Latest news with #PortlandPublicSchools
Yahoo
a day ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Portland Public Schools to release 3 hours early Monday due to high heat
PORTLAND, Ore. () — Portland Public Schools announced they will be releasing all students three hours early on Monday, June 9, due to high heat. 'Check on friends, family' in record-heat spells With temperatures once again expected to hit above 90 degrees on Monday, PPS officials said in a that 'the sustained high temperatures and limited overnight cooling present significant health and safety concerns, especially in our schools without air conditioning.' The early release times are listed below: Elementary schools – 11:30 a.m. K-8 schools – 12:30 p.m. Middle schools – 1 p.m. High schools – 12:30 p.m. 'This decision prioritizes the wellbeing of students and staff, ensuring that everyone can return home safely before the hottest part of the day,' PPS officials said. After-school activities sponsored by the district will also be canceled, including childcare services. Athletic programs will follow and make decisions about practices and activities. Students will be served meals before being dismissed from schools, officials said. PPS has about their heat safety response. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Early results: Voters favoring PPS $1.8B bond
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The early results show voters are in favor of the $1.8 billion dollar bond for Portland Public Schools. . show 53.69% of those who voted in favor of the bond, with 46.31% opposed. More results will come throughout the night. Just minutes after the first vote tallies were released, PPS officials released statements showing their belief the bond will ultimately pass. 'We are incredibly grateful to the Portland community for once again standing with our students and saying yes to the future of public education. The passage of the 2025 school bond reflects a shared belief that every child deserves to learn in a school that is safe, modern, and designed for success,' PPS Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong said. 'This bond allows us to move forward with modernizing Jefferson, Cleveland, and Ida B. Wells-Barnett High Schools, while also delivering critical upgrades across campuses, from safety improvements to new roofs, climate systems, and classroom updates. These investments directly support student success by creating environments where students and educators can focus, connect, and thrive.' PPS Board Chair Eddie Wang added: 'We deeply appreciate Portland voters for believing in our students and placing their trust in this board. By passing this bond, our community has reinforced its commitment to public education and to creating safe, modern, and inspiring spaces where every student can thrive.' On Monday night, the PPS Board voted to approve the superintendent's $2 billion proposed budget. However, the district still faces a $40 million budget shortfall that has led . The teachers union says passing the $1.8 billion dollar bond would help reduce some of the proposed cuts. It would also go toward modernizing Cleveland, Jefferson and Ida B. Wells high schools. Despite the potential help from the bond, Portland Association of Teachers President Angela Bonilla with the teachers' union says the state needs to step up. 'We need the legislature to step up. And then what we need from them is to invest every single dollar they possibly can to direct student services,' Bonilla said. Stay with KOIN 6 News as we continue to follow this story. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
PPS Superintendent discusses 2025-2026 budget proposal
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Portland Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong laid out her proposal for the 2025-2026 school year at a press conference Wednesday morning, a proposal which includes laying off hundreds of positions in the district. At the event, Armstrong spoke on the current deficit the district is facing, $40 million, and the fact that this is the district's third straight year facing a deficit. She also shared that the current budget reflects tough decisions being made with students as their central focus. Proposal to make Portland Street Response its own standalone unit moves forward According to Armstrong, when it comes to layoffs, the central office is taking the biggest hit and in total, they are looking at a reduction of at least 240, which includes layoffs, vacant positions and teachers who are retiring and will not be replaced. 'We are making sure that our classrooms have all the essential services to be successful,' said Armstrong. 'That we are continuing with high-quality instruction, materials that our standards align, and making sure that we are providing wrap-around supports to our students who need it most. We still believe that Portland Public Schools is the best option and choice for families in our community, and we are going to continue to uplift those experiences.' When asked about some of the key reasons for the budget deficit, Armstrong said that the district has been seeing declining enrollment and that schools receive funding on a per-student basis. She also said that the district has been affected by rising costs. PPS Chief Financial Officer Michelle Morrison emphasized that this current budget proposal is only preliminary and that it will be revised. Next week at Grant High School, PPS is hosting a Board Budget Public Comment Session meant to allow the public to voice their input to the board on next year's budget. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Fox News
04-04-2025
- Sport
- Fox News
Trans track athlete wins varsity girls competition after previously placing last against JV boys: report
A transgender athlete took home first place in a varsity high jump competition at an Oregon high school meet Wednesday, roughly two years after finishing last while competing against junior varsity boys, according to a report. Lia Rose, who reportedly used to compete as Zachary, won the high jump at the Portland Interscholastic League Varsity Relays with a height of 4 feet, 8 inches, beating the second-place finisher by two inches. According to while competing against JV boys May 3, 2023, Zachary Rose finished 11th out of 11 competitors with a jump of 4 feet, 6 inches. The winning height in that meet was another foot higher. According to online records, Zachary Rose competed in the boys category in 2023. The following year, Lia Rose also competed in the same category. But this year, Lia Rose was listed as competing in the girls category. In 2024, Lia mostly competed against JV boys, with a top finish of second place and a personal record of 5 feet even. Zachary competed as a sophomore in track with a top finish of second in a JV 3,000-meter race, but there were only two competitors. Zachary lost by over a minute. Lia's 4-foot, 8-inch mark from Wednesday is listed as a "personal record." A spokesperson from Portland Public Schools was unable to confirm or deny that Lia and Zachary are the same person, citing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act "to protect student privacy." Lia's victory comes roughly two weeks after Ada Gallagher, a trans track athlete in the Portland area, blew out the competition. Gallagher, a state champion last year, finished at 57.62 in the 400 meters, with Franklin High School's Kinnaly Souphanthong coming in second at 1:05.72. Gallagher's teammate, Quinnan Schaefer, was behind Souphanthong at 1:07.13. In the 200-meter race, Gallagher finished in first place at 25.76, followed by teammate Addyson Skyles at 27.31. Both times for Gallagher were season bests. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Portland considers adding Yom Kippur, Eid al-Fitr to school calendar
Apr. 2—Portland students and staff could have two new days off from school next year: the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur in October and the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr in March. The Portland school board has been workshopping an updated 2025-26 school calendar over the past two weeks. Adding the two holidays would be an acknowledgement of the district's growing religious diversity, according to district leadership, but will also cost $65,000 per day. The board will take a final vote on the calendar Tuesday. "The point of this is to recognize the rich diversity of our community, and to have our calendar reflect that there is significant religious diversity withing our school system and our larger community," said Sarah Warren, executive director of strategy, at last week's Curriculum and Policy Committee meeting. She said the push for the added holidays originally came from students. The proposed calendar also includes tweaks to the winter break schedule and professional development days for teachers. Because Eid al-Fitr could take place on either March 19 or 20 next year, Portland will pair the holiday with a professional development day, and whichever date is determined not to be Eid will still be a day off from school, allowing families to plan in advance. Maine law requires districts to have at least 175 instructional days for students and at least 180 school-functioning days for teachers. Each additional holiday would cost the district $65,000 because they would add a paid holiday for hourly staff like ed techs. Warren said the district would plan to find money in the operating budget for those costs, rather than proposing new expenses. Warren said the district also considered adding other holidays — including Lunar New Year, a nonreligious holiday celebrated in China and other Asian countries, and Good Friday, part of the Christian Holy Week — but isn't suggesting those additions at this point. "We just decided to start with these two and see where that takes us," Warren said. "This was an effort to try and at least build some diversity into the calendar in recognition of different religions' holidays, but doesn't clearly get all of it." All of the holidays observed in Portland school calendar currently are either federal, state or related to the Christian faith. Portland Public Schools doesn't know how many of its students are Muslim or Jewish, because it doesn't keep data on religious affiliations. But Census data shows the population of Muslims in the Portland area is growing. About 3.67% of people in Cumberland County are Muslim, according to the 2020 U.S. Religion Census. The Portland-South Portland metropolitan area is the 23rd-largest metro area of Muslims in the country as of 2020, with a 2.02% Muslim population — a massive rise from 311th in 2010. About 0.62% of people in Cumberland County, and around 0.37% of people in the greater Portland-South Portland metro area, are Jewish according to the 2020 religion census. Lewiston Public Schools added two Muslim holidays, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, to its school calendar in 2021 and was the first district in the state to do so. Lewiston's superintendent said at the time that more than 40% of the district's students and staff recognize and observe the holidays. Portland school board District 2 Board Member Ali Ali observed the growing number of Muslims on local government bodies and in the area. "Having to miss school on those specific days and then having to re-make it was really ... it was a lot," Ali said, although he said he also understood the financial drawbacks. The $130,000 price tag for the new calendar did receive concern from some committee members, although an amendment to convert the holidays to half-days did not receive support to move forward. Another amendment to add Good Friday also did not progress. There was little discussion about the calendar when the school board workshopped it Tuesday night. Board Chair Sarah Lentz said she was excited to support the added holidays. "I think that there's still a disconnect between the ways that we schedule things in schools and the major holidays that our students are celebrating. And so I think that this operationalizes us to think about Ramadan and to think about the High Holidays in the Jewish religion in a different way, that our previous calendar has done around major Christian holidays," she said. A couple of public commenters, like Lara Rosen, spoke about their support for the changes, and described them as a step toward equity. "As somebody who grew up Jewish in a very non-Jewish community, that was not something that I ever experienced," Rosen said. "And I would love for my kiddo, and his Muslim friends, and his Jewish friends, to also be able to have those holidays recognized and have that cultural history and religious experience recognized by the district." Copy the Story Link We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others. We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion. 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