New data from the Oregon Department of Education show that students in the state are still struggling with reading, math and science as they still have not bounced back to pre-pandemic levels. Test results show that less than half of students tested are proficient in English language arts and less than a third are proficient in math. Charlene Williams is the director of ODE. She joins us to share more on the results and what can be done at the state level ..read more

It’s an open race this fall for Oregon Secretary of State. The office oversees elections and audits of state agencies, among other responsibilities. Interest in the race has been ignited recently by the discovery that the Oregon DMV accidentally registered hundreds of noncitizens to vote through an error in the state’s Motor Voter system. If voters pass Measure 117 in November, the winner of this race would also be responsible for implementing ranked choice voting for statewide elections. Dennis Linthicum is a Republican state Senator representing Klamath Falls. Democrat Tobias Read is the sta ..read more

In 2022, Portland residents voted to drastically change the city’s form of government. That includes using ranked choice voting to expand the city council from five seats to 12. Another change is the creation of four geographic districts, with voters in each district electing three candidates to represent them on the new council. District 1 is in the far east side of Portland, including neighborhoods such as Hazelwood, Mill Park, Centennial and Parkrose to name a few. On Sep. 30, “Think Out Loud” convened a District 1 candidates forum at Von Ebert Brewing. Candidates were invited to participat ..read more

Amy Tan might be best known for her fiction, including "The Joy Luck Club" and "The Kitchen God’s Wife," but her latest book takes its drama from her backyard bird feeder. In 2019, Tan began drawing birds she saw in nature, particularly the ones who visited her tree-filled backyard in Northern California. The result is a book of reflections, observations, detailed drawings and cartoon sketches called "The Backyard Bird Chronicles." Tan talks to us in front of an audience of students at Franklin High School ..read more

Rhythm Traders, a Northeast Portland drum shop that has been open for over 30 years, is welcoming two other music businesses into its building. Together, the three businesses hope to create a sort of living room for Portland musicians, and long term stability for their own stores. Ryan Lynn, owner of Eastside Guitar Repair, and Hank Failing, owner of Hank’s Music Exchange, join us to talk about what the new MLK Music Mall could look like.  ..read more

As first reported in The Columbian, a family of therapists has opened a new mental health urgent care clinic in Vancouver. Birchstone Mental Health Urgent Care aims to fill a gap between the emergency room where people experiencing mental health crises often end up and weekly therapy sessions. The clinic does not accept insurance, though it does offer a sliding scale for some patients who cannot afford the $150 fee for a visit, which includes an assessment and referrals for medication management and follow up counseling. Three co-founders of the clinic join us to share more: Brandon Fielding ..read more

An ombudsman investigation in Portland found evidence of predatory towing at a group of apartment complexes in the Cully neighborhood. The report says towing practices financially and emotionally harmed residents, most of whom identify as low-income and Latino. It also found that the influx of towing impacted clients and staff at a nearby county-run health clinic and community center. Tony Green is a deputy ombudsman for the city of Portland. He conducted the investigation and joins us with more details ..read more

For a third time, a federal judge has ruled that Wellpath — one of the nation’s largest for-profit providers of health care to people in prisons and jails — wrongfully deleted emails connected to in-custody deaths.  Wellpath operates in at least 10 correctional facilities in Oregon and Washington, and has purged email evidence in at least three wrongful death cases in the Pacific Northwest. Criminal justice reporter Conrad Wilson joins us to discuss the cases ..read more

Radon is a naturally occurring, invisible and odorless gas released from the decay of radioactive metals like uranium found in soil, rocks and groundwater. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, it’s also the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S., and claims more than 20,000 lives annually. Homes are a major source of radon exposure which testing kits can be used to monitor and determine whether to do mitigation by increasing ventilation or sealing foundation cracks.   But it turns out that even relatively low levels of radon exposure can be dangerous, according to a ..read more

Among the U.S. Congressional races that are being closely watched in this year’s general election is Oregon’s 6th Congressional District. It stretches from the suburbs southwest of Portland down into Salem, and includes all of Yamhill and Polk counties, along with portions of Marion, Washington and Clackamas counties. Voters cast their ballots for the first time in this district in 2022 when they narrowly elected Democratic state Representative Andrea Salinas over her GOP challenger, Mike Erickson. He is the founder and CEO of AFMS, a supply chain and logistics consulting firm based in Tigard ..read more