Seattle Schools Community Forum

Readers, I ask you - what do you want to see President Topp try to focus the Board on? Less of X and more of Y?  Topp is not a member of the Gang of Four - Hersey, Rankin, Briggs and Sarju - so I'm hoping she will have her own ideas. One of those new ideas she has expressed is for the district to market itself to raise enrollment and attract parents across the spectrum. What would I like to see?  - Again, for the hundredth time, accountability for public dollars . For example, I would like to see a complete list of consultants, who they are, what they are hired for, how long have they been contracting with the district, etc.  The district likes to tout that Central is full of experts. In tough times, you cut the fat and use your own people. It can be done. - For a district that claims to care about safety , there is a remarkable lack of action.  And it's not safety in the abstract, now is it? Two murders in two years at two different high schools? Sexual assault by s...

I have warned you about the growing numbers of states that have passed school voucher laws. There is a bill coming to the Legislature for school vouchers. Here's the story from the Tri-Cities: Washington state Rep. Travis Couture, R-Allyn, has introduced legislation to create schola rships for students via Education Savings Accounts, commonly called ESAs.   House Bill 1140, co-sponsored by Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, would specifically fund ESAs for low-income students, special needs families and students trapped in failing schools. “We’ve got a huge problem, and it’s not like having ESAs or other choices will solve that overnight, but we need to have competition in the system,” Couture noted. That last category is so vague you could drive a Mack truck through it. As for "special-needs" students, I'd have to see more specifics to understand exactly who Rep. Courture means. And competition? We see how our healthcare system has benefited from competition. According to...

Great news from the SPS website: Cleveland (2A) and Lincoln (4A) high school’s volleyball teams were awarded the prestigious distinction of Academic State Champions in girls volleyball for the 2024 season by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA).  These honors, presented as part of the Gesa Credit Union Scholastic Awards Program, recognize the teams for maintaining exceptional academic standards while excelling in their athletic endeavors. The teams had the highest-grade point average of any team in Washington state in their division. To qualify for Academic State Champion, the teams’ GPAs were calculated by including all students who participated in the sport or activity at the varsity level. The volleyball teams at both schools exceeded the GPA requirements for this distinction, with an average GPA above 3.50.   Great job, ladies! School Board They are having their Board Retreat today, Saturday, Jan. 11th. I had requested the agenda, never got it and...

I was looking at the list of offerings at  Parks and Rec Community Centers  and saw listings like these: - Late Night Rec for Teens at Bitter Lake, Garfield, Meadowbrook, Rainier, South Park @Concord Elementary School, Southwest, Van Asselt - Teen volunteers reading to toddlers at Garfield CC - After-school program for teens at Green Lake CC as well as a Swim/Gym time for teens on Friday nights - Jefferson CC - After-school hangout, Teen Chef and gardening,  - Lake City CC -Mindfulness for Middle Schoolers - Magnuson CC - After-School Movie Night on Mondays, After-School Painting, After-School Academic Time, After-School Teen Council, After-School Board Games - Meadowbrook CC - Board Games - Queen Anne CC - Teen Room M-F after school (16+) - Rainier Beach CC - Detective Cookie's Chess Club on Saturdays, Drop-In Teen Basketball Thursdays, Pre-Teen and Teen Cooking - Ravenna-Eckstein CC - Baking Club, Chess Club, Cooking Club, Quiet Time, Indoor Soccer, Teen Playspace Games...

From the Seattle Times : Police have arrested a City Year Seattle program manager, who oversaw the initiative’s staff at two Seattle schools, on allegations of rape of a child in the second degree.   The incident allegedly occurred off-campus in late December. The Seattle Police Department officers arrested program manager Gregory Emmanuel Ward, who worked with students at South Shore PreK-8 and Aki Kurose Middle School, on Tuesday. King County prosecutors charged Ward, 46, on Monday with second-degree rape of a child and communication with a minor for immoral purposes and a judge set bail at $250,000. The child is a Seattle Public Schools student, the district confirmed. The district said the program manager had allegedly “communicated with a minor for immoral purposes via text message.” The Times' story does not explain HOW this all came to light. The manager has been fired by City Year. He also is banned from all SPS schools and has no further access to student info. I hope...