Friends:
The hearing for the Portland TAG appeal was held this afternoon in Multnomah County Circuit Court, and we won.
The Department has twice issued final findings since 1997 that held the District was in violation of the Oregon TAG mandate. However, the third time, last spring, they found the district to be in compliance. The PPS parents who filed the initial complaint then exercised their right to appeal the findings to circuit court.
Our attorney, Tim Murphy, focused on District problems with identification of young students (grades k-2) and the provision of appropriate instruction for all TAG students. He noted that the evidence that the ODE used from the report by Barbara Maurer did not justify the conclusion that PPS was meeting the state requirements.
He had just finished his presentation and the judge said she was going to rule then and there.
She agreed with him that the Oregon Department of Education had insufficient grounds for finding the Portland Public School District in compliance with the Oregon TAG mandate. She seems to feel that the Oregon Administrative Rules need revision as well as the ODE Findings and Order, but I am not sure what part of the Rules she was concerned about. In general, I feel the Rules are pretty good, I just wish the ODE would enforce them
The case has now been sent back to the ODE to write a fresh opinion.
Under the appeals process that is cited in the TAG mandate, the State Superintendent of Education has the discretion to withhold all or part of Basic School Support from a district that is found to be out of compliance. As far as I know, however, the ODE has never done more than issue a compliance order telling a district what steps it needs to follow to come into compliance.
For more information, there is a detailed article that appeared in the Portland Tribune about a year ago.
I am also expecting some press coverage this time.
Margaret DeLacy
