City Council Committees
Just an FYI, courtesy of the Stranger Slog.
Next year, along with becoming council president, Harrell will chair the Education, Equity, and Governance Committee, a new spin on what's now called the Education and Governance Committee.
Bruce Harrell is the new president of the City Council AND will head the committee overseeing education. The Vice-Chair is Lorena Gonzalez, Debora Juarez, Member and Tim Burgess, Alternate. That is not the line-up I would want to see if public education in Seattle is to continue operating independently, but in partnership with, the City.
Harrell cares about public ed but between his new presidency and the fact he's not the most active City Councilman, I worry about who will really be directing that committee. Given that the Vice-Chair is closely connected to the Mayor, I have to wonder.
I also wanted to mention the conversation I had with the Mayor recently. It was at a holiday event so it was not lengthy.
I mentioned that I felt very good about the new Board and how varied their backgrounds are. I also mentioned the return of Noel Treat as head of Legal, telling the Mayor that Treat had previously been in the district but had left to be manager of Mercer Island. He asked me Treat's name, twice.
I told him that I hoped he was not going to consider going down the ill-advised road of the City trying to become "more active" (I thought that phrase better than "takeover") in the district. He got a bit agitated and said it was a moral duty to do something and that, in the years he was in the legislature, the graduation rate in SPS had never changed. (I'll double-check but I think he's wrong.)
He left me before I could make two points.
One, the legislature never did fully fund education until recently when the Supreme Court stepped in (and it's still not a done deal.) I'll have to also double-check what he was doing for public education all those years he served in the legislature.
Two, I wanted to ask him to consider what has happened to many big-city mayors who thought taking over public education would be an easy task. I wanted to point to the example of Chicago's mayor, Rahm Emanuel, who has manage to make enemies in all directions in his city but especially among teachers and parents. His ratings have tanked and there is mass agitation for him to resign.
I welcome the City's help with our public schools but there is a line that should be respected. School Board members are every bit as much elected officials as any mayor or city councilmember.
But one example of help from the City is that I would want to ask them to redouble their efforts in permitting for district projects as I noted in one recent district report on capital projects that there was an issue of permitting delays. At least that's what the district says. I'd be interested to know the exact issue as the City says they have cut red tape for the district and yet the district still complains.
Next year, along with becoming council president, Harrell will chair the Education, Equity, and Governance Committee, a new spin on what's now called the Education and Governance Committee.
Bruce Harrell is the new president of the City Council AND will head the committee overseeing education. The Vice-Chair is Lorena Gonzalez, Debora Juarez, Member and Tim Burgess, Alternate. That is not the line-up I would want to see if public education in Seattle is to continue operating independently, but in partnership with, the City.
Harrell cares about public ed but between his new presidency and the fact he's not the most active City Councilman, I worry about who will really be directing that committee. Given that the Vice-Chair is closely connected to the Mayor, I have to wonder.
I also wanted to mention the conversation I had with the Mayor recently. It was at a holiday event so it was not lengthy.
I mentioned that I felt very good about the new Board and how varied their backgrounds are. I also mentioned the return of Noel Treat as head of Legal, telling the Mayor that Treat had previously been in the district but had left to be manager of Mercer Island. He asked me Treat's name, twice.
I told him that I hoped he was not going to consider going down the ill-advised road of the City trying to become "more active" (I thought that phrase better than "takeover") in the district. He got a bit agitated and said it was a moral duty to do something and that, in the years he was in the legislature, the graduation rate in SPS had never changed. (I'll double-check but I think he's wrong.)
He left me before I could make two points.
One, the legislature never did fully fund education until recently when the Supreme Court stepped in (and it's still not a done deal.) I'll have to also double-check what he was doing for public education all those years he served in the legislature.
Two, I wanted to ask him to consider what has happened to many big-city mayors who thought taking over public education would be an easy task. I wanted to point to the example of Chicago's mayor, Rahm Emanuel, who has manage to make enemies in all directions in his city but especially among teachers and parents. His ratings have tanked and there is mass agitation for him to resign.
I welcome the City's help with our public schools but there is a line that should be respected. School Board members are every bit as much elected officials as any mayor or city councilmember.
But one example of help from the City is that I would want to ask them to redouble their efforts in permitting for district projects as I noted in one recent district report on capital projects that there was an issue of permitting delays. At least that's what the district says. I'd be interested to know the exact issue as the City says they have cut red tape for the district and yet the district still complains.
Comments
As expected, the city's park department has joined in providing prek. The city's parks department will be partnering with Tiny Trees; an outdoor preschool. They will work in conjunction with the "community". "Community" partners has not been explained or defined.
The city's program involved P3 or P5 alignment. Is it the intention of the city to partner with SPS to align the work of Tiny Trees with SPS?
"Tiny Trees is a non-profit start up. Our goal is to launch a total of 20 schools in parks across Puget Sound by 2020. Each school requires fundraising to build and is then sustained on earned income. Each school would start with 16 students and would grow with demand while still maintaining an adult-child ratio of 1:5 and a licensed teacher-student ratio of 1:8.
We are an official partner of Seattle Parks and Recreation and together we are opening 9 preschools in Seattle. Six in September, 2016 and 3 in 2017. Locations and enrollment information will be announced in January, 2016."
https://tinytrees.org/
https://tinytrees.org/2015/10/26/seattle-parks-department-approves-9-locations/
We hope the city will support the parents and the neighborhood and ask SPS to provide plans for a smaller remodel on our small neighborhood lot.
-Concerned LHE parent
Concerned LHE, this is an issue I am hearing about (and, you'll be glad to know was mentioned by one Board member at the Work Session with the entire Board and some senior staff including the Superintendent.)
I think you truly need to rise up and go to City Council members as well as the Board.
HP
Reaponse to LHE parent and Melissa:
The new LHE facility includes a gym of 6200 SF. A size that supports all 660 kids getting 100 minutes of Phys Ed instruction/week, per WA State law.
Because of our climate covered, heated space is as (or more) important as outdoor space relative to keeping kids active and healthy during their time at school.
FYI, Loyal Heights folks do not seem to be behind your (LHE parent) narrative 100%. See comment thread at the link below.
http://www.myballard.com/2015/02/11/local-group-fights-to-save-loyal-heights-elementary-playground/
With that placement the lot coverage is something like 39%.
Waging a "neighnorhood values" war with one's public school district seems, to me anyway a sad and toxic approach. But of course I'm not an unbiased party here.
http://www.k12.wa.us/dataadmin/
And when will something be done?
We are thrilled about a new gym and look forward to its added benefits. However neither I, nor our teacher's union, nor the American Academy of Pediatrics feel that gym class is an adequate substitute for recess. Unfortunately in Seattle gym class only happens once every 3 days where recess (even in our climate) is twice a day. I asked my kid how many inside recesses he had this week and he said zero.
Additionally, unless you have a child who goes to LHE, then I don't think you are qualified to attest to the appropriateness of their indoor time in PE. My child does attend LHE, and I can tell you that she does NOT receive 100 minutes of PE each week. So go ahead and cite any requirements you want, but that does not mean they are actually being followed.
LHEParent
If so, it would be nice to have that information revealed in his profile and posts.
Joe Wolf is indeed from SPS, and I think almost everyone here knows that. He is a semi-regular commenter, and his inside knowledge is greatly appreciated. I don't feel like he needs to fill in a blogger profile any more than I feel the rest of us need to fill out profiles here to comment.
Thanks for your continued updates here Joe.
The area has grown exponentially with single family homes torn down every day for 4 and 6 packs of townhome/condos. Traffic is insane pretty much everywhere in greater Ballard. Sure the school needs to accommodate more students because of that, but not at the expense of letting kids have outside time. A giant gym is NO substitute for grass and sky.
reader47
I asked once why elementary gyms are so large - full-size and equivalent to middle and high school gyms. Turns out they are supposed to be emergency community centers. I've come to appreciate the large areas since I see so much good use. Watching kids on unicycles and bikes in the gym makes it worthwhile.
When you think about two recesses a day and a half-hour in PE that's a pretty fair amount of time spent on physical activity. At my school, PE is one of three specialties but art and music are important too. We have to keep it all in perspective.
my 2cents
Not every school provides two recesses. Unless I'm mistaken, 100 minutes per week of PE is required by law in grades one through eight but there is no equivalent requirement for art or music.
Second, I didn't say PE wasn't required nor that that art and music were. That was not my point. I understand you are a by-the-letter poster. I'm not. I appreciate that my school with the permission of the parent constituency agrees and supported a waiver.
my 2cents
http://kuow.org/post/recess-shrinks-seattle-schools-poor-schools-fare-worst
Seattle apparently did not have a district wide policy, until the teacher strike this fall.
Now, they have 30 minutes a day.
http://www.progressive.org/authors/jesse-hagopian
Maybe I'm unnecessarily concerned with schools following state law - but I wonder where you heard that an elementary school can get a waiver and how parent approval fits into the picture. As far as I can see, there is no process for a school-wide health and fitness waiver. Here's the law:
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/Rcw/default.aspx?cite=28A.230.040
Physical education in grades one through eight.
Every pupil attending grades one through eight of the public schools shall receive instruction in physical education as prescribed by rule of the superintendent of public instruction: PROVIDED, That individual pupils or students may be excused on account of physical disability, religious belief, or participation in directed athletics.
My elementary student's school clearly doesn't meet this requirement - as students have PE only every third week. We don't have a waiver though - this is just one of many laws that neither SPS or OSPI cares to follow/enforce.
If Joe Wolf and other employees of the SPS are proud of the work they are doing they should let us know their position as employees of the Seattle Public Schools. Being a new viewer of this site, I don't have the back information that you have to connect Joe Wolf to the SPS.
Knowing the credentials of people posting information on this site helps put their comments in perspective. At a minimum, anyone who is an employee of the Seattle Public Schools should disclose that information in their posts.
Rich - Loyal Heights Elementary School neighbor and taxpayer.