NEWS GLEAMS | Seattle Public Schools Approves 2024–2025 School Year Budget; SeaTac Airport Celebrates 75 Years

A roundup of news and announcements we don't want to get lost in the fast-churning news cycle.

by Vee Hua 華婷婷

Seattle Public Schools Approves Budget for 2024—2025 School Year, Postpones Elementary School Closures

Seattle Public Schools (SPS) approved its balanced budget for the 2024—2025 school year on Wednesday, July 3, after closing a previously projected budget deficit of over $104 million. The 2024—2025 school year budget will total $1.3 billion and include a $27.5 million short-term interfund loan that comes out of SPS' capital fund and must be repaid by June 30, 2026.

Budget changes and reductions will include reductions in central office staffing and compensation for non-represented staff, implementation of convenience fees and voluntary athletic fees, and other one-time solutions. According to reporting by The Seattle Times, 61% of the budget will go toward teaching salaries and other teaching-related activities. Some schools will also receive smaller budget allocations; such reductions would vary by location but potentially lead to the elimination of some roles or shifts of some full-time roles to part-time ones.

One of the most significant changes is that the adopted budget will allow all schools to remain open during the 2024—2025 school year. In May 2024, SPS had announced the potential closure of 20 elementary schools during the 2024—2025 school year, in part because the state funding model for elementary schools is based on enrollment of 400 students per school, and the district is underresourced because its enrollment numbers fall far below the state average. SPS has 70 elementary schools that serve 23,000 K-5 students — or an average of 317 students per elementary school. Off those schools, 29 have fewer than 300 students.

SPS' initial announcements did not name which elementary schools would close. After four community listening sessions, the SPS Board postponed its vote on June 26 and has since announced that the closures will be delayed for an entire year and be effective for the 2025—2026 school year, so SPS can continue to engage in community engagement processes.In a public letter, SPS Superintendent Brent Jones stressed that the solutions presented in the 2024—2025 budget are limited. "We are now out of significant one-time options and will need to make more systemic changes to stabilize the system going forward," he wrote, citing one of the largest determinants to be the outcomes from its 2025 legislative session, which will take place later this year in Olympia. "We can make further cuts to services, staff, and supports in all schools, or we can maintain and plan to enhance student services and supports with a reduction in the number of elementary schools to match elementary school enrollment. We must consider which is the greater priority — the location of the school building or the services and educational opportunities available to students when they are at school."

SeaTac Airport Celebrates 75th Anniversary on July 9

The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport dedicated its first terminal on July 9, 1949. The airport will celebrate its 75th anniversary this week with a number of multimedia displays and activities accessible for passengers and non-passengers alike, in person and virtually.

Airline passengers will be able to access the bulk of the airport's 75th anniversary events, including a scavenger hunt, gallery displays from throughout the airport's existence, and gift giveaways. The airport celebrates its history of being one of the first airports in the nation to acquire art through its presentation of a number of art installations, including a rotating 75th anniversary globe in the Central Terminal, a 1949 dedication plaque in the Central Terminal featuring an aircraft ramp that was present during the airport's initial opening, an art deco elevator remaining from the original terminal, and the airport's oldest art piece, which was acquired in 1972.

The Port of Seattle has compiled a number of digital assets, including a video and photo gallery of historical images. Musical playlists for every decade of the airport, previews of an Upgrade SEA campaign to improve the airport, "Then and Now" airport milestones, and additional archival materials are also available.

Upon its opening in 1949, the airport had eight gates and served 130,549 passengers annually; it now has 89 gates and averages 140,000 passengers daily. 1954 was the first year SEA served a million passengers; by contrast, 2024 is expected to be the airport's largest year to date and is on track to break 2019's record of 51.8 million passengers.

The Seattle Public Library Launches 2024 'Summer of Learning' Activities

The Seattle Public Library (SPL) has offered youth summer programs since 1919. Now in its 105th year, SPL's "Summer of Learning" programs will roll out throughout the course of the summer. This year's theme is "Free to Read!" and features collaborative artwork from local visual artists Nick Alan Foote, Cecelia "Mousy DeVilla" DeLeon, Deycha Nhtae, and Kela Wong.

Its initial offering includes a list of 15 reading suggestions, which offer youth and families a diversity of hand-picked reading materials that have been "banned or challenged" on a national stage. Many of its suggested books are available in digital or physical format. They include:

• All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold
• Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal
• Bread for Words by Shana Keller
• Crown by Derrick Barnes
• A Crown of Stories by Carole Boston Weatherford
• The Family Book by Todd Parr
• Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard
• Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry
• I Am Jazz by Jessica Herthel
• Julin Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love
• So Tall Within by Gary D. Schmidt
• Stella Brings the Family by Miriam B. Schiffer
• This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman
• Voice of Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford
• When Aidan Became a Brother by Kyle Lukoff

Visit or bookmark the SPL "Summer of Learning" website for ongoing programmatic updates.

Featured image via wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock.com.

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