Seattle Needs a Better School Board
To see a massive spike of COVID cases in SPS and yet the Board has nothing on their meeting agenda tonight about COVID is shocking. And certainly not reassuring. I will have a separate post on what their main focus is.
So to the title of this post, I want to publicly say - we need people to run in November 2023 when the majority of the Board seats will be up for (re) election. It will be especially important to run candidates against Liza Rankin and Chandra Hampson.
I believe that if there are two good candidates in Hampson's district - district 3 - she could be primaried out. I have a feeling that folks in her district have been less-than-satisfied with her distain for parents in her own district and not having community meetings to speak with them. Rankin's public stance on the Broadview-Thomson encampment should be a major strike against her for voters in district 1.
The other two seats are Lisa Rivera Smith in District 2 and Leslie Harris in District 6. I know both of them have felt marginalized during the last two years. But Rivera Smith has gotten stronger in her role as Board director and I hope she stays. On the other hand, Harris will have put in 8 long years (2 terms) and the last two years have been tough. I think she may not run so that would be a wide-open seat.
So my ask is to please let me know about good people who would be good candidates.
I offer knowledge about running for school board and hopefully former directors who could offer advice.
Lastly, I offer financial help. I will be putting my money where my mouth is to help good candidates in a large and sustained way.
Comments
Common Sense
Hampson's leadership has been abysmal during a once in a hundred year pandemic. She is focused on filing Investigative Reports for herself that cost the district at least $120K, filed a lawsuit against the district when she could simply work with the superintendent and is the subject of a lawsuit related to the mess she created at Broadview Thompson.
Hersey's role should not be minimized. He is president of the Seattle School Board. He walks in lockstep with Hampson. We're in the midst of a pandemic and there isn't a single item on the agenda related to Covid Response.
Rankin walks in lock stepwith Hampson, as well.
Here are the numbers of students that met math standards:
White - 30%
Asian- 35%
Hispanic- 15%
Black-13%
We have a board majority narrowly focused. I fear tens of thousands of student lives are in trouble- including those that have been historically impacted.
Seattle Education Association has called for transparency. Yet, there is NOTHING on the board agenda related to Covid Response.
Inslee plans on putting $900M into public education. We deserve a board that will at least discuss these issues during board meetings.
We deserve a board that will address these issues during board meetings.
My feeling is that you need to have people who will limit the damage done, not add to it.
I am sad that the Board feels the need to "shield the bureaucracy" but it sure looks that way.
Good people on the board can make a difference. So the next election is indeed an opportunity for voters to have a positive impact on the school district.
Also, the board is not only responsible for the superintendent but oversees the internal auditor, works closely with legal counsel, and arguably oversees the entire district. 'Course that doesn't mean the board runs the district, and that is a distinction that appears to be unclear to some on the current board.
Sue Peters
Common Sense
The trick is to run a *smart* campaign to defeat her. Candidates shouldn't run as a cranky privileged person. Don't whine about "woke" things or complain about "equity." Seattle voters want racial justice and if you are seen as being against that you are going to lose badly. But voters also don't want kids pitted against each other, they don't want to see option schools taken away, and they know that equity and justice require a school board that takes a proactive, collaborative role in ending the persistent mismanagement and ensuring SPS works with all its parents and teachers to build a good school district.
Liza Rankin is going to be slightly harder to beat given that she, inexplicably, has support even from people who are critics of the district. Liza presents herself as likable but in reality she votes solidly in line with Hampson, and also has a lot of contempt for parents. She also fully intends to end option schools.
Candidates who run as smart progressives, committed to public education, committed to an inclusive vision of racial justice that calls people in to work together in solidarity to ensure every child gets their needs met, and who have plans to end the persistent mismanagement and clean up the district (this means firing a lot of people, taking back powers that the board has ceded to the Superintendent, and being willing to closely manage the district even when a lot of people say you shouldn't) -- those are candidates who can beat Rankin and Hampson in 2023 and save this district.
Winning Strategy
Common Sense
And I'd be very interested in actual evidence that schools overseen by cities, counties, states, or the federal government do a better job. I would expect that they would be even more isolated than boards from the students and taxpayers they are supposed to serve.
I'm not in love with SPS, but I'm even less in love with unactionable grumblings.
Also, stop removing honors classes. Many parents also want those and smart school board candidates should run on giving families these choices. Running Start is not for everyone.
Harris pushed and staff agreed to public engagement before funds for Option Schools are removed.
Harris pushed for conversation to be included in minutes. Naturally, Hampson felt there wasn't a problem moving the minutes forward. She isn't a fan of Option Schools. Harris is smart to be skeptical. All directors voted yes. Hersey abstained from the vote for some reason.
Kudos to Harris for trying to save Option Schools.
Queen Anne has limited options for high schools. Unless the district is planning a new building at its Memorial Stadium site, then this school serves a vital need. Not every student wants a large high school environment. Our older son had a good experience there some years ago.
Yes, The Center School IS indeed an Option School. I will have more to say about Option Schools which some of the Board seem hellbent on ending.
The district had a couple of chances for a downtown school and none worked out. While I understand the need, I'm not sure I believe the district is going at the problem the right way.
Make no mistake. The Kimballs and Clevelands of the world are not closing their doors because of the challenges finding a new executive director of communications or chief of school and family partnerships. No. They are closing because they can't find IAs (mostly), teachers, or bus drivers. QED
Common Sense
I'm also still waiting for evidence that school districts managed by cities, states, or whatever other entities that were not elected primarily to manage schools do a better job than school districts with elected boards.