Bellevue Schools

Stakeholders Summit
Wednesday, June 1, 2011 - 6-9 p.m.
Bellevue City Hall Council Chamber

The Bellevue Schools Stakeholders Summit will provide a public forum for sharing ideas to help propel
Bellevue Schools’ tradition of excellence into the future.

While BSD provides ways for constituent voices to be heard through vehicles such as strategic planning
community forums, district committees, local PDC groups and PTAs, not all groups with a stake in Bellevue
excellence are heard through those means. This community-driven public forum will provide a way for
additional stakeholders to listen to each other, share information and be heard by everyone from the BSD
board and cabinet members to local elected officials. We believe it is essential for this forum to take place
outside of BSD auspices to ensure all voices can be heard by BSD leaders, as wide-ranging input and feedback
from stakeholders are powerful tools for change.

Our goal is to create a community action committee for excellence in Bellevue Schools to spread success and
identify areas for improvement.

Moderator and Chair: Marianne K. Jones, attorney.

Ms. Jones and her husband Pat grew up in Clyde Hill and attended Bellevue Schools. They have six children of
their own and are the guardians for 2 other children – all of whom attend, or have graduated from Bellevue
Schools, except for the one who’s still in preschool. Ms. Jones has practiced law for nearly 20 years as a civil
trial attorney and maintains her office locally in Bellevue. She was the moderator of the 2008 School Board
Candidate debate at City Hall. Ms. Jones is an advocate for excellence in education, and believes that open
community dialogue is fundamental to maintaining and improving our outstanding public schools.

Format:
Each representative will be given 3 minutes to present what his or her group considers the strengths of
Bellevue Public Schools and what areas exist for improvement. Specific ideas for bringing about the desired
change are encouraged. One minute will be allowed for clarifying questions and responses. A 15 minute open-
microphone will follow for one-minute presentations, and moderated discussion at the completion of all
presentations. This forum will be open to the public.

If you would like to participate in this summit, please complete the attached form and submit it to Marianne
Jones/BSD Summit BSDsummit@hotmail.com by May 20, 2011. Due to time restrictions, we can include at
most 15 stakeholder groups, which will be selected from completed applications.

Stakeholder Group Selection Criteria:

We will choose Stakeholder Groups based on the size and scope of their group, as well as the clarity of the
ideas they define and proposed initiatives and innovations. While time may not allow for all groups to be
included, we hope that those groups we are unable to include will bring materials to distribute for what
should be the beginning of an ongoing dialogue and sharing of ideas and information.

Selection Committee: Sharon Taubel, community activist, Jennifer Robertson, Bellevue City Council,
Marianne Jones, moderator, Melissa Lloyd, gifted education activist.
 Bellevue Schools
Stakeholders Summit
Stakeholder Application

Group/ Organization Represented Name of Representative to Speak at Summit

Contact Phone Address

Email Position in Org/Group

Description of Group/Organization including membership, area(s) of interest, goals.

Please respond to the following from the point of view of the group you represent:
List three strengths of Bellevue Schools:
1.
2.
3.
List three areas where Bellevue Schools can improve or issues that need to be resolved, citing specific evidence:
1.
a.
b.
c.
2.
a.
b.
c.
3.
a.
b.
c.
Suggest solutions, innovation or initiatives that would help BSD achieve the goal of excellence, providing specifics as possible.
1.

2.

3.
 Frequently Asked Questions

Who might consider participating?

Any individual or group wanting to share ideas about building on BSD’s tradition of excellence. Do you have
knowledge about successful practices used in other geographic areas? Knowledge about research results
you’d like to see put into action? Ideas about project or problem-based learning? Ideas about gifted programs
or use of technology? Parent or community engagement or involvement? Ways to use BSD facilities as
community centers? Sports in schools? Excellence in teaching? We are hoping for a broad discussion centered
on the issue of excellence, so if you think your ideas fall under that banner, we hope to hear from you.

Isn’t there a Strategic Planning Committee in place at BSD?

Yes, BSD has formed an ongoing Strategic Planning Committee built from a wide range of constituent groups.
This committee’s work will extend into the 2011-12 school year. Importantly, this group deals with strategy
and planning issues, so this summit will align with and feed into this effort. The Stakeholder Summit will allow
groups to share ideas with each other instead of creating a strategic plan from the top down.

Why have this Summit?

All of BSD’s forums and committees are being coordinated, led or moderated by district officials or
consultants. As such, BSD sets the limits on the questions presented and output recommended. We all want
what is best for our schools, and applaud transparency and community involvement. Therefore, this summit
welcomes participation of any group. Further, the output of this summit will be presented to the BSD Board,
GAC, the Cabinet and the Strategic Planning group so that the ideas put forth can have their greatest possible
impact.

Further questions?
Please send us an email at BSDSummit@hotmail.com. We’ll be sure to get back to you right away.