■ President touts
OBAMA’S FINAL STATE OF THE UNION
achievements in economic recovery, climate change; vows to stop ISIS ■ Warns that ‘rancor and suspicion between the parties has gotten worse’ ■ Seeks action on trade, justice reform MORE, PAGE A8 WEDNESDAY, 01.13.2016
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Opening up about addiction Trinity
college to shut down By Chris Winters Herald Writer
He became an Eagle Scout, earned his SCUBA diving certificate and made sure to make time for baking pies with Nana. Friendships came easily and were enduring. He always had a soft spot for the little guy. For all his good fortune and his gregarious nature, Corey Lee was alone when he overdosed in
EVERETT — Students at Trinity Lutheran College returned to class Monday to start the spring semester. On Tuesday, they learned this semester would be their last. The school will cease all instruction May 7, said Jim Lindus, who was appointed to the position of executive director of the private college Thursday. “The business model we have is not sustainable, not with the number of students we have,” Lindus said. Trinity Lutheran has 166 students enrolled for the spring semester, he said, including 55 seniors. There will be a graduation ceremony for the current class of seniors, Lindus said. Likewise, no classes or staff will be cut before the final date, he said. For the underclassmen, he said, “we are going all-out to have arrangements with other colleges and universities to receive them.” “All the focus is now on the students,” Lindus said. “Everyone has been kind of counseling and drying tears with the kids.” The school’s president, John Reed, submitted his resignation last week and it was accepted by the school’s board of directors over the weekend, Lindus said. Since the school’s founding 72 years ago, “it’s always sort of lived on the edge,” Lindus said. “It’s really hard to keep a college open with less than 300 students,” he said.
See DEATH, Page A2
See COLLEGE, Page A10
COURTESY PHOTO THE LEE FAMILY
Corey Lee, with his mom, Cathi, and dog, Ginger, enjoyed backpacking. The Everett man, 20, died Dec. 8 after a drug overdose in his dorm room the day before Thanksgiving.
An Everett family shares son’s life and death; seeks to help others By Eric Stevick Herald Writer
EVERETT — In many ways, it was an idyllic upbringing. Before he could walk, his parents carried him on their backs along mountain trails. As soon as he grew out of diapers, he learned to ski. He brought home arm loads of books from the public library.
Highlights of his day were shared with family over dinner in a century-old home on Rucker Avenue. Summer was savored, fishing, swimming and building forts on the beach at Mutiny Bay on Whidbey Island. Most of elementary school was spent in “Highly Capable” classes for academically gifted students.
He attended a small Christian middle school where his eighth-grade yearbook listed him as most likely to stand up for a friend and to make people laugh. At Everett High School, he lettered in basketball and cross country. Seven years of middle and high school Spanish classes served him well on trips to Mexico.
Education tops Inslee’s to-do list in State of State address OLYMPIA — Gov. Jay Inslee on Tuesday laid out a short to-do list for this legislative session: ease a statewide teacher shortage, improve mental health services and cover the costs of last summer’s devastating wildfires. And a fourth item, one which he called “absolutely necessary”, is agreeing on the blueprint for
ensuring the state meets a 2018 deadline to provide ample funding for the public school system. It will require passing a bill this year that keeps the legislature on track to make the spending decisions next year, he said. “We’re not going to just fix a few potholes, we’re going to finish the job,” Inslee said in his State of the State address to a joint session of the House and Senate. “That means actually financing these
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critical investments so our kids and grandkids get the education they deserve.” Not much in Inslee’s speech surprised Republicans. “I think you’ll find most of his goals are very similar to ours,” House Minority Leader Dan Kristiansen said. “The route that we take to attain those goals ... is going to be the difference.” On education, Inslee called for higher teacher pay to help
Jackpot! And bring some snacks: Strong sales for the Powerball lottery have driven its jackpot for tonight’s drawing to an estimated $1.5 billion, and the record prize may go even higher (Page A8). Along with the $1.5 billion, the winner will be granted most-favoredDear Abby. . . . B5 Food . . . . . . . . B1
recruit and retain instructors, and thereby erase a teacher shortage. He wants to hike starting pay for teachers to $40,000 and give a 1 percent raise to instructors statewide. He’s called for closing a handful of tax breaks to generate the money to pay for it. Washington can have small class sizes and the best mentors for teachers, he said, but if “nobody is standing in front of the classroom, we’ve got zip.”
nation trade status and is expected Friday for bridge night with Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. An under-butler for the under-butler? A judge has jailed a one-time billionaire, who drove a Montana resort into bankruptcy, until he reveals what he did with $13.8 million from the sale of a
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Regarding the wildfires, he’s proposed siphoning $180 million from reserves to cover the costs and $29 million from the Disaster Response Account to help communities in the fire zones rebuild and recover. On mental health services, Inslee’s proposed supplemental budget contains roughly $137 million to hire additional nurses
luxury property in Mexico, defying a court order (Page A9). We’d like to know, too, because we’re starting to run out of ideas on how to spend $1.5 billion. Channel-surfing the vast cultural wasteland: Fox’s new drama, “Second Chance,” is about a Short Takes . .B10 Sports . . . . . . . C1
See STATE, Page A10
75-year-old sheriff who dies trying to stop a crime but is brought back to life as a younger version of himself by two tech billionaires (The Clicker, Page B10). Close. We’re completely behind the idea of using the power of our fortune for good, but we were hoping to bankroll a superhero.
—Jon Bauer, Herald staff
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