An initiative by Portland Public Schools (PPS) aimed at bringing students from outer East Portland back to schools in North and Northeast has encountered significant challenges, with almost no applications this academic year.
The Right to Return transfer program is modeled after a housing initiative by the city of Portland, which encourages families to move back into neighborhoods they were forced to leave due to rising costs.
While most of the participating families are people of color, the program’s applicant selection process is not based on race.
In 2023, after collaborating with Black community leaders, PPS formulated plans to partner with local school districts, including David Douglas, Reynolds, and Parkrose, to facilitate students returning to 19 of its schools.
However, the program has seen a disappointing response since its inception. During its first year, there were only 24 applicants, of which 23 were accepted—one student was denied due to a lack of space.
In its second year, the situation worsened, with just six students applying for the Right to Return. Of these, two candidates were turned away due to insufficient capacity.
This means a mere total of 27 students have been accepted into the program across two school years. A memo from Judy Brennan, PPS’s enrollment director, disclosed that one student has since graduated and four have unenrolled, leaving only 22 students currently enrolled in the initiative.
These numbers fall short of the district’s initial expectations. In 2023, local reports indicated that PPS anticipated attracting between 50 to 100 students for the program. However, district representatives have declined to comment on the current situation.
Ron Herndon, the executive director of Albina Head Start and a veteran education advocate in Portland, expressed that the low application numbers come as no surprise. He noted that setbacks—including the pandemic, changes in district leadership, and a teachers’ strike—have significantly hindered progress on the program since its conceptualization by Black leaders in 2017.
“I don’t think there’s been a sustained effort to implement the policy,” Herndon commented.
He emphasized the lack of awareness surrounding the initiative, stating, “It’s lucky that six people are aware of it.”
This news emerges against the backdrop of PPS facing a decline in overall enrollment, which is contributing to a projected budget deficit of $40 million for the forthcoming 2025-26 school year.
In March, Valerie Feder, a district spokeswoman, announced plans to initiate a Recruitment, Retention, and Recovery enrollment campaign designed to rebuild trust among families and enhance enrollment figures.
“We’re focused on areas with the most significant declines, using marketing, outreach, and engagement to bring families back,” Feder stated.
Increasing enrollment is particularly crucial for schools targeted by the Right to Return program, especially Jefferson High School. Once the only majority-Black high school in Oregon, it currently has an enrollment of only 459 students.
To address this, the district aims to modernize Jefferson High with a budget between $458 million and $466 million, financed through the 2020 bond and an upcoming May 2025 bond.
Herndon argues that for the district to effectively implement a new enrollment campaign, lessons must be learned from the shortcomings of the Right to Return program.
He highlighted the absence of sustained outreach efforts, such as distributing flyers to raise awareness about the initiative.
“If it needs to be changed, then you do that. But that’s not going to happen unless you actually have someone responsible for the effort,” he added, stressing the importance of engaging community partners and maintaining consistent oversight of the program.
image source from：https://www.wweek.com/news/schools/2025/04/23/six-historically-displaced-students-applied-to-transfer-back-into-pps/
