The Innovation Studio is an in-house problem solving accelerator tasked with building the tools, processes and infrastructure to help PPS address challenges within our system. 

The Innovation Studio’s work is rooted in design thinking, racial equity and social justice. We are applying the design methodology to the creation of the CBSE.

Black student achievement has struggled for decades due to racism and under-investment in predominantly Black schools, forced busing, the removal of Black teachers and administrators from schools and a series of churning reforms. While this has impacted many students and neighborhoods the acute impact on the Black community has been well-documented. Racist practices that advantage white students and disadvantage students of color have been reinforced by racist cultural narratives, beliefs and norms.

The simple truth is that in a truly equitable society, CBSE would not be necessary. The problem is that for decades, the Black community – especially Black students – have been discriminated against. Blacks were forbidden from citizenship in Oregon’s first several decades. When Blacks moved to Portland, they were blocked from housing, work and school opportunities throughout the city. Racism has shaped the opportunities Black children have – even today. So we must do specific things to combat that structural and systemic racism.

The history of this project is very important. For decades, Blacks in Portland have been discriminated against – formally and informally. Every institution in Portland is complicit in this mistreatment and discrimination, including the Portland Public Schools. The record is clear and there is no debate.

For decades, when projects affected the Black community, nobody asked the community what it wanted. The construction of Interstate 5, for example, cut through the Albina neighborhood, and destroyed lives, businesses and homes. The Black community was not consulted on it.

Now that the interstate needs to be widened, a major institution in the Black community – Harriet Tubman MS – needs to be relocated to protect the safety and health of its students and staff. Also, Jefferson High School – another critical institution to the Black community – requires major renovations. 

In 2020, voters approved a bond measure that would pay for a modernized Jefferson High School. And the state also agreed to pay for Tubman Middle School’s relocation.

CBSE was launched so that the goals of equity and social justice guide these projects as well as all efforts to support Portland’s Black children.

We can expect (4) guiding documents that will anchor our work, based on what we learn and hear from the community: 

• Center for Black Student Excellence Vision - This document will describe the collective aspiration for what the CBSE will be, do and accomplish on behalf of Black students, staff and families. 

• Center for Black Student Excellence Comprehensive Plan - This document will detail the specific elements of the CBSE along with strategies, programs and experiences that span the PK-12 learning continuum.

• Center for Black Student Excellence Facilities Plan - This document will describe the implications of the CBSE Vision and Comprehensive Plan on physical space, including but not limited to site improvements, modernizations, property purchases and/or new builds. Elements of this plan will also closely connect spatial implications of the Jefferson Modernization Project and site considerations for the Harriet Tubman Middle School Relocation.

• Center for Black Student Excellence Operational Plan - This document will describe the ongoing support for the initiative including maintenance of infrastructure, hiring, capacity building and retention of high quality talent, etc.