Portland Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong told School Board members on Tuesday that if the district were to discover any extra money in its 2026–27 budget, she would not recommend that money go toward teaching positions.
Her remarks came following a chaotic budget approval hearing on June 23, when board member Stephanie Engelsman presented a last-minute amendment that would have charged the district with finding $13.2 million. That money would have gone toward restoring, among other things, 87 educators PPS laid off amid a $56.3 million budget deficit. That night, School Board members struggled to find a source of funding for that amendment, which ultimately failed. As WW has reported, the rejection upset most School Board members’ biggest ally: the Portland Association of Teachers.
In the hours after the June 23 meeting, former PAT president Angela Bonilla sent an email to the union’s members, encouraging the district in part to keep looking for funds to restore teaching positions. That’s a message that new PAT president Alisha Chavez echoed in her first public comment as union president on Tuesday night. In her remarks, she urged the board to put aside personal differences and collaborate with the union to do what’s best for students…