State must address K-12 underfunding

By Suzanne Clarke & Isabel Johnson

Portland Public Schools students have been out of school since Nov. 1 as PPS and the Portland Association of Teachers have fought over scraps due to 30-plus years of underfunding by the Oregon Legislature. On behalf of more than 2,200 community members who have signed our open letter to the governor and Legislature, we call on elected leaders to correct these deficiencies.

Since 1999, Oregon schools have been underfunded by more than $22 billion, based on data in the 2022 Quality Education Commission report. This is $800,000 that could have gone to every school in Oregon, each year, for the last 24 years.

Read the full letter to the editor here