Seattle school-closure plans are changing, but district offers few details

A day after Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Brent Jones canceled community meetings on two school closure proposals, his staff would not say if Jones still intends to next month give the School Board a preliminary list of schools to close.

Bev Redmond, the district’s spokesperson and Jones’ chief of staff, said it remains unclear whether what Jones eventually presents will closely resemble versions of the two scenarios already presented, new proposals based on community and School Board feedback or a plan that does not include closures for the next school year.

“I don’t know exactly what he will come back with,” Redmond said. “I do know that he is definitely attuned to what the community has said and also to the voices on our Board and that he’s considering all options.”

Redmond and Marni Campbell, who is leading the district’s “well-resourced schools” effort, indicated that the district plans to host community engagement sessions for affinity groups soon and other sessions. These will include discussions on closures, programs, staffing, and solutions to address the district’s financial challenges. The district will continue to update its website, they said. 

SPS has said that it wants to pursue school closures to help bridge an estimated $94 million budget deficit next year and to improve academics and staffing resources at the remaining schools.

Under one proposal released this month, the district would close 21 schools and eliminate all K-8 and application-only option elementary schools to save $31.5 million. In the second scenario, the district would close 17 schools and keep one option K-8 school open in each administrative region. In this version, the district would save $25.5 million, according to SPS.

Jones’ decision to reschedule the community sessions and rework the proposals encouraged the district’s largest anti-closure parent group.

All Together For Seattle Schools, an advocacy group that gathered about 300 parents and students for a rally before last week’s School Board meeting to oppose the proposed closures, said Tuesday in a statement that the group remained “opposed to any proposal that closes schools, significantly changes school assignment boundaries, eliminates option programs, or makes cuts to the classroom.”

Some applauded Jones’ decision to “rework” the proposals that could close between 17 and 20 schools next school year and to incorporate community and School Board feedback, which has been overwhelmingly negative.

Monday’s decision marked the latest interruption in the district’s school closure process.

The proposal was expected in June but was delayed after community meetings and a fatal shooting outside of Garfield High School. The district then said the proposal would be available as soon as September. In late August, the district said it would deliver preliminary recommendations to the School Board in October.

 “This process has had us all sort of in a yo-yo, back and forth,” said Liz Huizar, the executive director of the Southeast Seattle Education Coalition. “The common theme throughout is a lack of transparency.”

Huizar said she understood that, given the community feedback, the district needed to return to the drawing board. But, she hopes that the district will continue to engage the community, especially organizations like hers that have long-established working relationships with families and parents.

“What I would not want to see is a retreat back into a physical secret room where no community engagement is happening,” Huizar said. “So [I’m] a little disappointed to see the community meetings being canceled, but I understand that they need to go back to the drawing board.”

On Tuesday, Taryn Longhurst, a parent whose child attends TOPS K-8, which has a program for deaf and hard-of-hearing children and is slated to close under one of the options, said she would have liked more details in Jones’ letter about his direction.

“I am hopeful that he has heard us that what he has proposed is not acceptable,” said Longhurst, who said her son has found a home at TOPS and does not want the school to close.

“Some schools will probably close,” Longhurst said. “I hope that they will do it in a much more meaningful, thoughtful way that does not so negatively impact our students.”

School Board President Liza Rankin said she was also unclear on the district’s timeline.

“The Board is also waiting for a clear timeline and proposal from the superintendent, as the public,” Rankin said Tuesday.

But, she said, the district’s nearly $100 million deficit would not go away.

“The reality of what’s happening is not going to change,” Rankin said.   

Brandon Hersey, the District 7 director, said Jones did the right thing by canceling the community engagement meetings to reflect on the feedback.

Hersey has said he wants a connection to student outcomes, transition plans, and a proposal that would not needlessly uproot thousands of students. He would consider a scaled-down plan that would close fewer schools.

‘“I am in no rush to disrupt children’s educational environment by any means; so, I think that taking the time to make sure that we do this right is 100 percent the right call,” he said.