Technology Access Foundation Program Leaving Washington Middle School

In 2020, the district decided to partner with the Technology Access Foundation to bring an already established STEM program working in other districts to Washington Middle School. This week, we learn that the 10-year contract with TAF has ended and the program will be leaving at the end of this school year. 

As I previously reported, the Seattle Times had a scathing editorial about the district and singled out WMS and the exit of TAF, calling TAF "highly-touted." 

Founded by former Microsoft executive Trish Dziko, TAF had been contributing almost $800,000 annually to pay for its own team of 10 at Washington Middle School. Those educators worked alongside Seattle teachers, seven of whom were added to the middle school to enable smaller class sizes. But next year, the extra Seattle teachers — as well as half of the school’s award-winning music program — will be pulled to cut costs.

TAF put out a statement (partial):

A key component of our partnership is SPS’s commitment to providing the additional teachers needed to support the STEMbyTAF Model at WMS. With the recent district budget cuts, they are no longer able to do so, and as a result, we will no longer be able to offer our model at WMS.

Knowing the work of school transformation takes time, we agreed to ramp up our model over time. Starting with 6th grade students in our first year, then adding 7th in year two, and 8th grade in year three. This school year is the first where all students in grades 6-8 were learning under the STEMbyTAF Model. After starting our partnership in COVID the first year as students were adjusting to full-time virtual learning, we were finally just hitting our stride together.

While we at TAF are sad and disappointed, we stand by every minute and every dollar we invested providing an academic environment where every student could thrive, and teachers could teach the whole child. Through the STEMbyTAF Model, we ushered in true change where ALL families were welcome, students did not learn in segregated spaces, and teachers were supported to provide a rigorous education for ALL the students they were hired to teach. The students put the phrase “voice and choice” into action in so many ways – they created their own virtual communities, recommended solutions to food insecurity in their community, created an ambassador team that researched and developed action steps to make WMS a more welcoming place for the LGBTQ+ community, and used their brilliance and commitment to the broader community to help design the newly planned Makerspace at Pacific Science Center.

Thank you to the WMS parents for entrusting your children to us in a time of uncertainty, as we integrated the classrooms to create a cohesive and inclusive learning space for all, as well as taking the time to be engaged and transparent. Thank you to the students for embracing this new way of learning and being willing to put your thoughts out there and exercise your leadership chops. Thank you to the teachers who were invested in implementing the STEMbyTAF Model, which for many turned their entire way of teaching upside down. Thank you to Principal Katrina Hunt for leading the school through this unique partnership.

We are thankful that former Superintendent Juneau saw our vision and brought it to Seattle Public Schools. We are especially thankful to all the people who gave their time, talent and treasure to resource the vision. We would not have been able to impact these students and teachers over the last three years if it wasn’t for you, our diehard supporters. We thank you for always being in our corner!

Background

TAF was started by Trish Millines Dziko* and Jill Hull Dziko in 1996. Their goal was to
"ensure students of color had access to the skills needed to compete in the growing technology scene."  From their website:

"TAF is a nonprofit leader in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education. We use STEM as a tool for realizing social change and educational equality in communities of color and those with low income. Our targeted approach leverages in-school and out-of-school learning to address longstanding historical inequities for students of color, yet cultivates leadership and citizenship in ALL students toward equity." 

TAF is the first and only nonprofit in WA state to co-manage public schools in partnership with school districts. Our current Academies include TAF@Saghalie and TAF@Washington Middle School.

Through the Martinez Fellowship Program and Education EnCounter, we ensure students of color have teachers and school leaders that have a shared culture and understanding of who they are in the world and how to best educate them.

Some years before the contract was signed with SPS, TAF had hoped to bring the program to Cleveland High School or Rainer Beach High School but that got scuttled (largely off a community meeting that went sideways).  I wished then and now that the district had brought it into Cleveland which was already going to become a STEM school.

Former Superintendent Denise Juneau and Trish Dziko entered into talks to bring the program to WMS in 2018. The contract was signed in 2020. There had already been rumblings about the divide between HCC students and the General Ed students. The TAF model does not support separate classes so HCC at Washington MS was not going to work. Indeed, former director Jill Geary, in the waning weeks of her term, brought forth an amendment to the Student Assignment Plan, to end the HCC cohort model at WMS.

With this sudden decision about TAF, I think the writing was on the wall for the exodus of many HCC parents. WMS went from majority white to majority Black and they lost about 100 students.

I also recall some students of color saying at the time that the district was getting rid of something in the south end (HCC) but allowing it to remain in the north end. 

I was torn about the decision. I was pleased because I do like the TAF model but I was disappointed because the district did little to inform parents and community. It was a pretty big change with no real engagement. I did always wonder why Washington MS was selected when Mercer and Aki Kurose had a much higher population of students of color.

To note, Washington Middle School had, for a very long time, been one of the highest performing and most popular middle schools. But they have a poor quality building which seemed to never make the BEX list.

It was no help that, in 2018, a new principal, Emily Butler Ginolfi, was installed at WMS, coming in from a charter background. She was very much a "my way or the highway" principal to both students and parents. She tried to restrict access to the bathroom even for girls. She claimed that they should have foreign language because it was just mostly HCC students anyway. Apparently, there were huge scheduling issues. Cue even more parents leaving. (Juneau did move this principal off to - of all places - Licton Springs K-8 with the principal leaving the district the next year.) 

And, when the district reopened Meany Middle School, they moved 500 WMS students there.

Then, TAF was brought in, opening one grade level per year. 

Currently there are 556 students at WMS.  They have a class size of 17.

Comments

WMS/TAF History said…
The Stranger documented parents of AA boys that didn't want to break Seattle Public School's only advanced learning pathway to make way for TAF. Some felt that without an advanced learning pathway that their children would get bored and exhibit unwanted behaviors which would make them targets for disproportionate discipline.

https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2020/01/24/42658513/seattle-school-board-takes-steps-to-dismantle-gifted-program

Hampson referred to these parents as "tokens". It was reported that TAF's director hissed at parents that testified in support of Advanced Learning.

TAF is leaving. More chaos for WMS students.

Rigor Ranger said…
The odd thing about TAF bro seen as a solution for students of color is there is a pretty robust and publicly accessible literature on why and how most PBL just does not work the way we think it does. It’s also just ridiculous to mention STEM as an intervention when reading scores are as bad as they are across the nation in all groups. Any effort at “equity” that does not put literacy front and center is doomed. STEM demands higher literacy levels, not lower.
Anonymous said…
Melissa,

Where did you find that TAF put out a statement, and the language of that statement? I haven't seen that anywhere. I.e. the language you put in italics as TAF's statement they put out that begins with "A key component... " and goes on for several paragraphs. Can you please add a link to where that can be found?

Thanks,
SPS Family
Unfortunate said…
There seems to have been two motivations for bringing in TAF. The first motivation was to use it as an excuse to get rid of HCC. The second motivation was because some people truly believed that the STEM approach would be better. For a time the interests of these two groups aligned.

But now the district has gotten rid of HCC at all of the middle schools, including WMS. Some parents at Washington Middle School had asked that their students be allowed to be bused to other HCC schools which the board didn't allow, likely knowing that they were ending it everywhere anyway.

TAF is expensive because it has a lower student to teacher ratio.

If you look at the test scores for African Americans at WMS they do not appear to have improved materially. Some may make the argument the students are more engaged, but for others test scores do matter.

One of the few parts left of HCC is the pathway. This means that HCC identified students have an option of going to a pathway Middle School like WMS. But why would somebody choose the pathway if the overall academic achievement is lower for a school than their neighborhood middle school.

For high school the pathway still likely matters to some, because Garfield and Lincoln and West Seattle may be better choices than their neighborhood High schools, because unlike middle schools where everybody is in the same classes High Schools still have options.

If TAF was a great success, they perhaps could have raised more outside money. But given the test scores, the general ending of HCC, and the required financial commitment from the district, nobody should be surprised that TAF is ending.

What's most unfortunate is the people making these decisions are not the ones that suffer, it's the students and families that face the ongoing turmoil and disruption.
Unknown said…
It really feels like SPS has a vendetta against Washington and/or they are trying to close it down. I'm just not sure why they would go about it in such a convoluted matter. If that's not the reason, and it's just administration mismanagement, then that's REALLY concerning. Especially since this slow-moving train wreck has been proceeding through the tenures of multiple superintendents and multiple District 5 board members.

First, there was Emily Butler's reign of terror. Then they got Hunt, who at first seemed like an improvement and seemed like she was hand-picked to work with TAF, but it turns out she has been pretty hostile to them. One of the PTA board members tells me that she has basically had to be the go-between all year for Principal Hunt and Krishna Richardson-Daniels, the TAF director, because they never speak to each other. I guess that's a moot point now.

Throughout this whole time, parents' concerns were ignored and minimized, even those of BIPOC parents who tried to advocate for keeping an HCC pathway at WMS. It was never explained why TAF should be at Washington instead of other south-end schools that may have been a better fit. Parents who dared to ask questions were insulted and their concerns were dismissed. As many, many people have speculated, it likely could have been done to dissolve HCC pathways and SPS wasn't going to let anyone stand in the way.

And so, unsurprisingly, enrollment dropped. Covid happened and enrollment dropped more. They're cutting the music program, maybe the one class that could keep up enthusiasm for the school- what do you suppose will happen? I would not be surprised if, in a year or two, WMS is shuttered and students are dispersed to other middle schools. At least they won't have to spend money renovating it!

I would never call myself a conspiracy theorist, but in the case of WMS, something...

-"Smells Fishy"

Popular posts from this blog

Tuesday Open Thread

Why the Majority of the Board Needs to be Filled with New Faces

First Candidates for Seattle School Board Elections 2023