(WSB photo: October 13th protest outside SPS HQ)

Two weeks after first word that some Seattle Public Schools were getting word of teacher cuts/moves – plans that sparked protests – the district has gone public with a final list of what it says has happened, with nine local schools affected (we’ve marked them with asterisks):

Seattle Public Schools will add certified staff to five schools next week, and reassign only seven certified staff to other schools, out of nearly 1,100 general education staff (elementary, middle, K-8).

As the district shared earlier this month, 52,399 students are enrolled in the district this year, according to the 10-day headcount (9/30). This is an increase of 411 students over last year. However, while we have more students this year, the number is lower than projected by 675. This translates into $4.23 million less in revenue from the state, not including the enrollment decline impact on Special Education, Transportation or Nutrition Services.

Some schools have increased enrollment, some have decreased enrollment. This made it necessary to add more staff at those schools with higher enrollment and to reduce staff at those with lower enrollment, with a couple of unique exceptions based on classroom configuration. SPS district staff have worked closely with school leaders to address the timeline during the reassignment process. This has resulted in a net reduction of 21.5 full-time positions.

Eight start-of-school substitutes were added district-wide and funded centrally in schools where principals believed their enrollment may be higher than the district projection. Principals used this resource to support smooth start of school efforts. The goal was to reduce the number of classes without a teacher, and to mitigate for last minute enrollment changes. Five of the six elementary and middle schools that received a substitute did not qualify to keep this position. One of the schools, Green Lake, will add a full time teacher. The six substitutes pulled were at the following schools: Emerson, John Hay, *Schmitz Park, West Woodland, Washington and Queen Anne. Those staff will be assigned to hard-to-fill positions and assigned to one building rather than different daily assignments across the district. Some schools have enrollment changes at the grade level, as compared to projections, that generated the need to add staff in some schools but also reduce in other schools.

The five schools adding staff members are:
Green Lake – 1.0 addition
Rainier View – 1.0 addition
Viewlands – 1.0 addition
*Madison – 2.0 additions
Hamilton – 1.0 addition

The seven schools who have been impacted by the need to reassign a staff member are:

Jane Addams – .4 partial displacement – 1.1 internal funds, 1 reassigned to Broadview Thomson as part-time building designated substitute
*West Seattle Elementary – 1.0 displacement – Reassigned to Lafayette
North Beach Elementary – 1.0 displacement – Reassigned to Bagley
*K-6 Stem @ Boren – 1.0 displacement – Reassigned to Rainier Beach
*Highland Park Elementary – 1.0 displacement – Reassigned to Emerson as building designated substitute
Dunlap Elementary – 1.0 displacement – Reassigned to Kimball
Bryant Elementary – 1.0 displacement – Reassigned to Viewlands

Five schools had individuals choose to slightly reduce their contracts in order to remain at the school:

Sand Point – .5 vacant position closed, .2 reduction, .3 funds restored with internal/external
Wedgwood – .5 vacant position closed, reassigned to Roxhill as .5 building designated sub
Broadview Thomson – Vacant position closed, two staff reduced .5 each to job share
Whitman – Vacant position closed, two employees reduced .2 each, .4 funds identified, .2 to be determined
Madrona K-8 – .5 vacant position closed, two staff reduced .2 and .3 each

The following schools either closed vacant positions or found alternative funding:

*Alki * Retained in position due to community funding
B.F. Day * Grade one combined, vacant position closed
Beacon Hill * Vacant position closed
*Concord * Vacant position closed
Bailey Gatzert * Funds restored with alternative funding
Laurelhurst * Vacant position closed
Lowell * Vacant position closed
Martin Luther King * Vacant position closed
Olympic View * Vacant position closed
Queen Anne * Allocation had not been utilized yet
*Roxhill * Two vacant positions closed
*Denny * Alternate funding identified

Special Education:

Out of 900 staff members, four teachers and eight instructional assistants were reassigned to other schools.

English Language Learners

We added ELL services to 35 schools (all schools now provide ELL services).
Out of 326 ELL teachers, 3.5 positions were reallocated.

We understand families and staff are impacted by these changes. The SPS Human Resources Department staff continues to work closely with every building to ensure clarity and support throughout this process. Those seven staff being reassigned, have been assured that being reassigned has no impact on their contract status, FTE level, pay, benefits or retirement.

As you can see, the SPS news release does not list which schools were affected by special-education and ELL changes – if any are local, please let us know in comments or via e-mail – editor@westseattleblog.com – thanks!

The photo is courtesy of Mayor Murray‘s office, forwarded by Holy Rosary School, which wanted to share the news that the former student visited this week:

This week, Mayor Murray paid a visit to Holy Rosary S.T.E.M. (Plus) School! The mayor attended Holy Rosary as a third grader in 1963 before moving to Lacey. While visiting, he was being filmed by a crew from Ireland, who is making a documentary about the Irish in Seattle. Mayor Murray was able to walk the halls and watch many students engaged in exciting activities. He met with a group of junior high students, and was impressed by their maturity and thoughtful questions.

In case you wondered, with the Irish reference – while the president of Ireland is visiting our area right now, the mayor’s HR stop was before his arrival.

P.S. If you’re not part of the HR community, you might notice something new in the school’s name. We asked registrar Kimberly Tish about it: “This year we have fully integrated the STEM approach into all areas of our curriculum. The (Plus) speaks to the focus on our Catholic Identity and our strong arts programs: art, music, foreign language (Spanish).” She adds that the school’s already accepting applications for next year.