New Seattle Public Schools superintendent begins leadership with response to deadly gun violence

It has been a somber start for the new superintendent of Seattle Public Schools after two teens were shot and killed Friday afternoon near Rainier Beach High School.

“It is a tragedy of unspeakable proportions,” new SPS superintendent Ben Shuldiner said in his first message to district families over the weekend. “My heart breaks for the families, friends, and our entire community.”

In the update, Shuldiner called for families to email him with ideas to address gun violence, “a scourge of our community and our country.”

Monday morning began with delayed classes at South Seattle schools.

The two teens were shot and killed near S Henderson and Rainier Friday on the edges of the Rainier Beach and South Shore PK-8 School campuses.

There have been no arrests.

Shuldiner is replacing Superintendent Brent Jones who announced he was stepping down and had been on medical leave. Jones had led the district since 2022 when he was selected as an interim to lead the district out of the pandemic.

Shuldiner joins the district as it moves forward with ambitious plans under the city’s newly approved $1.3 billion families and education levy.

The expanded levy Includes a planned $235 million in school safety investments described as supporting existing school health centers and “expanded safety investments in and around schools” in summaries.

In the Central District and on Capitol Hill, Shuldiner will be tasked with continuing efforts to address gun violence around 23rd Ave’s Garfield High School following a deadly shooting of a student there in 2024.

2026 at Garfield is bringing continued efforts including the ongoing “Reclaiming the Village” forums organizers say they hope will grow into an ongoing series of events to support Black families and students in the Central District.

Garfield Principal Tarance Hart launched the forums as the school has tried to address community needs, public safety, and gun violence following the deadly 2024 shooting of 17-year-old student Amarr Murphy-Paine in the school’s parking lot.

Hart has also led improvements to Garfield’s campus to address safety and security concerns. In October, the Seattle School Board rejected a plan supported by then-Mayor Bruce Harrell and his police chief to return a uniformed Seattle Police Department officer to the Garfield High School campus citing concerns over disproportionate policing and the district’s failure to implement community recommendations in its proposal.

2026 will bring further safety investments. Hart announced classroom technology and school safety upgrades are underway through June including “expanded security camera coverage, new intercom and clock systems, emergency alert devices, and improved door monitoring and access controls.”

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