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In the News
Seattle Superintendent's Lofty Goals Deserve Community Support
Seattle Times Op-ed, May 14, 2008, By Greg Nickels and Jon Bridge
read entire article here
Academic success is difficult to execute and cannot be achieved without everyone putting a shoulder to the wheel. Parents, students and educators — as well as the Seattle Education Association, the city, the business community, nonprofit organizations and foundations — must focus on helping all children achieve.
No city is truly great without an excellent school system, and to continue our prosperity, we must nurture and develop the minds of our children. In Seattle, with all our talent, genius and resources, there are no excuses for schools not performing at the top. We must launch all our students with as much attention, energy and passion as we do new corporations, new products and new ideas.
Seattle school chief's plan puts district to the test
Seattle PI, May 21, 2008
read entire article here
While the district has many needs, it will have to focus its limited resources on just a few areas to avoid being spread too thin, Goodloe-Johnson said. She wants to focus on three major areas over the next five years: improving the district's infrastructure, strengthening academic performance and creating strong leaders.
"This isn't about bells and whistles; this is about building a strong foundation," she told the School Board during its meeting Wednesday evening.
The major academic emphasis will be on math and science, two subjects Seattle students have struggled with on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning in recent years. One of the key elements in the strategic plan is to adopt a common curriculum in math and science for all grades, to ensure students learn the same skills and concepts as their peers at other Seattle schools. In recent years, schools have had more latitude to teach subjects as they wished.
Coffee with Steve
Wednesday June 24th, at 9:00 am
Uptown Espresso
Southwest Edmunds Street, SW
West Seattle
Dear Parents, Students and Citizens,
The 2008-09 school year is well underway and promises to be a year of focus on the big issues that will impact academic excellence and achievement for all students in Seattle.
Last year, voters elected a new Board with a clear mandate — work together to put students first, restore fiscal responsibility and accountability, and work with parents and the public to achieve our shared goals. And that's exactly what we've been doing.
Upon being sworn in, the Board pledged a new code of conduct, defined by mutual respect and greater focus on the issues that matter to successful student achievement. Our first order of business was to work with the Superintendent to map out a 5-year Strategic Plan 
. Its purpose is to establish clear priorities that will help ensure all students achieve.
The plan maps out specific goals as measures of accountability over the next 5 years:
- 88% of third-grade students meet or exceed reading standards (up from 72% in 06-07)
- 80% of seventh-grade students meet or exceed math standards (up from 53% in 06-07)
- 75% of students graduate from high school in four years (up from 62% in 06-07)
The strategies for achieving these goals include the following:
Ensure Excellence in the Classroom
- Strengthen our teaching of math and science; build on success with reading and writing
- Develop assessment tools to track student progress; use data to drive improvements
- Create a system that recognizes high-performing schools and helps struggling schools
Strengthen Leaders System-wide
- Retain and hire the best teachers and principals
- Hold all employees to high expectations, and support them in meeting those expectations
- Implement effective performance evaluations at all levels
Build an Infrastructure that Works Well
- Adopt and adapt technologies to allow for more efficient student assignment
- Develop budget protocols and evaluation tools to ensure efficiency and efficacy
In addition to finalizing the strategic plan, the Board also passed a balanced District budget for 08-09 that leaves 3.8% in reserves (within the 2 — 4% policy goal). It was a responsible budget but frankly, not one that is sustainable because of its use of some reserves to cover operating expenses. We are currently grappling with the development of the 2009-10 budget in the face of a deep financial crisis, and it is clear that very painful decisions will have to be made very soon.
Looking Ahead
As you have undoubtedly read and heard, the Superintendent and School Board are working on school closures. This is a very painful process, but one that is necessary, as every dollar that we save via a closure decision remains available to fund our classrooms.
For context, in 1968 enrollment in Seattle schools was 97,000 students and the District operated 117 school buildings (Seattle PI, 1/12/05). Fifty years later, the District has about half that enrollment, approximately 46,000 students, and still operates 93 buildings — many that were built more than half a century ago.
The fact is we simply cannot afford to fund under-enrolled schools and seriously deteriorated buildings that have become prohibitively expensive to maintain. The alternative is even more severe teacher and staff layoffs and draconian cuts that would threaten our academic programs district wide. That's not acceptable.
No one wants to close schools. My own children attended one of the schools whose program has been recommended for a major move. Without question, this is an extremely difficult process on students, families, and faculty. But we also cannot afford to wait.
The school board is reviewing recommendations within the framework of the strategic plan, and with an eye toward the student assignment plan that we will be crafting this spring. We are listening carefully to the public, and will make a final decision by the end of January, in time for parents to plan for the 2009-10 school year.
Beyond school closures, it's important to remain focused on the system-wide issues that will have the greatest impact on academic achievement and success in the classroom. Looking ahead, here's where I expect my attention to be focused for the remainder of this program year:
- Implementation of Strategic Plan
We expect to receive the baseline measurements for our five year plan shortly, and these will be posted on the District website. The Board will be monitoring 28 projects during the 2008/09 program year as part of the initial push on this plan. - Development of 2009/10 Budget
We are facing a known $24 million gap in next year's budget, with current expectations that the state's financial crisis will increase it to at least $37 million. A cut of this magnitude is enormous, and will make reaching a balanced budget extraordinarily painful. Maintaining a focus on the key elements of the Strategic Plan will be critical to ensuring that our decisions align with the key drivers of academic achievement, and with our commitment to quality schools in every neighborhood. - Higher Standards — Core 24, Graduation Requirements
The Board was an early endorser of Core 24, the plan to strengthen graduation requirements to ensure students are prepared for college, work, and life. This summer the State Board of Education increased the number of credits required to graduate from 19 to 24, contingent on full funding. Now we need to work with the state legislature to enact this policy into law, and to begin a phased funding of its implementation. - Student Assignment Plan
The Board has committed to develop the required policy this year to support a more neighborhood-based assignment plan for our students. Completing the policy development by the spring of 2009 will position the District to make the necessary changes to the assignment system software in time for implementation in fall, 2010. - Excellence in the Classroom
The single most important factor in student achievement is having quality educators in every classroom. The Board will work with the Superintendent to achieve a fair contract with teachers that values their service and helps to retain and attract the best teachers to Seattle. - School Building and Renovations
Thanks to Seattle voters' passage of last year's capital bond measure, we will continue working with local communities on the design, building and renovation of schools throughout the city. Quality facilities support quality education, and it has been very gratifying to witness the opening of the new building at South Lake High School and the beautifully renovated Garfield High School.
It's an ambitious agenda, but the challenges and needs remain urgent. It will take the continued commitment of our entire community to achieve the kind of success we know our children deserve.
In addition to the regularly scheduled Board and community meetings, I'll be holding more informal neighborhood coffee get-togethers this winter and spring in West Seattle. The next one will be scheduled in January. Please let me know if you would like to be on the distribution list to receive information about these events, or monitor my website at www.sundquist4schools.com. The meetings provide a great opportunity to keep you apprised of progress and to hear from you about opportunities and concerns and how we can all work better together for our students.
Thank you for your interest and your ongoing commitment to Seattle Public Schools.
Sincerely,
Steve Sundquist