City of Seattle announce safety plan before new school year

The city of Seattle and Seattle Public Schools announced approximately $14.55 million in funding Thursday to boost safety and security measures and expand mental health support for students before the new school year.

The announcement comes as the city mounts a multipronged approach to address youth gun violence in the wake of the killing of Amarr Murphy-Paine, 17, who was fatally shot in the parking lot at Garfield High School on June 6. As of Thursday, police had not announced any arrests in the case.

While some of the investments and support will be available and visible when school starts Sept. 4, others will roll out during the year. Those measures include additional police presence around schools and support staff inside the buildings focused on building relationships with students and supporting their mental health and well-being.

The investment includes $12.25 million from the city and $2.3 million from SPS.

“We are trying to create relationships, mentorships,” Mayor Bruce Harrell said. “We are trying to protect.”

The city’s intervention efforts will focus on 11 middle and high schools with the highest rates of violence inside and around the building perimeter, Harrell said. The schools are Rainier Beach High, Garfield High, Chief Sealth International, Franklin High, Ingraham High, Aki Kurose Middle, Washington Middle, Denny International Middle, Mercer International Middle, Robert Eagle Staff and Meany Middle schools.

Harrell said the city’s investment was in addition to the nearly $37 million it was already spending on violence interruption and prevention initiatives to address the root causes of gun violence.

There have been several shooting incidents inside and near SPS schools over the last two years, including a fatal shooting at the Teen Life Center near Chief Sealth High School in West Seattle, which killed a 15-year-old. A November 2022 shooting at Ingraham High School also left a 17-year-old dead. About 14% of all reported crimes in the city in 2023 and 2024 involved juveniles as either suspects or victims, Harrell said.

The toll continues to weigh heavily on the communities. Rainier Beach High Principal Annie Patu, who kicked off the news conference and led a moment of silence, choked up as she read the names of students who were victims of gun violence.

Meanwhile, the district has added cameras, fences and other physical upgrades to some buildings. Students will see more of a police presence around campuses, especially at the start of the school day, during lunchtime and when classes end. The police department will also conduct walk-throughs in schools to ensure they are prepared to deal with gun violence, Superintendent Brent Jones said.

The $2.3 million from SPS will add additional safety and security staff. SPS plans to hire a new executive director to oversee safety early in the school year and will hire about 15 safety specialists to start the year.

The district also announced that the number of counselors will increase to 50, up from 30 last year. SPS will also add social and emotional well-being classes for elementary school students and mental health classes for high and middle school students.

While the district said earlier this summer that it would consider requiring high school students to use clear backpacks and carry identification badges, it will not do so when school reopens next month. SPS said in a note posted Wednesday that those measures are still under consideration. The district will also allow principals to decide whether to let high school students leave campus for lunch.

Some students in the audience praised the city and district’s efforts, especially the expanded mental health support. However, they questioned why those supports were not in place earlier.

Daleceana Fudge-Minnis, 17, an incoming senior at Rainier Beach High School, said she feels safe at school, especially with the presence of the “Be Safe” members who work in her building and with the relationships she has developed with police officers who work in the area.

Fudge-Minnis and Kevin Truong, 17, said they appreciated the focus on students’ mental health and well-being. Truong was among the students who gave input on how the funds should be used.

“We strived for those — the implementation of mental health services in schools,” he said. “But I would have liked some emphasis on how this work should have been started sooner rather than later.”

Jennifer Marquardt, the co-president of the Garfield High School Parent Teacher Student Association said that while the programs and investments sound great, it would take time to get some of the initiatives running and to hire people to fill the roles. One of her worries is what will happen in the interim.

“The proof is in the pudding,” she said.

Ricole Jones, the targeted program director at SE Network SafetyNet Program at the Boys & Girls Clubs of King County, said the funds will allow the group to hire more staff to work with students.

“At the end of the day, our young people are in need of assurance that someone is providing a level of guardianship beyond what the school provides, beyond what security can do,” she said.

Harrell said the city will examine several data points, including school climate surveys, to gauge whether the investments are having the intended outcomes. The mayor acknowledged that the city could change course as time goes on.

“We do not have all of the answers,” he said. “We will evolve, we will grow, we will learn and we will listen to you.”