Please be sure to follow me on X (Formerly Known As Twitter @BensonTechPride.) (X)

Please be sure to go to our PPS/BHS Website at www.pps.net/benson for important school information, events and school activities that will be happening throughout the school year. (PPS/Benson Tech Website Calendar)

Parents/Guardians please be sure to download the Trivory App for up to date information regarding Benson Tech. This is a great communication tool for Benson Tech and we highly encourage all parents/guardians and students to stay connected with the school by downloading the app. https://trivory.com/

(Trivory App)

Principal Wilson

In the month of May we take time to reflect and celebrate the important role that Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) have played in our shared history.

May was designated AAPI Month to commemorate the first Japanese immigrants to arrive in the U.S. in 1843. May was also chosen as way to remember the Chinese immigrants who worked tirelessly to create the first transcontinental railroad in America in May of 1843 and ending in May of 1869.

Greetings Senior students and families, please see the attached letter for important details about our graduation ceremony and Senior events coming up in the next few weeks. The attached documents are also being mailed home to families of all students graduating.

Students interested in enrolling in summer school should meet with their counselors.

Registration will be open starting May 12th.

There will be two sessions for students to take courses this Summer:

• Session 1: June 23- July 10 (no class July 4)

• Session 2: July 14- July 30

Classes will be held Monday - Friday, 9:00am-12:00pm at each of the sites listed below.

Courses will be offered at four High School locations across the Portland Area

• Benson High School

• Franklin High School

• McDaniel High School

• Roosevelt High School

Breakfast and lunch will be provided for students.

No Charge to register.

REMINDER: Summer Scholars registration is only for credit recovery or "off-track" retrieval.

No Grade Improvement (including D's) or Credit Advancement is available for students.

Beson TechBoosters Love a Parade!

The Sons of Norway have invited the Benson Tech community to participate in this year's Syttende Mai parade on Saturday, May 17th. The parade will start at 3:00 pm at Norse Hall, proceed north on NE Davis to Lloyd Center, go around Holladay Park and then return to Norse Hall so the parade will pass by Benson twice.

In Norway, schools walk in groups in the May 17th parade, and we are inviting the schools that we support to do the same, carry the school's banner, wear Benson apparel, and cheer for Benson in the parade!

Come join us as we celebrate the support Benson Tech has received from the Sons of Norway through the years!

Staff Appreciation

Thanks to all who helped make Staff Appreciation a success! In addition to families who provided crockpot meals for lunch on Wednesday, we'd like to than the following businesses who supported our teachers, staff, and administration last week and throughout this school year:

• Crema Coffee

• Puddletown Bagels

• Fire On The Mountain

• Henry Higgins Bagels

• Voodoo Doughnuts

• Cafe Yumm

• Bluebird Bakery

Please give them a warm thanks from the Benson Tech community when you visit!

Benson Tech Boosters

NAMI Walk/Fundraiser: On Saturday, May 17 at 12:30 pm in Peninsula Park, Benson students will be gathering to walk for the annual NAMI Walk and the support of mental wellness in our community. This is the second year Benson Tech has participated. All in our community are welcome to join us.

Also, we had an anonymous donor kick off our fundraising campaign with a $100 donation. It would be great if we could "match" this donation. Here is a link to our donation page: https://www.namiwalks.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.team&teamID=75755

If you have any questions, please contact Amy Henry at amyhenry@pps.net.

--

Amy Henry (she/her)

School Counselor

Benson Polytechnic High School

Working with Students with the Last Names A-Gq

503-916-5100 x88418

Dear Benson Tech Families:

Please see the attached flyer for more information about openings in the Intensive Outpatient Program and Partial Hospitalization Program at Center for Discovery. PPS cannot endorse or recommend a particular provider, but families are welcome to contact the Center for Discovery to learn more!

Sincerely,

Caroline Bleckmann, LCSW, She/her

School Social worker, Benson Polytechnic High School

For all meeting requests click here or use google calendar for PPS employees

Benson staff referral form

Benson Wellness Center

Benson Community Resources

Cell/Non-urgent texting: 503-729-3486

Monday-Friday, 8-4:00

How can the School Social Worker help me?

Outside of office hours, if you or your loved one is experiencing a mental health crisis, please call the Multnomah County Crisis line at 503-988-4888.

Dear Tech Families,

Please see the attached flyers for more information about free infant and children's clothing and baby gear in SE Portland.

Sincerely,

Caroline Bleckmann, LCSW, She/her

School Social worker, Benson Polytechnic High School

For all meeting requests click here or use google calendar for PPS employees

Benson staff referral form

Benson Wellness Center

Benson Community Resources

Cell/Non-urgent texting: 503-729-3486

Monday-Friday, 8-4:00

How can the School Social Worker help me?

Outside of office hours, if you or your loved one is experiencing a mental health crisis, please call the Multnomah County Crisis line at 503-988-4888.

Attention Class of 2025 Families!!!

It’s ALL happening!!! It’s really THAT time!

If you would like to support our senior lunch in ANY way, please email mkennybrew@pps.net. We could really use your help.

Thank you,

Melissa Kennybrew

Senior Class Advisor

Benson Tech Athletic Events This Week

Monday, 5/12

Softball @ Cleveland (Woodstock Park), 4:00 PM

Tuesday, 5/13

Track and field @ JV Districts (Roosevelt HS), 4:00 PM

Softball @ Grant (Wilshire Park), 4:00 PM

Baseball hosts Sprague (Buckman Field), 4:00 PM

Wednesday, 5/14

Boys volleyball hosts Wells (6:30 PM)

Thursday, 5/15

Track and field @ JV Districts (Roosevelt HS), 4:00 PM

Softball hosts Jefferson (Buckman Field), 4:00 PM

Baseball @ North Salem (Barrick Field), 5:00 PM

Friday, 5/16

Baseball hosts Lincoln (Buckman Field), 4:00 PM

Boys volleyball hosts Sunset (last game & senior night), 6:30 PM

Registration for the 2025-26 School Year is Open!

Get registration crossed off your to do list early and ensure you receive information about summer programming by signing up today. Use this link to register. Payment is not due until your athlete makes a team.

--

Jessica Russell

Athletic Director

Benson High School

• Sign up for sports at Benson here!
• Need a blank physical exam form? Links are below.
  Languages: English | Spanish | Vietnamese | Chinese | Russian | Arabic | Chuukese | Japanese | Somali | Ukrainian | Marshallese | Swahili
• Here is a link to the Benson Wellness Center, where you can schedule a physical exam.

Congratulations to Sophomore Carlyta Barfield on winning the PIL Women's Singles Tennis Championship at the Portland Tennis Center Friday May 9th. Carlyta will now compete at the State Tennis competition event in a couple of weeks. Good luck Carlyta!!!

Carlyta Barfield

Senior Clearance Notice

As part of senior clearance for graduation, students will need to have athletic fees paid and all library books and computers returned (or paid for). Please take a look at library accounts at this time to make sure there are no outstanding fines accrued for missing books. Notices were sent to students for missing materials that had been marked as lost.

ATHLETIC PAY TO PLAY FEE LINK If you have not yet paid the PIL Athletic fee for a sport this year, please do so before the end of the year. For students participating in PIL athletics, the fee is $200 per sport for the first two per year and the fee for a third sport is waived. If you qualify for Free/Reduced Meals, the fee is $35. Seniors will need to have this taken care of as part of clearance for graduation.

SchoolPay Information for Payment of Fees and Donations

SchoolPay is the online tool for families to make payments for fees and donations easily from home or a mobile device. We recommend that you sign in and use your SchoolPay account so you have a saved history of your payments in one place. HERE is the link with more information and to get started. If you have any questions, please contact the bookkeeper, Sheli Bryan.

Sheli Bryan (she/her)

Bookkeeper

Benson Polytechnic High School

546 NE 12th Ave.

Portland, OR 97232

503-916-5100 ext. 88412

Aloha,
Benson's Chess Club was represented well last Saturday and Sunday.
Zane Hughes grade 9,
Henry Cowley grade 9,
Enrique Mondragon Suarez grade 10,
Jimmy Li grade 11,
and Dane De Block grade 12.
When you see these all-stars in the halls or in class please congratulate them on the amazing weekend they had. They really showed up and proved they belong in the room with the best chess players in the state.

Going into last Sunday's competing as individuals each of our five players had a shot at taking home trophies. We had an eight way tie of players with three wins heading into the final match of the five round swiss tournament. It came down to the wire and we just missed the top three. I have uploaded more images in the drive with more on the way from my real camera.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/zqzYNC6h4JFZMQCm9

Thank you for all the support.
Benson Chess is just getting started.

All City Chess for Success Invitational Tournament
May 24th 2025 at Daimler Trucks Headquarters.
All Benson Chess Players are invited to come compete.

I have a sign up sheet in room 251 or a student can sign up by emailing me.
Chess Club: B day flex and Fridays @ Lunch Electric Room 251

Mahalo,

Booker

--

RICKY BOOKER JR

RBOOKER@PPS.NET

Instructor

Electric Program

Benson Polytechnic High School

546 NE 12th Avenue

Portland, Oregon 97232

Seniors: If you haven't completed your FAFSA or ORSAA, reach out to Kathleen (kreid@pps.net/971-238-8322) or Katie Clark (kclark@pps.net/503-894-4660) for individual support, if needed. These financial aid forms are required for Oregon Promise, which helps fund community college tuition.

Check out the College Newsletter. for information on applying to college, financial aid, scholarships, and upcoming events and opportunities.

------

Kathleen Reid (she/her)

College Counselor/AVID Coordinator

Benson Tech High School

Call/Text 971-238-8322

Set up an appointment with me HERE

60 DAY RULE:
Beginning Tuesday April 1st. Commencement disqualification: Requiring that seniors be disqualified from participation in commencement exercises and related activities if within 60 school days of their graduation ceremony they are found to be in violation of the District's Alcohol or Drug policy or any violation resulting in a three (3) or more days of suspension or more serious disciplinary action. (Reference 4.30.020-AD) Be aware that all school pranks resulting in vandalism or disruption of the school day could also be a violation of this rule, and may result in not being allowed to participate in prom and/or graduation.

Portland Public Schools

Upcoming Field Trips

Wednesday, May 14th- A Flex Day (9:00-12:30)- PCC Rock Creek (Trades/Apprenticeships) *Limted slots, Juniors & Seniors*

Friday, May 16th- A Day (9:30-12:00)- Oregon Tradeswomen Career Fair

Students can stop by the College and Career Center for a permission slip. If you have questions please contact jbethunesummers@pps.net.

Also, check our Benson Tech Career Opportunities board for more great career opportunities.

Thank you

--

Jzalana Bethune-Summers (She, Her)

Career Coordinator

Benson Polytechnic High School

Call/Text: (971) 471-9189

Two Digital Media Production ninth grade projects were selected for inclusion into the Best of PPS Film Fest!

The first is Cassandra English's stop motion piece titled "Ice Skater". She exported frames from a video, printed them out, traced them, colored them, cut them out and then placed them under camera, on top of a hand painted background. Extremely demanding process that she made look easy:

Benson_CassandraEnglish_IceSkater.mp4

The second is Dylan Martinez-Torres and Dariel Soriano Zamora's short piece called "Godzilla Vs. Hedorah". To make this they shot live action sequences against a green screen and then used the footage to create the animation artwork in a process called rotoscoping:

Benson_DylanDariel_Godzilla_vs_Hedorah.mp4

The festival is on May 21st at the Hollywood Theatre. Use this link to reserve your free tickets:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScevCLIaDbxxweXiNC-UR-cjevFtimZOibHbt83Fp2_49wxyQ/viewform

Congratulations to Cassandra, Dylan and Dariel!

Senior Kelsey Wong has been contracted by Lan Su Chinese Garden

Senior Kelsey Wong has been contracted by Lan Su Chinese Garden to sell postcard versions of her amazing design of the garden. Inspired by Claude Monet and produced using the application Procreate, Kelsey also received guidance from Portland marketing agency Wieden+Kennedy as part of their "Portland is What We Make it" campaign. The composition was also the top seller in our annual DMP4 poster exhibit and sale.

Congratulations Kelsey!

Per District Policy, it is the parent's / guardian's responsibility to clear unexcused absences within two school days or 48 hours of the absence or the absence(s) will remain unexcused.

Parents / Guardians may contact Attendance:

Phone: 503-916-5100 select Attendance

Email: bensonattend@pps.net

Thank you!

Benson Tech Administration

If you are needing to pick up your student(s) during school hours for appointments, etc..please allow at least 30 minutes BEFORE they need to leave for their appointment / pick up.

Due to the size of our new building, it gives staff time to find your student and have them meet you in the office or out front.

You can call or email the attendance office with these requests.

PH: (503) 916-5100 --- choose attendance line

Email: bensonattend@pps.net

Thank you for your assistance.

Benson Tech Admin

Parents/Guardians of our Senior Students,

Please be sure to read the attached letter from my office regarding the venue change for our Graduation Ceremony scheduled in June.

Principal Wilson

Dear Benson Tech Community,

By now, you have likely heard that the Board voted to ban cell phone use in schools for all PPS students beginning next school year. The decision came after the Board spent months receiving feedback and public comment from educators, families, and students.

At Benson Polytechnic High School, we recognize that cell phones are an important part of our students' lives and can be used for various purposes such as communication, education, entertainment, and safety. However, we also believe that cell phone use in the classroom can be a source of distraction, disruption, and disrespect and cell phones can sometimes interfere with our students’ learning process and our school climate. We have had our current cell policy in place since the beginning of the school year and as we head into the second semester of the school year we want to begin to prepare our students for being able to navigate the school day without the use of cell phones starting with the upcoming school year. Therefore, we have revised our current cell phone policy for the the remainder of this school year as we approach the District's new cell phone policy of "Off and Away All Day" which will take place during the 2025-26 school year.

Our current cell phone policy will remain the same for the remainder of this school year except for one piece that's italicized and listed below.

1. Students are not allowed to use cell phones/wireless devices during class time, including in the hallways. This includes texting, calling, browsing, gaming, social media, or any other activity that involves the use of a cell phone.

2. During class time, cell phones and wireless devices must be stored away at all times by the student and must not be visible or accessible to the student.

3. Students may use their cell phones before school, at lunchtime, and during passing time. However, students must follow the school rules and expectations regarding appropriate interactions and respectful behavior when using their cell phones.

4. We ask that parents call the school office at (503) 916-5100 if there is an emergency and they need to reach their child. The office staff will relay the message to the student or the teacher as soon as possible. Please do not call or text your child directly during class time as this may disrupt the learning environment.

If a student violates the Benson Tech current cell phone policy:

1. A first violation will result in the cell phone being taken and delivered to the main office where the student can pick up the phone at the end of the day. (New)

2. A second violation will result in the cell phone being held in the main office until the parent or guardian can come to the school and pick up the cell phone.

Please note that due to some extenuating circumstances there will be a few exceptions to this policy. We appreciate your cooperation and support in enforcing this cell phone policy. We believe that this policy will help us create a positive and productive learning environment for all our students and staff as we begin to prepare for the District's new cell phone policy of "Off and Away All Day" starting in 2025-26.

Benson Tech Administration