It sent a letter to leadership last week, outlining a number of grievances and indicating low confidence among staff.
Riley Board
Staff Writer
Riley covers education for the Press Herald. Before moving to Portland, she spent two years in Kenai, Alaska, reporting on local government, schools and natural resources for the public radio station KDLL as part of the Report for America program. Riley originally hails from Sarasota, Florida, and is a graduate of Middlebury College in Vermont, where she served as the editor-in-chief of the college’s student newspaper, The Campus. She has interned at the Burlington Free Press, and at the Smithsonian Institution’s Folklife Magazine in Washington, D.C. Outside of work, Riley is passionate about roller skating, cooking and her cat, Edgar.
Portland school district considers giving up central office building
The district is trying to reduce its footprint amid declining enrollment at the same time the city is looking for a new home for its family shelter.
A commission spent more than a year studying Maine’s school construction crisis. What now?
An amended bill passed by the education committee incorporates some of the commission’s recommendations, but a $100 million price tag might scare lawmakers.
Statewide bell-to-bell ban on cellphones in schools moves a step closer to reality
The Legislature’s budget committee this week supported funding and language Gov. Janet Mills proposed in her supplemental budget. If the House and Senate follow suit, Maine would join 23 other states with similar policies.
US Supreme Court won’t hear Maine case about parental rights on gender in schools
Amber Lavigne sued a Damariscotta-based school district in 2023, arguing it violated her rights by not informing her about her 13-year-old’s gender expression.
Mills ups the pressure for permanent free community college in her final year as governor
The two-term Democratic governor now running for U.S. Senate has visited campuses recently in an effort to get one of her signature policies funded.
Former Scarborough school social worker sues district, alleging retaliation
A federal lawsuit filed Tuesday claims the district declined to renew the employee’s contract after he raised concerns about reporting a student assault.
Portland OKs study of middle school reorganization
The superintendent was directed to deliver a report by October, but the school board scaled back language that specifically mentioned consolidating middle schools, from 3 to 2.
UMaine alum, TV star Timothy Simons will give 2026 commencement speech
The Readfield native best known for his roles in ‘Nobody Wants This’ and ‘Veep’ graduated from the Orono university in 2001.
Portland considers closing Cliff Island school: ‘We live here. We need this’
The one-room schoolhouse on an island of 45 year-round residents that is part of the city of Portland has just two students. Residents say its existence is vital to the island community’s future.