During this past year SSIA programs have reached more students, families and teachers than ever before!

• SSIA currently provides tutoring  in all seven schools, with 80 tutors serving over 100 students.
• To date, several hundred elementary students have participated in Debate Club, which has now expanded to middle and high school.
• Local businesses and organizations are volunteering to host students who gain real-life Work Experience.
• This year SSIA is hosting 12 Collaborative Conversations for teachers, staff and families, with topics ranging from Arts Integration to School Fundraising.
• SSIA facilitated and helped organize a cluster-wide advocacy effort during the recent capacity and school closure discussions.

As awareness of our programs and the benefits we provide increases, more people are asking: just who IS Successful Schools in Action, anyway?  In this newsletter, we've included a few SSIA FAQ's. Please visit our website at www.schoolsinaction.org for more information.

Q: Who, or what, is SSIA?
A: SSIA is a non-profit coalition of the seven public schools in the Queen Anne and Magnolia cluster and their 3,000 students, families, and staff. An Executive Director and four program managers comprise the SSIA staff, while our Board of Directors includes all seven school principals, teachers, parents, and community members.

Q: Why is an organization like SSIA important?
A: We believe that it is the responsibility of an entire community to help create strong public schools, and that strong public schools benefit everyone. SSIA is effectively changing the public school culture from one of competition and autonomy, to one of collaboration and community. As an umbrella organization SSIA is uniquely positioned to provide broad and enriching programs like Debate and Work Experience, Tutors for low-performing students, and Collaborative Conversations for teachers and parents.

Q: How is SSIA different than a PTSA?
A: Our goal is to complement, not supplant, the incredible work our PTSA's are doing. Our focus is on finding ways to support and work with all the schools so that they can learn from each other, leverage resources, and create opportunities for larger community support. Our partner school PTA's demonstrate their support through annual donations to SSIA.

 

Third Annual Breakfast Fundraiser

Q: How is SSIA funded, what is your budget, and what is it used for?
A: About half of our $100,000 annual budget comes from individual donations, and about half from public and private grants. SSIA is committed to allocating as much of our funding as possible to programs that directly serve students - approximately 95 cents of every dollar goes to program support. All five staff members work from home, keeping our overhead extremely low. All of our programs are provided at no cost to students.

Q: Are there other organizations like SSIA in Seattle?
A: SSIA is unique in Seattle, and provides an innovative model for other school groups. Powerful Schools, in the Rainier Valley, is the closest example and has served as an inspiration for our work. There has been strong interest in SSIA from other school clusters, and we'd love to someday help them create their own version of SSIA.