September 17, 2009
By SoulNerd at 2:42 pm
Ed. Note: This post was originally published this morning. You may have seen this article in the Seattle Times which explains that Seattle Schools Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson has proposed lowering the graduation requirement. That’s right, lowering. From the Times: Seattle Public Schools may do away with a nearly decade-old requirement that all students earn a [...] read more →
September 8, 2009
By SoulNerd at 1:19 pm
In a meeting held at Evergreen Community College Monday night, teachers from the Kent School District gathered to weigh their options. The teachers have been striking since August 26, demanding more funding to help shrink class sizes and help special-needs students. At the initial court hearing last week, the school district argued that state law [...] read more →
September 2, 2009
By SoulNerd at 5:46 pm
Way over yonder, in South King County, lies Kent, where nothing noteworthy ever happens. Until this week, that is. The circus is in town! We’ve got tigers, elephants and—a teacher strike. Oh, my! Last week, the Kent Education Association voted to walk out. And, on August 27, walk they did—all 1,700 of ‘em. With the [...] read more →
August 27, 2009
By SoulNerd at 1:41 pm
Part 2 of SoulNerd Sable Verity’s interview with Seattle schools blogger Melissa Westbrook: Who the &$@#! is On First? Part 1 can be found here. There is no simple way to write about the state of Seattle Public Schools. Everybody agrees that SPS has issues. But which issues are most severe, how are they prioritized, [...] read more →
August 26, 2009
By SoulNerd at 2:38 pm
Part I: Well, There’s Yer Problem… There is no simple way to write about the state of Seattle Public Schools. Everybody agrees that SPS has issues. But which issues are most severe, how are they prioritized, and who is responsible for them? To answer those questions, I’ve enlisted the help of community blogger Melissa Westbrook, [...] read more →
August 22, 2009
By SoulNerd at 8:39 am
Because of that, Black women are strapped with the Jezebel stereotype. From the Ferris State University Jim Crow Project: The portrayal of Black women as lascivious by nature is an enduring stereotype. The descriptive words associated with this stereotype are singular in their focus: seductive, alluring, worldly, beguiling, tempting, and lewd. Historically, White women, as [...] read more →
August 21, 2009
By SoulNerd at 1:50 pm
Well, it’s official. Seattle’s most polarizing mayor in recent history (or at least since Paul Schell) has been voted out of office by citizens who have had just about all they can stand of the man who would be their green king. By Thursday evening Nickels trailed Mike McGinn by about 1,200 votes for second [...] read more →
August 19, 2009
By SoulNerd at 10:12 am
I am a stickler for double standards. To be perfectly clear, double standards make me insane, and I call them out wherever I see them. Double standards piss me off even more when they occur through the lens of race. I could rattle off countless examples of how a Black person does something and receives [...] read more →
August 14, 2009
By SoulNerd at 10:14 am
Teachers, students and parents who rejoiced at the death of the WASL (Washington Assessment of Student Learning) with the election of the state’s new Superintendent of Public Instruction, Randy Dorn, should probably stop dancing their graveside jig, as the WASL 2.0 is about to be raised from the ashes of its ancestor. Superintendent Dorn calls [...] read more →
August 13, 2009
By SoulNerd at 2:36 pm
With a solid family legacy in public education, Mary Bass was elected to the Seattle School Board District 5 seat in 2001 with a purpose: Increasing academic success for marginalized students across the city and improving accountability from the classroom to the superintendent’s office. Eight years later, the woman who was once known as a [...] read more →
