Parkrose weighs playing up, travel costs as OSAA reclassifies leagues

PORTLAND, Ore. — Parkrose High School's athletic director said Monday that the district's choice to "play up" a classification this year reflects both competitive and practical concerns and that a pending statewide reclassification could push the school back down.

"So we are a 4A school that's chosen to play up at 5A," Ryan Gallagher told the Parkrose School District Board of Education. "The main reason we've chosen to do that is because of transportation, the historical challenges ... and then we're also more competitive." Gallagher said the district will decide again if OSAA moves forward with a different classification plan.

Why it matters: A decision about whether Parkrose competes at 4A, 5A or within a merged 5A/6A structure affects who the school plays, the length and frequency of bus trips, and district transportation costs. Board members and student-athletes repeatedly framed the issue as a balance between being competitive on the field and minimizing long bus rides and related budget pressure.

Gallagher walked board members through how OSAA (the Oregon School Activities Association) classification and scheduling work: OSAA sets season windows, regional and state meet dates and an overall calendar; leagues then negotiate schedules among member schools and with nonleague opponents. Gallagher described the scheduling process as a "guessing game and a balancing game" that eventually feeds into a statewide master document and an upload to the OFAA (Oregon school scheduling system).

He explained Parkrose's enrollment-derived ADM (average daily membership) calculation and how the district's high share of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals affects classification math. "We approximately checked this morning. I think we're at 962. This is ninth through eleventh grade. Based off that 962, we should probably be around 750 as our number of actual students in the building. But because the majority of Parkrose is considered free or reduced lunch, they multiply that 962 by... 40%. So it reduces the number of students actually at Parkrose all the way down to 752," Gallagher said. He added, "So what that says to me because we have a lower socioeconomic status is that we have less kids, so the kids at Parkrose are worth less than kids of a higher socioeconomic status." (Quote safety: Gallagher's wording mirrors his remarks to the board.)

Gallagher said OSAA is considering two classification proposals: one with six classifications (the current system) and another consolidating to five. If OSAA adopts the five-classification draft, Gallagher said he would likely opt to drop back to 4A. "If they go to draft 4 and they remove the 6A classification, I would probably opt to drop back down to 4A," he said.

Students and board members pressed on transportation and safety. Several student representatives and board members said closer opponents would reduce travel time and increase family attendance at events, a factor they said could also improve behavior and safety at games. Board members also cited budget trade-offs: one member noted that "every dollar that goes to a bus is a dollar that could go to a tennis racket or tennis balls or baseball equipment."

Gallagher highlighted the league-level work on equity and student safety: Parkrose participates in an "adopted star" league (an anti-bullying and inclusion initiative) and hosts monthly meetings with coaches and captains to build relationships across schools. He warned that moving to some 4A opponents could reintroduce schools with whom Parkrose has had difficult incidents in the past and that choice of league would be "a calculated bet."

What's next: Gallagher said he will attend the OSAA classification meeting Oct. 27 in Wilsonville and is prepared to testify. He asked the board and stakeholders for input before OSAA finalizes classifications. The board did not take formal action on Gallagher's recommendations at the working session.

Ending: Gallagher asked for continued stakeholder input and told the board the captains had voted unanimously to prefer the six-classification plan; the final decision lies with OSAA and with later formal board direction should Parkrose change its opt-up or opt-down decision.