Our second Connect to Kindergarten event will be held on Monday, May 14th at 3pm.  This event will provide an introduction to the kindergarten day for the students (bring student but please have care for siblings), and the parents will meet with Principal Clark in the cafeteria.  Parents will be asked to fill out an online questionnaire about their student.  

Dear Glencoe friends,

It is with a very heavy heart that I share the news that this will be my final year as your Glencoe secretary.  I have enjoyed the last 8 years (as staff) and another 7 as a parent volunteer!  Over those 15 years I have seen six Principals, a handful of custodial staff, four secretaries, so many great teachers retire, and many awesome new staff join us. And Melissa in the kitchen has been here the entire time too!

It is time for me to step away from PPS  (my sons are out of school now) and no longer be beholden to the school calendar.  I plan on focusing my energy on my extended family, my health, a possible home remodel and maybe some adventurous travel.  Eventually I will return to the workforce in some capacity since I go crazy with too much time on my hands.

It has really been an honor working here with such great staff, families and all the kiddos who I will truly miss.  If you see me around the neighborhood or at a Timbers match, be sure to wave and say hi!

With love and gratitude,

Carolyn Carr  (aka.Miss Carolyn, Ms. Carolyn, Mrs. Carr, etc. etc.)

Dear PPS Community,

Please know that in collaboration with school administrators, district leadership actively monitored the hundreds of mostly middle and high school students who walked out of our schools today as part of a national demonstration against violence in schools. I am pleased to say that, by all reports, this was a peaceful and respectful event with no serious incidents. While these actions were not district-sponsored activity, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all who helped keep students safe, starting with the students themselves who remained organized, calm and intentional throughout. Others who helped include Portland police, PPS security, and other PPS staff. Thank you all.

Portland Public Schools is in the process of allocating teaching staff at schools throughout the district. As has been true for many years, we are working within a budget that has been chronically underfunded by the state, and we are doing our utmost to make the most of the resources we have. Understandably, parents, students and PPS staff want to know what will happen at their specific schools. While precise allocations won’t be known until enrollment figures become clear in the fall, we can share what we know at this point, and answer many of the questions we have heard to date.

In this week's PPS Pulse: Benson’s Curtis Wilson is state HS Principal of the Year; Martin Luther King Jr. School celebrates 50^th anniversary of name change

It’s been 50 years since some impassioned students led the movement to rename their school after Martin Luther King, Jr. Last Friday, the community turned out in force to show appreciation, and to honor Dr. King with a huge celebration at the school.