school districts in Oregon had a majority of their students living in poverty. Fifty-five percent of the students served by Ashwood School District 8, based in Madras, live in poverty. Port Orford Langlois School District 2J, which serves a coastal community in Curry County, also had a high rate of 54.8 percent of its students living in poverty.
Some Good News
The state has made significant progress in expanding health insurance to children, according to a 2014 report from Children First for Oregon, an advocacy organization focused on child poverty.
Since 2009, Oregon has had the country's second highest reduction in uninsured children, cutting the rate of uninsured children from 12 percent to 6 percent. As of 2012, nearly 94 percent of Oregon children had health coverage.
“Although we have made great progress in reducing child uninsurance, Oregon still ranks high in the nation for children’s insurance rates and 54,000 kids still lack coverage,” the report states.
The report also notes that in 2012, the median family income in Oregon remained more than $1,000 lower than it was in 2008.
“There aren't enough jobs [in the state's remote areas],” said Chuck Sheketoff, executive director of the Oregon Center for Public Policy. “Portland and the [Willamette Valley] is the economic engine, and it's hard to get enough jobs into the rural parts.”
Sheketoff said the data centers, windmills and call centers that have arrived in rural parts of the state in recent years aren't going to solve the problem. The projects create construction jobs, but require very few employees to keep them up and running, he noted.
“We know that children and families were impacted by the recession, but we know that many of our rural communities have been slow to recover, which has left many parents underemployed or unemployed,” says Tonia Hunt, executive director of Children First for Oregon.
Hunt said that as the state has moved toward more service-oriented jobs, communities that rely on resource extraction will be worse off.
Even before the recession, many of these communities struggled economically, she said.
Related Slideshow: Top 100 Oregon High Schools
GoLocalPDX has ranked high schools across the state based on a method developed at Babson College, Mass. See below for the top 100 schools in the Beaver State.
#100
South Albany High School
Greater Albany Public School District
Enrollment: 1260
Economically disadvantaged: 55%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 86.9%
Met or exceeded math standards: 65.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 68.1%
Met or exceeded science standards: 54.6%
Four year graduation rate: 76.2%
Photo Credit: kamera kızı via Compfight cc
#99
Yamhill Carlton High
Yamhill Carlton School District
Enrollment: 375
Economically disadvantaged: 32%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 93.8%
Met or exceeded math standards: 60.8%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 47.9%
Met or exceeded science standards: 69.6%
Four year graduation rate: 83.8%
#97
Benson Polytechnic High
Portland School District
Enrollment: 819
Economically disadvantaged: 68%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 87.1%
Met or exceeded math standards: 75.9%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 40.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 84%
Four year graduation rate: 82.2%
#96
North Marion High
North Marion School District
Enrollment: 588
Economically disadvantaged: 62%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 86.3%
Met or exceeded math standards: 64.9%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 58.6%
Met or exceeded science standards: 58.5%
Four year graduation rate: 87.6%
#95
Hidden Valley High
Three Rivers/Josephine County School District
Enrollment: 681
Economically disadvantaged: 53%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 83.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 71.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 52.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 66.7%
Four year graduation rate: 68.3%
Photo Credit: dcJohn via Compfight cc
Photo Credit: sleepyneko via Compfight cc
#94
North Valley High
Three Rivers/Josephine County School District
Enrollment: 522
Economically disadvantaged: 51%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 89.2
Met or exceeded math standards: 56%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 46.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 72.2%
Four year graduation rate: 68.3%
Photo Credit: naosuke ii via Compfight cc
#92
Liberty High
Hillsboro School District
Enrollment: 1386
Economically disadvantaged: 46%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 89.8%
Met or exceeded math standards: 76%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 53.3%
Met or exceeded science standards: 65.8%
Four year graduation rate: 79.6%
Photo Credit: Aboutmovies, CC
#91
Academy of Arts and Academics
Springfield School District
Enrollment: 280
Economically disadvantaged: 49%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 90.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 57.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 65.4%
Met or exceeded science standards: 73.6%
Four year graduation rate: 84.1%
#89
Crane Union high School
Harney County Union High School District
Enrollment: 69
Economically disadvantaged: 39%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 52.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 69.6%
Four year graduation rate: 95%
#87
Gold Beach High
Central Curry School District
Enrollment: 173
Economically disadvantaged: 57%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.9%
Met or exceeded math standards: 81.1%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 62.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 80.8%
Four year graduation rate: 56.7%
Photo Credit: Google
#86
Dallas High
Dallas School District
Enrollment: 979
Economically disadvantaged: 35%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 84.4%
Met or exceeded math standards: 72.8%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 49%
Met or exceeded science standards: 69.8%
Four year graduation rate: 52.9%
Photo Credit: Tedder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#85
Newport High School
Lincoln County School District
Enrollment: 528
Economically disadvantaged: 43%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 81.7%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 62.6%
Met or exceeded science standards: 57.8%
Four year graduation rate: 70.7%
Photo Credit: Finetooth - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#84
LaPine Senior High
Bend-LaPine School District
Enrollment: 439
Economically disadvantaged: 63%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 88.9%
Met or exceeded math standards: 72.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 47.5%
Met or exceeded science standards: 62.2%
Four year graduation rate: 74.7%
Photo Credit: samantha celera via Compfight cc
#82
La Grande High
La Grande School District
Enrollment: 560
Economically disadvantaged: 37%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 84.3%
Met or exceeded math standards: 60%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 56.4%
Met or exceeded science standards: 59.4%
Four year graduation rate: 74.1%
Photo Credit: Fiorenza Thompson via Compfight cc
#81
Yoncalla High
Yoncalla School District
Enrollment: 87
Economically disadvantaged: 70%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 58.8%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 64.7%
Met or exceeded science standards: 52.9%
Four year graduation rate: 78.8%
Visitor7 - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#80
Elmira High
Fern Ridge School District
Enrollment: 436
Economically disadvantaged: 52%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 88.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 70.1%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 63.5%
Met or exceeded science standards: 66.7%
Four year graduation rate: 77.6%
Photo Credit: Katr67 - Own work. Licensed under Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
#79
Churchill High
Eugene School District
Enrollment: 1020
Economically disadvantaged: 44%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 82.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 73.6%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 68.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 61.3%
Four year graduation rate: 69.2%
Photo Credit: EvelynGiggles via Compfight cc
#75
Klamath Union High
Klamath Falls City School District
Enrollment: 663
Economically disadvantaged: 56%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 81.9%
Met or exceeded math standards: 69.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 40.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 54.8%
Four year graduation rate: 83.4%
Photo Credit: User:bobjgalindo - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#71
Cottage Grove High
South Lane School District
Enrollment: 761
Economically disadvantaged: 59%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 90.4%
Met or exceeded math standards: 70.9%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 54.6%
Met or exceeded science standards: 64%
Four year graduation rate: 87.6%
Photo Credit: Visitor7 - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#69
McKenzie High
McKenzie School District
Enrollment: 67
Economically disadvantaged: 61%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 41.7%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 50%
Met or exceeded science standards: 83.3%
Four year graduation rate: 68%
Photo Credit: Tedder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#68
St. Helens High
St. Helens School District
Enrollment: 974
Economically disadvantaged: 36%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.4%
Met or exceeded math standards: 72.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 59.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 66%
Four year graduation rate: 75.7%
Photo Credit: M.O. Stevens - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#67
Lakeview Senior High
Lake County School District
Enrollment: 223
Economically disadvantaged: 45%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 87.8%
Met or exceeded math standards: 69.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 66.7%
Met or exceeded science standards: 73.5%
Four year graduation rate: 88.1%
#64
Clackamas Middle College
North Clackamas School District
Enrollment: 290
Economically disadvantaged: 28%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.4%
Met or exceeded math standards: 76.3%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 59.3%
Met or exceeded science standards: 78%
Four year graduation rate: 32.6%
Photo Credit: slightly everything via Compfight cc
#63
South Medford High
Medford School District
Enrollment: 1698
Economically disadvantaged: 56%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 87.9%
Met or exceeded math standards: 76.8%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 61.7%
Met or exceeded science standards: 71.2%
Four year graduation rate: 80.4%
Photo Credit: @RunRockPrincess via Compfight cc
#59
Weston-McEwen High
Athena-Weston School District
Enrollment: 164
Economically disadvantaged: 33%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 61.1%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 76.5%
Met or exceeded science standards: 47.2%
Four year graduation rate: 75.7%
#55
Putnam High
North Clackamas School District
Enrollment: 1196
Economically disadvantaged: 39%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 88.6%
Met or exceeded math standards: 73.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 69.9%
Met or exceeded science standards: 59.3%
Four year graduation rate: 75.7%
#54
Neah-Kah-Nie High
Neah-Kah Nie School District
Enrollment: 181
Economically disadvantaged: 54%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 83.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 58.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 41.9%
Met or exceeded science standards: 97.5%
Four year graduation rate: 87.5%
Photo Credit: albertogp123 via Compfight cc
#47
Junction City High
Junction City School District
Enrollment: 532
Economically disadvantaged: 54%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 85.6%
Met or exceeded math standards: 76.8%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 56.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 64.8%
Four year graduation rate: 65.1%
Photo Credit: crazytales562 via Compfight cc
#46
Sam Barlow High
Gresham-Barlow School District
Enrollment: 1651
Economically disadvantaged: 38%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 84.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 78.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 68.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 76.7%
Four year graduation rate: 81.8%
#45
Forest Grove High
Forrest Grove School District
Enrollment: 1779
Economically disadvantaged: 59%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 89.4%
Met or exceeded math standards: 85.7%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 66.6%
Met or exceeded science standards: 61.1%
Four year graduation rate: 72.5%
#43
South Salem High
Salem-Keizer School District
Enrollment: 1835
Economically disadvantaged: 49%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 89.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 73.3%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 66.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 66.5%
Four year graduation rate: 81.9%
#42
Hood River Valley High
Hood River County School District
Enrollment: 1218
Economically disadvantaged: 57%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 87.1%
Met or exceeded math standards: 78.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 69.7%
Met or exceeded science standards: 53.5%
Four year graduation rate: 77.4%
#41
North Douglas High
North Doughlas School District
Enrollment: 98
Economically disadvantaged: 45%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.3%
Met or exceeded math standards: 78.3%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 72.7%
Met or exceeded science standards: 60.9%
Four year graduation rate: 69%
#38
Newberg Senior High
Newberg School District
Enrollment: 1508
Economically disadvantaged: 42%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 87.9%
Met or exceeded math standards: 77.6%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 71.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 68.3%
Four year graduation rate: 78.2%
#37
West Salem High
Salem-Keizer School District
Enrollment: 1646
Economically disadvantaged: 35%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 83.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 74.6%
Met or exceeded science standards: 74.2%
Four year graduation rate: 86.3%
#33
Oregon City Senior High
Oregon City School District
Enrollment: 2117
Economically disadvantaged: 34%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 90.8%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 63%
Met or exceeded science standards: 76.7%
Four year graduation rate: 83%
#31
Silverton High
Silver Falls School District
Enrollment: 1179
Economically disadvantaged: 41%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 86.1%
Met or exceeded math standards: 74.1%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 71.9%
Met or exceeded science standards: 72.1 %
Four year graduation rate: 77.7%
#29
Bend Senior High
Bend-LaPine School District
Enrollment: 1527
Economically disadvantaged: 40%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 88.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 65.9%
Met or exceeded science standards: 75.6%
Four year graduation rate: 78.7%
#28
Tualatin High
Tigard-Tualatin School District
Enrollment: 1714
Economically disadvantaged: 27%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.2%
Met or exceeded math standards: 76.7%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 62.9%
Met or exceeded science standards: 71.4%
Four year graduation rate: 84.4%
#27
Mountain View Senior High
Bend-LaPine School District
Enrollment: 1283
Economically disadvantaged: 42%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 93.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 82%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 75.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 76.1%
Four year graduation rate: 78.3%
Photo Credit: Vince Kusters via Compfight cc
#26
Tigard High
Tigard-Tualatin School District
Enrollment: 1835
Economically disadvantaged: 32%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 83.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 64.5%
Met or exceeded science standards: 67.7%
Four year graduation rate: 80.8%
#23
Sprague High
Salem-Keizer School District
Enrollment: 1608
Economically disadvantaged: 32%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 86.2%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 72.5%
Met or exceeded science standards: 79.6%
Four year graduation rate: 82.2%
Photo Credit: Jirka Matousek via Compfight cc
#22
Wilsonville High
West Linn-Wilsonville School District
Enrollment: 1093
Economically disadvantaged: 24%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 74.1%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 74.2%
Met or exceeded science standards: 71.3%
Four year graduation rate: 85%
#21
West Albany High
Greater Albany Public School District
Enrollment: 1317
Economically disadvantaged: 28%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.3%
Met or exceeded math standards: 87.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 75%
Met or exceeded science standards: 84.9%
Four year graduation rate: 93.6%
Photo Credit: jonas maaloe via Compfight cc
#20
Clackamas High
North Clackamas School District
Enrollment: 2230
Economically disadvantaged: 29%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.7%
Met or exceeded math standards: 85.7%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 80.5%
Met or exceeded science standards: 74.2%
Four year graduation rate: 85.5%
#19
Pacific High
Port Orford-Langlois School District
Enrollment: 90
Economically disadvantaged: 53%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 90.9%
Met or exceeded math standards: 59.1%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 77.3%
Met or exceeded science standards: 68.2%
Four year graduation rate: 78.3%
Photo Credit: Tedder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#15
Summit High
Bend-LaPine School District
Enrollment: 1344
Economically disadvantaged: 22%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 93.3%
Met or exceeded math standards: 74.6%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 73.6%
Met or exceeded science standards: 73.6%
Four year graduation rate: 88.3%
Photo Credit: frankjuarez via Compfight cc
#12
Cleveland High
Portland School District
Enrollment: 1457
Economically disadvantaged: 29%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.6%
Met or exceeded math standards: 80.2%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 81.4%
Met or exceeded science standards: 59.7%
Four year graduation rate: 76.2%
Tedder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#10
Wilson High
Portland School District
Enrollment: 1185
Economically disadvantaged: 22%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 91.8%
Met or exceeded math standards: 80.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 82.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 63.8%
Four year graduation rate: 84.4%
Photo Credit: KristinNador via Compfight cc
#8
Crescent Valley High
Corvallis School District
Enrollment: 965
Economically disadvantaged: 23%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 85.3%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 78.1%
Met or exceeded science standards: 77.8%
Four year graduation rate: 70.1%
Photo Credit: Visitor7 - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#7
West Linn High
West Linn-Wilsonville School District
Enrollment: 1514
Economically disadvantaged: 10%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 87.9%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 85.8%
Met or exceeded science standards: 83.2%
Four year graduation rate: 93.2%
Photo Credit: Tedder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#6
Riverdale High
Riverdale School District
Enrollment: 242
Economically disadvantaged: <6%*
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 89.8%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 74.6%
Met or exceeded science standards: 74.6%
Four year graduation rate: 94.2%
*numbers less than 6% are represented by an asterisk in the Oregon Department of Education data.
#5
School of Science & Technology
Beaverton School District
Enrollment: 167
Economically disadvantaged: 20%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 86%
Met or exceeded science standards: 63.9%
Four year graduation rate: 81.1%
#4
Lincoln High
Portland School District
Enrollment: 1471
Economically disadvantaged: 12%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 92.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 85.3%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 88.1%
Met or exceeded science standards: 79.9%
Four year graduation rate: 89.3%
Photo Credit: Tedder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
#2
South Eugene High
Eugene School District
Enrollment: 1321
Economically disadvantaged: 24%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 91.6%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 84.9%
Met or exceeded science standards: 89.2%
Four year graduation rate: 79.4%
Photo Credit: katalicia1 via Compfight cc
#1
Lake Oswego Senior High
Lake Oswego School District
Enrollment: 1224
Economically disadvantaged: 6%
Met or exceeded reading standards: 97.5%
Met or exceeded math standards: 92.4%
Met or exceeded writing standards: 89.1%
Met or exceeded science standards: 87.7%
Four year graduation rate: 89.5%
Photo Credit: KristinNador via Compfight cc
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