After years of experimentation in devolved local control of its public schools, Seattle has been left with a patchwork of mini-systems, some of which thrive, but many of which struggle to meet increasingly complex student needs. What can we learn from one school district’s long experiment in decentralization?
In this episode of 16:1, we talk with Vivian Van Gelder, Director of Policy & Research at the Southeast Seattle Education Coalition and lead author of Left to Chance: Student Outcomes in Seattle Public Schools, A forensic history. Her work offers a rare, clear-eyed look at how district leadership, funding, and accountability decisions ripple out to impact classrooms and communities. Vivian’s work prompts valuable questions about organizational values, educational leadership, and how systems fail and succeed for our students.