Good Oregonian Article on School Funding Equity

Please read Paige Parker’s inPortland section article today about the impact of moving the “Odyssey” magnet program from Chapman Elemenatary School in NW Portland into Hayhurst, in SW. Because of the influx of more affluent students from outside Hayhurst’s boundaries, the school lost its Title 1 funding, and children in the regular neighborhood school are suffering the consequences of the School Board’s decision to relocate the magnet program.

Portland Public Schools has an all-or-nothing approach to allocating Title 1 money, sent from the federal government to provide extra assistance to children from low-income homes. A school has to meet the required percentage of students receiving free/reduced school lunches, to qualify for funding. The extra money is used for programs like full-day kindergarten that are proven to help students learn, especially when parents haven’t been able to afford private preschool experience.

When the Portland Public Schools district was considering where to move the Odyssey program, the top two schools considered were Hayhurst and Markham – then, the only two Title 1 schools on the west side. Markham parents and staff quickly organized to oppose the transfer. We had had previous experience trying to meld a magnet program with the neighborhood school, when we worked on the Adventure School which operated at Markham for two years in the mid 1990s. We discovered:
a) Magnet programs are more expensive and challenging to operate;
b) Children who are struggling to learn English and grasp basic concepts of reading and math are not ready to focus on intricate themed instruction; and
c) It is very difficult to manage two teaching methods, curricula, and parent support groups within the same school.
We successfully argued with the District that Markham’s population with over 20% English Language Learners was not the best place for the Odyssey program. Paige’s article today shows Hayhurst neighborhood students have been impacted by the very issues we were concerned about, especially losing Title 1 funds.

This issue was discussed by the Westside Boundary Task Force, whose June 23, 2003 minutes note, “Forty percent is not a mandatory cutoff point for Title 1 funds. The District could set the percentage as low as 35 percent. These Title 1 funds are a significant sum of money for Hayhurst, and it would be really bad if they lost it. We should make it a priority to preserve those funds.” Sadly, this discussion and the Task Force’s broader recommendations were lost at the end of that public process… but that’s another post.

Portland Public Schools should change its Title 1 funding policy, if necessary lobbying for changes in state and federal rules. If 35% of the children in a school need additional help, they need it regardless of whether the District policy sets the level at 40% or 50%. Children living in poverty in more affluent areas are disadvantaged compared with those in neighborhood with lower incomes generally – yet shouldn’t we be striving for more integration across the city, with no schools serving only one income category? The children from low income families at a school are no less in need of additional instruction because 40 or 100 more affluent children are added to that school.

Until changes in policy for allocating Title 1 funds are made, every discussion of magnet programs housed in neighborhood schools should include assessment of how adding the magnet program will impact the neighborhood school’s entitlement to Title 1 funds. That should be the most important factor in deciding where magnet programs should be located, not an afterthought or not considered at all. When moving a magnet program is determined to be the best choice for the long-term public good overall, despite impacts to Title 1 funding, the District should not move forward until a plan is in place to hold harmless the children from low-income families in the neighborhood school.