Seattle Schools Community Forum

I want to note the passing of two people in our city who were activists.  I applaud anyone who takes on advocacy work, whether it be for community needs, schools or government.

It's hard to say what is going on but Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos appears to be taking a sharp turn to the ed reform side.  The newest evidence comes from the Seattle Education blog: Washington State Representative Santos was a primary sponsor for yet another nonsensical bill, House Bill 1121.  From the Washington State School Directors Association (WSSDA) Watch List ,  is the following description of the bill: Directs  the partnership to work with OSPI to  integrate financial ed into common core and career and college standards. Directs districts to offer a course students can take at school or home (meaning online) . Districts are encouraged to grant credit. Allows the partnership to seek federal and private funds (guess who from).

FYI, several of the Seattle legislative Reps/Senators are having town halls soon.  Might be a good idea to drop in and give them a cheerful earful about Common Core and testing.  (And oh, by the way, how's McCleary going?) March 14th   36th district 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Phinney Neighborhood Association, Community Room in the lower brick building at 6615 Dayton Ave. North. 37th district from 9-11am at the Rainier Valley Cultural Center, 3515 S Alaska St  (this is home to Eric Pettigrew and Sharon Tomiko Santos who want to split the district; couldn't hurt to give them some input on this ridiculous idea) 43rd district 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.at Erickson Theater, Seattle Central College, 1524 Harvard Avenue

From Rep. Gerry Pollet's Facebook page:

KOMO tv is reporting this: A disturbing trend has been identified in Seattle public schools, where marijuana now makes up most of the disciplinary actions involving students. Between the start of the school year and Jan. 7, marijuana made up 77 percent of all disciplinary actions taken against students, district officials said. That's a big number.  What seems to be the issue? Lately, school officials have faced a new threat: Marijuana edibles dressed up as sugary treats. Everything from pot-infused caramels to drug-laced lemonade has been confiscated. That's in addition to the pipes and joints collected. The article doesn't explain how/why KOMO came across this news.  I'll have to ask the district. Reader Mary G said this: If this is true, this is a stunning statistic, but how would one know? The district has been unable to produce any reliable statistics for the last two years, and certainly not any resembling real time statistics...

I spoke with Tomiko Santos about this issue this morning. It was a concerning conversation because of several things she said:

A group of public education activists has come out against Rep. Eric Pettigrew's bill to all the mayor of Seattle to appoint two members of the Seattle School Board.  It includes statements from Director Sue Peters who, as far as I know, is the only Board director to go on record.  I asked for a statement - a week ago - from the Board but have received no answer. The Seattle Weekly has a good story that has a startling ending.