Portland schools board chair hears from parents on school closure plan

The chair of the Portland Public Schools board answered questions from listeners on a public radio call-in show Tuesday about the district's proposals to close schools in response to shrinking enrollment. The district has put forward two plans. One would close 14 schools and change boundaries and programs for about 8,000 students in kindergarten through eighth grade. The other would close 11 schools and affect about 7,000 students. Keeping things as they are is a third option. District enrollment has fallen 11%, roughly 5,200 students, since the 2019-20 school year.

Board chair Eddie Wang said he was first shocked by the proposal and felt both sadness and hope about stabilizing the system. He said earlier district leaders did not act on boundary recommendations made a decade ago. Many callers described sadness and frustration. Some asked for a slower pace, some said the community outreach seemed more like public relations than collaboration, and one called for a detailed transition plan covering costs, transportation, class sizes and child care before any vote. A parent also said some proposed boundary changes seemed sensible, such as one that would add nearly 200 students to Mt. Tabor Middle School, according to district projections.

Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong, who wrote the plan, is scheduled to appear on the show Friday. She is due to present her recommendation to the board next month, with a board vote set for December. Community sessions are under way.