REDMOND, Ore. - The Oregon Department of Education released this week the preliminary Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) report required by No Child Left Behind (NCLB).   AYP is a key provision of NCLB Act signed into law by President George Bush in January 2002.  It is an annual determination of whether schools, districts and states have made progress toward the goal of having all students meets rigorous academic standards by 2014.  Oregon’s statewide reading and ... [full story]

Consumers need to dispose of a brand of extra lean ground beef linked to at least eight Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections cases in Oregon and Washington, public health officials announced today.  The products were sold in Northwest grocery stores in late July and early August. Both products were packaged in 16-ounce black trays and labeled as follows: • "Northwest Finest" brand Natural Ground Beef, 7% fat. The red and black label bears a UPC code ... [full story]

Central Oregon Unions Celebrate Third Annual Labor Day Picnic at Noon on Monday, September 3, in Pioneer Park, Bend Union members, their families, and all friends of working people and organized labor are invited to the third annual all-union Labor Day Picnic from Noon to 4 p.m., Monday, September 3, in Pioneer Park, on the banks of the Deschutes River just north of downtown Bend. The picnic is free. Pioneer Park is at the corner of ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - Congressional Democrats, back from a quick trip to Iraq, said U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus assured them the White House wouldn't write his upcoming report.Petraeus, the overall military commander in Iraq, and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker are scheduled next month to give Congress a definitive report on progress in the war.A number of news reports cited sources who said the report would actually be written by the Bush administration. A CNN ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - A conservative research group said a new report shows if current immigration trends continue, 105 million people will be added to the U.S. population by 2060.A release by the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies said the findings were "carefully modeled on earlier projections by the Census Bureau."The report, "100 Million More: Projecting the Impact of Immigration on the U.S. Population, 2007 to 2060," will be available online at cis.org, the center said.The report ... [full story]

SEOUL - The Taliban released its seven remaining South Korean hostages Thursday, ending a 43-day Afghanistan hostage crisis without a ransom being paid, a report said.South Korea promised to follow through with plans to pull its 200 troops from Afghanistan by the year's end as well as ban any more Christian missionaries from traveling to the war-torn country, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.Taliban fighters seized 23 South Korean missionaries on July 18 and killed ... [full story]

ATHENS, Greece - Most of the wildfires that ravaged southern Greece in recent days have been extinguished or brought under control.Only four areas, two in the Peloponnese and two on the island of Evia, were still being identified by the Greek government Thursday as "problems," Athens News Agency reported.The death toll from the country's wildfires held steady Thursday at 64.Thousands of Athens residents gathered Wednesday evening in the city's Syntagma Square for a silent protest ... [full story]

CHICAGO - Chicago police, including a SWAT team, surrounded a gunman believed holding several hostages in a First Commercial Bank branch.The attempted robbery was reported about 9:42 a.m. Acting Chicago Police Superintendent Dana Starks confirmed there was a hostage situation underway but didn't say whether any shots had been fired.He said FBI agents were on the scene.“We’re trying to establish contact right now with the offender in the bank,” said FBI Assistant Special-Agent-in-Charge William Monroe. ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., expressed regret regarding a dust-up he had last week with an airline baggage worker, CQ Today reported.The House Veterans’ Affairs Committee chairman faces misdemeanor assault and battery charges in connection with the Aug. 19 incident, which took place during a congressional trip to Iraq and Germany to study military service members’ transition to civilian life.Filner is accused of shoving a United Airlines employee at Dulles International Airport after ... [full story]

UNITED NATIONS - The discovery of old vials possibly containing poison gas sparked the evacuation of a U.N. office Thursday.The sealed vials containing samples from an Iraqi chemical weapons plant had apparently been in the U.N. office since 1996, a spokeswoman said.Although U.N. officials said the deadly phosgene in the sealed vials didn't pose a threat to workers, the office was evacuated nonetheless. Copyright © 2007, by United Press International. All Rights Reserved. [full story]