Politics
Seattle school closure plan, due Tuesday, still doesn't add up
The savings are small, and the closures seem arbitrary, but still the sense of panic over a budget gap is driving the plan.
Dick Lilly
Dick Lilly is a former Seattle Times reporter who covered Seattle neighborhoods, City Hall and public schools during 14-years with the paper. From 1999 until his retirement in 2015, he worked for Seat
Latest work
Politics
School closures: let's get more cards on the table
It's become a trade off between cutting staff positions and building closures. The teachers' union quietly comes out for closures, but we still don't know enough about the options to judge well.
Politics
Closing schools: blaming the victims
A lot of the rationales for closing Seattle school buildings don't hold up. Often the reason for closing the school is the choice of the district to neglect that very school.
Politics
Seattle neighborhoods need more, not fewer, schools
Parents love Seattle's K-8 schools, so here's how to have fewer closures and create new neighborhood elementary schools.
Seattle & King County
Careful which schools you close
If it's in a neighborhood with lots of renters, many of those families and schoolchildren will quickly leave.