Additional Information

Local news coverage of Portland Public Schools fundraising and foundations

• Editorial Board: Since school fundraisers indirectly promote racial inequality, a general fund is necessary (The Cardinal Times, April 2023)

• Advocates Clash Over Future of Fundraising Systems in Public Schools (The Franklin Post, January 2023)

• Some Portland schools fundraise to buy extra teachers. Critics say it's unfair. (Portland Tribune, 2022)

• Portland Schools To Start New Nonprofit, Take Over Local School Foundations (OPB, 2019) 

• Portland's School Foundations: An Imperfect National Model? (OPB, 2015) 

• Portland Public Schools foundations raised record-breaking $4.1 million last year (The Oregonian, 2014) 

National coverage referencing Portland Public Schools 

• Here's How Much Money LA Parents Are Fundraising For Schools, And What It Buys (LAist, 2022)

• In Chicago, Parent Fundraising Eases Reopening at Some Schools--and Leaves Others Out (Chalkbeat, 2021)

• The Power of a Wealthy PTA (The Atlantic, 2019; mentions PPS) 

• PTAs, Parent Involvement, and the Challenges of Relying on Private Money to Subsidize Public Education (Phi Delta Kappan Education Journal, 2019) 

• Parent-Led Fundraising Makes Some Schools Better but Leaves Others Behind (Slate, 2018; mentions PPS) 

• Hidden Money, The Outsized Role of Parent Contributions in School Finance (Center for American Progress, 2017) 

• Beaverton parents consider challenges of fundraising for teacher salaries (The Oregonian, 2012)

Other Pacific Northwest school districts 

• How 7 Seattle schools won $100,000 in coronavirus relief for families (The Seattle Times, 2020) 

• Here's why rich Seattle schools can afford extra teachers and fancy gadgets (KUOW (NPR affiliate), 2018) 

• My So-Called Public School, School foundations and the myth of funding equity written by a Lake Oswego teacher (Rethinking Schools, 2016) 

• Ogden Parents Raise $130,000 to Save Teachers’ Jobs, but Should They Have To? (DNAinfo Chicago, 2015)

• Beaverton Parents Consider Challenges of Fundraising for Teacher Salaries (OregonLive, 2012)

School fundraising in Oregon

• Small-school experiment doesn’t live up to hopes (Seattle Times, 2008)

• Publicly Funded, Privately Assisted : The Role of Giving in Oregon K-12 Education (Master’s Thesis, 2007) 

General articles and resources about the relationship between school fundraising and inequity

• Private Schools are Indefensible (The Atlantic, 2021)

• ‘Friends’ of public education? Study examines ‘paradox’ behind Philly school fundraising groups (WHYY, 2020)

• Why U.S. Schools Are Still Segregated-And One Idea To Help Change That (NPR, 2020) 

• Philanthropy and Public Education: A Good Partnership? (Nonprofit Quarterly, 2019)

• Against Big Philanthropy (The Atlantic, 2018) 

• The Uneven Landscape of Education Foundations and Public School Funding Gaps (Nonprofit Quarterly, 2017)

• How Rich Parents Can Exacerbate School Inequality (The Atlantic, 2016) 

• Can Parental Fundraising Bring Equality to Public School Education? (Nonprofit Quarterly, 2016)

• White Debt (New York Times Magazine, 2015) 

• How Budget Cuts and PTA Fundraising Undermined Equity in San Francisco Public Schools (San Francisco Public Press, 2014)

• Nation’s Wealthy Places Pour Private Money Into Public Schools, Study Finds (New York Times, 2014) 

• Not Very Giving (New York Times, 2013) 

Podcasts

• The Promise  (WPLN, Season 2, 2021) 

• Family Engagement and Equity  (The Integrated Schools Podcast, Season 5 Episode 22, 2020)

• Equity According to Angela Glover Blackwell (The Integrated Schools Podcast, Season 5 Episode 20, 2020)

• Nice White Parents  (NY Times Serial Productions Podcast, 2020)

• Public Schools, Private Money (The Integrated Schools Podcast, Season 2 Episode 17, 2020)

• Your PTA vs. equality (VOX Future Perfect Podcast, 2019)

Scholarly Articles (links to abstracts)

• With a little help from our friends: private fundraising and public schools in Philadelphia  (Journal of Education Policy, 2020)

• Philanthropic Partnerships in the Just City: Parks and Schools (Urban Affairs Review, 2019)

• The Rise of School-Supporting Nonprofits by Ashlyn Aiko Nelson & Beth Gazley (Education Finance and Policy, MIT Press, October 2014)

• Local-level Philanthropic Partnerships in Public Education: Dilemmas for Equity and Public Responsibility by Elizabeth Nisbet (Journal of Urban Affairs, 2021) 

• Regulating Private Support for Public Goods: De-clubbing Public Schools by Susanna Schaller and Elizabeth Nisbet (Journal of Education Policy, 2020) 

• Board Policies RE: District Fundraising Efforts

• Portland Public Schools 2020-2021 Individual School Reports

• PPS Enrollment Summary by Race/Ethnicity, 2019

• PPS Enrollment Summary by Underserved Groups, 2019

• PPS Parent Fund Awards 2020-2021

• PPS Parent Fund Awards 2018-2019. Grant recipient spending

• List of PPS schools receiving Title 1A funding, 2020

• Local School Foundation (LSF) Fundraising, 2009-2019

• 2019-2020 LSF Gifts & PPS Parent Fund Contributions

We are a network of parents, teachers, PPS policy makers and administrators, and public school advocates who support fully funding our schools in an equitable manner.  

We came together from across PPS in the summer of 2020 to review and share data related to foundation fundraising in our District. Our group's mission is to educate, bring more voices to the table, and foster honest and constructive discussions. We believe reform of the foundation fundraising system is necessary and that together an informed community, the PPS Board, and PPS administrators can adopt policies and practices that align with the community-driven Vision for Portland Public Schools. 

We have worked at or have children who have attended schools across the District including Alameda, Abernethy, Atkinson, Beach, Grout, Hosford, Laurelhurst, Ockley Green, Roosevelt, Roseway Heights, and Scott. Many of us have been actively involved in our school's foundation at various points.