Sellwood Principal's Newsletter - October 3, 2025 

Greetings Sellwood Community,

The beautiful fall weather is setting in, and we are looking forward to October events.

Please see the details below about Monster Mayhem, a new Sellwood PTA fundraiser that is sure to be screamingly fun, and I hope will become a new Sellwood Middle School tradition!

Also, everyone is asking about picture retakes.  Picture retakes are scheduled for the morning of October 20th.

Finally, don’t forget that there is no school next Friday, October 10th, due to Oregon’s annual In-service Day.

Enjoy the weekend! 

Sincerely,

Jeandré Carbone

Sellwood MS Principal

jcarbone@pps.net

Sellwood Principal's Newsletter - September 26, 2025 

Greetings Sellwood Community,

It was great seeing many of you at our Back-to-School Night event on the 17th. There was an excellent turnout!

My apologies for not sending a newsletter last Friday, I was out of town attending services for my mom who recently passed.  This newsletter makes up for it by being extra long, but there is a lot of important information so please read on for news about the 1st Coffee with the Principal, the TAG Family Informational Meeting (virtual), PTA & PEAK, and school pictures. 

Also, I sent a separate email about our first of two yearly lockdown drills, which will take place on Monday at 2:20 PM.  I know that parents appreciate a heads up about the drill, as it can be stressful for all.  Please look for that email.

This afternoon we are holding our first school spirit assembly.  Students and staff will play some fun group games, and we will also have time to recognize students who have demonstrated perseverance and growth. 

Enjoy the weekend! 

Sincerely,

Jeandré Carbone

Sellwood MS Principal

jcarbone@pps.net

Sellwood Principal's Newsletter - September 12, 2025 

Greetings Sellwood Community,

It was lovely seeing many of you at the Ice Cream Social on Wednesday evening.  Thank you to the PTA for hosting the event.  I enjoy starting the year with a low key getting to know you event that is less structured than Back-to-School Night and Parent/Teacher Conferences.

Next Wednesday evening, Sellwood will host our annual Back-to-School Night, from 6:00 to 7:40 PM.  Read below for more information about Back-to-School Night and the schedule for the evening.  Immediately following Back-to-School Night we will hold the PTA meeting, from 7:45 to 8:45 PM.

As you know, PPS Middle Schools have shifted our grading practices to Standards-Based Grading.  If you would like to know more, I have shared some information about Proficiency-Based Grading below along with two very short but informative videos below.

Enjoy the weekend! 

Sincerely,

Jeandré Carbone

Sellwood MS Principal

jcarbone@pps.net

Congratulations to Lincoln High School students Richard Deng and Coral Platt! Both were awarded National Merit Scholarships of $2,500 toward their college studies.

They were chosen from more than 15,000 finalists nationwide. Richard plans to pursue a career in politics and Coral is looking at a future in the legal sector.

Two exceptional PPS educators, Ricardo Barber and Hang Jones, were recently named OnPoint Educators of the Year for 2025.

As part of this prestigious honor, both teachers will have their rent or mortgage paid for an entire year, and their schools also receive a $2,500 donation. 

Ricardo Barber teaches third grade at Faubion, and Hang Jones serves as a social worker at Marysville Elementary. 

The OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education celebrates educators who embrace innovative teaching techniques that ignite enthusiasm in their students. 

Congratulations to Ricardo Barber and Hang Jones! And thank you both for everything you do to make a difference in the lives our students.

The assignment their teacher gave them was simple – make a short film that begins with a phone call and ends with someone hanging up. Benson first-year students Dylan Martinez-Torres and Dariel Soriano Zamora ran it all the way to a small city populated by two very big and rather iconic monsters – Godzilla and Hedora.

The result, Sorry, Wrong Number, is one of the more than 90 films entered into the annual Best of PPS Film Festival. The festival is a celebration of exceptional student filmmaking that includes a showcase at the historic Hollywood Theatre. 

The fourth annual installment of the festival took place on May 21 and included a screening of 13 standout films. The films came from all over PPS and ran the gamut from Dylan and Dariel’s monster short to documentaries, film noir, and broadcast journalism. 

If you are a passionate student or community member that wants to make a difference at PPS, apply to join the Climate Crisis Response Committee! This is a committee that reports to the PPS Board of Education.

On the committee you will learn about how PPS is making progress towards our climate justice and sustainability policies, provide input and recommendations to the PPS Board on how to better support PPS staff as we advance these policy goals, and connect with other passionate members of our PPS community from diverse backgrounds, knowledge areas, and lived experiences.

No previous professional experience in climate change or sustainability required! Students can apply via this form. Community members can apply here.

Deadline to apply: June 6.