Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore specific social, economic, and curricular events between 1990 and 2015 and how those events might have affected public school music education in Portland, Oregon. Using historical case study methodology, I examined major tax policy events, curricular reform, educational standards, and the relationship between the community of Portland and the public school system over the historical time span. Interviews were conducted with ten former and current teachers in the district, and data were coded and triangulated according to available historical archives. Codes and categories from the analysis were organized by event type (financial, policy, and curricular) and the narrative was ordered chronologically. The case was also analyzed for transferable implications. Emergent themes centered around the issue of stakeholder choice, and how choices by different stakeholder groups affected the equity of access and quality of music instruction in Portland Public Schools.