This content was published: August 2, 2002. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
MEDIA ADVISORY: University of Portland Joins Portland Teachers Program
Photos and story by James Hill
PORTLAND, Ore. – The University of Portland will join the Portland Teachers Program (PTP), committing the resources to pay tuition for PTP students when they transfer from Portland Community College to the university.PTP is a collaborative effort of Portland Public Schools, Portland Community College, Portland State University, and now the University of Portland, to increase the diversity of the teaching corps in Portland’s classrooms. The program places a special focus on the recruitment of historically underrepresented groups in the teaching profession. It is housed on the PCC Cascade Campus.A signing ceremony will celebrate the entrance of the University of Portland into the partnership. University of Portland President David T. Tyson, PSU President Daniel Bernstine, Portland Public Schools Superintendent James Scherzinger and PCC President Jesus Carreon will formally sign the document at 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 15, on the PCC Cascade Campus, 705 N. Killingsworth. The ceremony will be held in the atrium lobby of the Student Services Building. With the new agreement, the University of Portland will pay tuition for up to 10 PTP students each year, planned for full phase-in by 2010. Several students will benefit next year. The agreement also calls for PCC to waive tuition for 33 students this year, up from 30 last year, and PSU will provide tuition waivers for up to 45 students. Portland Public Schools will recommit to its priority hiring consideration for PTP graduates. Plus, the district will look at the possibility of creating a teaching academy for high school students, giving them hands-on opportunities to explore careers in education.Since the Portland Teachers Program opened its doors in 1990, more than 80 teachers have graduated. Of those, Portland Public Schools has hired 69 graduates, providing greater teacher diversity in the classrooms across Portland’s school district. More than 65 students are currently in the PTP pipeline.
About James Hill
James G. Hill, an award-winning journalist and public relations writer, is the Director of Public Relations at Portland Community College. A graduate of Portland State University, James has worked as a section editor for the Newberg Graphic... more »