Portland Board education committee: federal grant boost frees $296,000 for FY27 staffing

At a June 8 virtual meeting, Portland Public Schools finance staff told the Board of Education’s Finance, Personnel and Operations Committee that a preliminary Every Student Succeeds Act allocation for FY27 arrived $376,000 higher than the district had budgeted, producing about $296,000 in funds the district could potentially leverage for staffing adjustments, staff said.

"We have received our preliminary FY27 Every Student Succeeds Act allocation from the state, and it is actually $376,000 higher than we budgeted," Lisa Beck, head of the district’s finance team, said during the committee’s presentation. She said Title I funding—targeted to students with greater academic need—rose about 10.5% (approximately $303,000) and Title II rose about 30% (about $130,000), while Title III and Title IV allocations fell.

The increase allowed the district to add one special education teacher and five educational technicians to meet students’ individualized education program needs, reinstate one secondary science teacher, and claim the state reimbursement of several early childhood special education positions. Beck summarized the net impact as roughly $296,000 available for the district to leverage.

Beck cautioned the allocation is preliminary. "This is a preliminary allocation. The final allocation comes in early to mid‑July," she said, adding that the district must submit an application (due Aug. 1) and receive state approval before obligating the funds.

Board Member Opperman asked whether the $296,000 could be used across district needs or was restricted. "Under state law we are limited in being able to move between what's called the categoricals," Beck replied, noting some funds are restricted to particular grant programs and that the application must describe intended uses and conform to state requirements.

Officials described two grant processes: ESEA grants, which the district invoices monthly and has used for many years to fund roles such as instructional coaches, and the state’s early childhood special education (ECSE) reimbursement process, which Portland Public Schools is implementing as part of an early cohort and which reimburses allowable costs rather than providing the money up front.

Human resources director Jennifer Slebank said the separations and hiring information on the committee’s agenda is typical for this time of year and includes retirees and staff moving to other districts. "This is the first year that we've been doing the separation in for information only and the hiring outside of the groups the board is required to vote about," she said, adding that contractual language guides reassignments and the district seeks to provide as much lead time as possible when moving staff between sites.

Staff described how enrollment changes drive personnel adjustments: assistant superintendents monitor enrollment weekly and may reassign vacancies or submit requests for new positions if net new staffing is required and cannot be absorbed through reallocation.

No members of the public offered comments during the meeting. The committee took no policy votes on the FY27 budget at the session; it concluded business and adjourned by unanimous show of hands at 6:23 p.m.

What happens next: final ESEA allocations typically arrive in early to mid‑July, and the district’s grant application is due Aug. 1; district staff said they will continue monitoring enrollment through the summer and return when formal approvals or board actions are needed.