Keep great public schools open. Schools anchor communities. Families need stability to plan years ahead. Closure threats weaken trust and push families away.
Closures won’t fix the budget. Other districts have lost students and funding to large-scale closures. Promised efficiencies haven’t fixed their budgets.
Make public schools work for everyone. Maintain academic excellence and support every learner. Keep families from every socioeconomic background invested.
School Board accountability
Who backed closures. Who pushed back.
The votes, the promises and the people making decisions about our schools. All seven current directors, plus everyone who held a voting seat in 2024–25.
Director · Board president during the 2024 proposals · 2019–present · Reelected 2023; term ends 2027 [1]
Backed closure plansJuly 30, 2025
Requested closure plans
As board president, co-sponsored the resolution directing Superintendent Brent Jones to prepare a plan for up to five closures. In July 2025, she again sought district restructuring and a smaller footprint, according to The Urbanist’s account of her memo. [26][20]
Governance & public scrutiny. Helped develop Student Outcomes Focused Governance with Chandra Hampson. The changes removed most standing committees; under her presidency, regular board meetings fell to one per month. That narrowed the scheduled forums for public scrutiny. [27][28][29][30]
Helped develop the governance plan that paused most standing committees. Permanent policy changes followed in June 2023. [27][28][30]
Backed a calendar with one regular board meeting per month, reducing scheduled public-testimony opportunities. [27][29]
Voted yes on requesting a plan for up to five closures. [8][9]
Joined the unanimous vote accepting withdrawal of the four-school proposal. [10]
Director · December 2025–present · Term ends 2027 [2][24]
Opposed2025
Opposed the 2024 proposals
In her campaign response, Smith rejected austerity closures, called them a last resort, and favored new revenue and enrollment growth over the next five years. [11]
Community & equity. Called for protecting services vulnerable families rely on and working with existing community and student organizations. [11]
Said the proposed closures would impose high costs on students for little expected benefit. [11]
Won District 2 with 53.18%, defeating appointed incumbent Sarah Clark, who received 46.45%. [16]
Board member-at-large · April 2024–present · Appointed, then elected in 2025; term ends 2029 [4][17]
Opposed2025
Opposed closures as a budget fix
His 2025 response opposed closures over the next five years and said they would not fix the budget. That followed his 2024 vote to request the smaller closure plan. [12][8][9]
Community & equity. Said any future closures must be community-driven and guided by student success. Favored expanding popular programs and directing resources toward students with the greatest needs. [12]
Voted yes on requesting a plan for up to five closures. [8][9]
Director · Previously represented District 4 · District 4 · 2021–Feb. 2, 2024 [18][23] · District 5 · December 2025–present; term ends 2029 [5][24]
Opposed2025
Opposed closures; alternatives first
Challenged the savings analysis and the harm to students. Said closures should be considered only after exhausting alternatives, including central-office changes, enrollment growth and state funding. [13]
Community & equity. Proposed community advisory groups with real influence, accessible engagement and additional resources for students with greater needs. [13]
Served with Hampson and Rankin on the committee that developed the SOFG implementation plan. Her 2025 campaign criticized how the model limited engagement and oversight. [27][28][13]
Resigned her District 4 seat amid questions about residency after moving. She was off the board during the fall 2024 closure votes. [18][17]
Returned through the District 5 election with 79.01%, against Janis White’s 20.62%. [16]
Board president · 2023–present · Term ends 2027 [6]
Backed closure plansNov. 26, 2024
Sought a smaller plan, then backed withdrawal
Pushed to scale back the mass-closure proposal and co-sponsored the resolution for up to five schools. Later supported withdrawal and acknowledged the damage to community trust. [19][26][10]
Community voice. Called for rebuilding trust with families. At her community meeting after withdrawal, she acknowledged that the closure process had failed the community. [10]
Voted yes on requesting a plan for up to five closures. [8][9]
Joined the unanimous withdrawal vote and met with constituents that evening. [10]
Elected in 2023. Her seat was not on the 2025 ballot. [6][16]
Director · December 2025–present · Term ends 2029 [7][24]
Strongly opposed2025
Opposed mass closures
Organized against mass closures with ATSS and pledged never to support them. Left room for an individual closure if it benefits students and the community and is thoughtfully planned. [14]
Community & equity. Called for acting on community feedback and correcting enrollment projections that, in her analysis, lead to understaffing at Title I schools. [14]
Campaign questionnaire distinguished mass closures from an individually justified, carefully planned closure. [14]
Won the open District 7 seat with 59.36%, against Carol Rava’s 40.28%. [16]
Former director · April 2024–December 2025 [17][24]
Strongly opposed2025
Voted no; opposed closures of any size
Cast the only no vote on the October 2024 resolution. Her 2025 campaign opposed considering closures for the next five years. [9][15]
Community & equity. Favored expanding access to distinctive programs and academic rigor, and involving educators, principals and parents in major changes. [15]
Voted no on requesting a plan for up to five closures; the resolution passed 6–1. [8][9]
Former director · Also known as Lisa Rivera Smith · 2019–Feb. 2, 2024 · Reelected 2023 [18][23]
Process concernsMay 22, 2024
Challenged the process and missing evidence
After leaving office, Rivera called for SPS to publish its analysis, engage students and work with families. Her prepared remarks were published by Seattle Schools Community Forum. [21]
Community voice. Pointed to earlier boundary changes developed with families as a model for genuine partnership. Asked SPS to provide childcare so families could participate. [21]
Resigned alongside Vivian Song amid residency questions after moving outside her director district. [18]
Prepared closure remarks but remained on the public-testimony waitlist. The published text documents her position, not a speech delivered to the board. [21]
Former director · Board vice president during the 2024 proposals · 2021–December 2025 [23][24]
Backed closure plansSept. 18, 2024
Supported some closures; challenged the timetable
Said some schools needed to close amid the district’s financial crisis, while objecting to the rushed process. Later voted to advance the smaller plan. [19][8][9]
Public accountability. Questioned the rushed schedule and resisted pressure to decide without adequate preparation. [19]
Voted yes on requesting a plan for up to five closures. [8][9]
Former director · 2019–December 2025 · Appointed, then elected in 2021 [23][24]
Backed closure plansSept. 18, 2024
Required a student-outcomes case
Said the district needed to show how closures would improve academic outcomes to win his support. Subsequently voted to advance the smaller plan. [19][8][9]
Educational benefit. Asked SPS to demonstrate educational gains for students before seeking support for closures. [19]
Voted yes on requesting a plan for up to five closures. [8][9]
Three of the four candidates recommended by All Together for Seattle Schools won. ATSS emphasized opposition to closures and partnership with families. Its fourth pick, Sarah Clark, lost to Kathleen Smith, who also opposed the 2024 closure proposals. [25][16][11]
Certified results · Share of votes cast, including write-ins
December 2025 analysis identifies the Hampson–Rankin–Song committee and describes the committee and meeting reductions. Used alongside original SPS agendas.
Current director
