Seattle Forward

Seattle Channel Panel Discussion on Preschool

The Seattle Channel's City Inside/Out program has a new show on the implementation of the Seattle Preschool Program. I joined host Brian Callanan on a panel that included School Board Director Stephan Blandford, Jonathan Knapp of the Seattle Education Association, and Erin Okuno of the Southeast Seattle Education Coalition. You can watch below:

 

Hearing from Preschool Providers

Yesterday at my Council committee a panel of preschool providers spoke to us about their programs, the children they serve, and some of the elements that make their classrooms high-quality. It is always good to hear from those working directly with kids and it is helpful context especially as the Council continues to discuss the details of the Seattle Preschool Program implementation.

You can watch what they have to say in the video below at the 1:10:50 mark:

Good News: Lower Property Tax Rate in 2015

Seattle property owners may notice some good news in their recently received 2015 tax rate: overall, it is $9.27 per $1,000 of assessed value, a 10% decrease from the 2014 rate. And if you look only at the City’s portion of the tax bill, the rate dropped 14%.

This is good news for property owners right? Yes, with some caveats.

Let me take a step back and explain briefly how property tax is calculated.

New Police Command Staff

Chief O’Toole has taken a significant step toward rebuilding the public’s trust and confidence in our Police Department in the hiring of four new assistant police chiefs and a new chief technology officer.

It’s a bold step. A very correct step.

In December 2013, Councilmember Harrell and I introduced legislation lifting a 35-year ban on the hiring of police commanders from outside the police department.

We introduced that ordinance because we wanted the Chief of Police to be able to recruit the best possible candidates for these very important positions – from inside or outside the department. Lifting the ban on external candidates was a necessary legislative step toward the reform we want . . . reform that results in effective policing, fair and professional policing, constitutional policing.

Chief O’Toole has wisely balanced knowledgeable inside candidates with proven leaders from other departments and the private sector.

My colleagues and I are convinced that with strong leadership at the top, our police officers will meet our expectations. They will serve with distinction. They will protect our neighborhoods, our people and property.

There is much yet to do, but with Chief O’Toole’s leadership, with the leadership of these new commanders, I believe we will continue to make great progress toward the policing we all want for Seattle.

Preschool Implementation

My committee received a briefing yesterday morning on the Mayor's Implementation Plan for the Seattle Preschool Program. While the Council approved the structure and foundations of the program last summer (and these elements were affirmed by voters in November), there is another layer of operational detail of the program that needs to be reviewed and approved.

We also listened to a presentation from Dr. Jason Sachs, the head of Boston's public preschool program. Seattle has modeled much of its program after Boston, which has dramatically narrowed readiness gaps of its students entering kindergarten. In fact, they have seen so much success in their preschool classrooms that they reworked their kindergarten curriculum too.

Working out the details like program evaluation, provider and student selection processes, application procedures, staff education supports and instructor compensation is crucial to a successful start to this program.