What Can You Do? Near Nothing (But I Have Ideas)
I'm speaking of trying to communicate with the Seattle School Board.
I had two items cross my desk last week. One was a notice a reader sent in about the opportunity for parents and community to give input on the Algebra and Geometry Instructional Materials Adoption for middle and high schools that is winding its way through the district process. The reader sent it on December 7th and the end of the review was the 8th.
The other was a parent unhappy about a portion of the high school curriculum and the parent asked how to give feedback/complain to the district/Board.
Here was the ENTIRE chance to give public input on the Algebra/Geometry curriculum for 2023:
November 30 – December 8, 2023: Materials displayed online for community review
Here's the timeline that is left:
November 29, 2023: Field Test Teacher application released
December 2-12, 2023: Committee reviews evaluation data and selects finalists for field test
(They voted for enVision (Savvas), Illustrative Math (Imagine Learning), and Into Math
.(Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
December 15, 2023: Second Request for Proposals released
January 5, 2024: Field test teacher notified of acceptance
January, 2024: Second RFP closes
January 27, 2024: Field test teacher training
February 1 – March 1, 2024: Finalist materials available for community review
February 1 – March 1, 2024: Field tests conducted
March 6, 2024: Panel discussion with field test teachers, students, and committee
March 9, 2024: Committee evaluates all data and makes final recommendation
March 2024: IMC approves final recommendation
April 25, 2024: IMC and Superintendent introduce a Board Action Report recommending purchase of selected materials
May 8, 2024: Board votes on Board Action Report
The Algebra 1-Geometry-Algebra 2 adoption committee has voted to move three instructional materials to Stage 2 of the adoption process. The three instructional materials are Illustrative Mathematics (Imagine Learning), Into Math (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), and enVision (Savvas).
Stage 2 of the adoption process will include field testing the materials in middle and high school classrooms and a second window for additional public feedback. These will occur in February 2024.
Yes, I do see that there is a month in 2024 but why not one for 2023?
This is all SOFG (Student Outcome Focused Governance). Not only is it taking power and oversight from the Board itself, it's taking it from parents and community.
Forget the Board.
You could send an email to Superintendent Brent Jones but please - he's not going to listen.
I have often said this (so forgive me, my long-time readers) - the district is on a need-to-know basis. THEY will decide what PARENTS need to know and WHEN.
That is true today more than ever.
Here's what you can do:
- Send an email to the STUDENT board members, studentrep@seattleschools.org
The members are: Luna Crone Baron, Aayush Muthuswamy and Lola van der Neut.
Appeal to them as high school students and ask why students are not more involved in the process and why the process for public input got such a short window of time.
Why might this be useful? Because the students have shown themselves willing to speak up at Board meetings about issues. Ms. Crone Baron is especially able in asking questions. So, if only to get it on the record, write to them and you will have more voices asking why parents, students and community were not given a real chance for input.
- Are you on Facebook or Twitter? Register your complaints there at the district's Facebook page and on TwitterX (@SeaPubSchools). BE SURE to include @SeaTimesOpinion @KUOW @TheStranger in your message.
The district hates being called out on Twitter.
You cannot create your own post on their Facebook page so just put your comments in any post they have.
However, they say this: Only people who follow this Page for more than 24 hours can comment. You can't even READ the comments unless you follow their page.
That looks like a recent development which is, AGAIN, another way the district is stifling any criticism or input.
Instagram? - seattlepublicschools
- What else? Write a letter to editor at the Times:
The Times' letters to the editor are a collection of reader opinions, representing a wide range of perspectives on current issues. Join the discussion at letters@seattletimes.com. Please include your full name, address and telephone number for verification only. Letters are limited to 200 words.
And, of course, please comment at any story the Times has on SPS.
Lastly, there may be a couple of Board members who will have the occasional community meeting in 2024. Tsunami any meeting with complaints.
Comments
Post on Facebook all you want, testify in front of the board even, whine to the Seattle Times editorial board, or be like me post to this blog…
BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE THING THAT CAN DRIVE CHANGE: VOT NO ON ED LEVIES.
That’s right, yank their (super, board, JSCEE minions) chain: VOTE NO ON ALL ED LEVIES
That is absolutely the only thing they’ll ever sit up and pay attention to otherwise it’s “all talk to the hand” as they give you contemptuous attitude.
They can always bring back a failed levy in 6 months, so this is just a slap, a shot across the bow, THE unalloyed message to them to get their house in order before you will start to fund their operations.
The only way to get their attention is to shut down the spigot that is filling the trough at which they are all feeding at.
Even if we had a good board, which we don’t, we still wouldn’t have education in the schools.
Only about 22% of households in Seattle have school-age kids, if that. And of those kids, Seattle has the fourth highest participation in private/independent schools in the U.S. So good liberal Seattle will vote their liberal values to “fund education” when there is really not much education to be had in the buildings, but, they won’t put their children in the buildings. They’ll just give you their money.
And no, not one bit of this is the fault of teachers. They are the ones who show up and stand in front of kids and give care and try their hardest in a really difficult system.
Paying them well is not what is skewing our budget into a gigantic deficit.
The only thing that can fix the system is a reboot, and the only thing that’ll generate a reboot, is stopping the dollar flow just temporarily, enough to let them know we are serious.
VOTE NO
I suspect that the fact that board members used to hold community meetings will be erased from the current board's memory.
The fact that the board used to have Curriculum and Instruction meetings will be erased from history- as well.
Director Song suggested a Fiscal Committee be established to oversee the district during the current budget crisis. HERSEY shot down Song's comment because he was afraid documents would "leak". Hello, the district used to hold open meetings to discuss these types of things. As per usual, the current board majority prefers darkness.
No Billionaires