Federal Way School District
Encyclopedia
Federal Way Public Schools is a school district covering all of Federal Way, Washington
and portions of Kent
, Des Moines
, and unincorporated county land between the city and Auburn
, totaling 35 square miles (91 km²). There are 37 schools (23 elementary school
s, 7 middle school
s, 1 Public Academy, 1 Internet Academy (K-12), and 5 high school
s) in the district. With 22,395 enrolled students as of 2006, it is the 7th largest school district in Washington. The district employs 3,766 staff members (including substitutes). It was founded in 1929.
Federal Way Public Schools is unique in that it has a very successful public academy, which provides an advanced education to anyone willing to enroll. It is also one of the strongest advocates for charter school
s in Washington. The current Superintendent is Robert Neu.
Between the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 the school district transitioned from Junior High Schools to Middle School
s.
, by Dai Sijie
, saying that the book's sexually explicit scenes were inappropriate.
In June 2006, the Board publicly considered a ban on flip flop sandals as part of a package of dress code changes. This sparked a local controversy challenging the wisdom of such a ban, and questioning the significance of students' footwear compared to other issues facing the district. Both teachers and students opposed the move. At the vote on June 27, the flip-flop provision was dropped from the dress code motion, which passed.
On January 9, 2007, the Federal Way Public School District temporarily blocked its teachers from showing Vice President Al Gore's
global warming documentary, An Inconvenient Truth
, without presenting a "credible, legitimate opposing view." The order was passed after Frosty Hardison, a Federal Way parent, complained about the movie's use in his daughter's class. Hardison was quoted in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
citing Biblical
predictions of the age and end of the world
, and saying neither condones Al Gore's view points being taught within school. The Board cited its policies on the teaching of controversial issues, neither of which provide for a moratorium. On January 23, after two weeks of criticism in the local and national scene, the Board backtracked and repealed the moratorium, but still insisted that opposing views need to be considered.
Federal Way, Washington
Federal Way is a city in King County, Washington, United States. Federal Way is located between Seattle and Tacoma. Its western boundary is Puget Sound. It is bordered by Des Moines on the north, Kent, unincorporated King County, and Milton on the east and Tacoma and Fife on the south...
and portions of Kent
Kent, Washington
Kent is a city located in King County, Washington, United States, and is the third largest city in King County and the sixth largest in the state. An outlying suburb of Seattle, Kent is also the corporate home for companies such as REI and Oberto Sausage...
, Des Moines
Des Moines, Washington
Des Moines is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 29,673 at the 2010 census. Property within the city has been the subject of land buyouts because of noise from aircraft landing or taking off from the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport two miles to the north of...
, and unincorporated county land between the city and Auburn
Auburn, Washington
-Parks:Auburn has an extensive system of parks, open space and urban trails comprising 29 developed parks, 5 undeveloped sites under planning, 2 skate parks, 2 water roatary parks, and over of trails , and almost of open space for passive and active recreation.-Environmental Park:The Auburn...
, totaling 35 square miles (91 km²). There are 37 schools (23 elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s, 7 middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
s, 1 Public Academy, 1 Internet Academy (K-12), and 5 high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
s) in the district. With 22,395 enrolled students as of 2006, it is the 7th largest school district in Washington. The district employs 3,766 staff members (including substitutes). It was founded in 1929.
Federal Way Public Schools is unique in that it has a very successful public academy, which provides an advanced education to anyone willing to enroll. It is also one of the strongest advocates for charter school
Charter school
Charter schools are primary or secondary schools that receive public money but are not subject to some of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to other public schools in exchange for some type of accountability for producing certain results, which are set forth in each school's charter...
s in Washington. The current Superintendent is Robert Neu.
Between the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 the school district transitioned from Junior High Schools to Middle School
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
s.
Elementary
- Adelaide Elementary School
- Brigadoon Elementary School
- Camelot Elementary School
- Enterprise Elementary School
- Green Gables Elementary School
- Lake Dolloff Elementary School
- Lake Grove Elementary School
- Lakeland Elementary School
- Mark Twain Elementary School
- Meredith Hill Elementary School
- Mirror Lake Elementary School
- Nautilus Elementary School
- Olympic View Elementary School
- Panther Lake Elementary School
- Rainier View Elementary School
- Sherwood Forest Elementary School
- Silver Lake Elementary School
- Star Lake Elementary School
- Sunnycrest Elementary School
- Twin Lakes Elementary School
- Valhalla Elementary School
- Wildwood Elementary School
- Woodmont Elementary School
Junior High/Middle
- Illahee Middle School
- Kilo Middle School
- Lakota Middle SchoolLakota Middle SchoolLakota Middle School is a public school within the Federal Way School District and located in Federal Way, Washington, United States. It is located adjacent to the City of Federal Way's Lakota Park. Students come from three elementary schools: Adelaide, Green Gables, and Twin Lakes. Lakota is...
- Sacajawea Middle School
- Saghalie Middle School
- Sequoyah Middle SchoolSequoyah Middle School (Washington)Sequoyah Middle School is a public middle school in Auburn, Washington, USA, and is part of the Federal Way School District. The school is named after Sequoyah, a noted 19th Century Cherokee who created the Cherokee syllabary to write the Cherokee language, the only recorded instance of an...
- Totem Middle School
High Schools
- Decatur High School
- Federal Way High SchoolFederal Way High SchoolFederal Way High School is located in Federal Way, Washington. It was originally built in 1938.-Academics:* Advanced Placement courses: Calculus, Statistics, U.S...
- Harry S. Truman High SchoolHarry S. Truman High School (Federal Way)Harry S. Truman High School is a high school in Federal Way, Washington, United States.-Truman Today:Truman High School has recently changed its face and improved its reputation.Federal Way, WA now looks at Truman in a new light...
- Thomas Jefferson High School
- Todd Beamer High SchoolTodd Beamer High SchoolTodd Beamer High School is a four year secondary school located in Federal Way, Washington within the Federal Way School District. The school was built in 2003 and was named after Todd Morgan Beamer a passenger aboard United Airlines Flight 93 during the September 11, 2001 attacks He was one of...
Other
- Internet AcademyInternet AcademyThe Internet Academy is a public virtual school a part of Federal Way Public Schools, approved by the Northwest Accreditation Commission and open to all students in grades K-12....
(K-12) - Public AcademyFederal Way Public AcademyFederal Way Public Academy is a co-educational university-preparatory school and charter school for day students in grades 6-10. The school is located in Federal Way, Washington, 24.6 miles from Seattle, Washington. The school was founded by Dr...
(6-10) - TAF Academy (6-12)
Censorship
The Federal Way School District is notable for its censorship of various books and movies. The District has banned the showing of R and PG-13 rated movies. In 2004, the District banned the use of Balzac and the Little Chinese SeamstressBalzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is a semi-autobiographical novel written by Dai Sijie, and published in 2000 in French and in English in 2001. It is the author's first published novel. Its original French title is Balzac et la petite tailleuse chinoise...
, by Dai Sijie
Dai Sijie
Dai Sijie is a French author and filmmaker of Chinese ancestry.-Biography:Dai Sijie was born in China in 1954. Because he came from an educated middle-class family, the Maoist government sent him to a reeducation camp in rural Sichuan from 1971 to 1974, during the Cultural Revolution. After his...
, saying that the book's sexually explicit scenes were inappropriate.
In June 2006, the Board publicly considered a ban on flip flop sandals as part of a package of dress code changes. This sparked a local controversy challenging the wisdom of such a ban, and questioning the significance of students' footwear compared to other issues facing the district. Both teachers and students opposed the move. At the vote on June 27, the flip-flop provision was dropped from the dress code motion, which passed.
On January 9, 2007, the Federal Way Public School District temporarily blocked its teachers from showing Vice President Al Gore's
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
global warming documentary, An Inconvenient Truth
An Inconvenient Truth
An Inconvenient Truth is a 2006 documentary film directed by Davis Guggenheim about former United States Vice President Al Gore's campaign to educate citizens about global warming via a comprehensive slide show that, by his own estimate, he has given more than a thousand times.Premiering at the...
, without presenting a "credible, legitimate opposing view." The order was passed after Frosty Hardison, a Federal Way parent, complained about the movie's use in his daughter's class. Hardison was quoted in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is an online newspaper and former print newspaper covering Seattle, Washington, United States, and the surrounding metropolitan area...
citing Biblical
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
predictions of the age and end of the world
Christian eschatology
Christian eschatology is a major branch of study within Christian theology. Eschatology, from two Greek words meaning last and study , is the study of the end of things, whether the end of an individual life, the end of the age, or the end of the world...
, and saying neither condones Al Gore's view points being taught within school. The Board cited its policies on the teaching of controversial issues, neither of which provide for a moratorium. On January 23, after two weeks of criticism in the local and national scene, the Board backtracked and repealed the moratorium, but still insisted that opposing views need to be considered.