What's Happening in the District This Week

Side note: if any reader goes to the Gay Pride Parade today, let us know who you see in senior leadership from the district. They always have a bus in the parade.

Onward. 

Tuesday, July 2nd is the regular Board meeting for the month.  It's a pretty short agenda.

 I see three principals leaving from Fairmount Park ES, Nathan Hale HS and Roxhill ES.

The Board will be approving the final resolution on what the Budget will look like (NOT the budget itself) in terms of interfund transfers. Staff is taking nearly $90M from three Capital funds. 

There's Intro/Action on the principals' contract (and there's a link to the entire contract in the agenda). 

Wait, what?! Recall the hole that the last SEA contract put  the district into, now here's the principals' contract that - over 3 years from 2024-2027 - will raise their contract by over $8M. 

I'm not begrudging the principals but this just won't work. Who can believe these cries of poverty and then do this? If they do this, then they will give the Superintendent a raise. I can only tell Board members that if you think the non-Seattle legislators are going to pony up more money when you spend like this, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you.

Section D: Provision for Adversely Affected Administrators in key to current closure discussions.

Principal Reductions: Program and staff reductions may be required as a result of enrollment decline, failure of a special levy election, termination, or reduction of funding of categorically funded projects, school closures or consolidation, or other events resulting in a significant reduction in revenue. The Board of Directors, upon recommendation of the Superintendent, shall determine which educational programs and services will be reduced, modified, or eliminated.

Principals in years 1 through 3 of employment as principals shall be subject to reduction, as a first step in the reduction process.

Assistant principals currently assigned to schools or programs facing reductions will be reduced, regardless of seniority.

As well, there is the "Board Quarterly Self-Evaluation Template." I know that most of the Board is new but for the time and money they are spending on SOFG, these numbers should be better.

They gave themselves 25 out of 35 for "Vision and Goals."

They gave themselves 5 out of 15 for "Values and Guardrails."

They gave themselves 10 out of 30 for "Monitoring and Accountability."

They gave themselves 1 out of 10 for "Communication and Collaboration."

They gave themselves 0 out of 5 for "Unity and Trust."

They gave themselves 0 out 5 for "Continuous Improvement."

That brings them to 41 out of 100.  And in the next section they optimistically say all those scores will be up near or at the top by next March.