On Nov. 1, the PAT historically went on strike for the first time. Throughout November, the union and community members were seen picketing while the PAT bargaining team and district negotiated the new terms of the PAT’s contract. On Nov. 26, 2023, the PAT and PPS School District came to a tentative agreement, allowing students to return to school for the first time since Halloween.
Although students did not attend school for four weeks (including Thanksgiving Break), they only lost 11 instructional days due to the several holidays and planning days that would have occurred in November. To make up for the instructional days that were lost, there are now school days on what is typically the first week of winter break (Dec. 18-22), Jan. 26, Feb. 19, April 8, and the days at the end of the year that are reserved for snow days (June 12-14). This leads to one question left on every student’s mind: what happens if there are snow days?
The Camas Education Association also went on strike recently, leading to the loss of seven instructional days for students in the Camas School District. Two days are being made up by replacing two days reserved for inclement weather as school days— similar to how PPS students will be attending school on June 12, 13, and 14; days that are usually reserved for school closures due to inclement weather.
While the PPS district hasn’t come out with any information on how snow days would be made up, there are many options. “If there was a snow day before January 15, maybe the district would have us make it up on MLK Jr. holiday,” said Aeysha Coning, the Principal of Ida B. Wells. “Another possibility that our district leaders might be thinking about is there are other holidays, there’s Memorial Day, there is spring break [to make up those days on]. What I don’t think will happen is that there will be school after June 14.”
However, there is still a chance the district may decide to extend the year further if more days were needed to be made up. Many students expressed concerns and opposition to the potential of extending the year past June 14. Una Allen, a sophomore, said, “I would be pretty disappointed because my family has a vacation that is set [for] the week after school is supposed to end. I really don’t want to have to either miss the last day of school, the last week of school or cancel it.”
This leaves significant uncertainty for all students, especially for seniors who end two weeks before all other students. The last day for seniors is still May 30, 2023, with plans for IBW seniors to graduate on June 3, 2023, at Providence Park. This means that seniors will lose three instructional days that all other grades will make up. “I know we are not changing the graduating dates,” said Coning. “The district may be asking the state, the Oregon Department of Education, for what is called a waiver and a waiver is saying, ‘Can we make an exception for this year?’”
Nonetheless, the district, PAT, and community members want students to continue with a quality education. No matter what, if there are to be days lost from closures due to inclement weather, those will be made up along with the days lost from the strike—it’s just a matter of when that is still up in the air.
