The Guardian Gazette

Hello IBW Families,

We are so very excited for the auction this Saturday at 5:30pm at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center. You can purchase your tickets here if you have not done so already. Please purchase in advance as we are not selling tickets at the door.

Now more than ever, we need our community to show up for Ida B. Wells High School. With inflation, PPS district budget reductions, and a slight population decrease city wide, our need to fundraise for essential extracurricular activities is vital. Not only is this a moment for us to support the best public high school in Portland, but it also is a beautiful opportunity for us to celebrate our students and staff so that we can thrive together as a community.

There are so many incredible experiences and items to purchase at the auction. You can see them all in the catalog. I am offering a yoga class and my partner has donated one of his whale paintings, framed as a giclee. Please join us! See you Saturday and do your best with 80’s fashion wear!

Sincerely,

Principal Coning

Please scroll down to find more specific information about each of these events. If there is no information, stay tuned, it's coming soon but mark your calendars!

April 13 - 17 Multicultural Week
April 13 - 17 Student Government Elections
April 15 - Ida B Wells Poetry Slam
April 15 - The HeART of Portland
April 16 - Multicultural Fair during Flex in Cafeteria

April 16 - FOR SENIORS, Mandatory Meeting during Flex in Auditorium
April 16 - For SENIORS, Jostens here for Cap and Gown pickup
April 18 - IBW Auction
April 22 - Earth Day Festival during Lunch
April 22 - Rightsizing Our Schools, Community Engagement Session
April 24 - Unified Prom
April 30 - Spring Assembly
May 1 - NO SCHOOL - Staff Furlough Day
May 2 - Prom

May 4 - AP Exams Begin

May 4 - 8 Staff Appreciation Week
May 7 - Spring Play Opens

See more dates/information on the:

Looking Ahead to the 2026-2027 School Year, the 2026-27 District Calendar has been approved.

Mark these dates on your calendar, Times TBD
Monday, August 17th - First Day of Fall Sports

Friday, August 21st - Back to School Business Days for Juniors and Seniors

Monday, August 24th - Back to School Business Days for Sophomores and Freshman

Tuesday, August 25th - Back to School Business Day - All Grades Make-Up Day

Wednesday, August 26th - Jump Start Day for Freshman and Seniors

Thursday, August 27th - First Day of School for all Grades

Monday, August 31st - Make-Up Photo/ID Day

Join us at the Ida B Wells Poetry Slam, Wednesday, April 15, during Flex in our school library. Share your original work or witness the power of spoken word! Judges will score poems for quality and performance. Thank you to our PTA for providing prizes. Plus, the top two poets represent our school at Verslandia at the Schnitz on April 30th.

All teens can attend Verselandia for free. Come cheer on the IBW poets and pick up a ticket voucher in the library today.

Congratulations to Adeline Karman, Allura Jones, Breena Mandac and Lola Sundby

who have been selected to represent IBWHS at the 2026 HeART of Portland, a district-wide arts showcase at the Portland Art Museum!

Every PPS visual arts educator nominated one student whose artistic dedication and creativity stood out. Their work will be shown at the museum as part of a prestigious exhibition on display from April 15 to September 20.

The exhibition’s opening reception will take place on Wednesday, April 15th, at 6:30 PM, at which the honorees will be recognized alongside families, educators, and community members.

Seniors, you have a mandatory meeting to attend on Thursday during Flex in the Auditorium. Among other things, Jostens will be here to hand out Caps and Gowns! Graduation is getting close!

The Ida B. Wells Booster Club would like to remind you to get your tickets to the Awesome 80s Auction coming up THIS Saturday, April 18, 2026, at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center.
We hope you will join us to support our student community!

For all the details see the newsletter that was sent out earlier today https://app.smore.com/n/7gcw2

The Headlight's spring print is hot off the press! Catch up on springtime happenings and news with 20+ stories. Snatch a copy in room 118, in front of the main office, or ask your teacher for the copies they received. Happy reading, Guardians, and we hope you look forward to the next one just as much as we do!

Student Government elections are taking place this week. The hallways are filled with candidate flyers and watch for a GNN with more information about casting your votes!

The yearbook has been completed and will be distributed the week of May 25th. We tend to sell out each year, so the only way to guarantee a book is to pre-order one on SchoolPay. We cannot guarantee that books will be available for sale after they arrive.

Juniors, as of 4/2/26 your scores from the March 5th SAT are available!

You can view your scores either on the BigFuture School mobile app or by logging into your College Board account. More detailed information and links are available in the communication we sent you on 4/2 https://app.smore.com/n/9vfd6

Did you earn an "F" in a required course 9th, 10th, or 11th grade? If so, PPS Summer Scholars dates and information will be coming out soon. Summer school is the best way to make up failed courses. Students can typically make up two - semester classes (3 weeks/class) and it's free!

We have our dates confirmed for Summer Scholars!

Classes will be 9:00-12:00 Monday through Friday on the following dates:

Session 1: June 22 - July 9 (no class July 3)

Session 2: July 13 - July 29

We will hold classes for both sessions at the same 4 sites that we were at last summer:

Benson HS

Franklin HS

McDaniel HS

Roosevelt HS

Registration is still TBD but it will be mid-May. Once registration opens in May, students will register for classes with their school counselor.

AP exams are coming up starting May 4th! Here are some important reminders:

• Check your MyAP account to make sure the exam information looks accurate
• Exams will be held at the Marshall Campus. The only exception is accommodations exams and you will receive information on accommodation location by note and email this week
• Make sure you are not scheduled for 2 exams on the same day. If you are contact Abby Menashe
• Review the AP Exams 2026: What To Expect. This should answer all questions

If you have questions or concerns see Abby Menashe in 139 or amenashe@pps.net

Wednesday, April 15, 6:00 - 8:00 pm, The French Quarter

• We will be in the inside area. But if the weather is fair, we can meet outside too.
• There is no parking for the French Quarter. You will need to find street parking nearby.
  

The weekly GNN: https://youtu.be/HXAqbNdgmRs
GNN about the brand new vending machine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc8gS3MfABg

Thank you to everyone who has already supported our Band Spring Flower & Plant Fundraiser! Thanks to your generosity, we’ve raised $552 so far.

Great news—the fundraiser has been extended through May 15th, giving you more time to shop for beautiful bulbs, seeds, Mother’s Day gifts, and gardening supplies.

With 50% of every purchase going directly back to the Ida B. Wells High School Band program, your support makes a real difference. Funds raised help provide sheet music, instrument repairs, professional workshops, pre-game meals, transportation to parades, and financial assistance for student band trips.

If you haven’t had a chance to shop yet, or would like to place another order, please visit:
https://www.flowerpowerfundraising.com/index.php/marketplace/seller/profile/shop/idabwellshsband

Thank you for supporting our talented musicians!

Positive Charge! IBW Club is hosting our annual Period Power Project drive to help end period poverty in our community. According to national data, more than 2 in 5 people struggle to afford period products, and federal assistance programs such as SNAP and WIC do not cover these items. A recent study by Period.org found that period stigma and period poverty is especially severe for teens and is growing every year, but the good news is, you can help!

• Tampons,
• Pads,
• Panty liners,
• Reusable pads & covers,
• Reusable menstrual cups, and
• Travel-size hand sanitizer or individually wrapped sanitizing wipes

Make a difference in your community today by donating supplies this month and joining us at our weekly Positive Charge! IBW meetings on Thursdays during lunch in room 119! Thanks Guardians!

Watch for more information soon about the shows coming up from SWStageWorks - Church & State, by Jason Odell Williams; and The Importance Of Being Earnest, by Oscar Wilde. May 7th is Opening Night!

Check out all the upcoming Career Days, Internship opportunities, and more in the IBWHS Career News! Here’s a calendar of some of the key dates and deadlines highlighted in this month’s issue:

• 4/16 - PWA Oregon Anesthesiology Group at Legacy Emanuel
• 4/17 - PWA Real Estate, Business, Construction & Architecture Career Day with CREW
• 4/22 - Deadline: Roots ‘N Threads Clothing Design Mentoring Program
• 4/24 - Providence Ready Career Exploration - Providence St. Vincent Medical Center
• 4/25 - Bodecker Speak Your Peace Spoken word
• 4/29 - PWA Law Career Day @ Tonkon Torp
• 4/29 - PWA Entrepreneurship Career Day

These opportunities go fast, so please apply or register as soon as possible.

Greetings Sports Fans!|
Here is this week's edition of the IBW Athletic Weekly https://app.smore.com/n/wze0x

Check out the Weekly Schedule here: https://www.ibwathletics.com/this-week

Get Your IBW Sports Button! Show your school spirit by purchasing a IBW sports button for just $5-- add up the amount of buttons needed and pay that x5 ! Once your button is ready, we’ll deliver it directly to your student to bring home or you can email ecaldwell@pps.net if you prefer to pick it up from our school. Purchase on SchoolPay Today https://www.schoolpay.com/pay/for/Photo-Buttons-w-IBW-Athlete-Photo/SeywSvE

Senior BBQ Coordinator Needed (NEW)

Each year Wells seniors are celebrated with a fun BBQ and we need a non-senior parent to help coordinate this event for 2026! Is that YOU? All the details from past years are in place, so this is an easy opportunity to jump in and make a big impact with limited time needed. Please email communications@ibwboosterclub.org if you're interested!

Bingo

Don't miss Monday bingo every week at the Old Barn at 6:30 PM! Bring cash to purchase your cards and not only are you supporting the IBW teams and clubs, but you could win big! Follow our Instagram or Facebook for weekly updates.

Booster Membership: http://www.schoolpay.com/link/joinibw

The number of booster members and volunteer hours from a team or group is evaluated in the grant application process, so joining boosters helps your team or club!

IBW Merch

Support Booster Club by shopping online here. Guardians merch is available for sale at ComeUnity PDX. This is an Ida B. Wells family-owned shop located in Multnomah Village at 3536 SW Troy St B, Portland, OR 97219. Get the perfect gift by giving a gift card for IBW Booster Merch!

Stay up to date in real time! Instagram Facebook Favorite Links - Linktree

The PTA is already planning for teacher appreciation week and you can help! Please sign up now to buy fruit and other items in May - it helps us to plan the event early! Reminders will be sent as the event gets closer. All the information you need is in the link header: volunteersignup.org/Y8PK7

The PPS Board of Education will be hosting an engagement session at IBWHS next week.

This session is an essential part of what will be a multi-tiered, months-long effort aimed at surfacing the impacts, complexities, and community realities involved in school consolidation and closure. The insights we gather during this phase will guide future engagement and provide crucial context for the Board and district leadership as we work to ensure well-resourced, sustainable schools and equitable access to opportunities for all PPS students.

Family, staff, student, and community member perspectives are an essential part of this process. We hope you’ll join us for the following discussions

Wednesday, April 22, 2026 at 6 p.m. at Ida B. Wells High School

Virtual Option: https://pps-net.zoom.us/j/82289805530#success

Please RSVP here to help us plan for childcare and accommodation needs. (RSVP is much appreciated but not required.)

We understand the high stakes and sensitive nature of this work and are fully committed to centering student well-being and community voices as we move forward. Thank you for your partnership.

Sincerely,

Office of Family and Community Engagement

FaithBridge Portland invites you to save the date for the 2nd annual Black Girl LIVE! suicide awareness and prevention event for Black and Brown girls ages 12 to 17 and the adults who support them. Last year’s event hosted approximately 100 girls from Portland and beyond for education and celebration in an intentionally created space. The event is supported by OHA and intended to raise awareness, promote healing and offer access to culturally relevant resources and strategies.

Save the date: May 15, 2026

Time: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Location: 2800 NE Liberty Street, Portland (University of Oregon Portland campus)