Crest community speaks out about importance of program

Published 10:42 am Saturday, April 25, 2026

Crest Learning Center was on the minds and within the powerful voices of many people April 23 at the Mercer Island School District Board meeting.

During the public input portion of the meeting, 20 individuals stood up to the mic and spoke strongly about how the Mercer Island High School (MIHS) program has positively and immensely impacted their lives over the years. The collection of passionate speakers featured alumni and current students along with parents and staff members who disagreed with proposed changes that are being reconsidered.

According to the district website, Crest — which is located down the road from the high school — is “specifically and carefully designed to offer a successful alternative pathway to graduation.”

Recent letters penned by MIHS Principal Nick Wold and distributed to Crest students and families said that shrinking enrollment and budgetary hurdles will bring about some changes for the 2026-2027 school year, according to a previous Reporter story.

The district said the Crest building isn’t closing, and the Crest Block — which consists of a two-hour learning block of social studies and language arts — will be put under the school board’s lens to determine what it will look like for students in the fall. The Horticulture and Marine Science course will still be offered at Crest as well as the Crest Block, the district added.

Following an April 20 listening session with the Crest community, Wold released a letter two days later that said, in part: “Our next step will be working with staff on a model to provide a Crest Block while also continuing the important work of creating access and success on the main campus for all learners.”

A previous letter from Wold said the district would be moving some courses to the main high school campus and discontinuing the Crest Block while working to place each student in appropriate classes. Those proposed changes are no longer happening, the district said.

‘Crest has been my refuge’

Speakers said that Crest is a second home, a safe space and a warm building where students know that everyone has their back. Crest has shaped them into who they are as people, parents, educators and more.

Student Mason Wiseman noted about his Crest experience: “On my first day of high school, I came home crying — not out of sadness, but out of joy since I was finally accepted for who I was and who I am. I didn’t have to change myself to become friends with others. Now I was accepted for being me.”

Parent Christy Sheirs said the need for Crest is critical and asked the board to continue its success.

“Removing this program or even removing it from this building is like cutting down a forest to build a parking lot. You might have the need for a parking lot, but don’t cut down our beautiful, thriving forest full of individual and unique life,” she said.

Crest student Nova Sheirs added: “Crest has been my refuge, my school. I associate more with being a student at Crest more than at MIHS because Crest values what I value: It values grit, community, healthy relationships and fun.”

Student Ronan Dow said she nearly didn’t attend Crest because of an Island stereotype that Crest is where the “bad kids” go. “That stereotype is wrong. Crest serves a wide demographic of learners, different backgrounds, different needs, different stories,” she said, adding that the district has a responsibility to serve them.

A “Save Crest Learning Center” petition that Samantha Bannach-Volchok and Grace McCormack posted on the change.org site said that Crest is crucial because “some people need a different learning environment than ‘typical’ students, a type of environment that the main building cannot and has never been able to provide.”

School Board President Stephanie Burnett thanked the speakers for reaching out and attending the meeting and told the families that she feels for them in this challenging situation.

To the students, Burnett said: “We want you to know we see you and we take you very seriously and really appreciate your presence (and) your stories — and we hear you.”

A lengthy Crest discussion was held later in the meeting among the board members, student representatives to the board and Superintendent Dr. Fred Rundle. Board Vice President Jody Lee said that she met with Crest parents who suggested they do some fundraising to support the program.

Lee added that she feels the district approached the Crest decision with the best of intentions and goodwill toward all of the students.

“What I think that maybe none of us anticipated was the sheer volume of sort of firsthand accounts that we got of just how very lifesaving, literally, this program has been for students,” said Lee, adding that the community must recognize that the district and board are making hard choices with the Crest situation.

Board member Maggie Tai Tucker thinks a lot of Island school parents are coming face-to-face with the effects of school underfunding for the first time after hearing about similar situations affecting off-Island schools.

After hearing the Crest students’ stories, MIHS student rep to the board Lucy Dorer said: “The most fundamental thing of (the district) is making sure that every single student can learn and has that opportunity to learn.”

RECOGNITION

At the meeting, Rundle introduced new Islander Middle School Principal Katie Gallagher; recognized the second-place state MIHS Unified basketball team; and acknowledged the KMIH 88.9 The Bridge students and MIHS.tv staff for receiving awards and recognition at the International Broadcasting System (IBS) Awards in New York in early March.

To view the meeting, visit https://www.youtube.com/@misdcommunications9957/videos