FYI
UPDATE: For the Public Hearing on the Boundaries, each speaker will have 3 minutes so there will be only 40 speakers.
The new boundary maps will be released today. Here is the exact wording from the School Board meeting agenda:
"Map will be attached to this report, Tuesday afternoon, November 3rd"
Not sure if that means at noon, 1 p.m. or right before the Work Session starts at 4. I'll keep checking and update this thread if something comes up before the Work Session.
Also, to keep in mind for next week's Public Hearing on the SAP Boundaries:
At the public hearing scheduled for Monday, November 9, 6:00-8:00pm, you may sign up to testify at the public hearing starting Thursday, November 5, 8:00am, by e-mailing hearing@seattleschools.org or by calling (206) 252-0042.
In my experience, the Public Hearing has about 5 minutes of introductions. They are legally obligated to read an official statement and state which Board members are present.
The new boundary maps will be released today. Here is the exact wording from the School Board meeting agenda:
"Map will be attached to this report, Tuesday afternoon, November 3rd"
Not sure if that means at noon, 1 p.m. or right before the Work Session starts at 4. I'll keep checking and update this thread if something comes up before the Work Session.
Also, to keep in mind for next week's Public Hearing on the SAP Boundaries:
At the public hearing scheduled for Monday, November 9, 6:00-8:00pm, you may sign up to testify at the public hearing starting Thursday, November 5, 8:00am, by e-mailing hearing@seattleschools.org or by calling (206) 252-0042.
In my experience, the Public Hearing has about 5 minutes of introductions. They are legally obligated to read an official statement and state which Board members are present.
Comments
Don't see the maps yet.
ppt includes rationale for opening each of the 5 proposed facilities.
http://www.seattleschools.org/area/board/09-10agendas/110309agenda/nsappresentation.pdf
You said:
The policy referenced by seattle citizen, Policy C04.00, Alternative Courses of Study, is based on the recent state law on alternative education and there is a school built on this model: NOVA.
There is no reason that any school in the district, including those with elementary or middle school students, could not follow this model EXCEPT that it requires Board approval.
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Another reason this light bulb went on was I was in a conversation, it might have been with Harium Saturday, about how long it has been since SPS opened a new neighborhood school. And I thought, the new schools that have been started in recent history are alts/SJSIS/New School. I know any school is hard to open, but alts/"options" are the only successful model we've got. Can anyone think of others?
Perhaps with some organization, research, and a powerful presentation, coupled with community sypport, one might make a case and have it heard.
Heck, room in their for a K-8 AND an APP program.
But it does seem that if it were going to happen, given it's a contentious issue, it would be happening now and not after the upcoming boundary vote....
It also looks like, yes, I-5 marks the boundary for Salmon Bay's eastern edge. How ludicrous is that when even people from West Woodland can't get in?
But frankly, I can't figure out WHERE the boundaries are, really. Whoever did these maps did a lousy job, especially considering how easy it is to crank out a map these days using GIS.
1) maps don't always match the tool, or each other; check a few sources (I'm trusting the lookup tool for now).
2) Unbelievably, when they made the McDonald region smaller, Eckstein got bigger - they moved Green Lake a few blocks south. (We just got redistricted from McDonald/Hamilton to Green Lake/Eckstein).
That is also the reason that the school will not be designated as an Option school. Despite that wide open door the school remains under-enrolled. There isn't sufficient demand for the brand of education that Madrona offers to justify committing a building of that size to the program.
Now, it's entirely possible that either she has had a change of heart; that the district has told her she needs to accomodate neighborhood kids, so she hasn't had a change of heart but is making changes; or that I got the wrong impression from our long personal meeting (although I've talked to other parents who have reported the same thing). But I personally am not that thrilled with the idea that the school has been "improved" by adding an extra hour of "instruction" that essentially comprises extracurricular activities (like yoga).