September Newsletter

MESD honors the resilience, cultural richness, and lived experiences of the students, families, and staff who strengthen our community. These observances remind us of our shared responsibility to foster belonging, support wellness, and uplift the diverse identities across our programs.

Suicide Prevention Month — This month reinforces our commitment to creating safe, supportive environments where students and staff know help is always available. Explore the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline for guidance, prevention tools, and immediate support.

National Recovery Month — We honor the strength of individuals and families navigating recovery and celebrate the programs that help people heal and thrive. The National Council for Mental Health about National Recovery Month offers stories, educational materials, and resources that promote wellness and long‑term recovery.

Latino/Hispanic Heritage Month — MESD celebrates the cultures, histories, and contributions of Latino and Hispanic communities whose leadership and traditions enrich our schools and region. The Smithsonian Latino Center provides articles, digital exhibits, and classroom‑ready materials to support learning and reflection.

Our path forward is clear, and we have meaningful accomplishments from the 2025-26 year to celebrate. Each of you—directly or indirectly—contributed to these successes, all of which advance our Strategic Plan, Blueprint ’28 and its three goals. Equity and Continuous Improvement remain our compass, shaping everything we do—from daily interactions to long‑term planning.

2026 MESD Equity Overview

MESD’s equity work continues to evolve into a more integrated, systemwide approach aligned with our core mission. We are deepening our commitment to weaving equity into how we design services, make decisions, allocate resources, and build partnerships. This direction recognizes a fundamental truth: much of MESD’s work already exists to remove barriers for students least well served by traditional systems.

As we move forward, our focus will be on applying equity more consistently and intentionally—especially through the use of MESD’s Equity Lens—to guide planning, implementation, and evaluation. Our commitment is steadfast: equity is not an initiative; it is how we work every day to better serve students who have historically been left behind.

Our Core Priority

At the heart of our Strategic Plan is a simple truth: we are here to serve all students. Every program, every partnership, and every decision is anchored in what will help them thrive—academically, socially, and emotionally. Equity and continuous improvement are responsibilities shared by all of us, in every role, every day.

You can read more about the Equity Overview 2026, recently shared with MESD leaders during the Admin Retreat 2026.

This school year, the three Creeks programs will work toward a more consistent and connected approach to serving students. The goal is straightforward: no matter which Creeks school or classroom a student attends, they should benefit from clear expectations, strong instruction and support, and a program designed around their individual needs. This work is part of MESD’s broader commitment to continuous improvement- using feedback and information about what is working, identifying where we can improve, and making thoughtful changes that lead to better experiences and outcomes for students.

Over the summer, a Creeks Leadership Team made up of staff from different schools and professional roles met seven times to take a close look at the programs and plan for the year ahead. The team reviewed information and feedback about student programs and staff experiences, identified areas of strength and areas needing improvement, and developed a shared plan for moving forward. That work led to three priorities for the coming year: creating a consistent, student-centered experience across classrooms; strengthening teamwork, communication, and clarity for staff; and regularly using feedback and information to understand what is working and where adjustments are needed.

An important part of this work is building the ability of Creeks staff to lead and sustain improvement over time. The Leadership Team will continue meeting throughout the school year to help guide the work, listen to staff, review progress, and identify needed adjustments. Staff will have ongoing opportunities to participate and provide feedback, expanding shared ownership for improvement across the three schools. Rather than viewing improvement as a one-time initiative, the Creeks are building a regular cycle of listening, learning, making changes, and checking whether those changes are making a difference for students and staff - an approach that reflects MESD’s commitment to continuous improvement across our programs.

Despite the current climate and the very real fears many families are carrying, the MESD Title 1C team created a space where students, families, and community members could come together in a way that felt vibrant, welcoming, safe, and joyful.

From food and dancing to art, storytelling, and music, the event was a beautiful celebration of culture, community, and belonging. Native teachers, community members, Oregon Department of Education representatives, and families gathered to celebrate and create meaningful connections.

Students brought their talents to the forefront each afternoon. Their call-and-response, peals of laughter, and enthusiasm filled the space with energy. Traditional dances performed by students, along with Aztec and Mayan storytelling, offered opportunities for young people to connect with culture, history, and one another.

These experiences reflect the program’s goals and MESD’s commitment to equity, belonging, and culturally responsive learning. They also demonstrate the meaningful care and connection that happen every day across our schools and programs.

We are proud to celebrate the team, the students, and the community members who made this gathering possible. This is what belonging looks like: culture celebrated, community connected, and students at the center.

View the Celebracion de Verano 2026 photo album.

On Tuesday, August 25, Creek staff gathered for a catered lunch at Arata/Knott, joined by Burlingame staff who traveled over so the full team could spend time together. Cabinet and board members also joined the event, making it a meaningful moment of connection across roles and sites. It was a warm afternoon of fellowship, shared conversation, and appreciation for the work happening throughout the program.

View a photo album of the Creek & Burlingame staff lunch!

In April, I shared important information about the launch of the new MESD Intranet Hub, a key step in strengthening the systems that support our schools and programs. Because many staff may have missed that update, I want to highlight these resources again, they are designed to make your work easier, more consistent, and more connected across the agency.

Key Resources Available Now

• The HR Hub offers a clear, intuitive space for benefits, payroll, retirement planning, leave and time off, professional development reimbursement, and employee evaluations. It also includes high‑value guidance such as the Onboarding Roadmap and Calendar and “What to Expect When Retiring.”

• The Communications Resource Hub centralizes branding guidance, MESD and program logos, templates, safety communication tools, inclement weather information, and all public‑facing request processes. It also houses our growing digital accessibility toolkit, including ADA/WCAG guidance, Grackle training, the MESD Accessibility Toolkit, and new supports like the Alt Text Gem and AI Leadership Team tutorials.

• The Blueprint ‘28 Hub provides resources, processes, and strategies to better understand MESD's Blueprint '28—an action plan that identifies goals, strategies, metrics, and tactics and relies on continuous improvement processes to “course correct” and address changes and trends.

What’s Ahead

More hubs are in development as teams continue building out their intranet spaces. Our goal is a one‑stop location for clear, reliable information that supports staff across the agency.

Your Action

Please take a moment this week to explore these hubs and bookmark the pages you use most often. These resources were created to support you—and they will continue expanding as we strengthen our internal systems.

ODOT plans to close southbound I-5 through the Rose Quarter for up to five weeks beginning September 11. The closure is expected to increase traffic on Portland-area surface streets and could significantly affect commute times. ODOT estimates that, if traffic volumes remain similar to today, commute times into Portland could be two to three times longer than normal.

What this means for MESD staff

Please plan ahead for potentially longer and less predictable commutes during the closure. Consider:

• Leaving earlier than usual and allowing additional travel time.

• Checking traffic and transportation conditions before heading to work or traveling between locations.

• Planning alternate routes or transportation options.

• Considering how the closure may affect travel between MESD sites, schools and program locations.

• Communicating with your supervisor if transportation disruptions may affect your ability to arrive on time or travel between work locations.

Plan your travel

ODOT has created resources to help individuals and organizations prepare for the closure, including travel-planning information, maps, construction alerts and communication materials:

• ODOT I-5 Rose Quarter Communications Toolkit

• ODOT Closure Travel Resources

The best time to plan for the disruption is before September 11. Please take some time now to consider how the closure could affect your commute and your work.

We are launching a new staff wellness group focused on building healthy habits and connecting with colleagues across the district. Interested in joining? Sign up here to get involved in the Wellness Squad. For questions, contact wellness@mesd.k12.or.us.

The Communications Department provides districtwide, regional, and executive communications support for MESD. Because our small team serves a broad and varied organization, we are not able to attend or document every event. Relying on schools, programs, and departments to share updates and materials is the most equitable way to ensure all communities have the opportunity to be represented and celebrated.

Have something to share? Send photos, stories, upcoming events, or other content for consideration to commsteam@mesd.k12.or.us by the 20th of each month. The MESD newsletter is distributed monthly to all employees.

All materials shared with MESD Communications become the property of the Multnomah Education Service District (MESD). MESD reserves the right to use, edit, adapt, reproduce, and distribute these materials, in whole or in part, for communications, promotional, and educational purposes. By submitting content, you acknowledge and consent to its use by MESD without further notice or compensation