SPEAKER_06

All right, friends, we're going to get started in about 30 seconds.

So if you're getting a snack, that is great.

But if you could find your seat, that would be even better.

All right we are going to officially call this meeting of sorts to order.

This is a really bittersweet moment and I will spare you all my typical speeches but it is just a really interesting time in our district and it's a really special moment because we have what feels like several generations of board directors in the room tonight.

To be able to do this work requires a sense of vision, certainly a sense of values, but more importantly a vision of longevity.

And one of the critical aspects of this is having served in this role for four years at this point, I've been able to serve with board directors who have gone on to bigger and better things.

And I am very excited to welcome in a couple of new folks tonight.

And we've got some really big challenges ahead of us that are going to require all of your energy.

So I hope you have had conversations with your family.

But what I would just like to say is, As we say goodbye or see you later or see you at the podium to Director Harris and Director Hampson that knowledge that you have bestowed upon us is going to be critical especially given that our two new board directors are going to be starting in a very tumultuous time.

And I could not be more excited that those two individuals are going to be joining us up on the dais.

But that sense of longevity is really just present for me tonight.

And I know that it's present for even those who are returning to the board.

So with that being said, I am so happy to turn this over to our faithful leader, Superintendent Jones, to bring us all together for what is going to be a really fun couple of years.

SPEAKER_07

Thank you President Hersey's distinguished guests and members of our educational community.

Are you excited to be here.

All right.

Fantastic.

It's a great great pleasure.

I stand before you today to welcome you to the oath of the oath of office ceremony for our newly elected school board directors.

Thank you to everyone for being present for joining us to mark this beginning of a new iteration of Seattle School Board.

School Board number one and you notice we have number one because we are number one.

I want to extend my sincere congratulations to Gina Topp and Evan Briggs who are now entrusted with the responsibility of guiding our school district.

Now they are building on a foundation.

This board was the recent recipients of the Council for Urban Boards of Education Board of the Year National Board of the Year.

This board also brought forward a new student governance model.

This board also had two people elected with overwhelming majorities so that we can continue this work.

So they're stepping into a space where we are doing really well as a collective.

As they take the oath of office today, let us all recognize, as Brandon said, the weight of the responsibilities of our newly elected directors with their holding.

They know this.

They know how significant it is.

But we are going to bring them in and embrace them so that they can be as effective as we know they're going to be.

Serving on the school board is a commitment to shaping the future of our district, advocating for the needs of every student, and fostering an environment of excellence.

So without further ado, let us proceed to the oath of office.

a pledge that symbolizes dedication to excellence in education.

I'm going to hand it back to you, President Hersey, and we're going to start these oaths.

Thank you so much.

SPEAKER_06

All right.

So first up, I would like to invite my co-pilot, Vice President Rankin, forward.

Yes, it is OK to celebrate.

SPEAKER_07

All right, Vice President Rankin.

I, state your name.

I got you.

We got you.

SPEAKER_01

I, Liza Rankin.

SPEAKER_07

Do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_01

Do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_07

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

SPEAKER_01

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

SPEAKER_07

Promote the interests of education.

SPEAKER_01

Promote the interests of education.

SPEAKER_07

And support the Constitution of the State of Washington.

SPEAKER_01

And support the Constitution of the State of Washington.

SPEAKER_07

And will faithfully discharge the duties of a director of school district number one.

SPEAKER_01

And will faithfully discharge the duties of director of Seattle School District number one.

SPEAKER_07

King County State of Washington.

SPEAKER_01

King County State of Washington.

SPEAKER_07

To the best of my ability.

SPEAKER_01

To the best of my ability.

SPEAKER_07

All right we're going to go sign the paper.

SPEAKER_04

Thank you.

SPEAKER_07

And family that wants to take a picture with Director Rankin please do.

We're gonna do it up here.

We're going to do it right over here.

Director Rankin.

SPEAKER_99

Hey Liza.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm

SPEAKER_06

All right.

Next I'm going to invite up to the podium Director Rivera and Director Harris.

SPEAKER_05

Where's my script.

Your script.

Aye.

SPEAKER_02

Aye Lisa Rivera.

SPEAKER_05

Do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_02

Do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_05

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

SPEAKER_02

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

Promote the interests of education.

Promote the interests of education.

SPEAKER_05

Will faithfully discharge the duties of director of Seattle School District number one.

SPEAKER_02

And will faithfully discharge the duties of director of Seattle School District number one.

SPEAKER_05

King County.

King County, State of Washington, to the best of my ability.

SPEAKER_06

Hello.

There we go.

All right.

Next we are going to invite up newly elected director Evan Briggs.

SPEAKER_07

Speak your name.

SPEAKER_03

I Evan Briggs.

SPEAKER_07

Do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_03

do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_07

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

SPEAKER_03

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

SPEAKER_07

And the Constitution of the state of Washington.

SPEAKER_03

And the Constitution of the state of Washington.

SPEAKER_07

Promote the interest of education.

SPEAKER_03

Promote the interest of education.

SPEAKER_07

And will faithfully discharge the duties of director of Seattle School District number one.

SPEAKER_03

And will faithfully discharge the duties of director of Seattle School District number one.

SPEAKER_07

King County, State of Washington.

SPEAKER_03

King County, State of Washington.

SPEAKER_07

To the best of my ability.

SPEAKER_03

To the best of my ability.

SPEAKER_07

Thank you.

SPEAKER_06

We've got four papers that say the same thing.

All right.

And last but not least I would like to invite up newly elected director Ms. Gina Topp.

SPEAKER_07

I and state your first name or your full name.

SPEAKER_00

I Gina Topp.

SPEAKER_07

Do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_00

Do hereby solemnly swear.

SPEAKER_07

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

SPEAKER_00

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

SPEAKER_07

And the Constitution of the state of Washington.

SPEAKER_00

And the Constitution of the state of Washington.

SPEAKER_07

Promote the interest of education.

SPEAKER_00

Promote the interests of education.

SPEAKER_07

And will faithfully discharge the duties of director of school district number one.

SPEAKER_00

And will faithfully discharge the duties of director of Seattle school district number one.

SPEAKER_07

King County State of Washington.

SPEAKER_00

King County, State of Washington.

SPEAKER_07

To the best of my ability.

SPEAKER_00

To the best of my ability.

SPEAKER_07

Thank you.

SPEAKER_06

All right we have now reached the portion of the event this evening where directors will offer brief comments.

Liza I'm looking at you.

Five minutes.

Just kidding.

Just kidding.

Just kidding.

And we will begin with Vice President Rankin.

SPEAKER_01

All right.

Well as Brandon noted you all have heard me talk plenty so I I have I started writing some notes for myself and I got kind of.

I don't know overwhelmed and and stopped writing notes.

But I did want to start with an apology and a commitment and the apology that I have is to Director Song and Director Sardieu because when you all joined the board in 2021. I think we were so consumed with COVID and everything and you know half of us were only two years into our own terms.

I'm thinking back to that time and I really can't remember your onboarding process and that to me says that I didn't help with any of that of making sure that you felt welcome and included and had what you needed to participate and be successful.

And so on behalf of I think the whole board I just I really want to apologize for that because I think.

That didn't show our commitment to each other and it didn't set you up to be able to bring your full self and your full contribution.

And so my commitment is to Gina and Evan or excuse me directors Topp and Briggs that you're not joining our board.

where we have we are now the board.

We are now the board.

You all have the same role that any of the rest of us have and we're all here to support one another.

And I really want to be making a commitment to you now in front of everybody.

that any question you have, any support you need, we need to be able to model for our students what inclusion looks like and what it looks like to be welcoming to newcomers and to those who may not have been part of the group but now are.

And so my commitment, and I hope that you'll call me out if I don't meet this commitment, is to make sure that you have what you need from us and that you don't feel like the newcomers, that you feel like part of the board, which we are now the board.

So my husband isn't here tonight because he's in Dallas at the Seahawks game.

or getting ready, so speaking of commitment.

But you know what?

He has dealt with and supported me through an awful lot.

So I absolutely do not begrudge him his annual trip with his brother, who lives on the East Coast, to meet up at an away Seahawks game somewhere.

They do it once a year.

It just happened to be right now.

The game's actually tomorrow.

But my parents are here, and my two kids are here.

Mostly willingly.

And my kids have been coming here to the John Stanford Center since they were small enough to play in that back corner under the table while they were waiting for me to give testimony or meet with staff or talk to directors or something.

And if everything goes as it should.

In about three and a half years I will be handing a diploma to my older son Emmett as he graduates from Nathan Hill High School.

So from this to he's now got a couple inches on me.

That's how long our family have been coming into this room.

And I sort of part of what got me kind of overwhelmed and frustrated is that that is the whole childhood spent.

In tow coming here to advocate for kids in our community And that's a whole childhood waiting for students with disabilities to be served in classrooms with their peers.

And it's a whole childhood to wait for outcomes for black and native students to match outcomes of white students.

And.

I have the immense privilege of myself and my children having the luxury of that time and other people's kids and the kids that we're all here for do not.

And we can't a childhood goes so fast.

And we can't continue to deliberate and wait and hope that the district does something.

It's not to be a total downer.

I have good news and bad news and they're actually kind of the same thing.

which is that what I've learned in the time as an advocate and being on the board for four years is that it is completely within the power and control and authority of the board to push the system to do better.

That's also the bad news because it's actually up to us.

And it is we are the board is the ultimate authority According to state law and on behalf of our community we are given the authority to act as the representatives from the community.

And if we don't do our job in governance nobody else is going to fill that spot.

There are so many different things that pull board directors in all kinds of directions and they feel really important and they are really important.

But just like back in 2021 when we let COVID pull us.

and didn't bring in our new colleagues as fully as we could have there's always going to be a reason not to stop and wait and make sure that everyone has what they need and that we're bringing everybody in.

And so now I'm going to try not to start rambling here my notes run out.

That that's what we're all here to do.

And that's what in this term now that I know from the first term of all the deal derailments all the distractions that I fell to that I sometimes probably caused because something seemed really important.

Those all took us away from our primary purpose which is to ensure on behalf of the entire community that our school district lives up to the expectations that we also set for it.

Nobody else is going to do that job.

Nobody else is going to say this is what we expect.

This is how we're going to measure success and then do it.

It's all on us.

So I just I thank my family for being willing to let me do this a second time.

And I think board directors past and present for the work that we're doing on behalf of kids and to not get so like heavy.

I'm actually really excited.

I'm really excited to have this clarity and to have more and more people joining in and understanding the need for that clarity.

and the way that we can claim our power as the board on behalf of our entire community and really get clear in our demands on what we expect as not the like smackdowners of the district but the leaders of the district.

It's actually and the three student board members too.

We're in charge you guys.

It's totally totally totally up to us and I'm really proud and grateful to be able to have this opportunity to be able to move forward the work from those that came before me and to have the colleagues that I do have as we go forward.

Thank you.

SPEAKER_06

All right, next up we're gonna have Director Rivera.

SPEAKER_02

Hi, again.

Hello.

So I've been told I have five minutes.

Apparently, I can talk about whatever I want.

So yeah, that's fun, I know.

But if you know me, you know that that's pushing it for me.

I don't usually find enough.

I don't have enough to say that I feel like is worth taking five minutes of people's time.

So I talk quick.

I'm going to try to slow it down.

And I'm going to try to use this as well as I can, because honestly, I believe that less is more.

But I already feel half a minute, I think, so I'm doing pretty good.

But really, when I thought about what I can share with you during this time that is all mine to say what I want and read, no, I'm not going to do anything.

Too outlandish, but I do want to, I thought that what I should probably start with doing, because I don't really remember how this went four years ago, honestly, but I should probably introduce myself.

My name is Lisa Rivera.

I am four years older than I was four years ago, and I feel like a whole lifetime wiser.

This job will do that to you.

The people we work with are constantly pushing you and encouraging you and working with you to be your best self.

And part of that is knowing who you are.

probably seems weird to introduce myself, because a lot of you probably feel like you know me enough.

And do you?

And do I?

Because, again, four years ago, I think I spent most of my energy trying to decide, am I Latino?

Am I Hispanic?

Am I Chicano?

And I usually just landed somewhere on Mexican-American, because I was comfortable and easy.

But what I didn't do, I think, both actively and passively, was Identify as native.

Because I am.

I am Comanche and Tarahumara.

But like many natives I grew up disconnected from my culture because some people in this country worked very hard and very deliberately and very intentionally to separate my ancestors from their language and their cultural practices their religion.

So as I work to reclaim my heritage and my identity.

I'm very thankful for the love and support of the native community I found in the Urban Native Education Alliance and I was especially honored this past summer to have been recognized as their advocate of the year.

I got a blanket just like you guys exact same one actually so we all match and I'm But I know there's a lot more there's a lot more advocacy to be done.

I was very honored to have that but I know that there's a lot more advocacy not just for our native students but for our next students for our Asian students and for all of our students who need a voice at this table that ultimately steers this huge ship of SPS.

So I will try to do that in my term because we only get a really short amount of time.

Four years sounds like a lot but it goes by so fast.

And so we have a very short amount of time to make a big big difference.

And I am excited to be joining you all on this journey.

Thank you.

SPEAKER_06

Director Pinkham.

SPEAKER_03

Hey everyone, thanks for being here.

I also wrote something, and I don't think I'm really gonna use it.

But don't worry, I'm gonna keep it short.

So when I was driving over here, I was remembering making a video for Chandra Hampson when she was campaigning four years ago.

I'm a filmmaker, so I make videos for people a lot.

And I remember meeting with Chandra and seeing all the things she was doing, and I was like, wow.

That's really cool of Chandra to be doing this because like I would never want to do that.

And here I am.

So that's really funny.

And also as I was getting ready to come here with my trusty Netflix notebook that's been my note keeper throughout this campaign journey, I found a piece of paper, all the pages are falling out now, and it's from one of the first days Chandra and I were meeting together to like, it's time for you to do this.

You have to file, you have to do other things.

And so I found this page that just really brought me back.

It says file PDC, F1, King County elections, King County Democrats questionnaire, policy ideas, 250 word bio, voter's guide statement.

It's just like this laundry list of things that I remember like Chandra fire hosing at me that needed to get done like ASAP.

And I was like, OK, OK.

And that was in May.

And now it's November.

And that never stopped.

It never stopped.

And I know that.

That marked the beginning of a huge adventure which was the campaign and that's over now.

And now this marks the start of a whole new adventure which is doing the job.

And I know that we are entering as director as President Hersey said a tumultuous time for the district.

And that's very real.

There are real challenges that that we're facing.

But I actually feel really.

optimistic about the future because I really think that we're going to I think we got this.

And I think a huge part of the reason for that is because of a lot of the work that Chandra director Hampson previous director Hampson has done to lay really important groundwork along with the rest of the board.

for creating a structure and a governance model that will allow us to be as effective as we possibly can.

And I was very inspired by Chandra's, the way she explained to me how, why this was important.

And the way she explained how this actually helps all of our relationships function better.

And as a relationship person, I can say that I really believe that any system is really only as good as the relationships that undergird it.

And we have an opportunity now to reorient ourselves to the idea that we are all all of us board district staff families community.

We are all on the same side for kids.

So I'm all on board for that.

I'm ready to go.

And I also want to thank my family who has has really been awesome.

And Chandra, too.

I'm an emotional person.

I'm really so grateful for all of you.

And I also want to acknowledge how much respect and admiration I have for anybody who has ever done this job.

And so I would actually love if all the people who are current past anybody who has ever been in this role could stand up so we could give you a standing ovation because it is it's it's hard.

I haven't even done it yet and I know it's hard.

So come on everybody.

OK.

That's it for me.

Thank you.

SPEAKER_06

Director Harris.

SPEAKER_00

Well it is an honor to stand before you this evening as a newly sworn in Seattle Public Schools board director.

This journey has been possible really because of the support of my family mentors and the incredible community that I'm ready and excited and proud to serve.

I do want to say a few thank you's first to my mom.

She is a public school educator 34 years and has taught me the value.

The transformative value of education and really that education is the foundation of our democracy.

So thank you mom.

And then there's my sister who's only year two being a high school math teacher.

But her strength and resilience and the fact that she goes back every day is inspiring to me.

So I want to thank her as well.

And my husband and daughter who are here.

Oh playing in the back.

She's the little two year old.

She reminds me.

She reminds us every day, really, our things we do now, the work we do now, the impact we have on the future, the impact and the decisions we make now impact our future greatly.

And we have to put in the work in order to get the outcomes we want.

I'm really excited to work with this new board and these leaders and excited that I get to join and feel fortunate that I get to join a board that prioritizes equity.

I can't wait to get to work with you guys.

When's our first meeting?

In like a week?

Yeah, and I think last I just want to acknowledge the educators and the staff and the administrators who are the backbone of this system, who make this place work.

I look forward to partnering with you and working with you.

Thank you so much for your commitment to our students' futures.

I can't say enough that I'm excited to get to work helping to make sure that each and every student is excited to go to school each day and has the opportunities to thrive.

So thank you.

SPEAKER_06

To offer a few closing remarks.

Superintendent Jones.

SPEAKER_07

That's that's right.

So the place I go on Sunday Sunday mornings that that's required.

So nonetheless I'm just grateful that we have a full complement of board members.

I'm excited about where we're going to go.

We know that this road that we have is going to be a little rocky.

We know that right.

Nod with me.

But we have a clear plan.

We have we have a cohesion around what we're trying to do.

This is the first time I believe that a board and a superintendent have been getting along.

And is that that's worthy of something right.

And so to Directors Topps and Briggs, thank you for signing on.

I think you all are coming on with your eyes wide open.

Thank you for doing this.

You're going to be added additions to this.

And think about this as a relay race.

So we had Directors Hampson and Harris handing you all the baton.

And so we're going to just continue to build on that.

It's not something where we're going to cut and replace.

It's building as we go forward.

And then as I read your resumes and what you bring to the table, your passion, your expertise, this is going to be added to what we're trying to do.

So thank you so much.

And I just want to thank all of you here families in advance.

Your loved ones who are board members are going to have some nights where they're going to be staying a little later than they expected.

They're going to be contributing in ways they didn't know that they were going to be contributing.

And we're just again grateful for that.

We're also grateful for our student board members.

These folks are extremely sharp.

They really guide us in terms of understanding what we need to do next.

Board members would you agree with me on that.

Yeah.

Absolutely.

And so at this time I'm honored to present the school board for Seattle Public Schools.

So board members please come up.

So this is an opportunity for us to take a picture, and with all the new board members, and we're gonna move this out of the way, and then that will be the conclusion of our ceremony tonight.

We're gonna do it again.

SPEAKER_04

I'm sorry I took away the colors.

I was gonna say, why y'all didn't have the students do it?

Y'all can do it.

SPEAKER_02

You're right.

SPEAKER_04

You know they got the angles and stuff?

What?

That's funny.

They gonna have you look.

She gonna look at you.

She got the angle and everything.

I already told you.

And I can see it from here.

It's cute.

All right.

Time for cake.

SPEAKER_99

All right, got it.

Yeah.

Yeah.