Janis White

Introduce Yourself

Why do you want to serve as a Seattle Public School Board Director?

I have seen over time how people with good intentions and rhetoric are not effective on the School Board. Without direct experience in our schools, knowledge of how the District and School Board operate and understanding how best to leverage the role of a School Board Director, the community has not seen the improvement that has been promised. I have three kids, now young adults, who all attended Seattle Public Schools from K through 12th grade (graduating in 2019 and 2023). I have served in many roles, including President of the TOPS K-8 Site Council, organizing an Alternative Schools Coalition, parent representative on a district transportation task force and President of the Seattle Special Education PTSA. I want to bring my commitment to public education, long experience in the District and knowledge of how the District operates to the work of making sure that every student receives the best education to meet their full potential.

Board Skills
What skills or perspectives do you bring that are currently missing or underrepresented on the
school board?

I have been a practicing attorney for over 40 years with experience analyzing data and financial information. As a trial lawyer, I know how to ask questions to uncover information that has not been volunteered. I also have the perspective of a parent who has put three kids through the entire system of SPS and has been involved at the district level for almost 20 years. Finally, I would bring a deep understanding of the policies and practices of SPS in providing special education instruction and services. SPS is lagging behind best practices nationally in providing education to disabled students. I understand that we will not be able to flick a switch to transform the system that is in place, but I am committed to establishing a vision for the improvement that disabled students are legally entitled to and deserve and then working in community with all stakeholders to dismantle the barriers preventing progress.

Top Challenge
What is SPS’s biggest challenge, and what specific action would you take to help solve it?

The biggest challenge will be to change the culture of SPS. I attended one of the recent Superintendent search community engagement sessions and heard multiple people describe the “toxic culture” of the District. We must hire a superintendent who is willing to identify the staff members responsible for creating and perpetuating the toxic culture and require that they change their approach or leave.

Community Partnership and Board Operations
What will you do to improve relationships with the community, specifically with parents and
educators?

I will visit every school in District 5 at least once every school year. I will consult with each school ahead of time to find out the best time for me to visit and be able to meet with as many in the community as possible. The purpose of these meetings will be primarily to hear from school communities about their experiences and concerns and share perspectives. In addition, I will hold periodic community meetings that all are invited to attend and I will reach out to community organizations that are interested in engaging with the School Board about our schools. Finally, I will encourage District staff to reflect on the way that the District conducts community engagement meetings, which many have found frustrating, and work on addressing community concerns so that those sessions are more productive for all participants.

School Closures
Did you support or oppose the recent school closure proposals? Do you think that school
closures/consolidations should be considered in the coming 5 years?

I opposed the recent school closure proposals because District staff did not explain how closing either 21 or 4 schools would make a meaningful difference in solving the budget deficit or improving student outcomes. Nor did they explain how the alleged benefits of those school closures would outweigh the harm to students that is caused when a school is closed. Closing a school is painful – for the affected school community and also for the school(s) that now has to absorb that community. We should not even be considering school closures unless the affected communities are included in the process that leads to that decision and unless a meaningful portion of the school community accepts that the rationale for closing the school makes sense. Further, there has to be a plan for mitigating the harm to students as a result of any school closure that plan needs to be part of the planning process including all affected school communities.

Socioeconomic Equity
What policies or budget actions would you support that would reduce socioeconomic and racial
disparities among Seattle Public Schools students?

Schools that serve disadvantaged communities may need additional support to help students meet their academic goals, including interventionists, tutors, smaller class sizes, etc. Our schools also need to be staffed with family support workers who can help families connect to the social services they may need. Curriculum must be culturally relevant and evidence-based. I think we can strengthen School Board policy to provide more specific direction to staff around what we expect to be prioritized in curriculum adoption. Teachers need professional development and coaching when we ask them to shift their practice from what they learned in teacher training programs to improved practices that have been shown to have a positive impact on student outcomes. Inclusive school environments require replacing punitive disciplinary measures with restorative justice approaches, providing mental health counseling and support and supporting family involvement in their students’ educational journeys.

Academic Rigor and Highly Capable Services What should SPS do to improve academic rigor? Do you believe SPS should provide advanced learning opportunities such as Walk to Math and Highly Capable Services? How do you envision delivering Highly Capable Services within SPS?

I have a child who is gifted academically – my student was reading at a high school level in the first grade. I believe that cohort schools are necessary for some students. I also understand the reasons why some believe we should move towards a system in which most advanced learning services are provided in neighborhood schools. To do so effectively requires a plan, educator training and clear communication to families about how the services will be delivered (which may be different based on subject matter). None of that has happened as demonstrated by testimony from families to the School Board. All of our schools should provide opportunities for students to advance with programs like Walk to Math. Even if the neighborhood model is successful, there will likely still be some students who need access to a cohort model. This was recognized by District leadership in 2021 when the School Board directed policy changes and was part of a presentation to the School Board at that time.

Special Education and English Language Learners

How will you improve the delivery of special education services to students in SPS? How will you improve the delivery of education to English language learners?

One of my kids had an IEP from K-12 and I am the former President of Seattle Special Education PTSA. Disabled students and bilingual students need to be specifically considered when the School Board and the District are setting goals and establishing the strategic plan to make sure their needs are addressed. The number one issue we need to address in special education is the unnecessary and harmful segregation of students with disabilities in separate classes. To change this deeply embedded practice in SPS will require its own strategic plan. If elected, I will work with all stakeholders – administrators, educators, families, students and community members -- to create a plan to identify and dismantle the barriers in our system that prevent our disabled students from meeting their full potential. We owe it to the over 20% of our total student enrollment to finally prioritize this work and align our system with best practices.

Enrollment Decline

More than 20% of Seattle children are enrolled in private school (second-highest in the country). Do you believe SPS should try to attract and enroll more families? If so, what would you do to achieve that goal? What degree of enrollment choice should be allowed?

When my oldest child was entering Kindergarten, we discovered that our neighborhood school was not a good fit for our family and kids. The school used a rigid and strict behavior system and also required students to wear uniforms. While both of those programs worked well for many families, we knew it would not be a good fit for our family.

Our son was accepted into one of the District’s alternative schools via lottery. We chose the school because of its social justice focus, diversity, educational model and sense of community. Some families will always choose private school for their children, but if SPS provides alternative school options that many families are looking for, the District can keep some students from enrolling in private school. We need to highlight the variety of program options available in the District while also providing strong neighborhood schools for families who want their children to attend a school close to their home.

School Diversity
Should SPS offer a variety of schools with different building sizes, curriculum formats (e.g.,
STEM, DLI, expeditionary) and grade bands (e.g., K-8)? Why or why not?

Yes. One of my kids attended a K-8, and was able to flourish in the smaller middle school
environment. My other kids preferred a larger comprehensive middle school. All of my kids
spent some years at an alternative school (now an option school). I have seen firsthand how
some kids benefit from different curriculum approaches and others thrive in more conventional settings. As
an urban school district and the largest district in the State of Washington, we have the ability to offer
options in grade bands and curriculum. That is the super power of being a larger district and one we should
nourish and not constrict.

Budget & Efficiency

Beyond advocating for more state funding, what specific steps should SPS take to improve its operational efficiency and fiscal health?

The School Board needs to understand how the District is spending its money in order to improve operations and the fiscal situation. We need to bring back regular reporting from administrative departments about their budgets, staffing, responsibilities, results and forecasts along with benchmarking of other nearby districts and national comparable municipalities. That kind of financial oversight is critical especially in areas where we see spending increases year over year and where the District spends more than it receives from the federal and state governments. As an example, the School Board approves contracts to send students to special education private schools when an individual contract is over $1 million but is not given any information about how much SPS is spending on these contracts overall, how many students are sent out of district, demographic information about the students or how the same students could be served in SPS.

Student Safety

What should SPS do to improve physical safety for students at school and in getting to and from school?

I’ve had two students graduate from Garfield and as a parent, I received many texts about
lockdowns and sheltering in place. I also had a student at Ingraham down the hall from the
shooting in 2022 who heard the shots and smelled the smoke. I understand community
concerns about safety at school. We need to keep the promise we made to students and
increase mental health support at school with more school counselors and therapists. We
should increase partnerships with community violence intervention groups like Community
Passageways and Choose 180 and also build capacity in our schools to use restorative justice practices
instead of traditional disciplinary approaches. Finally, we should work collaboratively with SPD to increase
patrolling in the neighborhoods around schools, especially at the times when students are traveling to and
from school and at lunch.

Role of the School Board (SOFG) Since 2021 the board has followed a way of operating called Student Outcomes Focused Governance (SOFG) that has been the subject of recent media questioning. Do you believe SOFG has been a successful model for the board to date and do you support continuing to implement it?

SOFG has not been successful. It has resulted in a marked decrease in oversight to ensure that policies are being implemented as intended. Policies do not provide enough specific direction to staff. The goals adopted as part of SOFG rely mostly on standardized test scores, which I don’t support. I do not support continuing SOFG as it has been implemented so far.