School closures

Portland Public Schools are at a turning point. In many ways, the Portland District seems near collapse. Glaring funding inequities plague the poorest neighborhoods of Portland, with public schools closed and merged and buildings leased out to the highest parochial school bidder. Schools are segregated economically and racially — especially in middle and high schools — to a degree disproportionate to neighborhood populations.

We need a New Deal for PPS. I have more exploration of the problem and suggestions for a solution on my
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Please wish our community well as we journey from our beloved Rose City Park School to the newly named Roseway Heights (K-8) at Gregory Heights Middle School. It is ironic that on the 100th anniversary of the Rose Festival we would be closing the school named in part to honor this tradition. It is also ironic that they should be considering a bond to build new schools while closing so many architecturally significant old ones. What will become of this elegant brick lady? Condos? McMenamin's? Charter? It's closure has left a 7 mile gap bereft of any public elementary. Goodbye Rose City Park.
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Hi, I've just posted this on on my blog, and thought I might share it here. My apologies in advance if this is not appropriate for posting here.

Portland was once admired among cities for the fact that the middle classes had not yet given up on its public schools. But after a series of ballot measures in the '90s requiring severe property tax limitations, a major economic downturn, and a complete lack of leadership from two Democratic governors (not to mention a Republican state house with a strong libertarian bias against public anything), Portland's public schools seem to be throwing in the towel.

Today, in part one, I focus on the funding crisis.
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It's time for residents of Portland to speak out against the 400-600 "school size policy" -- I put it in quotes since there is no official school size policy, just a philosophy. This size requirement is being used to disrupt, uproot, consolidate and/or close great schools simply because they have fewer than 400 students.

Please sign the petition:
http://www.petitiononline.com/smallsch/petition.html

This petition will be presented to the Board and Superintendent at an upcoming meeting, so please add your voice:
http://www.petitiononline.com/smallsch/petition.html
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In today’s Oregonian, Scott Learn reports on last night’s school board meeting: "Portland postpones shuffle in Southeast."

It appears the “reshuffling” of Clark, closure of Binnsmead, and forced growth of Winterhaven and Creative Science School will simply be delayed, but the basic decisions are unchanged. Giving communities more time to make transitions is nice, but the plan itself is deeply flawed.

The Neighborhood Schools Alliance has been begging for nearly 2 years for PPS to treat neighborhood schools and focus options equitably. But you know what? We meant treat neighborhood schools with the same respect and consideration that had traditionally been shown to focus options. We didn’t mean, start treating focus options just as badly as you do us. But sadly, that is what PPS has started to do.
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In today's Oregonian article "Parents of magnet schools' kids mystified by siting proposals," Scott Learn writes that Superintendent Vicki Phillips "said....that the district has a clear mandate that all schools must reach a certain size"--namely, I assume, the 400-600 size that is being imposed on some (but not yet all) schools.

When was this "clear mandate" developed, and by whom? At what point was there a public process to discuss this "mandate" that is changing our entire system of neighborhood schools and thus our city?

Like the sudden, seismic shift last spring to a world in which K-8 is the "preferred" model, this "mandate" lacked any meaningful public input or Board deliberation.
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Below is the Dec. 8 press release from PPS communications--can anyone in these affected schools post a comment or blog with your thoughts, explaining what this all means? What do folks think of the options? Decisions will be made at the Mon. Dec. 11 Board meeting.

BINNSMEAD AND WINTERHAVEN OPTIONS
In a facilitated conversation over the summer and fall, parents from Binnsmead Middle School, Bridger and Clark elementary schools and the Creative Science School focus program (now at Bridger) grappled with the charge of finding a way for each elementary program to grow to K-8 while phasing out the Binnsmead middle school program.
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