Seattle Schools Community Forum

A local organization, School Board Leaders for the Future , is offering training for potential school board candidates, and it sure does sound good.

Update: well, will you look at that?  On the same day, Publicola and The Stranger choose to highlight one campaign issue.  And it's their support for 1B.  Hmmm. End of update. After several forums (most of which I was invited to), I've learned a lot about the two campaigns for childcare/preschool, 1A and 1B. Here's my vote: Vote NO on the first question (and your conscience on the second one but I'm voting for 1A because I believe that, overall, it will serve more low-income children, faster, than 1B.  That's where I want my tax dollars going.) That will get the City Council and the unions back to the table to deliver one early learning proposition they both agree on.

Charlie and I have attempted to interview all the School Board candidates (with only partial luck). (I have since updated Sue Peters' section as iPad was making it difficult when I first published this thread.) To note: - despite the Times' drumbeat of unhappiness about the Board, yes, there will be two new Board members (Director Patu is running unopposed).  That it may not be the members they think need replacing should not be the issue.  The issue is who will work as a team player and yet be sensitive to constituent concerns. - Stephan Blanford, in District V, for all intents and purposes, will win.  Neither of the other candidates are credible.  So like, Betty Patu, it's pretty much a done deal.   - In the PRIMARY, only those voters who live in a district where a position is up for a vote, will see School Board candidates on their ballot.  In this election, only voters who live in districts IV and V  will see candidates on their ballot....

A few updates: One - with less than 8,000 votes to count statewide, I-1240 appears to have passed .  (I'm sure it's true but I'm not the Secretary of State and in a position to officially call it.)  The margin appears to be 1.36% of the vote which is just under 41,000 votes.  A win for sure but certainly no mandate.  Two - Thanks to SPS Leaks for some very illuminating reading.  To whit: Lynne Varner gets it wrong in an Times editorial and SPS gently points this out to her.  I note that Varner says "sources" told her certain things about the departure of Superintendent Enfield.  So, as you see, journalists have sources and they don't reveal them (and sometimes not even by the order of a court) and that's how it goes.  (I, of course, still contend that I am not a journalist but I have sources.  I do get my hand slapped occasionally by readers demanding to know my source.  Not revealing them is how you keep your sources.) Thre...

From Publicola (and the "Really??" file: DeBell confirms that he isn't running for the legislature in the 36th District. He says,however, that he "would be announcing my candidacy right now" if his home where he's lived for 22 years, hadn't been redistricted into the 43rd. "I would really like to tackle full funding for education," DeBell says, adding that he may consider moving into the 36th in the future "if i get to move at my own pace." Fascinating.

Michael DeBell wrote a guest post on Reuven Carlyle's blog in which he says that students need to be threatened with the loss of their diploma if we expect them to take math and science education seriously. This is the same man who will vote this week for a new promotion/retention policy that will remove all requirements on promoting students from grade to grade.

The Weekly has a story about Fred Stephens and First AME. It's pretty much stuff I knew (and I suspect most of you know) but there are a few notable items: First AME Church's secretary says Fred Stephens is still a member Michael DeBell defended the Board's choice and said Stephens didn't play a role but that it was "entirely managed by Ron English." He also said that what the Board unanimously voted for was similar to what happened to University School, Phinney Ridge and West Seattle. I like Michael but that's just plain disingenious. They are not similar efforts except that they all, in some way community based. First AME is a church and the other groups running those community centers are not. I don't have time to work on this one but there's something there. I told the Board I thought based on Fred Stephens and the current crisis, they should revisit the First AME decision.

Michael DeBell has to cancel his community meeting this week. He asked me to post it on the blog.

I know that there is a diversity of opinion about many of the Board Directors among the frequent commenters on this blog. I have that diversity of opinion within myself sometimes. They certainly come in for a lot a scolding and criticism from me, but I would like to take this opportunity to write in praise of Board President Michael DeBell. At the Board Retreat, he was the only Board member who recognized the crisis in the Board - the failure to oversee, the successful math textbook appeal, the organized opposition to the levy, the state audits, and the concern about the District's direction among other elected officials. He tried to raise the alarm, but the Gang of Four remained deaf to it. As Board President, Director DeBell has been instrumental in introducing some kind of oversight. He has led the effort to re-set the budget schedule and the budget priorities. I first met with Mr. DeBell when he was a candidate. He struck me as an honest, intelligent, and well-intentioned...

From the Times : A former drug-and-alcohol-intervention specialist at Seattle's Rainier Beach High School was convicted Wednesday of one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, four counts of distribution of oxycodone and one count of possession of oxycodone with intent to distribute, according to the U.S Attorney's Office. None of the drug sales involved students. On one occasion, Smith allegedly left Rainier High School during school hours to meet the informant two blocks away to make a drug deal, according to the indictment. Smith faces up to 20 years in prison for each count when he is sentenced on Jan. 6. From the Times : A paralegal for Seattle Public Schools is expected to be charged this week for allegedly selling crack cocaine to an informant working for Seattle police. It appears that the transactions occurred away from any school district building. The police report did not say whether Bryant is believed to have been selling drugs to students. Authori...