Shoreline School Board announces three finalist candidates for the next Superintendent of Shoreline Schools
Friday, April 16, 2021
After a nationwide search, the Shoreline School Board has announced three finalist candidates for the next Superintendent of Shoreline Schools.
School Board President Meghan Jernigan said,
“We are incredibly excited to bring forward three outstanding candidates for Shoreline Superintendent, each of whom are student-centered leaders committed to equity and academic excellence.
"We look forward to the upcoming candidate forums, and want to thank the community for participating in this process.”
The three finalists are:
Dr. Kristina Bellamy
Director of K-12 Teaching and Learning
Anchorage School District
Anchorage, AK
Dr. Concie Pedroza
Chief of Support Services
Seattle Public Schools
Seattle, WA
Dr. Susana Reyes
Assistant Superintendent of Operations
Pasco School District
Pasco, WA
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| Dr. Kristina Bellamy |
Over the last 20+ years, Dr. Bellamy has served public school systems in several capacities to include: substitute, classified staff member, teacher, principal and district administrator. She holds two Masters degrees (Elementary Education and Educational Leadership), and a Doctorate of Education Leadership and Policy Studies, from the University of Washington.
Widely regarded as a tenacious advocate for students, and a culturally responsive leader who motivates and inspires others to action, Dr. Bellamy has been actively engaged in helping to shape policy, practice and culture through her various roles. As a systems-thinker, she is committed to her charge of expanding adult capacity to handle adaptive challenges, while driving equity-focused inquiry and action. Kristina is the proud mommy of a 5-year-old son. They reside in Anchorage, Alaska.
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| Dr. Concie Pedroza |
Dr. Pedroza is a state expert on all issues of PreK-12 education. She has served on OPSI’s Bilingual ESSA workgroup, Student Day Taskforce, Reopening Schools Washington Operations Taskforce and most recently as the Chair of the Bilingual Education Advisory Committee to Superintendent Reykdal. Her commitment to anti-racist actions with attention to centering family and student experiences are central to her work in schools and in every position that she has served. Dr. Pedroza earned her Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies and Doctorate in Education Leadership from the University of Washington.
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| Dr. Susana Reyes |
The three finalists will be interviewed by the School Board on April 27-28. Each finalist will also hold an open community forum via Zoom webinar.
You can submit questions for the finalists’ community forums here. Questions must be submitted by Monday, April 26 at 5:00pm.
The open community forums are limited to 500 attendees each and will be recorded and posted to the school district website the day following each forum.
Below is the schedule of open community forum webinars, log in information and a link to submit questions.
Dr. Kristina Bellamy
Tuesday, April 27 – 8:00-9:00 pm
Zoom link:
Dr. Kristina Bellamy
Tuesday, April 27 – 8:00-9:00 pm
Zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84209497964?pwd=dzdrZUVOUzVpWWRUU0MyWG1KL2VPdz09
Webinar ID: 842 0949 7964
Passcode: 348357
Dr. Susana Reyes
Wednesday, April 28 – 5:45-6:45 pm
Webinar ID: 842 0949 7964
Passcode: 348357
Dr. Susana Reyes
Wednesday, April 28 – 5:45-6:45 pm
Zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82630697118?pwd=RU5scTBHTUpXSU56N2xrb09xN09tdz09
Webinar ID: 826 3069 7118
Passcode: 780241
Dr. Concie Pedroza
Wednesday, April 28 – 6:45-7:45 pm
Zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87959753654?pwd=TWhpTllHZURvbVRKcjM2SEhhT1J4Zz09
Webinar ID: 879 5975 3654
Passcode: 447667
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82630697118?pwd=RU5scTBHTUpXSU56N2xrb09xN09tdz09
Webinar ID: 826 3069 7118
Passcode: 780241
Dr. Concie Pedroza
Wednesday, April 28 – 6:45-7:45 pm
Zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87959753654?pwd=TWhpTllHZURvbVRKcjM2SEhhT1J4Zz09
Webinar ID: 879 5975 3654
Passcode: 447667
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1 comments:
In 1994, I graduated from Shorewood High School. A year later, unincorporated King County with a Seattle address became the city of Shoreline, a strategic maneuver to retain the excellence of our beloved public-school system and avoid annexation by our urban neighbor to the south. My parents moved into our Richmond Beach neighborhood to raise their 4 daughters with the benefit of attending Shoreline Schools. 50 years later, they enjoy watching their 12 grandchildren receiving similar benefits.
Our story is like many of yours, who like me, chose to move back to our roots for the sake of our children’s education. Shoreline Excellence is a brand name and it draws new families who want better for their children. This excellence comes with a sizeable price tag with soaring property prices and taxes. But we invest and we entrust our children to our district and their governing board. As constituents, it is our duty and our right to hold this system accountable to Shoreline Excellence.
This past week, following 3 months of compiling constituent survey data and Zoom focus group input, of which I extensively participated, the school board presented 3 candidates for additional review and public forums this coming week. The three candidates hold mid to upper level district leadership positions from vastly different school districts, all of which are much lower performing than Shoreline. None are seated or former superintendents and none have experience in similar districts to Shoreline.
Stakeholder input is impossible, after repeated failed efforts to reach out to School Board Directors directly and active participation in live focus groups. The events this week are a showcase rather than interactive events. While the invitation to submit questions for the candidates was made (and taken) I have no confidence that when I tune in on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings that I will hear my questions addressed. The decision has clearly been made for us.
Shoreline ranks in the top 7% of school districts in the state of Washington. Candidates from Pasco (ranked in the bottom 89% of Washington school districts), Seattle (top 26% of Washington school districts) and Anchorage (top 20% of Alaska school districts) were the only candidates deemed excellent according to the school board. While Pasco is of similar size to Shoreline, both Seattle and Anchorage are 5 times the size of Shoreline with very different challenges and successes. With no demonstrated record of success in elevating outcomes at the district level, these candidates do not match the criterion put forth by the board during the selection process.
For compelling and fact-based reasons, I respectfully request that our school board, incorporates stakeholder input into their decision-making process. I have requested this directly of school board directors and my requests are left unanswered. If you believe in Shoreline Excellence and in transparent input that reflects the needs of your child (ren) and the reason you love living in Shoreline, I implore you to speak up and be heard. After all, as Dr. King told us, “The time is always right to do what is right”.
Why should my opinion matter? Why should your opinion matter? Our opinion matters because these are our children and they matter. This decision is much larger than a clear school board agenda and it is larger than what any one person wants. There are lots of neighborhoods where I could live with my four school aged children, but I chose Shoreline, because of what I was given here, because of what I gave and because of what has been promised to my children. How many other cities exist because of their schools? Our schools, our children, are the heart of Shoreline and we all owe it to them to be good patrons of that heart. We demand Shoreline Excellence and a school board and superintendent that will push our excellence forward.
Join me in holding our School Board accountable.
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