Latest News and Comment from Education

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

UPDATE: Tuesday Open Thread + Seattle Schools Community Forum: Public Review of Native Education Program Grant Application Tomorrow

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Public Review of Native Education Program Grant Application Tomorrow:


Further thoughts on Highly Capable Policy

My thinking about the proposed Highly Capable policy 2190 has evolved.

At first I just wanted the Board to fix the obvious flaws in the policy. Clarify the "school-age" language and the language about "individual learning rates and styles", remove the superfluous second paragraph that isn't specific to highly capable students, and change the third paragraph so it requires the superintendent to submit a grant application rather than requiring the Board to approve it. Once fixed, the policy won't do any good, but at least it won't do any harm.

Then I thought that this policy, even when fixed, will, in fact, do harm. It will create the illusion that the topic has been addressed and stall the action that really needs to be taken. I believed that the Board should reject the 


Tuesday Open Thread

U.S. Department of Ed official to visit Cleveland High School today to promote "transformation efforts."  From SPS:

Brenda Dann-Messier, who heads the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Vocational and Adult Education, will visit Seattle’s Cleveland STEM High School on Tuesday, April 30, spotlighting the school’s transformation efforts aimed at promoting educational excellence for its students.

As previewed in President Obama’s State of the Union address, the administration is proposing $300 million for a new High School Redesign program, which would fund competitive grants to districts partnering with postsecondary institutions, businesses and non-profits to help ensure that all students graduate from high school with college credit and career-related experience.  

The irony here is that Cleveland was not created to be self-sustaining (because it got rolled out too quickly because of MGJ's ego) and the school actually needs the very kind of grant the DOE will offer because Cleveland 


Public Review of Native Education Program Grant Application Tomorrow

PUBLIC NOTICE: Open public meeting to review draft application for Seattle Public Schools Title 7 Native Education Program Grant for fiscal year 2013-14

An open public hearing to review the Seattle Public Schools Native Education Title 7 Grant Application for fiscal year 2013-14 will be held 7-8:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 1, at the John Stanford Center, Room 2700, 2445 3rd Ave S., Seattle, Wash., 98103.

The 2013-14 draft Title 7 grant application will be presented. Native American Parents and community members can submit recommendations to be considered in the final grant submission. Deadline is May 14, 2013. For information contact: Janine Tillotson, Intervention Specialist, Native American Education Program at jetillotson@seattleschools.org or call (206) 252-0061.