SARAH clark said no to
closing seattle schools
Sarah Clark is your District 2 advocate neighbor who stands up for our students. Sarah is here to make Seattle Schools better.
MEET SARAH.
Meet Sarah Clark - she grew up in Seattle, went through Seattle Public Schools herself, and now serves on the school board where she's fighting to keep our neighborhood schools strong. Sarah knows schools aren't just buildings - they're the heart of our communities. When others pushed for school closures, Sarah stood up and said we need better solutions. She listens to families, looks at the evidence, and focuses on what actually works for Seattle's kids. Instead of rushing into closures, she's all about finding creative ways to keep our schools open and make them better for every student, no matter their background or needs. She's not afraid to challenge the status quo, especially when it comes to keeping our neighborhood schools alive and thriving.
DEEP SEATTLE PUBLIC SCHOOL ROOTS
Sarah Clark is a product of Seattle Public Schools, having attended from kindergarten through graduation. Her journey through APP (now HCC) and involvement in sports, arts, and music gave her firsthand experience with both the district's strengths and areas needing improvement. As an aunt to students currently in Seattle schools and a neighbor to many SPS families, she understands how today's students and families experience our education system.
POLICY EXPERTISE THAT MATTERS
With a master's degree in education policy from the University of Washington and experience leading the Children's Alliance Early Learning Action Alliance, Sarah brings deep policy knowledge to the board. She has successfully navigated complex educational policy challenges, including helping pass House Bill 2568, which created alternative pathways for experienced childcare providers to meet education requirements. Her background enables her to analyze proposals thoroughly and ensure decisions are grounded in evidence.
PROVEN COALITION BUILDER
Sarah's strength lies in bringing people together to achieve real results. As the leader of the Early Learning Action Alliance, she transformed a deadlocked coalition into a unified force by meeting individually with stakeholders, understanding their needs, and crafting solutions that worked for everyone. She applies this same collaborative approach to her school board service, working across differences to address crucial issues like budget challenges and school safety while ensuring community voices are heard in every decision.
MORE ABOUT SARAH
Appointed as Seattle School Board Director in April 2024
Education: Master’s in Education Policy, University of Washington
Current Zip Code: 98117
Seattle Public Schools Attended: Madrona Elementary, Washington Middle School, Garfield High School
Favorite Activities as an SPS Student: Orchestra (Violin), Basketball, Cross Country, Mountaineers’ Club
Dog’s Name: Edna Mae
SARAH’S VISION FOR SEATTLE SCHOOLS
Sarah Clark ran to be appointed in District 2’s vacant School Board seat in Spring 2024 because she saw a void in common sense leadership and felt called to drive education reform for Seattle’s children. Here’s what she considers primary priorities for Seattle Public Schools and the Seattle School Board:
SEATTLE SCHOOLS MUST BE SAFER FOR STUDENTS
Seattle Public Schools must be safer for students. Students can’t succeed while threatened with physical and sexual violence; the Seattle School Board must prioritize short- and long-term ways to improve student safety in schools. But these efforts can’t ignore a student’s social and emotional safety. Seattle Public Schools need to invest in common sense opportunities, like increasing social worker presence and returning student access to programs that are emotional safe havens, like music and the arts.
SEATTLE SCHOOLS MUST REACH FOR REAL EQUITY
Since before Covid, Seattle’s entrenched School Board has centered their decisions on a narrowly defined version of equity, using it to push school closure plans and end programs like highly capable cohort schools. But achieving equity for our students farther from educational justice includes recognizing (and advocating) for student groups whose commonalities are beyond race. Students with different learning needs, like special education students (with IEPs or 504s), highly capable and advanced learning students, and English language learners, are all under resourced and often ignored by the School Board’s typical policy.
SEATTLE SCHOOLS MUST BE MORE TRANSPARENT
During this year’s school closure debacle, both Seattle Public Schools and some of the Seattle School Board demonstrated an unfathomable lack of transparency with its families and the greater public. The district needs to be held accountable to providing comprehensive plans that address the specifics before expecting family buy-in. And both the School Board and district must rebuild trust with families and the public by offering more access to their activities, by seeking more opportunities for two-way communication, and by demonstrating what the feedback they hear is valued.
Make an impact today
Your donation helps Sarah Clark change Seattle Schools.
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Sarah Clark was the first School Board Director to publicly speak out against the disastrous school closure plan.
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