Outdoor School Funding Update
October 30, 2025
Recently we received information that could lead to further cuts for Outdoor School for this current school year and the following year. The Legislative Fiscal Office and the Governor have requested information from all state agencies about how an across-the-board 5% budget cut would affect programs.
The Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC) is responsible for all university funding, including Outdoor School funding. HECC drafted a proposal to Oregon State University that would further reduce Outdoor School by 12.78%.
We have been told that this is a top-down exercise and is currently hypothetical. That said, additional cuts to Outdoor School funding are unacceptable. Given the previous drastic 20% cut, Outdoor School should be spared from further cuts. In fact, we will be requesting an additional $6 million allocation for Outdoor School to restore funding for the 2026-27 school year.
Please help us prepare so that we may share information with legislators at the best possible time.
Our call to action: We have been collecting your stories of impact. Thank you! Based on these new developments, we need your additional help now.
Please send a letter or email directly to Friends of Outdoor School outlining the impact of the existing 20% cut to your Outdoor School program. How is the Outdoor School funding cut affecting you and your students? Are your schools postponing or eliminating their Outdoor School experience? Have you had to cut back on staffing or reduce work days for staff? How do these actions impact the students? Is your program shorter for students? Are there program activities you can no longer do with kids? Have your family outreach activities been affected? How might additional cuts further affect your Outdoor School programs?
Please send the letters no later than November 13th. We will personally deliver your letter to legislators and explain that Outdoor School has been funded significantly lower than what voters intended with Measure 99. Your first-hand stories are critical in demonstrating the effects of budget cuts on Outdoor School. The more stories we receive from families, school districts, programs, and sites, the more likely we will be able to restore funding and prevent further cuts.
We are partnering with Oregon State University Extension Service Outdoor School to collect stories from Outdoor School champions like you. Your story will help us educate decision-makers about the benefits of Outdoor School and what funding cuts mean to students and families.
ACTION: Please share your story of Outdoor School, including explaining how Outdoor School funding cuts are affect you, your family, and your community.
Oregon camps are vital to providing inspiring natural locations for tens of thousands of Oregon students to attend Outdoor School. Friends of Outdoor School and camps throughout Oregon are working together to communicate the impacts of state Outdoor School budget cuts on camps.
ACTION: Please complete this form to share how Outdoor School funding cuts are impacting your ability to participate in your favorite camp.
FACTS:
In 2016, Oregon voters overwhelmingly dedicated 4% of Lottery funds via Measure 99 to work toward sending every Oregon student to a week of Outdoor School.
Over $51.5 million was provided to school districts during the 2023-2025 biennium to support student attendance at Outdoor School.
OSU Extension worked with the Legislature in 2024 to spend down the COVID-era carryover for programming, freeing 2023-2025 allocated resources for urgent state needs while achieving voter-intended funding levels.
Providing only $43.2 million to school districts for the 2025-2027 biennium is a cut to Outdoor School funding, and 20% below what voters approved.
Increasingly, Oregon students are attending Outdoor School, and requests for funding from 2025 to 2027 are expected to surpass the 4% allocation intended by voters.
Find more detailed information here: https://oregonstate.app.box.com/s/ekxkchq8qpa8q108vy92fcqdodynpjjd
This cut is already having a very real impact on Oregon students and the many adults working together to make Outdoor School happen for the kids. Together, with respectful yet assertive facts, we can correct this mistake. Thank you for helping to make Outdoor School possible for the kids!
For the kids!,
Kim & Dan
KEY INFORMATION:
Oregon State University Extension Service Outdoor School:
Important financial and impact information directly from Oregon State University Extension Service Outdoor School can be found here and will be updated regularly.
What’s happened so far:
September 10th: Fall State of Outdoor School webinar. Listen here.
July 24th: Oregon State University Extension Service Outdoor School announced funding decisions to date and explained next steps. Details are here.
June 23rd: The Oregon Legislature approved a 20% cut to Outdoor School funding despite voters overwhelmingly supporting Measure 99 designating 4% of state lottery funds to Outdoor School.
June 16th: The Senate approved a bill including a $12 million cut to Outdoor School funding from current service levels.
June 6th: The Oregon Joint Committee on Ways and Means voted to pass a budget that cuts Outdoor School funding by $12 million. Watch for yourself- the work session on SB 5525 begins at 1:22.
June 2nd: The Oregon Joint Committee on Ways and Means subcommittee on Education passed a budget that cuts Outdoor School funding by $12 million. Watch for yourself.
Key points:
The state is in a very difficult budget environment
Oregon voters overwhelmingly passed Ballot Measure 99 in 2016
Outdoor School is important for Oregon kids!
We seek to restore the funding that was cut in July
Our Strategy:
October tours of Outdoor School for legislators
Briefings with key legislators this fall and early winter
February 2026 legislative session: request funding restoration for 2026-27
Share stories and data about the impact of the reduced budget for students, schools/districts, and Outdoor School sites and providers
Targeted advocacy in the coming months
Training in January for advocates
Email dan@friendsofoutdoorschool.org if you are interested