Seattle Council PTSA in Disarray

 Big news from the Seattle Council PTSA via their Facebook page:

Seattle Council PTA regrets to inform you that Romanita Hairston, Heather Hart, Kiani Pineiro-Hall and Brian Terry submitted their resignation as members of the executive committee. We also saw the resignation of O'Hara Jimenez, District 7 co-chair. The saying "unprecedented times" seem (sic) to continue finding deeper meaning as the pandemic carries on. We appreciate their time serving council, and understand the challenges that prevent them from remaining the board. 

It appears that SCPTSA has taken down the Board page but I found another page with a list of officers:

  • Romanita Hairston was the Interim President. You have to wonder why, if there was going to be an election for that office, she wouldn't stay on a couple of more weeks. 
  • Kiani Pineiro-Hall and Brian Terry were co-VPs. 
  • Heather Hart was the secretary. 

They already had several vacant spots on their board including some reps for each board director district.  

The message then explains that the General Meeting of Jan. 17th is cancelled and will be rescheduled to include election of new officers to replace those leaving. 

They end with this paragraph:

Please join us for our Leadership Coalition Meeting this coming Saturday, Jan. 22nd, 9 am. Looking at National Diversity, Equity and Inclusion toolkit and a resource, breakout holding gracious space and sharing what's going on in our buildings for collective sharing and wisdom. 

If SCPTSA thinks anyone is going to believe a mass exodus like this is just a COVID-related issue, I have a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn. 

An early warning might be that last week they had a SCPTSA Board meeting and had a facilitator there. That's odd. 

I have no inside knowledge but my guess would be this is about a clash of vision, goals, etc. But to say that SCPTSA is in shambles would be accurate. And this in the middle of a school year. 

I wonder if they would persuade former president Manuela Slye (aka Manolita Light) to come back as president. She is quite knowledgable about the district and its issues. 

Comments

Start Over said…
Is there a requirement for a certain number of board members to be present and voting? If they lack a quorum I wonder if they would have to disband.

Would like to hear why they left.

Two years into a pandemic in what is likely (hopefully) the last few bitter months would be a strange time to leave for that reason.

Something is up. And it’s a big rift.
1/21/22, 10:01 AM
HIB Concerns said…
It seems to me that there have been a few bullies within the SCPTSA. They get behind Hampson to try and control our education system. The bullies have had prominent voices. There are a couple of SCPTSA bullies that moderate the SPS Community Facebook page and silence voices of disagreement.

Hopefully, we are seeing cracks within a system of bullies.
1/21/22, 10:38 AM
HIB Concerns said…
Hampson and DeWolf weaponized the SCPTSA against staff. This is a very serious issue.
1/21/22, 10:50 AM
Anonymous said…
SCPTSA ought to be a central place for parents and building PTAs to combine advocacy efforts, hold the district accountable, and push for structural reforms to address ongoing mismanagement. Instead it has become a mouthpiece for the district itself, refuses to advocate for programs or push the district to change, and takes a hostile attitude toward parents and building PTAs. SCPTSA has not been a relevant organization for a while, and it seems it is now at a crossroads. Might be best to wind it down.

Parent Advocate
1/21/22, 11:24 AM
Anonymous said…
So glad you posted something! I did a double take when I saw that message too. It does not surprise me to see a rift. The mission of schools has gotten so scattered and beyond education; this makes the climate ripe for disagreement and dysfunction within the communities that support it.

Curious if PTA members here see a value in SCPTAs dues paid? They are quite substantial.

What’s Up

1/21/22, 12:57 PM
Anonymous said…
Happy to see them in disarray. I agree with HIB Concerns assessment. Divisive and not inclusive.

Out of Touch
1/21/22, 4:11 PM
Anonymous said…
Did they commit a crime? Did the WSPTSA ask them to step down? No resignation letters? Are they taking a stand? Did they catch covid? What's the deal?

PTA Volunteer
1/21/22, 6:57 PM
Anonymous said…
The SCPTSA has people not actually on the board exerting outsized influence. They have been openly hostile to certain communities within our schools, and while there have been board members who have done good work, as a whole the SCPTSA in recent years has created more problems for the SPS community than it has solved, has manufactured and enhanced division within our communities, and acts as a gatekeeper doing it's best to block access to those in power from certain communities and individuals.
While I understand not "naming names," they need to give the larger SPS community a broad overview of what happened so that it won't happen again, and so that people coming onto the board are prepared to deal with the fallout. SCPTSA is a public non-profit that supposedly is in service to the SPS community, and as such it needs to be transparent.

-SE Seattle
1/22/22, 6:08 PM
HIB Concerns said…
SE Seattle,

Thank you. I hope the resigning board members make a public comment. Very important. I do see an interconnectedness between SCPTSA and another entity. Anything that undermines Democracy should be given light.

Placing 3-7 (!!!) students on the board - voting or not- is another mechanism to undermine our democracy. This effort was supported by DeWolf, Hampson, Rankin , Hersey and Dury.
1/23/22, 12:13 PM
Melissa Westbrook said…
I am amused to see that I cannot comment at the Seattle Council PTSA Facebook page. I guess I should be glad I can even go read their posts.
1/27/22, 9:52 AM
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