104 YEARS
Moose Loose Valley volunteers help twin moose return to the wild. B7
Teton Valley News - November 14, 2013 - Page A1
L is for Lava It’s still off season. Try relaxing at Lava Hot Springs. B1
War Cry Get the student scoop. Teton High School newspaper printed inside. C1
Teton Valley News empowering the community
104th Year 46th Week • 75¢
T h u r s d a y, N o v e m b e r 1 4 , 2 0 1 3
You can’t read that Parents challenge required reading, ‘Bless Me, Ultima’ suspended at Teton High
The English department Jason Suder TVN staff unanimously selected to eachers of the Teton include this piece on the High School Engsophomores’ required readlish department sat ing list, a decision endorsed timidly discussing the fate by High School Principal of their classroom freedoms Frank Mello. Since Sunday, Tuesday afternoon. The preNov. 3, fierce debate has vious night, at the Novemenshrouded this decision ber school board meeting, that began with a Facebook Superintendant Monte post by Shaylee Kearsley. Woolstenhulme decided to Kearsley’s post read, suspend the novel “Bless Me, “Those parents that have Ultima” from the required sophomores in Mrs. Pence’s reading list for sophomores class, they are reading a teruntil further research is conrible book called Bless Me, ducted. Ultima. Please scan through The classic Chicano comthe book, ask your child. It is ing-of-age story centers on a a terrible book and my son young boy’s growth through will not read another page his family influence and his of it. This is a mandatory understanding of good and read. They are half way done evil. Since its publication, it with it. We will be talking to has become the seminal ficthe principal and Mrs. Pence tion in the Chicano literary tomorrow about banning the canon. book.(ed.)” English Teacher Jason Ruff noted that this While a protocol does exist for raising grievtext was part of his summer reading program for ances against controversial teaching, the school ten years while he taught in Bakersfield, Calif. board has put teaching the book on hold until The English department built a list of reasons the December board meeting. In the interim for selecting the novel. The tenth point reads, “The novel can fit thematically into several class- period they will review the novel, giving the room units: search for identity, good versus evil, school board a chance to read the novel. Curcoming of age, nature, faith, the supernatural, rently, students can check the novel out in the the environment, Chicano literature, ethnic lit- library or continue reading the book through their independent reading list. erature, myth.” “I think the whole thing was handled badly,” However, the novel’s use of expletives, specifiMary Madsen, elementary teacher and mother cally the “f” word and premarital sex, have been of two at Teton High School, told the TVN. met with a grievous backlash by the community. “I think this is a valuable book with valuable “There are specific protocol for complaints … and lessons and our English department would not I feel like the teaching should continue until the have chosen it if it weren’t,” said sophomore grievances, that process, were handled properly.” In a 40-minute meeting between the English English teacher Susan Pence. Bless Me continued on A10
T
Health insurance benefits mixed bag Bridget Ryder TVN staff The effects of the We’re just small Affordable Care Act, also enough that we don’t known as Obamacare, on get the clout in numhealth insurance plans and premiums is a mixed bag bers to get the rates of fortunes in Teton Valley. that our employees Valley Advocates for would like to have Responsible Development is a well-known land conand that our hospital servation advocacy group in can afford to pay. the valley, but the employ___________________ ees of the non-profit may Anne Loyola, have had good reason to Teton Valley Health Care advocate for health care reforms. Going into 2014 their insurance premiums will drop, if only for one reason—insurance companies can no longer factor gender into their premiums. All three full-time employees, for which the organization provides a group health care plan, are females in their 30s. According to Stacey Frisk, VARD’s executive director, she and her two female co-workers had premiums two to three times higher than the average for males in the same age group. Frisk expected their rates to go up this year, but their premiums went down, and Frisk found even lower premiums for comparable individual coverage on the state health exchange. However, the county’s staff, according to county clerk Marly Lou Hansen, had been expecting a 15 percent jump in premiums, but ended up with only a 6 percent increase. According to Hansen, a 6 percent increase is pretty normal. In her six years working for the county she has seen increases as high as 15 percent in one year. Teton Valley Health Care has decided to drop its corporate health insurance plan. The hospital faced a 24 percent increase in its premiums for 2014 because of overall high utilization. “We’re just small enough that we don’t get the clout in numbers to get the rates that our employees would like to have and that our hospital can afford to pay,” Loyola said. The hospital based its decision on research. The hospital doesn’t know or want to know the total family incomes of its employees, but it ran the salaries it does pay employees through several analysis and each showed that employees would be able to get better coverage at a better price through private insurance or the state health exchange. Insurance continued on A10
Drictor is Stock’d for ski Season
TVN Photo/Jason Suder
Lucas and Felix Stock relax with their ski team teammate McKenna between exercises on Monday, Nov. 11.
citizen since she was ten, didn’t grow up too far from Jason Suder TVN staff Opportunity abounds in small towns without the ski racing herself. Her father was the race director at Ski metropolitan distractions, and in true Horatio Alger, Windham in New York. With the shared passion, their boys Lucas and Felix the American Dream is alive and well in Teton Valley. A tightknit, Austrian family of four has found their were bound to ensue. They tried public school, but with a nitch teaching ski racing with the strict discipline of the focus on ski racing, they began missing too much school old country and a new world perspective centering on fun. and this became a bullying point for the boys. Now, Markus and Dagi Stock came to the valley in 2007, under strict parental scrutiny, they are educated remotely bringing their infant boys and only a few euros along through the Boise-based Inspire Connections Academy. Every morning they wake up to Markus checking with them. Markus grew up with racing in his blood; their reposed pace, and then they get scooted out of the his cousin Leonhard Stock took the gold in downhill skiing at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. Dagi, a dual Stock family continued on A10 I n d e x Weather....................... A3
Puzzle...........................B5
Letters......................... A5
Classifieds.................. B13
Valley Views................ A5
Service Directory....... A11
Community News....... A8
Legals......................... B15
Calendar.......................B8
Find us on the web @ t e t o n va l l e y n e w s . n e t