Mayor Strickland

The 5th grade boys were able to spend some time talking to Marilyn Strickland, the mayor of Tacoma last week. She explained to them why Tacoma started using the strong city manager form of government (corruption, of course!) and what makes her job as mayor so fun. She also spoke of the challenges Tacoma faces and what makes Tacoma so great. They were excited to be able to answer some of her questions with information they had learned the week before from the assistant city manager! She also had some advice for the students as they continue through schooling and showed us her awesome balcony that overlooks the city!

When we returned from our visit, the boys were asked to write about what they learned from Mayor Strickland.  Here is what they wrote:

I learned that taxes are going up and property tax is going up more because Tacoma is one of the top cities for growth. She also said to go to college outside of the country you live in (for a semester or year). Also, she said to go and learn languages. We have advantages living in Tacoma because we live on the water and have good weather.

I learned that taxes are slowly going up in Tacoma because people are coming and the city is growing. In college, if I have the chance, I should travel and learn to fluently speak another language.

I learned that the property taxes are growing higher but they can also sell the houses for more money. I learned that Tacoma is a mid population city.