All Montlake PTA members and families have a powerful opportunity to:

• Learn about the policies that affect our students and all students in our state and district
• Use our voices to Advocate for leaders and policies that will best serve students in our district

Every voice is important. Join us in helping make our education system the best it can be!

Here are some resources to help you Learn and Advocate. If you have questions, suggestions, or want to get further involved, reach out to us!

LEARN

These are a few resources we think are helpful for understanding how SPS and Washington State Education policy and funding work:

• The Seattle Hall Pass Podcast is hosted by two SPS parents and covers news and conversation about Seattle Public Schools. Many of the episodes are informative. The "2024 Legislative Session begins" episode provides a helpful overview of key issues being considered in the 2024 legislative session. 
• Washington State PTA (WSPTA) has some helpful resources on their website including on their main Advocacy and Resources pages.
• 2022 Citizen’s Guide to Washington State K-12 Finance
• Seattle Times Education Lab is a helpful source for local coverage. 
• All Together for Seattle Schools is a new parent-led coalition, separate from local Seattle PTAs, that has formed to advocate for transparent communication from the district and for increased school funding from the state legislature. They share a variety of resources about SPS and WA State school funding on their website here. 

ADVOCATE

There are many different ways, big and small, to use your voice to advocate for our students and schools. Even quick actions to send a form email or register support for a bill that truly take less than 1-2 minutes can really make a difference! So please consider joining us in using your voice - our students are counting on us.

The following resources highlight some advocacy priorities and wins and ways to advocate, but to stay up to speed on the latest opportunities in an evolving landscape, email us at advocacy@montlakepta.org and we can let you know what's opportunities are high impact right now!

Current/recent advocacy priorities and actions:

• Fully funding WA public education: Addressing critical gaps in education funding is a key issue. WA state's investment in K-12 education as a percentage of gross state product has consistently been below the US average and is dropping. Districts are limited in how much they can make up this gap, and this is a real challenge for the SPS budget. 
  • TAKE ACTION NOW! As the WA State Legislative session enters its final days, you can still voice support for Stabilizing School Funding with state-level action. WSPTA makes it easy to send a message to your State Senator and State Representative here. 
  • Some of the funding bills still in play in the current leg session would increase the special education enrollment funding cap, fund provision of adequate student transportation, increase school staffing models to better meet student needs, and increase state funding for operating costs in schools. 

   

• Seattle Public School Board - 2 Open Positions: Due to the recent resignations of Directors Vivian Song and Lisa Rivera, the school board has two open positions it will fill by appointment as it prepares to tackle critical decisions in the coming months. Learn more and follow along...Seattle Hall Pass Podcast Episodes 26 and 28 covers recent developments including the school board vacancies.

• Washington State PTA maintains an updated list of Advocacy Action Alerts.  You can check out the page any time to see the latest advocacy action opportunities or subscribe for alerts or newsletters. 

Any questions? Want to get involved? Want to be notified of key action opportunities? Email advocacy@montlakepta.org