We’re in for a treat at our next membership meeting on Wednesday, August 19th! We’ll be hosting a panel discussion on K-12 education issues, both statewide and in Seattle. Our panelists are:
- Reuven Carlyle, State Representative and Chair of the House Finance CommitteeRepresentative Reuven Carlyle is a Queen Anne resident and serves as chair of the House Finance Committee and on the Appropriations Committee. A central focus of his work in the legislature has been fighting for tax reform and to fully fund the state’s paramount duty of public education. As a budget negotiator, Rep. Carlyle pushed for over $1.3 billion in new funding for education state wide, cost-of-living increases for educators, and took an active role in levy reform deliberations. He recently helped lead the Seattle Legislative delegation to secure $25 million in the capital budget to address Seattle Public School overcrowding. He and his wife Wendy Carlyle, M.D., have four children in Seattle schools.
- Eden Mack, Legislative Chair for the Seattle PTSAEden Mack is a Seattle native, returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV), and a long time sustainability policy and programs analyst/consultant. As a proud mom of 3 kids in Seattle Public Schools she has recently become deeply immersed in education, fair revenue and school facility capital funding advocacy and currently serves as the legislative chair for the Seattle Council of Parent, Teacher and Student Associations as well as the chair of the Youth, Schools, and Education Committee for the Seattle City Neighborhood Council. She is also a Precinct Committee Officer in the 36th District Democrats. She would admit that she is a bit of a public policy junky (Master’s in Public Administrations from UW’s Evans) with a love of cultural intersections and working on complex puzzles (both the two dimensional kind and the public policy kind). She currently lives in the Magnolia neighborhood in Seattle.
Some possible topics for discussion may include:
- The Washington State Supreme Court’s order fining the state $100K/day until the state fully funds education and the possible actions the legislature may take in response
- What it means to “fully fund” education
- How the legislature can reduce reliance on local levies
- The role of the Seattle Council PTSA
- The Council’s advocacy and legislative priorities and their progress on these priorities
- The capacity challenges facing Seattle Public Schools.
It’s going to be a enthralling dialogue. We hope you can join us!
