Serendipity Center, K–12 (+transition) tuition-free private school in Portland

Serendipity Center

a tuition-free private school in Portland

K–12 (+transition) · Private · Specialized · Learning Differences

14815 SE Division St Portland · Matthew Berryessa. Principal: Sara McCutchen., Executive Director

Serendipity Center is a private, nonprofit therapeutic day school in outer SE Portland serving students in grades K–12 and beyond who have not found success in traditional school settings. Instruction follows a standard school program of classes, coursework, and credits, delivered in 12 largely self-contained classrooms, 7 in Lower School (grades K–8) and 5 in Upper School (grades 9 and up), averaging 8.34 students each, with 1 licensed teacher, 1 Program Assistant, and between 1 and 10 Instructional Assistants per room depending on student need.

What sets Serendipity apart is that it is both a Cognia-accredited school and a certified outpatient provider of children's mental health services, so education and treatment run through the same school day rather than being delivered separately. Every student is assigned a master's level clinical case manager. The program is built on four pillars, Education, Mental Health, Transition Readiness, and Wellness, all grounded in the RE-Education philosophy developed by psychologist Dr. Nicholas Hobbs, which centers each student's strengths and the belief that children can be taught to manage their own behavior. The school partners with up to 22 districts across 5 counties in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Big picture: placement happens through a home district's IEP team rather than a family application, and the referring district covers both tuition and transportation, so the first step is asking your child's special education team about a referral.

K–12 grades

125 annual enrollment students

3:10 to 1:1 student-teacher

~8 average class

Tuition-free private school

Tuition: $0 (district funded)

Address: 14815 SE Division St Portland OR 97236. Phone: 503-761-7139. Website: serendipitycenter.org.

PPS rightsizing · a proposal, not a decision

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The basics

A day here

The schedule

Before & after school

The campus

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worth asking about on the tour

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Who goes here

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Academic performance

Where they go next

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Oregon average, same source.

Worth asking on the tour

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The support

Getting in

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Your odds in the lottery

Seats here aren’t first-come; they’re drawn by lottery. Each circle below is a tenth of the families who applied over the last two springs and stayed in the running (didn’t take a higher-ranked school). Filled circles got a yes.

but it depends who you are

{{ oddsSrcCaret }} where these numbers come from

Official PPS lottery results, 2025-26 & 2026-27 combined: offers made ÷ families still in the running (offered + waitlisted); applications cancelled for a higher-ranked school excluded. pps.net › prior transfer data. Slots reset every year.

Tuition

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