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Jane Tunks Demel

@janedemel.bsky.social
278 followers 324 following 153 posts

Ex-Seattle Hall Pass, K-12 education advocate, flawed blend of sweet and tart

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Reposted by Jane Tunks Demel
Beth Day @thebethocracy.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Beth Day wants to know, WHY DOESN'T A BOARD MEMBER WRITE A BAR THAT STARTS THIS CONVERSATION ABOUT TECH POLICY???
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The Bulletin @thebulletinsea.org · 10/03/2026
NEW: At long last, the Seattle Public Schools board is reversing the adoption of the widely disliked SOFG governance model and bringing back proper oversight of district finances and operations. Here's how:
thebulletinsea.org
Issue 19 -- The School Board Begins Dismantling SOFG
SOFG is going away and committees are back -- but new controversy erupts over board fiscal thresholds.
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The Bulletin @thebulletinsea.org · 05/03/2026
Liveposting of tonight’s Seattle school board meeting is going on in this thread - thank you for posting it!
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Stephan Blanford’s questions a perfect example of all that is wrong with SPS.
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Stephanie on Bluesky @exantestephanie.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
I am at Block Table to see the new superintendent do a q and a with local politico Sandeep Kaushik!
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
How much money will it cost to send a school board director to the policy/legislative conference and is it a smart use of SPS's limited funding? How will it benefit SPS students?
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The Bulletin @thebulletinsea.org · 11/02/2026
NEW: At a recent work session spread out over two meetings, SPS board directors learned a lot about the district's finances -- and how new Superintendent Ben Shuldiner intends to lead. Article by @janedemel.bsky.social:
thebulletinsea.org
Issue 17 -- School Board Budget Work Sessions
Ben Shuldiner previews a new approach for SPS budgeting: direct, honest competence.
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Beth Day @thebethocracy.bsky.social · 07/02/2026
None of us avid School Board watchers will be at the board retreat, because none of us can go be in person all day, and the board/district has chosen to not provide remote access in this year of our gourd 2026. They will be discussing board governance, the board work plan, and strategic planning.
seattleschools.org
February 7, 2026 – Board Special Meeting: Retreat – Seattle Public Schools
If you are planning on attending this meeting in person and need interpretation support, please contact the Board Office (boardoffice@seattleschools.org) by January 30, 2026.
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
Direct quote from Rocky: “It begs the question: What are we doing?” Maybe he will tell us one day.
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The Bulletin @thebulletinsea.org · 25/01/2026
NEW: Big changes are coming to highly capable programs in Seattle Public Schools — including new cohorts in West and South Seattle. Julie Letchner recaps the board meeting HC update:
thebulletinsea.org
Issue 14 -- Board Gets Update on Highly Capable Program
Two new highly capable cohorts are coming to West and South Seattle -- but so are changes to identification practices.
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Beth Day @thebethocracy.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
I had missed that the SATP was going to be intro and action at the same meeting. That's extremely disappointing. I hope staff will get the materials up on the website well before the meeting. I would love to see the board put some guardrails around when intro and action at the same meeting was used.
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Stephanie on Bluesky @exantestephanie.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
I automatically like a 1) teacher who 2) does a PRR for his public comments
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Beth Day @thebethocracy.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
SPS Board Meeting plan for tonight: I have to pick up big kid at 4:15pm so might be a tad late. I will skeet until some time between 6 and 7. @janedemel.bsky.social will take over for a bit on the @thebulletinsea.org account while I get a break. Trying to make it a bit more tenable!
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Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 04/11/2025
The Stranger got one endorsement really wrong this year. As @lisarivera.bsky.social points out, they should have endorsed Sarah Clark for school board. Rivera, herself endorsed by the Stranger when she was on the board and a 2020 delegate for Bernie Sanders to the DNC, makes an excellent case:
thestranger.com
Guest Rant: The Stranger Got It Wrong About Sarah Clark
Former Seattle School Board Director Lisa Rivera says we got the candidate in her old seat all wrong.
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Northwest Progressive Institute @nwprogressive.org · 02/11/2025
Sarah Clark, Joe Mizrahi, and Vivian Song lead in their Seattle School Board races, while Carol Rava and Jen LaVallee are tied Though many voters are still undecided about their 2025 choices to oversee the state's largest school district, three of the candidates have leads in their respective…
nwprogressive.org
Sarah Clark, Joe Mizrahi, and Vivian Song lead in their Seattle School Board races, while Carol Rava and Jen LaVallee are tied
Though many voters are still undecided about their 2025 choices to oversee the state's largest school district, three of the candidates have leads in their respective races ranging from six to thirty-two points. For Position #7, neither hopeful has an advantage.
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 02/11/2025
Sarah Clark is leading by 6 points in the Seattle School Board race, and for good reason. She has a proven track record that Seattle needs right now. 🧵
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Sarah for Seattle School Board @sarahforschools.bsky.social · 02/11/2025
We’re up by 6 points! Thank you to @nwprogressive.org for polling the school board races and showing we’re leading going into Election Day. But many voters are still undecided. Please give me your vote - and get your ballots to a dropbox by 8PM on Tuesday! www.nwprogressive.org/weblog/2025/...
Screenshot of graphic that reads “Sarah Clark 30%”, “Kathleen Smith 24%”, and shows photos of both candidates
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Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 20/10/2025
You could read a lot of recommendations from various sources, and some of them might even be right. But you should trust the parents who were in the fight, who know this district inside and out, who know all the stories the media never covered...and vote for Clark, Mizrahi, Song, and LaVallee.
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Alex Wakeman Rouse @awakerouse.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
The Stranger hasn’t really covered SPS in years. They don’t regularly come to school board meetings or interview caregivers or follow the impactful issues affecting Seattle kids and families. Vote for Sarah Clark for School board!!! She’s *ON THE BOARD NOW* and doing great for students and our city!
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
I guess this means the Stranger prefers a Microsoft employee over an employee of the Chamber of Commerce? Let's remember which employer spent millions lobbying against the wealth tax. www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...
seattletimes.com
‘What are you doing to us?’ Microsoft throws its weight against wealth tax
To fend off WA taxes on businesses and personal wealth, Microsoft has spearheaded a lobbying campaign and pledged $1 million for a possible ballot measure.
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Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 17/10/2025
We need the Stranger to be good on public education. We need them to understand it, care about it, cover it, and make sensible, trusted recommendations about it. Right now, they don't. Vote for Clark, Mizrahi, Song, and LaVallee. And urge the Stranger to start taking SPS seriously. /end
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Beth Day @thebethocracy.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
FRIENDS DON'T LET FRIENDS VOTE EXCLUSIVELY THE STRANGER BALLOT. Vote for Clark over Smith for School Board. Clark has stuck her neck out over and over again publicly in a way that has over and over changed SPS policy. She knows the issues, has an excellent head start, and is a former SPS student.
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
@thebethocracy.bsky.social Here's a spreadsheet that show every high school already has 30-minute lunch. docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
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Stephanie on Bluesky @exantestephanie.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
All the high schools ALREADY had 30 minute lunches when they had one lunch. No change. This is an obnoxious red herring.
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Sarah for Seattle School Board @sarahforschools.bsky.social · 15/09/2025
I stand in support of students and families walking out today in protest. District administrators need to stop the split lunch proposal. Major operational changes like these need community discussion and board approval. 1/
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
Seattle Public Schools gives the same runaround for public record requests.
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Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 08/08/2025
We could reject austerity and double down on the winnable fight for a wealth tax in Olympia to fund our schools and other priorities. Or, we could wave the white flag as Liza Rankin proposes, and embrace austerity in public schools. I explain the situation here:
theurbanist.org
Op-Ed: Closing Seattle Schools Is Still a Bad Idea » The Urbanist
# Last week school board director Liza Rankin wrote a memo to her colleagues suggesting a major new round of austerity for the Seattle Public Schools that could revive a plan to close numerous schools...
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 06/08/2025
I was pretty darned close.
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 05/08/2025
School board: Sarah Clark, Joe Mizrahi, and Vivian Song all lead in their races.
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Senator Patty Murray @murray.senate.gov · 26/06/2025
I'm going to try and communicate with my Republican colleagues in a new way.
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Beth Day @thebethocracy.bsky.social · 19/06/2025
Here's an old map to visualize by area. Blue circles represent building capacity, the smaller orange circles inside them represent April 2024 enrollment. This is just elementary, I'd have to pull new data for middle/high, and I don't have access to my school account currently.
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Wes Mills 🥌 @oowm.org · 18/06/2025
*opens Bluesky* OK so let me see if I've gotten this correct: the 43rd LD Democrats have voted to remove Curby's endorsement of a school board candidate because one mayor wants to ban left turns while the other is at SCOTUS overturning rights from Ted Cruz.
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rondezvousWA @ronpdavis.bsky.social · 18/06/2025
Excellent thread! I support Vivian Song for Seattle school board in case anyone wonders. She is kind, progressive, practical, informed and brilliant. She also support the more progressive policy for school board—avoiding closures and Walmartification of schools.
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A Wong @awongpublic.bsky.social · 05/06/2025
Wow. This explains how 5 intersecting policies combine to have intersectional harm, sometimes doing the exact opposite of the policy's objective. Recent SPS advocacy pushed lot sof broad "magic bullet policy" which can backfire badly. Folks in SPS should read this for background. Good job Rebekah.
medium.com
An Analysis of Policies that Disproportionately Harm High-Poverty Students in SE Seattle
By: Rebekah Binns, former SPS teacher, current SE Seattle parent
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Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 17/05/2025
This is an excellent, damning criticism of Student Outcomes Focused Governance, the Gates Foundation-backed system rolled out in blue cities that's designed to strip school boards of their oversight and decision-making over schools. Progressives across America have been fighting this for years. 🧵
seattletimes.com
How did the Seattle School Board lose its way?
Come election time, voters should ask Seattle School Board candidates some hard questions about the dubious "Student Outcomes Focused Governance."
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Beth Day @thebethocracy.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
This has been the experience we’ve had as well. Usually it’s because they wait until the last minute to update enrollment, so recall a displaced teacher right before school starts, leaving the new school that hired them in the lurch.
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
That's Carlos del Valle. He is great, but I think the tech intern guardrail should be student-focused: how many students have operational computers on any given day. At my kid's middle school, you can only swap out for a new computer two hours a week (one hour each on Tuesdays and Thursdays).
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
More excuses from Sarah Prichett.
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
SPS's utmost HR goal is to hire no additional school staff after June. They prefer to wait until October and then move teachers around to different schools as needed, without making any additional hires districtwide. That's why 17 schools today are understaffed by at least 1 teacher.
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Lisa Rivera @lisarivera.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
Thanks for the correction, Beth. Was definitely not me. And you're right to Hmm. This is not okay behavior. SPS has a policy to prioritize STUDENT speakers; not students' parents, using their children to subvert the intention and spirit of that policy. Adults need to get in line.
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Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 07/05/2025
This is great news. We need Vivian Song back on the school board to help provide fiscal oversight, restore public trust in SPS, stop closures, and provide high quality learning for all kids.
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Alex Wakeman Rouse @awakerouse.bsky.social · 07/05/2025
So thrilled to support Vivian Song for school board! She has the financial expertise, knowledge of SPS, interest in collaborating to solve difficult problems, and belief that families and communities deserve honesty and transparency—this is all very needed to help oversee Seattle Public Schools!
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 02/05/2025
If only the @wadems.org had to power to fund these programs?
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South Seattle Emerald @soseaemerald.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
In our latest op-ed, South End parent and advocate Tammy Morales argues that Seattle Public Schools' decision to freeze school choice waitlists — without community input — undermines equity and trust. Read the full op-ed here: soseaem.org/3EHZi85 #Seattle #SPS
southseattleemerald.org
OPINION | South End Students Deserve School Options Too
In an op-ed, Tammy Morales urges Seattle Public Schools to unfreeze waitlists and expand options for South End students and families.
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Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 28/04/2025
The goal is to amply fund public education as the state constitution requires. If the percentage spent on K-12 goes up because overall state spending went down, that’s an accounting trick. We’ll look carefully at this budget too.
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 28/04/2025
Was the percentage actually increased? I would like to see this math.
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NY Times Pitchbot @nytpitchbot.bsky.social · 18/04/2025
While it is not true that I have autism, it is true that I pay no taxes. by Elon Musk
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Peter G @kingsigy.bsky.social · 16/04/2025
Wait, you don’t have to pay taxes if you’re autistic? What the fuck have I been doing each year then?
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Jane Tunks Demel @janedemel.bsky.social · 16/04/2025
What a dumb fuck.
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My Linh Thai @banglang.bsky.social · 02/04/2025
So Gov. Ferguson threatened to veto the budget the legislature are working on based on progressive revenue package proposed, are the people ready to ask him how he plan to keep schools open?!
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