{"id":22929,"date":"2018-06-18T22:55:21","date_gmt":"2018-06-19T04:55:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/?p=22929"},"modified":"2018-06-18T22:55:21","modified_gmt":"2018-06-19T04:55:21","slug":"an-energized-juneau-prepares-for-big-job-in-seattle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2018\/06\/an-energized-juneau-prepares-for-big-job-in-seattle\/","title":{"rendered":"An energized Juneau prepares for big job in Seattle"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Juneau\"<\/a>

Martin Kidston\/Missoula Current<\/p>

\u201cI\u2019m looking at this as a really great adventure,\u201d Denise Juneau said as she readied her Missoula home for the move west. \u201cThis allows me to stay in public service, certainly in a political role, although not an elected position.\u201d<\/p><\/div>\n

Her life\u2019s work has been equity in education, and it\u2019s that commitment that compelled Denise Juneau to make the difficult decision to leave Montana for the opportunity to lead Seattle\u2019s public schools.<\/p>\n

That move now imminent, Juneau said she\u2019s focused on the goal of leading the Seattle Public Schools District as it brings to reality a broad community resolve to correct the wide achievement gap between its white and minority students.<\/p>\n

In an interview with Missoula Current, the former Montana superintendent of public instruction said her 2016 run for this state\u2019s sole seat in the U.S. House was probably her last run for elective office.<\/p>\n

Admittedly, her new job \u2014 which officially begins July 1 \u2014 is steeped in politics. But this time, she\u2019s the chief administrator answering to an elected board. She\u2019s excited by the challenge and sees myriad opportunities.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m looking at this as a really great adventure,\u201d Juneau said as she readied her Missoula home for the move west. \u201cThis allows me to stay in public service, certainly in a political role, although not an elected position.\u201d<\/p>\n

Already, she\u2019s spent time in Seattle, meeting earlier this month with the mayor, city council, student leaders, parent groups and business organizations.\u00a0She\u2019s outlined a transition plan as she takes over the superintendent\u2019s role from Larry Nyland, whose contract was not renewed.<\/p>\n

For the first three months at least, she\u2019ll do neighborhood listening tours, meeting with \u201call the groups\u201d and \u201cgetting down to the nitty-gritty of hearing all of the diverse voices.\u201d

\"CapreAir_Variable\"<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n

\u201cI want to make sure I hear from as many voices as possible,\u201d Juneau said. \u201cI\u2019m going to take some time and get to know the district and the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are a lot of common goals between the city and the business community and parent organizations, and I want to make sure students have a seat at the table. I\u2019m going to take some time and learn from all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then she\u2019ll devote a number of months to working with the school board to set a strategic direction \u2014 with priorities and goals \u2014 for her office.<\/p>\n

She\u2019ll do so with the blessing of the city\u2019s newspaper, the Seattle Times, where the editorial board has called on the school board to give Juneau the time, discretion and funding needed to start closing the district\u2019s achievement gap.<\/p>\n

\u201cJuneau appears to have the skills and drive to improve Seattle Public Schools, as long as the school board gets out of the way and lets her lead,\u201d the newspaper wrote after her appointment in April.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough the school board and Superintendent Larry Nyland have called for eliminating the academic achievement gaps between students of different racial and economic groups a moral imperative, the district has not made progress in this area,\u201d the Times continued.<\/p>\n

A 2016 study by researchers at Stanford University found black students in Seattle Public Schools tested 3.5 grade levels behind their white classmates.\u00a0A year later, those same researchers found an even wider gap \u2014 3.7 grade levels.<\/p>\n

In two terms as Montana\u2019s superintendent of public instruction, Juneau led Graduation Matters Montana. The initiative has helped to increase graduation rates for all Montana high school students by 5 percent, and for Native American students by 8 percent.<\/p>\n

Juneau emphasized that \u2014 and her personal commitment to educational equality \u2014 during the interviews that led to her selection from a field of 63 candidates for the Seattle post.<\/p>\n

\"Boomder\"<\/a>

Martin Kidston\/Missoula Current)<\/p>

Juneau\u2019s dog, Boomer, is making the move to Seattle as well. Juneau officially begins work there on July 1.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cI have never met a parent \u2014 never \u2014 that did not want a better life for their child,\u201d she said at a public forum that was the last step in the selection process. \u201cAnd that always comes through education.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd so I am a big believer in making sure that people are at the table, that communities have a voice. I\u2019ve always said that we don\u2019t need a higher wall, we need a longer table. We need to find the people who don\u2019t feel included to be sitting at that table, and then really listen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are talking about a public education system, and so we need to listen to the public,\u201d Juneau said.<\/p>\n

Seattle has worked on its graduation rate as well, showing success with efforts in recent years, but with a significant gap remaining.<\/p>\n

Between 2013 and 2017, the graduation rate for white students jumped from 82.4 percent to 85.7 percent, while the rate for black\/African American and Hispanic\/Latino increased from 61.3 percent to 74.4 percent and 56.1 percent to 64 percent, respectively.<\/p>\n

During that same time, Seattle Public Schools\u2019 Native American\/Alaskan Native graduation rate edged up from 48 percent to 50 percent.<\/p>\n

Juneau said it was Seattle\u2019s focus on \u201cracial and economic equity and social justice \u2014 all those things that public education helps to provide\u201d \u2014 that convinced her to apply for and accept the superintendent\u2019s post.<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir priorities are really focused on closing opportunity gaps,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s not just the school district. It\u2019s parent organizations, private groups, the business community. They\u2019re all having the same conversations about equal educational opportunities for every student. They\u2019re poised to do great things, and I\u2019m excited to be a part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Juneau said she took a break after losing the 2016 election to then-incumbent Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke.<\/p>\n

\u201cI looked around and talked to people about some other opportunities,\u201d she said. \u201cI could have gone to D.C. or a couple of other places. But none seemed to be the right thing for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the past year, she\u2019s helped the state of Oregon to implement its Indian Education for All legislation, much as she did in Montana years ago.\u00a0The Seattle opportunity came to her by way of an executive search firm, which reached out to Juneau. She did the necessary research and realized the job \u201cwas a great leadership opportunity for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The search process was surprisingly fast, from start to finish in two months. But school board members said they were thorough, and were committed to bringing stability after hiring three superintendents in six years.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt moved super fast,\u201d Juneau said. But since being hired for the $295,000-a-year position, Juneau said she\u2019s only become more excited and dedicated to the work that lies ahead.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s super hard to leave Montana,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s one reason why I turned down all the other opportunities. I didn\u2019t want to leave the state. But this seemed like a good fit for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

She\u2019s less torn by the decision to leave elective politics.<\/p>\n

Juneau was the first Native American woman to hold statewide elected office in Montana. She is an enrolled member of the Mandan Hidatsa Arikara Tribes and a descendant of the Blackfeet Tribe.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I\u2019m finished with politics as a candidate,\u201d she said, even as a new wave of female candidates succeeded in June\u2019s Montana primary, including Kathleen Williams as the Democratic Party\u2019s candidate for the U.S. House race against incumbent Republican Rep. Greg Gianforte.<\/p>\n

\u201cWomen won all over the place,\u201d Juneau said. \u201cIt\u2019s a great thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

She noted that in New Mexico, Deb Haaland topped five Democratic opponents in a U.S. House district that includes Albuquerque, and could well be the first Native American woman elected to Congress in November.<\/p>\n

In Montana, Williams\u2019 selection over a large field of qualified male candidates was \u201cpretty exciting\u201d as well, Juneau said.<\/p>\n

\u201cKathleen was running against very good, competent male opponents.\u00a0But people want to vote for women. That stigma, or whatever it is, against electing women is starting to be overcome. People know we\u2019ll work hard and get things done. Women can see all sides of an issues.\u201d<\/p>\n

Juneau said Williams is \u201cdoing exactly the right thing\u201d by making herself so accessible, campaigning from town to town during the primary \u2014 she visited all 56 counties \u2014 and hosting open meetings in each.<\/p>\n

\u201cMontana expects access to their candidates and their elected officials \u2014 that they are going to be able to talk to you personally,\u201d Juneau said. \u201cKathleen is showing up in all of these places and her opponent is not. There will be a stark difference in presence during this campaign.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s not afraid of engaging in conversations with Montanans. She\u2019s doing a great job of meeting public expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n

It will be interesting, Juneau said, to see how Gianforte runs against a woman.<\/p>\n

She knows what Williams will do.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe is able to meet him head on, and to be strong and tough,\u201d Juneau said. \u201cShe has proven that she is someone to be reckoned with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seattle politics are a different animal, she conceded. \u201cIt\u2019s a very blue area, very progressive. I\u2019m excited to learn more about how all of that works, when everybody is thinking from a progressive mindset.\u201d<\/p>\n

She\u2019s not finished with Montana by any means. It\u2019s her home, where she was raised and educated and spent her career to date.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the end, I know that I will circle back,\u201d Juneau said.<\/p>\n

Sherry Devlin is a longtime Missoula journalist who writes\u00a0occasional stories for\u00a0Missoula Current<\/a><\/em>,\u00a0where this story originally appeared.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Her life\u2019s work has been equity in education, and it\u2019s that commitment that compelled Denise Juneau to make the difficult decision to leave Montana for the opportunity to lead Seattle\u2019s public schools. That move now imminent, Juneau said she\u2019s focused on the goal of leading the Seattle Public Schools District as it brings to reality […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":149,"featured_media":22930,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,14],"tags":[1869,335,6743,1544,628,6884],"class_list":["post-22929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-montana","category-news","tag-denise-juneau","tag-greg-gianforte","tag-kathleen-williams","tag-office-of-public-instruction","tag-ryan-zinke","tag-seattle-public-schools","prominence-top-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/149"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22929"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22933,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22929\/revisions\/22933"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}