(WSB photos/video)

More than 150 Chief Sealth International High School students walked off the campus just before noon today in a protest demanding action against sexual harassment and violence.

Staffers joined them in support.

As reported here last night, this was sparked by text messages described as “graphic … group text messages” that “encourage sexual violence.” The students involved were reported to be football players; the principal’s message only alluded to “athletic” involvement

After walking out, students gathered on the Southwest Athletic Complex field across the street. School officials would not allow media crews into the stadium to hear the speeches (which were inaudible from the street because of a TV chopper hovering overhead).

The student who sent word last night about today’s rally said this has been an ongoing situation without much action from school administrators. We asked principal Ray Morales today if anyone had been suspended and he said he could not comment. We asked the district media office the same question, and others, and received only a statement similar to what the principal sent to the school community Thursday; this one was attributed to district chief of staff Bev Redmond:

SPS takes the safety and wellbeing of students very seriously. We respect student voices and listen to our students’ concerns. SPS condemns any form of sexual abuse, assault, and violence, and we are dedicated to providing a nurturing and safe educational environment for all students.

On Wednesday, Oct. 18, concerns were brought to the attention of Chief Sealth International school leaders. The concerns were related to group text messages written by several Chief Sealth students. The content was graphic and extremely inappropriate. Chief Sealth International staff and SPS leaders do not condone this type of communication in any format.

Chief Sealth International school leaders took immediate action, including:
-SPS and Chief Sealth International leadership will continue to evaluate appropriate discipline and corrective action
-Outreach by school social workers and school leaders to offer direct support to each student who was the subject of these messages

The school’s leadership is actively taking steps to be sure students approach their peers and community members with respect. This includes a plan by athletic leaders to promote gender equity, prevent sexual harassment, and help our students better understand what behaviors are expected of students and student athletes.

The district did not answer our question about whether police had been contacted.

(WSB photo, Alki Elementary demolition site in August)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

ORIGINAL 12:08 PM REPORT: More than two months after the old Alki Elementary was demolished, the rebuild/expansion project remains on hold because of what’s become a court fight. A short hearing in the case was held this morning.

First, the backstory: Seattle Public Schools needed nine zoning exceptions – “departures” – to get approval for its plan to build a bigger, taller school on the site. The city Department of Construction and Inspections granted the nine departures. Four Alki residents appealed the decision. After a subsequent daylong hearing, a city hearing examiner upheld the city decision on all but one departure – the one that would allow the school to be built without off-street parking; current zoning would otherwise require 48 spaces. The examiner’s ruling sent the parking issue back to the city for “further consideration.” The district could have opted to work on that issue with the city but instead decided to file a court challenge to the decision. That challenge is set for a full hearing in January, but the city filed a motion to dismiss it, and that’s what was heard today in an online hearing before King County Superior Court Judge Wyman Yip. We monitored the hearing, which lasted less than 15 minutes.

The case is not a lawsuit per se, but rather, a land-use petition. Lawyer Liza Anderson, representing the city, contends the district’s challenge should be dismissed because the hearing examiner’s ruling was not a final land-use decision – it simply sent the parking issue back to city planners to work with the district, Lawyer Katie Kendall, representing the district, contends the hearing examiner’s ruling is indeed a final decision, because if SPS, for example, found a way to provide parking in or near the project, it could get its permits without further proceedings,

Judge Yip had no questions, and said he’d already read the documents filed by both sides. He told the lawyers – who also included counsel for the residents who filed the appeal, though she did not speak – that he expected to file a written decision on the dismissal motion by Monday. (We’ll be watching the case file.) If he doesn’t grant the motion to dismiss the case, it will proceed toward a hearing set for late January. Alki Elementary, meantime, is holding classes at the former Schmitz Park Elementary, which it was expecting to do for two years even if construction of the new school had started this summer as originally planned.

5:35 PM: Just got word that the judge has already made his decision, and he has dismissed the district’s case, agreeing with the city that the hearing examiner’s ruling granting the appeal of the no-parking decision was not a final land-use decision, so this manner of challenge was not appropriate. Here’s how the ruling ends:

Having reviewed the pleadings, the Examiner’s August 10, 2023 written decision, and the
authority cited by counsel, this Court finds that the Examiner’s decision was not a final
determination under LUPA. The Examiner found that “more attention to parking impacts within this
highly constrained and unique setting is needed” and that the decision is “returned to the
Department” for proceedings consistent with the decision. This was not a denial of the requested
parking departure. It was a remand for more/better information before a more informed decision can
be made.

Based on the foregoing, pursuant to Civil Rule (“CR”) 12(b)(1) the Court ORDERS that:
1. Respondent Seattle’s Motion to Dismiss is GRANTED; and
2. Petitioner Seattle School District’s Land Use Petition Act Petition is dismissed.

This does NOT necessarily mean the district has to provide the required parking – it does mean that the city and the district have to work on the issue, as the hearing-examiner ruling ordered. We’ll be seeking comment on Monday.

Students at Chief Sealth International High School plan a protest walkout just tomorrow over an incident that was described in a letter from the principal as involving “graphic … group text messages” that “encourage sexual violence.” Shortly after principal Ray Morales‘s letter was called to our attention tonight, we received this email from a student:

I am a 12th-grade student at Chief Sealth International High School. At our school, some of the boys on our football team and in general have been known to sexually assault, catcall, and harass women, as well as yell slurs and hate-crime queer and other students. The only thing that has happened to these boys, up to this point, has been a slap on the wrist, and events like this continue to occur. Our school consistently preaches about the physical and mental health and safety of their students, implementing a no-phone policy to reduce students’ anxiety and help our mental health, yet there has been serious inaction when the safety of female and queer students is put in jeopardy.

Recently, there was an incident involving some boys on the football team, and many students are tired of the consistent problems. In the past, students who have had issues with boys on the football team and went the coaches or staff have been brushed off or told that they would be reprimanded by having to “run extra laps.” Students have finally brought this to the attention of the whole student body and the principal. While our principal has been immensely supportive and has brought forth an action plan to change these boys behavior it is disappointing that students had to go this far to feel safe at school and get the justice they deserve. Tomorrow, October 20th, a few students have organized a walkout to protest against sexual harassment and assault. It will be at 11:50 at SWAC, across from the school. Although many staff are supportive of us, these things continue to happen, and I would like to bring attention to this issue and hopefully cease the inaction that continues to persist. By bringing light to the issue and notifying parents and members of the community, I hope to help my fellow students incite the change that is desperately needed.

Here is the note sent to the school community today by principal Morales:

Yesterday, a concern was brought to our attention regarding group text messages written by several Chief Sealth International students. The content of the text messages was graphic in nature and extremely inappropriate. Chief Staff International staff stand united that we do not condone this type of talk.

As soon as my team became aware of these messages, we took immediate action, including:

The school administration team is investigating the concerns and exploring appropriate discipline and additional corrective action.

Our social workers and school leaders are reaching out to offer direct support to each student who was a subject of the messages.

Chief Sealth International athletic leaders are developing a plan to promote gender equity, prevent sexual harassment, and help our students better understand what behaviors are expected of students and athletes.

I take the safety and wellbeing of our students very seriously. I appreciate the messages and questions families have sent to me expressing their concern about this issue. Our school and athletic teams are taking proactive steps to be sure our young people approach their peers and community members with respect.

The district and the admin team support students’ rights to express their views in a peaceful manner, including assembly and peaceful protest.

Our school has support available for students. In addition to our social workers and counselors, our school has a Teen Health Center that can help students talk through their concerns. You can find a list of student supports on our school website.

Thank you to the students who reported these messages to school staff. I encourage students to report any concerns they have to administration or other trusted adults. We want students to understand that it is important to report to a trusted adult when someone is hurt, in danger, or in an unsafe situation.

Please talk to your students to help them understand that comments that encourage sexual violence are not acceptable at our school. I am including some resource links that may be useful in talking to your students.

· UW Medicine/Harborview’s A Safer Families. A Safer World

· Love is Respect, resources for young people to promote healthy relationships

· Amaze.org, age-appropriate sex education resources

We will be following up with the school/district regarding .

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Four weeks before Seattle Public Schools superintendent Dr. Brent Jones is due to present a plan for closing a $105 million budget gap next school year, some of the possibilities were previewed at a school board “work session” this week.

The session (see the agenda and documents here) also was intended to be a recap of the challenges – inefficient state funding, according to district administrators, singing out situations such as state funding provided for nine nurses in the district, which has 65 without even averaging one per school. And the measures that closed a budget gap for the current school year also were recapped, including changes to the “central office” budget, which is $441 million. The board was reminded that “central office” includes districtwide services such as meals, far more than just middle and upper management at district HQ. This year the district reduced “central office” expenses by $32 million and is looking at $18 million.

But some of the ways they closed a gap this year are no longer available. And that’s why they’re looking at school closure/consolidation, for example, to create what administrators call “a system of well-resourced schools” – theoretically, larger schools that would have a full set of nurses, librarians, counselors, family support workers. No specific schools have been mentioned so far. But one slide from Tuesday’s meeting mentioned what closures would be expected to save – up to $2 million per closed school:

Another possible way to save money, with existing schools: Going to three bell schedules, for more efficient use of school buses. That could save $5 million, according to district staff. (The most-recent suggestion to do that was shelved amid a firestorm of opposition.)

Maybe higher fees, such as charging for athletic participation, or having families cover the fees the district pays for payments through the SchoolPay system:

Other possibilities could include selling property:

The meeting ran short on time (though it lasted about half an hour longer than planned) before much brainstorming happened, but board director Vivian Song mentioned one thing she saw missing: Raising revenue by growing enrollment (since each added student means more state funding), or at least – given the recent declines – actively working to stabilize it.

Before the meeting got to the discussion of potential money-saving measures, some general philosophical points about the process were discussed. Board director Leslie Harris of West Seattle wondered if any parts of the budget could be put off-limits – “we never really agreed on baselines.” And she also again chided district staff for not yet at least previewing potential closures and consolidations, or at least hinting at what values they’re using to review specific schools: Would those values include keeping K-8 schools? Keeping STEM-focused schools? Keeping small schools that are focused on specialized programs? Some discussion ensued about “focusing on student outcomes.” Board director Chandra Hampson, who has been previously reported as a critic of “option schools” (in West Seattle, that includes Pathfinder and Boren STEM K-8s), declared that those schools “don’t have better outcomes.” In a general observation regarding school consolidations, board director Liza Rankin said, “I don’t want anybody’s school to close, but we’re talking about schools meant for 400, 500 stdents, with under 200” and therefore short on resources now.

WHAT’S NEXT: The superintendent is scheduled to present his plan on Wednesday, November 15th. Feedback from the district’s recent series of community meetings is supposed to factor into it, but that feedback is still being parsed by district staff, chief of staff Bev Redmond said toward the start of this week’s work session.

LOCAL MEETING: Local school-board director Leslie Harris has her next community-conversation meeting set for this Saturday (October 21), 2-5 pm at West Seattle (Admiral) Library, 2306 42nd SW – bring your questions/concerns/suggestions.