OSBA / Submitted photo Campbell West of Miller Elementary School: "I'm going to do so many things when I grow up."

Local students are among those featured in an online campaign to promote student achievement and encourage lawmakers to invest more in public education in Oregon.

The Oregon School Boards Association represents the boards of public and charter schools, education service districts and community colleges in the state. It launched The Promise of Oregon campaign back in November, with its own Facebook page, Twitter handle and hashtag. Each day it posts a picture of a student and his or her answer to the prompt: “I am the promise of Oregon because …”

Campaign organizers approached Bend-La Pine Schools last spring about using local students in the campaign. Alex Pulaski, a spokesman for OSBA, said the group was looking to include geographically diverse districts. Bend-La Pine is one of nine featured districts.

A production crew went to Summit High School and Miller Elementary School to photograph and interview 15 Summit students and nine Miller students. Some were also featured in a campaign video.

From Alma Paola Aparicio-Portillo at Miller: “I’m going to swim across an ocean.”

From Elena Johnson-Laffery at Summit: “I will fight for laws that will protect the environment.”

From Mya Fraley at Summit: “I will stand up for people who cannot stand up for themselves.”

From Campbell West at Miller: “I’m going to do so many things when I grow up.”

This week, at the start of the Legislative session, supporters posted a petition on the campaign’s website calling for more funding to help lower class sizes, add school days and reinstate programs lost in the recession. “Ensuring that Oregon is a thriving and vibrant place to live and work requires a significant investment in our public schools,” the petition reads.

“The starting point was look at all these kids and look at all the things they’re doing,” Pulaski said. “Definitely, as of Monday, much of our effort is moving toward education funding.”

Pulaski said OBSA is calling for $7.5 billion for K-12 education in the 2015-17 biennium. That’s more than proposals from the governor ($6.9 billion) and Democratic lawmakers in charge of writing the budget ($7.2 billion).

“We lost so much ground over the previous decade. Thousands of teachers lost their jobs and school years were cut,” said Pulaski, noting $7.5 billion would allow most districts in the state to not make more cuts and still add full-day kindergarten.

Bend-La Pine leaders are calling for even more. Superintendent Ron Wilkinson said $7.5 billion would let schools keep doing what they’re doing. “Eight billion would allow us to add back and truly reinvest,” he said.

Education funding at the state level fluctuated between $5.3 billion in the 2005-07 biennial budget to $5.7 billion in 2009-11 before ticking up in 2013 to $6.7 billion. Bend-La Pine Schools, meanwhile, has seen its budget grow fairly consistently since 2005 due to growing enrollment.

But officials say the proposals for the 2015-17 biennium aren’t enough to keep up. The district is preparing the open a new middle school and elementary school in the fall and take on the cost of operating more buildings, including energy, maintenance and support staff.

Wilkinson has found an ally in Sen. Tim Knopp, R-Bend, who supports the $8 billion figure and says the state needs to prioritize investing in education.

— Reporter: 541-617-7837,

aspegman@bendbulletin.com