2.10.2003 ET

(CSRwire) Portland, OR - Cleveland High School students from 10 Portland, Oregon, high schools held a press conference here today after school to announce additional plans to raise money to save PIL sports and to urge adults to play an active role in helping solve the city’s school funding issues.

Portland Public Schools (P.P.S.) is scheduled to cut all Portland Interscholastic League (P.I.L.) spring sports this month, and this week, School Superintendent Jim Scherzinger announced that the district is planning to cut all sports in the 2003-4 school year.

The students are attempting to raise $100,000 through a walkathon, Saturday, February 15th starting with a rally at 9 a.m. and a walk at 10 a.m. beginning at the Rose Quarter. They hope to raise enough money to save spring sports – and to create a reserve fund to save fall and winter sports next school year. Students also announced today that they have developed a website—www.savepil.org—that features information on the rally, walk and donation instructions.

Students said they will be outside Portland area grocery stores on February 8th with leaflets and donation envelopes to ask adults to help save P.I.L. sports and to raise community awareness about the February 15th walk. The students must raise a minimum of $75,000 through the walk in order to receive $250,000 in matching funds pledged by area corporations and individuals.

“We’ve been meeting after school and on weekends to get organized and save P.I.L. athletics,” said Cleveland student Olivia Bender. “With the holidays and finals week, students have been focused elsewhere. But the announcements this week that football and soccer could be cut have really woken everyone up. We’re asking all students to contribute, hold raffles and assemblies and organize the walk.”

According to the students, more than 40 percent of P.P.S. students are involved in sports. Students at today’s press conference said that if the district cut sports, many of them would be forced to transfer to other school districts in order to play sports.

“My dad has offered to rent an apartment in Beaverton in order for me to compete,” said a Lincoln High School female student athlete. “Sports are one of the things that will help me get in to college,” she said.

“Imagine what this city will be like if high school sports are eliminated,” said Danny Vanvoorhis of Franklin High School. “A lot of kids could drop out, truancy could increase and more students could get in to trouble.”

Said Justin Burlingame of Madison High School, “Since I’ve started competing in sports, my grade point average has increased from a 1.0 to a 3.5. Sports have made me get better organized with my time and be more focused.”

Even though the PIL has been successful in raising funds from local celebrity athletes and PIL alumni such as Damon Stoudamire and Peter Jacobsen, it must still raise an additional $100,000 in order to capitalize on matching grants from Nike, the Oregon Sports Authority and others. By raising $100,000, the matching grants will raise the total donation amount to $300,000.

“People who help with the walkathon, will be able to have their donations matched 3-1,” said Jefferson student Johntae Grace. “If people don’t give, we’ll lose the matching money – and sports.”

Nike, Inc. has offered to match up to $50,000 of the money raised at the February 15th walkathon, and is donating t-shirts and raffle items to help the students. The company has also pledged a $50,000 match for funds raised by March 1 to the parents attempting to save the Outdoor School program from the school funding cutback.

To generate community awareness about the walk and need for donations, student athletes, cheerleaders and pep band members will be outside the following grocery stores on Saturday, February 8th from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., passing out flyers and donation envelopes:

Nature’s Fresh Northwest
3016 SE Division St

Zupan’s
3301 SE Belmont St

Nature’s Northwest
3535 NE 15th Ave

Trader Joe’s
2122 N.W. Glisan

Coffee People
533 NW 23rd

Zupan’s
2340 W Burnside St

Food For Less
7979 SE Powell Blvd.

Nature’s Fresh Northwest
6344 SW Capitol Hwy

“We’re really frustrated,” said Kiernan Leek of Lincoln High School. “We feel let down. We need to save P.I.L. athletics, and we need to solve our school funding problems. We should be studying and playing sports, not asking for donations from adults.”

For more information, go to www.savepil.org

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