Superintendent's Welcome

Welcome to Portage Public Schools Rob Olsen

For 91 years, our District has been a leader in providing the highest quality K-12 education possible. We began as an innovative teacher training site for what is now Western Michigan University, under the leadership of Cleora Skinner. We evolved throughout the years into a premiere school district with involved parents and community members, a highly-trained faculty (more than 70% with graduate degrees), and students learning what they needed to pursue their post- secondary dreams.

We are proud of the many recognitions PPS continues to receive each year. The Washington Post list of top high schools in the nation was released in July 2011 with both Central and Northern High Schools on the list among only 39 in Michigan. Recent District honors also include having one of the top 500 high schools in the nation (Newsweek), the top media center in the state (and among the top 35 nationwide by (American Association of School Libraries), Michigan “Teacher of the Year” status in physics, business education, and in forensics and speech. Our District has 49 state championships in both athletics and academics. See our Points of Pride to learn more about our District’s accomplishments.

Portage Schools was the first public school district in Michigan, and still the only, in the area to offer the highly regarded International Baccalaureate program, and the first in the area to offer online learning, wireless internet campus-wide, an officially authorized Confucius Classrooms (offering Chinese language and culture).

Just as our faculty teach and our students learn in a variety of ways, our graduates are prepared to pursue endless academic and career paths with more than 90% immediately pursuing post-secondary college and training.

We are pleased that you are visiting our website and I hope you are finding the information you need. If not, please contact our Community Relations Office at 323-5162 or 323-5165 and they will assist you in any way they can.

Thank you for your interest in Portage Public Schools.

Rob Olsen

Superintendent of Portage Public Schools