Seattle, WA
Parents worried Seattle's Dual Language Immersion schools could be on 'chopping block'
SPS holds forums for possible school closures
Seattle Public Schools hosted a virtual meeting on Tuesday to discuss a plan to close 20 elementary schools within the district. The move would help make up a budget deficit of more than $100 million that the district says it’s facing.
SEATTLE – Seattle Public Schools hosted a virtual meeting on Tuesday to discuss a plan to close 20 elementary schools within the district. The move would help make up a budget deficit of more than $100 million that the district says it’s facing.
The list of school closures has not yet been released, and the uncertainty is causing some to worry.
“I’m concerned that it could be on the chopping block,” said Adriana Casas Gorski, whose son attends John Stanford International, a dual language immersion school (DLI).
“My husband is of Japanese heritage, and I am Mexican, so this school offers Spanish and Japanese,” said Gorski.
She’s worried that her son’s school and McDonald International Elementary might be on the closure list.
“I have seen the wonderful work that the staff and admin have done there, and I’m concerned others won’t have that opportunity,” she said.
As a teacher herself at a Spanish cooperative preschool, she says demand for the DLI schools is already so high, the district is losing students to private schools.
“Every year we have parents that are heartbroken because their child did not get into an immersion school. We are losing students each year to PCPE that should be coming to SPS,” said Gorski.
At Tuesday’s virtual meeting, SPS leaders answered written questions only. When asked how DLI schools would be impacted, no promises were made to keep certain schools open, but the superintendent said the district planned to maintain programming.
“We are actually talking about, ‘how do we shore them up?’ Our dual language programming should sustain as we go forward. So, I wanted to give some people some reassurance on that,” said Dr. Brent Jones, Superintendent of Seattle Public Schools.
School officials said Tuesday, generally speaking, even if some schools stay open, students could still be moved.
“It is very possible students would be moving from their current school, even if it’s not a school that is closing,” said Dr. Marni Campbell, the executive operations director at Seattle Public Schools.
Tuesday’s virtual meeting comes on the heels of an in-person meeting last week during which the crowd was frustrated they weren’t allowed to comment.
Gorski was one of the parents who said they wanted to be heard. She says if dual language immersion schools close, SPS will miss the moment.
“I mean, we are a world city. Seattle is a world city, and we need to prepare our students that way,” said Gorski.
SPS says the consolidated schools would be called “well-resourced” schools and would include high-quality educators and modern classroom resources and technology, inclusive curriculum and foster a supportive environment.
A public hearing is scheduled for June 10.
SPS has said that the closures will be distributed evenly across the district and the superintendent will be presenting recommendations to the board later in the month.
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CHICAGO (AP) — The struggling New York Mets placed former Seattle Mariners second baseman/designated hitter Jorge Polanco on the 10-day injured list on Saturday with a right wrist contusion.
Mariners Injury Update: Latest on Robles, Vargas and more
The move was made retroactive to Wednesday, a day after Polanco went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in a 2-1 loss at the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 32-year-old Polanco is batting .179 (10 for 56) with a homer and two RBIs in his first season with New York, which has lost nine straight.
“When doctors first took a look at him, it looked like he got hit by a pitch when he didn’t,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “In talking to him, it was just a couple of swings that he took that night. … He didn’t think much of it, but just got worse the following day.
“So you just got to let it calm down a little bit and then we’ll go from there. But we don’t have a timetable for how long this is going to last.”
Polanco, who signed a two-year, $40 million contract with the Mets in December, also has been dealing with an ankle issue.
“He was trending in the right direction,” Mendoza said of the ankle injury. “It’s definitely going to help, obviously now with him being shut down. But the biggest thing now is that we’ve got to take care of that wrist.”
Polanco spent the previous two seasons with the Mariners, who acquired him in a February 2024 trade with the Minnesota Twins.
Polanco struggled during his first season with Seattle in 2024, hitting just .213 with 16 homers in 118 games while playing through a knee injury that didn’t become public knowledge until after the season.
But after the Mariners somewhat surprisingly brought him back for a one-year contract in 2025, Polanco rebounded to hit .265 with 26 homers and an .821 OPS in 138 games last season. He then added three homers during Seattle’s playoff run, along with a 15th-inning walkoff single in Game 5 of the American League Division Series that sent the Mariners to their first ALCS in 24 years.
Seattle Sports staff made additions to this post.
Mariners RHP Bryce Miller to begin rehab assignment
Seattle, WA
Brandon Nimmo hits leadoff homer, Jacob deGrom works 4 scoreless as Rangers beat Seattle Mariners 5-0
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – APRIL 17: Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers tags out Dominic Canzone #8 of the Seattle Mariners during the fourth inning at T-Mobile Park on April 17, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
SEATTLE – Brandon Nimmo hit a leadoff home run, Jacob deGrom threw four shutout innings and Gavin Collyer earned his first career win as the Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners 5-0 on Friday night.
Seattle lost its fourth straight game, and was shut out for the fourth time in 21 games, falling to 8-13. The Mariners were shut out six times during the 2025 season. Texas won its third straight game.
Nimmo led off the game with a 372-foot shot to right field off Mariners starter Logan Gilbert (1-3). It was Nimmo’s 16th career leadoff homer and second of the season. He also hit a leadoff home run on April 11 in a 6-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
DeGrom effectively maneuvered through Seattle’s lineup, and worked out of a one out, bases-loaded jam in the first inning. The two-time Cy Young Award winner recorded two of his three strikeouts after walking Josh Naylor to load the bases. Randy Arozarena fanned on a curveball, and Luke Raley swung through a fastball.
Texas added to its lead after Nimmo’s homer. Wyatt Langford’s single to left scored Corey Seager, who led off the third inning with a double. The Rangers stretched the lead to 3-0 on an RBI single from Jake Burger in the seventh.
The Mariners’ best scoring chance came in the sixth after Collyer (1-0), who worked 1 1/3 scoreless innings, left the game.
J.P. Crawford singled to left off Tyler Alexander with two out, and Mariners third base coach Carlos Cardoza sent Naylor from second base, but he was thrown out by Langford.
Texas added two more runs in the ninth on a sacrifice fly by Andrew McCutchen and an RBI double by Josh Jung.
Seattle third baseman Brendan Donovan left the game early due to a left hip issue.
Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller, who started the year on the injured list with a left oblique injury, was at T-Mobile Park for the first time this season. He will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Tacoma on Saturday.
Up next
Mariners RHP George Kirby (2-2, 3.25) will face Rangers righty Nathan Eovaldi (2-2, 5.40) on Saturday afternoon.
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FIFE, Wash. – A portion of southbound I-5 will be closed overnight in Fife Friday and Saturday night, according to WSDOT.
The Washington State Department of Transportation says the purpose of the closure is to install a new electronic sign and will need two nights to do it.
Crews will close southbound I-5 from 54th Avenue to Port of Tacoma Road starting at 11 p.m. Friday night until 7:30 a.m. Saturday morning. Closures will resume Saturday night starting at 11 p.m. as well, and lanes will reopen Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m.
WSDOT says the closure will include the 54th Avenue ramps to southbound I-5.
Detours for weekend I-5 closure in Fife, WA
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The Source: Information in this story comes from the Washington State Department of Transportation.
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