May 31, 2012
Mayor and City Council
601 Fifth Avenue
601 Fifth Avenue
Seattle, WA 98124
School District should reinstate the Community Nights in
Schools program before Council approves Res. 31385, the “City of Seattle and
Seattle School District Partnership Agreement”
To the Mayor and City Council—
Please do not approve Res. 31385,
the “City of Seattle and Seattle School District Partnership Agreement,” until
the District reinstates the Community Nights in Schools program.
Under this program, the School
District has for more than a decade provided civic groups with low-cost access,
through a simplified application process, for their meetings and other events
after school hours. This
enhanced access is required by the February 2000 agreement between the City
Council and the School District which approved construction of the current
District headquarters in an industrial zone. Unfortunately, on May 2, 2012 the District unilaterally
canceled the Community Nights in Schools program, without prior notice to or
consultation with Seattle officials.
Scheduling for meetings in the fall is already being sacrificed.
Without the
Community Nights in Schools Program, the City provides huge benefits to the
District while receiving very little in return (other than what we all hope is
the best possible school system).
The School District receives free and exclusive use of many Parks
Department facilities (sports fields, playgrounds, swimming pools, tennis
courts, community centers, etc.); it also receives millions of dollars from the
City’s Families and Education levies.
The Community Nights in Schools program begins to even this imbalance by
providing civic groups access to schools after hours.
On May 2,
the day that School District canceled the Community Nights in Schools program,
we wrote urging that the Mayor and City Council work for a quick District
reversal of its cancellation, so that the program continues and is
strengthened. That is for
fairness, but since May 2, we have become aware that it is also for
obligation: the program is
required by the February 2000 agreement that the School District signed with
the City Council.
With
community centers, libraries, and other public facilities increasingly
unavailable for evening meetings, the Community Nights in Schools program is
essential for sustaining volunteer groups and civic life. Information on it can be found on the
Seattle Parks Department web site by clicking here. A copy of the application and
instructions can be found by clicking here. Under the program, public meeting rooms
in the evening in 47 public schools are available to community councils,
educational groups, public service groups, and other non-commercial
organizations for a flat fee of $15, with no handling fee and no requirement
for liability insurance.
If the
School District’s termination of the Community Nights in Schools program is
allowed to stand, community groups will need to go through the District’s
costly and cumbersome rental process (found by clicking here). The rental rates are considerably
higher, and there is a $15 processing fee and a requirement for liability
insurance. The requirement for
liability insurance, alone, ensures that hundreds of community groups will no
longer be allowed to use school facilities if the Community Nights at Schools
program is discontinued.
With the
School District planning soon to ask the voters for more than $1 billion in
capital and operating funds, its provision of simple and affordable evening
space for community meetings is an important gesture of good faith and a
reminder of how schools foster democracy and participation. Res. 31385’s draft Partnership
Agreement requires that the “City and District shall each act in good
faith.” When the District
unilaterally canceled the Community Nights in Schools program, was it acting in
good faith? We suggest reinstating
the program now to establish good faith before the Partnership Agreement is
approved.
Please
preserve and improve the Community Nights in Schools program as essential for
civic engagement and partnership with the schools. SCCF designates its treasurer, Chris Leman (cleman@oo.net, 206-322-5463) as its
representative on this issue.
Sincerely,
Jeannie Hale, President
3425 West Laurelhurst Drive NE
Seattle, Washington
98105
206-525-5135 / fax 206-525-9631
cc: Seattle
School Board and Superintendent
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