Superintendent's Update

This afternoon I had the opportunity to attend a 2nd Grade “Unicorn Tea Party” at Parklane Elementary, a Profile of a Graduate pilot experience where students read their fairytale stories and shared a formal tea together. Hearing students share their writing in a structured and joyful setting provided a genuine sense of student voice, literacy, creativity, and belonging in action within our classrooms. This work is connected to Roadmap '27's ongoing focus on literacy, belonging, and authentic engagement.

Finally, as Trimester 3 begins March 16 and with Spring Break just around the corner, we’re entering that pivotal stretch of the year when we focus on routines, continue to make progress, and take a moment to reflect, recharge, and finish strong. Thank you for your continued support of our students.

For more than 40 years, March has been officially designated as National Music in our Schools Month. Established in 1985 by the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), this celebration highlights the importance of music education for all students.

National Music in our Schools Month is an opportunity for music teachers to bring their music programs to the attention of the school and the community, and to display the value that school music brings to students of all ages. We are very proud to have music programs in our schools at all levels, and hope you will join us in celebrating our student musicians during this month-long celebration.

Dr. Alexa Pearson has been selected as the next Principal of Centennial High School, and will begin serving in this role on July 1, 2026.

Dr. Pearson brings more than 25 years of experience leading teaching and learning at the school, district, and state levels, with a focus on strengthening teams, advancing instructional practice, and building trusting relationships and partnerships. She currently serves as Assistant Superintendent of the Office of Teaching, Learning & Assessment at the Oregon Department of Education (ODE). In this role, Dr. Pearson leads statewide teaching and learning strategies across Oregon’s 197 school districts, supporting early and adolescent literacy, multilingual learners, summer learning, digital learning, federal programs, high-quality instructional materials, and academic standards.

Prior to her current role, Dr. Pearson served for five years as ODE’s Director of Standards and Instructional Support, leading statewide adoption of content standards and instructional materials, as well as supporting the implementation of programs statewide such as Comprehensive School Counseling, Accelerated Learning, TAG, Alternative Education, and STEM/STEAM. In addition to her work at the state level, Dr. Pearson has extensive administrative experience in school and district-level positions, including Principal of the Metropolitan Learning Center K-12 in Portland Public Schools, Assistant Principal at Clackamas High School and Sunnyside Environmental School K-8, and Associate Director of Teaching & Learning for the North Clackamas School District.

This new position marks a return to Centennial High School for Dr. Pearson, where she previously served as an English teacher, English Department Chair, and Instructional Coach. She is honored and excited to be rejoining the Centennial community in her new role, and looks forward to working with current Principal Marin Miller, CHS staff, and community to ensure a smooth transition.

This week and next week, elementary teacher teams from across the District are meeting in planning sessions to create year-long "maps" aligned to state standards for English Language Arts instruction. Together, they are working to create a shared year-long plan that outlines which key reading and writing skills will be taught, and when, so instruction is consistent across schools and aligned with Oregon standards and our School Improvement goals.

These sessions also clarified an important difference: academic standards describe what students should know and be able to do, while curriculum materials are the resources teachers use to teach those skills. Using a common approach, teams aligned learning targets and agreed on how instruction will progress over the course of the year. This work helps ensure that students across all elementary schools learn the same essential skills at the same time.

Later this year, grade-level teams will continue this work by defining what meeting each standard looks like and developing shared assessments to monitor student learning. The resulting pacing guides will support lesson planning and teacher collaboration throughout the year and help ensure students at all six elementary schools have equitable access to high-quality, standards-based instruction—aligned with Roadmap ‘27.

In fall 2024, the Centennial School District was awarded two grants by the Oregon Department of Education: the Latino/a/x and Indigenous Student Success Plan Grant, and the Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NH/PI) Student Success Plan Grant. These grants, in effect through June 20, 2026, support efforts to improve attendance, academic success, and graduation outcomes for students.

Using these funds, the District established two Student & Community Engagement Specialist positions, which began in spring 2025. These Engagement Specialists act as liaisons, mentors, and advocates for NH/PI and Latinx students and families, with a focus on building connections between students, families, and schools.

Since last spring, our Latinx Student and Community Engagement Specialist Jimena Medrano Garcia has supported students through culturally-responsive activities that foster connection and engagement, including affinity spaces during the school day, wellness and stress-relief sessions, and regular check-ins with students. Her work also includes student feedback opportunities that help inform future supports and strengthen communication between students, families, and staff. Jimena has also partnered with our District’s Spanish Liaisons to connect families with essential resources, and she participates on the District work group addressing immigration-related concerns.

Ken Chung, our NH/PI Student and Community Engagement Specialist, has worked with a cohort of students focusing on improving study habits, attendance, and participation. He has also established bi-monthly community spaces for NH/PI students to gather and celebrate each other in a setting that allows them to express their personalities and culture together. NH/PI students have also revived the PI Club at Centennial High School, which provides an additional communal space, as well as tutoring, credit recovery, and opportunities for cultural expression.

We are grateful for the work our Student and Community Engagement Specialists are doing to connect with students and families and to support learning and belonging in our schools.

To view this flyer in Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, or Somali, click here.