Ore. mother seeks to create charter school

PORTLAND, Ore., Nov. 4 (UPI) -- A performing arts high school in Portland, Ore., got good grades from school district reviewers but officials said they are not sure about its future.

Erica Jayasuriya of Portland, told officials during a review of the High School for Recording Arts Portland she wanted a school in the area that would serve the needs of her 13-year-old musically talented, multi-racial son, and others like him, The (Portland) Oregonian reported Monday.

Jayasuriya made a presentation to the Portland School Board to garner support for a proposed charter school.

"We don't have anything that really reflects an arts-integrated curriculum," she said. "We really love Portland. It was either move or we create that kind of school."

The school's mission would be to prepare students to be successful in society while providing learning opportunities in the recording arts, including dance, spoken word, hip-hop music and art, she said. Board members asked how the school proposed to uphold Oregon educational standards and how the school would fare if drops in school funding continued in the Portland public schools, the newspaper said.

Portland public schools Superintendent Carole Smith is to make a recommendation this month to the charter schools committee on Jayasuriya's application.