This and That - April 9,2023

Washington Middle School

Are the Washington Middle School kids unhappy about the band cuts? They are. This was made clear by the number of students and parents who showed up at the Board meeting last Wednesday. And boy do they love the band teacher, Michael Sundt, whose position will be eliminated. One student asked, "Please keep this teacher in our hearts." It was compelling testimony for a couple of reasons:

- There was no shouting or "how could you!" kind of tone. The kids were articulate and passionate. They talked about being part of something, working towards goals and the program being "engaging." Many said that band made school worthwhile and interesting. I note that you will often hear why athletics never seems to face cuts and you hear the exact same wording. But SPS isn't cutting the athletic budget by much. 

- Years back there were complaints that these jazz programs were too white. Part of that issue was about many kids of color NOT being able to afford to begin learning early on in order to try out for the jazz band. (Another part - as stated in a long-ago Seattle Times article, was the rise and interest for rap and hip hop within the Black teen community.)

- One of the more interesting speakers was a student named Saire Williams, a Black student at WMS who appears to be hugely popular with his fellow students. He said he is a straight-A student, plays multiple instruments and that jazz is his "escape." He also alluded to being on the wrong side of the WMS administration. He stated that Mr. Sundt is his favorite teacher and is "there for us." He also noted that the district has a focus on Black boys and educational justice and said the district was "robbing my academic experience" and that wasn't educational justice. I saw that all of the directors applauded his words, with Director Michelle Sarju standing to do so. Board President Brandon Hersey sat quietly.

- One adult had an interesting sign, "Come for the band, stay for the math." I wish she had explained it. 

- One adult, Sharon Khosla, gave an impassioned plea for the program. She said that that parents had created equity with new instruments and that there are now NO required try-outs for the program. She said WMS had endured six years of "trauma" and that if they do consolidate WMS into another school, then THAT school should get the resources to continue this program. 

- As well at the Board meeting, there were a couple of speakers for the Filipino ethnic studies class which apparently is also on the chopping block. Three WMS speakers referenced standing in solidarity with those speakers. After public testimony, Hersey said there would be "an announcement tomorrow" about this course. I see nothing at the SPS website right now.

- The Board expanded the speaker list to 35 with 33 on the waitlist. 

Rest of the Board meeting

- There is to be a Work Session on April 19th for BEX VI and the structure of Board work. 

At the April 26th Board meeting, their SOFG guru, AJ Crabill, will be in attendance. 

Superintendent Brent Jones, Director Chandra Hampson and Director Liza Rankin were at the meeting virtually. That's fine I guess but their faces should be on the screen so that the public can see they are engaged and listening. 

At one point Hersey asked Hampson for an update on the Board's AdHoc committee work. Hampson's audio was not good and she told Rankin to do it. Hersey ignored her directive and handed it over the Director Leslie Harris. I was wondering how Hampson could still be trying to direct these meetings. 

Harris said they had done a lot of reading, talked about "trusted community partners" (but alas! named none), received dozens of emails about the Fillipino ethnic studies course, said that "careholders" was taking the place of "stakeholders," and that they are looking for "constructive ideas that won't break the bank" for the budget. As if the Board or Superintendent was really going to take any parent ideas seriously. 

I did not listen to the meeting in its entirety. 

Director Leslie Harris

Harris announced this week that she would NOT be running for reelection in the fall. She lamented:

Each Director has given hundreds of hours a year for four-year terms for very limited per diem pay which affects their families, employers, and the continuity/history knowledge of the Board’s and District’s work. To expect this sacrifice from working people and families is not sustainable and irresponsible for an elected Board responsible for a $1.2 Billion annual operating budget with limited staff support. 

About others running (partial):

Voters who wish to run for the District 6 position need to register with the Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) by May 19th. The Primary Election pool is limited to West Seattle, South Park, and Georgetown.  I am happy to be a resource to answer questions for those considering running for election. Because of the separation of “official” duties and rules regarding campaigning this is sent from my private email  harrislsh@comcast.net. 

To my family and the community, thank you for allowing me the opportunity and support to serve in the best and hardest job of my life. It has been worth every minute of effort and an honor to serve the furtherance of our children’s futures.

Thorton Creek Takes the Global Reading Challenge

An overflow crowd of nearly 500 people packed the Central Library’s Microsoft Auditorium on March 21 for the finals of the Global Reading Challenge, cheering on teams of local fourth and fifth graders as they competed to answer tough trivia questions about the same eight books. 

The Global Reading Challenge aims to promote the love of reading and to strengthen reading skills by introducing students to a variety of literature as part of a fun group activity. The eight books selected this year represented a wide range of experiences and backgrounds from authors with cultural connections to the stories they tell. 

The event capped off the 28th annual Global Reading Challenge, a citywide reading incentive program run jointly by The Seattle Public Library and Seattle Public Schools and made possible through funding by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, the Northwest Literacy Foundation and the Ballard Rotary.

ver the course of three tense rounds, judges asked the teams a few questions about each book, 24 questions in total. Their performance was extraordinary. No team missed more than four questions and most teams missed only one. Two teams, however, answered all 24 questions correctly: Cascadia Elementary’s The Knowledgeable Narwhals and Thornton Creek Elementary’s Dewey Decimal Dragonflies.

Tied for first place with perfect scores, these two teams faced off in a long, nail-biter of a tie-breaker. In the end, the Dewey Decimal Dragonflies won the day, edging out the Knowledgeable Narwhals on the 10th question.

Black Studies Showcase

After years of trying to bring Black Studies to Seattle Public Schools, the district was able to offer virtual courses to students for the first time this school year. In celebration of that achievement, students, staff, and families gathered for the 1st Annual Black Studies Showcase. 

Superintendent Brent Jones looked on as dozens of students presented works of art, poetry, food, and more to showcase what they have learned in their Black Studies courses.  

The event was organized by Black Studies Program Manager Anita Koyier-Mwamba. She wanted to create a space that featured a multi-modal approach to student learning that celebrated Black contributions to society.  

Director of College and Career Readiness Caleb Perkins said this achievement was a long time coming. He said the district launched the courses a few years ago in response to students’ requests. Now, several hundred students across SPS high schools are taking the classes. 

Open Enrollment Results

These results are coming out April 18th. It could be interesting to see how many Seattle parents are enrolling in SPS as well as what schools get chosen (or not chosen).  I'll try to see if any data gets released with these.

Update:

 New state data identifies the lowest-performing public schools in Washington

Biggest district, Seattle Schools, has just three: Emerson Elementary School, Bailey Gatzert Elementary School and Concord International Elementary School.