New, current, and alumni Cleveland Band families are invited to join us for our annual Band Potluck on Thursday, August 20 at 6:00 PM at Sellwood Park (SE 7th Ave & Miller Street). We’ll be at Picnic Site H, located on the northwest side of the park, west of the football field.

Please bring a dish to share according to your last name:

• A–F: Dessert
• G–S: Salad or Side Dish
• T–Z: Main Dish

If needed, please bring a serving utensil for your dish as well!

Come hang out, reconnect with old friends, and welcome new families to the Cleveland Band community. We’ll have outdoor games for all ages, and Cleveland Band hats and stickers will be available as thank-you gifts for those who make a donation to support the band.

Bring your appetite, a lawn chair or blanket, and your Cleveland Band spirit. We hope to see you there!

As we get ready for the start of the school year, we’ve had to make a few adjustments to our timeline for getting the music spaces ready. Thank you to our students and families for your flexibility as we work through these changes. Here’s the updated plan:

Friday, August 21 | Noon–3:00 PM — Move-In Day
Volunteers Encouraged!
We’ll begin unpacking and organizing key spaces, including the Band Room, Music Library, and B56 storage area. If you’re available to lend a hand, we’d love to have you join us!

Tuesday, August 25 | Noon–3:00 PM — Continued Setup
Volunteers Encouraged!
We’ll finish up the areas that need to be ready for the start of school, while student leadership finalizes plans for Mini Camp.

Wednesday, August 26 | 12:30–2:30 PM — Mini Camp
Mandatory for ALL Cleveland Band Students
This will be our official kickoff to the new school year and will include:

• Meet & Greet
• Introduction to “The Cleveland Way”
• Pep Band music preparation

All of these dates and times have been updated on the Cleveland Band calendar, so please check the calendar for the latest information.

We’re excited to get the new school year underway! Despite a few bumps in the road, our student leadership team has shown incredible enthusiasm and determination, and we’re already seeing so much talent and positivity from our students and families. We’re looking forward to a great year of making music together!

Don’t forget the new location!
Marshall Cleveland High
3905 SE 91st Ave
Portland, OR 97266

A huge thank you to everyone who stepped up and helped at this year’s Bridge Pedal event! It was a big success and we couldn’t have done it without you. Everyone worked so hard with set up, snack stations, and a very quick clean up. Your efforts brought in $1,500 to the Cleveland Bands program.

Also, special shout out to Lexi Pishue for volunteering to lead the event! Your positive and easy going attitude made all the difference at 5:00am!

Saturday, August 15, 2026
10:30am – 3:00pm
New Location: Les Schwab – 4105 SE Powell Blvd, Portland

Our annual Car Wash Fundraiser is less than a week away! Volunteers (adults and students) are still needed in a variety of positions to help make this a success.

• Students are needed to wash cars and wave signs.
• Adults are needed to provide supplies, assist with washing, and manage parking lot traffic flow.

This is a really fun way for current and incoming students to connect with the band community before the school year begins.

Questions? Contact: volunteer.coordinator@clevelandbandspdx.com

Please sign-up HERE

Percussion has a camp on Thursday and Leadership has a meeting on Friday, so I guess it’s welcome back to school! Please note though – school is not where it used to be!

Marshall Cleveland High
3905 SE 91st Ave
Portland, OR 97266

It’s that time again – time to celebrate all the hard work and adventures of the 2025-2026 year! There will be pizza of course, as well as a Senior Photo and some Awards!

The fun will start on May 26th – at 4pm!

There are a few public transit options –  click here for some help planning how to get there! Hope to see you there!

If you’re interested in getting involved with us and help support our band program, this meeting is the perfect opportunity to get plugged in! Someone will be at the back entrance gate on SE 28th just before 6:30 pm to let you in. 

We will be electing new board members for the 2026-27 school year. Open positions and candidates to fill them are:
President: Kris Carlson
Vice President: Sue Ledgerwood
Secretary: Tayler Kim

We will also elect other board members, and the full slate up for election will be shared at the meeting.

The meeting is open to everyone who wants to attend. We’d love to see you there and talk to you more about joining Friends of Cleveland Bands!

 Providence Bridge Pedal, August 9th: We are still on the hunt for several band students to volunteer for assist with the bridge pedal. More details will be coming, as this event doesn’t take place until August. Providence makes a generous donation to our band program in exchange for this volunteering, and you get to see a beautiful sunrise over the Willamette River! If you are interested email volunteer.coordinator@clevelandbandspdx.com

A group of PPS music families and educators has launched a petition asking the district to address unintended impacts of new state graduation requirements (SB3) on student musicians—particularly for the Class of 2027. While the added Financial Literacy and College & Career Readiness credits are important, they may limit some students’ ability to continue in year-long music programs during their senior year. The petition urges PPS to consider flexible solutions so students don’t have to choose between graduation requirements and completing their music pathway.

The Friends of Cleveland Band board has added our signatures in support of this effort, and we encourage our band community to review the petition and consider adding your name as well. Your voice can help highlight the importance of protecting access to music education for our students.

Sign the petition here

If you desire to have a school instrument over the summer, please complete the form linked below.

It is important to note that there must be a plan of consistent usage associated with taking an instrument for the summer. If we have more requests for an instrument than our inventory allows, I do not want an instrument to sit idle in someone’s home, while another student would be making good use of it.

Please keep this in mind when filling out the form.

SUMMER INSTRUMENT REQUEST FORM