Superintendent's Update

National Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated annually from September 15 to October 15, honoring the histories, cultures, and contributions of individuals whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America. Established in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week, it was expanded by President Ronald Reagan in 1988.

We are excited to announce the selection of Gustavo Cervantes Vargas as Assistant Principal at Centennial Middle School. Gustavo brings over a decade of experience as a dual language educator, program coordinator, and instructional leader, with a deep commitment to equity, inclusion, and fostering student success through culturally responsive practices.

Prior to joining the Centennial team, Gustavo served as the K–8 Dual Language Program Coordinator at Aloha Huber Park in the Beaverton School District, where he led efforts to strengthen bilingual instruction, support teachers through coaching and professional development, and partner with families to ensure inclusive and effective learning environments. He has also coordinated summer learning programs, such as Camp Achieve and Summer Splash, where he designed engaging and supportive opportunities for multilingual students to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.

Additionally, Gustavo taught in Beaverton as a dual immersion educator, where he infused cultural perspectives into the curriculum and built strong bridges between Spanish and English language learning. His teaching was rooted in inquiry-based learning, collaboration, and honoring the diverse experiences students bring into the classroom. Gustavo began his career as a paraeducator, which shaped his strong belief that with the right support, every student can experience success.

Gustavo holds a B.A. in Liberal Studies from Portland State University and a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from Lewis & Clark College. As an immigrant from Jalisco, Mexico, he brings a unique perspective and passion for creating schools where every student feels known, valued, and empowered to succeed.

Please join us in welcoming Gustavo Cervantes Vargas to Centennial Middle School.

September 2025 has been proclaimed as Attendance Awareness Month in Oregon by Governor Tina Kotek, and focuses on the importance of regular school attendance for all students.

Regular school attendance plays a key role in student success and well-being. Students in kindergarten through third grade who attend regularly are more likely to read at their grade level, and by ninth grade, attendance is a better predictor of graduation rates than eighth-grade test scores. Additionally, regular school attendance keeps students engaged and connected as an important part of their school community.

Here at Centennial, student attendance remains one of our primary areas of focus for this school year, in alignment with our Roadmap '27 strategic plan. We are taking a multi-pronged approach to increasing attendance, including rigorous, engaging academics and increasing a sense of belonging through Social Emotional Learning (SEL). Our schools are providing fun activities that students want to be involved with, and intentionally increasing student voice and input on how we can provide more engaging instructional opportunities throughout the year.

While there are many examples of this important work happening at all of the schools in our District, one example was recently highlighted by the Oregon Department of Education and the Oregon Lottery: our partnership with the Shadow Project.

The Oregon Department of Education has developed the Every Day Matters initiative to highlight the importance of school attendance for student achievement, health, and well being. As part of our implementation of the Every Day Matters initiative, our District is fortunate to have a strong partnership with The Shadow Project.

Funded by Oregon Lottery dollars, The Shadow Project provides on-site training for teachers and staff while engaging students in direct learning through the work of reading mentors. These efforts not only contribute to the development of students' reading skills, but have also been shown to increase students' sense of belonging, which can help to improve attendance.

Recently, the Oregon Department of Education and the Oregon Lottery explored the impact of The Shadow Project at one of our schools, Pleasant Valley Elementary. To learn more about this important work, please see the video below, or visit www.oregonlottery.org/programs/school-attendance/

Last week, Centennial School District held its annual Welcome Back Convocation to launch the new school year. The event brought together every District employee, offering a rare chance to reconnect, celebrate accomplishments, and look ahead together.

The program highlighted progress in Roadmap ’27, our four year strategic plan now entering Year 3. We also shared stories of success from schools across the District and lifted up the collective work happening every day to support Centennial students.

Convocation is both a celebration and a reminder of our shared purpose: ensuring every student is seen, supported, and challenged, and moving forward together as a community.

Our District uses ParentSquare as our platform to communicate with families via email, text, and mobile app. To make sure you are receiving all communications, please update your child’s school with any changes to your preferred email address and phone number so that we can reach you correctly.

We encourage all families to register their accounts for the best experience with ParentSquare communications. While you do not have to register to receive emails and alerts from your school, registration does have many helpful benefits, including:

• All of your messages in one convenient dashboard or phone app: Have students at multiple CSD schools? Want to be able to read all messages from the District and your school in one convenient location? Registering your ParentSquare account allows you to access a single dashboard or mobile app to see all messages together in a single timeline.

• Customization features: Registering your account allows you to select when and how you want to receive messages from your school, based on your specific preferences and schedule.

• You do not have to download the mobile app to register your account, and can access your customized dashboard from any internet browser.

All unregistered parents/guardians will receive an invitation email and/or text on Monday, September 8 with an updated registration link. To complete your registration using this link, please see the directions below, or contact your school office for assistance:

ParentSquare Registration Instructions (English)

ParentSquare Registration Instructions (Spanish)

Located at Centennial High School, the Student Health Center serves all youth ages 5-18 who live or go to school in Multnomah County. There are no out-of-pocket costs, and insurance is not required.

Available services at the Student Health Center include:

• Injury/illness care
• Well-child and sports physicals
• Routine lab tests
• Prescription medications
• Reproductive health care
• Mental and behavioral health counseling
• Immunizations
• Vision, dental, and blood pressure screening
• Referrals for specialty care and services such as x-rays or MRIs

To make an appointment, call 503-988-5488. For more information, including other available locations, please visit the link below.

Closet to Closet is a clothing shop for Centennial students located at Centennial High School that provides access to new and gently used clothing. The Closet is run by the Centennial Educational Foundation. All items are provided at no cost to students, and students may select up to ten free items per visit. Students bring a voucher from their school counselor or principal to shop at the Closet, and may shop 4 times per school year.

The Closet is located next to the Student Health Center in room 196 at Centennial High School. The entrance for the Closet is on the south side of the high school building, near the Food for Families bus (the same entrance as the Student Health Center). There is an orange buzzer to press for entrance.

The Closet reopens on September 9, and current hours for the Closet are Tuesdays at 2:30-4:30pm. As student and community volunteers sign up for this school year, more open hours will be added soon.

Donations of clean, gently used school clothes or shoes are welcomed, and can be dropped off at Centennial High School (District staff can also send items via the District courier).

For more information or to volunteer at the Closet, please contact jody_bringhurst@csd28j.org. To learn more about the work of the Centennial Educational Foundation, please visit the link below.

The entire Centennial community is invited to be a part of this year's Centennial School District Homecoming celebration, happening on October 3, 2025.

Come show your school spirit and join in the fun! This year's festivities will kick off with tailgating and the Homecoming Parade at 5pm, leading up to the big game at 7pm at the CHS Stadium. Go Eagles!