If you liked that one...
Since the District appears to regard 6-12 schools as a positive innovation, and since the District needs middle school space in Southeast Seattle, and since the District has all of that empty space at Rainier Beach High School, I wonder how long it will take before someone comes up with the bright idea of putting 540 (3 x 180)middle school students into the available space at RBHS and calling it a 6-12 pathway?
Comments
The district - in its awkward way - did try to create some 6-12 space at RBHS with TAF. But you saw how that turned out.
Still, if they think 6-12 is the way to go, their experimenting could start immediately at RBHS, no waiting for Denny/Sealth to get built.
I hear that Mercer is full. And if Aki Kurose has available space, then why does it have portables?
Will there still be available space in the southend when the southend students now in northend schools come back to the southend?
There are hundreds of southend students riding yellow buses to McClure and Hamilton, as well as Meany and Washington. The new transportation plan - and increased demand for seats in those schools - will return those students to the southend, where there isn't enough room for them.
Of course, it all depends on who you talk to and, in a lot of cases, what decisions they are trying to defend or promote. the amount of available space at a school can magically shrink and grow depending on the issue and the argument.
Of course, one issue here that I would remind people about is set-aside seats for programs. I doubt if there are any SE kids coming north for Spectrum (but yes for APP at Washington). Special Ed assignments are processed separately from general ed. Those students can choose ANY school's Special Ed that fits their need (and get transportation, though that may be ending soon).
I know that there are a number of SE students on yellow buses up to Roosevelt that are there because of open Special Ed seats. People had wondered for a long time how south end students were still getting up to north end schools given how tight enrollment is. That is the likely answer. I was told recently that yellow bus service will end, probably with school year 2009-2010, and so those students, if they still wanted a north end school, would have to use Metro (hard to do).
6-12 schools for most schools South of the ship canal and none for the North end.
Wait do we have any data that show this configuration works for urban schools of this size?
Never mind the SPS has never needed any data before for much of anything.
Don't forget the paperwork when closing schools.
Blunder on.