Portland Public School Department

The Portland Public Schools currently is reviewing with the Maine Department of Education the possible construction of a new elementary school on the existing Baxter School site located at 150 Ocean Ave.

All state-funded, major capital school construction projects must receive site approval by the State Board of Education.  In order to be considered for site approval, the school department must hold two public meetings to present the site to the public and to take and record a public straw vote.

The first presentation and straw poll were held on December 13 at the Baxter School.  The vote was 41 in favor of the Baxter site and 50 opposed.  A second meeting and straw poll will take place after the project has an approved concept design.

Information pertaining to the project can be found on the Elementary School Facilities Committee page of the Portland Public Schools Web site.

The Portland Public Schools and Portland Education Partnership are collaborating with a nonprofit Web site, DonorsChoose.org, to help teachers raise money for classroom materials, textbooks and special projects.  To date, Portland teachers have submitted 150 proposals for audiobooks, photography supplies, building tools, Latin textbooks, an LCD projector and many other items. 

Individuals may contribute to the projects by going to  www.DonorsChoose.org and typing “Portland, Maine” in the search field.  The Web site provides details about each project and how much money has been raised.

“DonorsChoose.org offers a wonderful way for local residents to support our schools by helping to meet our teachers’ needs,” said Susan Steele, the Partnership’s executive director.  “As the holidays approach, I encourage families to consider a contribution of any size.”

Claire Crocker, a Lincoln Middle School teacher, received $291 from DonorsChoose.org to purchase materials to help sixth graders who are falling behind in math.  “I’m grateful for such a straightforward, efficient method of asking for funds,” Crocker said.

Moore Middle School was awarded $211 to buy headphones for the foreign language department so that students can use their laptops for listening activities in Spanish and French.     

Another project seeking funds involves Reiche Elementary School art classes painting murals on classroom dividers throughout the school.  A Portland High proposal covers the costs of physics students conducting an electromagnetism project.

Once a teacher’s proposal is fully funded, DonorsChoose.org purchases the equipment or supplies and sends them to the teacher along with a disposable camera to document the project.  Donors receive thank-you notes and photographs directly from the recipients.

All Portland projects submitted by November 16 were guaranteed up to $400 during the current school year.

Founded in 2000 by a New York City teacher, DonorsChoose.org has helped raise $15 million in books, art supplies, technology and other resources for 30,500 public school teachers.  The program expanded this year from eight states and four cities to all 50 states, making it available to every public school in the country.  Several Silicon Valley businesses donated $11 million to underwrite the national expansion.

DonorsChoose.org has won several awards, including the 2005 Nonprofit Innovation Award from the Stanford Business School and Amazon.com. 

The Portland Education Partnership is a local nonprofit group that works to enrich student learning and build support for the Portland Public Schools by promoting opportunities for parent, business and community involvement.
   

The Portland School Committee approved a plan to trim administrative costs next year by closing the district’s warehouse, providing special education services more efficiently and collaborating with city staff and nearby school districts on some services.  The committee voted its approval at its November 28th meeting.

Maine’s new School Administrative Reorganization Law requires school districts such as Portland to submit such an “alternative plan” to the Maine Department of Education for review.  Portland’s plan identifies several areas where the district is pursuing creative ways to stretch resources:

• The Portland Public Schools plans to close its supply warehouse on Homestead Avenue, sell the assets and purchase directly from vendors, as the city does.  Savings is estimated at $60,000 in the next fiscal year.  Additional savings are possible from the sale of the warehouse.
• The plan calls for South Portland School Department’s bus garage to take over the maintenance of Portland’s fleet from a commercial garage.  The change is expected to save the district nearly $60,000 in the next fiscal year.
• City staff will maintain the school department’s boilers and air-conditioning systems, for a savings of $50,000 next year.
• The role of learning strategists will be redefined, resulting in a savings of $302,000 next year.  That savings may be offset somewhat by the need to add compliance secretaries to ensure that special education regulations are met.
• Casco Bay High School will add up to 10 ninth graders from area districts, generating approximately $20,000, with no increase in staff needed.

Portland is exploring two initiatives with area districts that could result in significant savings and revenue generation in future years:

• Opening Portland’s professional development programs to area educators at a fee, reaping the district an estimated $20,000 per year.
• Expanding West School’s special education services.  West could enroll up to five tuition-paying students from other districts, bringing in up to $110,000 per year.  In addition, the Portland Public Schools could save approximately $47,000 per student in tuition now paid to private schools.

The plan cites several areas where the district has trimmed costs significantly in recent years, including reductions in administrative and custodial staff, streamlining transportation services and greater energy efficiency.  Click here for a list of Portland Public Schools cost savings.

Maine’s reorganization law requires school districts to either consolidate or create an alternative plan aimed at cutting costs.  While the Portland Public Schools is exempt from consolidation because of its large size (7,100 students), the district was required to submit an alternative plan by December 1.  More information about the reorganization law may be found at: http://www.maine.gov/education/supportingschools/index.html.

Three classes at Portland Arts and Technology High School (PATHS) are collaborating with the Maine Audubon Society on a show next April featuring environmentally friendly fashions.  The project won a $1,000 service learning grant from the Portland Education Partnership, with funding provided by LL Bean.

The PATHS fashion merchandising class taught by Jane Krasnow will design outfits for the show that feature organic fabrics, recycled materials and refashioned clothing.  They will show how “going green” can include great style.
 
The graphic arts and printing class taught by David Nichols will print posters, invitations and other publicity material on recycled paper using soy and water-soluble ink.  In addition, students will print T-shirts made of organic cotton.  The video technology/multimedia class taught by David Beane will document the project and create multimedia pieces for the show.

The Partnership’s service learning grants support projects that connect the classroom with the community and engage students in addressing real world problems as part of their academic studies.

The eco-fashion show will incorporate several academic subjects.  For example, fashion students will study how the chemistry used in manufacturing fabrics can affect the environment.  Students will write journal entries describing what they learned while working on the project.

The show will take place on April 3 and 4, 2008 at Maine Audubon Society’s Gisland Farm in Falmouth.  For more information, please call 874-8165.

State Representative Anne Haskell recently presented a $500 check from Gorham Savings Bank President & CEO Christopher Emmons to Lincoln Middle School for the purchase of a composter.

Plans are underway to raise funds to buy two additional composters.  All will be placed in the school’s outdoor educational park.

Students will compost organic waste from the cafeteria to fortify the soil used to grow herb and vegetables seedlings in the school’s new geodesic dome and indoor greenhouse. The seedlings will be transplanted into raised planting beds in the park. Many of the vegetables will be enjoyed by Lincoln students and staff in the cafeteria salad bar.

Composting is just one component of a sustainable living project that includes construction of the dome and installation of solar panels at the school.    

Lincoln recently won a $37,200 alternative energy grant from the Maine Public Utilities Commission to install solar panels on the school roof and to power equipment in the dome.

The grant will be used to purchase and install 23 solar photovoltaic panels.  Students will have the opportunity to see how the panels provide a percentage of the school’s energy.

Most of the solar panels will be placed on the school roof. One panel will be installed on a pole outside the library to provide power for lab equipment in the dome.  That panel also will be used for educational  demonstration purposes.  Students will monitor energy production and pollution offsets from the panels through software purchased with grant money.  

“Lincoln Middle School students and staff are committed to practicing sustainability, fostering positive school spirit and promoting community service,” said Principal Kathleen Rossi.  “The PUC grant will help us implement our vision.”

Lincoln’s science teachers worked together on the PUC grant.  They built on the success of teachers Christel Driscoll and Thom Fournier and eighth grade students in soliciting funds and grants to create the dome as a learning classroom and sustainability lab.  

The 850-square-foot dome was formally unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on October 18.  Those attending included the school community, members of the Portland School Committee and City Council and Haskell.  Principal Rossi thanked the many contributors and volunteers who brought the project to reality.

The Portland Education Partnership recently awarded 11 Arts in Education classroom grants totalling $5,400 to Portland teachers.  The projects funded will bring together 11 local artists with 900 students and 21 teachers to enhance teaching and learning. 

“Portland teachers and artists are creating innovative strategies to integrate art into the core curriculum as a learning strategy,” said Susan Steele, Portland Education Partnership’s director. ”It’s another way to ensure that we are providing learning opportunities for all our students’ and meeting their unique learning needs.”

The funded projects involve various art media, students at all levels and integrated curriculum.  For example, Riverton Elementary School teacher Carol Gallagher, artist Christopher Strickland and 22 second-graders will work together to create poetic mandalas that express their life experiences, culture and family traditions. 

Students at Nathan Clifford and Peaks Island Elementary Schools will create a Freedom Quilt with art teacher Mary Jane Johnston and fiber artist Susan Hellier.  The students will learn about the historical significance of quilts in early America and how they were used in the Underground Railroad guiding slaves to the North.  They will create their own quilt blocks using early secret codes from pre-Civil War quilts.

At King Middle School, eighth-graders will explore the art of engineering.  Teacher Gus Goodwin and local artist Jill Dalton will work with students to create, design and build kinetic sculptures as part of a larger study of the “Wide World of Engineering.”

The Portland Education Partnership funds the Arts in Education program with the generous support of the Maine Arts Commission.

For over 30 years, the Maine Arts Commission has been helping artists and arts organizations bring more music, dance, poetry, painting and other arts activities into the lives of people in Maine. It is an independent state agency funded by the Maine State Legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Portland Education Partnership (www.portlandeducation.org) is a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Portland Public Schools and works to enrich student learning and build support for the Portland public schools by promoting opportunities for parent, business and community involvement.

Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation has awarded $25,000 to Deering High School in Portland to help renovate the school’s auditorium.  Jimmy Davis, manager of the Lowe’s store in Portland, will join Deering Principal Kenneth Kunin for a ceremonial presentation of the check at the Portland School Committee meeting on November 7 at 7 p.m.

“This award is a tremendous boost to our $100,000 fundraising effort,” said Kunin.  “We deeply appreciate Lowe’s generosity.”

The Lowe’s grant will be used to purchase materials for fixing the stage and improving lighting.  Parents, students and community volunteers are providing much of the labor for the project.

“The grant to Deering represents Lowe’s commitment to education,” said Larry Stone, chairman of the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation.

The Portland Partnership worked with Deering’s staff to help secure the Lowe’s grant.  The auditorium project also has received a $5,000 donation from the 2007 senior class and a $1,400 gift from the class of 1947. 

Efforts are underway to seek additional contributions from Deering alumni.  A Deering Wall of Pride in the renovated auditorium will honor any class with individual or collective gifts of at least $5,000.

The Deering auditorium has showcased student musical performances, plays and other events for more than 80 years.  But lighting is minimal, many seats are uncomfortable or unusable and the stage has numerous limitations.

A group of parents, students and staff began working with the district’s facilities staff and the architectural firm of Semple and Dane last winter to plan the renovations. Their goal is to complete the project by the fall of 2008.  They plan on volunteers doing as much of the work as possible.

“We want to send a clear message that artistic excellence is valued at Deering,” said Kunin.  “The end result will be an auditorium that matches the high quality of the productions it contains while maximizing students’ educational experience.”

Last spring, band and chorus students surveyed all of the auditorium’s 700 seats to determine which ones needed to be fixed, replaced or tightened.  Parents and students devoted a July day to make the necessary repairs.

Volunteers removed portable staging and repaired and replaced tiles during a second work day.  Paul G. White Tile Co. provided materials at no cost.  Additional work remains to rebuild the stage and to upgrade both the house lights and the stage lighting.  

Anyone interested in helping with the fundraising effort, volunteering labor or donating materials and services is encouraged to contact Kunin at kunink@portlandschools.org.