Join Us to Support Laurelhurst Elementary School

Seattle Public Schools (SPS) is building a system of well-resourced schools in the face of a budget shortfall and declines in elementary school enrollment. As we learned last week, this plan calls for elementary school consolidations for the 2025-2026 school year. SPS is in the planning phase of the consolidation process, and we do not yet know how Laurelhurst Elementary School will be impacted. SPS will hold a series of community meetings in the next few weeks that will inform the Superintendent’s preliminary plan for school closures to be delivered in June.

 

SPS has published and is maintaining a FAQ page on well-resource schools here.

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A complete timeline of the school consolidation/closure process is below.

 

Here's how you can advocate to keep our school open and stay engaged in the consolidation process:

 

1. Attend the next SPS school board meeting and give public testimony:

 

Wednesday, May 22, 4:15 p.m. (public testimony at 4:30 p.m.)

John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence

2445 3rd Avenue South

Seattle, Washington 98134

 

To provide public testimony, you must sign up and register in advance. This sign-up form will open up on Monday (May 20) at 8 a.m. Note that you can only sign up for yourself or your child. You can also use our Google form to submit a written testimony someone can read on your behalf.

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Update: We had four Laurelhurst parents speak to the importance of maintaining small schools generally, and Laurelhurst Elementary School in particular, at the May 22 Board Meeting. Check out their testimony here and thank you to our fabulous speakers: Elizabeth Bullock, Kelley Roberts, Jane Park, and Yvonne Yin.

 

2. Attend SPS' community meeting on Well-Resourced Schools. (See the complete schedule here):

 

Sign up here to coordinate carpools for the Tuesday, May 28 community meeting from 6-7:30 p.m. at Roosevelt High School (1419 NE 66th St) so we can demonstrate the strength of our community to the SPS leaders. We need the biggest turnout here possible!

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Update:

Thank you to all of our Laurelhurst parents, neighbors, and community members for showing up in force at Roosevelt High School last week to hear Seattle Public Schools officials present their Well-Resourced Schools plan. SPS Superintendent Dr. Brent Jones gave a brief presentation on the plan before inviting the public to share feedback through the online platform ThoughtExchange. We encourage you to share your thoughts and feedback here.

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We also recommend attending the Zoom meeting on Tuesday, June 4, 6 – 7:30 p.m. if you cannot attend the in-person meetings.

 

Register for the community meetings and submit questions in advance here.

 

3. Contribute to the Seattle School Board Community Engagement Meetings to help drive the Board’s Strategic Plan.

 

The School Board is seeking feedback from the community to set strategic goals for SPS and provide direction to the Superintendent on how to achieve those goals. Contribute to the Strategic Plan by completing this survey as well as by attending one of the following community meetings:  

 

• May 29, 2024, 6 – 7:30 p.m.

Robert Eagle Staff Middle School

1330 N 90th St., Seattle, WA 98103

 

• June 5, 2024, 6 – 7:30 p.m.

Cleveland STEM High School

5511 15th Ave. S, Seattle, WA 98108

 

• June 12, 2024, 6 – 7:30 p.m.

Virtual Event hosted by Seattle Council PTSA

Zoom Registration

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4. Read and sign onto this letter from All Together for Seattle Schools to the SPS Board and Superintendent urging SPS to demonstrate how school closure will advance budget goals and work with community on viable alternative proposals. Check out the ATFSS website for more ways to advocate to ensure SPS students receive an excellent education.

 

5. Write a letter to SPS leaders describing how Laurelhurst Elementary School has impacted you and your family, and why it is a vital community hub that should stay open.

 

For your convenience, we have provided a few letter templates that can be downloaded and personalized, as well as contact information for the SPS leaders to whom the letters should be directed. You can also use these letters as thought-starters for public testimony. You can also send questions or comments via SPS' general contact form.

 

6. Attend the June 10 School Board Meeting to listen to the Superintendent’s preliminary school consolidation/closure plan.

 

SPS Regular Board Meeting
Monday, June 10 at 4:15 p.m.
John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence
2445 3rd Avenue South
Seattle, Washington 98134

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Sign up to carpool here.

 

To provide public testimony, you must sign up and register in advance using this sign-up form. We will provide an update when the form opens. Note that you can only sign up for yourself or your child. You can also use our Google form to submit a written testimony someone can read on your behalf.

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We will provide reminders of these dates and any further next steps based on the outcome of the June 10 Board Meeting. Now is the time for us to come together and make sure LES continues to serve as a critical support network for students across Seattle and as a community hub as it has been for close to 100 years. Thank you in advance for showing up for our school!

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SPS Well-Resourced School Consolidation Timeline (from May 8 School Board Presentation, available here)
 

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