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Title : Seattle Schools' 2018-2019 Assignment Plan Discussion at Operations Committee Meeting
link : Seattle Schools' 2018-2019 Assignment Plan Discussion at Operations Committee Meeting

Seattle Schools' 2018-2019 Assignment Plan Discussion at Operations Committee Meeting

The Operations Committee of the Board had their regular meeting yesterday afternoon.  All three Board members who serve on the committee - Blanford (chair), Geary and Pinkham - were in attendance as well as many senior staff.   Superintendent Nyland came in about 20 minutes into the meeting.

The Student Assignment Plan for next year was moved from the bottom of the agenda to being the first item discussed.

There were several pieces of documentation (which I will have to get the links for).  They are:


- Student Assignment Plan for 2018-2019 (redlined)
- Student Assignment Plan for 2018-2019
- Discover Advanced Learning (ThoughtExchange data)
- Advanced Learning Community Engagement Summary
- An untitled document with questions about Advanced Learning with what I think are responses from non-English speaking parents.
- Advanced Learning Garfield PTSA FAQ
- BAR for Board acceptance of this plan

Given that the BAR reflects several "highlights and changes" and yet staff had documentation for only one - HCC - is interesting.

Flip Herndon (Associate Superintendent: Facilities and Operations) and Wyeth Jessee (head of Student Supports) were the main presenters.  Head of Enrollment Ashley Davies was not in attendance.

Flip launched into the discussion going at a fast clip.  He noted that the word "transition" will be put on the first page to reflect this is not the SAP.

He stated that they had changed the wording about K-8 students to reflect that they CAN transfer to their attendance area school for the next year during Open Enrollment (as long as services they need can be met at that school.  (I note the change from "student's services are available" to "can be met" which may mean that if there are too many students - even ones from within the attendance area - who want to be in that school and have service needs, the district will not honor all of those students.)

I think another key item on the redlined page three is the definition of space availability. 

Space availability depends on the seats available given the staffing capacity at the school.  To determine the total number of seats available at a grade level in a school, the district will multiply the target class sizes across each classroom, given the number of teachers at each grade based on the staffing allocated by the Budget Office.

Wyeth said that based on the desire for more engagement with families, that they had interacted with about 1900 families about HCC.

In the redlined plan on page five, they have moved up the deadlines for testing for HCC.  They don't note those actual deadline dates but rather, Wyeth said they want to "wrap up appeals before Open Enrollment."  You have to apply for assignment during the Open Enrollment period which ends in February  (not until May 31st as you could previously). 

Wyeth then went on to say something that I consider revisionist history.  He said that they are "cleaning up on ALO (Spectrum)" and there are "no longer self-contained services." 

I suggest that senior staff and the Board go back - not so long ago in the past - and review Advanced Learning. It was APP (HCC), Spectrum and ALOs (Advanced Learning Opportunities).  Every non-APP school was supposed to have an ALO so that any identified student who didn't want to be in APP or Spectrum, could stay at their neighborhood school and have some kind of rigor.

Somehow that has gotten lost.  I appreciate that staff now wants to see an ALO in every school but this is not a new thing.  It's just something that staff like Michael Tolley never bothered to enforce (despite CSIPs saying that some schools had ALOs).  No revisionist history.

Wyeth continued saying (about Spectrum), "Not to edge it out" but one "clear thing" would be advanced math opportunities for identified students (I assume he meant in elementary and middle school but he did not specify.)  I find this somewhat baffling as the plan says - on page 10 - "Advanced Learning (Spectrum)" is still offered so I believe ALOs are now Spectrum at schools.

I think this is vague and needs much more clarity, if not in the plan, then at the Advanced Learning webpage.

Page seven makes it clear that in 2019-2020, that for HCC in high school, students will be assigned to their pathway high school (see page 17).

Wyeth said that AP courses "are already built out" in high schools but they need consistency for pathway schools.  He says parents said they want their students "closer to home."  

Questions

Wyeth had said he had visited Franklin High recently and was debunking myths.  Blanford asked him what those myths were.

1. Cohort.  He said that what they were presenting was a "high school model" not a cohort.  I found this a bit jaw-dropping because he seemed to make it sound like there never was an attempt for a cohort for HCC and that's just not true. 

He said that 90% of students who take AP courses are NOT HCC.  Geary had him say it again to make sure it was understood. 

So for all you who think that AP is always about HCC kids, you are wrong.

He said that 40% of HCC students in high school do not go to Garfield or Ingraham. 

2. He said there was some kind of belief that you had to test into AP classes.  Not true.

3.  He said that many people thought that IBX at Ingraham was going away.  Not true.  

4.  He said parents needed better information about advanced coursework and whether it is right for their child.  He said he had heard about students with a heavy courseload of 3-4 AP classes who were struggling.

Geary wanted to know if staff would be reaching out to the other Board members for a deeper dive especially since some of them (she did not say who) had expressed concerns over the plan.   "How do we make sure that interest in the process is satisfied so we don't end up with conflict?"

Blanford said he thought those concerns had been addressed in this document. 

Flip said staff would be happy to talk to any other Board members.

Director Pinkham asked about the 2019-2020 boundaries and what should be on parents' radar now?

Herndon said that boundary work is coming in January, ahead of Open Enrollment.  He said when Davies is back, she will put out the timeline for a "deeper dive on work for the entire SAP."

Then he said something that struck me.  He said staff needed feedback from the Board about the "big lifts" for service delivery for programs and stated that this plan for HCC "is an intermediate step for capacity issues."

He did not define or clarify what "intermediate step" but it certainly sounds like this is still a transition plan.

He said there were challenges in program location - "where we put them and sustain them and the interaction at the school."

Pinkham asked about athletics.

Herndon said they would  have to have a a conversation about that, saying it might not be possible for Lincoln to have football if they are only 9th and 10th graders.  He said it was up to the state governing body on high school athletics to decide if those students could play, not the district's.

Geary then started a focused look on Special Education pathways.  She said Sped students in elementary to middle have dual pathways but there is not the same pathway from middle to high school.  (The issue being that if a student is told they can't attend their pathway school because of lack of services that they then be given the choice of staying with their "cohort" from the school that did have services OR moving to the pathway school that would be their regular assignment.)

Wyeth initially said "it shouldn't be an issue" but Pegi McEvoy said it might be an issue for transportation and they need more analysis.

Geary went on saying she'd like to see the enrollment pathway for Sped for designated placement prior to enrollment for greater choice before flow of open enrollment versus individualized Sped placement.  She was worried about 2E kids.

She said, "I want maximum flexibility and I don't see that."

Wyeth said that because Sped is a service, that isn't addressed in the assignment plan.  Geary persisted, saying she'd like to see that acknowledged.  She said that there are cases where services are offered at a school near a Sped student but they can't get into the school because all the spaces are taken.

Herndon said he would be glad to sit down with her and look at developing the language.

Geary said she would be happy for that and said, "I've been asking for this for months and months."

Pinkham noted the section about keeping twins/multiples together but asked about other cases like kids coming from blended families, step-sibs, etc.  Herndon said they could look at that. (This is on page 13.)

It was an interesting discussion but I did not hear any questions of the sort that many parents commenting here in other threads have stated.  I urge you to write to the Board with your concerns. 

This plan is to be introduced at the Board meeting on November 15th with a vote at the December 6th Board meeting. Tick, tock.

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