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Redesigning Portland Schools
Portland Public Schools Superintendent Carole Smith unveiled her proposal for some major changes in the district Monday night. The plan has generated mixed reactions from parents, students, teachers and administrators. All the public schools in Portland would be affected by the plan, which administrators say is aimed at improving equity across the district. The biggest shifts would be at Marshall High School, which would turn into a small magnet school, and Benson, which would shrink from four grades to two. Transferring from one school to another would become very difficult. Some elementary and middle schools would also see changes, including the potential for longer school days and shifts in leadership.
Did you or do you attend public school in Portland? Do your kids? Do you work at one of Portland's high schools? What would the redesign plan mean for you?
GUESTS:
- Rob Manning: Reporter for OPB News
- Zeke Smith: Chief of staff to Portland Public Schools Superintendent Carole Smith
- Mike Ryan: History teacher at Benson High School
- Beryl Morrison: Portland PTA president and parent of a 7th grader at Beaumont Middle School
Tagged as: high school · pps · school
Photo credit: mischiru / Creative Commons
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For the Benson project there will need to be a significant investment in time money and resources for this to be a cutting edge technology center that prepares young people for the future. I have not heard any details on how the district will significantly support this program.
I am also concerned that as stated in the oregonian the goal for each school is to be a full spectrum high school that supports young adults on their way to college but that they need a census of 1350. However, not one of the projected censuses in the remaining schools have that number projected by the district so are they all now going to be sub standard?
our daughter is a very successful graduate and while i want that for every child in portland i do not want to see these schools watered down but all truely lifted up. equalizing as we know with no child left behind does not allways raise the bar in spite of good intentions.
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High school starts freshman year. Learning at Benson is something different than what I could have got anywhere else. I am a curent Benson sophomore, and very proud of my school. The first two years are critical in determining high school success, as the PE teachers, tech-time mentors and everyone else at the school will point out. They all wanted us to succeed. And we do. With a 93% graduation rate at the most diverse school in the district, people are coming to Benson, liking what they get, and graduating. This is what we want to see happen. When people need a hands-on approach to learning, they look at us. We are famous for our tech classes, where students learn about industry standards and current technology and engineering. These are often motivating forces for underclassmen. They come because they want to go to their tech class. And then their junior year, they begin to really apply what they learned and really take it to a new level, and that is what the Benson diploma means.
On the other hand, Spending an entire half day at Benson studying your tech class will give you more time to learn. When you can spend 2 hours wiring a house instead of having to subtract wake up/ clean up time from the middle of that, you've done a lot more. And using industry teachers will improve that more so. These students may get more opportunities for internships and apprenticeships than are already available.
Honestly, I'm torn. I think the four years is an absolute requirement for students. But to improve Benson, we have to be able to devote more time to the tech classes, more professional teachers, and more money to the programs that are so amazing. We can't do both, but i think it would be better to get the kids who would otherwise not graduate (i could have been one) and motivate them with what they need, instead of letting a selective group of older kids succeed a little bit farther.
I am excited about the strengthening neighborhood schools part. But I don't think enough people believe it will work. Kids in my grade are planning on lying about their address to get into Franklin or Grant or dropping out and getting their GED. They don't believe that Jefferson or Roosevelt can improve. I want them to, but it's not going to happen if people don't give it a shot. Eliminating most transfer options (including Benson freshman) may do that. But will it be enough?
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I did not attend school in Portland, nor am I aware of any relatives who did, but I do think that the schools down here in Eugene and Springfield need to go back to having closed campus. Kids are supposed to be in school for a reason, and that is to learn, not socialize and update their status on Fakebook, or tweet what they did with their boyfriend (or girlfriend) at the mall during lunch.
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(Maybe this is slightly off-target, since my comment is not about Portland.)
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A few years ago I took my dad to the Benson Tech Show. He graduated from Benson in 1939. I have to say I was so impressed with the Benson students. They were well-spoken, so very proud of their school and each was enthusiastic about their goals.
It would be a big mistake to cut back on Benson. It is one school we should work to build on and improve. I would support that kind of program.
Rosie
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Why is Equality a more important issue than the Quality of Education?
IF all public schools were EQUAL, but EQUALLY BAD how does that serve our society?
WE need high standards, but the price is suboptimal students will be flunked. And their self image may suffer. And there will be resentment and backlash and further inequality.
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I have several unrelated comments
First - it bothers me to see what seems to be a one-size-fits-all solution to complex and highly personal student challenges. It sound like it will make it much harder for Portland students to find the solution that works them.
No transfers - interesting to see us go back to issues that we were moving away from. This rule will significantly affect home prices in different neighborhoods and, long term, will affect the racial and social mix of different neghborhoods.
School size - in the internet age, WHY do schools need to be large so that students can get the classes they want? Whay about centralizing the specialty educators and providing onsite moderated online classes to all the schools
It seems like, in an age where we need all our people to excel individually and creatively, that Portland is working toward the mediocrity of the herd
I'm disappointed that the solutions all seem to be old-think. Could it be that the people making these decisions are the ones who were formed in the kind of system they propose, and can't see other options because those options would not have helped THEM?
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While equity between various urban districts is absolutely critical, there is a massive difference between equalizing academic opportunities and chaining students to the schools in their own neighborhoods. For some students, a better education may be found in a different sub-district, district, or even city, for any number of reasons. I myself had an indistrict transfer to a different middle school in Salem, and I now go to St. Mary's Academy in downtown Portland, even though I live a block away from my local high school in Salem.
Similarly, my younger sister goes to a very small high school in Jefferson. She is trying to get a district transfer to South Salem High School, not because there is anything wrong with her current school, but because South's specialized drama program offers her opportunities that she doesn't currently have access to.
Having carbon-copy schools, each with the same AP and IB opportunities and curriculum would certainly help equalize education, but would specialization or quality of education be sacrificed? There is a lot to be said for a city with diverse educational opportunities, both in course offerings and difficulty. There has to be a way for each school to offer the same basic education without leaving their individual strengths aside for special schools like Benson.
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Benson's graduation rate is over 90%. The coming school year, 2010-2011, they have their highest freshmen enrollment in years. These kids choose to go to Benson and want to be there. Why change something that isn't broken? Why would these kids all of the sudden trust the school board when they're told that their neighborhood schools are good now when for years they were failing?
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my children are entering school in the next few years. We are zoned for Boise Eliot Elementary, which now is zoned for Grant. The new proposal zones us for Jefferson. We bought our house because it was in the Grant neighborhood and feel the boundary shouldn't change.
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My father graduated from Benson and he seemed like the smartest man in the world. As a Benson graduate I'm concerned that a school that has worked so well for so long is being rejiggered negatively.
In the 1970s Benson was the only high school I wanted to attend. In grade school I kept my grades up so I had the best opportunity to get into Benson. I believed (maybe incorrectly) that other Portland public high schools had inferior college preparation curricula.
At Benson I sought to participate in every vocational program I found interesting. Benson also had an excellent reputation for preparing students for college. Because Benson was academically challenging there was little time for negative socializing and more time to absorb skills and knowledge.
I didn't enjoy Benson's austere discipline as a student, but in retrospect I'm pleased how Benson prepared me for adult life.
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Was economics included in this decision. Especially with regards to boundary changes. From what I see we still have a huge disparity between the haves and have not's.
It looks like the low income families in the Marshall area will be sent to low income schools (Madison & Franklin) It's looking like were keeping poor people together and rich people together.
Sunnyside has a strong environmental program. How does that continue into Grant? Madison has a strong environmental program, that would be the obvious transition.
I was under the impression that the focus option would be centrally located. Marshall is hardly central. Do you really believe students are going to seek out this option, considering it's distance from most high schools?
From my perspective, Grant, Lincoln, Wilson, and Cleveland remain virtually the same. Equity, I don't think so. Equity in programming is one aspect. Socio-economic equity is another. I thought we were looking at both scenarios.
I questioned the rational for making changes at Benson and Marshall. It seems as though these school would have a hard time fighting to keep there schools as they are. Marshall with 3 small schools would be hard pressed to colabarate. Benson is not a neighborhhod school, so community support would be hard to achieve. It looks as though this was the easy way out. Make changes to the schools that have little parent and community involvement. They will be less likely to fight this.
Grant expressed their ability to go all the way to fight any significant change. Lincoln threatened that they were at a tipping point of putting their kids in private school.
Was the district bought by the rich? It sure looks that way. Is the private donor who is helping with transition money affliated with a particular high school? Please help me to understand how this plan will help all kids.
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As head of the Benson Development Committee in the late '90s, I and others went to PPS administrators to enlist their help in strengthening Benson. A once-proud school had been deprived of the resources that made its educational program work for both students who were destined for the trades and those who aspired to engineering degrees and other advanced education. It became clear then that the school was already a low priority for those at the head office. Neighborhood interest groups had their ear. With imaginative leadership, Benson could have raised money from private industry at a time when school funds were scarce. It could have developed more collaborative programs like the one it already had with Wacker. It could have attracted students from the west side and become Portland's version of the Bronx High School of Science. The foundation for the latest news about Benson's fate was in the works more than a decade ago. I'd like to think this new plan can resurrect its past glory, but I'm not hopeful.
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I graduated from Benson in 2006. I know that for me Benson would of been useless had it not been for the four years. I went to Benson 100% certen I would major in construction, only to have my eyes open to the world of manufacturing. If Benson was only a two year school I would of never found that out, or I would never of been able to take all the manufacturing course. I spend three quartes of my sophmore year in manufacturing classes, then I chose it as my major where I took it for ANOTHER TWO years. I knew people who after taking all of the vocational classes still didn't know which one to major in, how do you expect people who have never been there to choose. It also used to take me one hour to get to school every day and one and a half to get home how would kids do that in the middle of the day. LEAVE BENSON THE WAY IT IS.
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Before attending Benson, I lived in Eugene where I attended the Eugene Waldorf School. Moving to Portland meant finding a High School. We searched for months, looking for a school that would fit my interests. Being a hands on learner, my parents and I did extensive amounts of research and reading, attended shadow days at Grant, Metropolitan Learning Center, and finally came to the conclusion that Benson was the right fit for me.
My freshman year was amazing and really valuable to my experience in choosing a major. I originally was interested in the Communications Major, for it's Photography, Video, and Web Design classes. But when the first week of school rolled around, it was the Automotive major that really grabbed my attention. After attending my 1st quarter rotation as a Freshman, I knew right then that the Auto was right for me. Had I not been given that time as a Freshman to explore the different Majors offered here at Benson through the rotations, I would not have been able to see auto as the right Major for me.
The first two years at Benson I feel are the most crucial, because students get to do hands on activities in all of the Majors which really prepares them to make an informed decision about choosing a major. Taking this vital decision making process away from students will not only put students in a Major that is not right for them, but change the way that Benson has closed the gap in Portland Public Schools for 90 years.
Zane Kelley
Benson 2012
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Benson has a rich history of innovation, creativity, and success.
Currently Benson has 75% minorities and has a 62% poverty rate yet they have the 2nd highest graduation rate. Why would you take away from a school that works? It just doesn't add up.....
As an alumni, coach, and community member I have a deep passion for Benson and believe this redesign is the wrong decision.
Altering the high school system is essential but we should learn from Benson not change it.
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Comments are now closed.
My family had 3 generations attend Benson. It’s strength was its ability to prepare young men and women for a trade. I applaud Carol Smith for making tough choices yet retaining the core of what Benson has stood for.
As I approach my 30th reunion at the school, I think back on the shops and the disciple and the skills we learned during my Junior and Senior years. Under the new plan a student can have a robust learning experience at their neighborhood school and then go to Benson to learn a trade. It would great if we had the 88k students of days gone by. But we don’t and I think this plan has struck a nice balance moving forward.
The new plan allows all students, city wide to get a world-class education. It is not lowering the bar as NCLB unintentionally did. I think this new system can fairly prepare students for college or a trade moving forward. I hope people keep the students, the curriculum and preparing them for the future in mind and don’t focus on the tough trade offs (ie Building or losses).