The school year for Portland Public Schools (PPS) students is finally coming to an end, but for many, new fears arise concerning student’s learning environments in the upcoming year. Since the storm in January that destroyed many buildings and disrupted the lives of many Portlanders, one of the groups most affected has been the students and teachers at Jackson Middle School.
Luckily, the Jackson Middle School (JMS) building was not directly affected by the storm, however, students from schools in the same community have fled to the Jackson building in hopes of continuing their education in a building that doesn’t desperately need restoration. From January onward, Jackson has been hosting a chunk of Robert Gray Middle School students as their students have been divided amongst other schools for in-class learning. This change was something Jackson teachers and parents were told would be temporary and at the time most people were happy to help and understood that this was the best choice for the complicated, unexpected circumstance.
Recently, people within the Jackson community were informed that next year, their school will still be intertwined with another, but this time, it won’t be a middle school. Robert Gray is getting a new building over the summer and when they leave, Markham Elementary School students will now be transferred to learn at Jackson. Sure, it made sense to pair two middle schools together, but it might be difficult to intertwine an elementary school with a middle school.
How can Jackson hold so many students in one building? Well, they can’t. In reality, PPS has opted to set up small portable classrooms in the parking lot of Jackson to create more classroom space. Not only that, but the original promise that Jackson students would not be displaced to the portables has gone out the window. The plan for next year is to move Jackson students/teachers into the pods while welcoming Markham teachers and students into their new classrooms.
This change has shocked parents and students, causing many upset families to turn to Facebook for a place to share their thoughts. One anonymous user commented on the JMS community Facebook page, “Jackson staff and students are being screwed over AGAIN next year. We are being displaced to the portables (THAT THEY PROMISED WEREN’T FOR US) next year to make room for Markham to move in.” Other parents in the Facebook group shared how they felt about how the Jackson community was completely disregarded by these decisions. They argue that it’s not fair for Jackson students to have their typical learning experience rearranged to accommodate students who aren’t even in the same grade
Furthermore, the official email sent out to families to announce the change very clearly sugarcoated the issue. In said email, a list of pros and cons that PPS executives claim helped them make this decision is attached and it’s not very subtle. On the advantage side, they list the following: “close to Markham proximity, restroom, cafeteria and gymnasium access, ample bus parking and circulation space, already set up to accommodate colocation.” On the flip side, the only thing listed in the disadvantage column is “limited space for play.”
This email has since been a reference point for Jackson parents and teachers when complaining about the change. One 7th grade science teacher at Jackson, Sharon Barnes (whose classroom will likely be moved to the portable buildings), has spoken about her outrage on the JMS? Facebook page. Sharon Barnes says, about the email, that it’s “proof that PPS does NOT care about your Jackson students and is manipulating Markham parents. It is appallingly disrespectful that PPS saw no disadvantage to displacing Jackson teachers and students to portables.
Overall, no one is happy. Markham parents are eager for their students to be back to their normal learning conditions? and now Jackson parents have to share this fear. Although there is no official documentation of this online, there are rumors that some teachers will quit under these circumstances. Now, the PPS community is patiently waiting to see if anything will change.
