Why Does SPS News and Calendars Never Have Any?

I try to check in with the News and Calendars section at SPS every day. Oh call me crazy but I just think, "Golly, there might be some news there I can use or even better, my readers." Usually, major disappointment. So is there really so little going on at SPS? Nope, it's just a failure of the SPS Communications department. Let's look at the content that is there right now.

- old story about Transition Plan from Jan. 20th
- Open houses - still good information but no links and no mention of tours
- levies - okay, still topical
- STEM Open House...on Jan. 23rd. Way down within this topic is information about Open Enrollment. Not much help to those who would skip that topic.
- Memorial Stadium meeting on Feb. 2nd - guess what? I actually missed that one. Would have gone to that meeting
- National Board Certification - good stuff but still, a little old
- some info on district-wide performance management. Not really helpful because (1) the teachers are going to negotiate a contract which might make some of this moot and (2) they've promised this stuff before and it never appeared
- and a few other very old stories

They actually pay people in this district to keep parents and the public up-to-date. And yet, no mention of the court case that could be the biggest thing to hit public education in this state in decades. No mention that the district has to review the high school math adoption. No reassuring words about safety in our schools despite several recent cases of violence in various schools that even involved teachers. How are these people so out of touch?

Anyway, FYI Sherry Carr has her community meeting tomorrow from 8:30-10:00 am at the Greenwood Neighborhood Service Center, 8515 Greenwood Ave. N. (You have to find this information at the Board calendar because why put it on the District calendar.) If I felt like getting up early, I'd ask her how it feels to have your reviewing abilities slammed by a judge. Or, more politely, what happens next (or what did district staff tell you will happen next)?

Comments

Unknown said…
The enrollment web pages are worse!! I have sent emails and told someone from the enrollment office about it weeks ago. You'd think they could at least get rid of the old (2009-2010)info to help avoid confusion.
North End Mom said…
Peter Maier will also be holding a community meeting tomorrow:

10:30am to Noon on Saturday, February 13, 2010 - at Bethany Community Church located at 1156 80th Street, in the Auditorium.
Well, actually that would be next Saturday, the 13th.
Unknown said…
I talked to Michael DeBell about the lack of communication from the District about the change in transportation grandfathering two weeks ago at the Board meeting.

He said that they were running way short of staff in the communications department, something like 1 and a bit FTEs instead of 4 FTEs. I don't know if that has been fixed in the meantime. He said part of the problem was 2 people leaving the office. I don't know if the hiring freeze means that those positions won't be filled.

Eric
Moose said…
Off topic (but still news), the Queen Anne News is reporting that Montessori is not necessarily a done deal for the new Queen Anne Elementary: http://www.queenannenews.com/main.asp?SectionID=5&SubSectionID=5&ArticleID=29801
I know they lost one member of the Communications team as well as a death in the family for the head of Communications. I appreciate that issue but if the one thing they do is keep the News and Calendars section updated, that would be enough.
SolvayGirl said…
Don't they have a gazillion people on staff? Can't they move some people into Communications? Communications is what I do for a living. Lack of it in any business can cause tremendous problems in every other aspect of the business or entity's capability to function properly and efficiently.

I am so tired of Staff making excuses as to why they can't do things, yet they are the most bloated and, at least at some levels, highly paid staff in the region.
ParentofThree said…
Simple solution:

Robocall

If MGJ has the time to call about the levies, she has time to call about transportation.

DeBell is way off on this one. A bit scary in terms of the kind of leadership we need right now. He should be telling parents I have directed the MGJ to get the communication out by X day. Not, sob sob they have no staff.
Charlie Mas said…
Thank you, ParentOfThree.

We hear Board candidates talk about providing leadership all the time, but all I have ever seen them do is follow and support the superintedent without providing any leadership or direction.

When they run for re-election - and they will - let's be sure to ask them for specific examples of their leadership and let's ask them to describe how they took a leadership role on the math textbook adoption, on curricular alignment, on community engagement, on the Denny/Sealth co-location, on the Garfield renovation, on the Ingraham addition, on various other litigation, on capacity management, on closures, on openings, and on the new student assignment plan.

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