What's New

Last week, over 500 Seattle Public Schools staff, educators, and community members registered to participate in the Liberation Through Anti-Racist Education Institute. Hosted by the district’s Department of Racial Equity Advancement, the four-day virtual institute focused on transforming SPS into an anti-racist organization.

To ensure that our commitment to safe and welcoming environments and academic readiness continues in a remote learning model, the district is prioritizing SEL supports for our students. When we focus on educating the whole child, students are healthy—and feel safe, engaged, supported, and challenged.

Seattle Public Schools is committed to teacher diversity. The Academy of Rising Educators (ARE) is one way we are hiring and recruiting more educators of color.

ARE prepares and supports candidates that model three program goals. Candidates are rooted in our communities. They are dedicated to long-term teaching and they are committed to anti-racist teaching to support students furthest away from educational justice.

Families in Seattle Public Schools can now pay student fees and other school-related bills online with the district's SchoolPay system. Beginning Fall 2018, all schools will now have access to SchoolPay.

This fall, Seattle Public Schools has made a change to the username students use to log on to district digital tools such as The Source and the student portal. This change will enable students to keep their same username until they graduate!

At a recent School Board meeting, Gail Morris, Native American Education program manager and Stacia Hawkinson, Native Education consulting teacher, debuted the short film, which showcases Native Seattle Public School high school students and staff sharing their stories, hopes, and dreams for their future.

Available to next year’s 8th through 12th graders, Naviance will help students identify their strengths, interests and goals, and link them to potential college and career pathways; providing a deeper knowledge about options for the future.

As part of the 24-credit graduation requirements that affects all Seattle Public Schools students beginning with the Class of 2021, students must earn at least one credit in Career and Technical Education.

Seattle Public Schools is anticipating increased demand for world language courses in response to new graduation requirements and student and family interest. In addition to world language classes in all middle and high schools, our district offers dual language immersion program in five international elementary schools.

The Visual and Performing Arts Program offered a professional development session on May 2 in partnership with the Family Partnerships and the Center for Arab and Islamic Resources (CAIR).

The district is piloting ethnic studies curriculum in six schools aimed at engaging students in perspectives of historically marginalized groups.

Starting with the class of 2021, students will need to earn 24 credits to graduate, an increase from 21. Most high schools in our district currently offer 24 credits over the course of four years. Traditionally, SPS has offered students more courses than required by the state to provide flexibility for students to explore new electives or to recover missing credits. We are currently working with a variety of stakeholders to increase credit-earning opportunities for our students.

Seattle Public Schools is currently testing an interim assessment tool for mathematics and English language arts (ELA) for students in grades 3- 11 and is seeking board approval for interim assessments districtwide.

With Loyal Heights Elementary nearing completion for opening in September 2018, nearly all of the 17 major construction projects included in the Building Excellence IV (BEX IV) Capital Levy have been opened and welcomed students and staff.

After a year-long adoption process, the Department of Curriculum, Assessment and Instruction has identified enVisionmath2.0 from Pearson as the new middle school math textbook.

The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has releasing the new Washington state and federal accountability information for every school in the state as required in the Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan. ESSA replaced No Child Left Behind in 2015.

Seattle Public Schools recognizes that decades of deeply embedded bias requires more than policy to undo institutionalized and structural racism. Institutionalizing racial equity in all schools requires transforming our practices and beliefs. Racial Equity Teams are one strategy that we are using to do this critical work.

In support of the courage and activism of students, we encourage citywide participation in the student-led March for Our Lives Seattle rally and walk at 10 a.m. on Sat., March 24. The School Board invites students, staff and families to join the district in showing our unified support for safe schools and the Seattle students who are organizing this non-school day march.

Seattle Public Schools prioritizes student safety. It is our goal to prevent emergencies from happening, therefore all lethal or potentially lethal statements, whether verbal or written (including electronic) are to be taken seriously and investigated.

This February, the Seattle community came together at New Holly Gathering Hall in Southeast Seattle to celebrate the launch of a very special children’s book. The colorful board book, titled “Baro Af-Soomaali,” is unique in several aspects.

With this new service you can opt-in to receive text messages on a cellular phone number that is on record with your student’s school.

Seattle Public Schools high school students will see increased credit and assessment requirements with the change in state law requiring 24 credits to graduate.

The new agreement outlines how district and city will plan together to review school capacity issues, plan strategically for future school locations and address the 70-year-old Memorial Stadium.

In response to students' needs, Seattle Public Schools is introducing new state health education standards for self identity in several elementary schools this fall.

Seattle Public Schools has partnered with King County and American Traffic Solutions to deter drivers from illegally passing buses that are loading and unloading students.

Exterior cameras have been added to 120 of the 379 First Student buses that transport our students each day. The cameras capture video of vehicles that appear to be illegally passing the bus when its stop paddle is fully extended.

Join us on July 13 or August 25 to celebrate the unveiling of the Andrew Morrison's murals at Robert Eagle Staff Middle School, Cascadia Elementary and Licton Springs K-8.

A recent partnership between two John Muir educators, Seattle chefs, and a local nonprofit is just one of the many inspiring examples of how our teachers are changing the lives of their students.

The Changing the Narrative cooking class developed out of a larger project at the school to help work with educators, students, families, and community partners to collaboratively change perceptions and dispel negative stereotypes about black men. Now these boys are working to give back to their school community so a group of next year’s fifth graders can have the same opportunity.

Seattle Public Schools is in the process of changing the way we track vaccination records and will begin using an online immunization system called School Module.

This system, created by the Washington State Department of Health allows us to view your child’s immunization record quickly and determine if your child has all the required vaccines needed for school.

Working with the City of Seattle and Seattle Police Department, all of the district's 98 schools will support safe and secure places for victims of crime and discrimination directed toward the Seattle's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities.

School vaccination regulations in Washington state have changed for the upcoming 2016-17 school year. The Washington State Department of Health now requires two doses of chickenpox (Varicella) vaccine for all students in grades K through 12.

Students who do not have two doses of vaccine by the start of classes in September, 2016, could be excluded from school. Find out what you need to do!