River Mill pickup tweaks, shuttle and ‘Rangers’ mascot proposal get support from Estacada RISE Committee

The RISE Committee heard updates from a parent pickup committee that has already implemented small, visible changes at River Mill and identified larger items for future work.

Danny and other committee members said two meetings produced immediate improvements: clearer lane markings at River Mill so two cars can drop off at once, crosswalk monitors stationed at both drop-off points, and a four-way stop that smoothed traffic flow. Committee members said these changes made morning drop-off noticeably safer and less stressful for parents.

"Just that little bit of feedback and the next week when I went to drop my student off at River Mill, there was a second line there that made it very clear," a committee member said, describing how simple operational changes reduced confusion.

The committee also highlighted larger proposals that received votes from families: a shuttle bus to connect schools (helpful for families with children at different campuses) and establishing durable signage and communication (videos, arrows on pavement) to prevent circulation problems. Staff said they will work with district leadership to assess feasibility.

Later in the meeting, Superintendent Carpenter floated changing every school's mascot to the 'Rangers'—Estacada Rangers, Clackamas River Rangers, Rivermill Rangers—to build a unified identity across programs. Committee members offered logo-variation ideas for different age groups and gave the idea an early endorsement, though no formal adoption was made.

The committee set the next meeting for March 25 at 6 p.m. and asked staff to return with implementation details for shuttle and signage options.