This and That, October 24, 2025
What the parents wanted:
But here's what they say they got:
These changes: "all critical guardrails and agreements we had reached were eliminated from the Board Action Report in the September and October board agendas. Tucked into these reports was a revised Memorandum of Understanding...The revised memorandum presented to the board was clouded by legalese, and the essential principles we agreed on were gone."
Rankin and Sarju point out that they did not vote the same way - Rankin said yes and Sarju said no. They also say:
We do not and will not support armed police officers being stationed inside Seattle schools.
But then they say:
Officers cannot serve disciplinary roles, must follow our policies and be answerable to school leaders, and data must be collected to evaluate impact on student well-being and school security.
Trust is also part of safety. Trust has been damaged through covert conversations and mixed messages about safety plans and possible police partnerships, through misinformation and inconsistent follow-through on commitments, causing harm and confusion. Without honest collaboration, transparent decision-making, and an unwavering focus on our students, we will continue to struggle with issues of safety in Seattle Public Schools.
I feel like pulling my hair out. The parent leaders are saying they would support an SEO but feared this "revised memorandum." My reporting was that Superintendent Fred Podesta said it was a template and NOT the actual MOU. Yet both the directors and the parents reacted as if it IS the MOU that SPD and SPS would be agreeing to.
Basically, both groups seem to be inferring that the Superintendent and senior staff were negotiating with SPD and misled both groups on what a pilot SEO program would look like. After all this time and effort, that's the outcome? It's ridiculous.
What I really wonder about is whether that MOU is what SPD wants (or their union) and senior staff said okay. Because someone is lying here. Either that MOU is real (and does not address the program as requested by parents/Board) or it IS a placeholder.
Which is it?
And my recollection of the discussion at the Board meeting is that Sarju practically said they were lied to. That's a very big accusation and something of a crisis of confidence in the Superintendent.
SPS reports that there was a broken water fountain found on the second floor of Emerson Elementary early this morning and that it caused "significant damage to classrooms, supplies, and materials on both floors of the school." The school was closed on Friday and will be closed on Monday as well.
We are actively putting processes in place to transition students to Old Van Asselt (OVA), located at 7201 Beacon Ave S, Seattle, WA 98108. The timeline for the start of school at OVA is still being determined, and we will share updates as soon as they are available.
That must be a lot of damage for them to move the school to another building. Sad for Emerson and especially teachers who probably lost much of their resources.
KUOW is reporting that yet another high school teacher in the Mercer Island District has been accused of sexual misconduct.
In August 2011, Curtis Johnston was called to a meeting at the Mercer Island School District’s administrative office. Rumors had been swirling that the 44-year-old high school English teacher was in a romantic relationship with a teenage student.
The meeting that summer was attended by members of the Human Resources department and a union representative. Johnston repeatedly brushed off the concerns about an inappropriate relationship, assuring the group that he was merely acting as a “father figure” and “family friend” to the teenager in question, who had lost her dad to cancer the year before. They took his word for it.
The student, now an adult, says that it is true and it started her senior year when she was 18 and he was 44.
Public records obtained by InvestigateWest reveal how school leaders disregarded the serious concerns raised about Johnston from the student’s mother, a church counselor and a fellow student. Dozens of former students, teachers, and Mercer Island residents described a school culture that they say helped enable the abuse.
Wow.
Microsoft is pushing AI into public schools. From the Center for Digital Education:
A new Microsoft initiative will provide Washington public school districts and community colleges with free access to the company’s AI-enabled learning tools, professional development opportunities and infrastructure support.
The program, Microsoft Elevate Washington, seeks to mitigate emerging disparities in AI adoption across regions and position Washington as a leader in AI-augmented education, according to a recent blog post on the company's website by the company's Vice Chair and President Brad Smith. It aims to do this by helping educators save time on administrative tasks, giving students early exposure to emerging technologies and shrinking the digital divide between urban and rural areas.
Microsoft will work with the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Washington Education Association and the National Education Association to provide AI training for educators and staff across the state. Smith wrote that the company also plans to support role-based professional development, a Generative AI for Educators training series and a statewide K-12 AI Innovation Summit.
Do parents have a say in any of this? I think districts should make immediate plans to explain to parents what AI will mean in their child's district.
How is the government shutdown affecting public education? According to Education Week:
- 87% of its 2,447 employees are furloughed. One third of the remaining staff are working on federal student aid.
- The Trump regime has RIFed about 466 employees. This affects several areas including Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Special Education, and Office for Civil Rights. This has been temporarily blocked by a judge.
- Title One and IDEA funds are continuing.
- All of the child-nutrition programs are continuing.
- Head Start funds are in limbo. More than 58,000 students will lose funding by Nov. 1.
- If you didn't know, the Trump regime is wording automatic email answers - in every federal office - to reflect that it is the Democrats fault for the shutdown. You can see this if you go to the National Parks website.
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--BooBooBeeBoop