A Non-profit School for Homeless Children

Offering Education, Stability, and a Path Forward

Photo Courtesy of Transitional School

It’s often challenging to perceive our circumstances as fortunate. Many of us are feeling the burden of work, the pressure of relationships, or are exhausted from giving our ultimate effort as parents. The reality is, however, that if you’re reading this, you’re a homeowner or renter, live in a safe neighborhood, and you’ve acquired the knowledge and support to reach this point in your life. Not everyone is so fortunate.

For the past 35 years, the Community Transitional School (CTS) in Portland has been dedicated to educating PreK-8th grade homeless children with the intention of providing them the opportunity to change the course of their lives. Whether sleeping in a shelter, motel, a car, or on a friend’s floor, every morning their school buses cover a 120-square mile area to pick these children up and bring them to a school they can be proud to call their own.

Given their circumstances, most, if not all, of these students are well behind grade level, and most, if not all, of the students don’t have the support at home to advance. The classroom in their safe haven. A place that provides stability and promise in their otherwise turbulent environments. A place where they can find community and build hope of a brighter future.

“For most of these children, the problem is generational,” says Cheryl Bickle, one of the founders, school principal, and 3rd through 5th grade teacher, “We hold them to a high standard, because that’s what the world will expect of them regardless. The point is to show them a path forward, but it’s up to them to walk it.”

Most students will relocate at least once throughout the school year, but as long as they remain within the service area, bus routes will be adjusted to ensure they remain at CTS and continue their academic progress. As a nonprofit up against the support that the public school system and larger private schools receive, the Community Transitional School can only do so much, but it’s doing everything it can.

To learn more or to help support these children in need, visit www.transitionalschool.org