Reopening Oregon schools: What your district's return plan looks like
Gov. Brown has given Oregon school districts control over when students return to in-person classes. Here's where districts in the Portland metro area stand now.
Beginning Jan. 1, individual school districts and schools in Oregon could start deciding whether to go back to in-person learning or continue distance learning.
Two days before Christmas, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown wrote a letter to Oregon Department of Education (ODE) and Oregon Health Authority (OHA) directing them to implement new initiatives that put more students back in the classroom.
Gov. Brown said the state's school reopening guidance would become a recommendation instead of a requirement. The announcement garnered both praise and backlash
Here's a look at where schools in the Portland metro area stand so far
Chapter one Portland Public Schools
Portland Public Schools (PPS) announced Jan. 12 that some students may return to school for limited in-person learning as soon as Jan. 25.
Chief of Schools Shawn Bird gave a preview of the reopening plan during a PPS Board of Education meeting. He said the reopening plan will start with students in grades K-3 who have the highest need, those in grades 6-9 who didn't perform as well in the first quarter of the year and those in grades 11 and 12 who need to recover credits for graduation.
"We're going to start with 16 elementary schools, which are the 10 sites that have child care on them already, plus our six CSI [Comprehensive Support and Improvement] elementary schools," Bird said. "And we'll also have two high schools that are ready to go for credit recovery, and we are working with middle school principals as well."
Superintendent Guadalupe Guerrero said the plan is contingent on a guideline update coming from Gov. Kate Brown on Jan. 19, the ongoing vaccine rollout and the capacity required for onsite testing.
Students would return for 2 hours a day, in cohorts of up to 20 people. Given the size of most PPS schools, those cohorts will likely be around 13-15 people. The in-person learning will supplement, and not replace, comprehensive distance learning underway now.
Get the latest from Portland Public Schools
Chapter two Beaverton School District
Beaverton School District is still entirely online and does not anticipate that it will be moving to a hybrid model until early February at the earliest, it said in a release on its website in December 2020.
It also said in part:
- In order for us to start our hybrid plan (two days in-school, three days online per week), both Washington and Multnomah case counts need to drop below 100 per 100,000 residents. On the graph, that threshold is represented by the yellow line. Again, we need to be below the yellow line.
- Per the Oregon Department of Education (ODE), grades Pre-K through 3 must be brought back first. If that initial phase is successful, we would then bring back one additional grade at a time. For example, we could add 4th grade one week and then 5th grade the following week.
- If we begin hybrid but then see a rise in cases that puts our numbers over 100 cases per 100,000, we don’t necessarily need to go back to full Comprehensive Distance Learning (CDL). At that point, the District would work with the Washington County Public Health Department to determine our risk of spread before making a determination.
Get the latest from the Beaverton School District
Chapter three Clackamas Education Service District
The Clackamas Education Service District serves all 10 Clackamas County school districts and works with them on a regional service plan for their schools and communities.
The largest of those districts is the North Clackamas School District, hasn't announced plans for a return to classes yet. The district sent a letter to parents on Jan. 4, reading in part:
As the county Health Metrics for Returning to In-Person Instruction currently stand Clackamas County is far from meeting the advisory metric to return students to in-person instruction. Therefore, North Clackamas Schools will continue in Comprehensive Distance Learning for the foreseeable future.
North Clackamas School District leadership and our school board are reviewing the Governor's new guidance and will discuss the status of reopening schools at the next school board meeting on January 14. As we have throughout this process, we continue to work with our community partners, parents, staff, the Oregon Department of Education, and the Clackamas County Health Department as we make plans based on this new guidance.
More from the North Clackamas School District
In the Lake Oswego School District, students will begin returning to classrooms February, according to an email sent to staff and families of students on Jan. 6.
In the email, Superintendent Lora de la Cruz said elementary students will be the first to return on the following dates:
- Kindergarten: Feb. 4
- First grade: Feb. 11
- Second grade: Feb. 16
- Third grade: Feb. 19
- Fourth grade: Feb. 23
- Fifth grade: Feb. 25
“We are optimistic that with safety at the center, we can begin a gradual and safe return to AM/PM Hybrid in-person school with the wellbeing of teachers, staff, students and families as our top priority,” de la Cruz said in the email.
More from the Lake Oswego School District
Get the latest updates from the other districts CESD serves:
Chapter four Hillsboro School District
The Hillsboro School District said, in part:
We are scheduled to meet with both the Governor’s office and ODE within the next week to get further clarification on how these changes will impact schools and districts. We also will continue collaborating closely with our bargaining units, HEA and HCU, and Washington County Public Health; and will make any necessary adjustments to our planning teams and process to comply with the above-listed action items. An update will be provided to our School Board at their Jan. 12 work session, and will then be shared in a districtwide communication to staff, students, and families on Jan. 13.
Get the latest from the Hillsboro School District
Chapter five Tigard-Tualatin School District
Tigard-Tualatin School District posted on its website on Jan. 8:
Guided by the transition of decision making from the Governor’s office to local districts beginning January 1st (December 23 Governor Update), district administrators and principals are creating a transition plan that will start bringing students back into schools beginning at the elementary level. It is important to note that we will continue to provide two options for students -- the hybrid model that will allow students to come back into schools when identified as safe as well as the distance learning model where students will continue in their online classrooms through the end of the school year. There are several factors that will impact this planning to include:
- The Oregon Department of Education (ODE) is expected to announce revisions to the Ready Schools Safe Learners Guidance on January 19th. This information will inform the district relative to the number of students we can safely serve in-person.
- The January 19th information is also anticipated to provide us with updated health metrics for returning to school.
- Superintendents are working hard in advocating for our teachers and staff including our custodians, food services and transportation personnel to be prioritized for the COVID-19 vaccine. What we are hearing from the Oregon Health Authority is that there is hope that vaccines will become available for, at minimum, elementary educators sometime next month.
- And recent state and local funding is being put to work as we make important safety updates to our buildings, ventilation systems, and classrooms.
Read the full letter to parents and staff
Get the latest from the Tigard-Tualatin School District
Chapter six Gresham-Barlow School District
The Gresham-Barlow School District said at the Jan. 7 school board meeting that the board of directors discussed a list of things including a hybrid-model schedule, online schedule, limited in-person schedules etc.
It said on its website, in part:
The latest school health safety metrics show that case and positivity rates are rising in our region. While Governor Brown announced on December 23 that beginning January 1, school health safety metrics for returning to in-person instruction would become advisory rather than mandatory, she also directed districts to work in close consultation with their local public health authority in understanding and considering the metrics. The Gresham-Barlow School District is consulting with the Multnomah County Health Department as we work through this process.
On Jan. 19, the Oregon Department of Education will release guidelines for schools and the school board intends to provide an update to families on Jan. 21.
Get the latest from the Gresham-Barlow School District
Chapter seven Reynolds School District
Reynolds School District is keeping track of the metrics given to them by the Oregon Department of Education on its website. From the graph, last updated for the week of Dec. 20 - Jan. 2, Reynolds will be doing distance learning until the county can meet the needed metrics.
Reynolds said, in part:
We received Community COVID-19 Metrics from the Oregon Department of Education which indicate specific criteria for reopening schools to any type of in-person instruction. These metrics are based on science from top medical experts and developed to allow for in-person instruction in school districts located within counties that meet or exceed certain requirements. The requirements are outlined below and show where Multnomah County’s metrics currently sit.
Get the latest from the Reynolds School District
Chapter eight David Douglas School District
The David Douglas School Board has extended its Comprehensive Distance Learning plan until at least Jan. 28.
David Douglas encourages parents and students to visit this page to keep up to date with what's happening in the plans for the new school year.
The school board said in part:
The extension allows the District’s secondary schools to continue with CDL through the school year’s second semester. It also reflects the growing number of COVID-19 cases in Multnomah County, which seem to indicate there will be no return to in-person learning any time soon.
Get the latest from the David Douglas School District
Chapter nine Centennial School District
In a January 2021 update from the superintendent, Centennial School District said it will continue with Comprehensive Distance Learning for the foreseeable future.
Get the latest from the Centennial School District
Chapter ten Sherwood Public School District
The Sherwood Public School District said in a Jan. 8 update that it will be working diligently to safely reopen schools to in-person learning. It also said, in part:
As we shared with you before the winter break, we have been working to implement Limited In-Person Instruction (LIPI), and that work continues at our secondary level. However, our elementary level is now fully focused on planning for the implementation of our Hybrid model -- implementation of which will bring our youngest learners back into our buildings, with an ongoing focus on the health and safety of both students and staff. In the coming weeks, we are committed to keeping you informed, and will be sharing communications such as this one with you each week to provide you with updates and critical details you will need to prepare for the changes ahead.
Get the latest from the Sherwood Public School District
Chapter eleven Parkrose School District
Parkrose has not given a set date for when it plans to begin in-person hybrid learning for students. However, in a Jan. 6 update, the district said it wants to gather information from students, staff and families and hear concerns about reopening.
It listed these meetings as important dates:
- Monday, January 11th: Parkrose School Board Work Session to discuss reopening at 6:30 pm. Zoom link here: https://zoom.us/j/94961285856 or join by phone: 1-253-215-8782 Webinar ID: 949-6128-5856
- Tuesday, January 19th: Oregon Department of Education will release revised guidelines for Ready Schools Safe Learners guidance.
- Thursday, January 21st: Parkrose Reopening Listening Session for families and the community at 6:00 pm. This will be a time to share details and answer questions about options for reopening in Parkrose. Zoom link here: https://zoom.us/j/99385516208 or join by phone: 1-253-215-8782 Webinar ID: 993 8551 6208
- Monday, January 25th: Parkrose School Board Business Meeting at 6:30 pm. We will revisit reopening plans during this meeting. Zoom link here: https://zoom.us/j/94961285856 or join by phone: 1-253-215-8782 Webinar ID: 949-6128-5856
It said reopening to some in-person learning is contingent on a number of factors including seeing a case decline, educator vaccination, and more.
Get the latest from the Parkrose School District
Chapter twelve Forest Grove School District
Forest Grove School District said that it will be allowing small groups of students back into school for in-person learning. It said it continues to work on how to bring more students in for in-person learning. It said, in part:
At this time, we are beginning to make arrangements to bring a few small groups of students back to the buildings for Limited In Person Instruction (LIPI). This will consist of a small number of students: students with disabilities, emerging bilingual students and students without reliable internet connectivity. As these plans are finalized and put into action, those families will be contacted directly. Simultaneously, we continue to move forward on implementing logistical plans to be ready for when we can safely increase the number of students receiving in-person instruction.
Get the latest from the Forest Grove School District
Chapter thirteen Riverdale School District
The Riverdale School District has only information on its website about Comprehensive Distance learning for the 2020-2021 school year. It does direct parents and anyone interested in more information, to its Facebook page where meeting videos are posted.
Get the latest from the Riverdale School District
Chapter fourteen Not on the list?
School district officials: If your district is not on the list, or the information here needs to be updated, please let us know by sending us the updated info right here.