Latest News and Comment from Education

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

UPDATE: Mayoral Candidates Education Forum Seattle Schools Community Forum: Oversight Work Session: Teaching and Learning

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Oversight Work Session: Teaching and Learning:



Tuesday Open Thread

Operations Ctm agenda now available for their meeting on Thursday from 4-6 p.m.  Highlights include "growth boundary update" from Enrollment's Tracy Libros, "resolution that construction projects will not create or aggravate racial imbalance", and a resolution about the "sustainability and design and construction of high performance schools."  This is from President Smith-Blum and I believe she means it for greening of schools, not academic achievement.

A bill passed both chambers of our Legislature yesterday regarding the use of so-called isolation techniques.  From KIRO-tv:

According to state law, schools can isolate students in rooms without parental permission and are not required to notify the parents their child has been disciplined with isolation.

 But lawmakers in Olympia passed a new bill Monday which states:

 "The principal … must verbally inform the student's parent or guardian of the restraint or isolation as soon as 



Mayoral Candidates Education Forum

CPPS, Community and Parents for Public Schools, is hosting a Mayoral candidate forum on Education.

Tuesday, April 30
6:30 - 8:30pm
Garfield High School Commons
400 - 23rd Avenue, Seattle, WA 98122

Candidates who have confirmed their attendance:
Tim Burgess, Bruce Harrell, Kate Martin, Michael McGinn, Ed Murray, Charlie Staadecker, and Peter Steinbrueck

Join these seven candidates running for Mayor of Seattle at the CPPS Mayoral Candidates Forum on Education. 


Oversight Work Session: Teaching and Learning

Tomorrow evening the School Board will conduct an oversight work session to review the operation of the District's Teaching and Learning. Finally. This will be the Board's first review of Teaching and Learning EVER.



This is one of the final direct consequences of the mismanagement of the District under the Sundquist Board and Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson. It has been a long time coming.

After the State Auditor's Office took the District leadership to task for their horrendous performance. In particular, the SAO called out the Board for their total failure to fulfill their statutory duties to oversee management and to enforce policy. The Board members had, until then, specifically denied that they had these duties.

In response, the Board stepped up their effort to revise policy and, in particular, the Board's duties. This led to the development of Board Policy 1005 Responsibilities & Authority of the Board, and Board Policy 1010, Board Oversight of Management.

The latter of these policies calls for Board review of district operations with a review of each department at least