½ûÂþÌìÌÃ

Hello Atoms Families,

A huge thank you to all the volunteers and everyone who supported our 8th graders last week during the presentation of their National History Day projects. The students did incredible work, and it was fantastic to see their efforts shine!

Another big thank you to everyone who volunteered for Pi Day — the pie was delicious, and the students had an amazing time.

We’ve got just five school days left until Spring Break! Here’s what’s coming up this week:

 Tuesday: Our Site Council meeting will be held at 4:30 PM. If you’d like to observe, the link is posted on the website.

Wednesday: Early release day — all students will be dismissed at 12:45 PM.

 Thursday: Our PTA meeting will take place at 7:00 PM.

• Join via Google Meet:

• Dial-in: +1 208-715-5825? PIN: 778 452 051#

• Draft agenda:

Thank you for your continued support — let’s finish strong before Spring Break!

Best,
Aaron Ferguson

Hello Atoms Families!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the . We have a regular schedule all week, and our second Tuesday Site Council meeting is rescheduled to next Tuesday, March 18, at 4:30 PM.

Enrollment Window

The enrollment window is open and will remain open until March 12th. A huge thank you to the parents who have attended our information sessions to answer questions and share their experiences as ACCESS parents. Hearing directly from other parents is incredibly meaningful for prospective families. 

Chess Club – New Players Welcome!

The Chess Club is gearing up for spring and looking for new players. If your student is interested in joining, please check out the for more details.

You're Invited to ACCESS History Day – March 11

Next Tuesday, March 11, will be our first-ever ACCESS History Day, from 5:45 to 8:00 PM! Our 8th Grade Atoms have been working hard all year, conducting research, citing and annotating bibliographies, writing, and creating projects on a history topic of their choice. Their work focuses on primary sources and crafting a historical argument under this year's theme:
Rights and Responsibilities in History

This year, due to a surge in school participation across Oregon (yay!), we are limited to sending 15 projects to the State competition. Our 8th Graders have worked incredibly hard and are excited to showcase their projects!

Pizza will be sold, with 100% of the proceeds going toward the 8th-grade trip. If you plan to attend and would like to order pizza, please fill out this form by Friday, March 7, so we can plan accordingly.

Middle School Spring Dance – April 11 (Tentative Date)

Our Middle School Spring Dance is tentatively scheduled for Friday, April 11. We will be looking for volunteers to help make this event a success, so please check your calendars and stay tuned for more details!

Bathroom Care Reminder

Please remind your students to take care of the school bathrooms the same way they would at home. This week, we had conversations with our middle school students about keeping the bathrooms in the portables clean and respectful for everyone.

Our custodial staff works hard every day to keep our building clean and safe—let’s show our appreciation by doing our part to help!

½ûÂþÌìÌà Middle School Standards-Based Grading Info Session – March 13

½ûÂþÌìÌà is hosting an information session on Thursday, March 13, about the transition to standards-based grading for middle school, which is scheduled to begin next year.

I highly encourage ACCESS parents to attend, as this change will align our middle school grading system more closely with elementary report cards—grading students based on their proficiency in specific standards. You can find more details here. 

½ûÂþÌìÌà Budget & Advocacy Updates

We also discussed ½ûÂþÌìÌà budget news. You can find general information about the ½ûÂþÌìÌà budget here.

The best way to support ACCESS and public education is to use your voice, your story, and your vote to advocate for adequate school funding in Oregon.

½ûÂþÌìÌà Budget Priorities for the 2025 Legislative Session:

• Invest in High-Quality Education

  • Pass the Governor’s recommended changes to the Current Service Level (CSL)

  • Fully fund recent mandates and new initiatives (e.g., PE)

  • Fully fund special education services

• Funding for Student Supports

  • Maintain sustainable funding for school nutrition programs, extended learning opportunities, and early literacy

• Current 2025 Oregon Legislative Agenda

  • HB 3039 – Directs ODE to study ways to expand summer and afterschool programs

• Additional Funding Priorities

  • Facility improvements, curriculum, transportation, green schoolyards, cybersecurity, and healthcare access

For those looking to get involved, this Advocacy Toolkit provides great information on how to engage with our elected leaders.

Thank you again for your time and support!

Hello Atoms,

I hope you're all enjoying this sunny three-day weekend! We’re back tomorrow and will follow a regular schedule for the remainder of the week.

Principal’s Coffee – Wednesday at 9:00 AM
Our monthly Principal’s Coffee will take place this Wednesday at 9:00 AM. The link is also below.

Calendar Update – No Staff Meeting on 3/11
Next week, there is a change to the originally published calendar. There will be no staff meeting on Tuesday, March 11, so we will follow a regular schedule that day.

Classified Appreciation Week
This week is Classified Appreciation Week! Please take a moment to show your gratitude for our incredible paraprofessionals, front office staff, bus drivers, nutrition services team, and custodial crew. They do so much to support our school community!

Exciting News – Almost Reliable Robotics is Heading to State!
Success has become reliable for ACCESS Academy’s Almost Reliable Robotics team! They competed at the Spark Invitational Tournament in Philomath, OR—a statewide competition that gives Oregon teams a second chance to qualify for the State Championship.

Facing off against 33 mostly high school teams from across the state, our middle school team made it to the final round! Their team alliance with Benson High School placed second, securing their spot in the State FTC Robotics Championship on March 15-16 and earning them a well-deserved trophy.

Congratulations to Almost Reliable Robotics on this incredible achievement! A huge thank you to their dedicated coach, David Fikstad, and our amazing parent volunteers. Best of luck at State!

Shoutout to Our 3rd Graders at the Oregon Food Bank!
A big round of applause to our 3rd graders and their parents who volunteered at the Oregon Food Bank last Saturday! Our students helped pack 13,341 pounds of potatoes and apples—and they were so efficient that they even had time for a warehouse tour.

Rose City Chess Returns to ACCESS!
Rose City Chess is back this spring! This winter, 21 students had a fantastic time competing, and they’re looking for new players. If your student is interested, 

Looking forward to another great week!

Best,
Principal Aaron

Hello Atoms Families,

A huge thank you to our PTA for providing our awesome new ACCESS t-shirts! Everyone looked fantastic in the big group picture.

Please note a slight adjustment to this week’s schedule: Tuesday is a staff meeting day, so middle school students will be released at 3:15 PM (not 3:30 PM as originally scheduled). If your student rides the bus, please expect them to arrive at their stop a little earlier than usual on Tuesday afternoon. Wednesday remains an early release day, with all students dismissed at 12:45 PM as scheduled.

There are no ACCESS information sessions this week, but we will resume them next week with sessions on Monday night (3/3) and Thursday morning (3/6).

Finally, please join me in wishing all of our Atoms the best of luck as they compete in the final rounds of our school-based OBOB battles this week and next!

Thank you for your support!

Best,
Principal Aaron

You can find a recording on January's Principal Coffee virtual meeting ! 

Atomic Articles - June!

Here is the link to view the video of today's principal coffee, which had details about dates for the end of this school year as well as previews of next year's schedules:

Here is the link to the powerpoint with the basic info:

Also note: If you know people interested in the lottery results for the 24-25 school year, we anticipate the initial offers to go out early next week, May 13 or after. Thanks!

May Atomic Articles

Atomic Articles Volume 29

Happy March Atomic Families!

Atomic Articles - March!

½ûÂþÌìÌà is continuing to host a series of events aimed at starting productive conversations about what is possible in the systems we create for our children with disabilities.

As part of this series, we are excited to welcome you to a free screening of  on Thursday March 20 at . Doors open at 6 p.m. and the movie begins at 7:00.

The Ride Ahead is a film about adult life with disabilities by a man with disabilities. It is the debut of 21-year-old Samuel Habib who, struggling to find his place in the world, decides to make a film that charts how a group of disabled adults navigate challenges and forge their own unique paths. The film serves as a roadmap for himself and others and illustrates the compelling power of one person truly determined to live life on his own terms.

In documenting his journey, Samuel is following in the footsteps of his father, the filmmaker Dan Habib. You can learn more about their work .

Staff, families, and community members are all invited. Parking is free and McMenamins' full menu is available for ordering. We hope to see you there!

In meteorological terms, Portland’s first big weather event of 2024 was the definition of a perfect storm. Frigid temperatures and high winds combined with snow and ice to bring down tree limbs, close roads, scramble traffic, freeze pipes, and knock out power for tens of thousands of residents.

It was a metaphorical perfect storm for ½ûÂþÌìÌà as well. Fallen trees cut power to multiple schools and others have suffered water damage from broken pipes. Lack of heat was also a problem, and impassable roads, paired with snowed-in and icy parking lots, made it impossible for buses to run safely. Those same conditions limited how the district’s facilities and operations teams can even assess the scope of the issues, let alone begin working on solutions. And icy sidewalks meant walkers have no safe route to school.

This week could bring similar conditions to the Portland area, and ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ’s School Closure Team is ready to meet the challenge. The team convenes regularly during inclement weather to take all of the above into careful consideration. By now, families are quite familiar with how the district communicates these decisions. What’s perhaps less known is how district leaders arrive at such decisions in the first place. 

As part of our district's focus on events that center belonging, equity, and inclusion, we have been screening a series of films that we hope will challenge our perceptions about what is possible in the systems we create for our children with disabilities.

The next film in the series is “Champions,” which will screen on Saturday February 8th at 2:00 PM at Lincoln High School. This event will also include first-hand testimonials from ½ûÂþÌìÌà students.

This movie highlights the journey of a basketball coach who leads a team of players with intellectual disabilities. Through humor and heartfelt moments, the movie emphasizes the strengths, individuality, and value each player brings to the team and how inclusion enriches communities and creates positive, supportive environments.

Staff, families, and community members are all invited. Parking is free and light refreshment will be provided. We hope to see you there!

We’re thrilled to announce that two ½ûÂþÌìÌà teachers were recently awarded the prestigious Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). 

Krishnan Ranjani,  a teacher of advanced mathematics and Career and Technical Education (CTE) computer systems at Lincoln High School and Nick Nohner, a computer sciences and data sciences teacher at Ida B. Wells High School, were both selected for the honor which is administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF) on behalf of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. The award recognizes outstanding educators for their contributions to the teaching and learning of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Each awardee will receive a certificate signed by President Joe Biden and a $10,000 award from NSF. Awardees will also travel to Washington, D.C., for an awards ceremony at a future date. 

Congratulations to these two exceptional teachers!