Re: “Seattle schools should give families reasons to stay” (March 2, Opinion):
The op-ed authors accurately portray the many ways that Seattle Public Schools has mismanaged enrollment.
What is painfully clear is that SPS lacks the fundamental understanding of how to attract families and grow enrollment. Instead, it has mastered driving away families by threatening to close up to 21 schools (including its most popular programs), limiting choice and not allowing waitlists to move. Parents are voting with their feet and enrolling their kids elsewhere. SPS is losing money as a result. It’s time to change course.
Here are some strategies SPS should put into place: enroll students at their family’s preferred school; adjust the projected enrollment of a school to accommodate interest; launch a marketing campaign to promote SPS and its unique programs to every incoming kindergarten family; support all schools with enrollment tours; and align school choice assignments to be at the same time as private school admissions.
SPS must show it is committed to enrolling every family and would be wise to honor parents’ requests to help sustain and improve our public schools for years to come.
Julie Schneider, Seattle