Portland Public Schools feeding and assistive technology teams are being eliminated. The district expects school SLPs to take over those responsibilities, but those (already overworked) SLPs are not specialists in assistive tech or feeding protocols.

Occupational therapists are also being eliminated from the feeding and assistive technology teams, and the district expects school OTs to also take on these responsibilities. They are already covering multiple schools and shouldn’t be expected to add to their already large caseloads  

Adaptive PE staff is being reduced by 50%.  Many students with physical and/or developmental disabilities need adaptive PE to help them develop the skills needed in gen ed PE  

Eliminating the feeding team will risk the safety of students who need feeding protocols due to feeding/swallowing issues. 

Eliminating the assistive tech team will make communication more difficult for students that rely on assistive technology. 

These devastating cuts will mean PPS is not doing what was agreed to in IEPs, and therefore not providing access to a free appropriate public education, as required by federal law. 

As parents of students in Portland Public Schools, and as concerned community members, we need to act now to stop these cuts that put the lives and education of our most vulnerable children at risk.