Portland Public Schools Board of Education

The School Board is comprised of seven elected members serving four-year terms. Every year, the Board elects their Chair and Vice Chair. The School Board is the policy-making body of our school district. It is responsible for providing an education program for students living within the District.

To accomplish its role, the Board:

Determines the long-range direction of the District
Establishes policies that direct the instructional and support programs
Employs and evaluates the Superintendent
Communicates with the community
Approves collective bargaining agreements
Calls elections on bond proposals
Approves the annual budget
A student Board Representative, selected by the high school student body, serves as an unofficial voting member for one year to represent the students and report on the various high school activities.

Notice of Public Meetings

To find out when meetings are scheduled:

View the Public Notice Page

Subscribe to email notifications

View the 2026-27 Adopted Meeting Schedule

Meeting Protocols & Public Comment

Public Involvement

The Portland Public Schools Board of Education highly values public input in making important decisions that affect Portland's children. They also believe in the right of community members to observe Board meetings.

The public is invited to attend public Board meetings to gain a better understanding of school district business and the role of the School Board. The public is also invited to address the Board during the public comment portion of the Board meetings.

General Public Meeting Guidelines

To ensure the public has an opportunity to attend School Board meetings and offer comment, and to ensure that the Board can conduct the important business of the District, speakers must observe certain basic rules of conduct. The following guidelines apply to all public comment.

All members of the public attending School Board meetings should treat each other and the Board with respect.
Individuals are not permitted to engage in conduct that interferes with the ability of other individuals to watch the Board meetings or offer public comment to the Board, or with the ability of the Board to conduct its business.
Those wishing to display placards, signs and/or banners may remain seated in the Boardroom with signs held below chin level so as to not block any attendee's view of the proceedings.
Public meetings are open for the public to attend in person up to the capacity of the Boardroom (70 people) or other meeting space (depending on the space) and will be streamed live under the provision of ORS 192.670.

Watch the Live Stream

Public Comment

Signing up for Public Comment

Requests to provide public comment can be made via email to publiccomment@pps.net or by calling the Board Office at 503-916-3741. Requests should include:

Full name
Pronouns
Topic (required)
Meeting requested (date and title)
School community
Phone number and whether text communication is okay
Whether you are a student
Whether you plan to attend in person or virtually

Requests must be submitted by 12:00 p.m. the day before the meeting. Walk-up requests are accepted, if space permits, during the fifteen minutes prior to the meeting and must be received before the meeting begins.

If an interpreter is needed, please notify the Board Office at least 48 hours in advance.

Written Comment

Written public comments can be emailed to Schoolboard@pps.net.

Guidelines for Public Comment

Public comment is an opportunity for the Board and Superintendent to hear issues of interest; however, it does not allow for dialogue between speakers, the Board, or the Superintendent.
It is requested that individuals offering public comment not make personal attacks on any District employee, Board member, other testifier, or member of the public. Complaints about individual employees should be directed to the Superintendent’s office as a personnel matter.
For follow-up on issues raised during public comment, please contact Board Manager Rosanne Powell (rpowell@pps.net)
All spots will be filled by a lottery, and speakers will be notified the day before the meeting whether they have been assigned a spot.
Each speaker will have up to two minutes to provide comment.
Spots may not be shared or transferred to others, nor requested on behalf of others.
People may speak only once per meeting.
Videos or PowerPoint presentations may not accompany public testimony.
Public Comment may be provided in person or virtually.
Comment on a specific Board Action Item will take place during that agenda item. If the action item is canceled, postponed, or withdrawn, comment will be subject to availability of general public comment.