February 2016
NEWS
The Southwest Portland Post • 3
Crowd of 500 attends Wilson meeting on West Side school boundaries
Hillsdale Business and Professional
Association president Mike Roach
spoke against changes for Rieke
School.
The wet, miserable weather didn’t
“This boundary change would push
appear to discourage anyone from
customers away from Hillsdale,” said
attending the West Side Boundaries
Roach. “And traffic—oh, my goodness.
Community Meeting at Wilson High
The proposed boundary change
School the evening of Jan. 19.
would produce ‘Carmageddon.’”
With an estimated attendance of
A c c o rd i n g t o R o a c h , “ E v e r y
almost 500, dozens had to stand as
morning, Monday through Friday,
residents packed into every available
frustrated parents driving from the
seat in Wilson’s cafeteria.
north would flood every side street
Also in attendance were several
in Hillsdale, trying to avoid the
P o r t l a n d P u b l i c S c h o o l s b o a rd
already choked Sunset Boulevard and
members, and superintendent Carole
Capitol Highway intersection, making
Smith. Smith will make her final
Hillsdale streets unsafe for walking by
recommendations to the PPS board
students or customers, who in turn,
by the end of January.
would have to drive, creating still
The meeting was an opportunity to
more traffic chaos.”
give feedback on the latest proposal
To relieve overcrowding at Lincoln
by the District-wide Boundary Review
High School, the boundary committee
Advisory Committee.
recommends moving the Spanish
It’s been a year-long process to
Immersion program from Ainsworth
create what the school district calls
to East Sylvan. And instead of
“right sized schools,” to address
Ainsworth students going to West
overcrowding at Chapman and
Sylvan Middle and Lincoln High, they
Hayhurst elementary schools and
would now go to Robert Gray Middle
Lincoln High School.
and Wilson High.
A video played at the start of
Jordan Hornlick, a seventh grader
the meeting warned another 5,000
at West Sylvan Middle School was
students will come into the Portland
looking forward to being with his
school district within the next decade.
longtime friends at Lincoln High
Making a school “right sized” means
School. But the border change will
ensuring enrollment at each school is
force him to attend Wilson.
high enough to pay for a complete
“I immediately grew really sad and
range of core curriculum classes as
angry at the prospect of losing the
well as plenty of elective classes, while
friends I made and being forced to
not overloading classrooms with too
start over again,” he testified.
many students.
His friend, Evan Nyhus, who
Schools with lower attendance risk
studies Chinese at West Sylvan asked,
missing out on the extra electives
“What will happen to my Mandarin
because there isn’t the money to pay
studies at Wilson, where Mandarin is
for them.
not offered?”
Chapman, for instance, is already
While most parents would agree
overcrowded and expected to become
overcrowded and under-enrolled
more so. The current recommendations
schools are a problem, they also
call for redrawing boundaries to send
dislike changes for their own children.
some of the Chapman students to
Despite assurances that the school
Ainsworth elementary.
board will likely keep students where
Hayhurst elementary is currently
they are by making boundary changes
overcrowded. But if the Odyssey K-8
effective for incoming students
program, now housed in Hayhurst,
only, and “grandfathering” current
moves to another school, such as
students to keep them where there
East Sylvan, Jackson Middle School
are, there no guarantees.
or the currently vacant Smith School,
This prompted more than one
Hayhurst would then risk becoming
parent to beg the boundary committee
under enrolled.
to maintain status quo for those
So students from Bridlemile and
students in affected schools.
Rieke would be shifted to Hayhurst.
“We couldn’t agree with you
more—changes need
to be made to address
overcrowding at PPS
schools,” said Karen
Silva Manning.
“Opening Smith is
a consideration that
makes sense. But
uprooting established
students in the midst
of their education
does not make sense.
Please keep current
students where they
are and do not make
an exception to the
grandfather clause.”
More than one
parent brought up
the vacant Smith
School as a solution.
Stephanie Condor,
who has children at
Maplewood, said
their school is very
small, overcrowded
and projected to
become even more
so by 2020.
Ainsworth parents came out in force and wore matching t-shirts
“So what we’d like
as a sign of unity. (Post photo by KC Cowan)
to support is the idea
By KC Cowan
The Southwest Portland Post
Judy Brennan, enrollment director of the Portland school district, goes over some numbers
for the crowd at Wilson. (Post photo by KC Cowan)
of the Smith Elementary School being
reopened in 2017. We see this as
Hillsdale Business and Professional
Association president Mike Roach
testified against changes affecting Rieke
Elementary School.
(Post photo by KC Cowan)
alleviating not only the overcrowding
at Maplewood, but also at Capitol
Hill. So we see that as a very viable
solution,” she said to cheers from the
audience.
Despite the negative feelings about
many of the proposed changes,
the meeting’s tone was polite and
respectful. Many thanked the
members of the boundary committee
for a “thankless job.” And Hayhurst
parent Tina Oliver said if Odyssey
moves out, they are ready to welcome
new families.
“Hayhurst is a warm, generous, and
welcoming community,” she said. “We
have great empathy for communities
that are going through anxiety and
stress of having to leave their beloved
school. Change is difficult and we
recognize this.
“We want you to know we will work
hard to help families that are shifted
to Hayhurst adjust and thrive. If your
family might come to Hayhurst, we
invite you to get to know us a bit,
and we want you to know that we
welcome you.”
• Winter Music Series - Live
• Newly remodeled with more
seating and over 13 TVs for all the
sports games
• 24 taps with 21 craft beers and ciders
• Big screen TV giveaway on
Superbowl Sunday
• Chicago fans welcome
$2 off Lunch
7827 SW 35th Ave.
in Multnomah Village
(503) 244-7345
Open daily
10am – 2:30am
on food purchases of
$6 or more, with coupon.
The Ship Tavern
Multnomah Village
503-244-7345
Expires 2/29/16