tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post1062687794593285456..comments2024-03-29T02:41:52.718-07:00Comments on Seattle Schools Community Forum: Short and Sweet - What Will Seattle Schools Do with the McCleary Dollars?Melissa Westbrookhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-44647941422330295182021-02-01T09:06:02.613-08:002021-02-01T09:06:02.613-08:00Claire Foy The Girl the Spider’s Web Jacket newly ...<a href="https://www.getmyleather.com/product/the-girl-in-the-spiders-web-claire-foy-jacket/" rel="nofollow">Claire Foy The Girl the Spider’s Web Jacket</a> newly stock has arrived and can be availed off from online web store named the getmyleatherAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-79232146048800022522015-05-05T21:38:47.900-07:002015-05-05T21:38:47.900-07:00Perhaps the imbalance in cost-of-living generated ...Perhaps the imbalance in cost-of-living generated the decision to give us money but we still had to show that we earned it? Go figure.nnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-25800391508202847012015-05-05T21:37:16.723-07:002015-05-05T21:37:16.723-07:00Thanks Dan. The only piece of information I can a...Thanks Dan. The only piece of information I can add is that at one time in the late nineties I think, those of us in elementary were required to record our extra hours to show we had earned our TRI money in case we were audited. Of course we never were and had we been, I'm not sure most of us were keeping track although our voluminous after-hours were often logged at the school. <br /><br />Now TRI seems to be connected with District-imposed after-hours work called TRI days. I think that's when some of your PD gets done, Melissa. Honestly, I'd just like some planning time in the classroom. I think that is the biggest desire on the part of most elementary teachers - time to plan.nnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-80026233115847160162015-05-05T11:40:37.154-07:002015-05-05T11:40:37.154-07:00The state could require funds to be spent on parti...The state could require funds to be spent on particular items. Initiative 1351 did this - the money would only be allocated to districts that actually hired additional certificated teachers. (Where building capacity doesn't allow more classrooms, they can be hired to support classroom teachers for example as math or reading specialists.)Lynnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-3488579503901177812015-05-05T09:53:56.523-07:002015-05-05T09:53:56.523-07:00Techymom,
The state does allocate dollars for cou...Techymom,<br /><br />The state does allocate dollars for counselors, but the dollars wouldn't support full time counselors in every school.<br /><br />We're looking at local control issues. The state budgets for expenditures, but the district is free to spend the dollars as they see fit. Last check, the state provides dollars for family outreach, but the district's expenditures go beyond state allocation.<br /><br />The state isn't paying for 6 periods of high school per day and the state's capital funding formula hasn't been updated since 1985. <br /><br />Watchingnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-65599235766255607902015-05-05T08:24:55.545-07:002015-05-05T08:24:55.545-07:00I would not think the state could specify anything...I would not think the state could specify anything districts could do with more per student allotment dollars but I just don't know.<br /><br />Melissa Westbrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-56875946666765099432015-05-05T08:01:11.455-07:002015-05-05T08:01:11.455-07:00About TRI money...
For a long time there was no s...About TRI money...<br /><br />For a long time there was no statewide teachers salary schedule and the larger districts generally paid significantly higher wages than the small ones. The teachers salary schedule was phased in around 1980 over about 3 years. During this time higher paying districts did not raise contracted salary schedule while lower paying ones caught up with raises to salary schedule.<br /><br />This created a situation where it became a better deal to teach in the small (lower cost of living) districts than the large (higher cost of living) districts.<br /><br />TRI was eventually put in place to give high cost of living districts a way to raise salaries above the state salary schedule.<br /><br />TRI monies came out of district funds not from the state.<br /><br />By 2000 in Western WA the Nisqually river was a TRI dividing line with nearly every district in Pierce and King counties paying for TRI hours and none in Thurston County paying TRI.<br /><br />Even with TRI if a 2-parent one earner large family compared the situation, the smaller non-Tri districts in Eastern WA were much more affordable than most TRI Western WA districts primarily because of housing costs.<br /><br />Difference recently between top of salary schedule jobs exceeds $20,000 per annum between some TRI districts and state salary schedule districts.<br /><br />The above is from memory and may have errors. If someone knows better please correct.<br /><br /> dan dempseyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15536720661510933983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-18236079008711743662015-05-05T07:41:15.105-07:002015-05-05T07:41:15.105-07:00I wonder... Could the state allocate the money in ...I wonder... Could the state allocate the money in ways that soul prevent it getting sucked into strategic initiatives? For example, allocate $X million for 7 high school periods, $Y million for elementary counselors, $Z million to lengthen the school day by 30 minutes and increase teacher pay accordingly, $Q million for playground monitors, etc.?TechyMomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04650916001250022778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-91937665145433417922015-05-04T22:06:14.672-07:002015-05-04T22:06:14.672-07:00This thread has been an awesome read. I always agr...This thread has been an awesome read. I always agree with Dan. As for levy swaps, thanks for clarification. And the lists of needs and wants, right on. <br /><br />You think bureaucrats in Olympia will rewrite the tax code? Or that red counties will ever give up the gravy train? Ain't going to happen. <br /><br />So we must do what we can: Get the money out of our own local bureaucracy. We have a lot better chance of doing that than anything else I can think of. And if we lose an overpaid mentally-retired superintendent, so be it. Wouldn't it be nice if he took a gang of other bureaucrats with him? <br /><br />And I, too, would rather see that marijuana money go to mental health. <br /><br />I know, not going to happen. But I can dream, can't I?<br /><br /><br />One more question for you smart people: I read once on this blog that TRI money was to equalize pay E WA and W WA. I always thought TRI was to pay us for all the extra hours we put in. Can anyone clarify what generates TRI money? Does E WA get TRI money? I found their base pay on line and it is commensurate with my base pay. Base does not include TRI. There ought to be compensation for those of us living in high-cost-of-living areas. Taxes on my home went up over $100 a month for next year. That's hard on a single income. <br /><br />Thom Hartmann doesn't believe in property taxes. He says that private property is a Constitutional right. As long as we have property taxes, the government actually owns our property because they can take our property if we fail to pay them. Between the government, the banks, and Comcast, you can't win these days.nnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-18751508406612662352015-05-04T20:26:52.994-07:002015-05-04T20:26:52.994-07:00The graduation requirement has been three math cre...The graduation requirement has been three math credits (including Algebra and Geometry) plus either the Algebra or Geometry EOC exam.Lynnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-85061019564136215822015-05-04T19:34:59.019-07:002015-05-04T19:34:59.019-07:00Looking at HB 2214,
"Algebra I EOC
Or
Geometr...Looking at HB 2214,<br />"Algebra I EOC<br />Or<br />Geometry EOC<br />Or<br />11th Grade<br />Mathematics (SBAC)"<br /><br />Is that even right? I thought everyone had to pass Algebra and Geometry.<br />-NNNCrAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-21616586317422941082015-05-04T19:17:34.683-07:002015-05-04T19:17:34.683-07:00When income tax is proposed, it is always with a p...When income tax is proposed, it is always with a proposal for lowering other taxes, in particular our regressive sales tax system. That's not a sigh, oh well, wish we could do it but that means it will never happen problem, the idea that they would have to reform the tax system. This is what serious people do when they propose an income tax. This last one proposed lowering the sales tax to 5%. Almost every other state in the nation has an income tax, and those states are also run by the same sorts of wasteful politicians we have here. The difference is lower middle class families get less hammered by a regressive revenue stream for the state when it needs more money, and the revenue stream is much more stable.<br /><br />I think some of the choices in Voter's list are Sophie's choices. Our city has the second highest median income in the country. After San Jose. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/03/23/middle-class-varies-from-30000-in-detroit-to-100000-in-san-francisco/ Parklets should not be out of reach. To the extent they are we are doing it wrong.<br /><br />-sleeperAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-8468135785016416192015-05-04T17:29:38.560-07:002015-05-04T17:29:38.560-07:00My thoughts on Marijuana dollars and associated ta...My thoughts on Marijuana dollars and associated taxes.<br /><br />Back in the day, Norm Stamper argued for the legalization of marijuana to drive down or eliminate illegal drug sales. The Economist magazine took a similar stance as Norm Stamper. Our politicians are currently taxing "legal" weed at such a high rate that the black market is unaffected. <br /><br />Before US income tax, the Feds relied on Alcohol taxes to fund a large portion of government. When income tax came in then Prohibition was possible as the alcohol taxes were not as important.<br /><br />I would support a state income tax.... if so many other taxes could be reduced or eliminated.<br /><br />#1 Lower the weed tax ... to levels that will eliminate illegal sales. Let folks grow their own untaxed weed.<br /><br />-- Note I am not a user of marijuana and do not intend to start.<br /><br />dan dempseyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15536720661510933983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-43448758376948637262015-05-04T16:11:25.874-07:002015-05-04T16:11:25.874-07:00Yes, Sally Clark left the City Council and got a j...Yes, Sally Clark left the City Council and got a job at the UW for $150K per year plus benefits.<br /><br />The mayor will also be asking Seattle voters to fund police. Of course, he leaves public safety for last and BERTHA sits in a giant hole costing millions.Morenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-77640755256279877712015-05-04T15:34:18.423-07:002015-05-04T15:34:18.423-07:00Voter, agreed.
As I have written previously, we...Voter, agreed. <br /><br />As I have written previously, we have the Mayor's eye-popping $900M transportation levy coming in November as well as Constantine's more modes $65M(?) birth to 5 initiative.<br /><br />I'm with you. I agree these are good things but is the money going to the best places? Is Constantine's initiative going to compete or overlap or compliment the City's new preschool venture?<br /><br />I don't want to just blindly vote yes or encourage anyone else to unless I clearly understand the facts.Melissa Westbrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-34567048275857779652015-05-04T15:04:08.847-07:002015-05-04T15:04:08.847-07:00No worries sleeper. My 2nd paragraph, which was un...No worries sleeper. My 2nd paragraph, which was unclear, wasn't aimed at you, but the general readers. I don't have a thing against state income tax. But I'm practical. To pass this even among the usual democrats, this state needs to redo its tax structure alongside local government's. You need to offset income tax with lower sales tax, property tax, utility taxes, gas tax, and add transparency, efficiency and accountability-especially pertaining to what get covered from general budget vs. dollars from levies/referendum.<br /><br />Just think of all the levies we passed. Did I want Family & Ed levy to go for an experiment preK program vs. filling the wish list of CCA and wall mart? I prefer the latter. I would like our preK teachers and workers be better paid and trained. That would have been a better investment and covered more children. And less redundancy. <br /><br />How about the last Parks & Rec levy (not the taxing Parks district) which went to buying and building small parklets -some in places where locals didn't want or need. But nothing went to maintenance and renovationof of pre-existing parks and facilities. So next time you use Golden Garden or Seward Park dark, falling apart, and smelly bathrooms, ask yourselves why? Or laying streetcar or Sound transit tracks with bike lanes and cars. How brilliant is that? Great for ambulance chasers.<br /><br />I just don't think Seattle city council and city hall want to give up their coziness with big developers and billionaires' venture anymore than hardcore red counties are going to give up their guns for more taxes;) For the career politicians and civil servants, there's too much too lose. Think of the prestige, fulfilled ambition, power, FT employment even if they have to switch title every few years. Hey maybe a governorship, a senate seat, a cushy job at UW or the Port or SPS or more money for their non-profits. They don't even have to do their job well because it's clear there's no institutional accountability. Do you have to wonder why SPS leadership is the way it is.<br /><br />I believe in taxation. But it's time to ask hard questions at where the money is going and is it being spent wisely. (Dan tried to do that.)There's a lot of cronyism in our fair city, not just among ed reformers. Is it a wonder they flock together? <br /><br />Voter Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-48295700514743379152015-05-04T13:54:30.436-07:002015-05-04T13:54:30.436-07:00To the ed reformers, governance means them telling...To the ed reformers, governance means them telling everybody what to do and everybody doing it.Patrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16260807460417787614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-45819943860753357362015-05-04T13:50:59.568-07:002015-05-04T13:50:59.568-07:00Dan, I am surely not for Common Core or SBAC. But...Dan, I am surely not for Common Core or SBAC. But if they ARE being used, then teachers need the support for them.<br /><br />Yes, I, too, wonder about the costs for whoever is facilitating the retreat this Saturday.Melissa Westbrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-53005627313369010152015-05-04T13:48:23.478-07:002015-05-04T13:48:23.478-07:00Charter schools are REALLY wanting access to Seatt...Charter schools are REALLY wanting access to Seattle's levy dollars, which make up 25% of our funding. It is interesting to consider the impact of a levy swap on charter schools in Seattle. <br /><br />The Supreme Court hasn't ruled whether or not charter schools are Constitutional, but the movement and funding are plowing forward.<br /><br />I'd also like to know the costs of Carr's retreat.<br /><br />Olympia is fighting over a couple hundred million dollars generated by marijuana sales. The Republicans want the funding to go into education and the dems want those dollars in mental health. When marijuana was legalized the dollars were intended to go into mental health.<br /><br />Frankly, I'd prefer marijuana dollars to go to mental health. Mental health and poor educational outcomes are connected. Besides the education system is great at wasteful spending.<br /><br />...AND we still have Murray/ Burgess and others thinking we can have prek for All and fund prek teachers on scale with K-12. Good luck.Watchingnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-46948903914623030762015-05-04T12:19:43.390-07:002015-05-04T12:19:43.390-07:00Re: the Board Retreat
Sherry Carr finally gets to...Re: the Board Retreat<br /><br />Sherry Carr finally gets to be president of the school board, and THIS is her legacy: board training on governance. What a &^%$%$#@! waste! mirmac1https://www.blogger.com/profile/10183460709639638172noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-39120990065582880262015-05-04T12:06:25.312-07:002015-05-04T12:06:25.312-07:00I know where we are now, Voter, and find equalizat...I know where we are now, Voter, and find equalization fairer than the proposal for levy swap, though what I was talking about is the insufficiency of both as a substitute for income tax. The cap is the big problem, which is also proposed in PTA money pooling schemes. I think where we are now has also increased to us reaching the end of our taxing ability too quickly, but that is a separate point.<br /><br />Respectfully, disagreeing with you slightly is not quite the same as not being informed.<br /><br />-sleeperAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-16855054248816432532015-05-04T11:31:06.593-07:002015-05-04T11:31:06.593-07:00Wait, no! Not give the teachers the support they n...Wait, no! Not give the teachers the support they need. Give the STUDENTS the support they need. What do they really need, SBAC prep? Nope. How much professional development does a teacher need for special education, how often, what kind? I think answering those questions is why most professional development has failed so far. Including and supporting a child with physical disabilities is very different than visual, cognitive, speech, behavioral, and then dyslexia, dysgraphia, etc and with any of those, there can be a wide spectrum from mild to severe. Most teachers will not come across each type, each year, but also shouldn't really need retraining every year. We've looked at a lot of schools and the difference in how it looked like my kid would be included and supported had little to nothing to do with training and everything to do with attitude and using common sense vs worrying about $ and minutes.<br /><br />Let's give kids IAs in lower grades - in each classroom since we clearly have no room to do lower class sizes. Let's make sure schools have counselors. Let's make sure schools have nurses (by the way, making sure that some kids with special needs/504s can actually attend their local school instead of being sent off elsewhere). Let's make sure schools have text books, art/music in each school and PE daily in the lower grades. Let's also make sure high school gets a 7 period day so that kids can explore a variety of areas AND pursue education across English, math, science, social studies and a foreign language plus the mandatory extras. They'll be better prepared for college and life.<br /><br />NE ParentAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-28791868998889626462015-05-04T11:28:21.279-07:002015-05-04T11:28:21.279-07:00Sleeper, we are already doing that with current le...Sleeper, we are already doing that with current levy equalization. Rich school districts already send their state taxes to poorer districts. Rich districts can offset that "generosity" by voting for local school levies to fund local schools. Poorer districts (or anti tax districts)can't generate enough dollars or don't have the votes to pass their local levy (takes 60% to pass). <br /><br />It's complicated and the process and info not made transparent (deliberately). But you need to research and inform yourselves just as you would about math curriculum or sleep benefits for teens. And I don't mean just over school funding, but about all the taxes you pay and what comes out of city hall and city council. There's a lot of waste as well. But that's another story. <br /><br />Voter<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-46200958906960047532015-05-04T11:15:26.904-07:002015-05-04T11:15:26.904-07:00What's the total taxable property value in WA?...What's the total taxable property value in WA? 1 Trillion? Anyone know?<br /><br />If the 1351 goes through, then I would estimate the state has to build 4,000 new classrooms, worth about 4 Billion dollars. Whether the districts vote to pay for them is another matter. I guess that is constitutionally a district responsibility to house them and not the states. <br /><br />Still that will take a lot of local levy money to put a roof over the head of 1351, so a state property tax in addition to that to pay salaries?<br /><br />-NNNCrAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-51645886716155831412015-05-04T11:02:38.584-07:002015-05-04T11:02:38.584-07:00I find the idea of a levy swap plan so frustrating...I find the idea of a levy swap plan so frustrating. I love the idea of taxing the rich to give to the poor, but I mean the literal rich. Not a sort of relatively wealthy urban school district with the extra burden of state underfunding and special affects of urban poverty to deal with to give to sometimes relatively poor rural districts. I agree we are reaching an inflection point in Seattle's ability to tax itself.<br /><br />Actual rich people, people who have benefited more from the system as is and so should pay in more. Income tax. The only way we will ever solve this is an income tax. But I admit I am a little surprised not to see support for levy swaps here. It's the same idea as pooling pta money, isn't it? Which I'm also against, and for slightly similar reasons- what we actually need is not robbing Peter to pay Paul in terms of strapped school versus slightly less strapped school, but actual funding from the state so that ptas go back to paying for after school underwater basketweaving club instead of MATH. And I also don't think the dollars will be there with pooling- either in the case of ptas (people's donation choices will change, because right now they are motivated to donate to their local school for a need they see- they will not donate to an abstract fund for other schools, any more than they do now) or cities (people will vote to help their citizens, but not generally to just send money out to neighboring districts.).<br /><br />-sleeperAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com