Seattle Schools Community Forum

 Today is International Transgender Day of Visibility and, on its Facebook page, Seattle Schools acknowledged this and said: Today, on International Transgender Day of Visibility, Seattle Public Schools proudly reaffirms our commitment to creating safe, inclusive, and affirming spaces for our transgender, nonbinary, and gender-expansive students.   We celebrate the resilience, strength, and contributions of trans students, educators, and community members. You belong here, and we will continue working to ensure every student is supported and empowered to thrive. To note, a week in November is called Transgender Awareness Week in the U.S.  Kennewick School District, in Eastern Washington, has appealed to the federal government over what to do about transgendered athletes. State Superintendent Chris Reykdal has stated that districts should follow state law because an executive order by a president is not a law.  Story from The Seattle Times: In a  complaint filed ...

  Update, April 1: Dear SPS families and staff ,  We want to provide an update on contract negotiations between one of our bus providers, First Student, and Teamsters 174, the union representing their drivers.  On Saturday, the Teamsters voted to authorize a strike. This means the union now has the option to take action if an agreement is not reached. It does not necessarily mean a strike will happen.  Seattle Public Schools (SPS) is in contact with First Student, which is actively working to reach a resolution with the Teamsters through further negotiations. end of update    I just happened to go to the Seattle Schools' webpage and here was the top story: One of Seattle Public Schools (SPS) contracted school bus providers, First Student, is currently in contract negotiations with Teamsters 174, their bus drivers’ union. The Teamsters have scheduled a meeting for Saturday to vote on a possible strike authorization. This gives the u...

 A story in the Seattle Times this morning seems to say the Board should be considering an interim superintendent and not a permanent superintendent. There are many good reasons for this: Seattle is already entering the superintendent search market late in the game. Districts advertise vacancies in the fall, from around November to January, and start screening, interviewing and hosting community engagement sessions in February, with an eye toward a July 1 start date for their new leaders, said Julia Rafal-Baer, the CEO of the ILO Group, a firm that tracks superintendent turnover and women in district leadership. With a smaller pool of qualified candidates to draw from, a tight timeline and the possibility of significant changes on the School Board in the fall — four of the seven seats will be on the ballot in November — Rafal-Baer said the board might want to consider an interim superintendent.  Rafal-Baer cautioned that a compressed timeline could compromise the thoroughnes...

This meeting ran an hour and that's because President Gina Topp is so good at running meetings. Agenda Only Topp and Director Michelle Sarju were in person and the rest of the directors - Rankin, Mizrahi, Hersey, Clark and Briggs were virtual.  I am going to state upfront that this is an aggressive schedule that may not be able to happen as laid out. Some directors expressed this same thought and some of it is timing. This is NOT the time of year that district normally go looking for superintendents. Usually it starts in fall and ends in spring. So Seattle Schools may have missed that window for the best candidates and may get a line of candidates who were rejected by other districts. That doesn't mean they weren't good candidates but probably not a good fit for a certain district.  But I have also seen candidates who apply for post after post and not get selected. The Board may get some of those.  Topp said interested firms should have their applications to the Board by ...

 That mystery Board meeting that I reported out for Tuesday DOES turn out to be their first step in finding a new leader for Seattle Schools. It's from 3-4 pm at JSCEE but will also be live-streamed on the district's YouTube channel.  Agenda They are looking for a search firm to guide this work.  The BAR documentation shows they are looking around regionally at who else is seeking a new superintendent. They include Bremerton, Evergreen, Kennewick, Port Angeles, and Walla Walla, among others. There is no district even near SPS's size. They are also using the Washington State School Directors' Association (WSSDA) handbook. I did like this: The involvement of staff members in directing the search process may contribute to an impression that some staff members are closer to the new person.  They think they can do this work for around $100,000.  The timing is: - March to send out requests for proposals for search firms -  April 7th applications are due - Someti...

  The Seattle Times Editorial Board has weighed in during the early days of the SPS superintendent search, Dear Seattle School Board: Seize this chance to make major changes I mostly agree with the Editorial Board.  They open with what they noticed first thing during Superintendent Brent Jones' announcement.  Watching the video of Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Brent Jones   announcing his unexpected resignation , a viewer might wonder at his demeanor. Jones is relaxed and smiling, almost beaming. The feeling conveyed is one of happiness, perhaps relief. They continue about the trials Jones has faced but, oddly, left out safety issues.  Every step of the way, Jones was navigating yet another stumbling block: the Seattle School Board. Haranguing the board for past failures will accomplish little, however. The best course of action now is to seize this moment as a welcome opportunity for a badly needed reset. There's pointing out issues and then there's har...

 I had seen one notice of a job opportunity for teens and then found this SPS page - SPS and Community Internships. Among the possibilities: computer science, neurodiversity project, Seattle Parks and Rec, camp counselors, nurse camp, and many others.  Know a teen? Please pass this along.

This week saw the full-court press by the Republican administration to close the Department of Education. Legally, only Congress can do that but, as we have seen, you can dismantle a department to near nothing. It's a bit funny that the president says that he wants to "return" education to the states. Most of education funding and curriculum ALREADY comes from the states. Sorry he missed that briefing. From the AP : In the short term, students, teachers and parents likely won’t see much impact. Long term, it’s harder to predict. It depends how Education Secretary Linda McMahon distributes the mandated functions of the department to other parts of government, including the states. The biggest question is how the states will distribute the federal money the department sends to help educate students who are poor, disabled or still learning English and need extra support. School systems with weak property tax bases, including those in rural areas, depend on that money to pa...

As you are probably aware, one of the top jobs for the Republican administration is basically to get trans adults and students to stop existing. Go back into the closet or whereever. You can exist as long as you present as what we say you should be.  That administration now wants to take federal grants away from a university if they allow a trans athlete to compete. That would be the University of Maine and it was probably chosen because Maine's governor stood up to that President at a governors meeting weeks ago.  Now, the GOP in Arkansas wants to do this: GOP proposes bill that would punish supporting trans youth through new names and haircuts  From The Advocate: H.B. 1668 , the so-called "Vulnerable Youth Protection Act," would allow minors or their parents to sue anyone who even acknowledges a minor's gender identity, including "without limitation changes in clothing, pronouns, hairstyle, and name." Lawsuits are permitted up to 15 years after the allege...

First up, the Seattle Times would like your opinion on the following: The Seattle Times would like to hear your thoughts and questions about the changes in leadership and the district’s future. Oh, is THAT all? They have a form at their website or you can email them,  edlab@seattletimes.com. I note that this is through their "Education Lab" and not their regular ed reporter.    Next, there is a movement of "walk-ins" that is supported by the teachers union and one is happening in Seattle. This via the West Seattle Blog: We’ve heard so far from educators at two local schools organizing “Walk-Ins” before classes Wednesday morning (March 19) as part of a nationwide demonstration against education cuts. Organizers are inviting community members to join staff and students. Here’s the invitation for West Seattle High School ‘s Walk-In. Staff, students, and community members of West Seattle High School (including community businesses and supportive neighbors) will be ...

 Via SPS Communications: Dear SPS Families and Staff,   After much reflection and heartfelt conversations, I have decided to conclude my tenure as superintendent this fall. My last day with the district will be Sept. 3, 2025.  I am sharing this news now to be respectful of our school community and to allow as much time for transition as possible.  During my tenure, I proudly led several key initiatives that strengthened Seattle Public Schools (SPS) in our pursuit of academic excellence, including the passage of our levies, advancing equity and inclusion, expanding student support services, strengthening community partnerships, and navigating the challenges of the pandemic. We have emerged stronger, and recent research has found that we have achieved accelerated academic recovery from pandemic declines at a significantly faster rate than Washington state as a whole or compared to similar districts in the state.   In my remaining mo...

 Update: I am amused that some people shrug at this and say, "lots of married couples live apart for work." Yes, that is true. But know what The majority of married people actually live together. I'll be happy to admit I am wrong except that, for this instance, I don't think I am.  Also for the few who say, "Their personal life is their own." Indeed that is true but I'm not talking about their personal lives but their professional lives.  end of update   I have learned that Dr. Brent Jones' wife, Janine, has taken a position out of state. So, unless they are divorcing, it is likely he is leaving. I would hope both Jones and the Board could agree to his staying until the end of the school year. Jones is a good guy and I think he would follow through on this. So that leaves the Board with two big jobs.  One, find a decent interim who isn't Ted Howard, the Accountability Officer. (Although, I'll bet that's who they pick. Maybe Dr. Rocky Torr...

Over the last couple of months, the Seattle School Board has listened to Superintendent Jones and his team as they gave presentations on the progress of African American male students per the Strategic Plan. All that focus and effort and there has not been much to get excited about.  As well, the attempt at closing schools failed and failed miserably. There was nothing good about the plan that was presented or the thought process behind it.  Then comes the attempt to end the cohort model of the Highly Capable program without a real plan for how neighborhood schools would serve those students. And again, senior staff were forced - this time by the Board for once - to backpedal. (I have not yet listened to the latest discussion of this topic that took place at the Board meeting on Wednesday night.)  I'd also like to know exactly what was Jones' role in creating a high-level job paying six figures, as a personal favor to a friend. If I am wrong on this, I would love to hear ...