What!? Seattle Schools Changes Date for First Public Engagement Meeting

Thank you to a reader (I can't find your comment quickly to name you) who points out that the first public engagement meeting on "well-resourced schools" has been changed with little notice. 

The meeting was supposed to be this Saturday, May 25th at Garfield High School. The SPS website reflects that it is NOT happening on that date.

Here's the new schedule:

  • Tuesday, May 28, 6 – 7:30 p.m., Roosevelt High School, 1410 NE 66th St.
  • Thursday, May 30, 6 – 7:30 p.m., Garfield High School, 400 23rd Ave.
  • Saturday, June 1, 10:30 a.m. – noon, Chief Sealth International High School, 2600 SW Thistle St.
  • Tuesday, June 4, 6 – 7:30 p.m., Zoom meeting (meeting link will be posted on the well-resourced schools webpage by June 3)

Is this on the SPS homepage so that parents and community can easily note this change? Nope.

I will await to see if this makes it to the district's Twitter account (but they haven't had a tweet since April 10th). There is also nothing currently at their Facebook page.


Comments

NB Mom said…
Parents also received this email yesterday:

Help Craft the New SPS Strategic Plan: Join a Meeting with the School Board

Dear SPS students, families, and staff,

There is a lot happening in Seattle Public Schools (SPS) as we work towards a sustainable future for our district where all students can thrive. We are beginning the next strategic plan to guide our work from 2025 to 2030.

As your elected representatives, the Seattle School Board’s job is to set goals for a plan that represents the vision and values of our community. These goals are one of the ways we provide direction to the superintendent on what the public expects and prioritizes for SPS students.

To develop our goals, we need to hear from you.

Please share your ideas with the School Board on what we should expect from schools and how this will benefit our students.

We are asking for input in multiple ways, including an online survey and community meetings. Please participate in the way that works best for you. These events will be focused on the vision and values for SPS’ new strategic plan, hosted by the Seattle School Board

More information can be found on the Seattle School Board Community Engagement Webpage.

Online Survey

Please fill out the School Board Community Engagement online survey to provide your thoughts on the vision and values for SPS. The survey will be open until Friday, June 7.

Community Meetings May and June 2024

Wednesday, May 29, 6 – 7:30 p.m., Robert Eagle Staff Middle School 1330 N 90th St., Seattle, WA 98103
Wednesday, June 5, 6 – 7:30 p.m. Cleveland STEM High School 5511 15th Ave. S, Seattle, WA 98108
Wednesday, June 12, 6 – 7:30 p.m. Virtual Event hosted by Seattle Council PTSA Zoom link, Zoom Meeting Registration
If you need interpretation to participate in the meeting, please email boardoffice@seattleschools.org.

Please note: This School Board engagement, which focuses on the vision and values for the new strategic plan, is distinct from the well-resourced schools engagement opportunities.

At the end of this engagement process, we will be sharing what we heard from the community and the School Board’s draft goals. These goals will direct our district on a new strategic plan. We will vote to approve the final goals to provide to Superintendent Jones in the fall.

Thank you for your valuable time and input to support Seattle’s students!

Sincerely,

President Liza Rankin on behalf of the Seattle School Board
Seattle Public Schools



A little confusing, right? More meetings very close to the “Well Resourced Schools” meetings. As a parent it makes it difficult, can’t attend them all. They also haven’t posted anything on their instagram page about any of the meetings.
5/22/24, 9:00 AM
Melissa Westbrook said…
I think perhaps - just like with graduation dates - somebody forgot to check the calendar in selecting May 25th for the first public engagement meeting.

It's during the Memorial Day weekend and I'll bet staff pushed back. Maybe it would have made it hard for parents? Not sure I know for parents but it's likely very true for staff.
5/23/24, 3:57 PM
Anonymous said…
I just "attended" the first Well-Resourced Schools community meeting at Garfield High School. No one from the district showed up. Although this meeting was widely publicized, it was apparently cancelled with much less notice, and no one from the district thought to be sure that the cancellation was as widely distributed as the original notice.

This is a very bad look for SPS and can only lead to skepticism that student and family input will be considered in any meaningful decision making.
5/25/24, 10:53 AM
Melissa Westbrook said…
Anonymous, next time I need a name/moniker. I'm sorry you missed my notice about the change of date but I agree, SPS didn't try hard enough.
5/25/24, 4:18 PM
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