Seattle Council PTSA

08/31/2026

Our classrooms are more diverse than ever—and our PTAs should reflect that!

When families see themselves, their cultures and their languages reflected in PTA, they’re more likely to feel welcomed, valued and ready to get involved. Building a more inclusive PTA starts with making sure every family has a path to membership.

Language can sometimes feel like a barrier, but it doesn’t have to be. Many PTAs have volunteers who can help with written or verbal translation, making it easier to communicate with and welcome more families.

Did you know National PTA has a guide to help PTAs break through language barriers? It includes practical steps for finding and working with translators so you can make your PTA more accessible to everyone in your school community.

Because when we make room for every voice, we build a stronger PTA—and a stronger membership. 💙

https://www.pta.org/docs/default-source/files/runyourpta/2021/membership/breaking-through-barriers---final.pdf

08/31/2026

Last year, Seattle Public Schools had 707 students in LRE 3, the most segregated in-district placement for students with disabilities. Of those students, 38% were Black.

"LRE" is short for least restricted environment. LRE 1 is a lot of time (80%) in general education. LRE 2 is some (40% to 79%). LRE 3 is none-to-hardly (0 to 39%).

“Special education” is a collection of services, not a place. But for Black students with disabilities, it often means a place. And that is NOT with peers in the general education setting.

A request is going around asking community members to weigh in on negotiations between Seattle Public Schools and its unions. The request is specific to special education settings.

We don’t have a position on how Seattle should organize its staffing other than it needs to be sufficient to uphold student rights to least restricted environment and all staff should understand and use inclusive practices.

And that involves more than ratios. It means sufficient staffing – including OT/PT/SLP therapists, psychologists, and other professionals needed to provide special education services – AND focused work to end exclusionary practices.

When we design and resource to be accessible and inclusive, all students thrive.

Given the huge disproportionality of who is most segregated and excluded, we hope Seattle Public Schools addresses the issue with urgency.

Black students making up 38% of the most segregated placement – when they are just 15% of the student body – is incredibly problematic. It is an indication that unfounded fear and racial bias influence decisions around placement in Seattle schools.

Students should not be removed from peers because it is convenient for the staffing model. Nor should spending more time in general education mean losing access to support.

In our graphic, we break down the percentage of Black students in LRE 1, 2, and 3 in Seattle Public Schools. The data comes from the state’s Inclusionary Practices Technical Network. The IPTN supports school districts to dismantle exclusionary practices, focusing on Black students with disabilities and students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The Arc of King County is an IPTN member and provides assistance to families and schools. You can learn more about inclusionary practices here: https://ospi.k12.wa.us/student-success/support-programs/inclusionary-practices

You can access resources we created for the IPTN here: https://www.arcofkingcounty.org/advocacy/supporting-inclusionary-practices-in-schools
The Arc - Washington State Seattle Public Schools Washington Education Association Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) Seattle Special Education PTSA Seattle Council PTSA Southeast Seattle Education Coalition

08/30/2026

SCHEDULED NEXT WEEK: State Disability Forum, Monday, August 31 · 6:00 - 7:30 PM, Registration: https://bit.ly/StateForum2026

Disability is at the center of federal shifts in health, education, and human services. And we are staring down cuts here in Washington state. Join us for a disability community discussion with King County state and federal candidates and policy makers.

What supports, investments, and protections do you need? Join us for an important conversation.

State Disability Forum
Monday, August 31 · 6:00 - 7:30 PM
Registration: https://bit.ly/StateForum2026

Federal Disability Forum
Tuesday, September 15 · 6:00 - 7:30 PM
Registration: https://bit.ly/FederalForum2026

Both meetings will be virtual. For more information or to request accommodations, please contact: Pam Phillips at [email protected].

08/29/2026

Seattle Public Schools Start of School forms all in one place! Share with your families!

We have gathered some essential information to be ready for back to school.

08/28/2026

Exactly one week before nearly 50,000 Seattle students plan to go back to school, the union representing many of their teachers and educators voted to authorize a strike.

Late Wednesday night, members of the Seattle Education Association voted in favor of striking if a tentative agreement is not reached with Seattle Public Schools by the end of the day Tuesday. If no agreement is reached, a strike would begin the next day, Sept. 2, the district’s planned first day of school.

(✍️ Claire Bryan / The Seattle Times)

Read the full story here: https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/seattle-teachers-authorized-a-strike-heres-what-theyre-asking-for/

08/28/2026

🔹Union Bargaining/Strike Guidelines for PTA Leaders🔹
All PTA members, including officers, are individual citizens and can and should do what they believe is best for their children and family regardless of affiliation with PTA. However, individuals should follow National PTA and WSPTA guidance when representing PTA as an organization: https://scptsa.org/pta-leaders

➜ During A Strike PDF Guides for Leaders are available in: English・Spanish・Vietnamese・Somali・Amharic・Chinese

➜ Questions? SCPTSA is here to support. Please contact [email protected].

08/28/2026

🌱 New for LA 2026: Group Registration Rates!


Bring more voices from your PTA community and save when you attend together!


✨ Save $50 when registering a group of 3
✨ Save $100 when registering a group of 4


Legislative Assembly is stronger when more members are at the table. Grow your delegation, connect with PTA leaders from across Washington, and help shape WSPTA's advocacy priorities.


📅 October 16–17, 2026
📍 Cascadia College | Bothell, WA

ℹ️ Registration opens September 3

08/28/2026

Dear Community,

The Seattle Educators Association (SEA) voted for an overwhelming majority to authorize a strike last night. We want to remind families that we have been through this before.

・In 2018, SEA members voted to authorize a strike but came to a Tentative Agreement (TA) with SPS before school started.

・In 2022, 95% of voting members passed the vote to authorize a strike. The strike lasted for five days.

・In 2026, 91.5% of voting members passed the vote to authorize a strike.

This process obviously is not ideal for our families, but this is also a protected right of our nation and honors the process of collective bargaining. This news is received across the spectrum, from positive to negative, and maybe a little of both. We also want to acknowledge that a lot of our families have no idea that a strike will happen or how that impacts their families, work, and childcare support.

No one—not even one of us—knows what is happening in the bargaining room, and all the people in the bargaining room all likely have a different truth. The exhaustion of daily bargaining from 9am to 9pm can wear folks down and raise emotions. As second or third hand information is trickling into our space, it is important to take a moment to breathe, pause, and center ourselves in this moment.

Our PTAs and families are very vulnerable to either/or narratives, and the impact of these words will hurt. Both SEA members and SPS staff harm children. Both SEA members and SPS staff help children. We are living in a moment of multiple truths.

Every single child and their experience in this system cannot be reduced to a dollar amount, yet this is how we measure resources in our imperfect system.

PTA is about advocating to make every child's potential a reality. We find it helps to center and ground on that.

With a heartfelt reminder:

・Always pay attention to who is not in the room, who is excluded from the conversation.

・Consent always matters. Always. And that is particularly true when speaking on behalf.

・We WILL have school again, and we WILL need to find our path to being community again.

If your PTA is planning an event at school on or after September 2nd, we encourage you to find a backup location to honor the strike.

Guidance to help support your community in navigating a strike can be found in our Givebacks Files and on our website. These are translated in Spanish, Somali, Vietnamese, and Amharic. We will update the message as we receive new info from our translators in Chinese and Russian. Please contact [email protected] with additional language requests.

We can do hard things, and we do our best when we support each other.

With kindness and respect,
Seattle Council PTSA

All PTA members, including officers, are individual citizens and can and should do what they believe is best for their children and family regardless of affiliation with PTA. However, individuals should follow National PTA and WSPTA guidance when representing PTA as an organization. Questions? SCPTS...

08/27/2026

🎒 Gear Up for School: Back to School Event & Mobile Dental Clinic

📅 Saturday, August 29 | 10 AM – 2 PM
📍 Skyway Resource Center, 12610 76th Ave S, Seattle, WA 98178

🧥 Free coats, shoes, backpacks & school supplies (first come, first served)
🦷 Adult & child dental services (appointments preferred)
💉 Vaccines available

Hosted by Public Health Seattle & King County