Highly Capable Updates
The first update on the Highly Capable program comes from something that happened at the last Seattle School Board meeting. At that meeting, there was a discussion about HC from the director, Dr. Paula Montgomery.
It has been astonishing to watch what the district is now doing ( after doing a near 180 on what HC looks like in SPS). They are keeping the cohort schools, both free-standing and within elementaries, AND will open cohorts in two elementaries - the newly remodeled Alki Elementary and the furthest south SPS elementary, Rainier View. (Its building is old and small but they are on a 10-acre site. I'm also hearing that the principal is very dedicated. I would guess if the program takes hold, that RV Elementary will be on the next BEX list.)
Those locations solve a long-standing issue of accessibility for students in West Seattle to a cohort AND having a cohort school in the southeast. It should save some money on transportation as the West Seattle HC students had to be brought over to Thurgood Marshall Elementary.
But how we got here? Kinda murky. I listened to that Board discussion with staff at the last Board meeting on February 11, 2025. Dr. Montgomery was at the podium explaining that they had everything ready to go - "as soon as tomorrow" - to enroll students in these two new cohorts.
This BAR (Board Action Report) was on the agenda as Intro. Its official title was something like "Student Assignment Transition Plan." Unlike other recent BARs which were Intro/Action at the same date, this was simply Intro. What that normally means is that the Board has this item introduced with discussion and then it would get a vote at the next Board meeting. That allows the public and school communities to give input on the idea to the Board.
But that's not what happened. Somehow to seems there might be some executive power that led for the district to just explain it to the Board and move ahead without a vote.
I will note that there is going to be a new Board Policy Committee and I think it might be a good idea for the members to clarify what is the Board's role in any kind of student assignment changes. Because those changes are a big deal and it would seem that the electeds should weigh in. I remind readers that changes of this nature are NOT just about a single school or region; changes cause ripples throughout the district that sometimes aren't always visible but yet are felt.
Back to HC, I can tell you that, despite all promises, how this office runs is not clear from website information or info given to parents. And, it is particularly hard on parents to have a system where any HC identified student who wants to stay at their current school not understand what services their child will get (CSIPs notwithstanding).
I've said it before and I'll say it again - this program is one that exists and that the district has supported for decades. Any principal or teacher who doesn't believe in it should check that belief at the school's front door and the district should send that message out. I have seen and heard about teachers who give watered down lessons to HC students as well as heard about principals who just do the minimum.
I think there should be a rubric or menu that principals and teachers can jointly decide on for their use but it shouldn't be more than five items nor can the substance or time allotted change at any given school.
Why?
One, families should have clarity and reasonable belief that what is given to HC students in a non-cohort school will not wildly vary from school to school.
Two, if every elementary school gets to do its own thing as far as HC services, how does the district know what works and what doesn't work?
From an April 2025 HC story in the Seattle Times:
Instead, students at neighborhood schools are taught at grade level, but with “deeper depth and complexity in the standards,” according to a new update the district will discuss with the School Board on Wednesday. They will be able to go further through instruction in small groups, advanced texts, independent projects and deeper dives into math standards, according to the district.
In middle school, where getting into higher-level math courses is a perennial complaint, students can take compacted seventh and eighth grade math in seventh grade.
“The neighborhood model does provide services for highly capable students,” said Ricardo Torres-Morales, the associate superintendent of student supports. But he acknowledged that the services might not be to the level every parent wants.
“We want to see it be more robust, more clear, more standardized and baseline across the system,” he said.
One West Seattle principal wrote to a parent last month that advanced learning “will not look any different from it does this year” and there won’t be a separate curriculum for students who are designated as advanced learners or highly capable.
Teachers will differentiate the curriculum, activities, lessons and learning objectives to meet students’ needs, the principal wrote. However, families who wanted access to advanced coursework would have to transfer to Thurgood Marshall, the principal said.
You see my point.
I will also say that despite changes in appeals on HC designation, there certainly does seem to be many parents who plan on appealing. There seems to be some confusion on the eligibility criteria as well as the application process.
Plus, there is the issue of student who are 2E (twice exceptional) which are students who qualify for HC but also have Special Education or neuro-divergent issues. SPS really needs to address this issue in a clear manner.
I see that SPS does already have information on its 2026 Highly Capable Summer Math Program "for math placement in sixth grade during the 2026-2027 school year." It is stated that families will receive more details in Spring 2026.
Lastly, I am bummed because I cannot find the most recent Work Session that included discussion of HC. It had some charts that I wanted to post here. I can't seem to find it at the SPS website, anyone?
I think for me to try to list all the various tweaks and changes to the HC program would be folly. However, there is a very active Facebook page for elementary school parents, HC Seattle Elementary, as well as a high school group, HCC Seattle High School.
There is also another Facebook group - Friends of HiCap Seattle - that is also active. They also hold "Sips and Chats" Zoom meetings where you can "bring your HC-related questions or come to share your experiences." The next one is on Tuesday, February 24th.
This group shares these resources.
Comments