Nov. 15 Daily News editorial

Great effort pays off

Thumbs up: Amid gloomy economic news, this community has something to look forward to. After several years of planning and intensive fund-raising, a contract was signed this week for major renovation of the Columbia Theatre.

The historic hall will get wider seats, a bigger lobby, new bathrooms and numerous other improvements during the renovation to start next month. The restoration wouldn’t have happened without a huge effort by the theater’s board and staff, local politicians and officials who finessed the complicated financing required. They’re still trying to raise more money so that the theater is even nicer for performers and audiences when the curtain goes up again in 2010.

Bribery goes mainstream

Thumbs down: Parents and some school systems have been offering kids cash incentives for good grades for any number of years. But with the emphasis states now are placing on achievement test scores, the practice has gone mainstream, according to a recent report by Washington Post writer Bill Turque. Freshmen and sophomores at 20 Chicago high schools get $50 for each A in a five-week period. Middle schoolers in Washington, D.C., can earn up $100 every two weeks for behaving and earning top grades.

Call us old fashioned, but our instincts tell us this can’t be good in the long haul. Some academics agree. Researchers at the University of Rochester in New York looked at 128 studies on the effects of cash rewards on student motivation and concluded they undermine intrinsic motivation, especially among young students.

Help for the homeless

Thumbs up: Kudos to the Lower Columbia Community Action Program and others involved in establishing the Community Voice Mail service in Southwest Washington — the 12th such free voice mail system in the state.

CVM will provide a vital communication service for homeless and needy citizens in Cowlitz and Wahkiakum counties. Offered through local social service agencies, the service helps clients connected with churches, schools, friends and family, and makes scheduling and keeping doctor’s appointments more convenient. And CVM allows clients to keep in touch with potential employers. Job hunting gets a bit complicated when you can’t leave a call-back number.

Still no guarantees for air travelers

Thumbs down: A federal task force last week approve guidelines for airlines to consider when passengers are stranded in planes on the tarmac. But the task force — which was dominated by the airline industry — refused to impose any time limit on how long passengers can be kept waiting before the plane has to return to the gate.

Passenger rights advocates had hoped for a bit more consumer protection. They’d recommended a three-hour time limit — twice the 90-minute limit Canadian airlines have agreed to follow. Instead, the task force’s recommended guidelines included such things as making “reasonable efforts” to keep restrooms on the planes usable during the wait.