Staff recommend phased K–12 health curriculum adoption after multi‑year testing; most costs covered by grants

Portland Public Schools staff recommended a K–12 health curriculum adoption to the Teaching, Learning and Enrollment Committee on June 11 after a multi‑year, phased review and field‑test process.

Dr. Jenny Wikcom, assistant director for health and physical education, told the committee the adoption was built around subcontent areas (mental health, nutrition, substance‑use prevention, comprehensive sexuality education and violence prevention) rather than a single static textbook. "There is no single health education textbook that really meets the needs of our students and aligns with all of our standards and laws," Dr. Wikcom said, describing the district’s decision to curate materials from multiple vetted sources and to commission district‑specific materials where vendors’ offerings were insufficient.

Staff said the process included extensive field testing with educators and students across grade bands and districts clusters, open houses, listening sessions and a community engagement night. For areas where vendor materials did not meet district needs — notably K–5 mental health and nutrition — the district issued requests for proposals and contracted with curriculum developers to produce materials tailored for PPS students and state law.

Presenters mapped recommended materials to grade bands and subcontent areas: some resources are open‑source or provided at no cost; others carry licensing or one‑time costs. Staff estimated the total cost for materials and associated professional development through the next adoption cycle at just over $1 million and said much of that expense is offset by grant funding secured from the Centers for Disease Control and Kaiser Permanente. Staff said K–5 mental‑health and K–12 nutrition work was funded by grants (about $143,000 for those items) and many middle‑ and high‑school resources are no‑cost materials.

Implementation will be phased to match grade‑band schedules (middle‑school quarters, high‑school semesters, elementary timelines) and accompanied by professional development modules integrated into existing teacher supports. Staff noted teachers already piloting materials are familiar with the resources and that the district will expand professional learning and aligned course maps ahead of full roll‑out.

Board members asked whether curriculum in areas such as bullying and violence prevention get periodic review; staff said they regularly solicit teacher and student feedback and monitor classroom use to ensure materials remain current and effective. Staff also flagged one remaining gap: finding fifth‑grade substance‑use prevention materials appropriate to K–5; they proposed issuing an RFP to solicit vendor proposals for that single grade band.

The committee voted to refer the adoption recommendation to the full board for consideration and asked staff to provide implementation timelines and budget details alongside the board packet.