Parents in Portland Public Schools are doing amazing things! For over 17 years, the Portland Schools Foundation has engaged the community to meet the most urgent educational needs of our kids, by supporting the work of PPS Local Schools Foundations (LSFs), stewarding the funds raised by LSFs, and managing the PPS Equity Fund. This work will continue as our work expands as the managing partner of the Cradle to Career partnership in Portland and Multnomah County.
Since 1994, on the heels of Measure 5’s cuts to public education, PPS parents have created vibrant LSF's to raise funds to support teaching positions. Today that initiative has grown to 38 active local foundations, including the independent foundations in the Portland Public School District.
Over the past three years, the amount of investments made by PPS parents, teachers, principals, and members of the community has steadily increased from $2.72 million in 2008 to $2.83 million in 2010. These funds supported (in-part or in-full) 130 PPS positions this year, including positions at the schools that received a portion of the $845,000 PPS Equity Fund. To date LSFs have raised roughly $24 million for PPS schools; of which roughly $8 million has been distributed through the PPS Equity Fund. This is amazing work that is also an incredible Portland story--LSF's give 1/3 of what they raise (after the first $10,000) to the Portland Schools Foundation PPS Equity Fund to provide grants to schools that do not have parent communities that are able to raise the much-needed dollars for their schools.
Have questions about our new name? This document can help.
Resources
PPS Active Local School Foundations
Portland metro school districts foundation information
PPS Local School Foundation Event Calendar
If you have any questions or if you are interested in setting up a foundation at your local school, please contact Samantha Lopez at samantha@thinkschools.org or 503.234.5404, ext. 13.