The COVID-19 pandemic appears to be widening achievement gaps for Portland s students of color.
Data shows that in Portland Public Schools, students of color are attending school less often and failing classes at two and three times the rate of their white peers.
For example, roughly 40% of Black and Latino high school students in PPS were receiving at least one non-passing grade during the first quarter of the 2020-21 school year, according to data provided by the school district.
Comparatively, nearly 15.5% of the district s white high school students were failing a class. The numbers were even higher 53% for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students.