Loading...
Title : District 7 Candidate Forum
link : District 7 Candidate Forum
District 7 Candidate Forum
The Board's District 7 Candidate forum to fill the seat of retiring director Betty Patu was held last night at Rainier Beach High School. I will provide a video link to the proceedings when it becomes available.Twelve people have applied for the job. Two have now dropped out - Sandra Bosley and Brittany Williams. A third candidate, Patricia Cheadle, "was unable to be here tonight." A fourth candidate, Romanita Hairston, who did not get her answers to the questionnaire back to the Board in time for publication, said people could view them at her website. She did not explain the delay.
So that left nine candidates on the stage. The candidates included five African-Americans, one Latina, one white and one bi-racial person.
All the members of the Board were in attendance, seated on the stage with the candidates. One good touch on their part - they all took notes by hand with nary a laptop in sight. I didn't see one of them check their phones. It was a great courtesy to the candidates.
The moderator was Ron Sims who did a great job in keeping candidates to their one-minute answers. Unfortunately, he kept saying one candidate's name incorrectly, Sofia Voz (pronounced Vaz). She was a good sport about it. He called both Leslie Harris and Betty Patu "exceptional and superb public servants."
The SPS staff who organized the forum did an excellent job. There were enough microphones so that there was almost no passing of them around (an issue that bogs many a candidate forum). There were comment cards and, of course, you can write to the Board at spsdirectors@seattleschools.org.
The candidates had been given the questions (created on Monday by the Board at a Work Session) so there was no one asking for a question to be repeated. All the questions were answered by all the candidates with no speed round questions (yes, no, maybe). There were no audience questions.
Superintendent Juneau was there as were several staff members.
Candidates who are running for the Board in attendance included: Eric Blumhagen, Chandra Hampson, Liza Rankin, Molly Mitchell and presumed-elected, Lisa Rivera Smith. Interestingly, those candidates all sat side-by-side.
President Leslie Harris opened the proceedings. She asked for a moment of silence for the victims of "domestic terrorism violence" this past weekend.
It appeared that several candidates had supporters in the crowd who snapped their fingers or whooped. Everyone got polite applause for their answers. Several candidates acknowledged their applause during their answers, particularly Smith, Salisbury and Hairston, which took away from their answers.
At three hours, with a 10-minute break, it was quite the slog.
Overall Impressions
The Board truly got lucky because there was not a single person on that stage that wouldn't have something good to bring to the Board. For the most part, they gave solid answers to questions. I think for the Board it is who will be a team player and work collaboratively.
To note, three people say they are endorsed by Director Patu - Julie Van Arcken, Brandon Hersey and Romanita Hairston.
Who I Think Might Make the Board's Top Three (Versus My Own Picks)
Sofia Voz, Brandon Hersey, Emijah Smith, Dionne Foster and Julie Van Arken
My Own Picks
Sofia Voz, Dionne Foster and Julie Van Arcken
Voz gave truly solid answers, knows the district, is a parent in the district, and spoke with conviction about family engagement.
Foster was a quieter speaker but had passion in her answers. She spoke of her own issues in K-12, getting in trouble, being suspended and yet made her way to a Master's degree. Her own brother was disabled and she witnessed her mother's struggles with transportation and inclusion for him.
Van Arcken, also a quiet speaker, is hands-down the person on the stage who best knew the district AND gave example after example of working with the district to bring equity to District 7. It was impressive.
Notable Themes
family engagement, more teachers of color,
Individual Impressions (in order of how they were seated left to right)
Sofia Voz.
Would be the first Latina on the Board and with the number of Hispanic students in the district growing, might be an important voice to have. (Interestingly, "voz" in Spanish means voice.)
She is married to an SPS teacher and has a bi-racial children.
Brandon Hersey
Bright, passionate speaker
He is a teacher, a union member, a Boy Scout.
(And quite loud - he warned us but somehow couldn't moderate his voice - it stood out as it felt like he was giving a campaign speech every answer. Before the event, he was working the crowd and blowing kisses. )
Jason Hahn
Friendly, bright, caring. Notable quote - "The time for incremental change is over."
Barbara Rockey
A very quiet person, she looked very worried much of the time, hard to read from the audience. Maybe better in person. She had many good answers.
Emijah Smith
Not the most polished speaker as compared to other candidates. She said SPS needed to be accountable for all students. She knows the district but see my accounting of her answer on charter schools. Directors need to be completely open about their views.
Chukundi Salisbury
He had been an early favorite of mine but I found several of his answers thin. He also would not say if he was against charter schools. One of his accomplishments was to organize 9th grade report card conferences for parents at Garfield; I think this is something many parents would like to see.
Dionne Foster
Just a solid candidate who has clearly thought about the issues.
Julie Van Arcken
Spoke about first meeting Betty Patu at a community meeting and how something Betty had said about an issue stuck with her all these years, "I'm not going to let them do that to our kids." That kind of personal thinking is what Van Arcken seems to want to bring to the work.
Romanita Hairston
A polished speaker who was able to relate Board work to her own professional experience.
Questions (with notable answers - questions not verbatim)
Question 1
Which operational system would you want to focus on and why?
Several candidates said nutrition, linking it to academic outcomes. Hersey wants farm to table food and Foster mentioned barriers to accessing free/reduced lunch as well as "scratch cooking."
Hahn said buildings and talked about the issues at John Muir with the pink ooze of HVAC liquid in their cafeteria. Rockey also said buildings and talked about staffing, cleanliness and safety as well as front office staff.
Van Arcken said the student assignment plan as that drives almost everything else, especially how much money gets to schools.
Voz said transportation and expressed concerns about that issue.
Question 2
Comments/concerns about Special Education.
Hahn said it was personal as his son is in Sped and has experienced isolation and restraint and being suspended. He said the "adversarial nature" of the process has to change. He said he supported recording IEP meetings.
Smith said there is not enough support for Sped families and that the district needed to keep the website updated with resources.
Salisbury echoed Smith saying there should be "a parent academy" to help parents navigate the system. He said in some buildings, Sped was a dumping ground for kids with behavior issues.
Foster said that Sped kids who were twice-exceptional don't always get recognized for AL services. She said that she knew of a Sped child who had looked forward to a field trip, only to see those hopes dashed because there was no flexibility in transportation.
Van Arcken noted her endorsement by the Seattle Special Education PTSA and said inclusion is her greatest principle for Sped. She also mentioned kids learning about all kinds of other kids and that "neurodiversity is a huge benefit."
Voz said there needed to be more educators with a Sped credential.
Several candidates, including Hersey and Foster said the state funding for Sped is not enough.
Question 3
Talk about the impact of curriculum and instructional materials on academic success.
Rockey said that "high achievement curriculum where kids can identify with it" is important. Smith echoed this thought, adding that it turns kids off to see only one kind of leader represented.
Foster said there also needs to be curriculum on appreciating gender diversity. Voz also echoed this idea.
Hairston said culturally competent curriculum is important but testing needed to change.
Question 4
About the aspirational nature of the Strategic Plan and how to manage that with other priorities?
Salisbury said using the lens of racial equity for every funding decision and how "it reflects the Plan."
Foster pushed back and said the goals of the Strategic Plan cannot be aspirational or "we are failing." She called it "a moral document." Hahn also made this point.
Van Arcken called for transparency on all decisions, otherwise "they don't feel fair."
Voz spoke of "creating a space to talk about what is and isn't working" and meeting families where they are, not at district meetings.
Question 5
What is your experience around using racial equity analysis in decision-making?
Salisbury said in his 22 years of experience in the City, they had been using racial equity analysis for contracting and partnerships.
Van Arcken talked about using this analysis in working for Patu on boundaries in District 7 and that it showed the early boundaries to be unfair to black/brown students.
Voz talked about teachers of color feeling left out and supporting them in being part of decisions and how she had learned that from her own professional life.
Question 6
What are your ideas for equity of access to Advanced Learning for students?
Foster said the district should listen to the AL Taskforce and their recommendations. She said there should be less dependence on standardized testing.
Van Arcken explained that she is on the AL Taskforce and that there is no one solution. She also said that if changes are made but don't bring up the diversity of the AL population, then the district should pivot until the population reflects the overall district population.
Hairston spoke of more cultural competency.
Voz said "all students are highly capable and exceptional" and should have rigorous curriculum. She said the district needed to find new ways to get the word out to parents about the program. Hersey also said all students are highly capable.
Smith seemed to be confused about HCC and AL, saying HCC is not AL. She also said students in the program should be checked when they go to middle school.
Salisbury said he was part of the "AP for All" at Garfield (also wrong because it's Honors for All which is very different than AP). He said that black/brown students are "written off" by third grade and it "cheats our district out of potential."
Question 7
What are the highest priorities for District 7 constituents?
Van Arcken said District 7 parents want what all parents in the district want - staff that looks like the kids at the school, valuing cultures, including ELL and Sped kids, arts, where they feel safe and supported.
Hairston said respect for dignity and resources to achieve outcomes.
Voz also said adults in the building who look like the kids and that the pace of that work is too slow. She mentioned the program to create teachers from paraeducators and the Rising Educator program.
Smith said educational justice.
Foster mentioned the Board director for the district being out in the community.
Question 8
Do you support charter schools?
I'll interject here that this was the question that elicited the most tension among the candidates. Not with each other but I think most of them knew this was a difficult question. Only Hersey, Foster and Van Arcken clearly said they were against charter schools. Voz alluded to that stance. The others were vague.
I'll just state again that I would never question a parent's choice. Parents need to do what they believe is best for their child. However, a person who wants to be on the Seattle School Board - where not once but twice have boards said they did not support charter schools - should come out against them.
Hairston
She said she believed "in the power of SPS and what it can offer" but that families, if not satisfied, might seek other options. She said she would like to see SPS at the point where families would consider nothing else.
Voz
Said that charter schools did not have the highest outcomes and that public schools are important. She said that charters did get passed but now several are closing.
Hersey
He said charter schools had no place in Seattle and disrupt the mission of educational equity. He mentioned strict discipline that hurts students.
Hahn
He said there were charter schools in District 7 and doesn't want to question parents' choices. But he was concerned about SPS educators who leave to start charters (alluding to the two West Seattle High School vice principals who did just that). He said he did not support SPS becoming a charter authorizer.
Rockey
She said she was a product of public education and her children are getting "a fine education" in SPS.
Smith
She said "first and foremost" she supports family choice. She said she studied charter schools nationally and understands that money follows students. She also said, "I agree with the decisions made by the Board." Not sure if she means the two resolutions against charter schools.
Smith went over her time - twice - after being asked to conclude. She seemed very determined to make her point. However, she never was truly honest in admitting that she sat on a community advisory board - in District 7 - for Green Dot charter schools. This lack of honesty should disqualify her in the minds of Board members. It's inexcusable and disingenuous.
Salisbury said he was "a fan of family choice."
Foster
She said she empathized with families seeking options but did not support charter schools.
Van Arcken
Said she opposed charter schools and voted against them. She said they are "a destabilizing force" and "hurt our Strategic Plan."
Question 9
Thoughts on the student assignment plan and boundaries.
This question produced the most number of vague answers; I'm not sure most candidates are up-to-speed on this topic.
Salisbury talked about walkability as did Foster, Hairston, Hahn and Rockey.
Foster said she would use "community voice" to help guide decisions and mentioned kids who were displaced not just from schools when boundaries changed but community/cultural connections.
Van Arcken pointed out the oddities of some schools being stuffed to the gills while others are underenrolled and that the district needed to do more to balance out schools.
Voz said there was segregation and boundaries could be drawn to better integrate schools. She said "boundaries are for white schools and white students and that's who shows up at Board meetings."
Hersey said that work should be guided by educational justice.
Hahn also mentioned how Sped kids get bused long distances from home.
thus Article District 7 Candidate Forum
that is all articles District 7 Candidate Forum This time, hopefully can provide benefits to all of you. Okay, see you in another article posting.
You now read the article District 7 Candidate Forum with the link address https://onechildsmart.blogspot.com/2019/08/district-7-candidate-forum.html
0 Response to "District 7 Candidate Forum"
Post a Comment