Three Seattle schools granted reprieve from closure

A divided Seattle School Board called off proposed school closures Wednesday night after four hours of heated public testimony.

The board wasn't even expected to vote on two proposed school closures until Nov. 1, but a majority of board members said Superintendent Raj Manhas' proposal was so ill-conceived and bound to fail that it wasn't worth considering for two more weeks.

The board voted 5-2 to table the proposal indefinitely. Board vice president Cheryl Chow and member Michael DeBell opposed the motion.

The sudden turnaround takes off the table two remaining proposals: co-locate Alternative School No. 1 in Summit K-12's building in North Seattle; and close Pathfinder K-8's building in West Seattle and move Pathfinder students into Cooper Elementary's building to form a new alternative K-8 school.

Earlier Wednesday, Manhas announced he was no longer considering closing West Seattle's Roxhill Elementary.

Chow called the long meeting — which included threats of civil disobedience, racial slurs and security having to twice drag one man from the room — "an embarrassment."

DeBell said the politically charged environment, with about 250 people in the audience, threatened the board's ability to deliberate.

"We cannot satisfy everyone's desire to save their school that they love so dearly," he said.

Speaker Raymond Williams said the closure process was "morally reprehensible, and I'm ashamed that my tax dollars are going to support it."

His two children attend Cooper Elementary, which would have shared a building with another school.

In July, the School Board voted to close seven schools for the 2007-08 school year, mostly by merging elementary schools. Those closures are expected to save $2.5 million a year.

Last month, Manhas recommended closing the three buildings, including Roxhill, to save an additional $1 million or so annually.

Throughout the closure process, many community members have been critical of the district's choices, pointing out that heavily diverse schools are disproportionately affected. Of the schools involved in this round of closures, Roxhill is the most diverse and enrolls the highest percentage of low-income students.

Christopher Robert teaches at Roxhill and his two children, a kindergartener and a third-grader, attend the school.

"I don't know what the tipping point was, but I'm glad they did the right thing," he said. "There's a real heart to this school, and I think that came out really clearly."

Emily Heffter: 206-464-8246 or eheffter@seattletimes.com