Tentative Agreement Reached; First Day of School is Sept. 14

The Seattle Education Association (SEA) and Seattle Public Schools (SPS) have come to a tentative agreement on the educators’ contract. SEA members have voted to lift the strike.

The start of school for all students, including preschool and kindergarten is Wednesday, Sept. 14.

The first day will not be an early release day. Next Wednesday, Sept. 21, will begin the 75-minute early release schedule.

We are excited to welcome students to the first day of school for the 2022-23 school year.

Please take a moment to watch this video message from Superintendent Jones.

Important information as you prepare for students to go to school:

• Kindergarten and preschool students will start school on Sept. 14. Families of students who are in kindergarten and preschool will receive information from Early Learning about Family Connections meetings.
• Student meals at school will be available. Menus will vary from school to school for the first week. Read more about student meals.
• Transportation is available for students who are eligible for transportation services. Families should have received their route information. Please keep in mind during the start of school, families may experience some delays as traffic may increase in some areas. Read more about transportation services, including Orca cards for students and walk/bike to school resources.
• Five (5) days will need to be made up during this school year. Students are required to attend 180 days of school. SEA and SPS negotiate and select the dates together. Once agreed on, we will send the updated 2022-23 school year dates and post them to our website. View the current school calendar.

You can find additional information on the SPS Back-to-School Checklist webpage.

We know this has been a challenging week for our community, especially families. We are happy to have reached an agreement and ready to start the school year.