Rightsize. Right Support. Right for Students.
Portland Public Schools is undertaking a districtwide rightsizing process to better align our schools, programs, and resources with the needs of today’s students and the realities shaping our future.
Health education is linked to the academic success of youth. When taught using a skills-based approach, students develop health literacy skills that enhance their ability to obtain, communicate, process, and understand basic health information and services so they make age-appropriate health decisions present day, and throughout their lifetime.
Please contact us if you have any questions about K-12 Health Education curriculum, parent/guardian documents or resources.
Dr. Jenny Withycombe
pronouns: she/her
Assistant Director for Health & Physical Education PK-12
hape@pps.net
Quin Holliday
pronouns: they/them
Business Operations Specialist
Vanessa Peña-La Torre
pronouns: she/they
SAY Wellness Grant Program Manager
Anna Bledsoe
pronouns: she/they
SAY Wellness Grant Program Supervisor
Susannah Lightbourne-Maynard
pronouns: she/her
Grant-Funded TOSA
These documents outline key health topics and concepts that will be instructed across grade levels during the school year, including essential health knowledge, skills and behaviors that will be addressed at each grade level from Kindergarten to the 12th grade.
In March 2021, the PPS Board of Education unanimously passed Comprehensive Health Education Policy 6.40.013-P. This new policy formalizes the requirement that “students in grades K through 12 be taught Comprehensive Health Education that is medically-accurate, age and developmentally appropriate, culturally and linguistically sustaining, and implemented in safe and supportive learning environments where all students feel valued.”
The Comprehensive Health Education Implementation Plan is a document that strives to complement this new policy. It is intended to provide district staff, school administrators, and educators, both new and experienced, with an overview of health education requirements across the state along with the Health Education team’s recommendations for teaching health education within PPS.
The Youth Risk Behavior Survey is a set of 96 questions that ask High School students about their health behaviors in a number of domains. Some of the subjects included are: physical activity, nutrition, sexual behaviors, and mental health.
This survey was administered by Health & Physical Education staff in 2019, 2021, and 2023. Please select the hyperlinks to view each year's data report.
The Health & PE team, in collaboration with Multnomah County, has put together a three-minute video where educators, parents, and students from the community share their perspectives on the importance of sexuality education at school.
*Note: This video was supported by Grant Number TP1AH000243-01 from the HHS Office of Population Affairs. Contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Department of Health and Human Services or the Office of Population Affairs.
State law requires that comprehensive sexuality education be taught in each grade K-12. In PPS, most schools will teach these units during the spring.
Schools send parent notification letters home at least 2 weeks prior to when the CSE/Growth and Development unit begins. Letters must be returned to the students' school.
The Caregiver Support Guide is a resource for parents and caregivers of LGBTQ+ youth, aimed at those wanting to learn more about supporting the young person in their life who is or could be LGBTQ+ identified.
Children and youth are very curious about the world around them, and will commonly ask adults “hard-to-answer” questions. This handout was developed to help adults be there for their young person, in whatever way they need, by being an “askable adult”.
