Education

Former Seattle Public Schools manager Silas Potter faces 33 new felony theft charges for allegedly embezzling more than a quarter of a million dollars from the district.

A Seattle Public Schools spokeswoman says former Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson died Wednesday at age 55.

Thomas Jefferson was a deeply political man who viciously fought for his beliefs, but he was also flawed. More than simply accepting slavery, Jefferson benefited from it in many ways — though, through the language of the Declaration, he may have set in motion its eventual disintegration. We hear more from Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jon Meacham ("Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power") about how this contradictory president wielded power and influence, and how he shaped America’s evolution.

Seattle Public Schools has released new aggregate student growth ratings that will be now used as part of some teachers' evaluations. The ratings reflect how students did on state and district tests from one year to the next and factor in students' poverty levels, learning disabilities and English language proficiencies.

Many teachers in Seattle Public Schools will learn today how they rank on a new scale based on student performance. They’ll be rated by how their students’ test scores changed from one year to the next. Teachers with high ratings may qualify for bonuses or promotions. Teachers with low ratings will get closer oversight.

The charter school initiative appears to have passed. The first charter schools would likely open their doors in Washington next school year, at the earliest. Here's the countdown of what's next.

In January the State Supreme Court ruled that Washington has not met its constitutional duty to fund K-12 education. Representatives Gary Alexander and Ross Hunter serve on the Ways and Means Committee, and they discuss what steps the House is taking to fund basic education.

The charter school initiative has passed by a narrow margin, according to the Associated Press. The vote stands at 50.8 percent to 49.2 percent. That's a difference of about 44,000 votes. Statewide, 269,000 ballots remain to be counted. The No on 1240 campaign Facebook page says campaign managers won't consider the race over until every vote is counted.

Seattle Public Schools will ask voters for property tax levies worth $1.2 billion in February. The school board unanimously approved renewals of the capital projects and operations levies Wednesday night.