My name is Leon Hall, I am a 12th grader currently enrolled at Edmonds-Woodway High School. I began my high school career at Roosevelt in fall of 2005. During my freshman year I ran for Associated Student Body Treasurer and became avidly evolved in promoting the new school which would open in 2006. As the new freshman treasurer I arranged tours, designed welcome back cards, and coordinated a welcome back ceremony. The new Roosevelt opened my sophomore year, though I was no longer an A.S.B. officer I still remained noticeably active among the Roosevelt community. I constantly provided tech support for teachers struggling with new equipment. As a Dj I hosted special school events, provided assistance at assemblies, and participated in Open Mic sessions after hours on campus. The new $98 million school commands respect among the student population. There is little vandalism, students enjoy studying on campus, and there is an abundance of technology that the students value. Unfortunately a Progresso Label over a Campbell’s Chicken Noodle Soup Can does not make it a better product. No matter how attractive a school is, the teachers and administrators who conduct business unprofessionally, ruin the quality of student education.
My freshman year I wrote a letter to the administration. The letter addressed my concerns about a particular teacher, and was signed by a number of students who recognized the problem. As a result, only one administrator took action by demoting the teacher. In spring 2007 this administrator was illegally forced out of her position by the Roosevelt administration which has now been replaced, and includes a new principal who is the youngest ever hired. Since then, this administrator has settled a lawsuit against the district and has proved their actions unjustified, winning a $600,000 settlement. Late in my freshman year my mother and father had been illegally evicted from the North Seattle home they had hoped to purchase. I would spend the remainder of my freshman year living in a Best Western on Aurora Avenue in North Seattle. Through the help of a co-worker who owned property in Snohomish County, I was able to help my family relocate to an apartment in Edmonds, Washington. An inter-district transfer agreement was accepted by Seattle Public Schools, which allowed me to continue attending Roosevelt my sophomore and junior years.
During the 2006-2007 school year, Seattle Public School officials realized they had enrolled too many incoming freshman at Roosevelt High School. The District compensated by forcing 29 students who were enrolled and on track to graduate, to leave the school in spring 2007. On May 7th 2007 I received an acceptance letter for continued enrollment at Roosevelt. About one month later on June 4th 2007, I received a letter denying my enrollment at Roosevelt. I was one of those 29 students who were forced to leave Roosevelt and these are the facts. The district was unjustified in their actions so I appealed their decision to the Washington State Board of Public Instruction. I represented myself in Washington State Superior Court, defending my right to receive public instruction at the high school I was accepted to in 8th grade. The same high school I should be graduating from this June in 2009. In October 2007, the federal judge ruled that Seattle Public Schools had a right to deny me public instruction based on my current residence. Actions like these are taken by individuals whose best interest lie in money and test scores. An educational institution must cater to the students who utilize the system, not the politicians who control it.