Two of these finalists will join the Seattle School Board next week

The eight finalists vying for two open spots on the Seattle School Board explained on Wednesday night how their experiences, perspectives and backgrounds — from science, education, business, tech, marketing, the arts and nonprofits — made them well-suited to join the board.

The vacancies opened up in February after residency issues forced two members to resign. The openings come at a time when the district is focused on stabilizing a long-term budget deficit and closing achievement gaps. 

The board will select the new members next week.

Candidate Shawn Sullivan, a tech entrepreneur and the chief technology officer at GT School, an ed-tech company, touted his leadership qualities. “I know a decent amount about something that’s going to be an upcoming challenge for the district, which is artificial intelligence, and what that [is] going to mean to teachers, to students, to families.” 

Sullivan and the seven other candidates fielded questions from Semai Hagos, a Ballard High School senior and the multicultural club president, and Aayush Muthuswamy, one of the School Board’s student members and a Lincoln High School senior. The forum was held at Lincoln High.

The candidates were asked why they sought the position, how they would advise the superintendent on the ongoing budget challenges, how to improve student and community engagement and the School Board’s role in district governance. 

The two School Board seats opened last month when Vivian Song, the District 4 director, and Lisa Rivera, the District 2 representative, jointly resigned over questions about where they lived. The District 2 seat, which covers Ballard, Magnolia, Phinney Ridge and Green Lake, attracted nearly a dozen candidates. Four people applied to serve in District 4, which covers Fremont, Queen Anne, South Lake Union and a portion of downtown.

In addition to Sullivan, District 2 candidates include Sarah Clark, the director of policy at the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce; Danielle Gahl, a consultant at Adiutrix Consulting; and Carol Thompson, an associate director of data integration at the Allen Institute.

The District 4 candidates are Gabriela Gonzalez, the chief data officer at Boatsetter, a boat rental company; Joe Mizrahi, the secretary-treasurer of UFCW 3000; Rachelle C. Olden, a senior product marketing manager at Google; and Laura Marie Rivera, a writer, teacher and performer who ran for the seat in 2021.

Gonzalez said she entered the race because public education had been a transformative force in her life and she wanted to give back. Gonzalez said she’s an example of the type of student the district refers to when it uses the phrase “furthest away from educational justice.” 

“I don’t think [I’d] be here today, if it wasn’t for the support of the school, and everybody around me,” she said. “I want to help in solving some of those problems as well.”  

Rivera said she wanted to create a safe, welcoming environment for all students, and draw more attention to students with disabilities, many of whom remain unidentified and do not receive accommodations to help them succeed. 

“Oftentimes, these students are designated as stupid or lazy or not trying,” Rivera said. “But the truth is that they are trying; their brain simply doesn’t work the same way as a typical student. … Invisible disabilities are very real. Just because we’ve avoided helping students receive a diagnosis and proper supports does not mean that their disability will go away.”  

Olden, who also has a nonprofit background and worked for the District of Columbia Public Schools, said that even amid the budget deficit, the district has to invest in educators to ensure that they were “best in class” and engaging in activities that had the highest return on investment. 

She said it’s important to listen to educators, parents and students during the budget process to ensure that the board is making well-informed decisions, and that even with budget cuts, the district has to expand opportunities for students. 

“Our students aren’t exposed to the plethora of opportunities that are out there — whether it’s in STEM education, whether it’s in the arts,” Olden said. “So how do we expose them so that we can open up their minds and open up their dreams? Because that will spark them wanting to learn, that will spark them wanting to come to school.” 

Gonzalez said the district should be open about pending budget cuts. 

“A lot of people are OK with short-term pain, as long as we know there is a long-term solution, or longer-term solution, that’s going to take us away from that short-term pain,” she said, adding that the district must also explore ways to raise revenues. Increasing enrollment will be a focus for her, she said. 

The district should approach the budget challenges as an opportunity, not a crisis and do so with a growth mindset, Thompson said. It should seek to preserve the “gems” in the system as it makes tough decisions, she said.  

“We can’t be cutting things so badly that we hobble the school district and chase away more families,” Thompson said. “We have to be thinking about how we grow. We have to prioritize the core mission of academics and make sure what we are doing will have really good outcomes … that will support the academics.”  

Two questions centered on engaging students and communities, especially traditionally marginalized groups. The candidates acknowledged that students have important perspectives to share, and are a critical source of information.

Olden said a guiding principle for her would be the question “WWSD?” or “What Would Students Do?” She said she’d shadow students to see what it’s like to live their lives, whether it’s to learn what happens when they are late for school or have to leave to take care of a sibling.

Mizrahi said that his work in labor organizing has taught him to think about the voices that are centered, to spend time with people and to listen. 

“If you spend time with people, and if you actually listen to the things that they care about, you will learn so much,” he said. “One of my favorite questions to ask people is, ‘If you could wave a magic wand to your work, what’s one thing that you would change?’ Or just what do you love about your job?”

Clark said she supports the district’s plan to rotate School Board meetings throughout the community andget input from those who are unable to attend. As a board member, she’d think about when meetings are held and the opportunities that stakeholders have to participate. But she would also hold office hours in schools in her district and across the city to gather a range of perspectives.

“We all know when we do what’s best for marginalized communities and meet their needs, everyone else benefits automatically,” Clark said.  

Gahl said the question boiled down to how board members can serve people who are different. From her own work, she learned that “you have to go to people’s turf and you have to meet them on their terms.” 

“You have to show up even if it’s something that’s not a formal event,” she said, “It’s also important once you’re there to listen, learn, empathize, and support.” 

Thompson said the board should also look at newly marginalized groups, not just those who have been traditionally excluded. Asians are a growing demographic group but they made up the largest group leaving Seattle Public Schools, she said. 

“We need to understand why they are leaving and why they don’t feel supported as well,” Thompson said.

The School Board will select the two new members at its April 3 meeting and administer the oath of office on April 4.