Seattle's schools are in a tough spot, once again

By Emily Heffter

Seattle Times staff reporter

When a fiscal crisis hit Seattle Public Schools in 2002, the district found itself $35 million in the hole. A year later, Superintendent Joseph Olchefske stepped down under public pressure, and the majority of the School Board was up for re-election. A crucial levy vote was just a few months away.

Sound familiar?

The 46,000-student district is in a similar spot now. Four members of the seven-member School Board are up for re-election in November 2007, and Superintendent Raj Manhas announced last week that he will resign at the end of this school year. In February, the public will vote on a maintenance levy and the district's first construction bond, a $490 million measure to renovate several schools.

But this time, the district is in a different kind of crisis — one of leadership rather than finances. And some say it will be even tougher to overcome.

Former Superintendent Olchefske was seen by many as the reason for the financial crisis of 2003 — and his departure seemed to clear a path toward solving the problem.

Outgoing Superintendent Manhas, meanwhile, rebuilt the district's reserves and put in place stricter financial oversight. His supporters praise his ability to listen and say he has changed the district's culture, creating more openness and a willingness to tackle issues formerly considered untouchable.

But he will leave another problem behind: a divided School Board under fire from the community for its recent decisions regarding school closures. The board voted in July to close seven schools and instructed the superintendent to close three or four more as a second phase. But the board's support for phase two — and perhaps for Manhas himself — waned, and two weeks ago the board killed the second round of closures.

Tonight, board member Michael DeBell will introduce proposals about where kids in schools that will be closed should enroll next year. As the board tries to move forward, protesters plan to fill the meeting to demand the board reconsider its July vote to close schools. Five members of the board put out a statement last week reaffirming their support of the closures they'd already approved. The two other members — Sally Soriano and Mary Bass — are participating in a lawsuit against the district to have the closures reversed.

In December, the board will choose a new president. Brita Butler-Wall has served for two years.

"There does not seem to be anybody who can, well, clearly take control," said Melissa Westbrook, a district parent who pushed for Olchefske's resignation and served on a committee that recommended the school closures the board voted on in July.

Public perception of the board sets this crisis apart from the situation in 2003, said Marguerite Roza, a school-finance expert and assistant professor at the University of Washington.

"I think people have a frustration level right now that is through the roof," she said. "There's this sense of desperation, like the School Board meetings are becoming a circus and they just need someone to come in and take control."

That may affect the levy campaign and the district's strategy as it searches for a new superintendent — and it will test the board as it tries to make its meetings more positive and constructive.

"I think we on the board need to get behind the academic plan and work with the superintendent we choose," said board Vice President Cheryl Chow. "It's paramount that we come out with a clear and strong voice as a board."

In 2003, community members organized to try to force Olchefske to resign. They succeeded, and voters dismissed a majority of the School Board the next fall.

Even in the midst of 2003's multimillion-dollar financial crisis, voters overwhelmingly approved the 2004 levies. "It's 'don't blame the kids,' " said Lisa Macfarlane, a volunteer with the campaign and past president of Schools First! which supports local levies.

The fact that Seattle approved those levies is encouraging, and bodes well for next February's vote, she said.

"You've got the closure noise and board difficulties, which are new challenges," she said. "But you don't have the fiscal mismanagement, which was a pretty bad set of headlines to be dealing with."

When Manhas announced last week he would step down, he touted his success in bringing the district back to financial stability. Seattle Public Schools has rebuilt its reserves, but some financial problems still loom. It faces a shortfall of about $20 million next year unless it uses those reserves, makes cuts or gets more money from the state. But even Manhas' critics grant that the district is on more solid financial footing now than it was three years ago.

The district should be cautious as it looks for someone to solve its messier crisis this time around, said former board member Dick Lilly. He cautioned against looking for a "white knight."

"I think that, probably, the leadership issue will carry through to the next election," he said.

Emily Heffter: 206-464-8246 or