This and That
The big news from the Supreme Court of the United States is that the case before them on the creation of religious charter schools did not pass their muster. It was an odd situation where Justice Amy Coney Barrett recused herself. She was not required to state why but it appears she has a close and long-time friendship with a lawyer associated with the case.
So the vote was 4-4. The Court didn't issue any statement and it is not clear which conservative justice joined the more liberal justices. My money is on Chief Justice John Roberts.
When the Supreme Court is just eight members, then the case decision is the one from the last court that heard the case. That result, from the Oklahoma Supreme Court was that charter schools cannot be religious schools. Interestingly, most mainstream charter schools are against the creation of religious charter schools.
While this is a good outcome, it is likely temporary as some other state will bring a case where no justice recuses themselves.
The Seattle Times reports that Seattle Schools is "mulling" the addition of a police officer at Garfield High School this September. Reading this article, it felt like everything was quite up in the air. This officer would be called "a school engagement officer" and would be unlikely to wear a police uniform. As well, the officer would be assigned to monitor student safety and not engage in discipline issues.
The officer will be armed and stationed primarily outside the school, because parents and students said they felt safe inside but not necessarily outside the building, which students can leave during lunch time, Morelos said.
Before the program was disbanded in 2020, the school resource officers — who were then called “school emphasis officers” — worked at Garfield, South Shore PK-8, Aki Kurose Middle School, Denny International Middle School and Washington Middle School.
Because of the 2020 moratorium, the School Board must approve any agreement to allow the program or a version of it to return to schools. The administration hopes to bring a proposal for a one-year pilot program to the board this summer, with a briefing planned for the board’s June 4 meeting, district officials said.
Board President Gina Topp wants to hear details and wants to "hear how the district and school engaged the community on the issue before pursuing that path.." She also stated:
“Allowing for the flexibility for where different communities are at is going to be important in what the program itself or what an engagement officer itself looks like at different schools.”
Pro
Supporters say trained school resource officers help create a safe learning environment for students and that they can also help districts respond quickly in emergencies.
Con
Girard Montejo-Thompson, the president of the Seattle Education Association, said that he’s worried that the Police Department is using this to rehabilitate its image with the community.
“We do have a lot of staff and students who don’t feel safe around the police and actually feel more at risk,” he said, adding that he’s also concerned that levy funds could possibly be used to sustain the program and compete with funding for positions that pay for social-emotional programs. A gun in school sets a bad precedent, he said.
He’d rather see the money and efforts underwrite “preventative work rather than responsive work.”
Leo Falit-Baiamonte, a spokesperson for the Seattle Student Union, said there are much better options, including expanded mental health care and community-based solutions that promote restorative justice instead of criminalization and discipline. Students are not always given the range of possibilities when they are asked about school safety solutions, he said.
Despite assurances that the officer will not be involved in school discipline, Falit-Baiamonte said school staff are more likely to request police assistance if an officer is present.
It appears that SPD would pay for the officer for the first year but it's unclear what would happen after that. The City's Families, Education, Preschool and Promise levy will be on the ballot in November and includes about $47M for school safety (no details available).
From the Garfield PTSA:
Alicia Spanswick, co-president of the Garfield PTSA, said she appreciates that the focus would be on building rapport with students. The officer is also not expected to be in full Seattle Police Department uniform and they would not focus on discipline. That reduces the possibility of contributing to historical harm, Spanswick said.
To note:
Garfield has two “violence interrupters” and a case manager who work with its 1,509 students through an agreement with nonprofit Community Passageways. Garfield also has a half-time social worker and other support staff to help students, according to the district. The Teen Health Center also has three mental health therapists on-site, the district said.
The Trump regime actions to close the Department of Education has hit a roadblock. From NPR:
On Thursday, a federal judge in Massachusetts issued a preliminary injunction blocking President Trump and U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon from carrying out Trump's executive order calling for the secretary to close the Education Department.
The judge also told the administration to reinstate the roughly 1,300 Education Department employees who were told in March that they would lose their jobs as part of a sweeping reduction-in-force and "to restore the Department to the status quo."
Joun also barred Trump from following through on a pledge he made in the Oval Office to move management of the entire federal student loan portfolio and the department's "special needs" programs to other federal agencies.
Under Trump's new Education Department this year, many borrowers reported that their monthly payments for income-driven federal student loan repayment programs soared anywhere from $500 to $5,000.
Since 43 million Americans have some sort of student loan debt, changes to federal student loan options and payments could significantly affect the financial standing of many families. The Education Department reports Americans collectively have $1.5 trillion in student debt nationwide.
There would also be no more monthly payment deferment for economic hardship or unemployment.
The amount of time you can spend in discretionary forbearance would also decrease to nine months from 12 months.
Many college students also would be unable to access the Pell Grant under the bill, as Republicans are asking to increase the full-time enrollment requirement to 30 semester hours from 24 semester hours each academic year.
A Florida mom whose daughter, Alyssa, was killed in the Feb. 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School watched as Governor Bob Ferguson signed "Alyssa's Law".
The new state statute will require Washington school districts to implement advanced emergency systems, including silent panic alarms and live-feed video access for law enforcement. The additions are designed to reduce emergency response times and improve coordination during emergencies.
Under the law, Washington school districts must also collaborate with local law enforcement agencies to develop and implement the required systems, state officials said. Districts must report their implementation progress to the state’s Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction by Oct. 1, with a statewide report due to the state Legislature by Dec. 1.
Alyssa’s Law passed the Washington State Legislature unanimously, with a 49-0 vote in the Senate and a 98-0 vote in the House, state officials said.
With Ferguson’s signature, Washington joined Texas, New Jersey, New York, Florida, Georgia, Utah, Oklahoma, and Tennessee in passing Alyssa’s Law.
The Quilcene School Board, a district on the Olympia Peninsula, voted to ban transgender athletes in school sports. From The Seattle Times:
The Quilcene School board passed the resolution with a 3-2 vote May 7.
In late February, the Tumwater School Board voted to ban transgender athletes from playing on girls sports teams after two Tumwater girls basketball players refused to play in a game against Shelton, which had a transgender player.
You may recall that State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Chris Reykdal, answering to Trump's order to prevent transgender athletes from competing in girls' and women's sport, said:
“State law prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity, and we will not back down from that,” Reykdal said in the statement.
As well, this Board vote goes against the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association rule book. The WIAA took two advisory votes in April and neither one passed.
The WIAA was the first state association in the nation to craft a policy on transgender athletes in 2007 and allowed students to participate consistent with their gender identity. There are few known transgender athletes in the state.
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