Seattle Schools Community Forum

  Once again, hell has frozen over as I absolutely agree with this Times editorial on the search for a superintendent for Seattle Public Schools. They entitled it, " Seattle Schools vote cheats superintendent, community of clarity." No kidding. What's even more interesting is that the overwhelming majority of comments agree with the Times, with some saying there needs to be an effort to support the huge job of being a school board director (and I agree).  Here's their best line about the situation: Government bodies can’t fast-forward through transparent processes just because they think they know the right answer.

Update: well, well, look at that: The Board Special Meeting previously scheduled for March 9 has been cancelled. I hope between myself and Chris Jackins that we got the Board's attention in how they are handling the hiring of Dr. Brent Jones as permanent superintendent. I get the feeling that for President Brandon Hersey and Director Chandra Hampson that they think they can pick which policies they follow and when. It doesn't work like that.  end of update  I previously announced that this Wednesday, March 9th, the Board is having a "Special" meeting . It's from 4:30-7:30 pm with no title to it and no agenda. My belief is that the Board is not even waiting until their next regularly scheduled Board meeting on March 16th.  So number one, what's the rush? If they had been sincere in having a superintendent search, at this point they would have likely named candidates and would have meet-and-greet meetings (even via Zoom).  If they had been sincere in a superinte...

 I know I may have said this before but I used to think that a school was only as good as the three-legged stool that it is - parents, teachers/staff and principal. I soon learned that without a good principal, you might not ever want to sit on that stool. I have also often wondered if Seattle Schools had just bad luck/poor judgment about principals or if other districts have the same kind of churn. And principals aren't the same category as teachers. They don't have a union per se but in SPS, they have their own org, PASS (Principals Association of Seattle Schools). They oversee hundreds of students, not a single class. They have to juggle multiple balls of budget, discipline, curriculum and governance of a staff. That plus make parents and students feel good about the school.  It was also an interesting fact for Seattle Schools that only until recently, they had three principals who had all graduated from the school that they now oversaw. That was Martin Floe at Ingraham Hig...

Update: it appears that the Board is not even going to wait for the next scheduled Board meeting on March 16th to vote on this contract but have scheduled a "special" Board meeting for next Wednesday, March 9th. There is no topic attached to this notice but I would bet my house that it's about Jones' contract. end of update  The special Board meeting for the Board to vote to enter negotiations with interim superintendent Brent Jones just finished. The vote was 6-1 to go forward with Director Leslie Harris (regretfully) voting no. All the directors were present for the meeting. Among those listening in were a rep from the search firm and one of the City's business liaisons. President Hersey stated that Jones was visiting Leschi Elementary but would join the Board later on. I have to wonder if that was the signal this idea was a done deal. I mean, if you were superintendent and you were up for renewal of your contract, would you show up if you thought the vote was a...

I'm interested in parents thoughts on this issue. Crosscut reports that WA state has lifted its mandate.  Starting March 12, Washington state will no longer require people to wear masks in K-12 schools, grocery stores, retail shops, bars, restaurants and most other indoor spaces. The state will also stop requiring masks to be worn on school buses on that date, a change that matches the updated federal guidance, Inslee’s office said.  I read that Kent SD is lifting their mandate on March 14th and: Students and staff will have the choice to wear a mask at school, with the expectation that others’ choices will be respected. One should not make assumptions regarding someone’s beliefs or health status, nor should they comment on them. Our district will not tolerate bullying of any kind for those who choose to continue wearing masks.” KUOW :

 First, there's this Seattle Times article that's a big wet kiss to Jones, with Mayor Bruce Harrell, the Seattle Chamber of Commerce and former principal (now head of the Department of Education and Early Learning), Dwayne Chappelle, all endorsing the hire of interim superintendent, Brent Jones.  AND NOW, the Seattle School Board is going to have a "special Board meeting" on Friday - THIS FRIDAY  - (Editor's Note: the link is updated to include the Board Action Report, BAR.) Authorization to negotiate an employment contract for a Superintendent•Approval of this item would authorize the Board President to negotiate, with the assistance of counsel, an employment contract with Dr. Brent Jones to serve as Superintendent of the District. T he contract, if one is successfully negotiated, will be presented to the Board for approval, with a motion to approve the hiring of Dr. Jones as Superintendent. Immediate action is in the best interest of the District.(Introduction ...

 By that headline, I don't mean she wants to literally blow them up but she certainly has ideas about what should stay and what should go. But there are two programs she is working to upend - Advanced Learning and Option Schools.  I had written this post believing I would talk about the direction of both programs until I listened to a discussion of the Student Transition Plan (basically updates to the Student Assignment Plan) at the Board meeting on January 22, 2022.  Director Hampson said some pretty appalling things about Option Schools (at least the ones in the north end).  She does NOT believe that there is any public engagement necessary about either dual language schools nor Option Schools if the district/Board wants to make changes. If you have a student at one of those or care about those programs' existence, you need to write to the Board. It's spsdirectors@seattleschools.org OR if you want to include the superintendent and senior leadership, it's schoolboar...