Forest Grove board approves health curriculum, roof project and student trips as superintendent outlines literacy progress and enrollment dip

Forest Grove School Board members on May 12 approved a set of routine and programmatic items — including one-year adoptions of the LiveWell health curriculum for middle and high schools, a $495,286 roof replacement for an upper elementary school funded from 2022 bond proceeds and two out-of-state student trips — while Superintendent Suzanne West delivered a broad update on district goals.

In a presentation to the board, West framed her goals around four priorities: advancing instructional alignment, improving literacy and numeracy, strengthening two-way communication and ensuring strategic stewardship of human and financial resources. "We are 86 students down in our enrollment projections," West said, noting the decline is concentrated at the elementary level and consistent with projections used in recent months.

West outlined classroom- and teacher-focused efforts intended to raise achievement, citing district work on LETRS training for early literacy instruction and a pilot of the STOIC classroom framework at elementary schools. She pointed to discipline data at Neil Armstrong Middle School as evidence that routines and teacher practices can reduce serious incidents: "For the 24–25 school year, Neil Armstrong Middle School had more than 20 expulsions; when I looked about 6 weeks ago, there were 4," she said.

On formal business, the board first approved the consent agenda by voice vote. The board then voted to amend the middle-school LiveWell subscription to a one-year renewal at $38,368 and to adopt the LiveWell high-school curriculum for one year at $55,880; both motions carried on voice votes. District staff said the one-year approach is being used to manage budget timing while the curriculum adoption remains a six-year adoption on the paperwork.

The board also approved administration's recommendation to award the Tom McCall upper-elementary barrel-roof replacement to a Garland-authorized contractor (McDonald Weddle) for $495,286 using remaining 2022 bond funds. Facilities staff described the process for bids and explained that formal RFPs are required for projects over the district's specified dollar thresholds.

During public comment, Forest Grove High School senior Alekina Bell asked the board to create an extra-duty stipend for the thespian troop director, saying the unpaid director covers travel and after-hours work that sustain the program. "The workload is too heavy to be unpaid," Bell told the board, urging the district to consider a salary for the position so the program can continue.

The board approved an out-of-state trip for the Forest Grove High School thespian troupe to the International Thespian Festival in Bloomington, Indiana (June 21'27, 2026). District staff estimated total trip costs at about $23,000 for the group (roughly $2,300 per student) and said students and families are pursuing fundraising to cover the expenses; the motion passed by voice vote. The board also approved a separate DECA trip to Orlando, Florida (Jan. 27'Feb. 1, 2027), with an estimated cost of $2,200 per student and intended fundraising plans.

Later in the meeting, the board discussed and approved a public summary of the superintendent's evaluation for the 2025'26 school year, praising leadership through disruptions and the superintendent's emphasis on instructional improvement. The board also spent a substantial portion of the meeting reviewing a new process to solicit written responses from legislative candidates and discussing ways to increase community engagement and voter turnout; members noted low response rates to the district's candidate questionnaire and considered outreach modifications.

Next steps: the board pointed to an upcoming budget committee meeting where some of the financial timing issues raised during curriculum adoption will be addressed, and district staff said the STOIC pilot and literacy initiatives will continue to be monitored as implementation unfolds.