21.05.2025, 10:29

If you missed the May 20th PSD Board meeting, we encourage you to take a few minutes to watch the public comments. The voices of teachers, parents, the union representative, and a courageous student from KPMS left a strong impression.

Key moments to watch:
2:34:00 – Public comment on agenda items
2:52:00 – Consent agenda, including the suspension of Staff Expression Policy 5254
2:56:00 – Public comment on non-agenda items

One of the most significant outcomes from the meeting was the suspension of Staff Expression Policy 5254, which had created a climate of fear among staff members. Its removal reflects the power of community engagement and the importance of clear, supportive policies.

Be sure to stay through to the end to watch a phenomenal student speaker from KPMS close the evening with a powerful message.

If you're interested in a deeper understanding of the PSD budget, Ashley Murphy gave a detailed presentation during the meeting. It begins at 2:13:00.

Thank you to everyone who showed up, spoke out, and continues to support positive change in our schools.

www.youtube.com/live/PaVPJhlPYkY?si=0gRS0XxDZS9_NGmr

20.05.2025, 15:51

PSD Board Meeting 5/20 (Today)

There is a PSD board meeting tonight at 6:00 PM at Swift Water Elementary. If you would like to speak during public comment, please arrive before the meeting begins to sign up on paper. Note that public comment is scheduled for the end of the meeting, so it may be a long evening.

Our PTA will not be speaking at this meeting. However, we remain committed to understanding the developments in our district and how they may impact our schools both in the short and long term.

If you're unable to attend in person, you can watch the meeting live on YouTube here:

m.youtube.com/watch?v=wHNSvNQG0Zc&pp=0gcJCdgAo7VqN5tD

13.05.2025, 13:55

We have a couple of updates to share:

1. In response to district administration communication, we have compiled questions from leaders all over the district and requested clear, comprehensive answers to the questions outlined in the letter below. We will post an update with answers to these questions ASAP.

docs.google.com/document/d/1IilXPDI08V7plWUiewH_PzyMd9NGCoDWGDtS5qja0Qc/edit?usp=drivesdk

2. Here is the latest news story:
keypennews.org/stories/budget-issues-behind-peninsula-schools-staffing-shuffle,9197?

07.05.2025, 02:11

PROTEST DETAILS - PLEASE READ!

DO NOT SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA - WORD OF MOUTH ONLY!!!!

HELP US SPREAD THE WORD AND JOIN US IN SUPPORTING ALL PSD TEACHERS.

Letter from our teachers:

Peninsula School District Staff Day of Action – Thursday, May 8
Wearing Black for Our Students and Schools
On Thursday, May 8, Peninsula educators and staff will participate in a Day of Action by wearing black in solidarity with colleagues facing involuntary transfers. This action is about more than staff—it’s about what these changes mean for our students, our classrooms, and our community.
We invite parents, families, and community members to understand and join us in raising awareness about the growing concerns we have for the health of our schools due to recent district decisions.
Why We Are Taking Action:
1. Staffing Cuts That Hurt Students
Increasing class sizes and reducing support staff means less individual attention and fewer opportunities for all students.

Programs that inspire and engage—like AVID, visual arts, and world languages—are at risk of being reduced or eliminated.

Teaching assignments are being made based solely on certification, not the proven strengths and experience of educators.

2. Loss of Trusted School Community Members
Paraeducators and building substitutes are being let go—yet they provide essential academic and operational support to students daily in our schools.

Dedicated teachers and administrators are being moved from the school communities in which they’ve built relationships and made a lasting impact.

3. Lack of Transparency and Collaboration
Major decisions are being made without meaningful input from teachers, families, or other key stakeholders.

There’s little clarity on how staffing decisions and budget allocations are being made—even as administrative positions and programs expand.

4. Chilling of Educator Voices
District Policy 5254 has created a climate of fear, where educators feel they can’t speak up for their students or share concerns publicly without risking discipline.

This policy suppresses teachers’ ability to advocate—not just for themselves, but for the students and schools they love.

Why This Matters:
We are not protesting out of anger—we are advocating out of love for our students and our schools. These decisions don’t just affect staff; they affect every child’s classroom experience and every family’s connection to their school community.
When we wear black on May 8, it is to signal that these choices are leaving a lasting mark on Peninsula schools—one we can still change, together.

We urge our community to stand with us. Ask questions. Speak up. Join us in advocating for the strong, vibrant public schools our students deserve.

05.05.2025, 02:02

The community requested that we add the stem programs back to the petition and address the concerns regarding loss or down sizing of needed programs across the district.


New petition description:

This petition was created by concerned PSD community members to express concern with new policies and strategies implemented by the current district administration.

We, the Peninsula School District community, are expressing our deep concern and disappointment in the district administration regarding the recent changes and concerns including, but not limited to:- the strategy to regularly rotate teachers and principals without prior communication, transparency, or opportunity for parent/staff involvement- the negative effects of Staff Expression Policy 5254- the lack of community trust and district transparency- the disconnect between the community and the district administrationadministration- the removal/reduction of vital programs at multiple schools

As engaged members of the PSD community, we believe that consistent leadership is vital to well-being, consistency, and academic growth at our schools. Effective principals and teachers are trusted, supportive, and effective leaders who build strong relationships with students, families, and staff. Relationships take time to build, and the plan to rotate school staff will significantly hinder our students' academic success.

Furthermore, staff cannot speak openly given the district’s current staff expression policy put into place by this administration earlier in the school year. Fear of professional retaliation is real. If staff felt safe, the volume of dissent would be far greater.

To make such significant changes without consulting or informing the parents and staff undermines the collaborative spirit that a successful school community depends on. We feel blindsided and left without answers to questions that affect not only our day-to-day experience but the long-term culture under the stewardship of this school district administration.

We respectfully request the following:

1. Reversal of the Staff Expression Policy 5254 - PSD staff should not have to choose between job security and their voice2. Transparency: A clear explanation from the district about the reasons for the mandatory reassignments and special program cuts.3. Removal of mandatory rotations for principals, vice principals, and teachers - we do not approve of the strategy to rotate staff for the reasons given by PSD and do not believe this strategy is in the best interest of its students or staff and should not remain in place for our district. 4. Community involvement: A commitment to involving staff and parents in future decisions that directly impact our school’s leadership and climate.climate.5. Retain full STEM programs at Minter Creek and Vaughn Elementaries

Our voices matter. Our school matters. We ask that the Peninsula School District public servants to work with us—not around us—to ensure decisions are made in the best interest of PSD schools.

03.05.2025, 01:19

Thank You & Important Update

Thank you for standing with us as we advocate for the health and future of our district. We want to keep you informed every step of the way. We are actively collaborating with representatives from most PSD schools to find constructive ways to address our shared concerns. You can expect another update in the coming days with next steps and future plans.

Last Friday, the four of us who spoke at the recent school board meeting met with the following district administrators:

Krestin Bahr, Superintendent

Michael Farmer, Chief of Schools

Julie Shultz-Bartlett, Deputy Chief of Schools

Jennifer Butler, District 2 School Board Member

Natalie Wimberly, School Board President

Also in attendance were:

Jessica Gamble, Minter Creek PTA President

Jennifer Murphey, Minter Creek PTA Vice President

Heather Bruhn, Minter Creek PTA Secretary

Traci Drebin, Minter Creek PTA Volunteer Coordinator

Following that conversation, we felt it was crucial to share our feedback letter publicly. We encourage you to take a few minutes to read it. The letter outlines the key points we discussed and the pressing questions we’ve asked the district to address.

Click this link to read the letter:

docs.google.com/document/d/1Dfv8i2ZVM1qVGhLyiHUbaFaj01Syfm9wT3Y1HsFYzUU/edit?usp=drivesdk

Please Read & Share: Petition and Letter

This districtwide petition remains one of the most effective tools we have to engage the broader community. We’ve recently updated its language to reflect growing concerns about:

Principal and teacher rotations

The staff expression policy, which is currently suppressing open communication from PSD staff

The increasing erosion of community trust in district leadership

The petition can be signed anonymously, and we encourage you to share it, along with the feedback letter, with friends, neighbors, and other members of the community. Our goal is to get people talking and thinking critically about the future of our schools.

Thank you for your continued support.

Jessica Gamble

01.05.2025, 15:23

Removed request #5 regarding STEM programs for broader community.


Neue Begründung:

As engaged members of the PSD community, we believe that consistent leadership is vital to well-being, consistency, and academic growth at our schools. Effective principals and teachers are trusted, supportive, and effective leaders who build strong relationships with students, families, and staff. Relationships take time to build, and the plan to rotate school staff will significantly hinder our students' academic success.

Furthermore, staff cannot speak openly given the district’s current staff expression policy put into place by this administration earlier in the school year. Fear of professional retaliation is real. If staff felt safe, the volume of dissent would be far greater.

To make such significant changes without consulting or informing the parents and staff undermines the collaborative spirit that a successful school community depends on. We feel blindsided and left without answers to questions that affect not only our day-to-day experience but the long-term culture under the stewardship of this school district administration.

We respectfully request the following:

1. Reversal of the Staff Expression Policy 5254 - PSD staff should not have to choose between job security and their voice2. Transparency: A clear explanation from the district about the reasons for the mandatory reassignments and special program cuts.3. Removal of mandatory rotations for principals, vice principals, and teachers - we do not approve of the strategy to rotate staff for the reasons given by PSD and do not believe this strategy is in the best interest of its students or staff and should not remain in place for our district. 4. Community involvement: A commitment to involving staff and parents in future decisions that directly impact our school’s leadership and climate.5. Retain full STEM programs at Minter Creek and Vaughn Elementariesclimate.

Our voices matter. Our school matters. We ask that the Peninsula School District public servants to work with us—not around us—to ensure decisions are made in the best interest of PSD schools.

01.05.2025, 02:54

We’ve updated the message to reflect broader concerns regarding principal and teacher rotations, the impact of the staff expression policy that is currently silencing PSD staff, the removal of the STEM programs at Vaughn and Minter Creek Elementaries, and the growing loss of community trust in the district administration. Please feel free to revise your comments or remove your signature if the new wording no longer reflects your views.


New title: Concerned PSD Community AgainstMembers Forced- Principal/ViceStaff PrincipalExpression, RotationsPrincipal/Teacher Rotations, and Loss of Trust

New petition description:

This petition was created by concerned Minter Creek parents but is intended for the whole PSD community members to express concern with the new policy to force principalpolicies and vicestrategies principalimplemented rotationsby onthe acurrent regulardistrict basis.administration.

We, the Peninsula School District community, are expressing our deep concern and disappointment in the district administration regarding the recent changechanges inand schoolconcerns leadership,including, specificallybut not limited to:- the planstrategy to regularly rotate teachers and principals without prior communication, transparency, or opportunity for parentparent/staff involvement.involvement- the negative effects of Staff Expression Policy 5254- the lack of community trust and district transparency- the disconnect between the community and the district administration

As engaged members of the PSD community, we believe that consistent leadership is vital to well-being, consistency, and academic growth at our schools. Effective principals and teachers are trusted, supportive, and effective leaders who build strong relationships with students, families, and staff. Relationships take time to build, and the plan to rotate leadershipschool staff will significantly hinder our principalsstudents' abilityacademic tosuccess.

Furthermore, leadstaff well.cannot speak openly given the district’s current staff expression policy put into place by this administration earlier in the school year. Fear of professional retaliation is real. If staff felt safe, the volume of dissent would be far greater.

To make such a significant changechanges without consulting or informing the parents and staff undermines the collaborative spirit that a successful school community depends on. We feel blindsided and left without answers to questions that affect not only our children’s day-to-day experience but the long-term culture under the stewardship of this school district.district administration.

We respectfully request the following:

1. Removal1. Reversal of the planStaff Expression Policy 5254 - PSD staff should not have to rotatechoose principalsbetween job security and their voice2. Transparency: A clear explanation from the district about the reasons for the mandatory reassignments and special program cuts.3. Removal of mandatory rotations for principals, vice principalsprincipals, onand ateachers regular- basis: Wewe do not approve of the strategy to rotate leadershipstaff for the reasons given by PSD and do not believe this strategy is in the best interest of its students or staff and should not remain in place for our district. 2. Transparency: A clear explanation from the district about the reasons for this leadership change. 3. Communitydistrict. 4. Community involvement: A commitment to involving staff and parents in future decisions that directly impact our school’s leadership and climate.4. Openclimate.5. forum:Retain Anfull opportunitySTEM forprograms parentsat toMinter meet with district leaders in a town hall format to discuss this change, ask questions,Creek and expressVaughn concerns.Elementaries

Our voices matter. Our school matters. We ask that the Peninsula School District public servants to work with us—not around us—to ensure decisions are made in the best interest of PSD schools.

25.04.2025, 14:45

Dear PSD Community,
Please take a few minutes to listen to the speech we gave to the school board last night. We believe it will be eye-opening for many of you. We know we've continued to bring up PSD's plan to move principals to different schools, but our schools are hurting. Our staff and students are sad and deeply concerned, so we don’t feel like we can let this go. We believe our staff and students deserve parents who will stand beside them and fight for them.
We attended the school board meeting on April 22nd and waited three and a half hours to speak, finally taking the mic at 9:30 p.m. The entire Minter Creek staff came to the meeting. Those who couldn’t attend due to child care watched from home. They sat in a hot, overcrowded room for hours just to lend their presence and voices to this moment.
The room was filled with PSD community members - parents, staff, and others who care deeply and are very very concerned. Some of us didn’t have child care, so we took turns watching each other’s kids and trying to keep them quiet. It was exhausting. And it was worth it.
At the end of the night, there were tears. There were hugs. There was heartbreak. Teachers expressed deep disappointment and sadness over what is happening in our district. They are tired of being silenced. They are tired of not being heard.
If you are a PSD parent, we urge you - go check in on your teachers. In person. Don’t rely on email or social media. Many are afraid to speak there. The district’s staff expression policy makes it risky for them to share openly. But if you ask them face-to-face, we hope they will tell you how they feel.
If you are a PSD staff member, and you’re concerned, please talk to your parents. We are listening. We care. We are here. Change doesn’t always come from following the “proper channels.” Sometimes it comes when people lock arms and speak with one voice.
Our schools are not okay. And we can’t keep pretending they are. There are serious issues facing our district including bullying, declining enrollment, and a growing sense of mistrust between families, staff, and leadership. We have to talk about it. There is a path forward, but it begins with honesty, community collaboration, informed support, and rebuilding trust through strong relationships. The district cannot effectively support our schools if they don’t truly understand what’s happening inside them.
"Here’s a video of our speeches from the board meeting. I also encourage you to listen to the two men who spoke after us on the same topic, their insights are worth hearing. This post is public, so please feel free to share it to help keep the conversation going in our community."

www.facebook.com/share/v/1EFU9mbwkM/

If that link doesn’t work, try this one instead. Our portion begins around 3 hours and 26 minutes into the video.
www.youtube.com/live/dvmFZbZAeGM?si=5oBLiL5XMz3EOjHj&fbclid=IwY2xjawJ4s_ZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETF6bWttTVZSNWJXcHlCdnk3AR5apUf_Fc9EjDKdX_FhBGbMLArVhGctHmObdQM--M4lO5B7fEP8XSJeGMob5g_aem_igwG_xhj90IeYtEJJxjjLg

Below, I have included some links you are welcome to share or look through to learn more about what’s happening. Feel free to reach out to us at mintercreekghpta@gmail.com with questions, thoughts, or concerns.

Thank you for signing the petition and helping us stand up for our community,

Jessica Gamble
Minter Creek PTA President

Links

News Articles

(Latest Article) www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/community/gateway/article304916131.html

www.fox13seattle.com/video/1627624

mynorthwest.com/local/peninsula-school-district/4076661

www.gigharbornow.org/news/education/peninsula-school-district-principal-changes/

www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/community/gateway/article304225506.html

Staff Expression Policy

drive.google.com/file/d/1dIa_S-JDQuVUgVJsz6cWL2vH17muazXz/view

RAND Study Link - with downloadable data (study used by district with no data to support the PSD strategy)

wallacefoundation.org/report/principal-pipelines-feasible-affordable-and-effective-way-districts-improve-schools-feasible

19.04.2025, 15:56

An anonymous PHS staff member asked us to clarify that vice principals are included in this petition and make sure that all of the PSD community can sign - not just parents and guardians.


New title: PSD Parents/GuardiansCommunity Against Forced Principal/Vice Principal Rotations

New petition description:

This petition was created by concerned Minter Creek PTA parents but is intended for the whole PSD community to express concern with the new policy to force principal and vice principal rotations on a regular basis.

We, the Peninsula School District community, are expressing our deep concern and disappointment regarding the recent change in school leadership, specifically the plan to regularly rotate principals without prior communication, transparency, or opportunity for parent involvement.

As engaged members of the PSD community, we believe that consistent leadership is vital to well-being, consistency, and academic growth at our schools. Effective principals are trusted, supportive, and effective leaders who build strong relationships with students, families, and staff. Relationships take time to build, and the plan to rotate leadership will significantly hinder our principals ability to lead well.

To make such a significant change without consulting or informing the parents undermines the collaborative spirit that a successful school community depends on. We feel blindsided and left without answers to questions that affect not only our children’s day-to-day experience but the long-term culture under the stewardship of this school district.

We respectfully request the following:

1. Removal of the plan to rotate leadershipprincipals and vice principals on a regular basis: We do not approve of the strategy to rotate leadership for the reasons given by PSD and do not believe this strategy is in the best interest of its students and should remain in place for our district. 2. Transparency: A clear explanation from the district about the reasons for this leadership change. 3. Parentchange. 3. Community involvement: A commitment to involving staff and parents in future decisions that directly impact our school’s leadership and climate.4. Open forum: An opportunity for parents to meet with district leaders in a town hall format to discuss this change, ask questions, and express concerns.

Our voices matter. Our school matters. We ask that the Peninsula School District public servants to work with us—not around us—to ensure decisions are made in the best interest of PSD schools.