CF Community

Tigard High School is located in Tigard, a city in Washington County, Oregon. Tigard became a city in 1961. Since 1970 to 2009, the population has grown from 6,300 residents to 50,309 residents respectively. The breakdown of the current population is seen below:



The estimated median household income in 2008 was $64,944, which was well over the Oregon state median of $50,169. In addition, the estimated median house/condo value of the Tigard area in 2008 was $335,411, which was also above the Oregon state median of $273,300. Even though Tigard’s average for household income and house value are higher than the state average, there is a wide range of socio-economic households in the area. House values range from $30,069 to over $380,000, with many three or four unit townhouse units having values of over $200,000 that could be skewing the data. The high level of multi-unit dwellings means that many families may rent, therefore the socio-economic breakdown of the area is most likely more diverse than the house value median illustrates.

The community around the school is also very diverse. There is a mix of residential, commercial, light industrial, and heavy industrial areas surrounding the school. The school is located on a street that connects two major traffic ways: the I-5 freeway and the 99W highway. West of the school there is a large strip mall on 99W, and East of the school there is a large, open shopping mall with a theater. In addition, there are various commercial and light industrial buildings, and Northeast of the school there is a large business complex that houses many larger companies, including an emergency clinic and multiple doctor offices. Because of this the commuting population increases by 33% during the day. There are pockets of residential areas scattered throughout the neighborhood directly around the school, with the largest neighborhood directly North of the school. There is also a very large residential area West of 99E on a hill called Bull Mountain.

Even though Tigard is considered a suburb of Portland, the school still has an urban feel as there is so much business traffic surrounding it during the day. There are many distractions that could easily lure students from the school, especially shopping and the movie theater. Most of this is within walking distance as well, which could possibly lead to students deciding not to attend class. To combat this the school does not allow Freshman and Sophomores to leave campus for lunch, and Juniors and Seniors can only leave campus for lunch if they have their parents’ permission.

The Tualatin-Tigard School District is a well funded school district, but it is important to remember that there are many different levels of socio-economic students attending the school. This definitely plays into school and classroom dynamics. Another factor a teacher at Tigard High has to deal with is all the outside activities that the students could easily engage in if they decided not to come to class. This creates a challenge for a teacher to keep her students interested enough to keep coming to class. Students skipping class could also affect the overall dynamic of the class as those students that missed lessons would be behind and could cause the whole class to fall behind. Finally, with easy access to both a freeway and a highway, it is important for a teacher to be aware of who is in the school and report anyone she sees in the school that does not look like he or she belong. Safety of students and school staff is definitely an issue that should not be overlooked.