Rise Up For Rieke

     RISE UP FOR RIEKE!

Dear Rieke Parents,

As of the date of this letter, the Rise up for Rieke team has raised a little over $22,000.  A sincere THANK YOU to everyone that has donated so far.  To the rest of the Rieke community: we are still a long way from our goal.  

The Rieke PTA and the Rieke Foundation are working TOGETHER to raise these funds in the hopes we can offset some of the budget shortfall facing our school.  In addition to the reduced budget from the state, we have to take into consideration the impact the Local Operation Levy may have on our school as well. This year, in grades 1-5, 12 teachers are paid for by district FTE and 1 teacher is funded by the Rieke Foundation (Kinder is staffed and funded differently) Our principal, Andrea Porter, outlined a best and worst case scenario for next school year based on a projected budget.

  • Best Case Scenario – With the reduced budget from the State and if the Levy passes in May, and if Foundation can fund 1 FTE, Rieke could be lucky we will likely lose .5 of district FTE (or ½ a staff position). 

  • Worst Case Scenario – If the Levy does NOT pass, and the Foundation does not fund an FTE, Rieke would likely lose 3 FTEs which will result in larger class sizes.

In late April, PPS will give Andrea staffing budget for next school year and the number of FTE’s she can use to staff Rieke.  PTA and Foundation will be working with her and need to be able to commit funds to her so that we can best offset the scenarios laid out above.  PTA and Foundation can continue to accept donations through June, but for planning purposes and committing funds to Andrea we would like to collect as much as we can by Friday, May 6th. 

According to the survey provided to parents, 82% of you have indicated a teacher is the highest priority, suggesting a large portion of this money raised will be sent to the Portland Schools Foundation to be used for a teacher position(s) at our school.  This money may also end up supporting a reading specialist or other enrichment opportunities.   The parent community will have an opportunity to discuss the options for the Rise up for Rieke funds at the next PTA meeting, Tuesday May 10th. 

Although PTA and Foundation have raised close to what they have in past years, with the current economy and continued rising costs, both organizations are still short for next year.  Without your donations, we will be unable to fund our school at the same level as previous years.  If every family that hasn’t already donated were able to donate $200, we would reach our goal of $50,000.  The more we raise the better chance we have of maintaining the standard of excellence we have come to expect from Rieke

We all cherish the sense of community and support we experience at Rieke.  We have a unique, wonderful school that is unlike any other in Portland.  Please join in this effort to keep Rieke the special place that it is, and provide our children the education and programs they deserve.

                                                                                                         Sincerely yours,                                                             

                                                                                                         The “Rise Up For Rieke” Team    

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