Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell

When is the last time you’ve attended a High School graduation? Last month I had the pleasure of celebrating the academic achievements of Seattle’s 2009 high school graduates. It was an incredible experience! Superintendent Maria L. Goodloe-Johnson, Ph. D., and I spoke at or attended several high school commencements, including Ingraham High School and Garfield High School. I participated in Roosevelt High School’s rehearsal exercise and attended O’Dea’s commencement services at St. James Cathedral.

We are living in a time when less than 7 in 10 American students graduate from high school in four years. Our Council was recently briefed on the graduation rates of the Seattle School District and what was very interesting is how, using the exact same data and representative class, the graduation rate significantly changed depending on the methodology used to track it. For example, in looking at Washington State’s graduation rates for 2006, the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) deduces the graduation rate to be 48.6%. At the same time, the National Governors Association Compact’s rate was 52.9%, and the Cumulative Promotion Index (Ed Week/Swanson) rate was 62.6%. However, the Manhattan Institute’s (Jay Greene) rate for this class was 74.4% and that is the rate most commonly used. According to Mary Beth Celio from Northwest Decision Resources, her study concluded there was a 66.5% graduation rate. Again, these rates are based on the same graduating class of 2006. What is critical about Mary Beth Celio’s presentation is that it is possible to identify the warning indicators and tipping points for failing students. Race, gender and free or reduced lunch status can only predict 11% of future dropouts. What are more indicative factors are middle school unexcused absences, early “F” grades, and whether they enter Seattle Public Schools as late entries. By using these early indicators, we should be able to significantly improve our intervention strategies.

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My news release today announcing the 19th Annual Youth and Law Forum on Saturday, April 18, 2009.

Effort Intended to Empower Seattle’s High School and Elementary Students to Make Well-Informed Career and Life Choices

SEATTLE—City Councilmember Bruce Harrell announced today that as many as 300 youth will participate in the 19th Annual Youth and Law Forum, to be held on Saturday, April 18th, 2009 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the First AME Church, Seattle. Councilmember Harrell has participated in the Forum since it began in 1990. This year’s theme, “Law and Order”, will focus on teaching young people how to better understand the judicial and law enforcement fields from the very people who serve in them, as well as educate youth on court procedures and their legal rights and responsibilities.

“This city-wide Forum provides youth an excellent opportunity to build their confidence and to make well-informed decisions about their career path and life choices,” said Harrell. “It can be a first step in positioning Seattle’s youth for today’s challenging and diverse job market.”
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On March 26, 2009, Mayor Nickels and I celebrated the magnificent drawings done by the students at Madrona K-8 Elementary School. Students in Ms. Letta Baker’s class were asked to develop images of their three favorite historical figures. They developed images of President Obama, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and President Abraham Lincoln. The top seven pictures have been on display in my office at City Hall since March 20, where onlookers and viewers have been amazed. On March 26, these paintings were transported to the Mayor’s floor for another viewing, where people were equally impressed with the work.

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