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Portland Public Schools, Oregon
Portland Public Schools |
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Portland, Oregon |
District details |
Superintendent: Kimberlee Armstrong |
# of school board members: 7 |
Website: Link |
Portland Public Schools is a school district in Oregon.
Click on the links below to learn more about the school district's...
- Superintendent
- School board
- Elections
- Budget
- Teacher salaries
- Academic performance
- Students
- Staff
- Schools
- Contact information
Superintendent
This information is updated as we become aware of changes. Please contact us with any updates. |
Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong is the superintendent of Portland Public Schools. Armstrong was appointed superintendent effective July 2024. Her previous career experience includes working as a teacher, coach, principal, and deputy superintendent.[1][2]
Past superintendents
- Guadalupe Guerrero was the superintendent of Portland Public Schools. Guerrero was appointed superintendent on October 2, 2017 and served until July 2024. Guerrero's previous career experience includes working as the deputy superintendent of instruction, innovation, and social justice of the San Francisco Unified School District.[3]
- Bob McKean was the interim superintendent of Portland Public Schools from 2016 to 2017.[4]
- Carole Smith was the superintendent of Portland Public Schools from 2007 to 2016.[5]
School board
The Portland Board of Education consists of seven members elected at large to four-year terms.[6]
Office | Name | Date assumed office |
---|---|---|
Portland Public Schools Board of Education Zone 1 | Christy Splitt | 2025 |
Portland Public Schools Board of Education Zone 2 | Michelle DePass | July 1, 2019 |
Portland Public Schools Board of Education Zone 3 | Patte Sullivan | July 1, 2023 |
Portland Public Schools Board of Education Zone 4 | Rashelle Chase-Miller | July 1, 2025 |
Portland Public Schools Board of Education Zone 5 | Virginia La Forte | July 1, 2025 |
Portland Public Schools Board of Education Zone 6 | Stephanie Engelsman | July 1, 2025 |
Portland Public Schools Board of Education Zone 7 | Eddie Wang | July 1, 2023 |
Elections
Members of the Portland Board of Education are elected to four-year terms. While elected at large, each seat on the board has a zone number associated with it, and candidates must live in the zone they run for. The seat numbers correlate to geographic areas in the district. Candidates file to run for a specific seat in the zone of their residence, but all voters in the school district are eligible to vote for any seat up for election. Three or four seats are up for election on a staggered basis every odd-numbered year in May.[7]
Three seats on the board were up for general election and one seat was up for special election on May 20, 2025. The filing deadline was March 20, 2025.
Ballotpedia covered school board elections in 367 school districts in 29 states in 2024. Those school districts had a total student enrollment of 12,203,404 students. Click here to read an analysis of those elections.
Join the conversation about school board politics

Public participation in board meetings
The Portland Public Schools school board maintains the following policy on public testimony during board meetings:[8]
“ | Public Comment at Board Meetings
Public Involvement The Portland Public Schools Board of Education highly values public input in making important decisions that affect Portland's children. They also believe in the right of community members to observe Board meetings. The public is invited to attend public Board meetings to gain a better understanding of school district business and the role of the School Board. The public is also invited to address the Board during the public comment portion of the Board meetings. General Public Meeting Guidelines To ensure the public has an opportunity to attend School Board meetings and offer comment, and to ensure that the Board can conduct the important business of the District, speakers must observe certain basic rules of conduct. The following guidelines apply to all public comment.
Signing up for Public Comment Requests to provide public comment can be made via email to publiccomment@pps.net or by calling the Board Office at 503-916-3741. Requests should include:
Requests must be submitted by 12:00 p.m. on the day of the meeting. Walk-up requests are accepted, if space permits, during the fifteen minutes prior to the meeting and must be received before the meeting begins. If an interpreter is needed, please notify the Board Office at least 48 hours in advance. Written Comment Written public comments can be emailed to publiccomment@pps.net and will be shared with the Board and Student Representative. Guidelines for Public Comment
Providing Comment at a Meeting
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” |
District map
Budget
The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.[10]
SOURCE | AMOUNT | AMOUNT PER STUDENT | PERCENT |
---|---|---|---|
Federal: | $66,621,000 | $1,419 | 7% |
Local: | $558,742,000 | $11,897 | 60% |
State: | $311,343,000 | $6,629 | 33% |
Total: | $936,706,000 | $19,945 |
TYPE | AMOUNT | AMOUNT PER STUDENT | PERCENT |
---|---|---|---|
Total Expenditures: | $1,152,215,000 | $24,533 | |
Total Current Expenditures: | $753,733,000 | $16,048 | |
Instructional Expenditures: | $392,016,000 | $8,346 | 34% |
Student and Staff Support: | $149,127,000 | $3,175 | 13% |
Administration: | $120,908,000 | $2,574 | 10% |
Operations, Food Service, Other: | $91,682,000 | $1,952 | 8% |
Total Capital Outlay: | $288,958,000 | $6,152 | |
Construction: | $282,854,000 | $6,022 | |
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other: | $8,194,000 | $174 | |
Interest on Debt: | $76,076,000 | $1,619 |
Teacher salaries
The following salary information was pulled from the district's teacher salary schedule. A salary schedule is a list of expected compensations based on variables such as position, years employed, and education level. It may not reflect actual teacher salaries in the district.
School year | Minimum | Maximum |
---|---|---|
2024-2025[11] | $55,539 | $108,071 |
2022-2023[12] | $50,020 | $97,333 |
2020-2021[13] | $43,382 | $88,216 |
Academic performance
Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements.[14]
The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:
School year | All (%) | Asian/Pacific Islander (%) | Black (%) | Hispanic (%) | Native American (%) | Two or More Races (%) | White (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020-2021 | <=10 | PS | <50 | PS | <50 | <50 | |
2018-2019 | 46 | 51 | 10 | 23 | 20-24 | 46 | 58 |
2017-2018 | 48 | 52 | 12 | 24 | 20-24 | 49 | 60 |
2016-2017 | 49 | 54 | 11 | 25 | 25-29 | 50 | 61 |
2015-2016 | 51 | 56 | 15 | 27 | 30-34 | 52 | 63 |
2014-2015 | 51 | 56 | 17 | 27 | 30-34 | 52 | 63 |
2013-2014 | 67 | 73 | 35 | 46 | 50-54 | 71 | 78 |
2012-2013 | 67 | 73 | 36 | 47 | 50-54 | 70 | 77 |
2011-2012 | 67 | 73 | 38 | 48 | 50-54 | 69 | 77 |
2010-2011 | 65 | 72 | 36 | 46 | 51 | 70 | 76 |
The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:
School year | All (%) | Asian/Pacific Islander (%) | Black (%) | Hispanic (%) | Native American (%) | Two or More Races (%) | White (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020-2021 | 50-59 | PS | <50 | PS | <50 | 60-79 | |
2018-2019 | 58 | 58 | 20 | 36 | 30-34 | 59 | 71 |
2017-2018 | 61 | 59 | 22 | 38 | 35-39 | 63 | 74 |
2016-2017 | 60 | 62 | 23 | 38 | 35-39 | 62 | 73 |
2015-2016 | 61 | 62 | 26 | 40 | 40-44 | 63 | 74 |
2014-2015 | 62 | 61 | 29 | 40 | 40-44 | 63 | 74 |
2013-2014 | 75 | 73 | 47 | 55 | 60-64 | 80 | 85 |
2012-2013 | 75 | 74 | 49 | 57 | 65-69 | 78 | 86 |
2011-2012 | 76 | 73 | 52 | 57 | 65-69 | 79 | 86 |
2010-2011 | 80 | 80 | 61 | 64 | 70 | 85 | 89 |
The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:
School year | All (%) | Asian/Pacific Islander (%) | Black (%) | Hispanic (%) | Native American (%) | Two or More Races (%) | White (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2019-2020 | 84 | 87 | 77 | 77 | 40-59 | 82 | 87 |
2018-2019 | 81 | 85-89 | 73 | 72 | 60-79 | 77 | 84 |
2017-2018 | 80 | 89 | 71 | 72 | 40-49 | 75-79 | 83 |
2016-2017 | 78 | 91 | 65 | 72 | 50-59 | 75-79 | 82 |
2015-2016 | 75 | 80-84 | 68 | 65 | 40-59 | 70-74 | 80 |
2014-2015 | 74 | 86 | 66 | 65 | 50-54 | 70-74 | 77 |
2013-2014 | 70 | 81 | 60 | 56 | 40-49 | 65-69 | 76 |
2012-2013 | 67 | 75-79 | 53 | 57 | 40-44 | 65-69 | 72 |
2011-2012 | 63 | 74 | 53 | 54 | 25-29 | 60-64 | 68 |
2010-2011 | 62 | 73 | 55 | 49 | 40-44 | 50-54 | 67 |
Students
Year | Enrollment | Year-to-year change (%) |
---|---|---|
2022-2023 | 44,740 | -1.0 |
2021-2022 | 45,171 | -4.0 |
2020-2021 | 46,965 | -3.5 |
2019-2020 | 48,601 | -0.2 |
2018-2019 | 48,710 | 0.2 |
2017-2018 | 48,591 | 0.9 |
2016-2017 | 48,173 | -0.4 |
2015-2016 | 48,345 | 1.1 |
2014-2015 | 47,806 | 1.0 |
2013-2014 | 47,323 | 1.2 |
2012-2013 | 46,748 | -0.4 |
2011-2012 | 46,930 | 2.4 |
2010-2011 | 45,818 | 0.2 |
2009-2010 | 45,748 | 1.6 |
2008-2009 | 45,024 | -2.7 |
2007-2008 | 46,262 | -0.2 |
2006-2007 | 46,348 | 3.9 |
2005-2006 | 44,538 | -7.0 |
2004-2005 | 47,649 | -1.5 |
2003-2004 | 48,344 | -6.8 |
2002-2003 | 51,654 | -2.4 |
2001-2002 | 52,908 | -0.4 |
2000-2001 | 53,141 | -0.8 |
1999-2000 | 53,587 | 0.0 |
RACE | Portland Public Schools (%) | Oregon K-12 STUDENTS (%) |
---|---|---|
American Indian/Alaska Native | 0.5 | 1.2 |
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander | 5.7 | 4.0 |
Black | 8.2 | 2.3 |
Hispanic | 16.9 | 25.3 |
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander | 0.7 | 0.8 |
Two or More Races | 12.0 | 7.2 |
White | 54.7 | 58.7 |
Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Staff
As of the 2022-2023 school year, Portland Public Schools had 2,740.39 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 16.33.
TYPE | NUMBER OF TEACHERS |
---|---|
Prekindergarten: | 52.58 |
Kindergarten: | 222.72 |
Elementary: | 1,658.05 |
Secondary: | 807.04 |
Total: | 2,740.39 |
Portland Public Schools employed 21.14 district administrators and 182.48 school administrators as of the 2022-2023 school year.
TYPE | NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS |
---|---|
District Administrators: | 21.14 |
District Administrative Support: | 49.05 |
School Administrators: | 182.48 |
School Administrative Support: | 240.63 |
TYPE | NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF |
---|---|
Instructional Aides: | 667.60 |
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors: | 134.89 |
Total Guidance Counselors: | 165.92 |
Elementary Guidance Counselors: | 0.00 |
Secondary Guidance Counselors: | 0.00 |
Librarians/Media Specialists: | 65.78 |
Library/Media Support: | 24.00 |
Student Support Services: | 344.06 |
Other Support Services: | 5,538.38 |
Schools
Contact information
Portland Public Schools
501 N. Dixon St.
Portland, OR 97227
Phone: 503-916-2000
About school boards
Education legislation in Oregon
Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.
See also
Oregon | School Board Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Portland Public Schools
- Portland Association of Teachers
- Oregon Department of Education
- Oregon School Boards Association
Footnotes
- ↑ OPB, "Portland Public Schools announces Evergreen’s Kimberlee Armstrong as next superintendent," June 4, 2024
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "Our Superintendent," accessed April 18, 2025
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "Our Superintendent," accessed November 12, 2019
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "Bob McKean's Biography," accessed December 10, 2016
- ↑ The Oregonian, "Carole Smith stepping down immediately as Portland superintendent in wake of lead controversy," July 18, 2016
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "Board of Education," accessed March 1, 2016
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "1.20.010-P Board of Education," accessed April 19, 2021
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "Public Comment at Board Meetings," accessed April 18, 2025
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed June 17, 2024
- ↑ [https://www.pps.net/cms/lib/OR01913224/Centricity/Domain/56/PAT%20Salary%20Schedule%202024-2025_193%20Day.pdf Portland Public Schools, "PORTLAND PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT | PROFESSIONAL EDUCATORS SALARY SCHEDULE FOR JULY 1, 2024 - JUNE 30, 2025," accessed April 18, 2025]
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "SALARY SCHEDULE FOR JULY 1, 2022 ‐ JUNE 30, 2023 PeopleSoft APPENDIX A‐1," accessed February 6, 2024
- ↑ Portland Public Schools, "192 Day Salary Schedule Effective July 1, 2019," accessed April 19, 2021
- ↑ U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
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