Portland Public Schools is turning four days that were originally intended for instruction, grading or paid time off into furlough days, effectively ending the school year early and condensing the calendar in an effort to patch a budget hole first made public last month.
The furlough deal, announced Sunday in a message to the PPS community, followed negotiations with the district’s educator union, Portland Association of Teachers.
Oregon’s largest school district has been grappling with an unexpected and growing budget deficit for the current school year.
When the district originally disclosed its surprising gap, it was a $22 million mid-year shortfall, with $12 million in savings already identified, leaving a $10 million hole to fill. A few weeks later, the district had revised the estimated gap upwards to $14 million…