Portland Public Schools Releases Two School Closure Scenarios to School Board

Portland Public Schools released two consolidation scenarios Monday night for the Portland School Board to consider.

The first scenario would close 14 schools—13 elementary schools and Sellwood Middle School. The second would shutter 11 schools—10 elementary schools and Sellwood. Under both scenarios, which WW has listed below, seven of the district’s 11 K-8 schools will become K-5 schools. It also recommends closing the high school at the Metropolitan Learning Center, which was targeted for closure last year and saved through advocacy. No alternative or focus option schools are targeted for closure, though Sunnyside K-8 would see its environmental focus option discontinue under both scenarios.

The majority of elementary schools considered for closure appear in both scenarios. Among the 10 that overlap, six are Title I schools that serve high percentages of students from low-income families. The three that do not appear in Scenario B are Rose City Park, Stephenson, and Lewis. Under Scenario A, the district proposes 38 boundary changes. Under Scenario B, it proposes 34.

The district currently operates 45 elementary schools, 11 K-8 schools and 15 middle schools.

In a memo to the School Board, authored by the district’s senior chief of operations Dr. Jon Franco, the district explains that Scenario A leaves more schools above the enrollment thresholds needed for robust programming. Rebalancing in that scenario would leave 67% of schools enrolled at threshold, while Scenario B would leave 57% at or above threshold.

A third scenario, a PPS press release notes, would defer the decision and maintain school configurations as they stand “for now.”

The district will continue to engage families through November. PPS Superintendent Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong will deliver her final recommendation to the board before it votes in December. Decisions will be effective by the start of the 2027–28 school year.

“We know how deeply connected students, families, educators and communities are to their schools, and considering the closure of any school is extraordinarily difficult,” Armstrong said in a release. “But we also have a responsibility to look at Portland Public Schools as a whole and consider changes that give every student access to strong programs, stable staffing and the opportunities and support they deserve.”

The district is sure to face vocal challenges to its closure process in the coming months, particularly from its largest union, the Portland Association of Teachers. On Sunday, the union publicly released a petition that, among several things, called on the district to redraw its boundaries, return its central office to pre-2019 staffing levels, and invest in opportunities to grow its enrollment.

In a statement sent shortly after the district released its two scenarios, PAT president Alisha Chavez urged the district to step on the brakes and slow its school closure process, calling for a more community-centered approach over a longer period of time.

“Closing schools is not a plan, it’s a reaction. Our students deserve better. Families deserve better. Educators deserve better,” Chavez’s statement reads. “We ask that the district exhaust every available option it has before considering closing schools.”

In developing its scenarios, PPS weighed a number of factors including enrollment, equity and facility quality. In the coming months, it will also face scrutiny from the broader Portland community, where school buildings have come to define many neighborhoods.

Gabrielle Haber, a parent who is part of a coalition that formed to advocate for Title I schools in the closure process, said the coalition found the proposal “disappointing.”

“We don’t disagree that rightsizing needs to happen, but we don’t see where equity is centered in these scenarios,” Haber said. “We see the burden falling on Title-I communities, on North Portland communities, on families already impacted by past changes. But we’re hopeful that this is a place to start having more concrete conversations.”

WW presents the two scenarios below, and will update this story with more information. Schools in bold are targeted for closure, while receiving schools are where currently enrolled students at affected schools will be redirected.

Scenario A:

Maplewood Elementary

Receiving schools: Hayhurst and Rieke.

Stephenson Elementary

Receiving schools: Markham and Capitol Hill.

Irvington Elementary

Receiving schools: Beverly Cleary for K–5 students and Beaumont for the area’s middle school pathway.

Rose City Park Elementary

Receiving schools: Scott for neighborhood K–5 students and Vestal for Vietnamese immersion.

Buckman Elementary

Receiving schools: Abernethy and Sunnyside.

Creston Elementary

Receiving schools: Atkinson for neighborhood K–5 students and Glencoe for Deaf and Hard of Hearing classrooms.

Marysville Elementary

Receiving school: Arleta.

Woodmere Elementary

Receiving school: Whitman.

Lewis Elementary

Receiving school: Duniway.

Beach Elementary

Receiving schools: Chief Joseph for neighborhood K–5 students and César Chávez for Spanish immersion.

James John Elementary

Receiving schools: Sitton for neighborhood K–5 students and César Chávez for Spanish immersion.

Peninsula Elementary

Receiving school: Rosa Parks.

Sabin Elementary

Receiving school: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Sellwood Middle School

Receiving schools: Hosford for students from the Llewellyn area and Brentwood for students from the Duniway and Lewis areas.

Scenario B