But in Portland, patience wore thin.

“The very best climate scientists in the world tell us that we have 11 years to fundamentally transform all aspects of society to adequately address our current climate emergency,” Mr. Swinehart, the Lincoln High teacher, said in his letter to the superintendent. “Our students are being denied the climate-justice curriculum they deserve.”

[Not all students are on board with climate change education.]

The superintendent, Guadalupe Guerrero, met with student activists early last month. He committed to carrying out the resolution, which passed the year before he took office in 2017, and acknowledged that there had been “a disconnect” and “that the student voice has not been placed in the center.”

Weeks later, the students scored a crucial victory: On May 28, the school board allocated $200,000 to climate-justice education for the coming school year. The money would be used to hire a full-time coordinator, further integrate climate justice units into social studies and science curriculums and establish a separate course in each high school. (Previously, Mr. Swinehart said, only about $35,000 per year had been allocated since the resolution passed.)

When asked in an interview why the district had taken as long as it did, Mr. Guerrero said, “I can’t speak to why a prior administration didn’t move on this resolution.” But he was optimistic, and a school board official said they expected the separate course offering to be in all high schools in the 2020-21 school year.