Portland Adventist Academy
Encyclopedia
Portland Adventist Academy (PAA) is a private
high school
located in Portland, Oregon
, United States
operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church
. The school was founded in 1910, and was previously known as Portland Union Academy, serving grades 1-12. The name changed when the elementary section became its own school, Portland Adventist Elementary School in 1975. During the process, the high school section was renamed Portland Adventist Academy.
The main building on campus was built in 1963.
(OSAA). The school requested the OSAA allow the team to avoid playing a game during the Sabbath for their beliefs
which runs from sundown on Friday until sundown of Saturday. The OSAA granted the request for scheduling Friday games of the tournament, but informed Portland Adventist that they could not change the schedule for Saturday games and the school would need to forfeit a Saturday game if needed. Portland Adventist won their Friday game and was able to play on Saturday after sundown and won the state championship for the 2A division. The OSAA then received complaints from other schools and refused to accommodate Portland Adventist in later tournaments.
In 2000, Portland Adventist students and parents filed a discrimination complaint against the OSAA with the Oregon State Board of Education. Oregon Superintendent of Public Instruction
Stan Bunn
denied the appeal for the State Board of Education in February 2002. The school then asked for judicial review of the State Board of Education's decision that the OSAA did not unlawfully discriminate against Portland Adventist's religious beliefs. In June 2003, the Oregon Court of Appeals
ruled in favor of the school and sent the case back to the State Board to reconsider the school's request.
The OSAA then reconsidered Portland Adventist's request to not schedule games on their Sabbath. The OSAA determined the request was too much of a hardship, and the State School Board agreed, denying Portland Adventist's request once again. The school again sought court review, and the Oregon Court of Appeals again agreed with the school in a March 2006 decision. In June 2006, the court again rejected the OSAA's arguments and found the OSAA's denial in violation of Or. Rev. Stat.
§ 659.850(2). On December 5, 2006, the Oregon Supreme Court
took the case on an appeal from the OSAA.
During the 2007–2008 season, a number of students and parents filed a motion for temporary relief that was granted by a Multnomah County
circuit court judge. The Oregon Supreme Court denied the OSAA's appeal from the temporary relief on February 15, 2008. A decision by the Supreme Court from the ongoing legal battle was announced on May 8, 2008, in which the court affirmed the Court of Appeals and sent the case back to the State Board of Education to review the OSAA's decision using the correct legal guidelines. The decision was written by justice Virginia Linder
.
's MAX Light Rail to Clackamas Town Center
. A new station near the entrance of the school meant there was a need for a solution for tighter campus security from the heightened crime and unwanted visitor potential.
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
located in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church
Seventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
. The school was founded in 1910, and was previously known as Portland Union Academy, serving grades 1-12. The name changed when the elementary section became its own school, Portland Adventist Elementary School in 1975. During the process, the high school section was renamed Portland Adventist Academy.
The main building on campus was built in 1963.
Legal proceedings over sports
In 1996, Portland Adventist's boys basketball team qualified for the state tournament operated by the Oregon School Activities AssociationOregon School Activities Association
The Oregon School Activities Association is a non-profit, board-governed organization that regulates high school athletics and competitive activities via athletic conferences in the U.S. state of Oregon, providing equitable competition among its members, both public and private...
(OSAA). The school requested the OSAA allow the team to avoid playing a game during the Sabbath for their beliefs
Sabbath in Seventh-day Adventism
Sabbath is an important part of the belief and practice of seventh-day Christians. These believers observe Sabbath on the seventh Hebrew day of the week, from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset, in similar manner as in Judaism, rather than Lord's day on Sunday like a most forms of Christianity...
which runs from sundown on Friday until sundown of Saturday. The OSAA granted the request for scheduling Friday games of the tournament, but informed Portland Adventist that they could not change the schedule for Saturday games and the school would need to forfeit a Saturday game if needed. Portland Adventist won their Friday game and was able to play on Saturday after sundown and won the state championship for the 2A division. The OSAA then received complaints from other schools and refused to accommodate Portland Adventist in later tournaments.
In 2000, Portland Adventist students and parents filed a discrimination complaint against the OSAA with the Oregon State Board of Education. Oregon Superintendent of Public Instruction
Oregon Superintendent of Public Instruction
The Superintendent of Public Instruction, sometimes referred to as the State Superintendent of Schools, is a constitutional office within the executive branch of the Oregon state government, and acts as administrative officer of the State Board of Education and executive head of the Department of...
Stan Bunn
Stan Bunn
Stan Bunn is an American politician and lawyer in the U.S. state of Oregon. Born and raised in Yamhill County, he is part of a political family that includes his brother Jim Bunn who served in Congress...
denied the appeal for the State Board of Education in February 2002. The school then asked for judicial review of the State Board of Education's decision that the OSAA did not unlawfully discriminate against Portland Adventist's religious beliefs. In June 2003, the Oregon Court of Appeals
Oregon Court of Appeals
The Oregon Court of Appeals is the state intermediate appellate court in the U.S. state of Oregon. Part of the Oregon Judicial Department, it has ten judges and is located in Salem...
ruled in favor of the school and sent the case back to the State Board to reconsider the school's request.
The OSAA then reconsidered Portland Adventist's request to not schedule games on their Sabbath. The OSAA determined the request was too much of a hardship, and the State School Board agreed, denying Portland Adventist's request once again. The school again sought court review, and the Oregon Court of Appeals again agreed with the school in a March 2006 decision. In June 2006, the court again rejected the OSAA's arguments and found the OSAA's denial in violation of Or. Rev. Stat.
Oregon Revised Statutes
The Oregon Revised Statutes is the codified body of statutory law governing the U.S. state of Oregon, as enacted by the Oregon Legislative Assembly, and occasionally by citizen initiative...
§ 659.850(2). On December 5, 2006, the Oregon Supreme Court
Oregon Supreme Court
The Oregon Supreme Court is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States. The OSC holds court at the Oregon Supreme Court Building in Salem, Oregon, near the capitol...
took the case on an appeal from the OSAA.
During the 2007–2008 season, a number of students and parents filed a motion for temporary relief that was granted by a Multnomah County
Multnomah County, Oregon
Multnomah County is one of 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. Though smallest in area, it is the most populous as its county seat, Portland, is the state's largest city...
circuit court judge. The Oregon Supreme Court denied the OSAA's appeal from the temporary relief on February 15, 2008. A decision by the Supreme Court from the ongoing legal battle was announced on May 8, 2008, in which the court affirmed the Court of Appeals and sent the case back to the State Board of Education to review the OSAA's decision using the correct legal guidelines. The decision was written by justice Virginia Linder
Virginia Linder
Virginia Lynn Linder is an American judge from Oregon who has served, since January 2007, as the 99th justice of the Oregon Supreme Court. She had previously served since 1997 on the Oregon Court of Appeals...
.
Reconstruction
An expansion of the school's campus starting in 2007 was influenced by the extension of TriMetTriMet
TriMet, more formally known as the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon, is a public agency that operates mass transit in a region that spans most of the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon...
's MAX Light Rail to Clackamas Town Center
Clackamas Town Center
Clackamas Town Center is a shopping mall in Clackamas, Oregon . It opened in 1981. It is managed and co-owned by General Growth Properties and is currently anchored by J.C. Penney, Macy's , Nordstrom, and Sears...
. A new station near the entrance of the school meant there was a need for a solution for tighter campus security from the heightened crime and unwanted visitor potential.
See also
- Seventh-day Adventist educationSeventh-day Adventist educationThe Seventh-day Adventist educational system is the second-largest Christian school system in the world, after the Roman Catholic system ....
- List of Seventh-day Adventist secondary and elementary schools
External links
- Nakashima Case Timeline from the American Civil Liberties Union
- http://www.paajourneytoexcellence.org/project.php