Ashland School District (Oregon)
Encyclopedia
The Ashland School District (#5) is a public school district
School district
School districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...

 that serves the city of Ashland, Oregon
Ashland, Oregon
Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States, near Interstate 5 and the California border, and located in the south end of the Rogue Valley. It was named after Ashland County, Ohio, point of origin of Abel Helman and other founders, and secondarily for Ashland, Kentucky, where other...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. As of 2009, there were approximately 3,000 students and 300 employees in the district.

Elementary schools

  • Bellview Elementary School
  • Helman Elementary School
  • Walker Elementary School

Alternative schools

  • John Muir School (K-8)
  • Wilderness Charter School
  • Willow Wind Community Learning Center

Demographics

In the 2009 school year, the district had 62 students classified as homeless by the Department of Education
Oregon Department of Education
The Department of Education of the U.S. state of Oregon is responsible for implementation of state policies with respect to public education at the kindergarten through community college level, including academic standards and testing, credentials, and other matters not reserved to the local...

, or 2.1% of students in the district.

Teacher/student staffing ratio

  • Total Students: 3,040
  • Classroom Teachers: 150.8 (FTE)
  • Student/Teacher Ratio: 20.2

Drug testing controversy

In late 2001, Ashland School Board enacted a controversial drug and alcohol policy for leadership students. The local Oregon chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...

had advocated on behalf of various students expelled by the Ashland School District for drug use in May 2001 at a national forensics tournament and rallied again to protect the students from an unconstitutional invasion of their privacy. This landmark battle for students' rights was the first of many similar incidents across the country.

Students at Ashland High School argued that their off-campus behavior after school hours should have no effect on their academic standing. In a statement to the local press, Ashland High School Student Body Co-President Brady Brim-DeForest said "Teaching kids not to use and abuse drugs and alcohol is a family thing. Ultimately, it's a student's own personal choice."

Eventually, the code of conduct was rewritten and the controversy led to a full scale re-evaluation of the school district's entire drug and alcohol policy. In order to reach consensus however, a community committee was formed, which met consecutively for five months.

Drug policy references

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