Upcoming Public Education Events

Seattle City Club is having a Town Hall event - Seattle Speaks: Making the Grade - to talk about Seattle School district.
As the State Legislature defers fully funding public education for yet another year, what are the implications for the Seattle school district?  The first City of Seattle Education Summit in 25 years will happen this spring, and there’s a lot to discuss:  an overcrowded district, the achievement gap, discipline inequity, new programs and decaying buildings.  Are we on the right path to funding and providing a quality education for our students? How can we improve graduation rates? What can the community do to ensure students are prepared to succeed? 

Join host Brian Callanan for a town hall discussion on our live, interactive show Seattle Speaks. Presented in partnership with Seattle CityClub, Town Hall and Seattle Channel.
Tuesday, April 19th
6:00-8:00 pm
Town Hall, 1333 Fifth Avenue

In advance of the Mayor's so-called "Education Summit" (April 30th at Garfield Community Center), the Mayor is having a series of "community conversations."

Unfortunately, the Mayor's office has some kind of mojo on their online information so that I cannot directly copy it but here's a link.

There are going to be a whole host of these "conversations" hosted by religious groups, progressive groups, immigrant groups, neighborhood groups, homeless groups and Native American groups as well as...the Alliance for Education (well, it's good that someone is working with them.)

The first conversations:

March 15th - Mt. Zion Baptist Church, hosted by the Seattle Alliance of Black Educators at 4:30- 6:00 pm
March 16th - El Centro de la Raza, hosted by El Centro, 6-8 pm
March 17th - Rainier Avenue Church, hosted by the SE Seattle Education Coalition at noon- 2 pm.
April 6th - Seattle Wood Technology Center, hosted by the Urban League from 6-8 pm.

The format will be a "message from the Mayor," presentation on schools and the opportunity gap and then feedback from participants.

The Mayor has convened an Education Summit Advisory Group (I never heard any outreach about this so I asked to be on it but was told it was full.)  

I note a couple of things.

1) The focus seems to very clearly be on the opportunity gap.  I pass no judgment on this as it is a central issue for schools in our city.  But I will say there are a lot of things to talk about that are also concerns to parents.  I'm wondering if a narrow focus will mean a smaller turnout.  Going to the first meetings should tell us how narrow that focus is.

2)  Those times for the meetings.  Not the most helpful especially for working parents and educators.

3) There will also be an opportunity for you to enter your comments online.  I'll put the link up when available.


About the Education Summit:
The Mayor's Education Summit is a community process on how the City can help address the opportunity gap and disparities in our public schools. The summit process starts with gathering ideas and input from residents all over Seattle and concludes with actual solutions on how the City can help partner with Seattle Public Schools, families, and education advocates.
The Mayor's Education Summit will take place over three phases from now through summer 2016.

Comments

Anonymous said…
The cartoon 2 posts above is exactly what the mayor's "Education Summit" makes me think of.
Here's my guess for his committee: all the major ed deform players, a couple of SPS employees who fall along the ed deform ideology (think Cashel Toner), some business reps, maybe a TFA type or two, a supe, and some politicians. All there to pass judgment on public education without spending time in classrooms (or perhaps a couple who "taught" for a couple of years - aka Teach For Awhile) nor doing anything about the societal problems that create so many of the issues in public K-12.

CT
Jet City mom said…
Really disappointed that no one on the mayors committee represents those with disabilities, except for what they perhaps have experienced in their families, not formally.

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