Seattle Schools Community Forum

On November 30 the Seattle Times will host a panel discussion about K-12 Education called: K-12 visions and outcomes: Solving the education problems money can’t fix Here's the stated premise: Washington’s K-12 public education system is broken. Only 77% of our students graduate. Only 39% of graduates are ready for college or a career. The state fully funding basic education is just the beginning. We need to fix the outcomes for all students, preparing them for graduation, college and the workforce. What are acceptable outcomes for Washington’s children? What steps must be taken to build a successful K-12 system where every child receives an equitable, quality basic education? Join The Seattle Times LiveWire for a timely forum with education experts, advocates and policy makers, facilitated by Seattle Times Editorial Page Editor Kate Riley and former Executive Editor Michael Fancher. The members of the panel are:

I cannot print the word that came out of my mouth when I saw this from the Superintendent.  It is very, very upsetting because Harmon was truly one of the good guys and one of the most calm and dedicated employees at headquarters.  I had kind of thought he might be promoted to Bob's position.  With him leaving (and Bob Boesche), I have deep concerns for the district.  Something has to change to stem this flow of good people (and I don't think it has a whole lot to do with the Board but I'm sure that's how it will get spun).  And, I have seen a few names for Bob Boesche's job and it's worrying.   It feels like people are using SPS as some kind of stop-gap place on their career ladders (but I do not mean that about Duggan, obviously). It is with mixed feelings that I announce that Duggan Harman has resigned, effective August 31. Duggan has accepted the role of Chief of Staff for Superintendent Susan Enfield in Highline School District. I am consid...

Dear Seattle Public Schools families, I am writing to provide you with an update on changes to transportation for the 2012-13 school year, and also to apologize for the concern and confusion transportation issues have caused in the past couple of weeks. After several years of budget shortfalls, we have been working hard to develop a balanced budget for the 2012-13 school year, with a goal of keeping budget cuts away from the classroom. As part of this effort, the School Board recently requested an analysis of options that could generate more savings from transportation. We responded to this request with an option that would have saved approximately $1 million. In response to this option, we heard from many families who were concerned about the potential impacts and the lack of time to provide community engagement. We know that transportation changes, which in turn affect when school starts each day, may be unpopular. We also know that we did not have enough time to thoughtfully...

Dear Readers, As some of you may know, recently someone posted a comment using Dr. Enfield's name.  (The comment was directed at me, though.)  It had been posted after I had retired one evening and I found an e-mail the next morning from Lesley Rodgers in Communications asking me about it.   Then, there was one from Dr. Enfield that said: I expect the comment to be removed today. I replied that I had seen it and removed it.  I apologized and said that sometimes people can be unpleasant.  I then wrote a separate thread reminding readers to NEVER pretend to be a living person/figure. She wrote back: Thank you Melissa. I suggest you remind your readers that posts such as these can result in legal action.  So then for some reason, Blogger didn't immediately scrub the name (even though the post was gone) and I heard back from Dr. Enfield. Melissa, please post that I did not make any comment on your blog. Apparently my name is still listed. I ...

Gee, a lot of local education news seems to be about specific individuals these days, like our own People magazine. We have Representative Eric Pettigrew (D-37) making yet more news for placing $3 million for Seattle Schools into the state house budget. There are a number of interesting bits about this story. First there is the obvious conclusion that he (and his backers) hope this will save his political future in the 37th District. Kind of like a celebrity donating to charity to save his reputation after getting caught in a scandal. Second is the characterization of the funding as a "gift" by the Seattle Times. Later today I'm going to present my children with the "gift" of food, clothing and shelter. Third is the lack of interest in the similar state funding for small, rural high schools. Isn't that also a "gift"? Will this money for southeast Seattle schools restore Mr. Pettigrew to the good graces of his local party supporters? How will the...

My, but this was a year of change for Seattle Public Schools. Change at the top. The biggest news of the year was the sudden dismissal of the superintendent, Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson. The Board, which had dragged their feet from June to March in response to the State Auditor's report, acted expeditiously between their receipt of a report from an internal investigation of the Regional Small Business Development Program and their decision to fire the superintendent. We can make all kinds of conjecture about why the Board decided to fire her, but we need to give strong credence to their stated reason: they no longer felt that they could trust her. Dr. Goodloe-Johnson had been losing the Board's trust bit by bit in a number of other incidents over the course of the previous three years. The "Pottergate" scandal was just the last step - a big one - that took her over the line. Dr. Goodloe-Johnson was fired "without cause" and took a year's pay (over a qua...

There will be a new School Board at the next Board meeting as Sharon Peaslee takes over for Peter Maier in the District I seat and Marty McLaren takes over for Steve Sundquist in the District VI seat. What does this mean for the way the Board works as a team? Will the Board become contentious or will they be able to reach consensus on critical issues? Will the Board become bogged down in debate? in process? in community engagement? in attempts to micro-manage the district? What would it be like if the Board started doing its job? Will members of the community once again be invited to participate in committee meetings? Will the Board set and keep a calendar of oversight reviews? Will the Board Directors start more of their sentences with the words "My constituents want..."? Will we see the Board start to enforce policy? Will the Board require the staff to keep their commitments to students and families? What will this mean for the direction of the District? The old major...

A group of citizens are circulating a petition to the Board asking them to skip the national search and appoint Dr. Susan Enfield as the Permanent Superintendent of Seattle Public Schools. You can find their petition here : http://www.petitiononline.com/sesuper/petition.html

Interim Superintendent Enfield has spoken explicitly about bringing about a culture change in Seattle Public Schools. She has done more than talk about it; she has taken action as well. We can congratulate her for the steps she has taken, but it is hard not to notice the long way she needs to go. It is even harder to ignore the steps that she has refused to take. The Board is VERY pleased with the change they have seen and even MORE pleased with the changes that have been promised. This reflects the gullibility of the Board. When will they learn to withhold their gratitude until after the action instead of giving it upon the promise of the action?

Dr. Enfield has put forth a message for parents and communities about the district's focus for the future.  Here's most of it: I promised to listen and engage with the community around what we collectively want our schools to become. I heard four common themes, which will guide our work this year: great principals, great teachers, connected families and a responsive central office.

Lastly, on this latest batch of e-mails were two interesting ones from the e-mail of Maria Goodloe-Johnson. One is frightening and the other is a bit of schadenfrueden for our pal, Michelle Rhee. In June of 2010, Dr. Goodloe-Johnson wrote Wendy Kopp, the head of TFA, for advice on someone to head SPS's Human Resources department. Wendy wrote back inquiring: …whether you might be open to considering candidates who may not fit the traditional requirements/profile ( e.g. not necessarily 10 years of HR-type exp) since many of our strong leaders have not had the most traditional paths but may be interested and compelling candidates for a role like this one. MGJ We are absolutely interested in non-tradional candidates.  You have also prompted me to think about revising the 10 years and adding strategic thinking and transformative leadership as required qualifications. Wendy One more thing - - we were talking with a high-potential TFA alum in WA state about this and before he throw...

When Charlie had e-mailed the Board about his concerns over TFA (antedotal versus data-driven information), here was the response between Dr. Enfield and Janis Ortega (TFA): This immediately sparked a response from Enfield to Ortega, " We need the positive research ."   Ortega -  " Coming atcha, Susan ."  Enfield - " No immediate response warranted from you – just want you to share the experience with me! Ortega - " LOL, Oh, I am COMPELTELY there with you!  Please do keep sending!  Theya re also e-mailing me directly." Enfield - " I hope you are asking for a raise – this is definitely deserving of hazard pay! " Ortega -  " That’s the best statement ever, Susan!  Hilarious!  Honestly this experience has been exhilariating aand oddly, quite fulfilling.  If I wasn’t battling on crazy turfs like Seattle, then what good is the work I’m all about.  Kids are clearly getting lost in the insane politics entrenched in SPS, so I’m fine takin...

In her letter to the community regarding the appointment of Marni Campbell to the position of Executive Director of Schools in the northwest region, Dr. Enfield wrote: We know quality teaching is the number-one factor for student success. This statement is totally false. We actually know that the number-one factor for student success is the active involvement in the student's education by an adult in the child's home. It has been demonstrated time and time again that home influences utterly swamp school-based influences on student achievement. Dr. Enfield knows this statement to be false, yet she wrote it. What does that mean? A) She was trying to misinform and deceive the public. B) She is misinformed herself. C) She is a sloppy writer who neglected to add the word "school-based" between "number-one" and "factor". I don't know. I can't make conjecture about it. I do know that I called district communications and asked them and t...

KUOW's Phyllis Fletcher did a piece on the budget on Wednesday.  There wasn't a lot new but I note that Steve Sundquist seems unwilling to admit that yes, some people received raises strictly based on the "market study" or "internal equity adjustments." From the story: Board President Steve Sundquist says some of these came about due to the elimination of 90 jobs. Sundquist: "In situations where an employee is being asked to do significantly more work we need to make sure to retain that employee, so they're in a position to serve the public, that they're fairly compensated for that work. It's admittedly a difficult thing to talk through with people. " No, Steve, we would understand if the district cut back on staff and asked the remaining staff to take on more and paid them for it.  What is tiring is your deflection of the fact that some people got raises just to get raises.  Who paid for the market study?  Why was it impor...

The Seattle PI online had this article in their morning edition.  You get the impression that, so far, most of the Board has good feelings about her leadership. The article actually mention the raises given out at headquarters (as opposed to those 'fraidy cats over at the Times).   I also want to clarify my quotes.  I'm pretty sure I said I "think" that Dr. Enfield would like to stay in the NW (given her work in Portland and now in Seattle). not that I "know" she wants to stay here.  She and I never had that conversation about where she wants to live and work. 

Every so often someone suggests that I take the job of superintendent of Seattle Public Schools. It's a bad idea. I lack the skill set and experience for the job. Not only don't I have executive experience, I don't even have management experience. Others suggest that since I'm not qualified to do the job then I'm not qualified to critique the performance of those who do. That's another bad idea. I can't play second base for the Mariners, but I can assess the performance of those who do. I can't do the president's job or Ben Affleck's job, but I can critique their performances as well. I don't need to have done the job or even have the skills to do the job to have an informed opinion about the performance of the person in the job. What? You think Roger Ebert can act or direct? That said, if I were suddenly made superintendent on March 16 (like Claudius finding himself Caesar) what would I do? What would you do? First, I would assume it wa...

I attended the CPPS annual meeting last night. Dr. Enfield spoke and talked around a number of questions. She didn't answer any of them, but she expressed a lot of enthusiasm about answering them in the near-term, but unspecified, future. In the context of her talk she introduced us to her new motto or slogan or modus operandi, or whatever: "Gentle Pressure, Relentlessly Applied." She got the motto from her former boss, Vicki Phillips of Portland Public Schools , but I like it anyway. I'm going to use it also. That's going to be my modus operandi as well. Going forward I will be in front of the Board and the District leadership at every opportunity and I will be in their email inboxes relentlessly applying gentle pressure. It will be grueling, but I think it has the potential to be as wearing on them as it is sure to be on me.

The Seattle Times has published yet another moronic editorial about Seattle Public Schools. This one reflects absolutely no knowledge or understanding of the test scores in our high schools, what those test scores mean, or what can be done to raise them. Every comment to the editorial so far takes the Times to task for their poor understanding. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= At some point we need to talk seriously with the people at the Times to discover their major malfunction. Why do they have such a broken perception of education issues? Are they unduly influenced by the District leadership? Are they unduly influenced by some local big shots like the Alliance for Education? Are they unduly influenced by some outside entity such as the Gates Foundation? Are they just not very bright? Have they just not given these matters much thought? What, exactly, is going on? It's not just that they write things from another perspective or that we don't agree politically; they h...

From the CPPS web site: CPPS ANNUAL MEETING - 21st Century Parent Engagement TUES, MAY 24, 2011 at 6:30-8:30pm Lincoln High School Library, 4400 Interlake Ave N Come learn about our Parent Leadership Training, encounter action opportunities where you can make a difference for our schools, and help define parent engagement for quality neighborhood schools in our city. Special guests, interim superintendent Susan Enfield and the regional directors, will be there to discuss the district AND local level community/parent impact. Join us! RSVP at contact@cppsofseattle.org More info: http://www.cppsofseattle.org/CPPS052411.pdf

From the Superintendent; May 17, 2011 Dear Ingraham staff, students and families: When I was appointed Interim Superintendent, it was with the clear charge to strengthen opportunities for all students to learn. You asked me to bring high levels of transparency and accountability to this effort. The decision I made last Tuesday about the leadership of Ingraham High School Principal Martin Floe reflects my efforts to realize these commitments. However, I also know that a good leader listens. After extensive conversations with Ingraham High School staff and the community, I have decided to renew Mr. Floe’s contact for the 2011-12 school year, under the condition that he continue on a plan of improvement, which I, along with his Executive Director, will monitor throughout the year. If Seattle Public Schools is truly to make gains for our students, we must hold all of our leaders to a high standard of performance.  The work my team completed over many months leading up t...