Parents protest Seattle Public Schools closure proposals

SEATTLE – About 300 parents and students wore red and chanted, “Save our schools!” outside Seattle Public Schools headquarters Wednesday, marking the first mass protest against planned school closures that could reshape attendance boundaries across the city.

People squinted in the blaring sun and pushed cardboard signs above their heads that read “Don’t kill what’s working,” “Where is plan C?” and “Don’t make a terrible mistake,” minutes before the first school board meeting since the district unveiled its two closure proposals.

Upbeat music blasted. Children ran around the outskirts of the crowd, playing tag.

Last week, the district released details on two school closure proposals recommending the closure of at least 17 schools to address an estimated $94 million budget deficit, which has stirred strong emotions.

Parents began to organize in opposition soon after.

Under one proposal, the district would close 21 schools and eliminate all K-8 and application-only option schools. According to SPS, this would save the district $31.5 million annually.

With the second scenario, the district would close 17 schools and keep one K-8 school open in its five administrative regions. The district said this option would save it about $26 million.

The school board is expected to vote in December on closing schools for the 2025-26 school year.

During the premeeting rally, parents took turns at the microphone, stressing to the crowd that families must stay united to keep all schools open.

Once the meeting started, about 70 people sat inside the lobby, watching the board meeting on a TV screen. They chanted, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, this budget plan has got to go!”

Because of the anticipated budget deficit, the district might have to cut staff and programs even with the closures. To close the budget gap, SPS would also consider tapping its unused funds, relying on about $25 million in support from the state Legislature and shaving transportation costs.

SPS could also close fewer schools or none at all. Without closures, the $30 million or so SPS hopes to save by reducing the number of K-5 schools could come from staff layoffs and salary cuts, according to documents prepared for Wednesday’s meeting.

Parent group All Together for Seattle Schools organized Wednesday’s rally.

Julius Buckman and Ericka Childs have two students at Sanislo Elementary.

“These are some of the elementary schools that we both went to when we were kids,” Buckman said. “We want to preserve that history. It’s not right. It will disrupt a lot of families’ lives.”

Some parents oppose closures altogether and are pushing the district to lean on the Legislature, which starts its session in January, to increase overall K-12 funding. Others worry that closures would significantly disrupt students’ lives by splitting school communities without closing the deficit and want SPS to show the alternatives it considered before settling on closures.

Another significant concern is that the proposals target option or application-only schools and those that serve the needs of students who require special education services. Parents have questioned how the district would maintain these programs if all option schools were closed.

Sylvia Oketch, a parent of two special education students at North Beach Elementary, worries that both options will overcrowd classrooms, cost teachers their jobs and cause her students to regress if they have to change schools and teachers.

One of her daughters has selective mutism. “It took her almost two years to be able to speak to her teacher,” Oketch said. “It’s absolutely ridiculous to me. I left work early to come and say something, especially for kids with special needs.”

In the meeting, school board members and families questioned and criticized the district’s closure proposals.

School board member Brandon Hersey questioned why the district was not considering closing fewer schools. He said that approach would be less disruptive to students and give families more time to prepare if the proposed closures still require the district to make cuts.

Liat Reif, a student at Hamilton International who previously attended John Stanford International Elementary School, implored the district to keep schools open. Her parents are Venezuelan immigrants and she was in the dual language immersion program where she learned and practiced Spanish.

The program, she said, allowed her to maintain her culture and language and communicate with her Spanish-speaking grandparents.

Without the program, “I don’t think I would be able to have the connection I have with my family,” said Liat, who spoke with friends Ernesto and Natalia Peña by her side.

“I am a kid and don’t fully understand all that is going on,” Liat said. “But what I do understand is that your plan will make it harder for kids like us to maintain our culture, reducing our connection to our ancestors and inhibiting … communication with our relatives.”

Samantha Fogg, co-president of the Seattle Council PTSA, a citywide parent-advocacy group, said the rollout of the proposals focused on facilities, not students.

“We need a plan that centers student outcomes,” she said.

In an interview earlier this week, board president Liza Rankin said she does not see a path forward for the district without some building closures. Rankin said she understood why parents were upset with the proposals published on the website last week: They were missing information about how affected programs would be provided.

Superintendent Brent Jones acknowledged on Wednesday that discussions around closures could be challenging and emotional, especially as schools hold a special place in people’s hearts.

Jones said the district will maintain special education services, dual language immersion programs and the district’s advanced learning programs.

“Our goal is to make sure that these programs and services more consistently provide access across our district,” Jones said.

Several speakers questioned whether the plan was equitable.

Taryn Longhurst, a parent whose son is a student at TOPS K-8, asked the district not to close the school, which serves students who are deaf and hard of hearing.

Longhurst said her son previously attended a neighborhood school but was falling behind. The child found a home at TOPS and faces the possibility that the school might close under one of the proposals.

“I finally found a school for my son where he is not the only person with a hearing aid in his school,” she said, “where he doesn’t feel ostracized and made fun of and bullied, where he is now advocating for himself at school.”

Jones will present preliminary recommendations to the board next month and the board will vote on the final plan in December.

“This is not a done deal,” he said.