So it Begins… by Sarah

: Peyton Chapman talks about Lincoln’s vision for the future.

: Peyton Chapman gives a tour of the grounds at Lincoln.

July 20, 2009

Today we met with the principal of Lincoln High School, Peyton Chapman, and she told us about our job as consultants. She had a slightly different point of view then Kirsten (the Lincoln Business Manager) did on what should be done and the problems, but mostly they agreed upon the areas that needed work. They both agreed that the school needed more classroom space and better amenities to be used by both the students and the community, but Kirsten wanted parking and the principal was against adding any more parking. The principal also said that Lincoln was actually under-enrolled, not overcrowded. She said the school needs more transfers to maximize their enrollment, and as I understood, they needed to modernize and make Lincoln the best it can be so it will attract more students. She also wanted the school to be a community center, and to be multi-purpose and for all ages.

She wants us to write a report or an initial plan that mirrors the LTDC’s plan, only in our perspective. The principal would like to see the way we view it as students and Portlanders, and not only the adults in the committee’s point of view. She realized that what we may think is most important is not what adults think of, and so she wants us to look at the plan with new eyes. We are trying to send out a survey to the student body at Lincoln to see what they think and what they would like to see, but as it is summer, I don’t know how many responses we will get. When we write up this plan, she hopes to be able to let the students at Lincoln see it after school starts and tweak it as they see fit. So I think she just wants us to start off the discussion with the LTDC, involving the students.

I got the impression that Ms. Chapman is very determined, and I admire that about her. She feels very protective of her students and feels they deserve better. So I think she is working hard to find loopholes and strategies with the district to try to get this rebuilding of Lincoln under way. It is great to have a principal of a high school feel that impassioned that she would do almost anything for her students. It was refreshing to meet someone whose care for her students is so palpable.

She would like us to give a presentation to the LTDC about our recommendations, and possibly the leadership class at LHS during the school year. We also should get some sort of visuals; be it a power point, picture or a video. We do know that we need to give a presentation that will get our ideas across effectively and clearly to everyone, and we only have 2 weeks to do it. So it begins…