Volume 7, Number 191, September 1, 2026

VOLUME 7, NUMBER 191
Tuesday, September 1, 2026

Good morning, Philomath.

Students are headed back to school this week and we have a school-by-school report after asking principals about enrollment, budget cuts, staffing and programs. We have a team preview on Philomath High’s girls soccer, which will be playing at home this afternoon in its season opener. We also have a preview on the boys soccer team, which enters this season with a new coach. This week’s Philomath Police Log includes a felony assault arrest. The Philomath Fire and Rescue Calls include responses to a small wildland fire. Quick reminder — there is a dedication event this morning at 11 a.m. at Dale Collins Memorial Park. — Brad Fuqua, Publisher/Editor

Editor’s Choice

Back to school: Principals detail enrollment, staffing and new programs for 2026-27

As Philomath students head back to class this week, principals across the district say budget cuts and reduction-in-force decisions made earlier this year are shaping […]

News

Philomath Police Log: Felony assault arrest, 2 hit-and-run incidents

Philomath’s weekly police log for Aug. 21-27 covers a felony assault arrest, two hit-and-run crashes, a sex offense report and a phone scam attempt.

Fire and Rescue Calls: Small wildland fire, crashes with injuries, assistance at Polk County blaze

Philomath Fire and Rescue battled a wildland fire, assisted at Polk County’s Elkins Fire, and responded to two crashes during the week of Aug. 21-27.

Oregon universities brace for international enrollment drop following visa delays, Trump policies

Ahead of the fall semester at Oregon’s largest public universities, staff are helping students from around the world navigate challenging visa delays and uncertainty over […]

Oregon labor department urges feds to continue collecting workforce demographic data

Oregon’s employment rights agency is joining a coalition of states in opposing the federal government’s move to rescind a 60-year-old rule used to inform antidiscrimination […]

The states where Americans are most likely to know their neighbors by name

If TV shows are to be believed, there are communities in the U.S. where people just walk into each other’s homes for a coffee or […]

Sports

Girls soccer season preview: Philomath eyes another run at conference title

Philomath High School’s girls soccer team enters a new season with a familiar issue — replacing production from a group that went 14-2-1 a year […]

Boys soccer season preview: Philomath sets sights on tough conference

Gerardo Garibay is three months into his tenure as Philomath High School’s boys soccer coach, and if Thursday’s home jamboree was any indication, the culture […]

Philomath in Photos

**TUESDAY, SEPT. 1, 2026:** The Root Vegetables, a Philomath-based group, plays to a packed house at the Willamette Grange on Saturday night. (Photo by Eric Niemann)

Community Calendar

Tuesday, Sept. 1
• Benton County Board of Commissioners Meeting, 9 a.m.
• Dale Collins Memorial Park Ribbon Cutting, 11 a.m.
• Philomath Rotary Club Meeting, noon
• PHS Girls Soccer vs. Marist Catholic, 4 p.m.
• Philomath Park Advisory Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m.
• Benton County Planning Commission Meeting, 6 p.m.
• PHS Girls Volleyball at Marist Catholic, 6 p.m.
• Philomath Community Meal, 6-7 p.m.
• Yoga at the Grange, 6 p.m.
• PHS Boys Soccer at Marist Catholic, 6:30 p.m.
• Philomath Evening Book Club, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Sept. 2
• Philomath Area Chamber of Commerce Greeters, 8:30 a.m.
• Quilts From Caring Hands, 9 a.m.-noon
• Philomath Storytime at the Library, 10:30 a.m.
• Philomath Lions Club Meeting, noon
• Dementia Warriors Support Group Meeting, 2:30-4 p.m.
• BUILD IT Day at Library, 3:30 p.m.
• Marys River Grange No. 685 Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

Editor’s Choice

News

Sports

Philomath in Photos

In Case You Missed It

Community Calendar