West Seattle, Washington
22 Thursday
(September photo from EWMS)
Though no one knows yet what’s ahead for the rest of this school year, planning for next year goes on – and that means open houses for some schools. Explorer West Middle School (WSB sponsor) is holding its first virtual open house on Saturday – here’s the invitation:
Our re-imagined virtual events have been created to offer you an in-depth look at our school. Our first event is at 10 AM on October 17. We invite you to meet our faculty, administration, students, families, and alumni. Topics covered include:
*Our programs, including core, co-curricular, and afterschool offerings
*Our current hybrid schedule
*Outdoor classrooms
*Life in our communityWe will be on hand to answer questions and discuss admissions. The event is free for families to attend, and tickets are available through Eventbrite. Please contact Dawn with any questions at 206-935-0495 or dawnf@explorer-west.org.
If this one doesn’t work for you, EWMS plans an evening event in early December.
A week and a half ago, we published the West Seattle High School Senior Class ASB‘s open call for a restaurant to partner on a dine-out fundraiser, since the students’ usual fundraising methods aren’t doable this year. They didn’t just get one partner – they got 10! Now it’s your turn to help, and October 21st is the date. From class president Ella Richardson:
The West Seattle High School Senior Class is extremely grateful to have received numerous offers from restaurants willing to host our fundraiser. We will be hosting a Dine Out day on Wednesday October 21. Support your local restaurants and the Senior class by dining in or taking out at any of the following restaurants:
Circa (2605 California SW)
Bebop Waffle Shop (2600 California SW)
Arthur’s (2311 California SW)
Mission Cantina (2325 California SW)
Admiral Pub (2306 California SW)
Ampersand Café (2536 Alki SW)
Lady Jaye (4523 California SW)
Peel and Press (6503 California SW)
The Westy (7908 35th SW)
Dream Dinners* (4701 41st SW)All of these restaurants will be donating a percentage of their profits from that day to the West Seattle HS Seniors, who will put that money toward their prom. During dinner time we will be selling raffle tickets to win local prizes. At Lady Jaye there will be a live COVID-friendly performance by the band Aurora Avenue from 4-4:45 pm. The Senior class needs the West Seattle Community to please show up and support!
*Note: Dream Dinners is unique! We are not a restaurant but we do make amazing dinners! Best of all we are committed to giving back to our community! Please place your meal order on or before October 20th, for pick up on the 22nd using this link.
If you are tracking the plan for an addition on the north side of the campus at Madison Middle School, another briefing is coming up tomorrow – for the Landmark Preservation Board‘s Architectural Review Committee. The board has to weigh in on the addition since the 1929-built school is a city landmark. See the design packet by Studio Meng Strazzara here. The 12,500-sf addition, scheduled to be built next year, didn’t make the BEX V levy list, but is being funded by a state Distressed Schools Grant. The meeting is online at 8:30 am Friday (October 2nd); viewing information is on the agenda.
From Chief Sealth International High School:
Principal Aida Fraser-Hammer of Chief Sealth International High School announced today that seniors Elijah Allen-White and Ptolemy Bear have each received a Letter of Commendation from the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program. Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 scorers from more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2021 competition by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). This Commendation recognizes their accomplishments and the key role their schools play in their academic development. Congratulations, Elijah and Ptolemy!
Thanks to MC for the photo from Monday’s “drive-up” flu-shot clinic at Chief Sealth International High School. Five more clinics, with the Visiting Nurse Association, are ahead in West Seattle this week and next for Seattle Public Schools students, staff, and families. You are welcome with or without insurance – MC notes, “Funding is available for free flu shots for uninsured kids and adults.” This year, health experts say flu vaccinations are more important than ever because of the pandemic – here’s why. Here are the upcoming clinics:
Wednesday, September 23
Madison Middle School – 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Friday, September 25
Louisa Boren STEM K-8 – 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Tuesday, September 29
Chief Sealth High School – 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, October 1
Louisa Boren STEM K-8 – 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Friday, October 2
Madison Middle School – 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
You need to register for an appointment – via the link on this page.
From the West Seattle Booster Club, which supports programs at West Seattle High School:
The WS Booster Club is taking orders for duffle bags until October 1st. These bags are great for all students and fans of WSHS! This is the biggest fundraiser for the Booster Club, which supports athletic, music, and cheer programs at WSHS. Visit wsbooster.com/shop, select Duffle Bag – PREORDER.
Starting tomorrow, Chief Sealth International High School invites students and families to a weekly drive-thru event to “pick up school supplies, library books you’ve put on hold, pre-purchased yearbooks, and spirit gear.” It’ll be 11 am-3 pm every Wednesday, for students and/or families. It’ll happen at a table along the “bus loop” drive in front of the school – and you can walk up or ride up as well as drive up, car not required. (Yearbook orders and payments for 2020 are still being taken, too – go here.)
Two weeks into the school year, Seattle Lutheran High School on the north edge of The Junction will be welcoming some of its students back on campus starting tomorrow. From SLHS executive director Dave Meyer:
We are one of very few high schools in the state that are beginning in-building classes. The only independent high school in West Seattle is beginning in-person instruction on Monday, Sept. 14. Our students will be in person on Monday (Sept. 14) and Tuesday (Sept. 15) and then working toward an in-person schedule for 4 days a week.
With our unique size, this is possible, and our families also have the option to stay virtual because each family has a unique story.
Monday (Sept. 14) and Tuesday (Sept. 15)
Arrival times:
Freshmen/Sophomores – 8:15 am-8:30 am
Juniors/ Seniors – 8:30 am-8:45 am
Classes begin at 8:45 am
SLHS has ~130 students.
Though teaching/learning is happening online as Seattle Public Schools‘ 2020-2021 year begins today, you’ll still see some activity at local school buildings because of what can’t be done online: As previously noted, school health clinics are open. And meal pickups continue, though with a new schedule and list of locations. 11:15 am-1:15 pm every weekday (except holidays), 40 SPS locations are offering meals as described here. Here on the peninsula, two schools where meals had been available until yesterday are no longer offering them – West Seattle High School and West Seattle Elementary. But others have been added – Arbor Heights Elementary, Louisa Boren STEM K-8, Highland Park Elementary, Madison Middle School, Roxhill Elementary. Continuing local meal sites are Denny International Middle School and Chief Sealth International High School. There’s also one bus route in north West Seattle making meal deliveries.
Thanks to the Seattle Public Schools employee who asked us to let students/families know that if they’re having connectivity trouble, it’s not their issue – it’s the district’s. We’ve confirmed this with SPS, whose spokesperson Tim Robinson replied with this statement:
We are currently experiencing slow internet and learning platform access due to the high volume of traffic this morning. This has resulted in disruption of service on district issued laptops. Our technology teams are actively working the issues. We will update this alert when we have a resolution.
– Department of Technology Services
Our tipster had a suggestion for families: “Please reassure your kids that this has nothing to do with their devices, or your home network. Tell them to do the best they can, SPS is working on it.”
Before we get to the end of the week, we have a few more West Seattle schools’ plans to report. Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic School in High Point started preschool/prekindergarten in person this past Tuesday, while K-8 will start remotely, after in-person orientation conferences, which wrap up tomorrow. Teaching/learning for K-8 starts next Tuesday (September 8th).
Even with school starting remotely for most local students, supplies are still needed, and as we’ve noted before, that means fundraisers are too. The Genesee Hill Elementary PTA invites the community to be part of a tasty fundraiser it’s planning next Wednesday (September 9th):
Join us to eat ice cream at a distance!
Buy an ice cream cone from the Full Tilt Truck while it’s across the street from Genesee Hill. $6 per cone, with part of each sale going to the GHE PTA Supply Drive. All are welcome!
Check out the new GHE swag samples when you stop by!
Wear a mask. Social distancing guidelines will be followed. Vegan option available.
The truck will be at 50th & Dakota, 3-6 pm that day. Looks like ice-cream weather – could be in the 90s!
Continuing our look at how West Seattle’s independent/parochial schools are starting this pandemic-enmeshed year: Westside School (WSB sponsor) in Arbor Heights has a hybrid plan – some remote, some in-person, and the preK-8 school already has laid out how that will change if/when COVID-19 risk levels change. The step-by-step plan, tied to those risk levels, is here.
Since King County is currently still considered “high risk,” Westside plans to “maintain three in-person days for our PS/PK/K students and one weekly in-person day for our 2nd-4th grade students,” which the school says is “directly linked to the (state Department of Health) recommendation to include ‘limited in-person learning in small groups … for the highest-need students, (including) younger learners’.” 5th through 8th graders will start the year all-remote, and they’ll stay that way until King County moves to Phase 3, when they’ll attend in person on alternating days, while lower grades will then be on campus full time. The school’s plan also details transition time and building reconfiguration steps when the risk level drops – for example, they’ll wait five days before starting to move to the next stage of the plan, to be sure the reduction in the risk level isn’t short-lived.
School starts tomorrow for preschool, pre-K, K, and 4th graders, while 5th and 6th graders will have an off-campus “in-person experiential learning” day.
We’re continuing to check with West Seattle’s independent and parochial schools as the new school year starts with pandemic-related concerns and restrictions still in effect. Tilden School (WSB sponsor) is an independent K-5 school on the north edge of The Junction; their response to our inquiry was simple – “We are planning on doing 100% remote instruction until the COVID situation in Seattle gets safer.” The first day of classes is one week from tomorrow – Wednesday, September 9th.
Though Seattle Public Schools will start the year with remote learning, some of its campuses will offer in-person student health services. The announcement is from King County Public Health:
Health centers will open on 34 school campuses in King County this September, to provide health services for students – including flu shots and other vaccines – even when the instruction is online.
Even though most schools are starting with online learning this fall, more than 30 campuses will be open for in-person health-care services.
They have School-Based Health Centers that offer routine primary care, including vaccinations, as well as mental health counseling. Several even have dental services. Seasonal flu vaccine will also be available.
The health centers serve any student enrolled in the participating school districts. They operate at 27 Seattle Public Schools, including all high schools and middle schools, along with a number of elementary schools. … The centers are independent clinics based inside schools or on school campuses, staffed by health professionals.
Public Health coordinates the network of 34 clinics, and directly operates three locations. All the others staffed and operated by community health-care providers, which compete through a Request for Application process to provide health services.
The full list of clinics around the county is here, including seven West Seattle schools – Chief Sealth International High School, Denny International Middle School, Highland Park Elementary, Madison Middle School, Roxhill Elementary, West Seattle Elementary, and West Seattle High School, all operated by Neighborcare Health.
Continuing our look at what West Seattle’s independent and parochial schools are doing to start the new school year:
Holy Rosary School will start with remote teaching/learning, but first, a week of (distanced) in-person preparation. Admissions director Jennifer Kokkonis sent the photos with this reply to our inquiry:
At Holy Rosary School, Teacher/Parent/Student meetings started today and will go all week.
The intent is for each family to pick up their school supplies, devices (if needed), go over websites and some of the materials that will be used during remote learning, and most importantly for teachers to meet their students!
Let’s go, school year 2020/21!
Live online instruction starts Tuesday, September 8th. More details about Holy Rosary’s plan are in the announcement made by the school in early August.
With Seattle Public Schools starting the 2020-2021 year on Friday, remotely, we’re checking around to see what local independent schools are doing. This afternoon, we talked with Explorer West Middle School (WSB sponsor), which has a hybrid plan: One day a week in person – outdoors – the other four remote. Each of EWMS’s three grades – 6th, 7th, 8th – will have its own day on campus each week. Canopies will be set up for some protection from the elements.
The school plans weekly all-grades assemblies online. The full plan is summarized on the EWMS website. This all starts tomorrow, with 6th graders on campus for orientation.
Throughout the summer, Seattle Public Schools has continued to offer student meals for pickup at some local campuses and for delivery via some school-bus routes. Starting today, the district has cut back on the bus deliveries. Now there’s just one bus route in West Seattle for meal delivery – this one. The 11 am-1 pm weekday pickups availability continues at West Seattle Elementary, Denny International Middle School, Chief Sealth International and West Seattle High Schools. The district says it’s working to add more sites soon – the meals are available at 26 schools around the city now, and they’re hoping to expand to 40.
Seattle Public Schools just announced a slightly later start date for the 2020-2021 year: Friday, September 4th, with pre-K and kindergarten still starting Tuesday, September 8th, as planned. The announcement:
To ensure a strong start, school will begin on Friday, September 4. This will provide all educators with six (6) full days of training on common learning platforms, culturally responsive instruction in a remote setting, racial equity, and best practices in remote instruction to ensure students have the best education possible.
“I am really grateful to the hard-working bargaining team and our educators. We are committed to doing whatever it takes to ensure that every child can achieve in any learning environment. These additional days of professional development will help us meet that commitment,” stated Superintendent Denise Juneau.
“This agreement gives us additional time and training to improve our remote education practices and is the first step in ensuring a more equitable and inclusive system,” said Jennifer Matter, president of the Seattle Education Association. “We’re looking forward to being back with our students and doing everything we can to meet their needs, particularly those who face the most barriers in remote learning.”
The first day of preschool and kindergarten will not change. Preschool and kindergarten will begin on Tuesday, September 8.
The School Board will need to approve the revised 2020-21 calendar.
If you want to hear more from the superintendent, remember her next “town hall” is Tuesday at 4:30 pm.
From Chief Sealth International High School assistant principal Christa Ernst:
Chief Sealth International High School would like to congratulate three seniors from the class of 2020 on winning the Allied Arts Foundation’s prestigious Robert J. Block Awards for Artistic Excellence. The award recognizes Seattle high school students in the areas of visual, theatrical, music or literary arts. Tierra Shaw was awarded for excellence in Visual Arts, Jason Ahmed was awarded for excellence in Music, and Riley Delora was awarded for excellence in Literary Arts. The staff at Chief Sealth is proud of these students for their hard work and dedication to their dedication to their craft.
Find out more about the awards program here; that page also lists winners at the city’s 14 other public high schools, including Caitlin Ward, Thea Pulido, and Ashly Brown from West Seattle High School.
Since the state has not issued a universal directive for what schools should do this fall, the plans vary. In addition to Seattle Public Schools – which finalized more details in a meeting this afternoon (followup to come) – other local schools are making their plans official too. So far this week, we’ve heard from Hope Lutheran School in The Junction, which “plans to begin the school year on September 2nd with an in-class learning model for grades preschool through fourth grade, and a hybrid model for fifth grade through eighth grade. … In addition, any K-8 student may choose to enroll instead in the virtual learning model.” Also from the webpage with full details about Hope’s plan is this explanation:
While we considered opening up with the in-class learning model in all grades, the reason for the difference in models is due to three factors: the ability of older students to manage their work with more independence, parent confidence in leaving older students home without supervision at times, and Hope’s overall higher class sizes in the upper grades. While we have the ability to move upper classrooms around to larger spaces, we feel the current class sizes in upper grades are higher than are safe to be together at one time. On the other hand, educational research tells us again and again of the importance of in-class learning for most students, particularly in younger grades where students’ reading skills are less developed and where students are not able to be as proficient in independent learning.
Hope is asking families who want to opt for the all-remote model to do so by next Monday.
With September getting closer, many families are still making decisions about their child(ren)’s education. Today Summit Atlas, the charter middle/high-school in Arbor Heights, joins the WSB sponsor team to let you know what they offer:
Imagine having the option of keeping your scholar safe at home while not missing a beat in school! At Summit Atlas we offer 1:1 mentoring, real-world projects, self-directed learning, and a small, diverse community where each student is embraced. Our promise is that students graduate as happy, kind, curious adults with the habits and skills needed for success in college and life.
Summit Atlas is currently enrolling for grades 6-12. In response to COVID-19, our students will start the year in virtual school with a complete daily schedule and teacher-led instruction. We will always make decisions that are rooted in the best public-health information available, putting our community’s safety first.
We’re excited to connect with you!
Online: atlas.summitps.org/enroll – email: atlas@summitps.org
We thank Summit Atlas for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news via WSB; find our current sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
In less than a month, Seattle Public Schools starts the 2020-2021 year.
Two weeks ago, the district announced the new year will start the same way the last one ended – no in-person classes.
But many details of how that’ll work have yet to be rolled out, and – especially given the deficiencies of the final three months of last year – that’s a source of frustration for many families.
Some of them were in a video/phone meeting Friday night in which they hoped for answers, but were disappointed there too.
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