Portland Public Schools News

Students: Speak out on high schools!

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Portland Public Schools invites all high school and middle grade students to share their thoughts on plans for PPS’ High School System Design on Tuesday, Feb. 16, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Blanchard Education Service Center, 501 N. Dixon St.

Helping Haiti: Many methods, one goal

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Forget birthday gifts — a Portland Public Schools seventh-grader requests donations to Mercy Corps instead. A few miles away, a student sits in a school hall each morning collecting contributions. With quickness and creativity, these and hundreds of other students, staff members and families from across the school district are supporting earthquake-stricken Haiti.

Portland School Board hears resolution on High School System Design

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Superintendent Carole Smith on Monday, Feb. 8, is presenting a resolution asking the Portland School Board to endorse the rationale for High School System Design, core principles and design elements. After further community input and discussion, the board plans to vote on the resolution March 8.

Portland Public Schools declares impasse in negotiations with Portland Association of Teachers

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 -0800

After a tenth mediation session failed to produce a contract settlement Wednesday evening, the Portland School Board today announced that talks with the Portland Association of Teachers (PAT) have reached a point of impasse.

PPS TV and radio stations now streaming online

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Portland Public Schools’ television and radio content is now available wherever there is Internet access.

Nike awards $500,000 to PPS

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Portland Public Schools is one of three local districts to share in $1.1 million in grants from the Nike School Innovation Fund for the 2009-10 school year, Nike announced this week.

PPS signs on to state's Race to the Top application

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Portland Public Schools announced that it has submitted a document formally supporting Oregon’s Race to The Top grant application. The memorandum of understanding affirms the district’s commitment to improving student outcomes through an unprecedented level of federal support.

Board considers changes to Pathways, diploma requirements

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

The Portland School Board is considering changes to the high school graduation requirements around the Pathways program.

PPS students join tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Students from eight Portland Public Schools will sing and dance at a daylong community tribute to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday, Jan. 18. The 25th annual “Keep Alive the Dream” begins at 11 a.m. at Highland Christian Center, 7600 N.E. Glisan St. (map); admission is $5 or four nonperishable food items. Superintendent Carole Smith will be among the speakers.

Student-organized Battle of the Bands benefits PPS music

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Five bands – composed mostly of Portland Public Schools high school students – will perform in a student-organized Battle of the Bands to raise money for PPS music education at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22, at Backspace, 115 N.W. Fifth Ave.

School board studies high school design at five meetings

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

Portland Public Schools' initiative to better inspire, challenge and prepare high school students for college and career continues this month with discussions at the school board level.

Informational meetings kick off this week for ESL parents

Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0800

The ESL/Immersion Department will host nine meetings this month for families of English as a second language students to inform them about ESL programs and services, and ultimately, to strengthen the district-family partnership. [ Español ] | [ Tiếng Việt ] | [ Русский ] | [ 中文 ]

Program brings written word to life for PPS students

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

A visit to Wilson High School by an internationally known author went beyond a celebrity sighting for senior Elise Scribner. "Having an actual author come to a school not only boosts all the students, it makes you feel like you have an important school," Elise said of “Three Cups of Tea” author Greg Mortenson’s Dec. 14 visit through Writers in the Schools.

National conference gives parents educational support tools

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Education is a chair with four legs: students, schools, families and the community. That was one of the insights two Portland Public Schools parents brought home with them from a national conference in Atlanta.

Stakeholders meet to improve service to students, families in special education

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

More than 100 parents, community partners, educators and administrators involved in special education turned out for a major stakeholders meeting at the Memorial Coliseum to take the next step in improving the Portland Public Schools special education program, now called Integrated Student Support.

A challenge for our high schools

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Madison High School Principal Carla Randall and Grant High School Principal Joseph Malone address Portland Public Schools' High School System efforts in this essay in the Dec. 18 issue of The Oregonian.

High school principals in Portland share a conviction: All students deserve equal access to rigorous and engaging classes that prepare them to fulfill their dreams, whether they want to go to college or straight to work.

PPS employees team up to make student’s dream come true

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Adaptive PE teacher Katherine Lariza beams as she watches Eli Karn take a spin on his new recumbent bicycle.

Pulse: Vote on taxes coming in January

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Oregon voters will decide Jan. 26 on two tax measures that could indirectly affect Portland Public Schools’ budget. “Yes” votes on measures 66 and 67 would maintain the $726 million in taxes and current school funding. “No” votes could lead to as much as $23 million in reductions to PPS. There’s still time to register to vote.

Update on PAT contract negotiations

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Negotiators from Portland Public Schools and the Portland Association of Teachers met Dec. 10 for the fifth mediation session since late September. No settlement to the contract was reached.

Jefferson places second in football championship

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

The Jefferson Democrats played a hard fought game on Saturday, Dec. 5, falling to Hillsboro 20-6 in the 5A state football championship.

Three PPS schools among ‘America’s Best'

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Lincoln High School was named one of the top International Baccalaureate schools in the nation, and Metropolitan Learning Center and Pauling Academy of Integrated Sciences also won recognition, in U.S. News & World Report's annual rankings of America’s best high schools.

Hundreds of students to tour World Forestry Center

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

More than 600 Portland Public Schools students are touring the World Forestry Center this week for free, thanks to a $2,500 grant from the Autzen Foundation.

District accepting applications for K-5 math curriculum committee

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Applications are being accepted from community members for an advisory committee that will review K-5 math curriculum for Portland Public Schools.

Hockey game benefits Portland Schools Foundation

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Save money on tickets, compete for prizes, and support the Portland Schools Foundation by attending the Portland Winterhawks hockey game against the Tri-City Americans at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, at the Rose Quarter, 1 North Center Court St. (map).

Creative teachers go MAD for grants

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

A marionette theater, rose garden, rain-collecting water barrels and “noisy toys” are among the items that 11 Portland Public Schools teachers from 10 schools will be able to purchase or support thanks to funding from a homegrown grant entity.

School smarts earn PPS athletes recognition

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Five athletic teams from four PPS high schools – Cleveland, Grant, Madison and Marshall – received grades that put them in the top 10 statewide for their sport and class, earning them accolades from the Oregon School Activities Association.

Grant graduate nominated for Heisman Trophy

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Ndamukong Suh, a 2005 graduate of Grant High School, is a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, the most prestigious award in college football.

Food-filled backpacks combat hunger

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Aware that some students go home to bare cupboards, Harrison Park K-8 School secretary Vicki Penfield and nurse Carol Hill had an idea. As a result, students head into the weekend with backpacks full of food.

Five meetings remain on High School System design

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

Portland Public Schools is holding community meetings at every high school campus to discuss plans for the High School System and the offerings to be provided at every community school. Remaining meeting locations are Cleveland, Marshall, Wilson, Madison and Franklin high schools.

Federal grant helps boost Spanish language learning

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 12:00:00 -0800

With more teacher training, increased collaboration between schools and greater access to technology, Portland Public Schools is moving to strengthen its offerings for the nation’s most common, and fastest-growing, language other than English.