Tag Archives: maria goodloe-johnson

Local Events, Meetings, Volunteering and Giving

Today and this week: Events on Beacon Hill

Don’t forget to keep your eye on the BHB Events page to see what’s coming up on the Hill. We’d like to draw your attention to a few of this week’s events listed there.

Tonight is El Centro de la Raza’s Día de los Muertos Opening Ceremony. This year’s theme is “A Tribute to Las Adelitas: Revolutionary Women of Strength and Courage.” Dinner is served at 5:30 pm, and the reception ceremony begins at 6:30. Admission and food are free. The Ofrenda exhibit will continue from November 2 through November 19, open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, and on Wednesday from noon to 8:00 pm. El Centro is located at 2524 16th Avenue South.

At 6:00 pm tonight, Asa Mercer Middle School is hosting a School Superintendent Coffee Chat, one of a series of chats with Superintendent Maria L. Goodloe-Johnson, open to all parents, grandparents and caregivers of Seattle Public Schools students. Mercer is located at 1600 South Columbian Way.

Splinter Dance Company performed at Beacon Rocks! this summer, an event organized by Beacon Hill Music. Photo by Erika Warner-Court in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.
Then at 7:00 pm, Beacon Hill Music is holding an organizing meeting. They say “There are a lot of possibilities for music on Beacon Hill, including the brand new Jefferson Park with a beautiful amphitheater just waiting for musicians, possibly a beat walk, possibly almost anything. During the next few months Beacon Hill Music will need to pick what opportunities to pursue and determine the steps to turn those ideas into actual events. We are asking you to join in and make stuff happen on Beacon Hill.” The meeting is at 2900 22nd Avenue South (the green house on the corner of 22nd and Forest). For more information email beaconrocks@gmail.com or call Paul at 206-658-3622.

Later this week the monthly Café con El Centro returns on Thursday morning, November 4, from 8:00 – 9:00 am. Meet at El Centro for café, pan dulce, and a tour of the El Centro building and programs to learn more about the “Beloved Community.” RSVP by calling 206-957-4652, or email donor@elcentrodelaraza.org.

On Thursday evening at 5:00 pm, there is an Art in International Education fundraising event at Fisher Pavilion, 305 Harrison Street (Seattle Center), for Beacon Hill International School and the four other International Schools in the city. The event will feature silent and live auctions, as well as a dinner prepared by chef Kaspar Donier. Tickets start at $35; for more information, contact Dick Lee at rjlee@seattleschools.org or 206-252-0476.

Also Thursday night is North Beacon Hill Council‘s monthly meeting at the Beacon Hill Library. Watch this blog for the agenda when we have it.

The Beacon Hill Merchants group will meet on Friday morning, November 5, at 10:00 am at Inay’s, 2503 Beacon Avenue South. The group reports:

“At our last meeting we approved our bylaws, and as we approach the end of the year we must complete the work that is being paid for by our city grant. One large part of this is being primarily done by our graphic designer Nityia Przewlocki, as she finishes the logo design we’ll continue with the development of a brochure with a walking map, and then a website as well. Another portion of our grant is going for board development and training, and our board trainer Angela Powell should be attending this meeting. While we do have the minimum of five committed potential board members, having seven (or more!) would put us in a stronger position, so please step forward if you think could bring skills or resources to the table and help the Beacon Hill business community. The bylaws and some of the bios are up on the Google group site here. Anyone can join the Google group right now and we encourage members to do just that.”

Friday night the musical group Don’t Ask plays at Tasha’s Bistro Café, 2524 Beacon Avenue South, at 7:30 pm. Families are welcome. There is no cover charge.

Finally, Saturday is the Fifth Annual Green Seattle Day. Three forest restoration sites on the Hill will be hosting work parties that day from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm: Lewis Park, Cheasty Greenspace, and the Maple School Ravine. Register at the greenseattle.org website.

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: A troubled landmark

This iconic Beacon Hill landmark is a "troubled building," unable to find a new tenant despite the best views in town. Photo by Wendi.
The Seattle Times (Beacon Hill Blog news partner) reports that the PacMed/Amazon landmark building at the north tip of Beacon Hill is a “troubled property.” No replacement for primary tenant Amazon has yet been found, though the building has been on the market for almost three years.

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The Seattle Public Library is raising fines and fees starting on Monday, November 1. Among the changes:

  • The daily fine for an overdue book, CD, or DVD will change from 15 cents a day to 25 cents a day.
  • The daily fine for an overdue interlibrary loan will change from 25 cents a day to $1 a day.

Also, all accounts with a balance of $25 will be sent to a collection agency, including accounts for children and teens.

You can find out more about the fee and fine increases at the library website.

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“Drawing the Land,” by Elizabeth Conner, is the newest and perhaps largest work of public art on Beacon Hill — Beacon Hill Public Art

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Angela Garbes of Seattle Weekly‘s Voracious blog notes a recent addition to MacPherson’s Fruit and Produce market (4500 15th Avenue South): day-old breads from Essential Baking Company. Yum!

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The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods and City Neighborhood Council (CNC) are currently seeking input from community groups throughout Seattle as a way to find out how to support the evolution of the Neighborhood District Council system as a key avenue for civic participation in Seattle.

Please take this survey if you are interested in Seattle neighborhoods, and spread the word to anyone else who may be interested in helping strengthen civic engagement in our city. The survey will be open until November 14.

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We see on Craigslist that Salon Nouveau (2805 Beacon Avenue South) has a job opening for a salon coordinator. More information here.

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A couple of upcoming events to be aware of:

  • Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Maria L. Goodloe-Johnson will host a Community Coffee Chat for parents, grandparents and caregivers of SPS students on Monday, November 1 from 6:00 to 7:00 pm at Asa Mercer Middle School, 1600 South Columbian Way.
  • El Centro’s Dia de los Muertos Opening Ceremony is Monday, November 1, at 5:30 pm. More information here.
  • Election Day is Tuesday! Get those ballots in the mail now!

Don’t forget to check our Events page for other upcoming events!

Uncategorized

No comprehensive high schools to close this year

Seattle Schools Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson stated at a school board meeting last night that closure of Seattle’s comprehensive high schools is now off the table for this year, as are mergers such as the previously suggested options to merge Aki Kurose Middle School and the Center School with Rainier Beach High School.

The even earlier proposal to merge Cleveland High School with Rainier Beach had already been rejected.

Goodloe-Johnson did say that closure of one of the traditional high schools might need to happen sometime in the next few years, given the budget woes of the District.

Some high-school-aged students still face closure or relocation of their programs, however; Summit K-12 is currently on the superintendent’s “preferred” list for closure, while NOVA and SBOC are on the list for relocation.

The superintendent’s final recommendations will be announced January 6, and on January 7 there will be a school board meeting at which a motion to close/move schools is planned to be introduced. The District posts news about this process at their Capacity Management website, http://www.seattleschools.org/area/capacity/index.dxml.

Education

School closure plan changes yet again: Rainier Beach/Cleveland merger off the table, for now

Photo by Claudia Snell.
Photo by Claudia Snell.
Seattle school superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson has announced another revised slate of recommendations for school closures and program relocations.

The recently proposed merger between Rainier Beach and Cleveland high schools is apparently off the table again. (Amber Campbell at the Rainier Valley Post posts a possible reason why: the potential gang violence, according to several unnamed Seattle Police Department South Precinct sources, would have been significant.) Instead, one potential option is to close Aki Kurose Middle School, moving those students to Rainier Beach, which would then have a 6-12 comprehensive performing arts program. Another involves discontinuing the Center School program and moving its students from Seattle Center to Rainier Beach.

The African-American Academy is still scheduled for closure, with students from Van Asselt to move into that building.

Continue reading School closure plan changes yet again: Rainier Beach/Cleveland merger off the table, for now →

Education

School closure plans revised: Rainier Beach may merge with Cleveland

Just one week after Seattle Public Schools’ controversial proposals to close buildings and relocate programs, the plans have been changed. At a School Board meeting last night, Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson announced new proposals for consideration, including merging Rainier Beach High School into Beacon Hill’s Cleveland High School, eliminating Summit K-12 entirely, or moving students from several programs into the RBHS building, including Aki Kurose Middle School and displaced middle school-aged kids from three other programs on the chopping block: Meany Middle School, the African-American Academy, and Summit. (Here is the superintendent’s slide show of the recommendations, and this blog post discusses School Board reactions to the presentation.)

These changes would save the district an estimated $3.6 million, but with the district’s expected budget gap up to $37.1 million — $13 million higher than previously estimated — it seems there will be a long way to go.

Blogger Sable Verity suggests that the RBHS closure was always a given:

“This is all a part of the ORIGINAL, mostly UNDOCUMENTED South East Initiative. That planned called for RBHS to merge with Aki, to become a performing arts academy. Problem is, the district didn’t want to front the money and actually invest, they wanted someone else to come in and set up shop. Problem is, after the TAF debacle, folks were leery (’cept the brave and righteous souls at Broadway Bound) of doing business with SPS.

“Can’t say that I blame them.”

Community workshops to discuss the proposals are scheduled for tonight 6:30 – 8:30 pm at District headquarters in Sodo, 2445 Third Avenue South, and this Saturday, December 6, 9:30 – 11:30 am, at the Filipino Community Center, 5740 Martin Luther King Jr. Way South. A hearing about the previously announced Van Asselt building closure proposal is December 15, 6:30 – 8:30 pm at Van Asselt Elementary, 7201 Beacon Avenue South. Stay tuned to this SPD page for updates on added hearings and forums.

Comments may also be emailed to capacity@seattleschools.org or snail-mailed to: School Board, P.O. Box 34165, MS 11-010, Seattle, WA 98124-1165.

Beacon Bits

Beacon Bits: Right turns, school closures, and soup

When the light at 15th and Beacon looks like this, a right turn could cost you $124. Photo by Ricochet Remington.
When the light at 15th and Beacon looks like this, a right turn could cost you $124. Photo by Ricochet Remington.