Category: Forum
February 20, 2008
by Steve Rawley
We know that the completing the K-8 transition is one of the top priorities of Carole Smith. We all know that to date, the transition has been rocky. Many schools do not have space. Some comprehensive middle schools seem slated to be kept open, while some clusters, like Jefferson, have had all their middle schools either closed or converted (despite having one school without enough space to even add sixth grade).
I was unable to attend the meeting last night at Rigler… Who went? How did it go?
I’ve set up a forum for this topic, since it’s probably going to be a hot one for a while. Feel free to start new topics there, or leave comments here.
Steve Rawley published PPS Equity from 2008 to 2010, when he moved his family out of the district.
39 Comments
February 15, 2008
by Steve Rawley
A big shout out and welcome to Nicole and the folks from the Peninsula and greater Roosevelt cluster communities. Nicole’s been posting over on the forum, with some good information about the sun school program and the 08-09 budget.
I’m looking forward to learning more about the things they’ve got going on at Peninsula school.
As far as I can tell, we all want the same thing: first-rate, equitable educational opportunities in every neighborhood and for every student in PPS.
Welcome!
Steve Rawley published PPS Equity from 2008 to 2010, when he moved his family out of the district.
2 Comments
February 14, 2008
by Steve Rawley
I know the forum is a little intimidating to navigate, and a lot of people are shy about Internet communications. I know it’s a lot easier to jump into a discussion after it’s going than it is to be the first one to respond to a new topic, much less start a new topic.
So I want to encourage those of you early adopters who have already signed up for the forum (there are 23 of you, not counting me) to not be shy about getting things going. I haven’t had time to really simplify things on the forum, but I think if you poke around, you’ll find things easy enough. The several forums are all listed on the front page. If you click on any one of them, you’ll see the topics in that forum (if there are any). You can click on a topic to see the posts on that topic, or you can start a new topic by clicking on “NEW TOPIC.”
Nancy started a new topic today in the Jefferson Cluster Forum, announcing a survey about the Mayor’s week at Jefferson. She posted some of her responses. Good stuff. You can go there and click “POST REPLY” if you want to jump in.
I started a “Meta Forum”, which is a forum about the forum. I’ve got some tips and information about using the forums, and you can ask questions or share your own ideas about the structure of the site there.
Don’t be afraid of messing things up. I’m pretty good at fixing things if they break, and I’m not concerned about people being “on topic,” as long as they are respectful of one another.
I know you all have opinions, and I know they don’t always line up 100% with mine. That’s why I created this site general and the forum in particular: so we can share our various view points and find common ground. Have at it!
Steve Rawley published PPS Equity from 2008 to 2010, when he moved his family out of the district.
Comments Off on The PPS Equity Forum is There for You!
February 10, 2008
by Steve Rawley
Thank you to all who have read, responded to action alerts, commented on the blog, participated in the forum, and contributed articles. I knew we had a great community, and even though many of you have felt beat up and worn down over the past years, I’m inspired by your continuing work toward equity for all students in Portland Public Schools.
In the first week of this site, there have been twelve blog posts with 47 comments. The forum now has 22 registered users, 16 topics and 59 posts. We’re getting regular traffic every day, even though Google still hasn’t given us the priority my old blog has.
People at the district are reading; I’m seeing regular visits every day from PPS computers. I honestly believe we are on the verge of a new way of thinking about our school district, and we have allies in high administrative positions.
Things change slowly in large bureaucracies, and we need to keep up the hard work. The school board and superintendent still need to hear from you, especially if they haven’t heard from you before.
Thanks to everybody who is helping make equity in Portland Public Schools more than just a rallying cry. Together, we will make it a reality.
Steve Rawley published PPS Equity from 2008 to 2010, when he moved his family out of the district.
Comments Off on Week One Wrap-up
February 1, 2008
by Steve Rawley
It’s been about 24 hours since I launched this site, and I’ve got to say I’m a little overwhelmed by the response. I wasn’t sure how people would take to the forum, but already ten new users have registered, and a handful of discussions have begun.
The blog has received comments from people I have not heard from before, and technically (knock on wood) things are hanging together and seem to be working. Be sure to let me know if you find something that doesn’t work. I’m pretty handy with the blog software by now, but the forum software is totally new to me.
I can’t help but feel optimistic that we’re building the kind of energy that is just unstoppable. When reasonable people really look at things the way they are, it is difficult to disagree that it is intolerable. Let’s keep pushing and building. We may soon have the critical mass necessary to push beyond the tipping point. We may even have that critical mass now.
Steve Rawley published PPS Equity from 2008 to 2010, when he moved his family out of the district.
Comments Off on What a Day!
January 31, 2008
by Steve Rawley
Well, here we are. Welcome to the new PPS Equity blog. I’m ready to restore my old blog to its former status of a personal blog. I’m especially psyched to turn people loose on the forum. The blog format is a little limiting and difficult to use as a discussion forum, so hopefully this will open things up. You can still comment on blog posts, of course, but on the forum, you can start your own topics.
The original idea of this site was to be a place for data and policy analysis. I still hope to make that happen, but in the mean time, the blog and forum are available as community resources.
I’d like very much to open up the blog to guest bloggers. If you’re interested, please drop me a line at ppsequity at rawley dot org.
Steve Rawley published PPS Equity from 2008 to 2010, when he moved his family out of the district.
5 Comments
