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Meeting Protocols

The Board of Education meets twice a month to consider, discuss, and determine the directions ½ûÂþÌìÌà will take in a range of areas. Regular meetings are typically held on Tuesdays.

• Materials for the most current meeting may be found

• A calendar of Board Meetings may be found here.

School Board members establish guidelines concerning organization, general policies, and major plans and procedures for the school district.

Comments and questions may be emailed to the Board at SchoolBoard@pps.net or sent via regular mail to School Board, P.O. Box 3107, Portland, OR, 97208.  If you would like to provide public comment before the Board, please see below.  

Public Comment at Board Meetings

To sign up to provide public comment, please email the information below to PublicComment@pps.net or call the Board Office at 503-916-3741. Requests for public comment will be processed in the order they are received for a set amount of available spots. Email and phone requests should be received by 12:00 pm the day of the meeting. Walk-up requests are taken, if space is available, in the fifteen minutes prior to the meeting (and must be received before the start of the meeting). 

Written public comments may be sent to PublicComment@pps.net.

• Each person wishing to address the Board must sign up individually for Public Comment.  Holding slots will not be allowed, and a person may not sign up for other speakers.  A speaker who is assigned a speaking slot will not be allowed to share their three minutes with others.

Email requests to provide public comment should include:

• • Full name:
  • Pronouns:
  • Topic:
  • Date requested:
  • School Community:
  • Phone number:
    • Is text okay?
  • Are you a student?
  • Would you like to attend In-Person or virtually?

• If an item on the agenda is an Action Item at that Board meeting, the speaker will be invited to testify during that agenda item. If the item is canceled, postponed, or withdrawn from the schedule, public comment on the item will not take place. Requests should include the date the requester wishes to speak, the requester’s first and last name, phone number or email, the topic of their comments, and their school community.
• The Board Clerk will read off the names of speakers who have signed up to testify.  All persons called should come to the testimony table. Each individual signed up will have up to 3 minutes and 30 seconds to testify unless otherwise stated. Testimony at Board Committees is two minutes each. 
• The requester may submit written testimony before or at the meeting; please provide 12 copies.
• Public Comment allows the Board and Superintendent to hear issues of interest, but does not allow an opportunity for dialogue between the speaker, Board, or Superintendent.
• If an interpreter is required, please notify the Board Office at least 48 hours in advance.
• Videos or PowerPoint presentations may not be used to accompany public testimony.
• In the event the meeting is canceled, the requester will be notified of the next available open date.

Instructions for Public Comment

The Board of Education values public input.  The responsibility of the Board is to actively listen and reflect on public comments. The Board will not respond to any comments or questions during public comment, but has asked Board Manager Rosanne Powell to follow-up on issues raised during public testimony.  Ms. Powell will be available at each Board meeting if you would like additional information about how the Board might respond.  

Guidelines for public input emphasize respect and consideration of others.  Complaints about individual employees should be directed to the Superintendent’s office as a personnel matter.

Each person providing public comment will have up to three minutes and 30 seconds; please begin by stating your name and spelling your last name for the record.  During the first two minutes of your comments a green light will appear. When you have one minute remaining, a yellow light will go on.  At three minutes, the red light will go on and a buzzer will sound, at this time you will then have 30 seconds to wrap up your comments. The Board respectfully asks that you conclude your comments promptly.  Videos or PowerPoint presentations may not be used to accompany public testimony.

The Board sincerely appreciates your input, and thanks you for your cooperation.

Public Meeting Guidelines for Conduct

The Portland Public Schools Board of Education highly values public input in making important decisions that affect Portland's children.  They also believe in the right of community members to observe Board meetings.  To ensure the public has an opportunity to attend School Board meetings and offer comment, and to ensure that the Board can conduct the important business of the District, speakers must observe certain basic rules of conduct.  The following guidelines apply to all public comment.

•  All members of the public attending School Board meetings must treat each other and the Board with respect.

• Individuals are not permitted to engage in conduct that interferes with the ability of other individuals to watch the Board meetings, interferes with the ability of other members of the public to offer comment to the Board, or interferes with the ability of the Board to conduct its business.

• Those wishing to display placards, signs and/or banners must remain in the auditorium foyer behind the seating area, and may not block any attendee's view of the proceedings. 

• Members of the public who intend to offer public comment to the Board must sign up for comment before the start of each Board meeting.  The Board Chair has discretion to call on those who have signed up and set the order of speakers (District students should identify themselves as such on the public comment sign-in sheet, and they will be called upon first).

• Individuals who sign up to testify to the Board must indicate the topic of their intended testimony.

• Individuals offering public comment must sit at the table designated for their use and must speak into the microphone.

• Prior to beginning any testimony, individuals must state and spell their last name.

• Each speaker must limit his or her comments to three minutes and thirty seconds to allow sufficient time for others to also offer public comment.  The Board Chair has the discretion to limit the overall time for public comment.

• Individuals offering public comment are not permitted to make personal attacks on any District employee, Board member, other testifier, or member of the public.

The Oregon Attorney General has indicated that any person or persons who fail to comply with reasonable rules of conduct or who cause a disturbance during a meeting may be asked or required to leave and, upon failure to do so, become(s) a trespasser.