WASHINGTON -- The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) and the Congressional Black Caucus Spouses will recognize the significant contributions of three outstanding individuals in the visual and performing arts, as well as students pursuing careers and opportunities in those areas during the 12th Annual Celebration of Leadership in the Fine Arts.
Legendary "King of the Blues" musician B.B. King, visual artist Betye Saar and noted Muhammad Ali photographer Howard Bingham will be feted during the event set for 8 to 10:30 p.m., Wednesday, September 24 ...

Following a tour of the Multnomah Drainage District's Pumping Station, MDD Executive Director Bob Eaton stops for a closer look at the Sentinal statue that stands out in front of the MDD office with, from left, Dickie Anderson, 15, Albert Garcia, 16, Luella Anderson, 11, and Amarsharae Anderson, 13, who are participating in the N/NE Minority Youth and Young Adults Being Connected program. The program's goal is get young people together to raise environmental awareness about the Columbia Slough through educational workshops like this one as well as hiking and other outdoor activities.

As plans progress to build the interstate bridge across the Columbia River – a transportation project with one foot rooted in historically Black neighborhoods — observers are increasingly pointing to the lack of minority development firms contracted to help in the construction.
Despite the fact that the Oregon Department of Transportation last year published a study showing that Black-owned construction companies had been "underutilized" for the past seven years, the Columbia River Crossing project is on track to worsen the situation – using taxpayer dollars.
Less than 1 percent of all contract dollars allocated in the Columbia Crossing project so far have been awarded to Black-owned firms.
"Even after they got that study they went ahead with that bridge project," said James Posey, president of the National Association of Minority Contractors of Oregon. "Even knowing we had those dismal numbers, they went ahead and approved the contracts and the funding so that Black companies had almost zero involvement. Hello?"
In an interview with The Skanner this week, U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore. ...

After years of being accused of taking minority voters for granted, the Democratic Party of Oregon is actively trying to include minorities and other underrepresented groups in positions of leadership.
This year, Oregon's delegation to the Democratic National Convention is more diverse than it ever has been. The delegation includes six African Americans (with two alternates); seven Hispanics; two Native Americans; four Asian/Pacific Islanders (with one alternate) and five representatives from the GLBT community.
Meredith Wood Smith, the chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon, said the party actively courted groups of people not normally involved in politics ...

After a district-mandated audit into its operations, Jefferson High School's much-vaunted high-tech academy system has officially been disassembled.
Portland Public Schools announced last week that Jefferson High School's leadership will be changed once again after two of the school's academies merge into one.
Lavert Robertson, administrator for the Academy Arts and Technology, has been named vice principal at Franklin High School; Macarre Traynham, administrator for the Academy for Science and Technology, is now vice principal at Lincoln High School; and interim Young Men's Academy administrator Marshall Haskins is now vice principal at Wilson High....

The Ride Green Build Green bicycle trip departs Seattle, Wash. on Friday, July 25, at 9 a.m. from the Burke-Gilman trail at Pacific Avenue. Seven bicyclists are riding more than 1,000 miles — from Seattle to San Francisco — to raise funds and awareness for affordable green housing.
Ride Green Build Green was started by Elise Cope, a Habitat for Humanity of East King County Americorps coordinator, with the goal of raising awareness, advocacy and money in support of green affordable housing.
Each rider is raising $2,000 to support LEED certification for a home built by Habitat for Humanity of East King County. Fundraising has included benefit concerts, T-shirt sales, and donation solicitations before and during the ride. All donations are tax deductible through Habitat for Humanity.

Lucy Carlson, 8, helps Woodland Park Zoo SOAR (Save Our Amazing Raptors) Educator Janel Kempf demonstrate how much bigger owl eyes are than humans' eyes in proportion to their head size, at an educational event July 15 at the Douglass Truth Library.

An inability to fill critical positions at Washington's community health centers could make accessing health care increasingly difficult for many of the state's most vulnerable residents.
The news comes from the results of the first Community Health Center Work Force Survey.
The project was a joint venture of the Washington Association of Community and Migrant Health Centers and the Health Work Force Institute, a program affiliated with the Washington State Hospital Association.
"With one in 10 Washington residents receiving care at a community health center, it is vital that the clinics themselves are healthy," said Jaime Garcia, executive director of the Health Work Force Institute.
 The 2006-2007 survey results show that community health centers are facing increasing skilled labor shortages across a variety of health care positions. At the same time, the demand for health center services continues to grow as the number of people who are underserved in Washington increases. A few major findings of the survey include:
The staff nurse vacancy rate for CHCs has increased about 40 percent between 2004 and 2007.
In comparison to hospitals, CHCs face a tougher recruiting environment for primary care practitioners, with vacancy rates generally higher than those found in hospitals. ...

While many industries are laying off employees or cutting back expansion, the Washington State Patrol is becoming increasingly desperate to attract new employees.
With a combination of targeted media advertising and decentralized testing, the agency is looking to replenish and diversify its ranks. ...

The summer is going to be jam-packed with fun activities for the children and adults involved in Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound programs.
The group has more than a dozen events planned in the King County area for their "Bigs" (volunteer adult mentors) and "Littles" (mentored children) over the next three months. ...