School board meets Monday at Jefferson High School
The Portland School board will go offsite to Jefferson High School for its meeting Monday, Jan. 14. The meeting, part of a weeklong showcase of Jefferson, will start at 7 p.m. with a performance by the Jefferson SUN School Gospel Ensemble. The board is slated to vote whether Portland Public Schools will join school districts across Oregon in enacting a construction excise tax, as authorized by the 2007 Legislature. The tax, which would apply to new construction and building expansions on residential and nonresidential properties, would vary in collections, depending on construction activity in the PPS area. It could raise several million dollars in a typical year to help fund projects in the school district's long-range facilities plan. Also on the agenda: approval of a five-year contract with PPS substitute teachers, and board election of co-chairs for the upcoming six months. Jefferson is located at 5210 N. Kerby Ave. For the board agenda and supporting materials, go to http://www.board.pps.k12.or.us and click on “Meetings.”
Jefferson becomes mayor's office for a week
At the invitation of students, Mayor Tom Potter and his staff will relocate to Jefferson High School from Monday, Jan. 14, through Friday, Jan. 18. Students will get a firsthand look at the inner workings of local government as the mayor's office conducts all usual business from the school. Highlights include a student showcase Monday, two City Council meetings Wednesday, a parent and community open house Thursday night and the Mayor's State of the City speech Friday. In addition, the PPS Board of Education will hold its regular meeting Monday night at the school. The public is invited; for a complete listing of the week's activities, go here.
Third-graders get going and growing at Kelly School
Kelly Elementary School students are developing their gardening and bicycling skills this year through an innovative after-school program sponsored by the Portland nonprofit Growing Gardens. The 30 third-graders involved in the Team Grow Project club are tending plants at a school garden and working with bicycles. “It's a first-in-the-nation program,” says project organizer Caitlin Blethen. “While gardening and biking might at first seem odd partners, they both encourage a healthy lifestyle that is crucial to establish early on.” [Read more]
What do we want for schools in our neighborhoods?
Four meetings this month offer a chance for students, staff, parents and neighbors to learn more about the state of Portland Public Schools' buildings... and to weigh in on whether they should be repaired, renovated or replaced. The meetings will gather community sentiment as the school district and School Board develop a long-range facilities plan. Sessions in four parts of the city will discuss options for schools in those areas: Jan. 15 at Jefferson High School (north), Jan. 16 at Wilson High School (west), Jan. 22 at Madison High School (northeast) and Jan. 23 at Franklin High School (southeast). All meetings will be held from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. [Read more]
Superintendent addresses Legislature on full-day kindergarten
Superintendent Carole Smith is one of four Oregon school superintendents invited to testify about full-day kindergarten before a legislative committee Monday, Jan. 14. Recent advisory opinions from state lawyers question the legality of charging parents for full-day kindergarten programs, as PPS now does in 23 schools serving some 1,250 kindergartners. (Another 35 schools offer full-day programs at no cost to parents, using federal anti-poverty dollars.) The Oregon Legislature is preparing to meet in a February supplemental session and is considering potential legislation to resolve legal issues around full-day parent-paid kindergarten. The Senate Interim Committee on Education and General Government meets at 1 p.m. Monday in Hearing Room A of the Oregon State Capitol in Salem. The public is invited to provide testimony on the legislative concepts. For more information and the committee agenda, go to: http://www.leg.state.or.us/07reg/agenda/webagendas.htm.
MLC's ‘heartbeat’ honored for her dedication to students
Forty years ago, Ruth Frankel helped create the Metropolitan Learning Center. Her duties have changed over the years, but she's still going strong at Portland Public School's only K-12 school. For her dedication, she recently was honored by the Northwest Portland community. [Read more]
District's surplus food feeds hungry, saves landfill fees
Many school cafeterias face a dilemma as they prepare for extended breaks: What to do with leftover perishable foods? Portland Public Schools, working with local organizations, keeps the food from going to waste, distributing thousands of pounds of food — from salad fixings to pizza rolls — to hungry people in our community. [Read more]
Grown-up spelling bee helps Portland youngsters
Schoolhouse Supplies, a free store for Portland teachers, will hold its annual Wells Fargo Celebrity Spelling Bee on Thursday, Jan. 31, in the Portland Art Museum Grant Ballroom. Guaranteed to shake off the new-year doldrums, the spelling bee has become a tradition for Portlanders who want to support students, refine their spelling skills from the safety of their seats and enjoy the city's celebrities as they display their own spelling prowess. [Read more]
Conference offers tips on increasing involvement in schools
Interested in increasing parent and community involvement in our public schools? Participate in a free parent leadership conference sponsored by Community & Parents for Public Schools, the morning of Saturday, Feb. 9, at Benson High School, 546 N.E. 12th Ave. Attendees will hear from PPS Superintendent Carole Smith and Portland Schools Foundation Executive Director Connie Van Brunt, and will participate in workshops designed to pass along useful tactics and strategies they can take back to their schools. Free child care and translation services are available. To register or learn more, go to http://www.cppsportland.org/plc.
Portland Public Schools — under one roof!
Anyone attending, considering or curious about our schools is invited to Celebrate! Portland Public Schools, the annual all-PPS showcase of schools from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 2, at the Portland Expo Center, 2060 N. Marine Drive. Every school and program in the district will be represented, and Celebrate! will feature student dance and music performances, an exhibition of student artwork and a full-size replica of a kindergarten classroom. High schools will highlight their sports programs, language centers, clubs and scholastic achievements. [Read more]
Goats get a reading lesson to fund family's education
Celebrating the holiday giving spirit with a whimsical twist, first–graders at Rigler Elementary School read books to a pair of goats to help a developing-nation family send its kids to school. With each book read, students raised money that will allow the family to purchase goats, providing a source of income to support its children's education. [Read more]
Seven-hour tribute honors Martin Luther King Jr.
Jefferson High School's Jefferson Dancers and Jefferson SUN School Gospel Ensemble, Boise-Eliot Elementary School's choir and Woodlawn Elementary School's Kúkátónón African Dance Troupe are among the performers in Portland's annual tribute to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., “Keep Alive the Dream,” on Monday, Jan. 21, at Highland Christian Center, 7600 N.E. Glisan St. The celebration runs from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., with the public invited to drop in at any time. A donation of $4 or four cans of nonperishable food is requested. [Read more]
PPS receives federal school choice grant
Portland Public Schools has received one of 14 highly competitive grants from the U.S. Department of Education to prepare at–risk students for college and help parents navigate the school choice system. Funding from the five–year Voluntary Public School Choice grant also will explore expanding or replicating successful programs in the school district. [Read more]
Attack on junk food earns PPS employee national award
PPS Nutrition Services Director Kristy Obbink is one of five leaders in the country to earn top honors from the National School Nutrition Association, recognizing her team's progressive policies and changes that have improved food served to Portland students. Award organizers say that Obbink's elimination of snack foods in schools, her influential support for state-legislated school nutrition standards and Farm to School funding, and her careful budget management made her an outstanding candidate for the Foodservice Achievement Management Excellence Award, which she will receive Jan. 13. [Read more]
National group praises PPS nutrition policy
Portland Public Schools' nutrition policy is highlighted in the latest edition of the American Association of School Administrators newsletter, “Healthy Learning News.” The story credits former Superintendent Vicki Phillips and Nutrition Services Director Kristy Obbink with putting PPS “well ahead of the curve” nationally in school meal quality, healthfulness and accessibility. To download the newsletter, go to http://www.aasa.org/files/PDFs/Focus/HLNNews%5FWeb%2Epdf.
High school sophomores offered a unique chance to lead
Applications are being accepted for an innovative program that offers PPS 10th-graders the opportunity to engage with city and community leaders and to develop their own relationship and leadership skills. The Emerging Leadership Program is open to all sophomores; students of color, those from lower-income homes, as well as students not previously active in leadership positions, are strongly encouraged to apply. [Read more]
Aspiring Spielbergs and Van Sants: Enter the PPS Film Festival
PPS students in grades 4-12 are invited to participate in the eighth annual Portland Public Schools Film Festival. Deadline for entries is April 2, with selected films to air at the festival's big screen on May 29 at the Hollywood Theatre. More information is available at http://www.ppsfilmfest.com, or contact festival founders (and PPS teachers) Matt Gilley and Phil Walker, at mgilley@pps.k12.or.us and plwalker@pps.k12.or.us.
Soccer girls, football boys wrap seasons on high note
Capping a fall sports season that held both bumps and bright spots for Portland Interscholastic League athletes, Lincoln High School girls (Lincoln team pictured with Portland City Council) took first place in the 6A state soccer championships and two PPS football players, from Grant and Roosevelt, earned top honors. [Read more]
New classroom materials up for consideration: health, PE, social studies and world languages
Families, staff and community members are invited to two meetings this month on new curriculum materials for Portland Public Schools. On Thursday, Jan. 24, three advisory committees will present their work thus far regarding materials adoptions in preK-12 health, preK-12 physical education and grades 6-8 social studies. On Tuesday, Jan. 29, the adoption process will begin for grades 8-12 world languages. The purpose of adoption is a common set of materials that all schools use as their primary resource for teaching. [Read more]
