This Wednesday, January 25 at 4:30pm, PAT will be hosting a

Retirement/ Financial Planning Seminar, focused on educators who are new(ish) to PERS. (Although you don't have to be new in order to attend!) This seminar is dedicated to financial wellbeing and planning for the future, led by veteran financial advisor Ed Foster. Topics for this seminar include:

• How does your state-sponsored retirement plan work?
• Where does the I.A.P. account fit in?
• How much money do you need to retire anyway?
• What happens if you change careers?
• What can you do to maximize your retirement savings?
• PERS? OPSRP? 403b? TSA? IRA? What do these all mean?!

RSVP HERE. The seminar will be in person on Wednesday, January 25, 4:30-6:00 PM, at the PAT office at 345 NE 8th Ave. A light meal will be provided. See the flyer here.

(*These retirement seminars are a benefit of PAT membership, and only available for PAT members. Not a member yet? Join here!)

The Advocate, January 4th, 2023

• President’s Message: Happy New Year! ¡Feliz Año Nuevo!
• Know Your Contract: Probationary Teacher Mid-Year Evaluation Timelines
• PAT Elections: Submit Questions for Eboard Candidates
• Committee Updates
  • Racial Equity Committee
  • SJCO/External Organizing
  • Legislative Committee-Educator for a Day
• Upcoming Events
  • Educator Happy Hour
  • PAT Trainings
  • Next Committee Meetings at PAT Office

The Advocate, November 18th, 2022

• President’s Message: Look for the Light
• Know Your Contract: Parent/Teacher Conferences
• Bargaining Update
• Run for a PAT Elected Position! (Eboard, OEA RA, & NEA RA)
• Committee Updates
  • Instruction & Professional Development (IPD) Committee
  • Social Justice & Community Outreach Committee
  • Racial Equity Committee
  • PAT PAC
• Upcoming Events

The Advocate, November 4th, 2022

• President’s Message: A Harm to One is a Harm to All
• Know Your Contract:
  • KYC: Using Professional Development Funds
  • KYC: Parent/Teacher Conferences
• Bargaining Update
• HOT TIPS: PTO and Missing Staff Meetings
• Nominations and Elections
  • Run for Interim Eboard Director or Interim Secretary by November 16!
  • PAT’s General Election- Nominations Open Soon 
• Committee Updates
  • PAT PAC & OEA PAC-See Our Candidate Endorsements
  • Social Justice & Community Outreach Committee
• SpEd Week of Action
• PAT Rep Retreat
• Retirement Planning Seminar- November 17th, 4:30 PM
• OEA Grant Applications Due Today
• Where in the World is Advocacy Cadre?!
• Upcoming Events

The Advocate, October 7, 2022

• President's Message: Back in the Swing of Things
• New Year, New PAT
• Know Your Contract:
  • KYC: Overage Pay Determination
  • KYC: Complete Your Required Training by October 31st
  • KYC: Submit Educational Credits by October 31st
• Tuesday Blue-sday
• PAT Committees + PAT PAC
  • Social Justice and Community Outreach (SJCO) Committee
    • October 11th- Union Solidarity Action RE: COVID Leave 
    • Join the PAT Flying Squad
    • October 15th- PAT Community Drive-thru Event and Mutual Aid
    • Upcoming SJCO and External Organizer Meetings
  • PAT PAC: Get Out the Vote for PAT PAC Endorsed Candidates
• Hot Tips:
  • Check Your Pay Stubs!
  • Self Care Corner: Big Feelings are A-OK
  • Register to Vote by October 18th
• NEW! Advocacy Cadre is Coming Back!
• NEW! Listening and Organizing Sessions for SPED and TOSAs
• OEA Podcast: New Episode
• Grant Opportunities for Educators
• NW Teaching for Social Justice Conference
• Upcoming Events

The Advocate, September 21, 2022

• President’s Message: ONE MORE E-MAIL?! 
• Know Your Contract:
  • KYC: Give Your Schedule a Check-up!
  • KYC: Advancing on the Salary Schedule
  • KYC: Salary Placement for New Hires: Credit for Teaching Experience & Education Level
  • KYC: Using Professional Development Funds
  • KYC: Parent/Teacher Conferences
• Join a Committee!
• PAT Committees + PAT PAC Announcements
  • Social Justice and Community Outreach (SJCO) Committee
  • External Organizing
  • Racial Equity Committee
  • Legislative Committee
  • PAT PAC
• Hot Tips: Prepare for Absences
• NEW: Each One, Teach One
• OEA & NEA Opportunities
• Upcoming Events

New PAT President Angela Bonilla was recently featured on OPB's Think Out Loud. Talking with Dave Miller, Angela discusses the challenges of last year and the supports educators need to then support their students and communities. Hear first hand Angela's thoughts on moving the union forward and the work that lies ahead.

Hear the whole interview on Think Out Loud's website (runtime 14:59).

Educator --

As a human, a femme non-binary person, a Black Latine person, a queer person, all the ways I exist have had to mourn and feel angry this weekend. The decision passed down by the Supreme Court this week for Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturned decades of precedent around the right to privacy. These are the rights that marginalized folks have built and won. I have received communication from members and understand your urgency. I thank you all for your patience as I process this myself and figure out what to say in response. 

As US Labor Against Racism and War explains, “Make no mistake. Reproductive health care is a workers’ issue and overturning Roe v Wade is a racist attack on our sisters. The SCOTUS decision today will only affect those women of limited economic means and disproportionately impact poor and working women of color. The health and safety of our sisters are all at risk.” I would add that this decision also disproportionately impacts our trans and non-binary siblings looking for gender affirming and reproductive healthcare.

This is a union issue because our fight for justice is not for just us: It is for all working class folks. As the largest education local in the state, we help hold the line against these classist, sexist, transphobic, abilist and racist attacks. I believe part of my role as your elected leadership is to make sure that whatever we ask of PAT (that's us, each and every member) is impactful and intentional. It becomes performance when it isn't rooted in community and is not led by and prioritizing those directly impacted or harmed.

In terms of our knowledge and acting in service to our community, I have tried to gather resources and support for PAT Leadership to vet and share out. That living document can be found HERE. Please let me know if there are any organizations you feel are supporting this work towards human rights and access to reproductive health that we can review and spotlight at [email protected]. I know we have a broad scope of member expertise and talent we can deploy to spaces where they are needed. 

What I know and trust is that we will never accept a world that decides that some have freedom over their bodies and others do not. We will not allow the privileged few to undo the centuries of struggle working class folks in this country have done to get closer to the promise of liberty and justice for all. The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. We may feel hopeless now, but we can and will do what it takes to make America “the land it never has been and yet must be”.

Please remember to take care of yourselves and each other.

En solidaridad y con cariño,
Angela Bonilla (she/they/ella)
President Elect, Portland Association of Teachers
[email protected]

Portland Association of Teachers
http://www.pdxteachers.org/

The Advocate, June 8th, 2022

1. President’s Message: We Are PAT
2. Know Your Contract: Can I Be Required to Work This Summer?
3. Know Your Contract: When are Grades Due?
4. Donate to Sick Leave Bank Today
5. Apply Join Next Year’s PAT Advocacy Cadre!
6. March for Our Lives: Saturday Action to End Gun Violence
7. Join the PAT NEO Welcome Team
8. Upcoming Events

Portland Association of Teachers
http://www.pdxteachers.org/

PAT is seeking members to serve on next year’s  Advocacy Cadre. To apply, fill out this application form by June 27th. 

What is The PAT Advocacy Cadre? 

This small group of members will work closely with UniServ to become experts on our contract, and will provide member to member support.

The Advocacy Cadre will run a Zoom Advocacy Hotline, where Reps and other members can get immediate answers to questions about the contract and support to resolve problems in their buildings. 

In addition, the Advocacy Cadre will provide support with Rep Training, answering member emails to AskPAT@oregoned,org, and creating materials to help members better understand contract issues.

You can read about this year's Advocacy Cadre here: www.pdxteachers.org/pat_advocacy_cadre

Cadre Members Commit to:

• 2 days Advocacy Training on August 16th and 17th. (This will be held either live, or remotely, depending on safety recommendations at that time.)
• 1 Zoom Hotline shift a week, during the school year, Mondays, 4:30-6:30 at PAT. 
• Up to a half day twice a month to follow up on unresolved member needs from the Hotline shift (release time can be provided).
• In addition to answering the hotline, this time may include ongoing training and other advocacy work with Uniserv Reps. Additional dates may be added depending on need.
• This is a minimum 1-year opportunity and commitment, paid at the OEA cadre-rate ($33/hour). 

Responsibilities

• Assist Building Representatives and members who come to Zoom Advocacy Hotline;
• Respond to emails from members;
• Be a knowledgeable resource about the PAT contract and PAT systems for supporting members in different situations;
• Follow procedure to inform UniServ reps of issues, determining next steps;
• Potential additional release time/ pay for ongoing training or representation work;
• Potential to shadow UniServ Reps on assignment.

Qualifications

• Active PAT membership;
• Experience as a PAT building rep or other similar union experience preferred;
• Interest in continued union advocacy work;
• Special consideration given to applicants with an interest in pursuing work as a UniServ Consultant; 
• Special consideration given to applicants with characteristics that help create a group that represents the racial diversity of our membership, and of the job-types that our members hold.

Goals for PAT:

• Build capacity among members to enforce our contract, support member rights, and organize and problem solve in buildings;
• Develop leadership within PAT that represents the diversity of our membership demographics and workforce positions;
• Create a pathway toward UniServ work for interested members.

To apply

• Fill out application form by June 27th
• Interviews to be scheduled in mid July

Portland Association of Teachers
http://www.pdxteachers.org/

The Advocate, May 11, 2022

1. President’s Message
2. Donate to Sick Leave Bank Today
3. Time for PAT Rep Elections
4. Primary Election- Vote by May 17th
5. Celebrate Asian American Pacific Islander Month
6. Professional Learning Plan
7. Instructional Framework Advisory Group
8. Contract Exceptions Due 5/13/2022
9. PAT’s End-of-Year Party in the Park- May 20th
10. PAT's Educators of Color Social, May 27th
11. PAT's Retiree and Outgoing Officers Celebration June 8th
12. Register for OEA Summer Conference
13. Upcoming Events

The Advocate, April 27, 2022

1. President’s Message: What We Really Want for Educator Appreciation Week
2. Nominations & Elections: Run For Interim Seats on the PAT Executive Board
3. Advocacy: Deadline for Contract Exceptions May 13th
4. Solidarity with Custodians and Nutrition Service Workers
5. Help Elect Candidates Who Will Fight for Us
6. Registration Opening Soon! OEA Summer Conference
7. It's Time for PAT Rep Elections
8. PAT’s End-of-Year Party in the Park- May 20th
9. Upcoming Events

The Advocate, April 6, 2022

1. President’s Message: PPS Budget: Let's Lay the Groundwork for a Better Year
2. Nominations & Elections: Run For Interim seats on the PAT Executive Board
3. Aspiring Educators of Color Scholarship: Applications Due April 19th
4. Social Justice and Community Outreach Committee Update
5. It's Time for PAT Rep Elections
6. PAT PAC Endorsements for May Primary
7. Starbucks Workers Solidarity Caravan and Sip-in: Sat. April 16, 2:00-4:00 PM
8. Upcoming Events

The Advocate, March 9th, 2022

1. President’s Message: Our Community Stands with Us for Small Class Sizes
2. PAT PAC Endorsements for May Primary
3. Our Custodian and Nutrition Worker Colleagues Ask For Safe and Healthy Schools
4. Financial Seminar for Early-Mid Career Educators
5. PAT Scholarship for Future Educators of Color
6. What Does It Mean to Be Unassigned?
7. Upcoming Events

The workers of PPS are united in opposition to the unnecessary and harmful staffing cuts that PPS announced last week.

The following letter was sent today to PPS leaders, from DCU, SEIU, PFSP, PAT, and ATU. 

February 25, 2022

Dear Superintendent Guerrero, Deputy Superintendent Proctor, Chief of Staff Garcia, Board Chair DePass, Board Directors Scott, Kohnstamm, Greene, Hollands, Brim-Edwards, and Lowery, and Student Director Weinberg,

The workers of Portland Public Schools are united in our opposition to the needless and damaging staffing cuts that PPS is imposing on schools.

Last week, schools were informed of staffing cuts, including at least 120  teachers. 

These cuts will harm students and destabilize school communities.  Elementary schools across the district are seeing 65 teaching positions cut,  creating  class sizes as high as 33. Middle schools, which have struggled this year to maintain safe and supportive learning environments because of increased level of student need, are collectively losing at least 30 teachers. Across the district, school communities will be losing beloved educators and staff who want to stay.

During a time of unprecedented student need, PPS is reducing the number of educators and staff who provide direct service to our students. 

To be clear, there is absolutely no financial reason to make these cuts. PPS will have more funding than we have ever seen. This funding includes:

• A projected INCREASE in per-pupil funding for the state school fund.
• A projected OVERALL increase from the state school fund, even taking enrollment decline into account. 
• An INCREASE in funding from the Student Investment Account, providing  PPS with $38 million for next school year. 
• Continued funding from the Teacher Levy and the Arts Tax, providing PPS with $100 million
• $112 million in ESSR federal relief funding which must be used by 2024

With the combination of all these funds, PPS should be investing in our students by dramatically reducing class sizes and caseloads and improving services to students. Instead, PPS is cutting resources from schools,  in a system that is already stretched beyond the breaking point. 

Along with improving class sizes, we can also use this opportunity to prioritize stability, safety,  to make next year meaningfully better for our students. 

• Offer competitive wages to our custodians, nutrition workers, bus drivers, paraeducators, education assistants, and maintenance workers, so we can recruit and retain staff, and stop wasting money on contractors.
• Increase custodial staff to better maintain our schools and give our students a safe and healthy school environment. 
• Add Education Assistants and Paraeducators, to ensure that  students who need it can get individual attention. 
• Invest in school bus drivers and infrastructure, in the short -term to stop relying on sub-contracting to cab companies,  and for the long-term to bring back all school bus drivers under the direct employment of the district.           

Our students deserve a district that puts safe, stable learning environments, and direct services to students FIRST.

Respectfully,

Jenna Bazner, IBEW LU48 Business Rep, President of the District Council of Unions

Jason Mcleod, Co-Chair of SEIU 503, Local 140

Amy Silvia, Ci-Chair SEIU 503, Local 140

Dustin Hysmith, Business Representative SMART, Local 16

Michelle Batten, President, Portland Federation of School Professionals (PFSP)

Elizabeth Thiel, President, Portland Association of Teachers

Shirley Block President ATU 757

Bob Tackett, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, NW Oregon Labor Council, AFL-CIO

Ira Erbs VP of Political Action AFT - Oregon , member PCCFFAP 2277

Ariana Jacob, Executive Council Co-Chair, PSUFA AFT-Oregon Local 3571 

Laura Wadlin, Secretary of PCCFFAP (AFT Local 2277)

Jodi Barschow, OFNHP President, Oregon Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, OFNHP-AFT Local 5017

Dear Educator,

Yesterday, five members of the Oregon BIPOC Caucus sent this letter to PPS leaders, asking then to reconsider cutting teacher positions and raising class sizes:

“At a time when districts across the state have access to historic levels of funding, and when our students have greater needs than ever before, cuts to student facing positions should be the option of absolute last resort for Oregon school districts.”

The full text of the letter is below.

Please join me in thanking Representative Andrea Salinas, Representative Travis Nelson, Representative Khanh Pham, Senator Kayse Jama, and Senator Akasha Lawrence Spence for standing up for our students, and joining us is asking PPS to make next year a BETTER YEAR in our schools. 

In Solidarity, 

Elizabeth Thiel, PAT President

To: Portland Public School Board Members and PPS Superintendent Guerrero

501 N. Dixon Street

Portland, OR 97227

March 2, 2022

Chair DePass, Board Members and Superintendent Guerrero,

The district’s budget situation as reported and explained to us by educators, parents, and students, has caused grave concerns among a few of Oregon’s lawmakers, and members of the BIPOC Caucus, who represent the PPS community in the Oregon legislature. After an unprecedented federal investment in our neighborhood public schools, and months of collaboration between lawmakers and education stakeholders to address the education workforce crisis, we are concerned to learn that PPS is considering cutting 120 teaching positions next year. At a time when districts across the state have access to historic levels of funding, and when our students have greater needs than ever before, cuts to student facing positions should be the option of absolute last resort for Oregon school districts.

We acknowledge that there have been enrollment declines in the past few years; however, changes to state school funding are not based on raw enrollment changes in a district but are instead dependent on weighted enrollment changes across the state. Moreover, district funding is determined by the highest of the past two years’ weights, and funding per weight will increase this incoming year due to statewide enrollment drops.

So, while there might be some shortfall, it is hard to understand how the situation is as dire as reported. And when one examines the financial picture for PPS in totality, including: stable property taxes and PPS’s operating levy; SIA funds that can be used to decrease class size and increase emotional supports for students; and over $100 million in ESSER federal funds, it would seem that PPS may actually have a historic level of funding for district operations for the upcoming school year. Given this information, we feel very strongly that PPS should, at the very least, be able to maintain current services for students and avoid the dramatic cuts to teaching staff that the district has proposed.

We also want to express our frustration that PPS’ proposed budget cuts were all aimed at direct student contact positions. At a time when our community is trying to do everything we can to mitigate the trauma caused to students by the pandemic, and build a public education system that is equipped to meet the increasingly complex needs of Oregon students, it is difficult to fathom why PPS would propose a financial plan built entirely on cutting direct student support positions from our neighborhood public schools. As members of the BIPOC Caucus, we fear that English Language Learners, students with disabilities and low-income students will be disproportionately impacted by these cuts.

To help us better understand why you are proposing such dramatic cuts, we would like to ask several questions:

1. What is the exact budget hole you expect for next year, and how was the budget shortfall calculated?
2. How are you making the assumptions about costs and anticipated revenue for 2023-24 and beyond, that were presented to the PPS Board of Education on 2/22/22? For example, were community members who withdrew students during the COVID-19 pandemic surveyed to inform the assumption that none of those students would be returning to the district in the next academic year?
3. How are all ESSER funds being spent? Please provide a line-item list.
4. What concurrent cuts are happening to administrative positions?

To reiterate, we understand that difficult decisions often have to be made during the budgeting process for Oregon’s schools, but with over $100 million in federal money available to PPS with the express purpose of preventing cuts to student services in our schools, it concerns us that there are 120-160 student facing positions that are being removed.

Thank you for the time and help understanding this issue.

Sincerely,

Representative Andrea Salinas 
Representative Travis Nelson
Representative Khanh Pham 
Senator Kayse Jama
Senator Akasha Lawrence Spence

Elizabeth Thiel
http://www.pdxteachers.org/

Dear Educator,

Last night, I addressed the PPS Board again on their plan to cut teaching positions and raise class sizes next year.  

Since last week, state funding estimates have been published, so we are now able to verify that PPS is not facing the 8% reduction in state funding that they projected when they first announced their intention to cut teachers.

As of the most recent information we have been given, PPS is still moving forward with the reduction of 65 elementary teacher positions and 31.5 middle school teacher positions, and raising class sizes to pre-pandemic levels in most cases. 

The full text of my remarks is below, and you can view the slides I presented here. You can also watch the recording of the board meeting here. Please also watch powerful public testimony by PAT members and students into the meeting.

Remarks by PAT President, Elizabeth Thiel, on PPS Staffing Cuts, March 1st, 2022

Hello Chair De Pass, Superintendent Guerrero, Student Rep Weinberg, and members of the board. Thank you for allowing me to address you again this evening. 

Last week, I came before you to talk about proposed staffing cuts, which will reduce the number of teaching positions in PPS and increase class sizes across the district.

I asked you to take a different path. I am here today because, while PPS has proceeded with cuts, there is still time to change course and make next year a BETTER year. And we have additional information now that makes that pathway even clearer. 

At the board meeting last week, PPS staff presented a thorough presentation on district funding. Thank you for providing that in this public forum. 

Having had time to review the presentation, I want to continue the conversation tonight.

First, some good news:

Since I spoke to you last week, Oregon published its state fund estimates for next year. The outcome is good news for PPS. PPS presented last week an anticipated enrollment loss of 3500, or 8%. But the weighted change in PPS enrollment is just 3.5%. 

At the same time, weighted per-pupil funding is going up. 

This means that PPS now has assurance that we will be receiving slightly more money from the state next year than this year, not less, and significantly more funding for each student.

This puts PPS in a much better position than when you projected that an 8% decline in enrollment could also create an 8% drop in funding.

This is, of course, in addition to the Teacher Levy dollars, the Arts Tax, and the SSI, which are also stable despite lower enrollment, and the $112 million in ESSER funds which must be invested in our students sometime over the next 2 years.

This is all really positive news, and reinforces the conclusion that there is not a funding shortfall that requires us to cut teachers and raise class sizes. Rather, we can and must give each of our students MORE.

Now, I have a few questions about PPS Spending.

As of last week, PPS presented projections that PPS is planning to spend an additional $48 million next year above this year’s spending.

The good news is that I think we are on the same page that we DO have additional resources to invest in our students-- a 7% increase according to this slide. 

My question is, what is the plan for this additional spending? Why cut teachers while increasing spending by $48 million?

I’m particularly interested in what cuts from the central office are planned?

Cuts to direct services to students should be the LAST resort, as just about each one of you told us when you were running for this board. 

Finally, I want to talk about enrollment projections for next year. 

Last week PPS presented a chart showing the historical and projected enrollment in our schools. 

During the year of Distance Learning, we lost students (green line). Last year, the district projected that those students would come back (blue line).

Then Delta hit, and we started the school year during the height of the most deadly surge of COVID-19, while children under 12 were still unable to be vaccinated. Many families remained on a waitlist for the Online Learning Academy for months. Some families chose to keep their children at home, or to enroll in online programs outside the district.

It appears that PPS is no longer anticipating that those students will ever come back (orange line).

Other parents and community members I talk to know families who ARE planning to come back to their neighborhood school next year, and we need to be ready for them.

In the fortunate (and likely) event that those families do choose to come back to PPS (purple line, my addition), we have not planned for that. A school that we are staffing now to have 31 in each 1st grade class, may actually end up with 33 or 34.

We could try to add positions in the fall to account for those students coming back, but it is unlikely we will be able to fill them, as teachers will have already accepted jobs.

There is a better way.  We can make this a school district that families WANT to come back to, and to stay in.  

We do that by investing in our students, by lowering our class sizes, so students can get the attention and support they need. 

Now some more good news:

I was told late last week that PPS had lowered the maximum middle school class size from 35 to 33 in Title I middle schools, and 34 in other schools.  I am told this added back 12 teaching positions. Thank you. Let’s do more.

We are still cutting 31.5 positions for middle school. Instead of reducing the number of educators, could we lower middle school class sizes to no higher than 32?  How about no higher than 30 in our Title I schools like Harriet Tubman, Lane, and Roseway Heights, Ockley Green, and George?

Let’s keep going!

PPS is currently eliminating 65 elementary teacher positions.  Instead, we could utilize those positions to bring class sizes down, starting with our CSI schools. Instead of 4th and 5th grades up to 32 students in CSI schools like Rigler and Sitton, why not keep those class sizes under 30?

Our Title I schools, like James John and Harrison Park, have Kindergarten and 1st grade classes of up to 28! How about we allocate some of those 65 positions so that we could cap those at 26? 

If there is still FTE left over after that, we could keep going and invest in smaller class sizes in all our schools. 

We STILL have the opportunity to make next year a better year. 

The resources are available and the need is undeniable.

Unassignments are already becoming official, but teachers haven’t left yet. You can still direct the District to improve the staffing ratios, and make next year a better year for the students we have, and the students we hope to get back.

Thank you again for listening, and for taking the initiative to put us on a better path while we still have the chance. 

Elizabeth Thiel, PAT President
http://www.pdxteachers.org/

Dear Educator,

Last night, I addressed the PPS Board on their plan to reduce 120 teaching positions next year, creating Kindergartens of up to 29 students, 2nd grades classes of up to 32 students, and 5th through 8th grade classes up to 35 students.

The text of my remarks is below. You can also watch the recording of the board meeting here.

Remarks by PAT President, Elizabeth Thiel, on PPS Staffing Cuts

PPS School Board Meeting  2/22/22

Hello Chair De Pass, Superintendent Guerrero, Student Rep Weinberg, and members of the board. Thank you for allowing me to address you this evening. 

The last two school years have been incredibly difficult for our students, school communities, and staff. Looking to next year, we have an incredible opportunity to MAKE things BETTER.  

But the staffing cuts that PPS rolled out last week– around 120 teaching positions cut – do the opposite. 

I want to talk to you tonight about how we can correct course, to prioritize our students and stabilize our schools.

Enrollment and Funding

We’ve heard a lot from the District about the decline in enrollment over the last 2 years, and this has been cited as a reason for cutting teacher positions. 

Typically, we assume school funding is tied to enrollment numbers, so fewer students means less funding. But that is not exactly how it works in Oregon. The legislature sets an overall K-12 budget, and then divides it amongst districts based on the proportion of students they enroll. 

This school year, enrollment is down across the state. There are almost 30 thousand fewer students enrolled in Oregon schools this year, which broadly matches the declines we’ve seen here in PPS.

But the total amount of funding from the state – $9.3 billion in the 2021-23 biennium – has not gone down. If anything, we are likely to see an increase in state support next year, given the $800 million increase in projected revenue announced two weeks ago.

With stable state funding divided among fewer students across Oregon, the state is actually projecting more funding per-student for PPS and other districts. 

That means we have the opportunity and the responsibility to give each student MORE next year.

In PPS, we also have several other significant sources of funding, and these sources are also stable, despite the drop in enrollment. We have:

• Stable funding from the Student Success Act, which was passed in 2019 specifically to LOWER class sizes and provide more social-emotional supports to students. 
• Stable funding from the Teacher Levy, which voters renewed in order to support smaller class sizes.
• Continued funding from the Arts Tax.

Again, these sources are providing stable funding, despite the decrease in enrollment. 

There is NO FUNDING SHORTAGE that requires PPS to cut teachers and raise class sizes.

AND, in addition to all these ongoing sources of revenue, we have a windfall of federal support, totaling $120 million dollars. These funds must be spent in the next 2 years. This money is specifically meant to protect students and school districts from cuts and disruptions like the ones PPS has begun rolling out.

All this means that we have an opportunity to make next year a BETTER YEAR. We finally have the funding, and the classroom space, to lower class sizes, which is exactly what our students and educators need.

However, this is not the course we are currently on.

The Cuts

Last week, PPS announced a reduction of over 120 teacher positions in elementary and middle schools across the District, negatively impacting almost all of our schools.

The rationale for doing so has been to increase class sizes to match the District’s pre-pandemic staffing ratios. These class sizes were too high then, and they are MUCH TOO HIGH now.

PPS’S staffing ratios call for:

• Kindergartens up to 29 students
• 2nd grades up to 32 students
• 5th through 8th grade classes up to 35 students

We fully support the District’s efforts to provide better class sizes in our CSI and Title I schools, including capping CSI Kindergarten at 24. This is an important step, but we need to do MUCH MORE.

Even our CSI schools– which serve our students with the greatest needs, will have class sizes of 34 for 4th and 5th grade and in middle school– according to the District’s current plan. 

WE CAN DO MUCH BETTER, and we must. 

A week ago, building principals shared staffing allocations with school faculty. After a year defined by persistent staffing shortages and increased student needs, news of these cuts was an additional and unexpected blow to morale among educators and other school staff. 

Here are some examples of how the 120 cut positions will be impacting students and schools:

• At Peninsula Elementary, a TSI School, next year 2nd grade will have 30 students in a classroom. Remember, next year’s 2nd graders experienced kindergarten online. This year, in first grade, they are learning not only regular 1st grade skills, but also catching up on things that are typically such an important part of kindergarten, like how to sit at a desk and how to hold scissors. Those same students will be in a single-strand 2nd grade class of 30. At the same school, two sections of 5th grade are being collapsed into one section of 32 11-year-olds. 
• Scott Elementary, a CSI school, will be combining 4th and 5th grades, to avoid having class sizes in the mid 30s. That means teachers will be forced to split their time planning and teaching the curriculum for two grade levels.
• Beach Elementary has to choose between having a full time school secretary or a full-time librarian; and whether to cut their instructional specialist, or blend grade levels to avoid class sizes in the mid 30s. These are not fair choices. 
• Elementary school students across the District will have class sizes in the 30s, including at Grout, Markham, Richmond, Glencoe, Atkinson, Alameda, Laurelhurst, and Sunnyside, among others. 
• School communities will be losing beloved educators who want to stay with their students and colleagues: including at Sitton, Rigler, Buckman, Abernethy, Lewis, Beverly Cleary, Harrison Park, and Vernon.
• Middle schools, which have struggled this year to maintain safe and supportive learning environments, given the increased level of student need, are collectively losing 44 teachers. 
• All our middle schools are staffed to have class sizes of 34 or 35, CSI and Title I schools included. 
• We talk about the importance of relationships and stability for our middle school students. YET:
  • Ockley Green is losing 3.5 teaching positions
  • Kellogg MS is losing 6 teachers
  • Mt Tabor is losing 5 teachers
• Our High Schools are not losing staffing overall because they are understaffed this year and will continue to be understaffed next year. Our high school students are frequently in classes with over 30 students, and many educators have over 180 students to build relationships with. 

This is NOT what our students need after two years of disruption and instability.

SO I want to come back to our opportunity to make next year a BETTER YEAR.

The combination of lower enrollment, stable funding from local and state sources, and $120 million dollars in Federal relief funding, means that we have the resources necessary to give our students what they need: more individual attention from their teachers, calm and safe classrooms, and more opportunities for personal connections, engagement, and support.

As a board, you always aim to be student-centered in your decision-making. When we talk about the budget and staffing, that means prioritizing direct supports for students. Cutting teachers should be the LAST resort, not the first step before a budget has even been developed. 

I realize that things feel a little out of order. As a board, you have not yet been asked to approve the PPS budget– that doesn’t happen until April. But these staffing cuts are happening NOW. Principles have already presented these cuts to staff, and in the next week, will begin formally unassigning teachers. And after being unassigned from their schools, many teachers are likely to look for jobs in other districts or other fields, which will only make our staffing shortage worse.

If we stay on this path, we are choosing to implement pre-pandemic staffing levels and class sizes, which already fell short of meeting our students’ needs.

But there is another path, and we are asking you to take it. Every parent and educator knows that students thrive when they have the support and attention they need and deserve. Instead of cutting teachers, please direct the District to CUT CLASS SIZES. 

The resources are available and the need is undeniable.

I’m here tonight because it’s not too late yet to fix this, if the Board takes action now. 

You can direct the District to pause on unassigning educators, and instead improve the staffing ratios and put those 120+ teaching positions back in classrooms where our students need them.

Thank you for listening, and for taking the initiative to put us on a better path while we still have the chance. 

Portland Association of Teachers
http://www.pdxteachers.org/

Dear Educator,

Last night, I addressed the PPS Board on their plan to reduce 120 teaching positions next year, creating Kindergartens of up to 29 students, 2nd grades classes of up to 32 students, and 5th through 8th grade classes up to 35 students.

The text of my remarks is below. You can also watch the recording of the board meeting here.

Remarks by PAT President, Elizabeth Thiel, on PPS Staffing Cuts

PPS School Board Meeting  2/22/22

Hello Chair De Pass, Superintendent Guerrero, Student Rep Weinberg, and members of the board. Thank you for allowing me to address you this evening. 

The last two school years have been incredibly difficult for our students, school communities, and staff. Looking to next year, we have an incredible opportunity to MAKE things BETTER.  

But the staffing cuts that PPS rolled out last week– around 120 teaching positions cut – do the opposite. 

I want to talk to you tonight about how we can correct course, to prioritize our students and stabilize our schools.

Enrollment and Funding

We’ve heard a lot from the District about the decline in enrollment over the last 2 years, and this has been cited as a reason for cutting teacher positions. 

Typically, we assume school funding is tied to enrollment numbers, so fewer students means less funding. But that is not exactly how it works in Oregon. The legislature sets an overall K-12 budget, and then divides it amongst districts based on the proportion of students they enroll. 

This school year, enrollment is down across the state. There are almost 30 thousand fewer students enrolled in Oregon schools this year, which broadly matches the declines we’ve seen here in PPS.

But the total amount of funding from the state – $9.3 billion in the 2021-23 biennium – has not gone down. If anything, we are likely to see an increase in state support next year, given the $800 million increase in projected revenue announced two weeks ago.

With stable state funding divided among fewer students across Oregon, the state is actually projecting more funding per-student for PPS and other districts. 

That means we have the opportunity and the responsibility to give each student MORE next year.

In PPS, we also have several other significant sources of funding, and these sources are also stable, despite the drop in enrollment. We have:

• Stable funding from the Student Success Act, which was passed in 2019 specifically to LOWER class sizes and provide more social-emotional supports to students. 
• Stable funding from the Teacher Levy, which voters renewed in order to support smaller class sizes.
• Continued funding from the Arts Tax.

Again, these sources are providing stable funding, despite the decrease in enrollment. 

There is NO FUNDING SHORTAGE that requires PPS to cut teachers and raise class sizes.

AND, in addition to all these ongoing sources of revenue, we have a windfall of federal support, totaling $120 million dollars. These funds must be spent in the next 2 years. This money is specifically meant to protect students and school districts from cuts and disruptions like the ones PPS has begun rolling out.

All this means that we have an opportunity to make next year a BETTER YEAR. We finally have the funding, and the classroom space, to lower class sizes, which is exactly what our students and educators need.

However, this is not the course we are currently on.

The Cuts

Last week, PPS announced a reduction of over 120 teacher positions in elementary and middle schools across the District, negatively impacting almost all of our schools.

The rationale for doing so has been to increase class sizes to match the District’s pre-pandemic staffing ratios. These class sizes were too high then, and they are MUCH TOO HIGH now.

PPS’S staffing ratios call for:

• Kindergartens up to 29 students
• 2nd grades up to 32 students
• 5th through 8th grade classes up to 35 students

We fully support the District’s efforts to provide better class sizes in our CSI and Title I schools, including capping CSI Kindergarten at 24. This is an important step, but we need to do MUCH MORE.

Even our CSI schools– which serve our students with the greatest needs, will have class sizes of 34 for 4th and 5th grade and in middle school– according to the District’s current plan. 

WE CAN DO MUCH BETTER, and we must. 

A week ago, building principals shared staffing allocations with school faculty. After a year defined by persistent staffing shortages and increased student needs, news of these cuts was an additional and unexpected blow to morale among educators and other school staff. 

Here are some examples of how the 120 cut positions will be impacting students and schools:

• At Peninsula Elementary, a Title I School, next year 2nd grade will have 30 students in a classroom. Remember, next year’s 2nd graders experienced kindergarten online. This year, in first grade, they are learning not only regular 1st grade skills, but also catching up on things that are typically such an important part of kindergarten, like how to sit at a desk and how to hold scissors. Those same students will be in a single-strand 2nd grade class of 30. At the same school, two sections of 5th grade are being collapsed into one section of 32 11-year-olds. 
• Scott Elementary, a CSI school, will be combining 4th and 5th grades, to avoid having class sizes in the mid 30s. That means teachers will be forced to split their time planning and teaching the curriculum for two grade levels.
• Beach Elementary has to choose between having a full time school secretary or a full-time librarian; and whether to cut their instructional specialist, or blend grade levels to avoid class sizes in the mid 30s. These are not fair choices. 
• Elementary school students across the District will have class sizes in the 30s, including at Grout, Markham, Richmond, Glencoe, Atkinson, Alameda, Laurelhurst, and Sunnyside, among others. 
• School communities will be losing beloved educators who want to stay with their students and colleagues: including at Sitton, Rigler, Buckman, Abernethy, Lewis, Beverly Cleary, Harrison Park, and Vernon.
• Middle schools, which have struggled this year to maintain safe and supportive learning environments, given the increased level of student need, are collectively losing 44 teachers. 
• All our middle schools are staffed to have class sizes of 34 or 35, CSI and Title I schools included. 
• We talk about the importance of relationships and stability for our middle school students. YET:
  • Ockley Green is losing 3.5 teaching positions
  • Kellogg MS is losing 6 teachers
  • Mt Tabor is losing 5 teachers
• Our High Schools are not losing staffing overall because they are understaffed this year and will continue to be understaffed next year. Our high school students are frequently in classes with over 30 students, and many educators have over 180 students to build relationships with. 

This is NOT what our students need after two years of disruption and instability.

SO I want to come back to our opportunity to make next year a BETTER YEAR.

The combination of lower enrollment, stable funding from local and state sources, and $120 million dollars in Federal relief funding, means that we have the resources necessary to give our students what they need: more individual attention from their teachers, calm and safe classrooms, and more opportunities for personal connections, engagement, and support.

As a board, you always aim to be student-centered in your decision-making. When we talk about the budget and staffing, that means prioritizing direct supports for students. Cutting teachers should be the LAST resort, not the first step before a budget has even been developed. 

I realize that things feel a little out of order. As a board, you have not yet been asked to approve the PPS budget– that doesn’t happen until April. But these staffing cuts are happening NOW. Principles have already presented these cuts to staff, and in the next week, will begin formally unassigning teachers. And after being unassigned from their schools, many teachers are likely to look for jobs in other districts or other fields, which will only make our staffing shortage worse.

If we stay on this path, we are choosing to implement pre-pandemic staffing levels and class sizes, which already fell short of meeting our students’ needs.

But there is another path, and we are asking you to take it. Every parent and educator knows that students thrive when they have the support and attention they need and deserve. Instead of cutting teachers, please direct the District to CUT CLASS SIZES. 

The resources are available and the need is undeniable.

I’m here tonight because it’s not too late yet to fix this, if the Board takes action now. 

You can direct the District to pause on unassigning educators, and instead improve the staffing ratios and put those 120+ teaching positions back in classrooms where our students need them.

Thank you for listening, and for taking the initiative to put us on a better path while we still have the chance. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Below are the target class size ranges and allowable maximum class sizes being used by District Administrators in their staffing allocation decisions, as outlined in the PPS document Staffing Guidelines & Core Program Handbook 2022-23. February 14, 2022

The Advocate, February 16, 2022

1. President’s Message: With Millions in New Funding, PPS Cuts Teachers
2. What Happens if I am Unassigned?
3. PAT Scholarships for Future Educators of Color
4. Know Your Contract: Unpaid Leave-- Deadline March 1st
5. PAT Election Reminder- Vote by February 24th
6. PAT PAC Makes Early Endorsements for May Primary
7. Get Involved: Join us at the OEA PAC Convention
8. Congratulations Promising Practices Grant Recipients
9. Rethinking Schools- Climate Justice Workshop
10. Thurgood Production: Affinity Night for Educators of Color
11. OEA Federal Student Loan Forgiveness Webinars
12. Upcoming Events

The Advocate, February 2nd, 2022

1. President's Message: Stabilize Our Schools by Supporting Educators
2. PAT Elections- Ballots Go Out on February 7th
3. Need a Contract Exception at Your Site? Learn More Here!
4. Black Lives Matter At School Week of Action (BLMWOA) February 7th-11th
5. PAT Stands with Portland City Workers
6. Upcoming Events

Our Union siblings, the Portland city trade workers represented by DCTU, have voted to authorize their Bargaining Team to call a strike. They are asking for our support as fellow union members. Please come in your PAT Blue to show your support!

• DCTU Rally
• 5pm, Thursday, January 27th at Portland City Hall 
• Come with your signs and wearing your PAT Union attire
• RSVP and Share here

Let City Management & Council hear your voice for a fair contract now! And please consider giving even a small amount to their Go Fund Me account to show the city council that the city workers are supported by our community.

From the DCTU on what they are fighting for: 

The District Council of Trade Unions (DCTU) is a coalition of workers that bargains a contract together at the City of Portland, Oregon.

We are your families, neighbors, friends, and fellow community members. We work hard for Portland, ensuring that you have clean drinking water, habitable buildings, safe bridges and streets and many other essential services.

• Our needs are simple: a living wage, and the ability to live in the city that we serve. 
• Negotiations with City Management for our current contract have stalled. The process, which should have taken half a year, has been going on since 2020. It is now 2022. 
• The City has denied our repeated requests for wages that keep pace with inflation. 

Since negotiations have reached impasse, we have two choices as workers:

Either accept the City’s final offer of wages that pay for less this year than they did last year, or go on strike.

Thank you for your amazing Solidarity and Support, and keep spreading the word!

Portland Association of Teachers
http://www.pdxteachers.org/