Seattle Times section dedicated to Education

The Seattle Times online edition has a whole section dedicated to education issues called the Greater Good Campaign.

Comments

mirmac1 said…
I wonder how much Gates paid for that.
2/2/16, 8:01 AM
Melissa Westbrook said…
This is a good effort; I can see that even the Times is getting frustrated because you can't keep blaming everyone else when the funding isn't there.

I asked at their Facebook page if Gates is funding this effort as well.
2/2/16, 9:54 AM
Watching said…
In my mind, the Seattle Times is similar to the League of Education Voters. Too much edu-babble for my taste, but I do appreciate acknowledgement that education needs funding.

I've noted that Chad Magendanz had a press release.

“House Bill 2965 helps define our paramount duty by clarifying what school district expenses are the state’s responsibility to pay. The independent consultants collecting information on school district compensation spending throughout the state this summer would then have clear guidance to determine the state’s overall spending commitment to satisfy the 2012 McCleary ruling," said Magendanz, R-Issaquah.

http://houserepublicans.wa.gov/news/magendanz-introduces-proposal-to-help-end-dependency-on-local-school-levies/

If the state were a study funding for wrap around services such as counselors and nurses, they would fall short of the mark, too.
2/2/16, 10:38 AM
Polly Anna said…

The Greater Good Campaign began in 2011. At the time, they were funded by Microsoft, The Bellevue Collection, Safeco Insurance, Davis Wright Tremaine and Rowley Properties.

This group needs to register with the PDC.


2/2/16, 5:25 PM
Polly Anna said…
As well, The Greater Good Campaign's web page does not list a single person, which always gives me pause.
2/2/16, 5:29 PM
Melissa Westbrook said…
I asked at the Greater Good Facebook page about funding. The Times is currently funding this effort but said they may take on "partners" at some point as they do for other projects.

Polly Anna, you hit the nail on the head. I am ALWAYS suspicious when I cannot find a single name attached to a website or program.
2/2/16, 7:42 PM
Justin Kalm said…
It’s ironic that the Seattle Times dedicated a full page in it’s Sunday [Jan. 31] paper to chastise the state legislature for failing to fulfill the state’s paramount duty to provide ample funding for our children’s education, considering that the Times Editorial Board helped to defeat Initiative 1098, which could have allowed our state to raise revenues in a fair and equitable manner, through an income tax on the wealthy.

You can't have funding without revenue. But the Times doesn't ask for more revenue, just more funding. The Seattle Times is like a race horse owner who starves his horse nearly to death, and then blames the jockey for his horse’s defeat. "Why didn't you kick the horse harder? It's all your fault," says the Times.

If the Times were serious about amply funding education, then the Times would support measures to increase revenue. Until the Times is willing to do that, its claims of being a champion of education will continue to ring hollow.
2/2/16, 9:33 PM
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