As this school year comes to a close, it seems like a fitting time to take note of these accomplishments and to celebrate and thank the many people who have contributed to this remarkable success. The list is long, so I'll touch on the highlights.

Student Achievement

• More than 80 students achieved distinction in the National Merit Scholar program.
  

• Students took more than 2,000 Advanced Placement exams in 22 subjects - an all-time record.

• Nathan Hale High School won the Seattle Urban Debate League Championship.

• Ballard High School won 14 awards in nine categories at the Fast Film Northwest Festival.

• View Ridge Elementary won the Global Reading Challenge city championship sponsored by Seattle Public Library. More than 1,300 fourth and fifth grade students at 23 schools competed in this year's challenge.

• NOVA students swept first, second and third place in the Seattle Opera's annual "Operamania" program.

• Ingraham High School won the Overall State Lodging Management Cup in the Academy of Travel and Tourism's Hospitality Invitational competition.

• Garfield High School's Jazz Ensemble placed first in the nation at the Essentially Ellington competition in New York; and won outstanding Overall Band and six solo awards at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival, where Eckstein Middle School won the junior band division.

• Students from West Seattle High School's Environmental Science Academy won a Conservation Award from the Cascade Land Conservancy for restoring the Hamilton Viewpoint area. The award recognizes exceptional achievement in conservation and protection of our natural environment.

• Garfield's 4A girls soccer team won the WIAA/Dairy Farmers of Washington State Academic Achievement Award for the highest grade point average in the league.

• The Franklin Quakers won the 4A boys basketball state championship and Rainier Beach triumphed in the 3A boys basketball state championship for the second year in a row.

• Individual students also won honors and recognition in math, history, creative writing, foreign language, arts, and athletics. For a complete list, please visit http://www.seattleschools.org/area/news/celebrationsJune2003.pdf

• Staff members from Ingraham High School, Middle College, Madrona K-8, Meany Middle School, and Arbor Heights, Beacon Hill, Brighton and Lafayette elementary schools were honored for their outstanding efforts in the teaching profession. Recognition included a Golden Apple award, the Atlantic Street Center's "Excellence in Education Award," a Presidential Award in Elementary Mathematics, a Washington Education Association EDDY, a World Educator Award, and a Washington State Exemplary Substance Abuse Prevention Award.

• With the opening of Coe Elementary School in January, Seattle Public Schools successfully completed its Building Excellence I program. Nineteen schools across the city were renovated or rebuilt as part of this capital program, funded by a $330 million levy approved by voters in 1995.
   

• The Building Excellence II program, funded by a $398 million levy approved by voters in 2001, is now underway. As part of this capital program, 17 schools will be renovated or rebuilt, including Cleveland, Roosevelt, and Garfield high schools. Work on The Center School has been completed, and construction of a new science wing and library at Ingraham High School will be completed this summer. Construction will also begin this summer at Brighton and Graham Hill elementary schools and Madison Middle School.
   

• Technology is being used throughout the District to transform instruction, expand curriculum content, and empower teaching and learning. By September 2003, every teacher will have a computer workstation in their classroom, with ready access to a range of data, teaching tools, and a parent/teacher communication system - thanks to the Building Excellence II levy.
   

• Every classroom in every school is now wired for the Internet, and there is a minimum ratio of one computer for every five students. This work was completed in December 2002 - two years ahead of schedule. The Buildings, Technology and Athletic fields levy, passed by voters in 1998 and enhanced by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, made these projects possible.
   

Seattle Public Schools reached an important milestone in May when the Committee for Fiscal Integrity presented its report to the School Board, bringing the external review of the District's financial crisis to an end. The Committee, a group of citizen experts appointed by the Board, was charged with evaluating the independent audit of the District's financial operations and information systems and helping to guide the implementation of the audit's recommendations.

The Committee concluded that, "the District is positioned to fully recover from this crisis. The District's leaders know what caused the deficits and what must be done to manage District finances more effectively in the future? By coupling this knowledge with strong leadership from the School Board and Superintendent, the District will soon regain its financial health while maintaining its commitment to excellent schools for all of Seattle's children." To view the complete report and other financial information, please visit: http://www.seattleschools.org/area/finance/budget_page.html

Strong management is a key to continued progress, and four new appointments in the Department of Finance will help ensure the financial integrity of our District. All four individuals named below bring enormous talent and experience to Seattle Public Schools.

• Stephen Nielsen, who has done a remarkable job leading the financial recovery efforts these last several months as the District's interim Director of Finance, has been named to the position permanently. Nielsen joined Seattle Public Schools in 2001 as Director of Logistics after a long and distinguished career in both the public and private sectors.
   

• Linda Sebring, senior financial manager for Moss Adams Advisory Services - the firm hired to perform the independent audit of the District's financial operations - joins the District in July as Budget Manager. Sebring, a key member of the Moss Adams audit team, fills a position that both Moss Adams and the Committee for Fiscal Integrity said is essential to the District's financial recovery.
   

• Michael Bigelow, Associate Superintendent for Budget and School Business Services for the State's Office of Public Instruction, joins the District July 1. He will lead efforts to implement the Moss Adams recommendations. His position is supported by a $95,000 grant provided by Washington Mutual.
   

• Amy Fleming, who has served in a variety of functions during her three years with Seattle Public Schools, was recently named Accounting Manager. Before joining the District, Fleming worked as a supervisor in the Washington State Auditor's Office.
   

The School Board has launched a national search for a new Superintendent and has retained the search firm PROACT to assist in that effort. The search process will include many opportunities for public input, and a community-based committee will be appointed shortly to advise the School Board on the superintendent search. For more information about the search process, please visit:
http://www.seattleschools.org/area/board/superintendent_search_info.html