Seattle Schools Community Forum

Guest Post Summit Atlas Public Forum By Greg Harrington On Thursday,  September 29th, I attended a public forum event for the potential Summit Atlas School tentatively scheduled to open in the fall of 2017. The purpose of the sparsely attended event was to provide information to prospective parents and interested community members. As a West Seattle resident, tax payer, veteran educator, and admitted critic of charter schools I am particularly interested in how this particular school will impact my local area.

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.

I call them "former charter schools" because, according to OSPI, that's what they are.  They are "contractors" fulfilling a program formulated by OSPI for their students. My reading of all that is going on comes to two conclusions. One, the current charter school law is dead.  Two Eastern Washington legislators, Senator Andy Billig and Senator Michael Baumgartner, are introducing a rather hacked-up bill (it's formatted using the old law to show the changes) - SB 6163 .  It's what Charlie calls "charter-lite" and it's nonsense.  It would allow any school board in a district to become  an authorizer of a charter.  (The previous law made the district the authorizer with the school board having true role.)  It is a vague mess that would put both districts and school boards in uncharted waters without a map. Two, there is no frankensteining these former charter schools back to life.  They have passed from being charter schools to being ...

At last Thursday's Charter Commission meeting, the Commission approved two new charters.  (Between Spokane School District and the Commission, there were a total of two approved this year.  The law allows eight a year and any spots not used in a year will then roll over into following years.

Let's see. One story is that the District is consistent in collecting fines from the State over workplace safety violations for Local 609 members.  It's a sad thing because 1) it's money walking out the door (just this money $32K) and 2) because apparently the District does not care enough about the safety of its employees.  (I'll note this is not the first time for the District - they have paid out $28K in fines since 2011).  It's things like not properly training employees to use equipment that can burn their hands or amputate fingers.  No emergency eye wash station.  No training on hazardous chemicals.  Out of eight violations, seven were labelled by the Department of Labor and Industries as "serious." The West Seattle Blog reports that the largest elementary in West Seattle, Schmitz Park, is receiving three more portables (for what I was told is called "Schmitzville" by parents) this month.  They are expecting 642 kids at SP in Septe...

The Washington State Charter School Commission (Commission) will be hosting two (2) public forums in July. These public forums are a chance for the parents, community members, local residents, and school district board members and staff to learn about and provide input on the proposed charter school. Commission representatives will be in attendance. Below are the dates, times and locations for each public forum: Summit Public School: Seattle #2 6:00 p.m. Tuesday, July 21, 2015 9601 35th Ave SW Seattle, WA 98126

 Update: the Times has more reporting on the situation with First Place Scholars.  According to their article, two Commissioners wanted to revoke their charter. It was pointed out that FPS will probably owe money back to the state because they did not enroll as many students as they said they would.   FPS has another deadline of June 17th - less than a month - to meet the Commission's requests.  It appears most of the Commissioners agree that if these requests are not met by June 17th, they won't "kick the can" down the road again.  Head of FPS, Dawn Mason, continues to claim it's not FPS' fault because they opened too quickly.  end of updates From the PI , news about charter schools in Washington State: First Place Scholars is still under scrutiny. According to written reports to the commission, the school has made some progress in its work with students who do not speak English at home and in setting academic plans for children with spec...

An article in the Seattle Times answered a question that has been itching me: "Where will new charter schools find space in Seattle?" And a closely associated question: "Why can't the school district find space?" Summit charter high school acquired the Asian Resource Center for about $4 million and will put their 9-12 school there. Their first freshman class will enroll 120, so I have to believe that they expect to have upwards of 450 students when they are fully enrolled. I'm sure their charter school application has the correct number. The building had been for sale for two years. So, help me out here. This is a downtown building suitable for use as a school that has been for sale for two years for a fraction of the cost of the Federal Reserve building, and the District had either no knowledge of it or no interest in it. Can someone explain that to me? Moreover, the building is in the International District, which is the part of downtown with the gr...

 Updates: It seems there are three Charter Commission members with conflict of interest issues with charter applicants.  Two seem simple and one is quite problematic. Trish Millines Dziko is in a leadership program with the founder of Summit.  That one is a big of a tough call to make because the relationship could be either just professional or just collegial but if not financial, I think she could vote.  On the other hand, if she's in their their program, she probably supports how they operate. Chris Martin has some personal friendship with the founder of Pioneer.  I would say straight-up, no voting on that one. The last one is that Larry Wright has taken a position with a non-profit funded by the Gates Foundation.  Not only do I think he would have to recuse himself on several applications, he probably should step down as a Commissioner.  Why? 1) Bill Gates funded most of I-1240. 2) The Gates Foundation is the primary funder of the Washin...

There are all kinds of imprudent instructions available online. How to hack, how to phreak, how to build a pipe, how to disappear and assume a new identity, etc. So it is in that tradition that I offer this sketch of instruction on how to sue the School District to stop the closures. It may be irresponsible of me to provide this information. It may also be pointless to offer the instruction because the chances for success are so poor. So there is no need to write a comment to advise me of either of these two points. I am already well aware of them, thank you. I'm providing the information so that people will have the facts while a tornado of misinformation swirls around them. Information wants to be free. Knowledge is power and this blog is about empowering people with knowledge. So spare me, please, the rants about how I am either irresponsible or foolish. The best chance to blocking the closures will only delay them, not really stop them. And the only ones that I think can be del...

So I did figure out something (and who knows, maybe this was very apparent to others but I did check with Tracy Libros in Enrollment), that the Summit 8,9,10th graders (now) will get a pretty good bump into whatever comprehensive high school they want. The reason is that Maier's amendment says for any over enrolled school that they apply for (after they receive their letters of assignment and if they reject the assignment), the first 2 tiebreakers (sibling, then reference/region) apply and THEN the priority placement they get from being displaced. Well, there is no reference/region for high school; the whole city is the region. So for those Summit students, after the siblings get in, they are next in line. And since there is no school that will fill its entire freshman class on siblings that means they pretty much get whatever they want. That means Roosevelt, Ballard or Garfield. For people who wanted an alternative experience, it's not much but it does allow them a lot o...

A bit ago, I posted an entry about The Re-Purposing of Summit K-12 . In comments on this blog, there has recently been discussion of the attitudes of parents in alternative education. This turns the discussion from the children affected to how their parents are perceived. In an effort to bring that focus around to what we really should be discussing, I thought it was time to share a student's perspective. My son, Jacob (also known as Ciarán), is a survivor of crippling Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and major depression. He is a graduate of View Ridge's Spectrum program and has attended Eckstein (Honors), Blaine, and Hamilton. After three years in and out of schools, hospitals, and institutions, he washed up at Summit K-12 in eighth grade, as part of the Internalizing Disorders Program (IDP), at the recommendation of someone in Special Education. He talked about some of his experiences in a piece that aired on KUOW this morning, Summit: A Refuge From Teasing . He also ...

A request was made for a separate thread on what the new K-8 at the Jane Addams building should be. Here are some choices (although I'm not advocating for any of them, I think it would fill more easily with a focus rather than just being a traditional K-8): middle school IB program dual language program math/science magnet performing arts Also, while we're on this subject, what would the name be? Call it Jane Addams K-8 to honor the building namesake, Jane Addams? (Her name was selected from an essay contest to name the building in 1949. She was a noted American social worker who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931. She was the first American woman to win the Peace Prize.) From the archives: J ane Addams Junior High School was the first secondary school constructed by Shoreline School District No. 412. At the time it was being planned, demographic studies indicated the school would serve all junior high students in the area for a long time. Few foresaw the tremendous popula...

In comments on the post School Board Meeting on January 21 , there was a request for a separate post about Summit K-12, as well as much discussion about the decision to close the program. Many people seem to not know about Summit's unique situation in this process. Summit K-12, whether you consider it a program or a school, is doomed, no matter which way the board votes next week, without direct school board action. This post is simply a timeline and assessment of the current situation. Why Summit should be saved is a topic for another post. On November 12, 2008, the school board voted to "re-purpose" the Jane Addams building, Summit's home for the past 24 years, into a K-8 school, as part of capacity management in the northeast cluster. The original School Board Action Report can be found here , as a PDF file. The pertinent suggestion, in Attachment B, is to re-purpose the Jane Addams building for a new K-8 program with decisions regarding the future of the Su...

An interesting slog. It was a packed house with many Cooper and Summit parents, a smattering of TT Minor and AAA (although vocal) and APP parents (Lowell and Washington). Director Martin-Morris was not there and there was no reason given for him not being (although I know that every director did not attend every public hearing so he probably had a conflict in schedule). This meeting, combined with listening to the KUOW interview with Dick Lily, Michael De Bell and Mary Bass yesterday, has really turned some of my thinking. I do believe that I agree with Dick Lily; the district needs to table this for at least a year . It has gotten so convoluted. Phase II did not go through so this could happen but I believe it would damage the relationship between the Board and Dr. Goodloe-Johnson so they will continue on. However, after listening to the KUOW interview, I think there will be some changes to the final list (although no new schools added). Highlights from the interview Michael De ...

[Updated 6:30 pm with links to appendixes.] So I was wrong about there being a meeting at 4 pm today. It was just a media briefing which has already happened. See Cooper on list of school-closure “final recommendations” on the West Seattle Blog for details. I'm reading the West Seattle Blog post myself right now and will add more to this post in a few minutes. Full document of final recommendations is online on district page. Changes from last time: AS#1 is not closing but Summit is. However, AS#1 must create a restructuring plan and transportation is now limited to two clusters (North and Northeast). "If AS#1 does not meet the metrics outlined in the restructuring plan we will evaluate discontinuing the program for fall 2010." Thornton Creek is not moving and expanding to K-8 ; instead a new traditional K-8 will be in Jane Addams building. TT Minor General Ed program moved to Lowell. TT Minor Montessori still moving to Leschi. And a bunch of the options discussed...

First, a quick thanks to Beth Bakeman for allowing me to join the Seattle Public Schools community blog. As I mentioned over on my recently-shuttered Chalkboard blog (aren’t closures all the rage these days?), I’m excited to join a vibrant online community focused on our schools. ----------------------------- When it comes to Thornton Creek’s proposed move to the Jane Addams building, ends up we can’t trust the ground beneath our feet. Or rather, the ground poses a snarl for the possible move. I learned at a school meeting last night that the Decatur building (Thornton Creek’s current home) and Jane Addams building ( Summit ’s current abode) are both due to get new floors over the summer 2009. According to Thornton Creek’s principal, in order for the district to replace the floors, staff will have about 24 hours from that last dismissal bell to vacate the building for the summer. And because Jane Addams is getting a floor makeover, too, it means that theoretically,...

I appreciated having one combined thread last week to address the "Potential Final Recommendations" presented last Tuesday, but with the upcoming Hearings this week, I think it's time to split out some of the clusters into separate threads. At Katie's request (on a previous thread), I'm starting with North and Northeast clusters where the overall capacity issues combined with the proposed closures create a confusing situation. And even though NW isn't specifically affected by the closure proposal, I'm including NW here because some of the kids who go to AS#1 and Summit (and probably Thornton Creek) are from the NW cluster. 1) I absolutely agree with Katie that Summit should be moved somewhere central (probably Meany) because 1) it would help with N & NE cluster capacity issues; and 2) I don't want to see the number and variety of alternative seats in the district reduced so drastically without a through program review and a clear plan. 2) Thornt...

A question was posed, in response to my last post, and I took it to one of the science teachers at Summit K-12 to make sure my answer is accurate. She says: "You are correct that we are using district curriculum that is supplemented by each individual teacher. I was told by the district to teach the subject matter I am teaching this year, and I do have kits from which to draw for the teaching of the units. I am also supplementing instruction with other readings, field trips, and hands-on activities of my own creation." I also know that the elementary teachers use the science kits provided by the district, though am currently uncertain as to if they have a district-assigned curriculum like the upper school does. When I get that information, I'll update here. Happy Friday, all! Updated about 2:45pm, 11/21 "Elementary also uses district curriculum with kits."