On Tuesday, Tim Burgess from the Seattle City Council stopped by Mercer Middle School for a Families and Education Levy Oversight Committee meeting held there to demonstrate the effect the levy has had in turning the school around. He writes:

As a result of high expectations and standards, student behavior has improved. Instead of suspensions, the school now tries to keep kids with behavior problems in class, monitors them and offers old-fashioned nurturing, guidance, and what we might just call “hand-holding.” In the month of September, Mercer had no suspensions or expulsions. None. Zero. That fact alone is cause for celebration. Couple it with the surge in academic performance, the spirit of expectation and hope in the hallways and classrooms, and Mercer Middle School is a shining star on Beacon Hill.

Read the rest on Tim’s blog.