Jefferson's enrollment has dropped below 800 students, the school's lowest since 1915. Some 30 percent of students in the Jefferson attendance area choose to go to other Portland high schools. Jefferson began the year with about 400 freshmen, but half have since dropped out, moved to alternative programs or transferred to other schools. Spotty attendance remains a problem. Thirty-eight percent of students skipped at least one class last month.
Test scores are still very low.
Half failed to meet the writing standard. One school year, nine months, is not enough time to raise student achievement, turn around a failing school or even make a final judgment about the wisdom of last year's decision to replace the entire staff at Jefferson. Superintendent Ben Canada has said it will take at least four years to show significant improvement. The public must give the school time to raise student performance, but it should accept no more delays in getting a talented, cohesive team of administrators and teachers into Jefferson. Some teachers complained that Roberts and her administrative team didn't back them up in disciplinary cases.