Inside This Week's Mailer

COVID Safety Protocols, Arrival and Dismissal Procedures

PPS Back to School Website

PPS 2021 Health and Safety Guidelines AES

Building Entry MAP for Families

Fall 2021 Entry & Dismissal Plans & Lunch/ Specials Routines for Parents (Familiar Hybrid Routine)

Welcome Back Letters By Grade Level 

Lunch Volunteers Needed

We need 2-3 essential volunteers each day from 10:45-1:40 pm to assist outdoor lunches. If you meet the Volunteer Criteria listed below and can assist for 45- 60 minutes or more each day, please email Elise Darling at edarling@pps.net with the date and time you are available.

Volunteers include any individual who is on campus for longer than 15 minutes and may have the opportunity for unsupervised contact with students during school hours. 

• Volunteers must go through PPS background checks and need to provide proof of vaccination. 

Face Coverings

PTA Community Meeting- Tomorrow!

Community Care Day

• cleaned up the turf, playground, garden area, native area, surrounding fence line
• cleared out the kitchen alcove and the second alcove so our kids have a clean place to eat outside and have future outdoor education areas
• filled holes on the field with the massive amount of dirt that was removed from the many garden beds
• dismantled a greenhouse
• moved tons of wood
• power washed the building
• removed weeds from the entire grounds
• and so much more

Meet Jen Hartle- New PE Teacher

Meet Kevin Jones- New Para Educator

Facilities Updates & Reminder to Bring Water Bottle Daily

Facilities has done a significant amount of work to modernize our beloved 95 year old building recently which include the following improvements that have been completed or are in process to date:

Painting of the outside and inside of all lockers throughout the school a lovely St. Bart's Blue- completed. (Students can share lockers, but will be allowed to access it one at a time or opt to keep items at their desk).

Painting areas of concern such as windows/ walls that had holes from use to ensure safety due to the lead abatement proactive plan- completed. 

Painting a fresh coat of yellow over 8 murals from previous units of study that were damaged on the Southwest second floor- completed. 

Replacing old sinks in Faculty/ Staff Workroom- project in process

Replacing all drinking fountains with new ones that have water bottle filling spigots throughout the school- project to be completed soon due to sinks being back ordered. 

Since our drinking fountains are back ordered, water coolers will be placed accordingly for Faculty, Staff and Students to use to refill their water bottles. PLEASE allow your student to bring their water bottle to school each day. Each grade level will have recess after lunch and one 10 minute recess scheduled at another time outside. 

Before the painting…


After the painting...

Art4Life Update

At this time Art4Life is waitlisting applications for afternoon care, however there are still some slots available for morning care.  We hope to offer more after school care in the coming weeks.  Applications can be found at our website www.ART4LIFE.net and should be submitted via email as soon as possible.  Enrollment in Art4Life is done on a first-come-first-serve basis.  To submit an application, or if you have any questions, please email the site director at ABERNETHYA4L@gmail.com. 

All PPS students eat for free in 2021-22

All PPS students eat FREE.  This school year, all students in all schools have access to free breakfast and free lunch each school day.  This was made possible by a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Child Nutrition Program waiver for the 2021-22 school year.

Families in non-CEP (Community Eligibility Provision) schools may still complete meal applications for free/reduced price meals in order to be eligible for other benefits such as fee waivers/reductions in other programs. Click here for a current list of CEP schools.

We are very excited to announce that the 2021-22 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program grants were awarded to the following schools:

• Boise-Eliot/Humboldt, Cesar Chavez, Faubion, George, Harrison Park, James John, Kelly, Lane, Lee, Lent, Martin Luther King Jr., Marysville, Pioneer Programs, Rigler, Rosa Parks, Roseway Heights, Scott, Sitton, Vestal, Whitman, Woodlawn, Woodmere

New Instructional Resources

Over the next 4 years, Portland Public Schools (PPS) will be purchasing new instructional resources (curriculum, books, manipulatives, digital resources, etc.) for all K-5 classrooms. These newsletters will provide updates on new instructional resources, and opportunities to view and provide feedback on the materials.

Grades K-5  Grades 6-8   Grades 9-12

Pandemic EBT Information

Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits are additional funds that can be used to support family food purchases. P-EBT benefits were approved for Oregon in May for the 2020-21 school year.  P-EBT benefits issuance began at the end of July and will continue to be distributed into August and September for all families enrolled in a Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) school or with individual family eligibility for free or reduced price meals in the 2020-21 school year.  Families inquiring about student eligibility, or have other P-EBT questions, can use the following Oregon 211 Info services:

• Phone: Dial 211 from anywhere in Oregon

• Text: Text your zip code to 898211 (TXT211)

• Web: www.211info.org or the pebt.oregon.gov webpage for current P-EBT information

• Email: EBT.schoolmeals@dhsoha.state.or.us

Important Information for Renters

Dear PPS Families,

We want to share with you some important dates and resources available to you:

If you or someone you know needs assistance to pay their rent, mortgage or utility bills, please call 2-1-1 or visit https://www.211info.org/. There are many programs available and 2-1-1 can provide information and referrals. You may also contact your school counselor or social worker if you need more information or resources.

Additional resources for renters: 

Oregon’s Eviction Moratorium ended on June 30, 2021. We want to share with you some important dates and resources available to your family.

Important dates:

• Renters are required to pay current month’s rent (July 2021 to current month)

• Renters have until February 28, 2022 to pay overdue rent (April 2020 - June 2021)

• Provide proof of application for rental assistance to your landlord to avoid eviction for 90 days while you wait for the rental assistance (Multnomah County).

 Resources available to families:

1. If you are behind on rent you may qualify for rental assistance. Call 2-1-1 or visit: https://www.211info.org/multco-rent

2. To apply directly for rental assistance online visit: https://www.oregonrentalassistance.org/  (Application is available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese and Russian)

3. If you receive an eviction notice, call the Eviction Defense Project at 888-585-9638 to understand your rights and receive free legal assistance.

As always, you can contact your school for questions or assistance. We are here to support our students and their families during these challenging times.

Multilingual Resources and other language access updates

The multilingual PPS Resources website you will find and learn more about all of the internal and external resources currently available at each school to support your learning experience at PPS.

Multilingual Resources for Reopening 2021

Multnomah Early Childhood Program

Safe Oregon Tip Line

English | Spanish | Vietnamese | Chinese | Russian | Somali

S.T.O.P.P.S. Drill 

Abernethy's 2021 Fall S.T.O.P.P.S. (Safety Training of Pupils in Portland Schools) Evacuation Drill using the large General Transportation buses is scheduled for Sept 24. The drill will be facilitated by the teachers with their classrooms. 

Abernethy’s S.T.O.P.P.S. drill is scheduled for:
DAY: Friday
DATE: September 24, 2021
TIMES: 9:45 & 10:05

Division Transit Project Update

Division Transit Project construction crews have made major progress building the SE 11th Ave Westbound Station Platform, and are finishing up some remaining utility, roadway and sidewalk work.

Utility work in the Roadway, and Targeted Platform Construction – the next few weeks

This week and in the coming few weeks, you may continue to see lane shifts and lane closures on Division Street near SE 11th Ave while crews work to install an underground communication line across Division Street. This may involve preliminary digging as well as trenching. There may also be some targeted construction on select elements of the SE 11th Ave Westbound Station.

Select Roadway Paving – likely mid-August

In mid-August (most likely the week of August 16th), crews plan to perform roadway paving immediately next to the SE 11th Ave Westbound Station Platform, along a select section of Division Street slightly west of SE 11th Ave. This work is likely to last several days and is planned for regular work hours of Monday-Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. You may observe traffic flagging, lane restrictions, and detours during excavation and paving, as well as rumbling, vibrations, and odors from the equipment and materials.  We expect to maintain eastbound and westbound auto travel along Division Street. Temporary no-parking signs will continue to have a presence in and near the construction work zones. To ensure everyone’s safety, please allow extra time to travel through the area and follow directions from flaggers and signs. Access will be maintained to residents and to businesses during business hours.

New Striping on select stretch of Division Street – Permanent Reconfiguration of Traffic Lanes – Late August 2021

The new striping and permanent traffic lane reconfigurations planned along SE Division Street have been scheduled now for late August. Near the end of August (likely the week of August 30th), crews plan to restripe the section of Division Street between approximately SE 10th Ave and SE 12th Ave. These changes are best visualized on the PDF attachment and on the image excerpted at the bottom of this email. Here again are the key changes planned:

• On Division Street between SE 10th – SE 11th Ave:
  • In the westbound direction, two lanes will be converted to one, to ensure vehicles can safely travel along Division Street beside the new bus station platform. In other words, there will be a single wider westbound through-lane instead of the through-lane and pro-time parking lane.
  • In the eastbound direction, the two existing lanes will be widened slightly, and the lane hugging the curb will become a right-turn only lane near the SE Division St/SE 11th Ave intersection. The other lane will remain a through-lane.
• On Division Street between SE 11th – SE 12th Ave:
  • In the westbound direction, the two existing travel lanes will be widened and there will be a dedicated left turn lane along the full block length, which will be paired with a dedicated left turn signal at SE 11th/Division for the westbound auto traffic on Division Street who are turning left onto southbound SE 11th Ave. The lane closest to the curb is to remain a westbound through-lane. These changes are designed to increase the storage space for left-turning autos who seek to travel onto southbound SE 11th Ave and to improve bus performance, traffic flow, and safety.
  • In the eastbound direction, two lanes will be converted to one. In other words, there will be a single wider eastbound through-lane instead of the existing through-lane and existing pro-time parking/loading lane. Those parking and loading spaces will be permanently removed along the south side of Division Street between SE 11th and SE 12th Avenues. TriMet and the City of Portland have coordinated on the installation of new time-restricted loading zones along SE 12th Ave south of Division and along SE 11th Ave north of Division, to accommodate local businesses’ loading/deliveries.
  • The left turn for autos traveling eastbound on Division St. onto northbound SE 12th Ave will no longer be allowed, in order to improve the flow of through-traffic, ensure DTP bus performance reliability, improve pedestrian safety, and accommodate the traffic lane changes in the westbound direction in this street segment (those westbound changes improve storage for the left-turning autos traveling onto SE 11th Ave). Alternative routes exist for eastbound vehicles to travel northbound from Division Street by turning north onto SE 8th Ave, turning north onto SE 10th Ave, or turning south onto SE 13th Ave and looping around the block to access SE 12th Ave northbound.
• New crosswalk striping is planned for select locations, along the northern and western legs of the SE 11th Ave/Division Street intersection, and on the eastern leg of the SE 12th Ave/Division St intersection.
• Striping work is likely to take about one week, with the intermittent presence of construction crews, and possible traffic flagging and lane shifts while crews work and the new paint marks dry.

Other Intermittent Construction Work in the Future:

• Installing Fiber Optic Cables along Utility Poles: Along much of Division Street east of SE 10th Ave, crews will be installing new fiber optic cables. This will involve crews working at utility poles from bucket trucks and also working at the new DTP bus station areas, as well as temporary parking impacts and possible traffic control or flagging measures. There may also be some tree pruning associated with this utility pole work in select areas along Division Street. Some of this work may begin as soon as these coming few weeks, and some work may happen in the first half of 2022.
• Station Shelter & Amenities Installation:  From fall 2021 to early 2022, crews plan to install shelters and amenities at the new bus platforms. It takes about 1-2 weeks to install the shelters and amenities at a given bus platform, and another 1-2 weeks at each bus platform to connect cables/wiring, with possible gaps in time in between those sub-phases of work. This work is likely to be a more modest impact than the civil and utilities phases of work you have seen to date. 

The information and plans I have shared above are all subject to change. I will work to keep you updated if there are major changes to plans.

Feel free to reach out with any questions regarding the information I have shared.

Thank you for your understanding and patience during construction work and these changes.

Kind regards,
Thomas Scharff
Community Affairs Representative
TriMet Transit Equity, Inclusion and Community Affairs Department
ScharffT@TriMet.org

Oregon DHS Foster Parent Program

PTA Volunteers

Safe Routes to School

Girl Scouts

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