Michelle Sarju, a lifelong education advocate and 34-year Central District resident, recently launched her campaign for Seattle School Board, District 5. Sarju has already received the endorsements of numerous community, faith, and elected leaders, including outgoing District 5 School Board Director Zachary Dewolf, Pastor Kelle Brown, and Community Advocate Marina Gray.
“Michelle Sarju is a community leader in racial equity and mental health,” said DeWolf. “As an SPS alum and SPS parent, she understands the District in ways we need right now as we recover from the pandemic. I believe in her ability to keep our students centered in the critical decisions ahead of the Board.”
As a young girl in Topeka, Kansas, Sarju grew up among a family of activists for equal education and instilled the importance of doing well in school.
“I am running for Seattle School Board because I believe that every child – and I mean every child – should have access to a high-quality public school education,” said Sarju. “Far too often, demographics like race, zip code, socio-economic status, different abilities, first language, or the location of a child’s school determine the quality of education a student receives. This inequity is unacceptable.”
As a Central District resident for the past 34 years and a Seattle Public Schools mom, Sarju has experienced both the promise and the failure of our public school system. Her own children experienced unequal treatment as Black students in a predominantly white district – a dynamic that no family should have to endure. Sarju attended public schools from middle school through graduate school at the University of Washington School of Social Work. Only twice did she see a teacher who looked like her in her entire K-12 education, and through her own resilience she excelled despite an oppressive environment. These experiences informed her life’s work in public service as a Midwife, Social Worker, Maternal-Child Health professional, PTA member, and now Implementation Manager at King County Public Health. She was appointed Co-Chair of the Best Starts for Kids initiative by King County Executive Dow Constantine in 2015.
This past year has pushed Seattle Public Schools students, families, teachers, and staff into survival mode, and as a public health official, Sarju is poised to support schools in their re-entry and recovery processes through an equitable and data-driven lens.
“Our students shouldn’t have to operate in resiliency mode just to succeed in our public schools. We must do better for our kids,” said Sarju.
Sarju’s priorities include addressing the immediate disparities faced by Black, Brown, and insecurely housed students exacerbated by this pandemic, the ongoing racial educational opportunity gap, as well as the failure to support our special education students and an urgent re-evaluation of standardized testing so that students are not punished for pandemic losses.
“As we emerge from this pandemic, our Seattle Public Schools need strong, logical and experienced leaders. Michelle Sarju is all of that and more. As a mother, public health leader, and social worker, she has the skills and understanding to work collaboratively toward a more effective and functional public education system where all of our students can thrive,” said Marina Gray, Seattle Public Schools parent and Community Advocate. “She has seen how our system can marginalize students, including her own. She understands how social and emotional well-being is critical as a foundation to launch learning success, and as a public health leader she understands what is needed to help us transition out of this pandemic and into our new future.”
