At Denny International Middle School, where two-thirds of the students come from low-income and immigrant families in the High Point, Delridge and South Park neighborhoods, test scores four years ago were among the district's lowest.

Just 28 percent of eighth-graders were meeting state standards in math.

By last spring, that number had jumped to almost 67 percent — a result, says principal Jeff Clark, of hard work by staff and students, and funding from the city of Seattle's Families and Education Levy.

The levy paid for an extended school day for struggling students, summer academic programs and math coaches who work with teachers to plan lessons, target instruction and review student progress.

"We really think we can give every student a ticket to the game — to graduation, college and the careers they have a passion for," Clark says. "But we need help to do that. The levy provides fundamentally important support to meet that goal."

Seattle voters are being asked to renew the seven-year Families and Education Levy. The $232 million measure, proposed by Mayor Mike McGinn and unanimously approved for the ballot by the City Council, nearly doubles the amount of the current levy.

It would cost $124 in 2012 for the owner of a $462,045 home, the Seattle average. That's up from $65 this year under the current $117 million levy.

Backers say doubling the amount allows proven programs to reach more students in need.

The levy would double the number of children getting support for early learning and kindergarten readiness, and add after-school and summer programs at 23 elementary schools with high poverty rates and for low-performing students at other schools. It also would add support for students transitioning from middle school to high school, and boost academic support and career and college planning for at-risk high-school students.

The levy also would continue funding for high-school and middle-school health clinics.

Opponents say 20 years of levy funding hasn't improved the Seattle Public Schools dropout rate, which is about 22 percent overall and 30 percent for African-American students, according to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. Nor has it closed the achievement gap, with just 13 percent of black and 24 percent of Hispanic students meeting state standards in 10th-grade math last spring compared with 68 percent of whites.

Further, they argue, renewing funding in the face of such results sends a message to the district that no meaningful changes — such as allowing principals to fire low-performing teachers — are needed.

Ballots in the all-mail election must be postmarked by Nov. 8.

Paul Guppy, of the Washington Policy Center, which supports charter schools, notes that the three previous levies have totaled $255 million. Add on the current proposal and Seattle residents will have spent almost half a billion through the levies to try to improve education.

"Whether it's this levy program or Seattle Schools, they're not delivering what they promised," said Guppy, who has debated levy supporters at several election forums in the city.

No organized campaign has emerged to oppose the levy.

In contrast, the Families — Yes! campaign had raised more than $276,000 through Oct. 27. Supporters include a who's who of Seattle business leaders, with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and his wife, Connie, donating $25,000; former QFC executive Stuart Sloan and his wife, Karen, giving $25,000; and Costco CEO Jim Sinegal contributing $20,000.

The measure also has been endorsed by the Municipal League of King County, United Way of King County, the YMCA of Greater Seattle, Seattle Police Officers' Guild, King County Labor Council and all of the city's Democratic legislative-district organizations.

The Families and Education Levy was first proposed in 1990 by then-Mayor Norm Rice and has been approved every seven years since. Initially aimed at out-of-school services for children and families, the levy since 2004 has focused on helping low-income and minority children whose academic achievement trailed their peers in other neighborhoods.

Supporters worry about the timing of the ballot measure.

A financial scandal that resulted in the firing of Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson in March raised questions about the management and oversight of the district. Felony theft charges were filed last week against the former manager of the district's minority-contracting program.

Supporters note that the city Office of Education, not the district, administers all levy dollars. It awards contracts based on competitive bids and measures results. During the current levy, it canceled two programs that weren't achieving objectives, said Holly Miller, director of the office.

Councilmember Tim Burgess, who served on the 24-member Levy Advisory Committee that recommended the current proposal, said the district moved quickly to address the problems. It removed Goodloe-Johnson, appointed an interim superintendent and turned over ethics investigations to the independent Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission.

"The school district is still fighting its way out of a long history of mismanagement, but they're aimed in the right direction and taking good steps," Burgess said.

He also defends doubling the size of the levy, saying the programs currently funded are showing results but reach too few children.

"The problems associated with failed education are massive. We felt we needed to step up and build on our successes," Burgess said.

Stefan Sharkansky, a conservative blogger, questions the funding and the results.

While the city administers the levy money and much of it goes to contracts with outside organizations, the city does contract with the district for some of the services — about $46 million in the current levy.

Sharkansky calls the academic gains at levy-supported middle schools "modest" and says of the levy as a whole, "It's appallingly ineffective and extremely expensive."

The proposed levy would expand investments in early learning by doubling the number of city-funded preschool slots for disadvantaged children from 350 to 700 and adding home visits and training for small, in-home day-care providers to get more children ready for kindergarten.

The measure also would extend the learning strategies now used at levy-supported middle schools to 23 elementary schools with high poverty rates, adding after-school and summer academic programs and social and emotional support for high-risk students. Miller cites research that students who aren't reading at grade level by third grade or doing math at grade level by fourth grade are at high risk for dropping out.

The current levy's biggest investment in elementary schools is a family-support worker who connects parents with community resources but doesn't directly support academic achievement, Miller said.

Another example of holding levy programs accountable for results, Miller said, is the school health clinics. Although levy dollars have funded clinics in high schools and some middle schools for 20 years, the city lacked evidence that the clinics contributed to academic success.

Between 2008 and 2010, the city worked with researchers at the University of Washington who found, in published, peer-reviewed articles, that moderate users of the health clinics had higher grades, lower absenteeism and higher graduation rates than students from similar backgrounds who did not use the clinics.

"For the funds we invest, the population we serve, we are making a difference," Miller said.

Lynn Thompson: 206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com

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