Seattle Schools Community Forum

Monday, Feb. 11th Curriculum&Instruction Policy Committee Meeting from 4-5:30 p.m. Agenda  Tuesday, Feb. 12th Special Education Advocacy &Advisory Council Meeting from 6:30-9:00 p.m. at JSCEE, 2nd floor, room 2700.  The Open Forum & District updates portion of the meeting is from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Levy election for Operations and BEX. State of the Union speech by President Obama at 6 p.m.   Wednesday, Feb. 13th Executive Committee Meeting from 8:30-10:00 am.  Agenda .  Review of next couple of Board meeting agendas, government relations, community engagement, strategic plan.  And, the next Board Retreat agenda which I am very interested in because I am hoping to be sponsoring that retreat (just as the Alliance for Education is allowed to). Open House At Rainier Beach High School about their new IB program from 6:30-8:30 .  Any families curious about attending Rainier Beach should plan on attending.  There will be inform...

Honestly, I just don't get the Times.  So now they have trotted out an op-ed against BOTH levies (and, gotten the name of the pro-levy supporter, Greg Wong -not Wang - wrong to boot).  It's yet another person who is late to this party of "accountability" and yet this guy even casts a bigger swath.  And he's a public school parent who wants both levies to fail.  I understand his unhappiness but failing the Operations levy won't change that.  In fact, if he wants to see our district fall to its knees, let the Operations levy fail.  He gives NO solutions to what might happen after that failure - not so helpful - but yes, he's voting against both of them.  (He also points out "big-city cronyism" from the Potter scandal.  Yes and that came at the hands of a superintendent who swept in with big changes supported by the powers that be.  Let's remember that.) I'm with him on changing how we run SPS and frankly, changing the protection...

In a surprisingly candid piece , the Times lays out the case for the levies.  The district, following its usual script, has not been as forthcoming but the Times points out the obvious: How much is the district asking? The flier does not give the amounts, but the levies total $1.25 billion — the district’s biggest request to date.  Much of that money, as the flier does say, would simply renew measures that otherwise would expire. What the flier doesn’t say is that the district also is asking voters to open their wallets a little wider.   This year, the owner of a $400,000 house paid about $1,000 in local school levy and bond taxes. If both levies pass, that bill would go up by $160. That basic information that, while true, is probably not exactly what the district wants to say right out loud (nor Schools First). The district says: The district also points out that Seattleites would pay half of what homeowners in many nearby school districts do —...

A lot of folks have said that, following the approval of the recent charter school initiative, they will not vote to approve any more school levies. What right do charters have to local levy funds? Specifically, what right could future charter schools have to the upcoming levies in Seattle Public Schools?

I confess - I haven't been able to keep up on BEX IV as I would have liked.  But I have noticed (and noted) that, true to form, this BEX follows the pattern of previous ones (except on steriods). 1. Changes to the list in the last month before it is approved?  Check. 2. Lack of clarity about changes and no fleshed-out explanations?  Check. 3. A Board in a hurry-up mode "because we have to get this done to get it qualified for the ballot in time?"  Check. Again, it's a list of projects but you are really just voting for a pot of money.  They can change that list but that really isn't my worry. It's that this high-cost, long-term project has not been walked through in a clear and deliberate manner.  What is it that is being accomplished and what does that mean down the road? I note that the West Seattle Blog was at the BEX IV public hearing yesterday and it appears from their reporting, that the speakers list wasn't full.  That's not a surpris...

From Superintendent Banda today: Oct. 9, 2012 Dear Seattle Public Schools families, staff and community: As you all know, Seattle Public Schools is growing. We may have 50,000 students by the end of this school year. Today we are writing to update you on our enrollment growth challenges. We have two levies up for renewal in February 2013 – our Operations Levy and our Building Excellence (BEX IV) IV Capital Levy. Our BEX IV levy will include a list of recommended projects for 2014-2021, which we are presenting to the School Board at a work session 5:45-7:15 p.m., Oct. 10 at the John Stanford Center. A final vote by the Board is expected in November. Below is a summary of currently proposed projects under consideration for BEX IV: ·         Arbor Heights Elementary: Replace existing building with new/expanded facility by 2019. The school will be at an interim site starting in 2017. We understand the building is in need of replacement, but we will not have enoug...

Since the holiday break in December, the Board meetings have been somewhat sleepy affairs with the speakers list not being full and just a little jousting as the School Board adjusts to its new make-up. Tomorrow night (and two weeks in the future) should be somewhat different.  What's the difference? Well, for one, the Board is finally voting on the now infamous Policy 1430 - Waivers of Basic Instructional Materials Policy.    There were two amendments, one of which is incorporated into the new policy wording.  That amendment came from Director Peaslee and would allow schools an appeal to the Board should the Superintendent deny a waiver request.  I am glad this is part of the policy even as I believe it will be a rare day when the Board would override the Superintendent's decision.  The other amendment, to allow for district funding for schools that cannot afford to pay for materials on their own, was dropped by Director Peaslee.   However...

Wednesday, Jan. 4th Second part of a Work Session around Board policy Series 6000 from 4-5:30 p.m.  This series is about operations including budgeting, revenues, purchasing, etc. School Board Meeting - 6-9 p.m.  Among items on the agenda: