The Lincoln women who testified at tonight’s board meeting and encouraged board members to close schools prompted me to revisit some data. 

Lincoln, Grant, Wilson and Cleveland are viewed as “successful schools” but what students are successful at those schools?  The data below is for Lincoln but Grant and Wilson look similar.

• Black students accounted for 6% of Lincoln’s population but 17% of the discipline incidents (08/09)
• 89% of the white students, 68% of the Hispanic students and 61% of the Black students were receiving grades of  C or higher (08/09)
• Students taking above grade level coursework – 57% of White students, 24% of Black students and 36% of free lunch students (08/09)
• Only 50% of the students on free/reduced lunch met the Math AYP target (08/09)
• Limited English Proficient student graduation rate is 25% (07/08)

As for the argument that fewer campuses mean more opportunities for all students….well maybe not at Lincoln.  Black students only make up 3% of the Lincoln students taking AP/IB or PSU courses. 

Still, the women testifying before the board tonight think students of color and poor students should sacrifice so Lincoln students (wealthier white students) can continue to have more than everyone else.

The following story is from the Oregonian archives:

District aims wrecking ball at Whitaker
History – The school board OKs borrowing $2.1 million to raze what’s become an eyesore
Thursday, August 24, 2006
PAIGE PARKER

Vandals inspired by Whitaker Middle School’s vacant, dimly lit hulk have made a mess out of a building already burdened with one of Portland’s messiest pasts.  This week, the Portland School Board pledged again to clean it up, giving district officials the go-ahead to borrow $2.1 million to raze the building.

Wrecking crews could begin knocking down the Northeast Portland school in early November, said Kerry Hampton, the district’s property manager. It could take as long as three months to completely clear the site, he said.

Marcia Taylor, who has lived across the street from the school since 1974, says she’ll be relieved to be rid of the building. Three of her children attended the school when it was Adams High School.

“It’s just really been a shame,” Taylor said. “It was just a beautiful school when it was built.”

Students haven’t attended the school since district leaders closed it in 2001. Whitaker was built in 1966 with windows that didn’t open, a flaw that contributed to the buildup of radon. A leaky roof and lack of ventilation encouraged the growth of toxic mold, and a host of other structural problems made the 268,899-square-foot building too costly to repair.

And though the community uses the adjacent track and grounds, the school itself is riddled with graffiti and garbage, and boards cover most of the windows.

Whitaker neighborhood students now attend Tubman Middle School, a seven-mile haul across the city by bus. Apart from the toll that traveling takes on students, leaving the school vacant has cost taxpayers. Since 2002, the district has spent just shy of $700,000 in maintenance, utilities and insurance for the empty building.

The district will borrow the demolition money, Hampton said, because interest on the loan will cost as much or less than the district now spends maintaining the building. After the building is gone, the district intends to sell the southern 5.8 acres of the approximately 10-acre site to a residential developer. Hampton estimates that the land will bring in at least enough to repay the loan, with as much as $787,000 left over.

But construction of a replacement school, which former Superintendent Jim Scherzinger promised five years ago, will have to wait. Portland Public Schools’ construction bond expired in 2005, and the district doesn’t have money to replace the school.

The school board passed a resolution in 2005 that sets aside half of the proceeds from the future sale of Washington High School for capital improvements at the Whitaker site. With an elementary school costing between $12 million and $15 million, and a middle school ranging from $18 million to $23 million, the district must raise much more to replace Whitaker.

Michelle Ovando, chairwoman of the Concordia Neighborhood Association, said neighbors hope the district sells to developers who will build affordable homes that fit in with the neighborhood.

“We’re anxious to get that school brought down. It draws in gang activity and drug activity,” Ovando said. “It’s a big building and easy to hide behind.”

Tonight I watched the rerun of last Thursday’s public hearing and work session and I couldn’t help but notice some of the inconsistencies in board member’s arguments. 

Why are board members suddenly questioning whether it makes fiscal sense to close Jefferson when they didn’t ask the same question about Marshall?  Board member Ruth Adkins said her analysis showed that there wouldn’t be enough of a savings from closing Jefferson to warrant doing so.  What did her analysis show the savings to be in closing Marshall? 

Adkins also argued that closing Marshall made sense because the current small schools on the Marshall campus had demonstrated some success.  She said that the district could build on that “success” by closing Marshall and re-opening a new small focus school.  In her mind, it didn’t make sense to open a focus school at Jefferson because there wasn’t a demonstrated need or desire for one and there wasn’t a defined plan for one.   

Ruth sets a very low bar for success at Marshall.  Against community wishes, the campus originally split into 4 small schools.  One school died off right away.  Another is on the federal watch list and it would have to make major changes next year.  Of the three schools on the Marshall campus now, only about one half of the students are at benchmark in math and reading.   Just over 40% of the students living in the Marshall attendance area attend the school. 

As for the argument that a focus school at Jefferson isn’t a good idea because there isn’t a demonstrated need or demand for one…we’ve been saying exactly the same thing about Marshall. 

The district has NO EVIDENCE that there’s a demand or need for a focus school on the Marshall campus.  About 200 people showed up at Marshall’s community meeting recently but you didn’t hear much about it in the press.  Not one person at the Marshall meeting testified in support of a focus school on the campus.

I’ve already written about the district’s shady plan for a focus school at Marshall.  It has no chance of success. 

Let’s pretend for a second that Ruth is right and a focus school could actually build on the success of the small schools at Marshall…how does reducing the size of the proposed focus school “build” on that?  If small schools are successful because of the relationships that are developed in smaller learning environments, how does forcing a larger number of kids out of their neighborhood and into someone else’s large neighborhood school strengthen relationships?

I’m not advocating for Jefferson’s closure.  My point is that the arguments being used for keeping Jefferson open should also be applied to Marshall. 

Both schools need to remain open.  The costs associated with closing them far exceed any anticipated (rarely realized) savings.  Marshall and Jefferson closures would increase the drop out rates and decrease academic achievement. 

As the superintendent’s high school resolution stated (when she was still trying to portray the high school redesign plan as being about equity):

According to a 2006 Alliance for Excellent Education issue briefing, a 5% reduction in the dropout rate of male students across the state of Oregon would decrease crime related costs by $21 million and would increase the annual earnings of this population by $30.

According to a 2009 Alliance for Excellent Education economic report, a 50% decrease in the dropout rate of the seven county Portland Metropolitan area would result in:

• $38 million in increased earnings
• $25 million in increased spending and $9 million in additional investing.
• $108 million in additional home sales.
• The creation of 300 new jobs and an increase in gross national product of $47 million.
• $4 million in increased tax revenue.
• 61% of these additional high school graduates would be likely to pursue some type of post-secondary education.

The bottom line is that poor, minority, English language learners and students with disabilities at both schools are having to carry the budget deficit burden for the entire district.  It’s not only morally wrong but it’s a civil rights violation and legally wrong.    Here’s a brief look at the student populations that the majority of the board are expecting to subsidize the education of wealthier students:

Susie Brighouse has taught at Marshall since 1991.  She sent the following letter to the superintendent and school board:

Dear Superintendent Smith and School Board members –

Portland Public Schools has been a part of my life since I was born. My father was an electrician for PPS.  My older siblings went to Duniway and Lewis.  My two oldest brothers graduated from Benson.   I am a product of Lewis Elementary and Hosford Middle School.  During the summer after my sophomore year in high school, I worked as a teacher’s aide for Portland Public Summer School.  I was fortunate, because that’s when I knew that I wanted to be a teacher.  After graduating from Eastern Oregon University in 1989, and teaching summer school, I subbed for over a year to “get my foot in the door.”  My first full-time teaching job began 2nd semester at Cleveland High School in 1991.  Because of cuts, that lasted until June.  In October of 1991, I was hired at Marshall High School for a ½ time position.  I have been at Marshall ever since.  I have seen many colleagues leave Marshall, but the ones that have impressed me the most were the ones who spent most of their teaching careers here at Marshall, because it definitely isn’t the easy road.  Many times, I have found myself justifying staying at Marshall, even to my closest friends and family.  I stay because Marshall students are the strongest, most accepting young adults I know (and I work with student council kids from all over the state).  They are fighters.  They are survivors.  They are also used to change . . . change in their school, change in their family situations, change in their financial situations, etc.  I feel that staying provides them with a little stability that many of their lives do not afford them.  If any of you, or I, were put into their situations, we would not be as strong as they are.  It is truly impressive. [Read more →]

I met Paul and Tricia 18 years ago at a parent meeting at our neighborhood elementary school.  Tricia was pregnant with her 5th son (Casey).  I had two boys ages 3 and 6 and an infant daughter (Hayley). 

All of our kids were close in age and our families grew close over the years.  We had the best neighborhood Christmas parties that included stops at 5 or 6 homes.  Tricia and I were stay-at-home moms that never stayed home.   We spent a lot of time volunteering at Clark Elementary. 

My ex-husband and Paul coached  several sports together.  Tricia and I even coached T-ball together.  I’ll never forget the dad that interviewed us about our T-ball coaching skills.  It was the shortest interview I’ve ever had.

Hayley and Casey went to the same preschool, shared babysitters and became best friends.  I wish I had Casey’s preschool picture where Hayley brushed his curly hair just before picture.  They were inseparable until a teacher got wise and separated them   [Read more →]

The news that Cynthia Harris and Reis Willbanks were put on administrative leave this week brought back memories.

My honeymoon with PPS ended in 1997 thanks to John Braunger.  He was a terrible principal but PPS administration refused to do anything about it until he was caught mismanaging school funds. 

I was Binnsmead Middle School’s volunteer coordinator at the time.  A few people didn’t think it was appropriate for me to question Braunger’s performance so I resigned from the volunteer position.

In a memo to staff dated November 3, 1997, “RE: events of last week”, Braunger wrote:

Last week, you received a letter in your mailboxes from Ms. Bauske.  In the letter Ms. Bauske resigns her position as Volunteer Coordinator.  She has worked hard to establish a volunteer pool who can meet staff needs and those of the schools as a whole.  I appreciate what she has accomplished as Volunteer Coordinator and am grateful for her efforts.

In addition to resigning, Ms. Bauske alleges that school money is being mismanaged.  The district takes allegations of this kind seriously and has procedures to determine if there are any irregularities.  Should any be found, corrective action will be taken.  In the meantime, Laurie at the region office will be doing the books…..

Finally, Brenda’s doctors have advised her to take a medical leave.  We will miss her and hope she recovers soon.

Brenda was the school secretary responsible for doing the books. 

The next week I received a threatening letter from the PPS superintendent accusing me of “slander.”  

Four long months later after pushing for an audit report to be released, I  received a copy of the Binnsmead audit.  The report completed on November 13, 1997 found numerous irregularities.  Some of the findings included:

• Five requests for issuance of check forms did not bear evidence of administrative approval.
• Twenty checks were made payable to a specific staff member as reimbursements for purchases of supplies and other items ($3,787.94).  The checks should have been issued to the vendors.
• One additional $468 reimbursement to the same staff member did not appear to have any supporting documentation.
• Two checks reviewed totaling over $2,500 were issued to Nordstrom for the purchase of numerous gift certificates in amounts ranging from $20 to $100. 
• Three disbursements reviewed were purchases of invoiced goods with costs in excess of $1,000.  The transactions didn’t have the required pre-approval.
• One check reviewed was issued to a coffee store for $258.  The supporting request for issuance of check form indicated the expenditure was for refreshments.  Review of the store’s receipt indicated one gift certificate had been purchased.
• Nine student funds had deficit balances.
• The school’s checking account was overdrawn for two months causing $185 in overdraft fees.
• Deposits weren’t made in the required amount of time.

How seriously could the district possibly take allegations of financial mismanagement when the only difference between 1997 and now is the dollar amounts?  Who was responsible for following up on Jefferson’s financial mismanagement concerns?  The district let the Jefferson concerns go for a long time then addressed them right after a controversial meeting. Smart

PPS administration has attempted to frame the high school redesign issue in a way that pits low-income area schools against each other.  They would be happy to see Marshall attack Jefferson, Roosevelt or Benson but why should we?

Each of those schools have suffered from PPS actions or inactions.  Those schools along with Marshall have been underfunded, denied resources, mismanaged and neglected while Lincoln, Wilson, Cleveland and Grant have benefitted. 

The question isn’t why does Jefferson or Roosevelt get resources that Marshall doesn’t?  The question is why does Lincoln, Grant, Cleveland and Wilson continue to get so much more than everyone else? [Read more →]

Let’s not make this another year where PPS fails to use Title I money.  Last year PPS failed to use almost $3 million in Title I funds (including $180,000 in Optional parent involvement).  Ask your school principals for a spending report today!

Do you remember this?

Diversity and Development

Under Construction Since 1964

Please check back in a few decades.

It was replaced with this:

 Nothing!  The page has disappeared.

The PPS superintendent and board may have wanted to avoid discussion about race in the high school redesign but we shouldn’t.  PPS has a long history of discriminating against students of color and poor students.  Now that the district has invested some money into Courageous Conversations, let’s see if they can have one. 

 Here’s another link to a report on PPS ugly history:

Detailed report on the history of PPS and the Black United Front