Wednesday Open Thread

I've interviewed 7 of the top 8 mayoral candidates.  Who is up and who is down seems to vary.  I just heard on KUOW that a survey puts former mayor Mike McGinn at the top, following by Jenny Durkan and Bob Hasegawa.  At last night's 43rd Dems endorsement meeting, Jessyn Farrell came out on top (by a wide margin) and Jenny Durkan is tops in fund-raising.

I'll be publishing their answers and my thoughts on the race from the perspective of public education but I thought I'd throw out a couple of questions to survey my readership.


Who is the mayoral candidate that I didn't interview?

Which candidates do you think are the most likely to lean towards more mayoral control of SPS?

From, what you know on your own, which candidates do you think would be the best for public education in Seattle?

The Legislature is rapidly moving towards a third session. If a budget is not done by June 30th, the state will likely go into a partial shutdown.  That may mean things like your reservation at a state park gets canceled as parks will be the easiest state areas to shut down.   Meanwhile it's projected the state will be bringing in many more hundreds of millions as the economy booms and unemployment has dropped to a record low of 4.5%. 

From SPS Twitter:

Congratulations to Teacher of the Year Award Winner Kirsten Jewett from View Ridge Elementary, nominated by her student Quinn!

What's on your mind?

Comments

Honk Honk said…
I don't think Bob Hasegawa can win. A lot of good views on many subjects, but completely nutty on transit.
Anonymous said…
Anyone know when the waitlists will actually see movement?!
Waitlister.
Anonymous said…
I just heard Lakeside has a campus in lower Queen Anne. They call it their downtown high school. No sports, just academics.

It is in the same location where the Center School began, near the Science Center. Interesting that they saw the same opportunity that SPS did years earlier.

Still need a bigger, comprehensive public high school for Q.A. and Magnolia. Lots of families here.

S parent
S parent, that's interesting. I had a post here about how I had read that Lakeside was considering a kind of "Lakeside lite" in the SE. I wonder if they changed their minds or will open yet another one.
I checked and here's the info on the new Lakeside location: https://www.lakesideschool.org/news-details/~post/micro-school-to-be-near-seattle-center-20170605

"- With full enrollment, The Downtown School will serve 160 students in grades 9-12.
- Tuition will be set at approximately $17,000 per year (Lakeside School's 2017-2018 tuition is $33,280).
- The curriculum will combine some of the best aspects of Lakeside School's high-quality academic program with special programs and features that are unique to the new school.
- The school will be separate from but affiliated with Lakeside, with a different educational model, admissions process, student-life program, and cost."

That is - for Lakeside - a very affordable cost. I suspect they will fill quickly.
Jet City mom said…


The private schools in this area are really expanding.
SAAS building yet another building, this time a vertical middle school.
The Northwest school even significantly expanded, outside of their vintage home.
Lakeside opening a new campus and Bush opened a new campus in Eastern Wa.


Eric B said…
Did the 8th mayoral candidate not want to talk with you, or did you not want to talk with them?
Anonymous said…
Why hasn't the Friday Memo been posted? There must be something really juicy in there.

Friday
Oh, I wanted to talk to this person but after three tries - both online and in-person - either she didn't want to talk to me or was just too busy. More on this to come.
Melinda said…
Nikkita is the best candidate for mayor and would provide the most appropiate support for SPS teachers, students and families. If you haven't had a chance to interview her, I hope that you will try again. She is an educator and has continued to work while campaigning.
Anonymous said…
Hmm. Cary Moon? You didn't mention her here.

-Pollyanna
Anonymous said…
Property records show Durkan and her partner, Dana Garvey, sold their 6,800-square-foot home in Seattle’s Windermere neighborhood, south of Magnuson Park, for $4.3 million on May 31.

They since have been renting in downtown Seattle at an undisclosed address.

You have got to be kidding me? How do public servants afford a $4.3 million dollar home?

I'm sure she will really CONNECT with the little people.

Only in Seattle

BigN
Anonymous said…
Looks to me like Durkan would be a better fit for Trump's cabinet than stumping for the poor folk of Seattle. I think the Democrats have some explaining to do on this one. She's the rich persons version of Sawant!

End PC
Anonymous said…
I look at Durkan and think Ed Murray v2, or continued. If we want to continue to build density while pushing low income housing to the outskirts where they have little access to the services they need, and sell of our souls to developers...then Durkan will deliver. $$$$

Brettler Place is in a beautiful location, but it's totally isolated. We should be building low income communities next to the University/Brooklyn light rail station where there is a community center and Safeway within a block or two, a food bank, planned parenthood, community health clinics and what will be a renovated YMCA, Cowan park and water access near Aqua Verde.

Plopping transitional housing out in a park where people have to walk over a mile to access food or services is a halfassed approach to serving the needs of these residents. It makes some people feel good because it is a nice area, but it's not very practical. Fort Lawton seems even more impractical, IMHO, and it's not my neighborhood so I'm not at all a NIMBY...just trying to point out the obvious.

Cohabitate
Anonymous said…
Holy Crap! The new Lakeside High School is where Seattle Waldorf High School was for many years. They moved to the Magnuson Campus because the Catholic Church that owns the property wanted the space for more homeless outreach. Looks like they were just looking for more money.

HP
Anonymous said…
Bullies and race and a little girl being tarketed. Shame.

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/06/fourth-grader-makes-heartbreaking-video-about-racist-classmates-calling-her-nutella-and-servant/

A 9-year-old girl in Bellevue, Washington posted a heartbreaking video on Facebook in which she described how in her fourth grade year, she has found out what it’s like to be the victim of racist bullying.

-McClureWatcher
Anonymous said…
Oops - targeted...

And, yet another reminder that whatever you post will follow you forever - heads up parents and students and teachers and all...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/yale-dean-june-chu-yelp-resigns_us_594a547ee4b0177d0b8ab4a0

A Yale University dean has left her position following outrage among students when insulting reviews on her personal Yelp account surfaced last month.

-McClureWatcher
Jet City mom said…
McClure watcher, I agree it is very sad story, but on the otherhand, how empowering it must feel to be able to make that video and get support from the community, as opposed to being ashamed and giving up after you go to school administration, which is what happened to me when I was assaulted by a gang on the grounds of my school.
Anonymous said…
Very said situation and I am very glad the parents made the bullying with apparent little to no consequence at the school public.

However, one critique as the article also seems to imply (by association with Trump election etc) the students who did the bullying were "white" in the article.

Ardmore Elementary is 28% white. The school is majority "students of color" including hispanic 34% and Indian and Asian students 22%, 16 % African American. The kids who did the bullying very likely may have been an ethnicity/race other than white.

-J
Anonymous said…
" ... the Catholic Church that owns the property wanted the space for more homeless outreach. Looks like they were just looking for more money."

FYI! Outreach isn't free.

Sped Staffer
Anonymous said…
To End PC.
"Looks to me like Durkan would be a better fit for Trump's cabinet than stumping for the poor folk of Seattle."
Say what? How did you arrive at that conclusion? Does one have to be low income to be able to represent all Seattle citizens?

To Only in Seattle
Public Employees (or, servants as you referred to us as) actually can't afford similar housing costs. For that matter, we can afford far, far less. But don't blame Jenny Durkan for her successes in private practice. Clearly she didn't make her fortune as an attorney general.

Sped Staffer
Anonymous said…
The school board's a hot mess of incompetence and special interests.

I like Durkan's desire to see more co-ordination with elected city officials.

S.T.

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday Open Thread

Why the Majority of the Board Needs to be Filled with New Faces

Who Is A. J. Crabill (and why should you care)?