Seattle Public Schools
Community Advisory Committee on School Facilities and Programs
Project Background

Community Advisory Committee on School Facilities and Programs

The Seattle School Board announced on January 25, 2006 that it was initiating a community-based process to determine how to best align facilities and programs to ensure educational excellence. The driving force behind this process is the urgent need to redirect funding to improve academics and create quality schools and programs in every neighborhood.

In the late 1960s, the Seattle Public Schools enrolled nearly 100,000 students. Today enrollment is stabilized at approximately 46,000, yet the school district expends a great deal of its resources maintaining nearly the same physical capacity that it has had since 1960.

Redirecting resources from building operations to classroom instruction will result in a stronger, better school district and improved educational opportunities for all of Seattle’s children.

The School Board appointed a 15-member Community Advisory Committee (CAC) on School Facilities and Programs at a special meeting on March 8, 2006. The CAC is charged with gathering community input, ensuring a sound process and developing recommendations for Seattle’s school facilities and programs that reflect community values and are in the best interests of our school children.

Community Engagement and Timeline

The CAC will work with the community to build on the Board’s vision for public education in Seattle: to provide a quality education for all of Seattle’s children and ensure the long-term health of the Seattle School District.

The CAC began its work in March and will host a series of community meetings throughout the spring to gather input and guidance. The CAC’s recommendations will be based on extensive community input and will respond to the diverse needs of Seattle’s communities.

In order to ensure adequate time to plan for a smooth transition for the start of school in Fall 2007, the CAC will present its recommendations to the School Board by May 26, 2006. The Superintendent will present final recommendations to the School Board in July.

Guiding Principles

With an overall goal of providing the highest quality education for all Seattle school students, the following board-adopted principles and criteria will guide the School Facilities and Programs planning effort:

Sustain and create academic effectiveness

• Keep, relocate, replicate and/or add effective programs
• Consolidate schools to enhance resources and community involvement
• Demonstrate benefits to students and families

Equity

• Ensure all Seattle Public Schools provide high quality education for students
• Ensure needed programs and services in each quadrant of the city

Minimize disruption to students, families and staff

• Keep school communities intact
• In closing schools, look first for capacity at adjacent schools
• Engage the community in finding solutions

Criteria:

• Effective instruction addressing needs of all students
• Opportunities to consolidate schools to drive additional resources for programs and services for students
• Opportunities and community commitment to add missing services needed by students in that region through consolidation
• Family Satisfaction
• Building Condition
• Operating costs per pupil
• Building capacity and/or potential for expansion
• Effective connections with community

Stay informed/Get involved:

You can learn about future meetings of the CAC and upcoming community workshops at the CAC website (www.seattleschools.org) or on the CAC Telephone Hotline: (206/252-0600).

We invite you to give a comment or ask a question via:

Answers to frequently asked questions will be posted to the CAC website at (www.seattleschools.org). All questions and comments will be tracked to ensure their inclusion in the Seattle School Facilities and Programs planning effort.

For recorded information about the project call:

CAC Information Hotline: 206/252-0600