Each Seattle public school has a Building Leadership Team (BLT), whose primary function is to promote and facilitate the collaborative decision making process which affects academic achievement. Its more specific responsibilities are to oversee the facilitation and development of the Continuous School Improvement Plan (CSIP), professional development, and the school budget.  TOPS’ BLT is currently composed of the Principal, four staff members who represent K-2, 3-5, middle school, and specialists, and two parents/guardians elected from the TOPS community to represent K-4 and 5-8.

The BLT is the steward of the academic program of the school – the critical support and advisory team for the administrative team who are responsible for the final decisions. The CSIP lays out goals and strategies to boost student achievement. The CSIP currently has goals for students at all grade levels to meet or exceed typical growth (as measured by Smarter Balanced Assessment) for mathematics and English Language Arts as well as goals for students in the advanced learning program.

The BLT plans professional development activities to meet the needs of teachers as they work to implement the CSIP.

Each school in the district has control over how it budgets some of the funds it receives from the district.  The BLT determines the staffing needs and budget to meet the goals of the CSIP. The money that Friends of TOPS raises from the No-Bake and Auction is not a part of the budget with which the BLT works—these funds are allocated through a Site Council Request for Proposal process.

The BLT meets on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month at 7:15 a.m.

Current Staff Membership:
Chair, Sara Celms and Special Education rep
Secretary, Mark Ellis and Middle School rep
Natalie Van Stone, K-2 rep (2nd grade teacher)
Katherine Hinn, 3-5 rep (4th grade teacher)
Nick Burt, Instructional Assistant
Suzanne Wakefield, Art
Amy Schwentor, Principal

Parent Representatives on the BLT:
K-4: Jeff Forde, blt.k-4@topsk8.org
5-8: seat open
POCC: Mai Ketcherside, blt.pocc@topsk8.org