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Estacada SD 108 ends contract with third‑party outdoor‑school vendor, will shift to in‑house day programs
Summary
Superintendent Carpenter told the board April 8 that the district will stop contracting with its current outdoor‑school vendor after community concerns and student interviews, and will design internally run, primarily day‑trip outdoor experiences while phasing out overnight stays.
Superintendent Carpenter announced April 8 that Estacada School District will no longer contract with the third‑party company that provided the district’s outdoor‑school experience and will instead develop district‑led outdoor programming, prioritizing day trips over overnight stays. "The Estacada School District will no longer be partnering, or contracting with this particular outdoor school company," Carpenter said, adding the decision followed interviews with students, work by internal leadership and engagement with the contracted provider.
Carpenter said the change responds to concerns raised by families and students about the most recent outdoor‑school experience and reflects a desire to align trips with community values while reducing what the superintendent called "opportunities for some of those vulnerabilities." The district will consult families this spring to design an internal outdoor program and said it expects to keep features students value — songs, certain activities and learning experiences — while eliminating the overnight component where most problems occurred.
Board members asked about local alternatives. Carpenter said the district has considered nearby options such as Eagle Fern but noted capacity limits: Eagle Fern cannot currently host an entire sixth‑grade class for an overnight program, though it and other local sites (fish hatchery, PGE ponds, Timberlake Job Corps) may be used for day‑trip partnerships. "We’re gonna look towards eliminating the overnight experience where most of these problems occur, and really focus more on the day trip opportunities," Carpenter said.
Carpenter framed the decision as temporary for the foreseeable future while the district engages families to co‑design the program. He also used his report to thank staff and recognize employee‑recognition day, highlight the district’s music and athletics achievements, and to note high participation in spring sports and track (Carpenter cited 101 middle‑school students out for track this spring).
The board did not take a formal vote to change policy during the meeting; Carpenter described it as an administrative decision to end the contract and direct staff to assemble an in‑house program and family engagement process. Next steps identified in the meeting record include continued conversations with families, outreach to potential local partners and internal planning for the remainder of the school year.
