Friday, December 10, 2010

Salmon Bay Preference for Thornton Creek Graduates

Who: Children of all grades attending Thornton Creek. It is never too early to consider middle school options.

What: Please sign this petition at http://www.PetitionOnline.com/tc2sb/petition.html

Why: Our predecessors, in the late 1980s, had the same desire for an alternative middle school pathway. The result was New Option Middle School, or NOMS, which was located in the Washington (Central Seattle) and Old Hay (Queen Anne) buildings before merging with an Alternative Elementary (#5, Coho) in 1999 at their current Ballard location. Currently, Thornton Creek is the only alternative elementary school in the city that does not have an alternative middle school assignment. In the past, Thornton Creek students have received a preferential assignment to Salmon Bay in recognition shared history and program similarity.

Further Action: Board members are skeptical, and it is a nuanced situation difficult to communicate in talking points. However, a sample letter is provided below (Dec 5 post) for email (SchoolBoard@seattleschools.org), and face-to-face conversations are greatly encouraged. The board does seem fond of ensuring a “pathway” for language immersion students, and I like to remind them of our similar situation. We can acknowledge this is a short-term fix, and express our willingness to find a long-term solution when the dust from the student assignment plan settles.

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Sample Salmon Bay Preference Letter (12/5/10)

Dear

Please continue the preference assignment tiebreaker for Thornton Creek 5th graders for enrollment in 6th grade at Salmon Bay School. Given the absence of a viable alternative middle school (as opposed to an option K-8 with a traditional educational philosophy) that TC 5th graders can attend, we request that the Salmon Bay preference be continued until such viable alternative middle school is established.

Thornton Creek is currently the only alternative school in the district that does not have a middle school program and for years has received the Salmon Bay preference. This was a mutually beneficial arrangement since Salmon Bay was the only alternative 6-8 program that added seats over its elementary grade level capacity.

The educational philosophy of Thornton Creek is compatible with Salmon Bay. This preference allows students of Thornton Creek - whose families have committed to an educational philosophy very similar to that of Salmon Bay Middle School - to have access to that philosophy and approach though 8th grade. This is similar to the educational continuity provided for students at TOPS, Pathfinder, APP program, language immersion programs, and so on.

Removing this program preference will negatively impact Thornton Creek as parents seek the greater security that enrolling their child at schools like Salmon Bay during the elementary years provides. Many families are considering private schools in the absence of the alternative middle school preference. Salmon Bay may suffer from the loss of TC families who are vital to the success of Salmon Bay Middle School because the students and parents are already familiar with both the educational philosophy of the program and the amount of family involvement this type of educational approach requires. Finally, with crowding at Eckstein continuing to increase, it benefits that school as well to minimize extra students coming in at this time.

Thank you for considering my request for the Salmon Bay preference for Thornton Creek 5th graders.


Sincerely