Investigators say superintendent broke ethics rules State ethics investigators have concluded that School Superintendent Stan Bunn crossed ethics rules 2,799 times and are recommending the state ethics committee find him in violation of state policy. See StatesmanJournal.com 12/21/01

Latino influx reshapes schools The number of Latino students in Oregon grew by 11 percent this fall compared with a year ago, continuing a decade-long trend of growth, according to the state's 2001 enrollment report. The Oregonian 12/20/01

School board to start sifting The hunt for Portland Public Schools superintendent makes a crucial advance today when school board members get their first look at candidates for the top post in the region's largest school district. The Oregonian 12/18/01

The nonprofit Education Trust finds 96 schools in Oregon with high state test scores accomplished by low-income and minority students The North Portland school is one of 96 in Oregon cited this week by a national education group for producing strong academic results with children from disadvantaged backgrounds or who are racial minorities. The Oregonian 12/14/01 and see http://www.edtrust.org/main/index.asp

Saturday School Kicks Off in 2002 - Students can register now for the new weekend educational project A new community educational project — aimed at both children and parents — starts on Saturdays this January, and participants and volunteers are urged to sign up now. Skanner 12/12/01

Teachers weigh in on shortfall. SALEM --The state's largest teachers union on Wednesday called for more gambling, higher taxes on cigarettes and alcohol, and delay of a voter-approved income tax cut as ways to help solve the state's $710 million budget shortfall -- without cuts in services. Oregonian 12/13/01

School advocates look to Salem A pool of school activists who cut their political teeth fighting for more education money in Salem is turning out a growing class of state legislative candidates. Oregonian 12/13/01

PORTLAND Students, teachers It was hardly a showdown, but words lobbed Wednesday between Lincoln High School students and a Portland State University professor showed how divided Americans have become over the government's response to the Sept. 11 attacks. Oregonian 12/13/01

Failing the sniff test. The interim Portland Public Schools chief said that he has decided to tear down Whitaker Middle School. WW 12/12/01

Trouble-Ridden Whitaker School To Be Demolished. After six months of wondering what to do with a troubled school building, the Portland Public School District decided to tear it down. KOIN 12/12/01

School Chief to Lawmakers: Raise Taxes, Cut Spending. State School Superintendent Stan Bunn told legislators Monday they should consider tax increases and using reserve funds to help resolve the state's budget problems. KGW 12/12/01

Whitaker Middle School to be Torn Down Portland School District officials say the environmentally troubled and vacant Whitaker Middle School will be torn down and replaced with a new $10 million structure. KPTV 12/12/01

Raze and shine. This week marks a big leap of progress for Portland Public Schools: Interim Superintendent Jim Scherzinger decided to put Whitaker Middle School out of its misery. Oregonian unsigned editorial 12/12/01

Community gets say on new Whitaker. Students and staff at Whitaker Middle School are optimistic about building a new school in Northeast Portland but aren't letting that distract them from achievement. Oregonian 12/12/01

Whitaker school will be razed, replaced Portland Public Schools will demolish the vacant Whitaker Middle School in Northeast Portland and build a $10 million, state-of-the-art middle school in its place. The Oregonian 12/11/01

Budget shortfall may sock schools State schools officials opened weeklong legislative hearings on the shortfall by serving up a grim forecast: Class sizes will grow, and high school electives and middle school counselors will disappear. The Oregonian 12/11/01

Whitaker School Needs Costly Repairs. A consultant is telling the Portland School Board that it could cost up to 14 million dollars to repair the roof, mold, heating and ventilation and plumbing systems at Whitaker Middle School. KGW October 23, 2001

School District Makes Evictions to Find Room for Whitaker Students. The Principal announced plans today to send 7th- and 8th-graders to the Portland Development Academy come fall and move sixth graders to Rice Elementary, following mold problems uncovered in Whitaker Middle School. KGW August 7, 2001

Shut Off: Lead Worries Force School Water Fountains to Go Dry. School district tests showed that 35 Portland schools have at least one water fountain or sink with lead levels above standards allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency. KGW August 24, 2001

Portland Schools Test for More Mold, Radon.
Workers tore off part of the roof at Cleveland High School to clean up mold uncovered during a recent seismic upgrade project. KGW undated

UNHEALTHY SCHOOLS?
Teachers said the building made them sick, parents were outraged. Air and water quality are now major issues within the Portland School District as parents ask for assurances that the health of their children is not threatened by conditions in aging school buildings. From KGW TV undated

School won't end on Fridays for some. Portland education activists are reviving Saturday classes for students in 14 schools in a push to boost test scores among minority and low-income students. From The Oregonian 12/10/01

State Board Approves Education Requirements
. Under a new plan approved by the state Board of Education, Oregon's high schools must provide individual education plans for students by 2004, as well as offer career training and internships at real businesses. From KGW 12/7/01

Katz prods schools on student achievement. Portland Mayor Vera Katz has been critical of the leadership of Portland Public Schools, going so far as to say government should take over the schools if public confidence in them is shot. From The Oregonian 12/4/01

Schools grow more segregated. Two decades into a voluntary desegregation plan, inner-city Portland schools are more segregated than they were in 1980, and the district has failed to close a nagging achievement gap between minority and white students. From The Oregonian 12/5/01