My state representative, Eric Pettigrew (D-37), has been a vocal advocate for charter schools, arguing that traditional public schools are failing our children. Pettigrew is now also a prime sponsor of a bill in Olympia that would split the Seattle school district in two, arguing that distant administrators are failing our neighborhood public schools. And so given his obvious disdain for Seattle Public Schools, one would imagine that Pettigrew must have had a truly horrible experience sending his own children to school in the district:
Pettigrew said the district has gotten too remote to pay attention to all its schools. He sent his kids to Catholic school because he doesn’t trust the public ones in his area.
“When I looked at Seattle Public Schools, I wasn’t willing to take the risk,” Pettigrew told The Associated Press.
Oh. So Pettigrew doesn’t actually have any hands on experience at all as either a parent or a student in the Seattle Public Schools. Yet he just “wasn’t willing to take the risk” of sending his children to the same neighborhood school where I chose to send my daughter for seven years.* Which I suppose makes Pettigrew a much more loving and responsible parent than me. Either that, or it makes him a knee-jerk, fear-mongering elitist who thinks that his kids are too good for the schools where most of his constituents send their children.
Actually, here’s what I really think is going on here: Psychological projection. As an elected official, Rep. Pettigrew is understandably self-conscious of his decision to send his kids to private school—maybe even a little embarrassed. And so he is justifying his decision—at least to himself—by projecting a crisis upon a district whose schools he never even gave a chance.
* For the record, my daughter attends Mercer Island High School, where her mother now lives. Divorce is complicated. But we loved Graham Hill Elementary, and I’m pretty sure Eric’s kids would have been happy there too.
Unfortunately Rep. Pettigrew is joined by Ed Committee Chair Sharon Tomiko Santos, as well as Rep. Reykdal of Olympia and Rep. Magendanz of Issaquah. Don’t know about you but I have heard no discussion in the community about this issue. Also note that the bill has an “emergency clause” so it could not be brought to referendum by the people directly affected, the voters, students, and teachers of Seattle.
Please leave your comments with your legislators and tell them this is the height of hypocrisy when it comes to democratic values. Call 1-800-562-6000 for the toll free hotline.
He is way to conservative for the district he represents and is not acting in the district’s best interest.
I have no objection to a Catholic family choosing parochial schools for their children, but people unfamiliar with public schools shouldn’t be making policies affecting public education.
Look, choosing a parochial school for one’s children is a right any parent must have.
But WTF is a person who is not committed to public schools doing (mis)representing his constituency which predominantly either cannot afford the same choice or simply chooses public schools?
#idiots …. and that applies to the electorate who allowed him, once again, to retain his position representing us.
Pettigrew is funded by Money Tree, too.
Thank you for the information, Pat Griffin. This is all very disturbing. Individuals can comment on this bill-here.
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/
tons of parents send their kids to private schools.
are they all elitist?
it’s true many are better off. Are they all stupid?
all for public schools, but it seems a bit just ornery to get all hostile to parents who choose otherwise, in states with more charter schools TONS of poor parents choose the non public school option, too. so I guess they’re all racist african americans, and elitist, too.
here’s a better take: in fact most private schools are better schools. successful folks know this. and they have the money, so they pay the property taxes then pay tuition on top of that. now, you want to cal them elitist and racist and what not, what can I say, bill gates went to lakeside, you saying bill sr. was racist? what? it’s an incredibly lazy cheap shot. pettigrew doesn’t trust the seattle schools to do the best job, and look, you don’t have to have a kid there before you can make that conclusion. people make judgments like this all the time. it all sounds a bit defense the “hey all parents choosing private schools are just racist” charge. stupid, really. I go to a private gym, does this mean I am racist, I am sure the local public swimming pool is more diverse, but frankly the gym has a newer pool and offers towels andisn’t a building 60 years old with dank concrete floors, I guess I am an elitist racist, or maybe just I have $600 a year and choose to spend the money this way.
@7 You (maybe intentionally) miss the point. I’m not dissing Pettigrew for choosing to send his kids to Catholic schools. I’m dissing him for relentlessly disparaging Seattle Public Schools without ever giving them a chance. He’s free to send his kids wherever he damn pleases, I’d just wish he’d stop justifying his choice by hyping up a public school crisis that doesn’t exist.
There’s no crisis at SPS. It’s underfunded and overcrowded, and it is not fully equipped to serve the high needs (immigrant, ESL, low-income) children in the Southend. Are there administrative issues? Sure. The overcrowding is partially a problem of the district’s own self-destructive school closure process (which was goaded on by legislators). But it’s not in crisis, and the only dramatic reform it needs is dramatically more money. Throw another $1,000 a student at the district and things get a helluva lot better very fast.
Most of the time the case for private schooling is facially unsupportable by the reasons offered.
Consider: Presume I’m a parent motivated by a sincere desire to give my school age child every possible advantage. I have before me many options. But behind those options lie some fairly basic facts. The state and the SSD is offering to spend about $9000 per year on my child’s education and offering me free enrollment. Elsewhere various private for-profit and not-for-profit entities are offering what they insist is a superior product (despite reliable studies refuting that claim). But they also offer to charge me anywhere from $9000 to $25000 per year for that product. Now let us assume that I have determined that I can spend up to $12,000 per year to maximize my child’s educational experience. Would it make more sense for me to turn aside the SSD offer entirely, and enroll my child in a private school for $12,000? Or would my child and I obtain greater educational value, overall, by accepting the SSD’s gracious offer and then spending the $12,000 on additional education and experiences, tutoring, extra resources, etc? $12,000 can go a long way when you consider it in that light. But very few private school parents do.
Why? What is their motivation for rejecting a free $9000 offer entirely? I would submit that most of the time they are not motivated by their stated reasons.
New bill filed late Friday afternoon HB 2048 is revised and still splits districts over 35,000 students (and of course Seattle is the only district affected). It does not contain the emergency clause, but has no provision for public input by the 600,000+ people affected by this change. Hearing is Tuesday, Feb. 10, at 1:30 pm. Only two business days between filing and hearing. Think someone is trying to put something over on Seattle? I also understand that this bill is like others being introduced around the country – a robobill. Shades of ALEC?