Hillsboro School District
The Hillsboro School District 1J is a unified school district located in Hillsboro, Oregon, United States. The district operates 26 elementary schools, four middle schools, and four high schools. Founded in 1851, the school district covers Hillsboro, Scholls, Reedville, North Plains, West Union, and other area communities. Total enrollment as of the 2019–2020 school year is 20,269 students, the fourth largest in the state.[4][5]
For the school district in Missouri, see Hillsboro R-3 School District.
The district is labeled 1J, as it absorbed the West Union School District, the first district in the county; the J (for "joint") represents that the district extends into other counties, Yamhill and Multnomah.[6][7] Hillsboro's elementary schools had been District 7 prior to consolidation in 1996.[6] The high school district was 3J and included students from grades 7 through 12, and received students from the Hillsboro elementary district and five other elementary districts.[6]
The Hillsboro School District Board of Directors (school board) consists of seven elected members serving four-year terms. Members receive no pay for their work on the board. The district is part of the Northwest Regional Education Service District.[8]
The district also runs a special alternative school and the Hare Field athletic complex.
Dual language program[edit]
In 2002,[158] the district created a Spanish-English dual language immersion program to address the changing needs of the community it serves. As a response to research[159][160] showing that native language instruction increases general literacy, community involvement, and graduation rates, the program was first implemented at the elementary level (at W. L. Henry and Minter Bridge[158]) and now extends K-12 in the Hillsboro High School feeder. The district, which as of 2009-2010 enrolled 16% English-language learners, now offers a dual language diploma endorsement,[161] allowing graduates to demonstrate assessed academic proficiency in both English and Spanish.
In neighborhood elementary schools where ELL enrollment is high, early grades are weighted heavily towards the native language. Grade level advancement blends English at an increasing rate in all academic areas (language arts, math, science, etc.), until the overall balance is at approximate parity by middle school.[162] Enrollment is optional, meaning the district will accommodate transfer requests away from entirely dual-language neighborhood schools; conversely, families whose neighborhood schools are not part of the program may request in-district transfer to join.
