Alex Wakeman Rouse
@awakerouse.bsky.social
From Seattle, for Seattle. 🌲🏔️🏙️ Policy wonk and civil servant. || Advocate for public schools 🍎, dense cities, safe streets, racial and social equity, and supporting our most vulnerable. || Opinions are my own.
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It’s the “season of love and giving”…but this year, doesn’t it seem more like a “season of fear and taking”? Like many of you, I’ve been saddened by the human impact of draconian government budget cuts and how angry many housed Americans are at unhoused Americans.
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December 21, 2025 at 6:34 AM
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Appalling. Abolish the death penalty.
The ruling allows Florida to continue with the lowest standard for the death penalty in the nation, requiring just 8 out of 12 jurors to agree on death.
Just in: Florida's supreme court today has UPHELD a recent state law that enables juries to sentence someone to death nonunanimously.
Bolts reported on FL's law a few years ago, amid huge concern that nonunanimous convictions have a high error rate, & are likelier to sideline Black jurors.
Bolts reported on FL's law a few years ago, amid huge concern that nonunanimous convictions have a high error rate, & are likelier to sideline Black jurors.
December 19, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Appalling. Abolish the death penalty.
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
If the worst single-family house in your n’hood costs over $1 million, then your n’hood should be zoned for apartment buildings.
(It’s pretty much that simple)
(It’s pretty much that simple)
December 17, 2025 at 9:50 PM
If the worst single-family house in your n’hood costs over $1 million, then your n’hood should be zoned for apartment buildings.
(It’s pretty much that simple)
(It’s pretty much that simple)
What if we funded a system that was designed to meet student needs, like a small teacher to staff ratio? Our public schools are scraping by, trying to meet needs. Something always has to give because our country doesn’t amply fund public schools. Tax the mega rich to fund schools. It’s that simple!
Today's paradox: Austerity isn't about money.
One of the wealthiest school districts in the country, home to several billionaires and hedge funds (and other finance companies and bros) is cutting teaching positions at the end of a year in which the stock market is up 15%.
One of the wealthiest school districts in the country, home to several billionaires and hedge funds (and other finance companies and bros) is cutting teaching positions at the end of a year in which the stock market is up 15%.
GHS English Teachers: Budget Cuts Threaten Student-Teacher Collaboration
greenwichfreepress.com
December 17, 2025 at 3:29 PM
What if we funded a system that was designed to meet student needs, like a small teacher to staff ratio? Our public schools are scraping by, trying to meet needs. Something always has to give because our country doesn’t amply fund public schools. Tax the mega rich to fund schools. It’s that simple!
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
This is a dream site for architects. As someone who helped with Affordable Talaris back in the day I strongly urge the city to allow denser housing here.
Affordable Talaris, a Share The Cities working group, has been demanding change at the Talaris parcel in Laurelhurst to build different & more affordable housing alongside trees, wetland, and a future daylit creek. We are heartened by the news that this parcel may have a different future!
December 17, 2025 at 5:23 AM
This is a dream site for architects. As someone who helped with Affordable Talaris back in the day I strongly urge the city to allow denser housing here.
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
I was so sad to hear about the death of a cyclist due to a hit-and-run on Beacon Ave. Allie was a beloved community member, avid biker, & advocate for safer transit & streets. My condolences to their family and friends. But condolences are hollow if we don’t take action to prevent the next tragedy.
December 16, 2025 at 12:14 AM
I was so sad to hear about the death of a cyclist due to a hit-and-run on Beacon Ave. Allie was a beloved community member, avid biker, & advocate for safer transit & streets. My condolences to their family and friends. But condolences are hollow if we don’t take action to prevent the next tragedy.
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
HB 2100 does it! It’s a payroll tax on high earners paid by the largest 1% of corporations in our state.
I’m also hearing that the State Legislature will consider a bill that repeals this sales tax on public schools in 2026 - it will likely come through the House Finance Committee.
I’m also hearing that the State Legislature will consider a bill that repeals this sales tax on public schools in 2026 - it will likely come through the House Finance Committee.
As of Dec 1, we're now getting charged a 10 percent sales tax on after school activities fees at the public school. Can't we just tax tech worker salaries already?
December 11, 2025 at 5:55 AM
HB 2100 does it! It’s a payroll tax on high earners paid by the largest 1% of corporations in our state.
I’m also hearing that the State Legislature will consider a bill that repeals this sales tax on public schools in 2026 - it will likely come through the House Finance Committee.
I’m also hearing that the State Legislature will consider a bill that repeals this sales tax on public schools in 2026 - it will likely come through the House Finance Committee.
SPS 2nd graders did not have their education interrupted by a pandemic. We should be investing more resources at all schools for evidence-based early intervention. How about using that $1B levy voters just passed on our public school kids? Our public school kids deserve it.
Just 57% of SPS 2nd graders are meeting standard in reading. Only 57% of 6th graders are meeting standard in math.
“Staff did not provide hypotheses about what is driving this trend but said they were looking into it.”
“Staff did not provide hypotheses about what is driving this trend but said they were looking into it.”
Issue 7 -- December 3, 2025 Seattle School Board Meeting Recap
New directors get bad news about student achievement.
thebulletinsea.org
December 8, 2025 at 3:27 PM
SPS 2nd graders did not have their education interrupted by a pandemic. We should be investing more resources at all schools for evidence-based early intervention. How about using that $1B levy voters just passed on our public school kids? Our public school kids deserve it.
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
Tired: flat streets
Wired: Speed humps, tables, etc
Inspired: Speed *dips*, because modern clearance and suspension makes taking speed bumps at speed no big deal, but dips still make drivers worry they'll damage their car, and that has the highest level of encouraging compliance
Wired: Speed humps, tables, etc
Inspired: Speed *dips*, because modern clearance and suspension makes taking speed bumps at speed no big deal, but dips still make drivers worry they'll damage their car, and that has the highest level of encouraging compliance
December 8, 2025 at 1:33 AM
Tired: flat streets
Wired: Speed humps, tables, etc
Inspired: Speed *dips*, because modern clearance and suspension makes taking speed bumps at speed no big deal, but dips still make drivers worry they'll damage their car, and that has the highest level of encouraging compliance
Wired: Speed humps, tables, etc
Inspired: Speed *dips*, because modern clearance and suspension makes taking speed bumps at speed no big deal, but dips still make drivers worry they'll damage their car, and that has the highest level of encouraging compliance
I am the biggest fan of the plan to build 16 homes in the lot next to our home (8 duplexes—each 1 main unit with a smaller ADU) and people are shocked I support it. Right now it’s one home to one person on 30k sq/feet! He’s great but we’d love more neighbors!!
One of the biggest drivers of high housing costs is that a small, highly motivated group of incumbent homeowners block new housing in their neighborhoods and almost no one is organized to push back.
Young people bear the brunt of that imbalance.
Be a housing fan.
Young people bear the brunt of that imbalance.
Be a housing fan.
December 7, 2025 at 4:59 AM
I am the biggest fan of the plan to build 16 homes in the lot next to our home (8 duplexes—each 1 main unit with a smaller ADU) and people are shocked I support it. Right now it’s one home to one person on 30k sq/feet! He’s great but we’d love more neighbors!!
Really devastated to hear the “police activity” mentioned below that closed a light rail station today was because police shot and killed someone.
Update: Link Shuttle buses are replacing the 1 Line
Update: 1 Line Shuttle buses are replacing the 1 Line from Rainier Beach Station to Columbia City Station until further notice due to Police Activity.
Update: 1 Line Shuttle buses are replacing the 1 Line from Rainier Beach Station to Columbia City Station until further notice due to Police Activity.
December 3, 2025 at 12:42 AM
Really devastated to hear the “police activity” mentioned below that closed a light rail station today was because police shot and killed someone.
Really confused why speed cushions will be removed and not replaced even though SDOT says, “In spring 2023, we installed speed cushions on S Henderson St to improve safety while we work on longer-term improvements. We’ve seen a reduction in speeds since installing the speed cushions.” Do better SDOT
taking out speed cushions on Henderson? really?
my kid used to go to school here and the crossing guard would describe cars driving around him on the sidewalk to avoid slowing down. we need all the traffic calming we can get, imo.
www.seattle.gov/transportati...
my kid used to go to school here and the crossing guard would describe cars driving around him on the sidewalk to avoid slowing down. we need all the traffic calming we can get, imo.
www.seattle.gov/transportati...
S Henderson St School Safety Project - Transportation | seattle.gov
Connecting people to schools, parks, transit, and businesses on S Henderson St
www.seattle.gov
December 2, 2025 at 5:42 AM
Really confused why speed cushions will be removed and not replaced even though SDOT says, “In spring 2023, we installed speed cushions on S Henderson St to improve safety while we work on longer-term improvements. We’ve seen a reduction in speeds since installing the speed cushions.” Do better SDOT
“Housing and services for kids aren’t the end of the story. Communities that intentionally plan for families pay attention to urban design considerations, such as walkability and road safety.”
NEW: “Some still insist ‘downtowns will never attract kids and shouldn’t try.’ Then they design downtown to virtually repel kids, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Vancouver proves the opposite can be true...”
I’m quoted in this article by @johnlorinc.bsky.social for @calcities.bsky.social
I’m quoted in this article by @johnlorinc.bsky.social for @calcities.bsky.social
People want to have kids and live downtown. Can they? - Western City Magazine
For decades, planners focused on attracting young singles to dense urban cores. That dynamic has shifted, in part because ...
www.westerncity.com
November 30, 2025 at 7:29 PM
“Housing and services for kids aren’t the end of the story. Communities that intentionally plan for families pay attention to urban design considerations, such as walkability and road safety.”
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
Huge news today, if you missed it; Chris Duncan was released from Louisiana prison after being wrongfully convicted for nearly three decades.
@psfrench.bsky.social wrote this devastating but important read this spring on Louisiana’s rush to kill Jim despite junk science.
@psfrench.bsky.social wrote this devastating but important read this spring on Louisiana’s rush to kill Jim despite junk science.
The Human Cost of Jeff Landry’s Drive to Resume Executions - Bolts
Chris Duncan’s death sentence—built on the testimony of two discredited doctors—illustrates just how faulty the system can be.
boltsmag.org
November 27, 2025 at 12:34 AM
Huge news today, if you missed it; Chris Duncan was released from Louisiana prison after being wrongfully convicted for nearly three decades.
@psfrench.bsky.social wrote this devastating but important read this spring on Louisiana’s rush to kill Jim despite junk science.
@psfrench.bsky.social wrote this devastating but important read this spring on Louisiana’s rush to kill Jim despite junk science.
Abhorrent. “Most guards who are accused of such abuse are never charged with crimes, or even disciplined. There were ~ 9,500 misconduct investigations brought against officers from 2000 to mid-October 2020 and closed by mid-2021, an average of more than 460 a year or about 38 a month, records show.”
A @nytimes.com investigation has found that state prison guards have been credibly accused of engaging in such behavior — putting inmates in restraints and then assaulting them — far more often than was previously known.
Restrained, Beaten, Asphyxiated: New York Prison Guards’ Brutality Grows
www.nytimes.com
November 24, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Abhorrent. “Most guards who are accused of such abuse are never charged with crimes, or even disciplined. There were ~ 9,500 misconduct investigations brought against officers from 2000 to mid-October 2020 and closed by mid-2021, an average of more than 460 a year or about 38 a month, records show.”
Hello, Seattle Public Schools… would love to see “away for the day” policies at least at all high schools (cc: @thebulletinsea.org )
My school recently instituted a phone free campus policy for students and by the end of the second week boys were huddled in circles during breaks showing and teaching each other close magic and card tricks.
November 21, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Hello, Seattle Public Schools… would love to see “away for the day” policies at least at all high schools (cc: @thebulletinsea.org )
Read this thread. There are 221 ICE facilities now, which is 100 more than this time last year. Go see if you have in run your community and consider doing something about it! ⬇️
After more than two months with no updates, ICE has finally released new detention statistics.
ICE reports a total of 65,135 detainees as of Nov. 16, 2025.
www.ice.gov/detain/deten...
ICE reports a total of 65,135 detainees as of Nov. 16, 2025.
www.ice.gov/detain/deten...
Detention Management
www.ice.gov
November 21, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Read this thread. There are 221 ICE facilities now, which is 100 more than this time last year. Go see if you have in run your community and consider doing something about it! ⬇️
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
This is what the Nazis did.
They blamed the Jews for everything to make them the enemy of the people.
It allowed them to commit atrocities.
Undocumented immigrants are not the reason for any of these problems, they’re a scapegoat.
Hold the billionaires, corporations & ruling class accountable
They blamed the Jews for everything to make them the enemy of the people.
It allowed them to commit atrocities.
Undocumented immigrants are not the reason for any of these problems, they’re a scapegoat.
Hold the billionaires, corporations & ruling class accountable
November 21, 2025 at 2:46 AM
This is what the Nazis did.
They blamed the Jews for everything to make them the enemy of the people.
It allowed them to commit atrocities.
Undocumented immigrants are not the reason for any of these problems, they’re a scapegoat.
Hold the billionaires, corporations & ruling class accountable
They blamed the Jews for everything to make them the enemy of the people.
It allowed them to commit atrocities.
Undocumented immigrants are not the reason for any of these problems, they’re a scapegoat.
Hold the billionaires, corporations & ruling class accountable
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
Study after study showing high-dose tutoring supports student learning. Would love to see new Seattle Public Schools superintendent bring a district-wide approach to high-dose tutoring, rather than it being contingent on whether a school’s admin supports afterschool programs (some don’t!) #sps
A Northwestern study finds students in Oakland's MathBOOST program made major math gains — thanks to community members trained as high-dose tutors
Oakland’s Big Education Bet: Empower Parents, Transform Schools
A Northwestern study finds students in Oakland’s MathBOOST program made major math gains — thanks to community members trained as high-dose tutors.
www.the74million.org
November 18, 2025 at 1:35 AM
Study after study showing high-dose tutoring supports student learning. Would love to see new Seattle Public Schools superintendent bring a district-wide approach to high-dose tutoring, rather than it being contingent on whether a school’s admin supports afterschool programs (some don’t!) #sps
Reposted by Alex Wakeman Rouse
The number of people who don't take transit due to safety concerns is eclipsed by those who do so because of speed or convenience, both of which would be improved by more bus service.
November 17, 2025 at 8:42 PM
The number of people who don't take transit due to safety concerns is eclipsed by those who do so because of speed or convenience, both of which would be improved by more bus service.
What Beth said:
GO NOEL FRAME! As I've posted before, MA instituted a wealth tax and found that people didn't leave the state.
Pressure is building for Democrats to take a big swing on taxes, beyond this year’s hikes. How far state Sen. Noel Frame and others pressing for new progressive taxes can deliver on that goal in 2026 is an open question. washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/11/14/w...
November 14, 2025 at 11:21 PM
What Beth said:
Seems logical (I think he’s referring to vouchers, which WA does not allow, thankfully): “If a state cannot exclude from access to taxpayer resources institutions simply because they are religious, a state also cannot exclude from taxation, institutions simply because they are religious.”
can't reiterate this enough: schoolfinance101.com/2021/06/19/t...
Time to Tax the Churches!
On June 30th 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court determined that if a state has a program of providing public financing for private entities to provide educational services, that program cannot exclude fr…
schoolfinance101.com
November 12, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Seems logical (I think he’s referring to vouchers, which WA does not allow, thankfully): “If a state cannot exclude from access to taxpayer resources institutions simply because they are religious, a state also cannot exclude from taxation, institutions simply because they are religious.”
Our kids, ages 6 and 8, just heard “867-5309/Jenny” for the first time. I think this song has a new generation of fans. Can you guess why??? 🫠
November 12, 2025 at 1:19 AM
Our kids, ages 6 and 8, just heard “867-5309/Jenny” for the first time. I think this song has a new generation of fans. Can you guess why??? 🫠