Closing a School

Aired Monday, October 30, 2006

By Jennifer Wing

Email this story to a friend

Anchor Lead: Saying goodbye is never easy. This School year marks the long goodbye for students, teachers, and staff at several Seattle public schools that will shut their doors this spring, for good. In the latest Learning Curve report, KPLU's Jennifer Wing looks at how two schools are handling this emotional change. While one building prepares to close, the other is getting ready to welcome the students who need a new place to learn.

Listen Now! MP3

Listen Now! Closing a School: Listener Feedback MP3

Full Story Text:

The first day of school is full of excitement and maybe a few wet eyes.

The tears usually are flowing from parents and children reluctant to part. But here, at Viewlands Elementary in North Seattle, Sheila McKinney, who works in the pre-school, is the one who is crying as she greets students and parents for the last time.

SM: I've done fourteen years of first days at Viewlands, and yeah, it's happy and sad.

Viewlands is a one-story building that's in desperate need of a makeover. Its poor physical condition is one of the reasons why it's being closed at the end of the school year. It's tucked into the side of a hill above Carkeek Park. Kae Peters, whose daughter is in the fourth grade, says it's easy to drive right by without noticing it.

KP: Truly no one knows. When you say "Viewlands," where is that?

When you say Carkeek park, next to Carkeek Park. Oh, that old hideous building? Then I say you have to come and look inside, then, it's just a hidden gem.

Viewlands is the school that finally got Peter's daughter, Sophie, to open up and enjoy learning. Sophie has Autism. She's enrolled in the school's highly praised program that has autistic students learning side by side with their peers in regular classrooms. Peters drives 25 minutes across the city five days a week to get Sophie to class on time.

KP: Everyone knows her by name. They give her lots of encouragement. Sophie, good job, oh Sophie you have such a beautiful smile. They have been nothing been nothing but encouraging. It breaks my heart.

What makes Viewlands such a tight knit community is its small size.

There are fewer than 200 students. That's a far cry from the 584 children that roamed the halls when the building first opened in 1954.

The downward trend mirrors what's been happening inside Seattle Schools for decades. Viewland's Principal Joanne Bowers has been trying to boost her numbers, but her efforts can't compete with the high cost of housing.

JB: I have one of the highest numbers of single parent families in my building, up 46 percent, 55 percent free and reduced lunch. Those factors make it so that my families can't afford to live in Seattle. And so they move to Shoreline or sometimes they move to skyway in Renton. It just depends on where they can find housing.

From her office overlooking the playground, Bowers can spot who's being naughty and who's being nice. She doesn't hesitate to use the intercom system to let students know she's watching.

JB: Good job out there with two square. You guys are looking good. Carlos I like that. Keep moving.

JB: I know everybody in this building I know everything about them. I know their families. I know what they're eating. And to me that's going to help them be successful. I truly believe 175 kids is right where it's at.

HF: There's no question people like their small schools. We understand that.

Holly Ferguson is an attorney for the Seattle School District.

She recognizes the appeal of only having 175 kids in a building, but argues the children in those schools are being short changed.

HF: This sounds crass, and I know that. People boo and hiss when we talk about money visa vi kids, but we're funded on a per pupil basis and we roll money out to schools on a per pupil basis. A school with 200 students cannot provide all of the services that the students need.

They don't have a full time librarian; they don't have full time nurses, counselors. I will not say that every school will have that after this closure, because that's not true. But we know that a school with 400 students can afford more services for students.

Broadview Thompson Elementary has more than 400 students.

It's a short drive from Viewlands. The building doesn't look like much from the outside, but inside, art covers the walls and the classrooms are big. The students navigate the bright hallways as they listen to classical music being piped through the ceiling. The school has full time everything: a nurse, counselors, a librarian, and a music teacher.

There's even a PTA for Spanish speaking families. This will likely be the new home for the kids at Viewlands.

(good morning Ms. Smart)

(sound of footsteps)

Jean Smart is Broadview's Principal.

JS: This is probably approaching the ideal environment for a school right now and it will only get better when the Viewlands people get here.

The new blood will be good for this school in many ways.

Like Viewlands, Broadview is also seeing a steady drop in enrollment.

The merger could ensure the school's future. A team of Viewlands parents meets every week to work on making the transition smooth.

But no serious decisions can be made until the school board officially approves the merger. A vote is scheduled for November 15.

For now, the plan at Viewlands is to have fun. The PTA doesn't have to do any fundraising. So the money it does have is being spent on creating happy memories through fieldtrips to places like the Puyallup Fair and throwing a carnival on Viewland's cracked playground where all of the rides will be free.

Jennifer Wing, 88.5 KPLU.