Editorial
School levy approval means accountability

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Seattle voters' approval of the Families and Education Levy is a reminder of this city's consistent support for schoolchildren. Voters have stepped up to the plate, now it's time for the city and the Seattle Public Schools to make good on a promise of strong and strict accountability.

Seattle voters are generous, especially when it comes to programs benefiting children. But the levy is not an entitlement program; it is an investment in our children. Citizens deserve to know if their investment is paying off.

The best thing about the $116.8 million levy on property is that it aims to report just that. The levy is chock-full of measures that will track how the money is spent and whether it is doing any good.

Programs deemed successful can be replicated, while those showing little promise can be eliminated and the dollars targeted elsewhere. Adjustments to programming may be required midcourse. The only way to know is with consistent accountability.

This is a dramatic shift from the past two seven-year levies when accountability was little more than a buzz word. There simply wasn't a strategy for guiding the levy dollars.

In some cases, administrators deemed a program successful merely because students showed up to participate. In one example, it was said two-thirds of those who attended a community-action camp "were more likely to play a leadership role at their school."

This new levy is primed to go beyond such dubious pronouncements. Money is set aside to measure the results and verify what works. A working document spelling out the responsibilities of the city and the School District adds clarity for all involved.

This is as it should be. Citizens serving on the Levy Oversight Committee must provide expert and community input, and another level of scrutiny. This is the kind of transparency and clarity the levy sorely needs.

Citizens made the connection between raising academic standards and creating a readiness-for-school strategy that gets children over the bar. Everyone should expect that this time around we are able to see what we're paying for.