By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium
As Seattle Public Schools (SPS) continue to grapple with a budget shortfall, its impact is being felt across the district. One school that is feeling the impacts of SPS’s budget problems is Cleveland High School, where supporters are voicing concerns over the district’s decision to limit the school’s enrollment, a move they say will diminish educational opportunities and cut essential resources.
At a recent SPS school board meeting, Cleveland teachers, students, and parents spoke out against capping enrollment at 660 students, despite the school typically serving around 1,000 students per year. The funding reduction that accompanies lower enrollment is expected to increase class sizes, reduce course offerings, and eliminate teaching positions, leaving students with fewer academic choices.
“I’m here because SPS is putting a cap on enrollment, and that means they want to reduce Cleveland’s enrollment to about 660 students when normally Cleveland has had about 1,000 students every year,” said Castalia Simon, a member of the Cleveland PTA. “That means less funding for the school. That means less funding for Running Start, and there will be a snowball effect. That means classes are going to be cut. Right now, there are three and a half full-time positions that are getting cut at the school. We need these classes. Fewer students put us at a competitive disadvantage.”
Supporters showed up in large numbers, demanding the district reverse its decision and allow Cleveland to continue serving more students. Many worry that the cuts will disproportionately affect students in STEM programs and advanced learning courses, which have been key components of Cleveland’s academic success.
A Cleveland educator, who asked to remain anonymous due to concerns about retribution, said the district’s budget decisions are creating a manufactured crisis that undermines student learning and forces schools into difficult choices.
“They have been capping enrollment at choice high schools for years—Nova, Middle College, and now Cleveland,” the teacher said. “It creates this manufactured crisis where the district doesn’t fund us enough to give students a full schedule and offer them the advanced learning opportunities they deserve.”
The teacher explained that the district’s funding model forces schools like Cleveland into a vicious cycle where underfunding leads to staffing shortages, which in turn reduces course offerings.
“We don’t have classes to put all of our students in—not because teachers don’t want to teach them, not because we don’t have students who want to take them, but because we aren’t given the funding to provide a full schedule,” the teacher added. “Then next year, they come back and say, ‘Look, you’re not providing students with a full schedule, so we’re cutting your budget even more.’ They are creating this crisis, and they are going to dismantle Cleveland and other choice schools just by telling this story.”
For students like Jeneal, a Cleveland senior, the uncertainty surrounding teacher cuts, larger class sizes, and reduced course options is already causing stress and frustration.
“As a student at Cleveland, it has been really great, but basically, it sucks that some teachers might be cut from our school,” Jeneal said. “It’s hard because there are multiple reasons why—class sizes will be bigger, teachers will have heavier workloads, and fewer classes will be available because we won’t have enough teachers to teach them. Students are feeling worried and stressed out about how their learning environment will change.”
She added that students in the International Baccalaureate (IB) program could be especially affected, potentially impacting their academic progress and future college opportunities.
“I don’t really like how the district is telling us what to do,” she said. “I’m not a big fan of capping enrollment. I practically call school a safe space, and them taking our teachers away makes people feel less safe.”
Cleveland is a choice school, meaning students from across the district actively choose to enroll, and hundreds remain on the waiting list each year. Simon worries that limiting enrollment will discourage future students from attending and weaken the school’s reputation as a hub for academic excellence.
“SPS is doing this to choice schools because we are not a neighborhood school—it’s a choice,” Simon said. “If students are willing to get on a waiting list to come to this school, why are they punishing us? Why are they punishing the kids when they are here to get a good education? They are supposed to have a good experience. SPS is defunding the school, and where are those resources going? It’s not fair.”
Source: Seattle Medium
