[UPDATE 1/6/20] – We’ve outlined call to action items you can take to help the kinders and their classrooms. First step is to come to the board meeting on January 7th at 6 PM at 501 N Dixon Street, Portland. Next is to write emails. Together we can do this. Read more…

[UPDATE 12/19/19] – Within just a few days, we have reached our goal of $15,000! We can now move forward to begin the process of hiring an EA. More updates to come. A sincere THANK YOU to our Chapman community for supporting our kindergarten classrooms!

Hello Chapman Families and Guardians,

The request (see the letter here) from Chapman’s kindergarten teachers asking for immediate relief to address the large classroom sizes has been denied by the School Board.  We’re fundraising right now to have a dedicated part-time Educational Assistant in each of the kindergarten classrooms. We wouldn’t be asking you to give, especially during the holiday season, if the need weren’t urgent. The situation impacting the kindergarten classes impacts the whole Chapman community.

Here’s what you need to know:

  • Classroom sizes are between 26-28 children, and there’s very good reason to believe that classrooms are going to grow before the end of the school year. (Last year nine children were added to kindergarten classes during the second half of the school year.)  Best practices dictate 14-17 students per classroom.
  • Kindergarten classrooms aren’t safe: the student-to-teacher ratio is currently unmanageable. Every week a child “elopes,” which means runs out of the classroom and needs to be found.
  • The demographics of Chapman students has changed and we are now serving a higher need population than in previous years without the district funding to support the needs of the children. Population fluctuations and urban growth contribute to increasing class sizes.

Here’s what you can do:

The most immediate action we can take to help all students be safe and give them an opportunity to learn is to fundraise for an additional part-time educational Assistant (EA) dedicated to share among the three kindergarten classes. We need to raise $15,000 to hire an EA for the remainder of the 2019/2020 school year. We will also ask community/business members to support this effort.

Make Your Tax-Deductible Donation Online:

Make Your Tax-Deductible Donation by Check:

  • Step 1 Make checks payable to Friends of Chapman.
  • Step 2 Put ‘kindergarten’ in the notes section.
  • Step 3 Mail to 1445 NW 26th, Portland, OR 97210.

If you’ve already donated funds, they can be earmarked for this cause; email Cari and let her know. And please, ask your employer* if they’ll match your donation—let anyone invested in the well-being of Chapman’s students know how they can help.

*For Intel employees: Intel has maxed out its contributions to Chapman for the year. Please wait until January 6th to donate so Intel can match your donation. Thank you!

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