AN ORDINANCE relating to the Seattle Preschool Program; approving an Implementation Plan as required by Ordinance 124509 and Resolution 31527; amending the tuition model in the Action Plan adopted by Ordinance 124509; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts.
The Report of the Education and Governance Committee Agenda Item number two Council Bill 118363 relating to the Seattle Preschool Program, approving an implementation plan as required by ordinance 124509 and Resolution three one 5 to 7. Amending the tuition model in the action plan adopted by Ordinance 124509 and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts. The committee recommends the best the bill pass as amended. Thank you very much. This is the culmination of about two and a half years of work where we've been working on implementing high quality preschool in Seattle and the first classrooms will open this next September. I remember very much at the very beginning when we were working on the Families and Education Levy renewal in 2011. We realized then that we should invest much, much earlier, even before kindergarten, with our three and four year olds. And so we set on this journey. We took a study mission, and several of you went with us to the East Coast, to Boston and New Jersey. In Washington, D.C., we read the literature. We brought researchers here who sat with us at the committee table, and we engage the community parents, preschool teachers, the school district, active participant with us, preschool providers, a long list. Hundreds of people that we talked to and and engaged with over the last couple of years about what could Seattle do to make sure that every child entered kindergarten ready to learn and have a successful education path. And last November, the voters of Seattle, 69.2% of them said, yes, we want to invest in our children. We do live in a great city. And Councilmember Clark, you're going to miss doing this kind of work because we actually move the needle here to make a difference for our kids. So this legislation adopts the implementation plan, all the specific details about what we need to do to get ready in September and for the next four years to run this pilot project. And then we'll be back probably in year three to figure out how do we make this permanent? How do we fund it going forward? Special thanks to Holly Miller and her team. They're sitting back here from the city's Department of Education and early learning lots and lots of hours that you all put in. And we deeply appreciate that work from you. Questions or comments? Just just one more. Member of Bancroft. Council, President Burgess, I really want to thank you for your leadership on this. It's been really it's been impressive for me to watch how thoroughly how deeply you have dived into this. And I really want to also say thank you, Holly Miller, and your team. For me, it's been great to participate and to learn what you have had to teach us. And I'm very enthused not only about the opportunity that every child in the city of Seattle is going to have to be ready to learn. We're ramping up on a program, which is a good way to do this. And I also want to acknowledge the fact that we had many teachers and administrators here suggesting to us that what the teachers need to be successful are to have the mentors, the coaches. And that is something that everybody has said over and over again. I'm very supportive of that. And again, Council President Burgess, thanks for your leadership. And I'm all in. Yeah, thanks. Please call the roll on the passage of the bill. HARRELL Lakota High. O'BRIEN All right. RASMUSSEN All right. So want back shot, all right. CLARKE Hi, Gordon and President. Burgess Hi. Nine in favor and unopposed. The bill passes and the chair will sign it. Thank you. Please read items three, four, five and six. Agenda items three through six. Appointments 51 through 54. Appointments of William Chen, Saadia, Hamid, Ruth Kgi and Jonathan Pranab as members, families and Education Levy Oversight Committee for terms of confirmation to December 31st, 2018, the committee recommends all appointments be confirmed.