Activistas

PPS Magnets: Articu-what?

Since it's a known fact that I have no children in PPS to date, I can openly confess to being just plain confused.  That has not stopped me from having an opinion, though, about the proposal that is afoot to link Buckman Elementary to da Vinci Middle School.  According to a flyer I picked up, school staff and site council leaders at both schools have formed a task force to determine the feasibility of articulation between the two schools.  Meaning: if your kid goes to Buckman they could go to da Vinci without applying through the standard transfer process that all other applicants must follow. 

On the surface, this worries me.  As my children grow and change and develop new interests throughout their PPS careers, there will be fewer choices for them - and families who move here after all the coveted kindergarten slots fill - if elementary school magnets lock up many of the slots in the corresponding middle-school magnets.  What do you think?   Am I worried for nothing?  Is this a good idea? 

Folks met Monday, 5.12 @ Buckman to discuss this possibility.  Anyone attend?  What's the story? 

Schools and Neighborhoods in the Pdx Tribune

How exciting to read today's Portland Tribune article on the movement that is afoot locally to connect schools, neighborhoods, and families.    Exciting because it's good stuff and because we were recently dreaming of just such a connection.  And good thing they checked in with Tony Fuentes of Milagros, who sums it up well:

In my childhood, school was a community gathering place, you would just go there.  In my experience with neighborhood schools in Portland, sometimes there’s this separation; sometimes accessing them for public meetings can be a protracted process. There’s so many things that could be happening at the school that I feel aren’t happening now.

There were some other inspiring quotes in the article showing promise for more holistic thinking about how schools fit into their neighborhoods and how the city can partner with PPS to make that a reality.  For example, Deborah Stein, the city's supervising planner, said: “This is the first project where we said, ‘Let’s look at … schools as essential components of community planning."  Hear, hear! 

Do you think this effort will bring us closer to the schools-as-community-nexus ideal?  When we met with Portland city council candidates recently, Nick Fish used the brand new Rosa Parks Elementary as an ideal model of a school designed to serve the greater community, not just its kids.  Waddya think?

Volunteer at PPS & Sign-up Online

Have a talent to share?  Want to help out one of the Portland Public Schools, even if your child doesn't go there?  Want to volunteer on an ongoing basis?  Maybe you want to help out in a one-time shot?

Portland Public Schools and Hands On Portland have joined forces to create Project Community Care: "to engage community members, parents and students in meaningful volunteer opportunities in schools."

Community volunteers make a world of difference to the more than 46,000 students in Portland Public Schools. Their work is wide-ranging: from tutoring in the classroom to pulling weeds at one of the district’s 85-plus schools.

So far, the site is just in pilot mode, accessible only to Cleveland- and Franklin- area schools.  Check it out HERE.  And, be on the lookout for the district-wide expansion in mid-May.

School Lunch: Find Out Who's Doing What on 4.13.08

Yes, we've discussed the lunch menu at PPS before.  So we're very happy for this opportunity to join a broader community conversation on the subject.  This is one issue that already has some traction, mamas.  It's great to see that this important topic is on someone else's front burner, so to speak, not just ours.  I still haven't recovered from learning that PPS spends $1.10 per lunch.  And I am still trying to picture me buying lunch ingredients for that price.  Anyway. 

Here's an opportunity to join a movement in action, share your views and learn what's already in the works.  With any luck, by the time our kids are scarfing their lunches down in the 20 minutes they get, there'll be more than hot dogs and cold beets on the plate!  Here's how the sponsors, EcoTrust Food & Farms and Portland Culinary Alliance, describe the event:

Oregon is the first state in the nation with full-time farm to school coordinators in both the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Education, demonstrating our commitment to farm to school and school garden efforts. What’s in store for the future?

Join us for a community conversation with these key leaders in farm-to-school and school garden efforts:

• Cory Schreiber, Dept. of Agriculture Farm to School Coordinator
• Joyce Dougherty, Dept. of Education Director of Child Nutrition Programs
• Michelle Ratcliffe, Ecotrust’s Farm to School Manager
• Moderating the panel discussion is Oregon Representative Brian Clem.

Sunday, April 13, 4–6 p.m.
Natural Capital Center
721 NW 9th Avenue, 2nd floor
$7 (PCA members); $10 (guests and public)
RSVP

Schools & the Lottery: A Good Partnership?

I realize that Oregon ain't alone in this.  There are plenty of other states funding education through lottery proceeds, plenty.  But the Oregon Lottery's Scratch-It for Schools game seems to take it a step further in my mind.  I'll confess to having always been more than a little uncomfortable with the whole lottery thing. Government-run gambling just doesn't sit right.  But that's just me. 

What about you?  Are you OK with this Scratch-It game?  School administrators madly scratching lottery tickets for money?  One good thing about it is that it showcases the absurdity of the funding problem.  Check out what the Oregon Center for Public Policy has to say on this one (thumbs way down), and then let us know what you think.  Got a problem with school employees playing the lottery  - if the money goes to their school?  Or are you fine with it since the money's going to a place where it is clearly needed?  Do tell.

All-Day Kindergarten Follow-Up

Well the February legislative session in Salem came and went.  So what happened down there, anyway? One issue you may have been following was the discussion over all-day kindergarten fees, I know I was!  We discussed this several times in the past few months and most likely you know that the bill was passed to extend the current fee structure through the 2009-10 school year.  A temporary fix until we can all sort out what should really be happening.  All-day kindergarten funded by the state?  Half-day kindergarten for all non Title I schools?  A legal way to maintain the current fee structure?  Among others.

Lots of options, I imagine, and lots of challenges.  It seems that there's still a pretty good number of families who want both the half-day and full-day options.  And in this mama's book, options are good, because families are different.  A solution will be found - hopefully one that works well for kids and families alike - in the 2009 state legislative session. 

For an excellent summary of the situation and current status, check out Stand for Children's great citizen summary.  They're following the situation closely and plan to be at the table in '09.  Good news for the rest of us!

Neighborhood Schools = Neighborhood Places?

An urban planner I am not (next time!).  However.  It occurred to me recently, as we decide where to send our first child to kindergarten this fall, that until the kindergarten round-up at our neighborhood school, I had never been in the place.  My fault?  Sure, to a degree.  But really, why hadn't I been in?  Because other than sending my child to school there eventually, there was no reason for me to go there. 

And sure, you could blame me for not checking it out sooner, joining the PTA, whatever.  And you might be a little bit right.  But.  I work 4 days a week and have two kids in another child care/school which I L-O-V-E and am plenty involved in.  So the idea of being involved in a second school where my kids don't attend - truly, mamas, not enough time in the day for that. 

So, to my little urban planning "aha" moment.  And rest assured, I know I am surely not the first person to have these thoughts.  Why isn't the playground at our neighborhood elementary school so great that we go there to play (some are, I know; not ours)?  Why isn't there early child care on the same property (no need for PPS to provide it), so we're intimately familiar and connected with the place?  Why aren't our neighborhood association meetings held there?  And what about locating one of those casual co-op indoor playparks for the toddler & pre-K set in the basement?  I know that outside groups do use the school facilities, but if I'm the parent-to-be, why not the sorts of activities that might attract me, my kids, my family?

Running Start: Get parents involved in schools

The Chalkboard Project says that it is "uniting Oregonians to make our public schools among the nation's best."  One way they want to do that is by getting parents more involved and connected in their children's classros.  Chalkboard's past research and studies have shown that children do better in school when their parents are involved but a majority of Oregonians believe there is "not enough direct parent support of the learning process with their children."

The Running Start program is designed to address this gap.  Nonprofit organizations and schools can apply for $200-400 stipends (before 12/31/08) to defray some costs to offer 'trainings' to parents, administrators, teachers, parent advocates and support staff.  "The aim is to educate adult leaders with a deeper understanding of the barriers to parent engagement and how to overcome them."  Funds can be used to pay a trainer, fund childcare so parents can attend the session, or pay for materials.

Is parent involvement low at  your school?  Could it be because we parents are not fully aware of the impact our involvement has on our child's learning?  You can help strengthen connections betwen parents and schools!  Spread word of this program at your school and spearhead an effort to bring the training to a school near you.  Here is the program overview and Running Start application (*doc).

PPS Food Follow-Up: Support HB 3601, Now!!

How timely!  We've been talking about all the recent (bad) press about PPS food and plenty of parents are griping about the unhealthy menus.  But amidst the bad news (so little money to pay for food!), there is some good news.  Sun breaks in the rain, you know?  There is a movement afoot  - within & outside the district - to improve things (yeah!), and progress has been made with the Farm-to-School effort. 

Ecotrust is circulating a message to gather support for HB 3601, which is before the legislature during this month's special session.  Is this the single answer?  Nope.  A step in the right direction?  Absolutely.  Here's what they say:

Just imagine...         

• Delicious and nutritious Oregon food served up on the lunch plates of every Oregon student.
• Garden-based teaching in all subject areas so our children experience the magic of growing, tasting and enjoying wholesome food.
• Oregon farmers, food processors and manufacturers selling great food to Oregon schools.

How can we make this vision a reality?  Pass HB 3601 to create a farm-to-school and school garden program in the Oregon Department of Education (ODE).

All-Day Kindergarten Bill in Salem: Speak Up, Mamas!

Having just attended a kindergarten round-up several hours ago, this issue couldn't be more timely at our house!  Yes, our legislators plan to address the all-day kindergarten conundrum a bit further this month during the special legislative session - in the form of Senate Bill 1068.  They heard from several Superintendents in January to prepare, including PPS's Carole Smith.  Now it's your turn!! 

The issue at hand is whether to allow school districts to continue offering full-day, parent-paid kindergarten, rather than cutting back to half-day kindergarten programs, which is all the state funds.  This practice was recently determined to be illegal after some parents sued.  The bill would allow the current practice to continue through the 2009-10 school year, effective on passage.  We discussed the Oregonian's editorial on the issue in January and the larger issue more generally back in December.  And here we are again!!