Around the Horn at Seattle Schools

 Update:

As previously reported, head of Budget, JoLynn Berge, is leaving the district. Today a reader let me know she's moving to ESD113 (Educational Service District) as a Deputy Superintendent for Finance and Operations. 

Also, the SEA approved its new contract with SPS, this via the Seattle Times.

Six days after ending a strike against Seattle Public Schools, Seattle teachers voted to approve a three-year contract that includes salary raises, more support staff in classrooms and more manageable caseloads. 

There are three contracts in all, and each group voted on its own agreement. For the contact covering certificated staff or classroom teachers, 71% voted in favor. The contract covering paraprofessionals passed with 66% in favor. And educational office professionals voted 82% in favor of their contract.

In all, 4,143 of SEA’s 6,000 members voted on their respective contracts.

The Seattle School Board still needs to vote on the contract for it to be finalized.

end of update 

There are many new stories I want to get to but I thought I'd just let readers know some happenings (past and future) at Seattle Public Schools as well as a few thoughts.

First up is what I'm hearing from high school parents, especially in the north end, that schedules are not fully-fleshed out, there not enough chairs in overcrowded classrooms and no real explanation. Parents, is this what you are seeing? What does your principal say? Normally, I would tell you to bring it to the attention of your Board member but they seem to want to ignore those kind of issues now. Better to let the superintendent know of your unhappiness. 

• Sat in another SOFG (Student Focused Outcomes Governance) meeting last week. This one went on over two hours with the Superintendent there the whole time. I was quite surprised he had that much time to give since schools barely opened. Gotta say, Director Chandra Hampson seems almost like a student to CGCS (Council of Great City Schools) consultant, AJ Crabill, as her Svengali. There's a lot of "AJ says we should be doing this" when she talks. She also said that Crabill suggested suspending ALL committee meetings for a period of time. She's also worried out loud that San Francisco Unified SD could be moving faster on this work than SPS  and "I don't want to get competitive but I don't want them to get ahead of us." That's what's important? Oh my.

• At last week's Board meeting, Superintendent Brent Jones thanked educators for reaching a tentative agreement and thanked students and parents for their patience, saying they had endured the greatest impact of the strike. He said the district was "vibrant, sturdy and united."  I have to wonder why he used the work "sturdy" but perhaps he worried that, from the outside, SPS looks on shaky ground. I mean, they want to sign a contract with the teachers union that they say they don't have the money for which would seem an odd thing for a superintendent to do.

• Jones also recognized the beginning of National Hispanic Heritage Month. 

• He also mentioned the passing of Dorothy Hollingsworth who was the first Black woman elected to the Seattle School Board. 

• One of the new student "board members" was on the dais, Jenna Yuan from Franklin High School who said students don't want the make-up days stemming from the strike. Perhaps one of the adult Board members can explain to her and the other new student members why legally, the district has to make up those days. She also noted the student board members are creating a newsletter. 

• Director Leslie Harris pulled the item about the joint use agreement for parks/playgrounds with the city from the Consent agenda as the notation on the agenda said it had been updated but those updates were not highlighted. This led to a short discussion about the division of responsibilities with adjoining lands (such as happened with Broadview-Thomson and the homeless encampment there). Fred Podesta used a word salad answer, saying it was a "thorny" issue and that "discretion is the better part of valor but not here." Huh? Hampson asked for an ETA on "lessons learned and not looking in the other direction." Hmmm.

• Families that do not want their student to use Naviance can opt out by changing their preferences in the Source Aug. 22 - Sept. 30, 2022. If it were my child, I would NOT sign up to use Naviance for a high school and beyond plan. 

• For someone who was so obsessed with her anti-racism policy that former director Zachary DeWolf said was going to be her signature work, Director Hampson seems to allowed it to fall by the wayside. Or, maybe it was explained to her just how much the unions and PASS would push back on it. Not because they are against it but she wanted teeth in that policy and that meant real punishment from the district to those who work at schools who were found "guilty" of violating it.

• The district is offering flu and COVID vaccinations. 

• I have asked for the video of the Work Session embedded into last week's Board meeting as the terms of the tentative contract were discussed with Board members. I do not see it at the district's YouTube page. 

• There is a "Where's Waldo" feeling I am getting from Board President Brandon Hersey. He was not at last week's board meeting (no explanation given) and we didn't see or hear a peep from him at all during the strike. Oh wait, I forgot that he's the Political Director at Professional & Technical Employees Local 17 so that would put him in a difficult spot. He hasn't posted anything at his professional Facebook page which hilariously says, "Need help? Email me." Apparently he's missed the memo that directors are no longer in the "help constituents" business. 

In other happenings this week, there will be a Board committee meeting almost every day this week. 

Monday - Audit & Finance Committee (Not sure how a student board member can attend a 8 am meeting but that is what is supposed to happen.) Operations Committee meets in the afternoon.

Tuesday - Student Services, Curriculum and Instruction Committee

Wednesday - Executive Committee.  I want to call this one out because Director Hampson made special note at the school board meeting last week that this will be the first look at the Board redistricting maps. These are NOT about school boundaries but about DIRECTOR boundaries. This could play a role in next year's Board elections. (This is a mandatory piece of work that the state requires.)

In the afternoon, there will be a Work Session on the WSSDA General Assembly Preparation (this is the state school board directors group) as well as more on SOFG, this time on "committee diet."

Thursday has yet another SOFG Ad Hoc Committee meeting. 

I have requested all the documentation for these meetings to see what the discussions will be. 

I looked at the rest of September and then October but there are no community meetings with directors scheduled.