Aida Fraser-Hammer is one of six new Seattle Public Schools principals in West Seattle for the school year that starts a week from Wednesday – in charge of our area’s most populous school, Chief Sealth International High School. Her leadership team includes two new assistant principals, joining Andra Maughan, who moved to Sealth from West Seattle High School last year: Clint Sallee from Baltimore and Cheryl Sullivan comes to us from Arizona. Fraser-Hammer previously worked in the Kent School District, as noted when her appointment was announced almost two months ago. Her “get ready for school” message for families, with dates and details, can be seen here; you’re also welcome to stop by and meet her and her team – students welcome too! – at the school today, until 6 pm.

Seattle Lutheran High School will soon welcome three NFL veterans as part of its annual fundraiser for its Football and Cheer programs. Former Seahawk Orlando Huff and former Huskies Mario Bailey and Greg Lewis will speak to students, parents, and friends at the Pasta Dinner Fundraiser on September 5th at 6 pm in the SLHS gym. The event will also be emceed by journalist and video host (and former UW athlete) Jenni Hogan, who you might recognize from her work in Seattle TV. If you’re interested in attending, tickets are on sale for $10 here.

Thanks to Pam Rago, family-support worker at Highland Park Elementary, for sharing this information that will affect not only some families at her school, but at three others in our area:

Washington State has approved what is called “slow start” for Title 1, full-day kindergarten schools including Highland Park, Roxhill, Sanislo, and West Seattle. This means that kindergarten will not start on September 4th. Kindergarten will start three days later, on Monday, September 9th.

During the first three days of school (September 4th – 6th) the kindergarten teachers will be meeting with families for a beginning-of-the-year parent-teacher conference. This will give our teachers the opportunity to learn more about the incoming kindergarteners before school begins which will then help teachers tailor their program to best meet each child’s needs.

If you have an incoming kindergartener at one of the schools involved, she says, the school will contact you (if it hasn’t already) about setting up the meeting time.

Less than two weeks until classes start at Chief Sealth International High School and other Seattle Public Schools. As announced in early July, Chief Sealth will have a new principal for the new school year, Aida Fraser-Hammer. And she has just announced an invitation to the Sealth community to drop by next Monday (August 26th) for a “meet and greet”:

On Monday August 26th, 2013, the doors of Chief Sealth International High School will be open for you!!!

Come on in anytime between 10:00 am and 6:00 pm to Meet ‘n Greet Principal Aïda Fraser-Hammer and her administrative team, Andra Maughan, Clint Sallee, and Cheryl Sullivan.

EVERYONE IS WELCOME!! BRING THE KIDS!!

The district’s first day of school is Wednesday, September 4th.

(WSB photo of the WSHS band at a game in January 2013)
Less than three weeks until Seattle Public Schools (and many others) start a new year of classes. Tonight, West Seattle High School music leader Ethan Thomas has a message for his incoming and returning band members:

Attention West Seattle High School Band Students. We will be hosting a band camp at the Southwest Athletic Complex on September 7th and 8th for students involved in the WSHS band in the 2013-14 school year. Please check the West Seattle High School website for complete details and registration information (westseattlehs.seattleschools.org).

That’s the weekend after the first day of school (which this year is September 4th).

For the second consecutive day, Seattle Public Schools Superintendent José Banda has announced a new principal for a local school – this time, Shannon Stanton as principal of Alki Elementary:

Ms. Stanton comes to Alki from Pine Tree Elementary in the Kent School District, where she has been principal since 2011. She is committed to the academic initiatives at Alki and we believe she will be a great fit for the Alki community.

Shannon Stanton previously held several positions in the Kent School District including professional development coordinator, curriculum specialist, literacy specialist and classroom teacher. She has provided instructional coaching and leadership as a consultant for international schools. In this role she trains groups of teacher leaders, administrators and curriculum directors working in the international school system.

Ms. Stanton earned a Master’s in Education, Teaching, Learning and Assessment from Lesley University and a Master’s in Educational Leadership from the University of Washington, Bothell. She received a bachelor of arts in interdisciplinary child development from Western Washington University. She has trained in best practices for literary instruction with Columbia University’s Teachers College and with the Public Education and Business Coalition in Denver. Ms. Stanton holds principal and teacher certificates for Washington State.

The hiring process for Alki included input from staff and families. The selection team committee was particularly impressed with Shannon Stanton’s passion and knowledge of the Alki school and community and her experience in working with the current academic initiatives in place at Alki.

She succeeds Chanda Oatis, who, as announced last month, is the new principal at Van Asselt Elementary. The SPS school year starts on September 4th, three weeks from tomorrow. (Photo above: Kent SD website)

Three updates today from independent schools around West Seattle:

WESTSIDE SCHOOL: Next month marks the start of its 32nd year, during which time Westside School (WSB sponsor) has grown from preschool-only to PK-8, and admission director David Bergler points out that the first Westside 8th-grade class will “begin their journey toward graduation” when school starts in September. With that, Bergler says, Westside is adding staff:

Ari Feeney joins Westside as Director of Lower School, PK-4. Ari will provide direct day-to-day care for students, teachers and families and will have responsibility for student learning and the instructional program. Ari previously was the Associate Head of School and Lower School Director at St. Paul’s Academy in Bellingham. Leading the Middle School next year will be Director of Middle School Marc Saks. Marc comes from Hawaii’s Hualalai Academy where he was the Director of the Middle School and Academic Dean K-12. With the growth of the Middle School program, Westside has added a number of new teachers: Jeremy Luscher (5th grade STEM), Susannah Muench (Humanities), Mark Hespenheide (Mathematics), Mike Thomas (Athletic Director), and Sue Boyum (Performing Arts).

The photo above, by the way, is from what Bergler explains is Westside’s “comprehensive, interdisciplinary Outdoor Education component, during which teachers and guides accompany students on two multi-day to week-long trips each year.” Westside offers interscholastic athletics too, including competitive seasons in cross-country running, track and field, basketball, and volleyball.

NEW PRESCHOOL: Arbor Heights Community Church has announced that it’s opening ARK Park Preschool on September 10th. Preschool director Loretta Kimball says they’ll begin with a three-days-a-week class for 3-year-olds and a four-days-a-week class for 4-year-olds. Kimball adds, “This will be a low-cost, high-quality program, offering both a faith-based and academic curriculum, designed with the belief that ‘Every Child is a Promise’.” There’s more information on the AHCC website at arborheights.org and they’ll answer questions via e-mail at info@arborheights.org.

NEW K-2 COOP: The new K-2 cooperative school starting this fall at South Seattle Community College (WSB sponsor) has a name: Village Cooperative School. Sarah Schieron explains, “Our name reflects the community we intend to build with each other.” They are already “one family shy of full enrollment with 19 students currently enrolled (15 to 16 students each day given some part-time students).” They’re having family socials over the summer and inviting parents to help paint the classroom; they’re working to apply to become a 501(c)3, and are building a website – you can find them for starters on Facebook, and at next weekend’s Delridge Day festival (11 am-4 pm at Delridge Community Center/Park). Village Coop is also answering questions by e-mail, at info@vcoop.org.

Three weeks after we reported that former Roxhill Elementary principal Carmela Dellino was leaving her position as the district’s executive director of Schools after a year, her successor has just been announced by Seattle Public Schools superintendent José Banda:

I am pleased to announce that Mr. Israel Vela has been appointed Executive Director of Schools for the Southwest region.

Mr. Vela will support the principals and schools in the southwest region of the city with responsibilities that include coaching principals, coordinating professional development for principals and teachers, strengthening our systems for monitoring and using student data, and conducting frequent learning walks in the schools – all in service of ensuring a world-class, 21st century education for every child in every classroom in the Southwest region.

Mr. Vela comes to Seattle from the Kent School District, where he has held leadership roles for the past 13 years.

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With four weeks to go (already?) until the new school year, the Seattle Public Library has announced that two elementary schools in West Seattle will get an extra literacy boost via a new partnership:

Students at Seattle’s Sanislo and Roxhill elementary schools will benefit from expanded literacy programs and library resources this school year, thanks to a partnership with The Seattle Public Library.

The one-year pilot project is funded by a $91,000 grant from the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation. Through the grant, titled, “Sharing Our Stories: A School and Public Library Partnership Project,” The Seattle Public Library will:

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(WSB file photo of Madison’s east-facing gym exterior, where the sign would go)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

2007, when Madison Middle School PTA leaders were first getting serious about raising money for a light-up signboard at school, was almost a full generation of communication ago.

It wasn’t until midway through that year that the groundbreaking smartphone, the iPhone, debuted.

It was the first full year that Facebook didn’t require members to be college students.

With the seismic shift in communication habits since then, can an electronic signboard still be relevant?

That was just one point argued in a wide-ranging appeal hearing Wednesday, with city Hearing Examiner Sue Tanner listening to sign supporters and opponents, as well as representatives of the City of Seattle and Seattle Public Schools. The city has approved the sign; neighbors facing Madison along 45th SW challenged that approval.

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Seattle Public Schools has new rules about school fundraisers, and they’ve stirred up some concern today. The citywide PTSA Council mentioned them briefly in a newsletter that went out this week:

Starting in the Fall 2013, Seattle Public Schools will take a 10% cut, up to $1000, for the use of school grounds if the fundraising activity takes place during school hours (read: Walk-A-Thons, etc). (We’re trying to think of it as a “use fee” for the space).

That was in turn forwarded to WSB by several outraged parents. So we asked SPS spokesperson Teresa Wippel about the rule change. She explains:

To comply with state law, Seattle Public Schools developed new procedures for school-based fundraising. If fundraisers occur during the school day and involve students (for example, a walkathon or readathon), we are required to ensure that students receive a portion of the proceeds. We worked with PTSA leadership during the past school year to create these procedures, which are aimed at making sure that our students retain a portion of the proceeds for events that they participate in. As a result, if a PTSA fundraiser is an activity that is co-sponsored with ASB, 10 percent – up to $1,500 – goes to the school’s ASB fund. Of course, the ASB fund may be used for many of the things the PTSA supports, such as field trips and sporting and social events.

If the activity is carried out in accordance with all three items listed below, it is a PTSA event; thus the PTSA retains all proceeds:

A) outside of regular school time (after school, evening or weekend)

B) the PTSA does the event planning, organizing, money-handling

C) the event is advertised as a PTSA fundraiser (i.e. Adams PTSA, Ballard Athletics Booster Club).

We also asked when this was approved by the School Board. Answer: It wasn’t – it’s an administrative action. Meantime, a commenter on Seattle Schools Community Forum pointed out that something similar came around three years ago – and was overturned shortly after coming to light.

As West Seattle’s public STEM elementary school approaches the start of its second year, Seattle Public Schools is preparing to make decisions including a permanent home for that school. Two months ago, SPS went public with a preliminary proposal to house STEM in the current Schmitz Park Elementary, once it’s vacated in 2016, when the new Genesee Hill school is ready. This week, the STEM PTA announced two counterproposals, in advance of a round of meetings starting with one that the PTA’s executive board is convening next week: Move STEM to the Fairmount Park building when it reopens, expanded, in 2014, or keep it at Boren and expand it to K-8. The proposals are detailed in this letter, which PTA president Robin Graham shared with WSB on request after circulating it within the school community:

West Seattle STEM proposal

(If you can’t see the embedded document, get the PDF version here.) The K-8 idea has percolated for a while; yesterday, even before the STEM PTA went public with its letter, there were related discussions in this thread on the Seattle Schools Community Forum website. The district’s website has information here about what’s officially called the Enrollment Planning/Growth Boundaries process – including a community meeting planned at West Seattle High School on September 25th, before decisions are finalized later this fall.

UPDATE: As noted in comments, the meeting on Monday is now at Boren, NOT SW Library, so that more participation can be accommodated.

West Seattle’s representative on the Seattle School Board, Marty McLaren, has just announced the dates for the informal meetings she promised to set up over the summer, to get your thoughts on boundary changes and other big district decisions later in the year:

The decisions about Seattle Schools Growth Boundaries in West Seattle will be very important for our community, and I’ve scheduled two informal West Seattle meetings so that community members can gather to discuss the issues:

Saturday, August 3, from 10 to 12 noon at the Southwest Branch Library, 9010 35th Ave SW

Wednesday, August 14, 6 to 7:45 PM at the West Seattle Branch Library, 2306 42nd SW (behind the Metropolitan Market)

Related district documents are linked from this page on her website.

You might recall that Seattle Public Schools had board approval for two versions of the 2013-2014 calendar – because they were waiting to see if the state would approve a waiver allowing three professional development days (which would be off-days for students). The state denied the waiver, so the district just announced it’s going with its “Option B” calendar. However, it’s still not completely finalized, the district announcement explains:

Seattle Public Schools is now working with its labor partners, as part of ongoing contract negotiations, to determine when professional development will take place during the upcoming school year. More information will be communicated to families as soon as it is available.

Key dates for next year’s school calendar include:

First day of school: Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2013
Winter break: two weeks, from Dec. 23, 2013, to Jan. 3, 2014
Mid-winter break: Feb. 17-21, 2014, including the Presidents Day holiday
Spring break: April 14-18, 2014
Last day of school: yet to be determined (June 18 or 19, 2014)

The calendar also builds in four snow make-up days, including Jan. 31, 2014, May 23, 2014, and the two days after the last day of school. It’s important that staff and families plan for students to potentially be in school during these days, and to note that the last day of school could be Monday, June 23, 2014, if snow days are not used.

The Option B calendar can be seen here.

Big news for Chief Sealth International High School, reported by its academy coordinator Gary Perkins:

This past week (July 9th-12th) in Orlando, Florida, Chief Sealth International High School was recognized as having two of the top career and vocational academies in the country.

The Academy of Business, which includes both an Academy of Finance and Academy of Hospitality & Tourism program, was awarded “Model Status” by the National Academy Foundation (NAF), an award given to only a select number of business academies in the country. NAF is a leader in the movement to prepare young people for college and career success and operates in more than 600 academies across the 50 states. For over 30 years, NAF has refined a proven educational model which included industry-focused curricula, work-based learning experience, and business partner expertise. Employees of more than 2,500 companies volunteer in classrooms, act as mentors, engaged NAF student in paid internships and serve on local advisory boards.

There are only eight academies in the state of Washington and two of those are located at Sealth. The Academy of Finance and Hospitality & Tourism programs have a long history at Sealth at over 22 and 14 years, respectively but this is the 1st year that Sealth has qualified for the award. In 2013, 100% of approximately 70 seniors that participated in the two academies graduated on time and over 95% have post secondary plans. In addition, more than 40 of those seniors were able to complete paid summer internships their junior year with an economic benefit of approximately $75,000.

In the picture (L-R) are Gary Perkins (teacher), DeAira Handugan (teacher), Pamela Mushen (teacher) and Joanne Patrick (academy director for Seattle Public Schools).

You can find out more about the program by e-mailing Perkins at gaperkins@seattleschools.org. CSIHS’s course catalog for next year and other info is on the school website here.