An anonymous donor paid for every Portland student to attend the symphony. Here’s what the children said

The headline above is a bit misleading. The anonymous donor actually agreed to pay for every Portland Public Schools student to attend the Portland Museum of Art and performances by Portland Stage and Portland Ovations, in addition to the Portland Symphony Orchestra. But the headline is pretty long as it is, so we just used … Read more

Portland schools working to keep innovative ‘Culture Club’ arts program

Local school and arts organization leaders are in fundraising mode to save a unique 4-year old program that aims to send every Portland public school student to multiple cultural events in the city each year. Culture Club-Portland is intended to allow each of the city’s roughly 7,000 students to attend programs at four participating arts … Read more

How private funding can change the way we think about public education

For decades — and still today — public schools in Maine have been funded overwhelmingly through property tax revenues and state educational subsidies. But those funding sources are under constant pressure from taxpayers and lawmakers seeking to trim budgets and save money. The draft Portland Public Schools budget for fiscal year 2017, for instance, factored … Read more

February 3rd – Meet & Greet Event

Please join us on February 3rd! The Board of Directors of the Foundation for Portland Public Schools invite you to a Meet & Greet Event Wednesday, February 3rd from 5pm-6:30pm Rines Auditorium – Portland Public Library 5 Monument Square Your Hosts Mary Bennett Mike Bove Ed Bryan Jessica Burton Jeanne Crocker Erin Macey Sue Olafsen … Read more

Superintendent’s Notebook: Creating a community that embraces the arts

I have a “secret” to share: Culture Club Portland, a unique collaboration with our city’s cultural institutions to bring the arts to all Portland Public Schools’ students, is so successful it’s worthy of national replication. But before that happens, I want to make sure everyone in Portland knows about Culture Club Portland. The program, generously … Read more

Portland schools move to strengthen student interest in arts

PORTLAND —Several local organizations are making it their mission increase students’ access to art both in and out of the classroom. Founded in 2012, Culture Club-Portland is a collaboration of four arts organizations with a goal of connecting students to the arts. Together, the Portland Symphony Orchestra, the Portland Museum of Art, Portland Ovations and … Read more

Portland Education Foundation grants $33,000 to Portland Public School teachers

Foundation for Portland Public Schools (FPPS) has completed its seventh annual Teacher Grant Program cycle. Funds disbursed in 2015 represent a 29% increase over last year. The FPPS Teacher Grant Program is designed to support a wide range of innovative school and classroom-based efforts to enhance learning experiences, and to recognize and reward the hard … Read more