Principal Turnover at Washington and Hamilton Middle Schools

In a coincidence both Susan Follmer and Tip Blish are stepping down this year.  Now is the time for parents  to get organized and push for a voice in the replacement process. There are few things more critical to a building's success than its principal.

Dear Washington Middle School Community,As you may be aware, Principal Susan Follmer will be retiring at the end of this school year.  Principal Follmer has worked hard to serve the Washington community for the past four years and we are thankful for her commitment and dedication to our school community.Looking forward, we are beginning the process of selecting the next principal for Washington Middle School for the 2018 – 2019 school year. The principal selection process is a great opportunity for the whole community to revisit priorities, values and hopes as they participate in the selection of a new principal. This letter articulates Seattle Public Schools’ hiring process for principals as well as the specific timeline for your school’s hiring process.
The Seattle Public Schools Principal Hiring ProcessThe following are the guidelines Seattle Public Schools uses when hiring for a principal:

• The Superintendent has hiring authority at all times and may appoint or move a principal (or assistant principal) at any time.

• Per the Principals’ Association Collective Bargaining Agreement, we consider the interest of principals and assistant principals for horizontal or vertical movement. The Chief of Schools reviews the requests and can make recommendations to the Superintendent if the person is a strong fit for the school.

• If the Superintendent does not make an appointment or approve a transfer, Human Resources posts the position to candidates in our principal leadership pool. Internal and external applicants apply to be in the principal pool starting in January. From there, the school’s Executive Director of Schools works with the school’s Building Leadership Team (BLT) to form a hiring team that screens applications, interviews candidates and recommends their top 2-3 candidates to the superintendent. The superintendent then makes the final decision. Hiring teams typically consist of the following:

• Elementary School – one primary teacher, one secondary teacher, two parents, one specialist (SPED, ELL, PE, Art, etc.), the administrative secretary or a classified representative, 1-2 school or central office administrators, and one to two executive directors. The total would be 9-10 members on the team.

• Secondary School – three core instruction teachers (or two core teachers and one specialist), three parents/guardians or community representatives, the administrative secretary or a classified representative, one instructional assistant, 1-2 school or central office administrators, and 1-2 executive directors. The total would be 11 or 12 members on a team.

• There are times where the Superintendent will recommend a candidate be hired with an “interim” status. This usually takes place when a position has not filled by a specific date, usually in mid to late August, or a position comes open after the student school year has started.

The Timeline for Hiring a Principal for Washington Middle SchoolWe are moving to open hiring for Washington Middle School. The following is the approximate timeline:

• Mid-February:  We will post the principal position for applicants who have been screened into the SPS principal pool.

• Early March: Sarah Pritchett Executive Director of Schools, will work with the staff and community to determine desired characteristics of the new principal.

• Early/Mid-March: Sarah Pritchett will work with the Building Leadership Team (BLT) to form a formal interview team made up of staff and families.

• Mid-March: The interview team will select candidates to interview, interview those candidates and then select 2-3 finalists. The superintendent will interview the finalists, make the final decision and announce the new principal to the community.

We are looking for parents who are interested in serving on the interview team who represent the diversity of our school community. If you are interested in being considered for the interview team, please contact Assistant Principal, Devin Murphy, at dlmurphy@seattleschools.org who will share your names with the Building Leadership Team.Sincerely,Mike Starosky, Ed.D.Chief of Schools, Assistant Superintendent

January 31, 2018
Dear Hamilton International Middle School Community,
I am sharing an announcement I made to the Hamilton staff on Tuesday: This summer, my family is moving overseas, and I will resign as principal effective July 1. This is a wonderful opportunity for our two daughters for Bridget and me; her work is taking us to London for two years, and we are thrilled to share an immersive, international experience. But it is taking me away from the very best work I can imagine. 

I am extremely optimistic about Hamilton and about the direction we are headed but bitter I won’t be here to share in its future and work alongside you, the educators here, and, best of all, the wonderfully diverse, creative, quirky, inspiring Hamilton students. 

I will leave a school and community that’s in a great place – not where we want to be but clear on where we’re headed. Our students are performing at the highest levels of middle school students anywhere around and that’s been increasing year over year since I got here. That as true for our students of color as it is for our white students even though we know that the gap between those two groups of students remains unacceptable. 

I am especially encouraged by the leadership and focus of our teachers and support staff. They are strong educators individually but have been increasingly working together to make a Hamilton education even better for every student who walks in our doors. That’s taken the form of collaborating on aligning curriculum in math and science as well as work on making this school a place of learning that is welcome and is place where each student and family feels they belong. 

As you likely know, Hamilton is supported by a group of family volunteers on the PTSA and the Friends of Music at Hamilton International whose work is infused with thoughtfulness, innovation, care, and commitment to what we do here.
Hamilton has a bright future and an amazing community of people to take it there.
Jon Halfaker, Executive Director of Schools, will lead the process to find the next Hamilton principal. He knows the school and its community very well. As soon as that process is prepared, he or I will let you know.

In so many ways, I wish I were not writing this letter—if I listed the ways, this already long letter would be even longer. I love this work, love this school, and love its community. And it will be personally very hard to leave it. It’s small but important comfort that I will hand over the keys to a great, great middle school.
I look forward to seeing you over the next six months,
Sincerely,
Tip

6th Grade Math Placement

Yesterday math placement letters went out from JAMS.  All the details are still a bit unclear ut

• It appears that The 5th grade teachers uniformly declined to recommend anyone for Algebra on philosophical grounds.
• The letters were sent prior to this year's math SBAC being administered.
• The placement test will be administered Wednesday, June 14th from 4:00-5:00pm or Tuesday, June 27th from 8:00-9:00am at JAMS.

So I assume those wishing to opt up will have to take the placement test at the school during one of the two exams. There seems to have been a process breakdown here between the schools.  This is one of those situations where communicating more openly would be useful.  In particular, the 5th grade teachers could have handled this much more transparently and either communicated directly to JAMS their discomfort   prior to this point allowing a less reactive solution or to the parents to explain what was going to happen.

8th Grade Math Standards: http://www.corestandards.org/Math/Content/8/introduction/

"In Grade 8, instructional time should focus on three critical areas: (1) formulating and reasoning about expressions and equations, including modeling an association in bivariate data with a linear equation, and solving linear equations and systems of linear equations; (2) grasping the concept of a function and using functions to describe quantitative relationships; (3) analyzing two- and three-dimensional space and figures using distance, angle, similarity, and congruence, and understanding and applying the Pythagorean Theorem."

Home Assessment

The AoPS algebra readiness test is fairly solid and could be used to identify gaps: https://data.artofproblemsolving.com//products/diagnostics/intro-algebra-pretest.pdf  I

Hopefully there will be some more clarifying email from the MS side and this will be done more cleanly next year..

Feel free to add on anything more you learn for JAMS or for the placement process at the other middle school sites.

[Disclaimer: next year I will be on the JAMS BLT]

Middle School Math Adoption Materials

Seattle Public Schools invites all families, staff, and community members to review the instructional materials under consideration for use in grades 6-8. This will be the first of two rounds of public review. The input you provide will help the middle school math textbook adoption committee narrow the choice of materials for the second round of review and a classroom pilot.

Give Us Your Feedback Between May 3 and May 23

Materials are available for review in two ways:

1. To view the materials in person, visit the professional library of the John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence at 2445 3rd Ave. S, Seattle, WA 98134 and fill out the feedback form.
2. To view and evaluate the materials online, visit this page for instructions. After you review the materials, use this feedback form to provide your review. The feedback form is also available in Spanish, Somali, Vietnamese, Chinese and Amharic.

What Kind of Feedback Can I Give?

Even if math was not your strongest subject in school, you can still provide valuable feedback. The feedback form will ask six general questions like “will the resources provided help me support my student” or “does this book contain racist or sexist content?” It’s not necessary to be an expert in math to help review the materials. There is also an open comment section where you can provide additional thoughts for the adoption committee to consider.

Materials Review Open House with Translators

On Thursday, May 11, Seattle Public Schools will hold an open house from 5-7 p.m. at the John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence for families, staff, and community members to learn more about the instructional materials that are being considered for adoption.

The open house will display materials that have been submitted as potential middle school math curriculum. Families, staff, and the community will have the opportunity to examine the teacher and student materials and provide feedback. This feedback is essential to the process of selecting the best materials to recommend for the second round of the review and field test process.

By policy, publishers will not be in attendance; however, there will be SPS staff along with translators available to support participants in the process.

For more information about the middle school math adoption, please visit the adoption webpage.

Middle School Math Curriculum Adoption Committee

Dear Families,

Seattle Public Schools is beginning the process for evaluating instructional materials for grades 6 - 8 mathematics. An adoption committee will be formed, and its work will begin in March 2017 with the goal of having new instructional materials in use during the 2018-19 school year.

Apply to Join the Grades 6 - 8 Mathematics Instructional Materials Adoption Committee

The committee will carry out the board-approved adoption process and come to a consensus in order to make a recommendation for instructional materials based upon objective evidence gathered during the process in accordance with Seattle Public Schools Board Policy. The goal is to select an adoption committee that represents the diverse perspectives and experiences of Seattle Public schools, students and families. The committee will be comprised of teachers and principals representing a range of buildings and programs, parents/guardians, community members, and the Seattle Public Schools Adoption Committee coordinators.

Responsibilities of Family/Community Representative(s)

• Attend ALL scheduled meetings

• Assist in reviewing prospective materials

• Communicate to school community

• Serve as a representative of your school community

Tentative Committee Meeting Dates

• Round 1: March 21, April 18, May 2, May 16, May 30 (8:30-3:30 p.m.),June 13 (8:30 a.m. to noon)
• Round 2: November-December meeting dates (TBD) ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

For more information

To learn more about the Grade 6 – 8 Mathematics Instructional Materials Adoption Committee or apply for adoption committee membership, please visit the adoption web page at: https://www.seattleschools.org/cms/One.aspx?portalId=627&pageId=17753733

All applications must be received by 9:00 a.m. on March 14, 2017.

To submit your application:

Applications may be:

• Saved and emailed to ambox@seattleschools.org
• Mailed to: Seattle Public Schools Attn: Anna Box MS-32-156 PO Box 34156 Seattle, WA 98124-1165
• Or faxed to: 206-252-0179 Attn: Anna Box

Thank you for your interest!

MS Math Adoption Application for FAMILY.pdf 

Anna Box
Mathematics Program Manager
Seattle Public Schools

​​​​​​​


[One Caveat: the committee is going forward but at this time there is no budget for purchasing the recommendation. The hope is that the financial situation will improve.]

Choosing a Middle School

We've done a High School and Elementary School Thread. By request of a parent, this is a thread for Middle School for those still struggling to make a decision.

We are trying to decide where to send our daughter for Middle School . She qualified for HCC in Kindergarten but we have kept her at Wedgwood. We live walking distance to Eckstein and many of her friends will go there. However, two of her closest friends will be at JAMS and the teachers seem to be universally great there. I have not heard the same of Eckstein. She may do music but that is not certain. She is very into reading, writing and drama.

Any advice for the parent from those who know either or both of the schools? Feel free to add any other MS questions here as well.

New Middle School Spin-up Process (Meany and Eagle Staff)

I received the following email this morning:

Mr. Leis,
Good morning. You emailed Michael Tolley last week regarding Robert Eagle Staff Middle School. He asked that I respond to your questions, which I am happy to do. We agree that the planning process for Jane Adams Middle School was greatly enhanced by giving the planning principal a full year to meet with community, hire key staff, and work on the logistical issues, etc. associated with opening a new middle school. As such, we will be looking to hire for this position during our opening round of hiring this spring. While I can’t guarantee a hiring date, I would anticipate by April 1 that we have planning principals in both of the middle schools (Meany Middle School is also coming on line at the same time). Thank you for your question and the embedded feedback regarding what worked in opening Jane Adams.

Sincerely,


Jon Halfaker
Executive Director of Northwest Region Schools
Seattle Public Schools

This essentially matches the timeline for JAMS. I remember a parallel parent effort to help out and establish a PTSA. So I've set this thread up for folks to talk about what worked well last time and what they'd recommend other parents do during this process.

Planning for moving up to Middle School and High School

By request of a parent, this thread is for discussing deciding on a middle school for upcoming fifth graders and for high school for eighth graders.

Here are the original questions:

1. Specifically now that students have been at JAMS for over a year, how is it going for kids? What are strengths and challenges? Is there a good advisory program? Is there fun and social time? 
2. In the past, has Garfield done an open house or tour for incoming 9th grade students and their parents? We're trying to make an informed decision & have found tours/info nights on other HS calendars, but nothing on Garfield's.

Along these lines I just found this upcoming event:

Seattle Middle School Parent Panel
December 3
6:30pm - 8:30pm

$25/single, $35/couple
The Meridian School, Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford

If you're preparing for the move to middle school, come and hear parents talk about their child/family's experiences. Schools represented: Hamilton International MS, Lakeside, Seattle Academy, Billings, Bush, Northwest, Evergreen, Seattle Girls' School, Eastside Prep, Holy Names and Roosevelt HS. Hosted by The Meridian School, The Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford.  Reserve your seat and more info: artofeducation.net

I'm sure there are questions out there about the other programs as well.

Admin Note: please sign with a pseudonym if you post anonymously. Also I highly recommend creating an open-id identity instead in that case. Its still offers privacy but with the new comment view on the main page allows your name to be seen.

Washington Middle School Spectrum Seattle Times Article.

There were two recent articles in the Seattle Times: initial article,  followup story discussing the phase out of stand alone Spectrum classes at Washington Middle School.

The Spectrum classes were overwhelmingly white and Asian, said Susan Follmer, the Washington principal, and the regular classes were filled with students of color.
“The practice of rigid tracking is very antiquated and not supported by research that tells us how we can have success for all,” Follmer said. “It is a strange practice for district that says its number one goal is equity in education.”

I find the nexus of social justice and tracking a particularly difficult topic and I considered just posting the article as is without much framing. However, I think that I owe everyone a small bit of reflection. To start, the tenets I'm most certain of are that education's primary goal is to meet every child where they are at and that rigorous pathways need to be available.

Questions I have

1. How has the experience in gen-ed class rooms changed since this shift?
2. How has the experience for Spectrum students changed?
3. Meany middle school is about to open in 2 years at which time most of the Spectrum  population will move given the demographics.  What's the principal going to do then?
4. Does this signal changes are coming for the HCC track?
5. How committed is Susan Follmer to the other part of the goal having every child "achieve  to their highest level."

More Uncomfortable Thoughts

1. Does my own reaction to this story differ from how I view a middle school spectrum program which is already blended like that at McClure? 
2. Does tracking my own child somehow hurt the children left behind in the gen ed classrooms?
3. How many tracks are needed at the middle school level?
4. If a school segregates students but does not offer them different curriculum how does this practice not look like a modern form of "separate but equal."?

 As always please be thoughtful in your comments.