This and That, May 2 2024

According to KUOW:

After spending months bouncing from shelter to shelter, asylum-seekers in western Washington have now begun settling into a camp near Seattle’s Garfield High School.

It’s their latest move after money for housing ran out yet again.

They first began camping at Powell Barnett wading pool earlier this week, where 300 to 400 people were staying on Monday night.  (Editor's note; this wading pool is directly east of Garfield High School about 5 blocks away.)

Washington state has allocated $32 million to help address the housing issue. But that money won’t kick in until July, when the new fiscal year begins. Most of that money will be used at the Washington Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance to provide housing and legal services. State officials also have asked the public to help find more permanent solutions for the asylum-seekers.

Unlike the federal refugee resettlement program, there is no formal infrastructure for asylum-seekers once they are processed at the border by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.

 

 There's a petition out about the Highly Capable program:

The recommendation is for SPS to retain the current HCC program for now, while doubling down on its efforts to make the highly capable identification process more equitable.  The Op Ed lays out the case that moving to a local advanced learning/HC delivery model - where no such model exists and no funding is proposed - will serve no one and hurt everyone.  

All signatures collected before EOD Friday, May 3, 2024, will be shared with Superintendent Brent Jones and the SPS Board of Directors as endorsing the position of the OpEd.

 

News from KUOW: KUOW lays off 8 staffers, ends RadioActive youth program

Zaki Hamid, KUOW’s director of community engagement, oversaw RadioActive and shared his thoughts about the 20-year-old youth radio training program:

"RadioActive was a champion for youth voices in media. Throughout the years, youth tackled some of the thorniest issues, from abortion to religion to gender identity and so much more.

RadioActive gave us the privilege of insight into the world of young people, and their perspective on the world. The stories that they produced made us pause, rethink issues, laugh, and learn. I hope this program and all of the wonderful memories it created can act as a beacon of hope for youth to continue championing their voices being heard."

 

Bicycle weekends have been announced for Lake Washington Boulevard from 7pm Friday to 7 am Monday. On Memorial Day and Labor day, the closures will extend to 7 am Tuesday morning. More info here.


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