Kimberlee Armstrong, the new Portland Public Schools superintendent, smiles as the school board welcomes her to the district during a special meeting Wednesday morning, June 5, 2024.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
Portland Public Schools’ board of directors announced Tuesday that Kimberlee Armstrong will serve as the next superintendent of Oregon’s largest school district.
The Portland school board is scheduled to meet Wednesday morning to approve the appointment and finalize Armstrong’s three-year contract contract. Armstrong will begin July 1, according to the district’s announcement Tuesday.
“Dr. Armstrong is just what PPS needs in this time of opportunity and challenge,” school board chair Gary Hollands said in a statement. “Her credentials go beyond the academic and professional successes we need in a superintendent. She also brings a deep understanding of Oregon, Portland and PPS as a parent, educational leader and an active member of the community.
“We are excited for her vision, leadership and commitment to PPS,” he continued. “She is the ideal leader to propel PPS into a new era of excellence.”
Armstrong began her educational career as a public school teacher in the Puyallup School District in Washington. According to the district announcement, she spent over two decades in various roles in elementary, middle and high schools. She’s previously worked in Portland Public Schools as the cabinet-level Chief Academic Officer.
Armstrong currently serves as deputy superintendent of Evergreen Public Schools in Vancouver.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Kimberlee Armstrong back to Portland,” board member Michelle DePass told OPB. “Her leadership and demonstrated care for students is exemplary, and what Portland needs right now.”
Portland Public Schools’ board of directors announced on June 4, 2024, that Kimberlee Armstrong will serve as the next superintendent of Oregon’s largest school district.
Courtesy of Portland Public Schools
Any celebration will come after all the T’s are crossed and I’s are dotted at Wednesday’s special board meeting.
The school board still technically has to vote to authorize the signing of a contract. Terms of Armstrong’s contract have been negotiated with the board, including but not limited to compensation, as member Julia Brim-Edwards explained. But those details aren’t set until a contract is signed by both parties.
This is Brim-Edwards’ third time hiring a superintendent for PPS, after helping bring in Vicki Phillips in 2005 and Guadalupe Guerrero in 2017.
Armstrong’s hiring comes at an especially challenging time for Portland Public Schools.
“We’ve had school closures from COVID. Last fall, the strike. And we’re also in the midst of a series of reductions in our budget that are going to impact our schools,” Brim-Edwards said. Still, she’s optimistic about the future of the district.
Toward the beginning of the superintendent search process this spring, Brim-Edwards said the board engaged with the PPS community, including school staff and families, to learn what they wanted in the next district leader.
Brim-Edwards said they wanted, among other things, someone who would build relationships; somebody who’s an experienced, strategic and visionary leader; someone with a robust background in K-12 education; and someone who would prioritize being in the classroom, in the schools and at community events. That feedback helped the board create criteria for the role.
“Dr. Armstrong, I think, is a really strong and good fit for the work that is upcoming,” Brim-Edwards said, “and is very much in line with what the school board and the community wanted and needed in our next superintendent.”