Election eve-eve

Yard signs have finally popped up, but, especially if you don’t have a kid in Seattle Public Schools, you still might not be entirely aware there’s an election on Tuesday. Yes, there is — almost $900 million dollars worth. Here’s our 2 cents, if you haven’t already voted by mail, or haven’t really thought much about which way to go: Seattle School District Proposition 1 could be considered discretionary; it spends hundreds of millions on construction projects (including a new Denny Middle/Sealth HS campus here in WS) that some say don’t represent the most urgent needs for this kind of $. However, Seattle School District Proposition 2 is NOT discretionary. A “yes” vote on Prop 2 renews a levy (in other words, no change in tax rate) that provides a quarter of the district’s budget. If you vote no on Prop 2, students WILL be hurt. And unlike some of the people in this article, many local families don’t have the $ to just say “oh well, it’s off to private school then” (and trust us, even if they do, some private schools are startlingly overrated). No matter what you decide to do regarding school Prop 1, please vote yes Tuesday on school Prop 2.

GenHillOne February 4, 2007 (2:43 pm)

Oh WSB…as a Denny parent, let me encourage everyone to look into Proposition 1 before making a decision. Both Denny and Sealth have been “on the list” for much needed capital improvements that Madison and WS have already completed. The principals at Denny and Sealth came together to form a combined plan that saves $40 million over doing the projects separately (compare the two individual project costs to the one combined). The project offers shared spaces and resources that will benefit student programs as well as building costs. It’s interesting, creative, and actually pretty exciting. I only wish that it could be completed more quickly so that my child could be there to experience more of the finished product. Thank you for letting me through two more cents into the pot!

GenHillOne February 4, 2007 (2:47 pm)

Edit – I know, I know…”throw” two more cents into the pot…see if I’d had the great teachers that Denny has, maybe I could spell/type :)

eric February 4, 2007 (2:49 pm)

you still might not be entirely aware thereÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s an election on Tuesday.

ah, yes… gotta love the “special elections”. Got one coming up for the viaduct as well. Wonder how much all these special elections cost? probably enough to put a few extra teachers in our schools.

We need to vote on this stuff in November!

J February 4, 2007 (3:46 pm)

It would be easy to make excuses not to vote, or to vote against Prop 1. So many things are wrong with the way we’re funding schools, the choice of schools to be fixed, etc., etc. But it’s better to get some good done, and vote for both 1 and 2; by the time we come around to doing things right by our schools, children who need good educations now will be parents themselves. Not spending the money won’t improve our schools at all.

An aside: I teach in an excellent independent school. While I agree that some private schools are overrated, and that some public schools are underrated, neither applies as a generalization. Families should not feel guilty about making appropriate educational choices for their children; these choices may be different for different children, and in different years. The public system and independent schools are complementary, not conflicting.

Now, let’s get rid of that supermajority requirement! http://www.simplemajority2007.org/