High School Pathway Changes in Your Neighborhood
Did you know that Portland Public Schools (PPS) is currently considering scenarios that will implement high school boundary changes for Jefferson, Grant, McDaniel, and Roosevelt high schools? These plans are part of the Jefferson is Rising comprehensive plan.
All proposed scenarios will affect all PPS students who attend schools that feed into Harriet Tubman Middle School (HTMS) — Irvington, Sabin, King, and Boise-Eliot/Humboldt — as well as schools that feed into Roosevelt and McDaniel high schools.
What is a dual-boundary school?
Families in the HTMS catchment area are currently assigned a dual high school boundary, which offers the option to send your children to Grant or Jefferson high schools. Jefferson’s dual boundary began in 2011 and was expanded in 2018 to include HTMS feeder schools.
What is happening to those dual boundaries?
PPS is proposing to sunset all dual boundaries that Jefferson shares with Grant, Roosevelt, and McDaniel high schools. They are currently considering three scenarios. The following maps were created based on PPS Scenarios A, B, and C:
Why are these changes being proposed?
These proposed scenarios are part of the modernization project for Jefferson High School, which includes a voter-approved, nearly $500 million state-of-the-art facility scheduled to open in Fall 2029 and be fully completed by the 2030–2031 school year.
Jefferson high school has been a focus-option school, offering a middle college program through Portland Community College, and currently is not a comprehensive high school. The proposed boundary changes will allow Jefferson to eventually become a comprehensive neighborhood school.
When will these proposed changes take effect?
PPS is proposing to end dual-feeder school boundaries beginning with the 2027–2028 school year. In most of the scenarios, current 7th graders assigned to HTMS will begin attending Jefferson high school as freshmen, during construction on the new building.
How do I learn more?
You can visit the Jefferson is Rising webpage to review the scenarios being considered.
How can I provide feedback?
PPS hosted four, in-person community engagement sessions in October and is hosting a virtual event on Wednesday, November 5 from 5:30pm to 7pm. You can join with this Zoom link.
You can also submit comments to the Jefferson is Rising Community Feedback Form, which focuses on the community engagement sessions but also offers space for additional comments.
How can I take action?
Add your name to a petition calling for more transparency and a re-evaluation on the boundary changes alongside 111 of your neighbors.