Latest news with #PortlandPublicSchools
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Portland schools say they're the nation's first to offer daily halal meals for all ages
Jun. 14—At Lyman Moore Middle School in Portland's North Deering neighborhood on a recent Wednesday, students streamed into the cafeteria in waves for lunch. Alongside classic offerings like hot dogs and baby carrots was a halal-certified beef and bean burrito. One student who grabbed it was sixth-grader Radiya Ahmed, 12, who said she eats halal at home and now takes the cafeteria's new certified option almost every day. It's a choice available to all students in all grades at Portland Public Schools since a districtwide rollout in April. "I like burritos and it's good that it's halal," said Ahmed, who prior to the rollout was eating cheese pizza for lunch every single day. Other Muslim students were skipping the meal entirely, school leaders say. The program was born out of a drive to provide meals for the district's growing Muslim population and a desire to bring culturally relevant food to school cafeterias. For years, Portland school officials say they and families have worried that Muslim students just aren't eating lunch at school because of a lack of halal options. Now, students can select a halal-certified meal every day and three days each week it's also a vegan meal, like a chickpea curry or veggie burger. The district and its partners believe Portland is the country's first district to offer daily halal-certified school meals for all K-12 students, something made possible because of the district's central kitchen structure and a partnership with local organizations including the Halal School Meals Network. "This is something that has been identified as a priority by our community and students," said Jen Montague, Portland's food service director. "It is challenging for students to succeed when they are hungry, yet many of our Muslim students — a number of whom come from low-income and food-insecure households — couldn't eat our free school meals because of the lack of suitable halal options." Halal, an Arabic word meaning "lawful," describes a way of eating observed by a majority of Muslims — free of pork and alcohol and following standards of cleanliness around food preparation. Lyman Moore Principal Darralynn Jones said Muslim students, some struggling with both hunger and isolation from their peers, have been excited about the halal options. She also heard positive feedback from parents who previously had to pack a lunch for their children every day. CULTURALLY IMPORTANT MENUS In 2017, Portland school administrators and parents became concerned about food insecurity in the district. That kicked off a needs assessment, in partnership with the Cumberland County Food Security Council and other organizations, that led to the development of culturally important menus and the goal of introducing foods that are familiar to students from immigrant backgrounds into the lunch menu. Chefs like Khadija Ahmed, who runs the African food pantry and market Food For All Services, were invited into schools to work with food service staff to develop those menu items. "We were just getting overwhelming positive feedback from students, hearing that they loved the recipes and they were so happy to eat things that reminded them of their home cooking," said Zoe Grodsky, school food systems manager with the food security council. "But we were also getting feedback from students that they were excited to see the recipes, but couldn't eat them." The problem was, even though the meals were familiar, they weren't halal. "We were seeing that Muslim families just weren't trusting that the food would meet their cultural and faith requirements," said Jim Hanna, director of the food security council. As a result, some students weren't eating lunch at school. The council reached out to imams and hosted focus groups with Muslim families to better understand their needs. Ahmed founded the Halal School Meals Network in early 2023. She had also worked with Westbrook schools, where the food service director reached out with similar concerns. That school district now provides halal meals at the high school level. Her organization provides resources like recipes, training, education and coordination with a third-party halal certifier, the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America. Ahmed, whose own children attended local public schools, said as a parent and immigrant, food equity is about much more than hunger. "Students of color are expected to perform twice as better as their white counterparts, and we are talking about kids who are coming into this new space where the people that are serving their food don't look like their mother," she said. "And then the food we are serving is not food that their bodies recognize, because it is not their culture." PORTLAND ROLLOUT Portland piloted a halal meals program at Amanda C. Rowe Elementary School in April 2024. The district had already eliminated all pork products from school meals, and then worked with the Halal School Meals Network to certify its central kitchen and figure out how rollout could look in each individual school. Montague said the district submits a list of foods it hopes to use to the third-party certifier, who then traces the production history of that item to determine if it's halal. Local, certified meats are the most difficult to source, so the district currently uses pre-produced burritos and popcorn chicken, although Montague hopes that next year they'll be able to introduce more scratch-made halal meat and vegan dishes. Ahmed has already developed a number of halal recipes for schools to use. Montague said food service staff have been instrumental in making the rollout possible. Across the district, about 4% of meals that have been served since April are halal-certified. Montague said she expects that number to rise as the the district continues to build trust and relationships with Muslim families, and improve the variety and quality of its halal menu. She meets monthly with the Muslim Students Association at Deering High School to discuss the program. "And one of the most important things we don't want to underestimate is how important it is for other students to better understand what halal is," Montague said. "It's taking the mystery out of that for the entire school." School districts don't collect data on student religion, but a 2021 survey of Portland students and families revealed that about 10% of students observed a halal diet, and that population is growing. A 2024 survey showed that more than a quarter of high schoolers follow a halal diet or prefer to. Ahmed said halal certification has brought increased attention to food systems in Portland schools that also benefits other dietary restrictions. The vegetarian and vegan meals are now thoroughly certified to eliminate cross-contamination or animal byproducts. She is currently working with schools in the Lewiston-Auburn area to roll out a similar program. Ahmed said the beauty of halal is that non-Muslim students can still eat it — certification just levels the playing field for food access. Copy the Story Link
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Portland will ban cellphones during school day
Jun. 10—Portland students will not be allowed to have or use their phones during the school day beginning in the fall, following the passage Tuesday night of a bell-to-bell ban by the Portland Public Schools Board of Education. The highly watched decision follows a national trend and statewide push to get cellphones out of schools from the start of each day to the end. The board heard support from educators and parents during a public hearing, and opposition from a local LGBTQ+ youth organization. Members approved an amended version of the policy in a unanimous vote with two members absent. The board's student representatives all voted against it, although their votes do not bear on the result. In past public hearings, many teachers have testified that policing phone use is one of the greatest challenges of their teaching day, and parents have argued that cellphones have negative mental health impacts on school-age children. However, some school officials have been hesitant about enacting a ban and say current policies are working just fine, and some parents had concerns about safety and communicating with their children. High school students have been almost universally opposed to the ban, according to administrators. Reception to the policy at a first reading in May was mixed, with slightly more commenters speaking in support of its passage. A K-12, bell-to-bell ban has been in consideration for Portland schools since last summer. The school board's Curriculum and Policy Committee advanced the policy in April, after which the district held seven well-attended stakeholder engagement sessions with students and parents to gather input. The district also conducted a survey of community members following the first hearing in May and received 1,200 responses, according to board Chair Sarah Lentz. She said the board also got several hundred emails about the policy. District representatives recently visited Morse High School in Bath, where a cellphone ban has been in place since the start of the school year. Administrators say the policy has led to fewer student suspensions, greater focus and higher teacher morale. PUBLIC COMMENT Many educators and parents, like Portland High School teacher Lily Sage, encouraged the board to pass the policy Tuesday night. "I believe that a phone ban will help students focus better, socialize and detox from the omnipresent screens, at least during the school day," Sage said. "When we allow phones in students' pockets or in their bags or anywhere within their reach or view, we are inviting distraction into the classroom, even when they are untouched." Casco Bay High School teacher Matt Hosmer said cellphones are designed to be addictive to young people and worried his students are unable to focus in class or stay away from phones without a blanket ban. "Minors should be protected from products that are designed to be addicting," Hosmer said. But several representatives of the LGBTQ+ youth advocacy group Portland Outright turned out against the policy. The organization's director Osgood said a blanket ban would impact the most marginalized students. "This policy is, unfortunately, following a troubling trend in local and national politics to police, control and limit the power of young people," they said. "We worry about the impact on queer students and students of color who are always impacted by bans and criminalization." Other organization members described the policy as punitive, worried that it would negatively impact student autonomy and said it would prevent students from developing healthy relationships around technology. "I am extremely concerned that this current provision will be used to violate the privacy of students at risk of being overly policed," Portland student and Outright member August Chandler testified. BOARD DELIBERATION Lentz and District 5 Member Sarah Brydon introduced an amended version of the policy. Their revision stipulates that personal electronic devices "shall not be available or accessible to students for the duration of the school day." Lentz and Brydon said that in response to community feedback, they simplified the policy by removing language around search and seizure and discipline, and broadening the language to allow schools to create policies for special circumstances like when students go off campus or travel between schools. The amendment includes an expanded exception policy that allows a student's family to submit a phone exception request if they believe access during the school day is needed. The creation and implementation of rules are up to the administration and individual schools. The district is looking at possibly using magnetically locking pouches that students keep on their person at the high school level. The board discussed details of language around exceptions, district liability and off-campus trips, and approved several line-item amendments before approving the policy. Throughout deliberations, student representatives to the board expressed skepticism about the policy, and the four high school student members voted against it. Portland High School Representative Mina Fitzgerald said her peers are confused about why the board has acted so quickly and prioritized the change over others, and said the district did not have an open mind to student concerns during stakeholder meetings. She said adults often model poor behavior around phone use. "I do think that at the end of the day, we've let phones become very integrated. And so if you wanted to educate around how to develop properly as a person by using phones, then adults themselves have to do the exact same amount of work, if not more work, than any students," she said. "And I just do not see that effectively happening within the next three months." Copy the Story Link
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Portland Public Schools to release 3 hours early Monday due to high heat
PORTLAND, Ore. () — Portland Public Schools announced they will be releasing all students three hours early on Monday, June 9, due to high heat. 'Check on friends, family' in record-heat spells With temperatures once again expected to hit above 90 degrees on Monday, PPS officials said in a that 'the sustained high temperatures and limited overnight cooling present significant health and safety concerns, especially in our schools without air conditioning.' The early release times are listed below: Elementary schools – 11:30 a.m. K-8 schools – 12:30 p.m. Middle schools – 1 p.m. High schools – 12:30 p.m. 'This decision prioritizes the wellbeing of students and staff, ensuring that everyone can return home safely before the hottest part of the day,' PPS officials said. After-school activities sponsored by the district will also be canceled, including childcare services. Athletic programs will follow and make decisions about practices and activities. Students will be served meals before being dismissed from schools, officials said. PPS has about their heat safety response. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Early results: Voters favoring PPS $1.8B bond
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The early results show voters are in favor of the $1.8 billion dollar bond for Portland Public Schools. . show 53.69% of those who voted in favor of the bond, with 46.31% opposed. More results will come throughout the night. Just minutes after the first vote tallies were released, PPS officials released statements showing their belief the bond will ultimately pass. 'We are incredibly grateful to the Portland community for once again standing with our students and saying yes to the future of public education. The passage of the 2025 school bond reflects a shared belief that every child deserves to learn in a school that is safe, modern, and designed for success,' PPS Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong said. 'This bond allows us to move forward with modernizing Jefferson, Cleveland, and Ida B. Wells-Barnett High Schools, while also delivering critical upgrades across campuses, from safety improvements to new roofs, climate systems, and classroom updates. These investments directly support student success by creating environments where students and educators can focus, connect, and thrive.' PPS Board Chair Eddie Wang added: 'We deeply appreciate Portland voters for believing in our students and placing their trust in this board. By passing this bond, our community has reinforced its commitment to public education and to creating safe, modern, and inspiring spaces where every student can thrive.' On Monday night, the PPS Board voted to approve the superintendent's $2 billion proposed budget. However, the district still faces a $40 million budget shortfall that has led . The teachers union says passing the $1.8 billion dollar bond would help reduce some of the proposed cuts. It would also go toward modernizing Cleveland, Jefferson and Ida B. Wells high schools. Despite the potential help from the bond, Portland Association of Teachers President Angela Bonilla with the teachers' union says the state needs to step up. 'We need the legislature to step up. And then what we need from them is to invest every single dollar they possibly can to direct student services,' Bonilla said. Stay with KOIN 6 News as we continue to follow this story. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
PPS Superintendent discusses 2025-2026 budget proposal
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Portland Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong laid out her proposal for the 2025-2026 school year at a press conference Wednesday morning, a proposal which includes laying off hundreds of positions in the district. At the event, Armstrong spoke on the current deficit the district is facing, $40 million, and the fact that this is the district's third straight year facing a deficit. She also shared that the current budget reflects tough decisions being made with students as their central focus. Proposal to make Portland Street Response its own standalone unit moves forward According to Armstrong, when it comes to layoffs, the central office is taking the biggest hit and in total, they are looking at a reduction of at least 240, which includes layoffs, vacant positions and teachers who are retiring and will not be replaced. 'We are making sure that our classrooms have all the essential services to be successful,' said Armstrong. 'That we are continuing with high-quality instruction, materials that our standards align, and making sure that we are providing wrap-around supports to our students who need it most. We still believe that Portland Public Schools is the best option and choice for families in our community, and we are going to continue to uplift those experiences.' When asked about some of the key reasons for the budget deficit, Armstrong said that the district has been seeing declining enrollment and that schools receive funding on a per-student basis. She also said that the district has been affected by rising costs. PPS Chief Financial Officer Michelle Morrison emphasized that this current budget proposal is only preliminary and that it will be revised. Next week at Grant High School, PPS is hosting a Board Budget Public Comment Session meant to allow the public to voice their input to the board on next year's budget. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
