The JPR news team gathers for The Debrief, a roundtable recap of the top stories reporters have worked on. This week's top stories are:
Commissioner John West recalled in Josephine County
Preliminary results from Tuesday night show that almost a third of voters in the county participated in the recall election, removing Commissioner John West with 62% of the vote.
Huge anonymous donation helps Ashland School District temporarily avoid fiscal crisis
Ashland School District had been on track to be in the hole by over $1 million at the end of this fiscal year.
Southwestern Oregon saw 30% increase in overdose deaths last year
Finalized data released by the Oregon Health Authority this month shows over 300 people died from overdose in Southwestern Oregon last year, an increase of 30% from 2022.
Many Oregon students find it hard to return to school since COVID
"Students that are chronically absent year after year, they get out of sync with their peers," said Jeff Bullock, school improvement director with the Klamath County School District. "They fall behind academically."