TEACHER CUTS: Protest at district HQ, as legislators ask School Board to put teacher changes on hold

7:43 PM: Parents concerned about the Seattle Public Schools teacher cuts/shuffles (first reported here last Thursday) rallied outside district HQ this afternoon.

And they got some encouragement in their cause – a letter signed by legislators asking the School Board to put the changes on hold. Thanks to Amy King for sharing this scan of the letter:

(Here it is as a PDF if you can’t read the Scribd embed above.) The parents who are organizing under the name Kids Not Cuts plan to be at a school board Committee of the Whole meeting at district HQ at 4:15 pm tomorrow to directly make the request, though the issue is not on the agenda. The meeting is open to the public.

ADDED 8:39 PM: The board has already responded to the legislators’ letter, saying basically, sorry, they can’t. Thanks to Robin Graham for sharing their letter:

The afternoon protest, by the way, was the second of the day outside SPS HQ, after the “Half-Baked Sale” at midday.

SchmitzParent October 13, 2015 (11:12 pm)

If the district truly can’t fund the teaching positions, as they decry in their response, where are the cuts in the administration to help alleviate the shortfall? The district told the media that this is happening “all across the state”, yet that is patently untrue (as reported tonight by local media who tried to verify that allegation). These teachers are (according to the district) being reassigned to other schools. How does that save money?

Yes, the State has fallen short of their obligation, but the district has not been remotely transparent in their accounting to show the public how these cuts impact their overall budget. It’s finger pointing with the students getting the short end of the stick, while the administration is still posting for 6-figure job openings. Can they not see how obviously arrogant and deceptive they sound? We won’t even get into the fact that the district altered the ratios for some schools in order to artificially cause them to fall below the previously established student/teacher ratios.

I hope this movement can sustain the momentum and hold the district accountable for their failure to manage their resources. Our children do not deserve to have their world disrupted after the school year has begun. Beyond that, the State has to step up and comply with the obligations set forth in the McCleary decision.

Mike October 14, 2015 (12:24 am)

http://www.seattleschools.org/district/superintendent/contact/
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Enjoy!

MSW October 14, 2015 (12:27 am)

How about selling that money pit of a administrative building and give the money back to the schools. How much money is that building and staff costing the school district? How about an audit to see where all of the money is going. Maybe hire people who can actually do math and forecasting.

Politics October 14, 2015 (6:08 am)

I for one applaud the response by the district. Balancing resources is common in all industries and the district should be allowed to use this valuable tool to ensure that the resources are used for maximum overall benefit. The response from the legislators stinks of political grandstanding, as I am sure they are getting heat from their constituents on this and are trying to deflect blame back on the district. Keep it up people, hopefully enough voices to the legislature will prompt them to act. Remember though, this is a funding issue at the state level as well, and the desire to raise revenue to properly fund schools (and roads for that matter) will only come when the electorate gets over its fear of raising taxes. Maybe some serious thought should go into whether this state can continue to afford not having a state income tax…

Ivan October 14, 2015 (7:46 am)

I disagree with Politics. There is no defense for the District’s position. SchmitzParent quite rightly points out that they are still advertising for six-figure administrative positions.
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The Legislature needs to do its job, to be sure. but until such time, Seattle can — and must — act locally. We can start by sacking some of the assistants to the assistants to the associates down at the John, leaving the teachers right where they are, and the sooner the better.

Azimuth October 14, 2015 (9:12 am)

It’s tiring just watching how hard teachers, parents, and students are fighting for something I always considered a no-brainer. Between the strike and this little episode, my eyes are open to the constant battle for something they shouldn’t have to fight over. Does the district do this shuffle often?

su October 14, 2015 (9:41 am)

Salaries are online for anyone to see, if principals are making 115,000 a year and assistants are making 98,000 a year just imagine what administrators and school board members are making! How about adjusting those outrageous salaries to benefit the students whom I’m assuming they all got into this business for in the 1st place.

Alice October 14, 2015 (10:23 am)

su, is that really outrageous, given where we live? It’s certainly more than I earn, but I don’t have responsibility for the education of 600+ students, the supervision of dozens of teachers and the management of a 40 room school site.

Politics October 14, 2015 (11:17 am)

There is such an anti-management/administration bias on the WSB comment section. People lash out at what people in managerial positions make, but do they ever stop to consider what goes into their jobs? A lot of times people in those salary grades are paid to make difficult decisions for the greater good; decisions that most people either don’t want to make or won’t make. These decisions often come at great personal stress to those left in the position to make them, since they are people also and are well aware of what the reaction to the decision will be. Most people run from this type of responsibility and freely turn over the hard choices to others. Why shouldn’t someone that will step up and make the unpopular decision not get paid more money for the stress they have to endure? Also, these issues are way more complex then what people want to make them out to be. If you peeled back the onion on why things are the way they are you might find something you don’t want to see (i.e., the fault lies with you). This issue comes down to revenue, if the majority of the populace refuses to raise taxes then what can be done? People complain about government waste, but the reality is that government has to account for a lot of areas within society, and people need to realize if they want better roads (or schools, etc.) then that will have to come from somewhere. It will either come from cutting something else (fixed pie) or raising revenue (taxes). Armed with that knowledge, why don’t you go out and try to go get consensus in our fragmented society on what is more important to the masses? Honestly, who would even want that job considering the backlash that will come from whomever is getting what is important to them cut or from those who are going to have to pay more money in taxes? If you think about it, making these decisions is almost a no-win situation since you are going to make someone upset.

Mat October 14, 2015 (12:48 pm)

Is it just me, or if nothing else does it seem like the district is horrible at PR?

They seem to like to frame difficult messages in such a way that it’s like they’re throwing rocks at a bee’s nest.

Vote4Change October 14, 2015 (1:16 pm)

Carr/Peaslee’s letter is basically a big F-you to the families and taxpayers that voted them into office. They find it more important to shield the district than to represent and fight for families and students. Vote in the change we want to see – transparency, the guts to ask the tough questions of district staff, and courage to hold them accountable to district policy.
Vote.
http://www.thestranger.com/features/feature/2015/10/14/23007623/the-strangers-endorsements-for-the-november-2015-general-election