Posts tagged Portland Public School District
Portland teachers use strike to demand racial equity trainings as schools stay closed
November 15, 2023 // Former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos ripped the teachers unions in a statement to the Washington Examiner, saying, "Big school unions love closing schools." "They’re holding nearly 50,000 kids hostage to their radical demands, and families across Portland are paying the price," she said. "This is on top of Oregon recently removing basic math and reading competency requirements to graduate high school. It’s hard to argue kids are getting a great education there, and it’s a shame parents in Portland who want better for their kids can’t 'strike' themselves and take their kids out of the government schools."
PPS, PAT to exchange proposals; unfair labor practice alleged
November 13, 2023 // The district was upset after protesters rallied at the Oregon Convention Center where a school board member was attending a Metro retreat, according to a letter the district sent to the union. In the letter, sent Nov. 8, PPS claims an estimated 1,000 PAT protesters marched from PAT offices to the convention center where Metro was holding the retreat. The letter says PPS Board Member Andrew Scott was at the retreat in his role as Deputy Chief Operating Officer at Metro and as PAT protesters “surrounded” the convention center, they chanted slogans including, “’Andrew Scott you’re no good. Treat your teachers like you should!’” PAT members had early entry to the convention center and opened secured doors for PAT protesters to enter the secured wing of the building where Scott and other Metro members were meeting, the letter states. According to PPS, Scott evacuated the building and Metro members were traumatized from the protest.
Portland Public Schools developing contingency plans before possible teacher strike
October 19, 2023 // With a teacher strike potentially coming, the Portland Public School District began to come up with contingency plans for kids on Wednesday night.
Multiple unions rally at PPS HQ in solidarity as bargaining continues for several groups of workers
October 12, 2023 // Multiple unions rallied at district headquarters on Tuesday as bargaining continues for several major groups, including both the teachers union and the union representing custodians and nutrition service workers. Dr. Renard Adams, Chief of Research, Assessment and Accountability for PPS said the district’s financial limitations are “very real.” “I was an aide, a paraeducator, and a middle school special educator, so when our teachers say the work is hard, I know,” Dr. Adams said. “And we can both acknowledge the work is hard, and that there are very real financial limitations on what we can offer if we want to sustain the success we’re seeing in our schools. We ask our educators to come back to the bargaining table and work with us to find a compromise that keeps our students at the center.”
Oregon Education Association Just the Latest Teachers’ Union to Impose Racially Discriminatory Policies
June 15, 2023 // On April 30, OEA’s board of directors discussed a so-called “progressive dues structure for BIPOC (black, indigenous and people of color) members,” according to meeting minutes. This scheme would include a “significant discount for educators until the racial breakdown of our membership aligns with the racial breakdown of our student population.”