Seattle Schools Community Forum

Some sad news on two fronts. One item is this from Ravenna Next Door on Sunday: My daughter and her friends were playing at Bryant this morning when they texted me with concern about glass and jewelry, and "gun powder" on the playground. I walked over to see for myself and sure enough there were empty beer cans, stolen jewelry and a pile of white powder with a razor blade, etc. I called the police who came surprisingly quickly and confirmed the white substance was Meth. Ugh. They took it to the station for evidence but left the jewelry and glass suggesting that I call the parks to come and clean it up. A very surprising site to say the least. Still researching who to call for clean up. The second item is about a beloved staff member at Cascadia: Allen Greenberg, beloved recess monitor at Cascadia Elementary in Seattle, passed away unexpectedly.  Allen spent his life giving to others - always looking out for the less fortunate.  He often stopped by Solid ...

Email your legislators right now by clicking  here  and ask them to fully fund public schools so they don’t lay off teachers this spring. Dear friend, Please  email your legislators right now and ask them to fully fund public schools so they don’t lay off teachers this spring. Across the state, already-underfunded school districts are being told to prepare for a new round of budget cuts. You may have received letters or emails warning about the possibility of teacher layoffs or program closures. Let's be clear: this is unacceptable. And it's unconstitutional.

Update 3 : partial from letter sent to families that has new information: Next Steps Between Dec. 5, 2016 and Jan. 4, 2017 we will continue to solicit feedback on budget priorities from staff, families, and community partners. I would like to thank the Seattle Council PTSA for hosting three regional meetings for families to provide feedback on budget priorities.  Community Budget Gap Meetings Tues., Dec. 13 , 6:30 - 8 p.m. Ballard High School 1418 NW 65th St. Thurs., Dec. 15 , 6:30 - 8 p.m. South Shore PreK-8 School 4800 S Henderson St. Tues., Jan. 3 , 6:30 - 8 p.m. Franklin High School 3013 S Mt Baker Blvd. Interpretation will be available. To request interpretation please contact publicaffairs@seattleshools.org with your requested needs.  Additional details regarding the budget deficit, budget development timeline, and actions you can take will be posted to the 2017-18 budget webpage by tomorrow, Dec. 2.  If you have specific question...

From Soup for Teachers: The Center School's Model United Nations team just won the prize for Best Large Delegation and nine Center School students won awards. There were 720 students at the conference from schools all over the Northwest, including lots of private schools, a number of which have MUN as a daily class. At Center, MUN is a student run group (with an amazing advisor teacher, Mr Bell) and is currently funded by parents. I'm putting up this notice from SPS but I would tell you not to bother.  The district is seeking members for the SPS Nutrition Services Policies Task Force .  I say don't bother because the district has ignored a very good report (that they paid for) put out earlier this year on the state of Nutrition Services in SPS and what could be done to make it better and continue successes in it.  Why have a taskforce when that work is already done?  As well, neither the Board nor the district ever act on taskforce recommendations so again,...

The Seattle Times is the major newspaper of record in our city and it really does fall to them to give the fullest picture in their reporting and then, if they must, lead their readers to a conclusion about that story (or write an editorial.) The Times did both things recently.

One statement that Superintendent Nyland likes to say is "We can do anything, we can't do everything."   This week Seattle Schools hosted  two community meetings (which, for some reason, they called "work sessions." Confusing.)  At the meeting I attended on Tuesday, the 25th, there were four community members including me. Here's what staff said in their announcement for the meetings(partial):

This morning, in an 8-1 decision, the Washington State Supreme Court ruled that the $100,000 per day fines against the Washington State Legislature over the Legislature's inability to get public schools fully-funded will continue. Basics of the ruling: - the fines continue - the Legislature must open an account and put the fine money into it - the Legislature must have a plan - with funding and implementation - by the end of the 2017 Legislative session - the Court is leveling no other sanctions against the Legislature From the ruling in the section labeled Background :

The National Day of Action comes from a public education coalition group called The Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools. The National Day of Action is on Thursday, October 6th.  Here's what is happening in Seattle schools: - Wearing red - Creating posters about what items your school community has bought in support of your school especially around back-to-school supplies - Gathering a team from each school with 4-5 educators and parents/families - Bringing the Poster and your school team to the closest town hall meeting that day, either at Roosevelt HS or Washington MS libraries from 4-5 pm. SEA has confirmed several of our Seattle legislators to be in attendance for the town halls. I think this is a terrific idea so legislators know just how much investment parents/families are making at our schools.  Also, on September 19th, the SEA made this announcement:

Washington's Paramount Duty is organizing a trip down to Olympia on Tuesday, September 6th to address the Education Funding Task Force that is working on McCleary funding issues. Yes, I know that's the first day of school but if you can't come, please DO weigh in anyway. E-mail Tali Rausch, who is the head of WPD, with your funding thoughts. She will be compiling these e-mails to present to the committee. A huge stack of statements from parents and communities really would send a message to these legislators. Her e-mail is: tali@paramountduty.org

This is my summary and I use only partial quotes from the State's response.  Its tone is respectful and I think that is because of our Attorney General Bob Ferguson.  I suspect if they had left it to some members of the legislature that I would not have the same tone.  What the State says.     

Yesterday, Rep Reuven Carlyle had an opinion piece at Publicola .  He says that Sound Transit and public education funding cannot be done at the same time.  In 2015, he says he supported the financing for the light rail system.  (partial) And yet, as I review the updated financing plan in more depth, I continue to grapple on a deeply personal level with the genuine burden the Sound Transit proposal places on public education . It is unsettling at best to serve as a state legislator while Olympia is under a contempt order by the Supreme Court for failing to meet the state’s paramount duty of fully funding public education. This is historic and unprecedented and we are recreating our educational finance plan for the next generation in real time. After putting an additional $2.5 billion into K-12 funding over the last three legislative sessions since the McCleary ruling, Democrats and Republicans are struggling to find a final path forward for the last $3.5 billi...

To note, the Seattle Times has brought on former AP reporter, Donna Gordon Blankenship, as a member of their editorial board. Ms. Blankenship's reporting for the AP was largely around education so she may inform their editorial writing (for better or worse - I always found her reporting less-than-balanced on education with a leaning towards ed reform.) Last summer week for the district with just one meeting this week.  Friday, August 12th, there is a meeting of the BEX Oversight Committee from 8:30-10:30 am at JSCEE, Room 2750.  No agenda yet available.  Next week will see a real pick-up of activity as there all four of the Board's committees will meet plus the first meeting of the Community Engagement Task Force. Also worth putting on the calendar are upcoming ribbon-cuttings for the following schools: - Thornton Creek K-5 - September 1 - 11am-noon - Hazel Wolf K-8 - September 1, 1-2 pm - Arbor Heights - September 6 - 11 am - noon - Genesee Hill -September 6 -...

 This column appeared in the Puget Sound Business Journal (that fount of public education knowledge) and was written by Bob Wallace, a columnist at the PSBJ.  It is called, "Education Union Holds State Hostage."   Mr. Wallace dissects the issues around McCleary and it would probably have served him better to bone on issues before commenting on them.

From Robert Cruickshank of Democracy for America this story from HistoryLink : History matters. This article tells the story of the so-called "Barefoot Schoolboy Act," passed in 1895. It was the first time the state of Washington attempted to fully fund our public schools, and it was thanks to the work of Populist progressive and future governor John Rogers. The article shows how the "paramount duty" language was created in the first place, and why it is so important that our state live up to that promise and fully fund our schools. This was one of the core promises made when Washington became a state. It is time the legislature followed in John Rogers' bold footsteps and once again ensured all public schools in this state, and every child in this state, gets a fully funded and equitable education.  From the article (some content will sound very of the minute to our current situation):

Update: response from SPS Communications: In the McCleary versus Washington state ruling, the state Supreme Court directed the state Legislature to provide ample, equitable and dependable basic education funding. Because the state has failed to fulfill its constitutional obligation to fully fund education, Superintendent Randy Dorn has brought a lawsuit against multiple school districts including Seattle Public Schools.

From the Everett Herald : Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn knows school districts use local levies to pay teachers and principals because they don’t get enough money from the state to offer competitive salaries. He is convinced it is illegal for them to do this.

The big news is a reply from the Supreme Court to the Legislature on McCleary. The 2017 legislative session presents the last opportunity for complying with the State's paramount duty under article IX, seciton 1, by 2018.  What remains to be done to achieve compliance is undeniably huge, but it is not undefinable.   

In yet another editorial , the Times keeps up the pressure on lawmakers to get McCleary done.  Now they are advocating for a mediator (someone like former Governor Christine Gregoire.) 

Update: as was noted by one commenter, the Times has an article in its Gates-funded Education Lab called, "You asked, we answered: What can charters do that other public schools can't." The article says charters have more flexibility and names these three items; 1. They have more control over whom they hire - and fire. 2. They answer to an appointed rather than an elected school board. 3. They are accountable to a charter authorizer rather than a school district, which allows them to define their own goals and metrics. On that last goal, they left out "define their own goals and metrics within the charter school law."  They don't get to just set whatever goals and metrics they want without guidance from the law and their authorizer.

Via Soup for Teachers, a thought-provoking piece from NPR from a new book, Becoming Brilliant: What Science Tells Us About Raising Successful Children, on raising bright kids .