The Beaverton School District is a school district in and around Beaverton, Oregon, United States. It serves students throughout Beaverton, Hillsboro, Aloha, and unincorporated neighborhoods of Portland, OR. The Beaverton Elementary School District 48 was established in 1876, with other elementary districts later merged into the district. The elementary district was later merged with the high school district (10J) to create a unified school district. It is the third-largest school district in the state, with an enrollment of 39,763 students as of 2015. For the 2015â€"2016 school year the district had a total budget of $423.1 million.
The district employs over 2,000 teachers at its 34 elementary, eight middle, and six high schools as well as several options schools. In 2014 18,345 students were enrolled in elementary school, 9,200 in middle school, and 11,588 in high school. A sixth high school opened in 2017.
History
Cedar Park Middle School - Student - In this School Spotlight video, Grant Passi, an eighth-grader at Cedar Park Middle School, shares his "why." For more on the Cedar Park Middle School spotlight, click here: http://bit.ly/2gcda9l.
District 48 was established in 1876 as the "Beaverton Elementary School District", serving grades 1-8. Over the years it merged with other elementary districts and finally, in July 1960, merged with the Beaverton High School District to create one unified school district. The district has followed the trends throughout the US, establishing schools for 7thâ€"9th grades in the mid-1960s (to make a 6-3-3 system) and then in 1994 moving 6th grade into middle school and 9th grade back into high school to form the current 5-3-4 configuration.
The Beaverton School District's school-age population grew by 44% in the 1990s, but by only 14% in the 2000s. The median age in the district increased from 33.3 in 2000 to 35.3 in 2010. The total population of the area under the district's jurisdiction was 253,198 as of the 2010 census.
In 2017, the district began releasing all students early on Wednesdays to allow additional time for teacher collaboration and development; the school year is also being lengthened.
Schools
Elementary schools
Middle schools
The Beaverton School District operates eight middle schools housing 6th, 7th, and 8th grades.
Cedar Park
Cedar Park, located on Park Way, was built in 1965 as the district's fourth middle school. It was first opened during the 1965â€"66 school year for seventh graders only, with an enrollment of 343; however, construction was not complete until 1966. It opened for all grades beginning with the 1966 school year. The school's mascot is the Timberwolf, and its current principal is Dr. Shannon Anderson. Enrollment for the 2014 school year was 1,043, up from 968 the previous year. This school offers electives such as Drama (also called Theater), Band, Choir, Physical Education, and Spanish, along with a more advanced Spanish class for native speakers.
Conestoga
Conestoga is located on Conestoga Drive. Its mascot is the Cougar, and its principal is Zan Hess. Its 2014 enrollment was 881, down from 904 in 2013.
Five Oaks
Five Oaks' mascot is the Falcon, and its principal is Shirley Brock. 2014 enrollment was 1,020, down from 1,055 in 2013. Five Oaks hosts Rachel Carson Environmental Middle School, which focuses on environmental science.
Highland Park
Highland Park was opened in 1965 to 1,106 students, after several failed bonds in the previous years. Its mascot is the Raider, and its principal is Curtis Semana. 2014 enrollment was 882, up from 820 in 2013.
Meadow Park
Meadow Park's mascot is the Eagle, and its principal is Jared Freeman. 2014 enrollment was 832, up from 768 in 2013.
Mountain View
Mountain View's mascot is the Mountaineer, and its principal is Matt Pederson. 2014 enrollment was 876, up from 856 in 2013.
Stoller
Stoller is located on Laidlaw Road. Its mascot is the Jaguar, and principal is Florence Richey. 2014 enrollment was 1,389, up from 1,341 in 2013. It is the largest middle school in the school district.
Whitford
Whitford is located in Garden Homeâ€"Whitford. Garden Home was an established community when the Oregon Electric Railway was built at the beginning of the 20th century, which named a depot on the line for the community. Whitford was a station on the same line, located at the present-day intersection of Allen Road and Scholls Ferry Road (Oregon Route 210); the name was created by combining the names of W. A. White and A.C. Bedford, New York investors who were directors of the railway. Whitford Station closed when the railway stopped running around 1920, but the name stuck. The school itself opened in 1963 to grades 7 and 8. Whitford's mascot is the Coachman, and its principal is Brian Peerenboom. 2014 enrollment was 681, up from 680 in 2013.
High schools
High schools in Beaverton are part of the Metro League for interscholastic athletics and activities. The newest, Mountainside High School, opened in September 2017 for freshmen and sophomores. As a result, the district began planning to alter its high school boundaries. The boundary changes were approved in June 2017 and went into effect at the beginning of the 2017â€"2018 school year.
Option schools
- Arts & Communication Magnet Academy (ACMA)
- Focuses on the arts for 6th through 12th grade students. Principal: Bjorn Paige.
- Beaverton Health & Science School (HS2)
- Focuses on science, medicine and engineering for 6th through 12th grade students. Principal: Brian Sica.
- International School of Beaverton (ISB)
- Offers the International Baccalaureate program for 6th through 12th grade students. Principal: Jill O'Neill.
- Merlo Station High School
- Composed of several programs, including the Community School and the School of Science and Technology. Principal: Mary Jean Katz.
- Rachel Carson Environmental Middle School
- Located at Five Oaks Middle School, it focuses on environmental science for 6th through 8th grade students. Principal: Shirley Brock.
- Summa
- Programs at Meadow Park, Whitford, Stoller, Cedar Park, and Highland Park middle schools for talented and gifted students. 795 students were enrolled in Summa classes at five middle schools for the 2014-2015 school year.
- In November 2014 a plan to move Summa students who attend Stoller Middle School to the newly constructed Timberland middle school as a solution to overcrowding was proposed, but was delayed in November 2015 due to opposition from parents and school administration.
Future schools
- Timberland Middle School
- Set to open in 2020 and built on land acquired in 2003, the school is serving as a replacement for several elementary schools between 2016 and 2020 undergoing remodeling before its formal opening. Construction began on May 19, 2015.
Closed schools
- Cedar Hills Elementary School
- Built in the early 1950s; closed in 1983. The building was repurposed as the Cedar Hills Recreation Center of the Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District (THPRD), initially leased from BSD, but sold to THPRD circa late 1986.
- Garden Home Elementary School
- Closed in 1982 and leased to THPRD, who put it to use as the Garden Home Community Center starting later the same year. The building was later sold to THPRD.
- Merle Davies Elementary School (named Beaverton Grade School until 1949)
- Opened in 1938; closed in 1983. The building became an annex to Beaverton High School, located directly adjacent, and remains in use as such.
- Sunset Valley Elementary School
- Opened in 1948, and closed in 1980. The building and property were purchased in 1979 by Electro Scientific Industries, which used it until the mid-1990s. The building was then razed and replaced by a Home Depot store.
- C. E. Mason Elementary School
- The building is now used as Arts & Communication Magnet Academy.
Administration
School board
According to the Beaverton School District's website, the school board is "responsible for providing an education program for students living within the District boundaries." The board members for the 2015-2016 school year were Susan Greenberg, Anne Bryan, Eric Simpson, Donna Tyner, LeeAnn Larsen, Becky Tymchuk, and Linda Degman.
Superintendent
The current Beaverton School District superintendent is Don Grotting, who has served since July 1, 2016. Dr. Jeff Rose served between July 2011 and July 2016, after previous Superintendent Jerome Colona stepped down. Rose previously served as Superintendent of the Canby School District from 2008 until 2011. In 2016, Rose resigned in order to head the Fulton County School System in Georgia.
Demographics
In the 2009 school year, the district had 1114 students classified as homeless by the state's Department of Education, or 3.0% of students in the district. By 2010, the number of homeless students had grown to 1,580, the highest of any school district in the state.
Teacher/student ratios
The following are the district's teacher/student staffing ratios:
- Kindergarten - 1:22
- Grades 1â€"5 - 1:26.15
- Grades 6â€"8 - 1:35:50
- Grades 9â€"12 - 1:26.4
Student/staff profiles
All information below is as of October 1, 2014.
- Ethnicity:
- 13% Asian
- 3% Black
- 24% Hispanic or Latino
- 1% Native American/Alaska Native
- 1% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
- 52% White
- 7% Other (includes students identifying with more than one of the categories above or students not identifying with any of the categories above)
- Number of primary languages spoken in students' homes: 94
- Percentage of students qualifying for free and reduced lunch: 36.6%
- Percentage of students qualifying for special education services: 12.1%
- Percentage of Talented and Gifted students: 13.5%
- Percentage of ESL students: 13.3%
- Percentage of male students: 51%
- Percentage of female students: 49%
- High school dropout rate: 2.7% as of 2013â€"14, lower than Oregon's average of 3.9%
- Graduation rate: 79.7%, higher than Oregon's average of 72%
- Number of staff:
- Teachers: 2,330
- Classified employees: 1,710
- School administration: 92
- District administration: 30
- Total number: 4,162
- Teachers with a master's degree or higher: 87%
- Average years teaching experience: 14.6
- Salary range: $39,100 - $80,253
See also
- List of school districts in Oregon
References
External links
- Official website
