tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post8317035376780181581..comments2024-03-28T23:38:22.511-07:00Comments on Seattle Schools Community Forum: Short Term Capacity Management ProposalsMelissa Westbrookhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-56113732860068292402011-12-24T11:02:15.435-08:002011-12-24T11:02:15.435-08:00There is an answer to that!
Years ago, I spoke to...There is an answer to that!<br /><br />Years ago, I spoke to facilities about a portable that was being installed at my kid's school. They said it was "cheaper" to get the new chairs, etc for several reasons. The labor charge for facilities to move the supplies to the school was almost the same price as the new stuff as the price of the new chairs included set up and delivery. Also the new chairs were "new" and had a longer life expectancy. <br /><br />In other words, she said that the surplus stuff was really not useful. Anything that was really useful in surplus get poached by principals and teaching staff that visit surplus. Much of it was from closed schools and had been not in use for over a decade.<br /><br />north seattle momAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-324961105915397602011-12-24T10:33:03.956-08:002011-12-24T10:33:03.956-08:00Adding portables everywhere but what are they goin...Adding portables everywhere but what are they going to put in them? <br /><br />From the Classified:<br />SEATTLE SCHOOL DISTRICT SSD has surplus furniture and equipment available to any State recognized public or private school in Washington State. For information, please call 206-252-0568.<br /><br />Oh I get it, give away the surplus so they can buy new and put the School District further in debt.Justicenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-15993733077101881382011-12-22T21:29:51.705-08:002011-12-22T21:29:51.705-08:00Many of us in West Seattle have long advocated for...Many of us in West Seattle have long advocated for an elementary language immersion school - not a STEM school.<br /><br />The solution is so obvious and simple, yet so painful for the district to admit. REOPEN the closed schools and set boundaries back to pre-NSAP. Problem solved. 100%,wsnorthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03795943009142572757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-3233540809978159112011-12-16T22:23:32.146-08:002011-12-16T22:23:32.146-08:00@ Bird,
I agree that JSIS is the exception to ev...@ Bird, <br /><br />I agree that JSIS is the exception to every general statement that you can make both about capacity and about this plan. (closely followed by Schmitz Park)<br /><br />This plan is very portable heavy but it is mostly in places that don't have a lot portables already. I think it should be standard on these presentations that every listed school has the number of portables already on site as well as the percentage of capacity in portables.The easiest way to do this is to simply include the total number of teaching stations. <br /><br />If that happened, you would NEVER have a proposal that included adding more portables at Schmitz Park. At some point, the entire school is a portable village with a small building attached. <br /><br />Back to JSIS, it does not escape the notice of anyone that people will continue to move into the area to be able to access that program. Under the NSAP, the district can only control the capacity at option schools. Sooner or later, someone is going to have to acknowledge that you can't draw the boundary small enough and convert the school to option status. IMO, the sooner the better. The constant churn over the boundaries is not good for anyone and at least right now the three neighboring schools have space. That won't last forever.kelliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01322661098626555834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-11091580221386657242011-12-16T17:21:40.800-08:002011-12-16T17:21:40.800-08:00TechyMom, I am not saying that another portable at...TechyMom, I am not saying that another portable at McGilvra next year would be the end of the world. But the projections are IIRC that McGilvra will be 20% overenrolled in five years. So I expect more portables. And even three portables seems like three too many when you have a building with space so close by.<br /><br />I do think that the cafeteria issue at McGilvra, and, relatedly, the fact that it is hard to have all-school events there because there is no space for them, makes that building less than idea for taking on a lot more students.djhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01720927162286657378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-76826194237668328662011-12-16T17:04:44.999-08:002011-12-16T17:04:44.999-08:00As for the special education programs at Lowell, a...As for the special education programs at Lowell, as I have written before, they would move to T T Minor along with the rest of the Lowell students. When I say "Lowell" I mean all of the students in the building. Why would anyone assume anything else?Charlie Mashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17173903762962067277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-44736256320048313852011-12-16T17:03:40.176-08:002011-12-16T17:03:40.176-08:00Thanks for clarifying asked if schools can choose ...Thanks for clarifying asked if schools can choose not to use Readers/Writers workshop.<br /><br />Incredible as it may seem, Readers/<br />Writers workshop is NOT a Board-adopted curriculum. No school is required to use it. There are no Board-adopted materials for elementary literacy.Charlie Mashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17173903762962067277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-90818253387770379082011-12-16T15:32:13.366-08:002011-12-16T15:32:13.366-08:00Sometimes it's like yelling into an echo chamb...Sometimes it's like yelling into an echo chamber...SeattleSpedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705544363458155912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-30975698607771575542011-12-16T15:30:41.695-08:002011-12-16T15:30:41.695-08:00Actually, Lori, I was responding more to Charlie&#...Actually, Lori, I was responding more to Charlie's post. Thanks for the consideration, though...SeattleSpedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705544363458155912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-84380466708221290532011-12-16T13:38:29.183-08:002011-12-16T13:38:29.183-08:00I think we need both Lowell and Madrona. There ar...I think we need both Lowell and Madrona. There are a lot of housing units in south lake union, belltown, first hill and lower queen anne. With the economy making walkable apartments more interesting, and the trend of raising kids in cities, I think the district is underestimating the growth in these areas. Hay is already packed. There's no room for these kids at Hay. There is room for them at Lowell, and moving some kids from Hay to Lowell will solve both problems.<br /><br />I'm not sure there's room for this group at Washington, or for the growth currently happening in k-5 in the area between the ship canal and Jackson. That's why I'd like to see an attractive mushroom k-8 at Madrona (or a reopened Meany, but that doesn't seem to be in the cards).<br /><br />I also don't think that it's ok to kick Hamlin Robinson out of the TT Minor buildign after all the work they've done on it. It's legal, but I don't think it's ok.TechyMomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04650916001250022778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-59459955533726420072011-12-16T13:21:55.509-08:002011-12-16T13:21:55.509-08:00I think Charlie and Techy Mom make good points: We...I think Charlie and Techy Mom make good points: We really need to ask if the district needs Lowell as an elementary school. <br /><br />Doesn't it make more sense to invest resources in building up Madrona instead and either move Lowell's ALO students there, or disperse them among other nearby schools? Sounds like there might be room?<br /><br />- adAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-5155310133723990722011-12-16T11:27:38.835-08:002011-12-16T11:27:38.835-08:00So, I agree that making Madrona attractive is some...So, I agree that making Madrona attractive is something that needs to happen (and I have ideas on how, below), but...<br /><br />Adding a 3rd portable at McGilvra is not a big deal. The school is not crowded at all, and the lot is huge. The only real facilities problem with making McGilvra a bit bigger is that the lunch room is TINY. And, I say this as someone who thinks the ideal size for an elementary school is 250-300 students. With a 3rd portable, McGilvra will still be around 300 students.<br /><br />I also think that (at least some of) Downtown, First hill, SLU, and Belltown, and maybe Lower Queen Anne should be in Lowell's attendance area. For some of these area's it's closer than Hay, for others, it's not much farther. There is good bus service (#8 no transfer) to Washington. Hay is packed, Lowell is empty, and their attendance areas touch.<br /><br />If Madrona could attract some middle school students away from Washington, it could work. I'd bet a mushroom model K-8 Language Immersion or STEM, plus ALO or Spectrum, would fill it. I know a lot of local families aren't thrilled about the size of Washington, and TOPS takes very few 6th graders. Oh, and the #2 from Queen Anne via Downtown goes right to Madrona for those middle schoolers.TechyMomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04650916001250022778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-78852210788323959482011-12-16T11:22:05.936-08:002011-12-16T11:22:05.936-08:00SeattleSped, I'm sorry if my post offended you...SeattleSped, I'm sorry if my post offended you. It wasn't meant to be offensive, truly. It was just an attempt at levity, borne out of the frustration of not knowing where my child will be going to school for 5th grade. It's hard to see all these capacity conversations swirling around with northend elementary APP specifically left out of the equation.Lorihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07777580098975083499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-61319099213954219762011-12-16T11:09:45.623-08:002011-12-16T11:09:45.623-08:00And what about the high-needs disabled children at...And what about the high-needs disabled children at Lowell? What are they, chopped liver?!SeattleSpedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705544363458155912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-2551927439171093002011-12-16T10:04:10.759-08:002011-12-16T10:04:10.759-08:00Charlie wrote, "Let's face it, Lowell sho...Charlie wrote, "<i>Let's face it, Lowell should close as an elementary school and the operation should be moved back to T T Minor. That would make for a better geographic distribution of our elementary schools."</i><br /><br />Intriguing idea. Then Lowell could replace Lincoln as an interim site, particularly for elementary kids since Lincoln is not ideal for this age group. Hey, then northend APP could be housed at Lowell until a permanent home is found. :-) <br /><br />WV says "proqopic" which is an adjective that either means "brilliant and insightful" or "full or snark"Lorihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07777580098975083499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-17968807025368520992011-12-16T09:55:59.569-08:002011-12-16T09:55:59.569-08:00Charlie, I think if you were to close Lowell and r...Charlie, I think if you were to close Lowell and reopen T.T. Minor, you would have to put in some incredibly attractive programming to get parents to enroll their kids. Remember, T.T. Minor was underenrolled before it was closed. A lot of the families at the time had been kicked there from a closed MLK. The Montessori program was part of the kicked-from-MLK, and started small with one classroom. By the time T.T. Minor was closed, the Montessori program had expanded and had a waitlist.<br /><br />That program is now at Leschi, and (I hope, anyhow) the district isn't planning to move it again.<br /><br />So you combine the history of the school with the fact that moving populations of kids around doesn't tend to thrill families (and, depending on when you closed Lowell, some of those kids might be ones who already had been moved from T.T. Minor to Lowell), and I think you would have to do something appealing for T.T. Minor in order to persuade families to send their kids. All you have to do is look 15 blocks East to Madrona to see evidence that Central families don't just enroll their kids in a school because they live by it (and, btw, you could almost certainly solve the "portables at McGilvra" problem by making Madrona more appealing and then moving the Madrona/McGilvra line slightly north. There is no justification for having one school with a forest of portables adjacent to another school with hundreds of empty seats).djhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01720927162286657378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-46879253507119577862011-12-16T09:41:56.072-08:002011-12-16T09:41:56.072-08:00I apologize, I was completely wrong the community ...<i>I apologize, I was completely wrong the community engagement found more support for boundary changes at JSIS than repurposing the music room or the child care room.</i><br /><br />kellie, aptly pointed out that you would think that families in the school would want to take on portables over boundary changes to avoid splitting siblings.<br /><br />It's notable that this is not the case at JSIS.<br /><br />Why not?<br /><br />I think everyone at the school realizes and has understood since the beginning that the boundaries are too big, and that taking in yet another class of 100 just means kicking the can down the road, adding even more families with siblings that will have to be split in a boundary redraw.<br /><br />It's crazy-making to have to go to enrollment meeting where staff say we must pick one inadequate short term solution because it's too late this year to pick the best long term solution. --as though we didn't know this was going to be a problem until a couple of months ago.<br /><br />It's so sad to see Sherry Carr at these meetings, always listening, never effective.Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16540428343439198125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-35500142087560728742011-12-16T09:19:08.051-08:002011-12-16T09:19:08.051-08:00As bold as opening Boren may seem, it is band-aid ...As bold as opening Boren may seem, it is band-aid - and a small one at that - on an already critical patient that needs radical re-constructive surgery. <br /><br />SPS is institutionalizing chronic overcrowding by not getting ahead of this problem, i.e., not even considering making available enough space to relieve today's overcrowding. It gets worse every year, yet, they aren't even discussing putting enough space on the table to deal with the problems right now. <br /><br />Come on folks, quit dithering and anemically responding to the problem. Bite the bullet and get ahead of the problem. For once. Good grief! WSDWGAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-32544735586775496332011-12-16T06:46:04.711-08:002011-12-16T06:46:04.711-08:00So STEM K-5 is code for being able to deviate from...So STEM K-5 is code for being able to deviate from the mandated district math and science curriculum? Can you also forgo the Readers/Writers workshop? <br /><br />Thanks for clarifying.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-86814470431275243242011-12-16T06:25:02.747-08:002011-12-16T06:25:02.747-08:00For the ratings above, 4 means strong support, 1 m...For the ratings above, 4 means strong support, 1 means no support.Eric Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-48899418193258127442011-12-16T00:53:08.155-08:002011-12-16T00:53:08.155-08:00Curious wrote: "Since APP left, that school d...Curious wrote: "<i>Since APP left, that school doesn't have much else going for it academically.</i>"<br /><br />Really? What about the ALO?<br /><br />If Lowell can't make an ALO work, why should we entrust them with Spectrum?<br /><br />Is Lowell the best location for the Spectrum program for the Washington Middle School Service Area? Wouldn't Madrona K-8 be a better choice? It's more central to the area. Madrona has unused capacity. It would signal to the community that Madrona is ready and able to meet the needs of high performing students. Also, with Madrona, we would get some needed middle school Spectrum capacity.<br /><br />Let's face it, Lowell should close as an elementary school and the operation should be moved back to T T Minor. That would make for a better geographic distribution of our elementary schools.Charlie Mashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17173903762962067277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-53625220004846476802011-12-16T00:48:08.404-08:002011-12-16T00:48:08.404-08:00Jon wrote: "We would all be better off if dis...Jon wrote: "<i>We would all be better off if district leadership would just admit that the 2009 closings were a mistake.</i>"<br /><br />They know it. The District has been spending the bulk of their time fixing the mistakes of the past three years. You think they don't know that? They know it. How would it help for them to explicitly state it?<br /><br />They won't be done until they have un-done nearly every decision made by Dr. Goodloe-Johnson. Nearly all of her decisions have proven wrong and need to be corrected.Charlie Mashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17173903762962067277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-14083649720584414832011-12-16T00:26:19.513-08:002011-12-16T00:26:19.513-08:00Sad to hear that Lowell won't get a Spectrum p...Sad to hear that Lowell won't get a Spectrum program. Since APP left, that school doesn't have much else going for it academically.<br /><br />Doesn't FACMAC have any other plans to use the building? Lowell only has 8 classes now and isn't likely to get much bigger next year.<br /><br />That's a lot of rooms to leave empty when other schools are crammed to the gills. Hard to believe the district would just leave them that way for another year. <br /><br />- CuriousAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-58977433553552802182011-12-15T22:23:36.399-08:002011-12-15T22:23:36.399-08:00My prediction is that the district gets the Board ...My prediction is that the district gets the Board on the path of adding portables with their estimate of $135k to buy, $35k + $1.3-2k/month to lease, then, once it is too late to change, they say it actually costs 50-100% more, but that it is too hard to change now.<br /><br />I hate to be so cynical, but I think the driving factor in the district's plan is unwillingness to admit that the closing of schools in 2009 was in error. We would all be better off if district leadership would just admit that the 2009 closings were a mistake. We have to reopen schools now and pay the costs. Adding portables, in the long-term, will cost us more, a lot more.Jonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-19313034881868874892011-12-15T22:15:30.812-08:002011-12-15T22:15:30.812-08:00@Eric B: But which way does that scale go?@Eric B: But which way does that scale go?JSIS parentnoreply@blogger.com