Growth Boundaries Meetings Coming Up

Soup for Teachers had a notice up at their Facebook page about the upcoming community meetings on Growth Boundaries.  These meetings were announced back in August but they are coming up fast.  Here's the schedule:

Join us at one of five community meetings this fall to learn more about the upcoming school boundary changes for the 2017-18 school year. Interpretation services will be available; see the schedule below for languages. (Download the meeting flyer, including translations.)


Thursday, Sept. 22
, 6:30–7:30 p.m.
Eckstein Middle School (Lunchroom)

3003 NE 75th St
reet
Languages: Spanish, Vietnamese, Somali

Tuesday, Sept. 27, 6:30–7:30 p.m.

Hamilton International Middle School (Commons)

1610 N 41st Street
Languages: Spanish, Vietnamese, Somali

Thursday, Sept. 29
, 6:30–7:30 p.m.
Mercer International Middle School (Library)

1600 S Columbian Way

Languages: Spanish, Somali, Tagalog, Chinese, Vietnamese, Amharic, Tigrigna

Monday, Oct. 3
, 6:30–7:30 p.m.
Viewlands Elementary School (Library)

10525 3rd Avenue NW

Languages: Spanish, Vietnamese, Somali

Tuesday, Oct. 11, 6:30–7:30 p.m.
Denny International Middle School (Library)
2601 SW Kenyon St
reet
Languages: Spanish, Somali, Vietnamese

Previously, community meetings were held on these boundary changes in April 2016. The meetings provided an opportunity for the district to share information with the community on the upcoming changes, and for the community to provide feedback on any changes that could affect the boundaries that were approved in 2013. Download a copy of the Spring meeting presentation.

Comments

Anonymous said…
The presentation given at the regional meetings in April was very vague on the subject of grandfathered assignments for students living in boundary change areas. Families living in change areas that are being implemented due to the opening of new schools (i.e. Eagle Staff and Meany MS, and Cedar Park ES) will likely be geo-split from their current school, and grandfathering has not been guaranteed for other change areas. If students are lucky enough to receive a grandfathered assignment, they will not be offered transportation.

Other than the opening of JAMS, this is very different approach from how boundary changes and new schools have been implemented since the NSAP. In the past, split siblings was the hot topic, because older siblings were grandfathered at their existing schools. This time, kids may be re-assigned to a completely different "neighborhood school" for 2017-18.

Some of the boundary change areas for 2017-18 are huge, and the largest change areas fall in high-poverty neighborhoods. I wonder how many students will be uprooted from their established schools, due to reassignment, or because they are dependent upon yellow bus transportation?

We were told that more information regarding grandfathering would be available at the September/October meetings.

-North-end Mom
9/12/16, 5:15 PM
SPS Mom said…
I'm also curious about what the district is proposing for boundaries for Cedar Park. They met with the community and seemed to be listening to the concerns about both the # of students that were going to be assigned to Cedar Park in the 2013 plan as well as the % of high need families (FRL.). I'm hoping we see some fairly significant adjustments to those 2013 proposed boundaries. It would truly be a shame if the new Olympic Hills building (which was designed specifically to support these higher need families) wasn't able to be accessed by these communities while having lots of extra space with the CP building being full the first day. It would also be great if John Rogers can keep some more of their ELL families (for whom they ramped up services over the last few years.)
9/12/16, 8:22 PM
Anonymous said…
Eagle Staff Elementary is going to be off limits to neighborhood kids unless they are in the HCC.

Licton
9/12/16, 8:36 PM
Northend said…
I'm curious about the HCC boundary changes for next year.
9/12/16, 9:24 PM
Anonymous said…
There is no Eagle Staff Elementary, but Licton Springs k-8 is in the same location as the other programs- Cascadia (the HCC elementary) and Eaglestaff Middle school. Licton Springs has space, I believe, and would welcome new neighborhood kids!

-sleeper
9/12/16, 9:35 PM
Anonymous said…
There goes Licton, presumably not wanting to share with Cascadia HCC. Maybe there should be an Eaglestaff Elementary, including about 1/3 of the Northend HCC kids, then create a Hamilton Elementary with 1/3 of the Northend HCC students, and HCC @ Decatur as the JAMS elementary, with some grouped learning opportunities at TC.

Thinking Outloud
9/12/16, 11:06 PM
Lynn said…
Elementary students in HIMS (a middle school)? No.

Nobody wins when elementary HCC is housed with another program. HCC students are guaranteed a seat - which inevitably leads to overcrowding.
9/12/16, 11:39 PM
Anonymous said…
Parents don't want to go to Licton K-8 but rather a conventional elementary and they live across the street.

Licton
9/13/16, 12:15 AM
Charlie Mas said…
Licton, If families living across the street from the future site of Cascadia Elementary want a conventional elementary, then they have no more interest in Cascadia than they have in Licton Springs K-8 because Cascadia will not be - and was never intended to be - a conventional elementary.
9/13/16, 6:58 AM
Anonymous said…
Many of our buildings are not used for conventional neighborhood schools. Thornton Creek, Hazel Wolf, Queen Anne Elementary, and Salmon Bay just near you, in addition to Cascadia opening up. I find it odd to expect any new building opening up to be a neighborhood school.


-sleeper
9/13/16, 7:02 AM
Anonymous said…
Licton Springs K-8 a Native/First Nations school.

Licton
9/13/16, 9:13 AM
Anonymous said…
Licton Springs K-8 is not just a Native/First Nations school. It was Alternative School 1 (AS-1), Pinehurst K-8. It does now focus more on Native American studies but that is because it joined with the high school and because Licton Springs is sacred to Native Americans. It doesn't mean you have to be Native American to go there.

HP
9/13/16, 10:52 AM
Anonymous said…
The new building is well deserved after
years at Lincoln. The neighbors are fine with it. Don't make trouble where it isn't.

Pebbles
9/13/16, 11:12 AM
Anonymous said…
The Wilson Pacific site was most recently home to the homeschool center/Cascade Parent Partnership, also an alternative school. When was the last time it served as a neighborhood school? The time for public input/comment has long since past.

-moving on
9/13/16, 11:40 AM
Anonymous said…
If the district tries to renege on it's promise to only put HC students at Cascadia, there's going to be holy hell to pay. My family and the ones we talk to, are fed up with being treated like an unwanted guest in our school district when all we want is to have just some semblance of an education.

Yellow Jacket
9/13/16, 3:47 PM
Anonymous said…
Licton Springs K-8 is being shoved into a comprehensive middle school building...probably not the most attractive option for prospective kindergarten parents.

MS Parent
9/13/16, 4:34 PM
Anonymous said…
Yellow Jacket--get your stinger ready. I might guess less of the HCC student body will be there than originally promised. I bet the split it three ways--by middle school feeder area. I guess they will stick HCC where ever they find dusty space.

Fed Up
9/13/16, 6:11 PM
Charlie Mas said…
Hey, if HCC got a curriculum, teachers experienced or trained to work with HC kids, and academic expectations without a ceiling, I wouldn't care if they taught under a tree.

Lowell was no palace. The District wanted to close it in 2009 because it was in such bad shape.
9/14/16, 4:09 PM
Anonymous said…
We don't care about the building either, but we do care that there is a principal with integrity and interest in HCC, a library with books, a librarian, instrumental music for 4th and 5th, and well-trained teachers. A playground shouldn't need to be mentioned, but this is SPS and we're talking HCC (aka the pawns), so I'd better add that to the list.

Total Chaos
9/14/16, 10:10 PM
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