Portland Public Schools

Dear PPS Families and Staff,

We want to give you a final update on Enrollment and Program Balancing decisions that will go into effect in the 2021-22 school year in Southeast Portland. These decisions were finalized at the January 26 Board of Education meeting.

By a 5-2 vote, the Board approved Resolution 6236, which lays out the enrollment boundaries for PPS schools in Southeast Portland in advance of the opening of the modernized Kellogg Middle School in the fall. The decision completes the Phase 1 work of the Southeast Guiding Coalition.

Under the approved enrollment boundaries, the neighborhood programs at Arleta, Marysville, Creston and Lent will convert from their kindergarten-to-8th grade (K-8) structure to a K-5 structure. Students in grades 6-8 in those schools will move to Kellogg starting in the 2021-22 school year.

Among the changes made to the proposal from when it was originally presented to the Board at its January 12 meeting:

• Bridger and Creston will convert from K-8 to K-5 schools in 2021-22 instead of waiting until the following year, as originally proposed. This came in response to the board’s priority to move away from K-8’s and get more of our students into comprehensive middle schools. PPS staff are working with community members on transition plans for students enrolled in the Bridger neighborhood 6-8 program.
• The Spanish Dual Language Immersion (DLI) program currently located at Mt. Tabor Middle School will remain there for now. It had been slated to move to Kellogg in 2021-22.
• Students in grades 6 and 7 this year who live outside boundaries but have an approved transfer to Arleta, Marysville, Creston and Lent, will move to Kellogg. However, students in 5th grade this year who have an approved out-of-boundary transfer to Arleta, Marysville, Creston and Lent, and are not in a special program, will return to their neighborhood school.

Families will receive messages later this month with the school assignment for their students. Those with questions can email enrollment-office@pps.net or call 503-916-3205.

Work on Phase 2 of Enrollment and Program Balancing, which will focus on PK-5 boundaries and incorporate the conversion of Harrison Park from a K-8 to middle school, will begin in early March. Documents, videos and other records can be found at pps.net/enrollmentbalancing.

Thank you.