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March 10, 2017

Statewide Book Fair to Support Reflections

The Washington State PTA Reflections program provides an invaluable service to our children. It’s amazing to see the creativity and effort our children put into their works of art. We’re excited to announce a statewide online book fair with Children’s Bookstore to expand and support Reflections throughout the state. Proceeds from the book fair will…
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Category: Reflections

March 9, 2017

Senate Advances Bill to Extend Levy Cliff to 2019

As its last bill of the March 8 cutoff, the Senate Wednesday night passed an amended bill on the “levy cliff” (ESB 5023), with all members voting in favor; with the exception of Republican Senator Michael Baumgartner of West Spokane. The Senate ran their version of the bill so they could change the title to…
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Category: Advocacy , Education , Legislative

January 15, 2017

2017 Session Starts with Pomp, Work Sessions and Hearings

The 65th Washington State Legislature kicked off a 105-day session January 9, swearing in 18 new House and 12 new Senate members, one of the largest freshman classes for both chambers in many election cycles. The Senate is controlled by a Republican majority of 25-24, while the House majority is 50 Democrats to 48 Republicans.…
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Category: Advocacy , Education , Family Engagement , Legislative

January 12, 2017

Erika Kapur Testifies before Senate Budget Committee

Erika Kapur, a 45th legislative district constituent and Washington State PTA (WSPTA) Region 2 Legislative Chair, testified yesterday afternoon in support of Governor Inslee’s proposed education budget. Her testimony can be found at 1 hour, 30 minutes into the Senate Ways & Means committee hearing; watch her testimony here. “This budget addresses many of the important…
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Category: Advocacy , Education , Family Engagement , Health & Well-being , Legislative

January 10, 2017

WSPTA FACE Director Testifies in Favor of Governor Inslee’s Proposed Education Budget

Judy East, WSPTA Family and Community Engagement Director, testified Monday in the House Appropriations Committee in support of Governor Inslee’s proposed operating budget. In particular, Judy said: “This budget addresses many of the important elements of WSPTA’s two-year platform, as voted on by our membership. These include: A focus on social and emotional health with…
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Category: Advocacy

January 10, 2017

WSPTA FACE Director Testifies in Favor of Governor Inslee’s Proposed Education Budget

Judy East, WSPTA FACE Director, testifying in Olympia Judy East, WSPTA Family and Community Engagement Director, testified Monday in the House Appropriations Committee in support of Governor Inslee’s proposed operating budget. In particular, Judy said: “This budget addresses many of the important elements of WSPTA’s two-year platform, as voted on by our membership. These include:…
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Category: Advocacy , Education , Family Engagement , Health & Well-being

December 15, 2016

PRESS RELEASE: State’s Largest Parents’ Association Applauds Inslee Education Budget

Tacoma, WA (December 15, 2016): After the release of Governor Jay Inslee’s education budget spending plan on Tuesday, Washington State PTA President Barbara Martin issued the following statement: “Governor Inslee’s investments in K-12 education to support a high-quality teacher in every classroom and a skilled principal in every school are a great step forward in…
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Category: Advocacy , Education , Health & Well-being

December 13, 2016

Governor Releases Ed Budget, Asks for $3.9B in New K-12 Funding

Kicking off the 2017 budget proposals to resolve the “McCleary problem,” Governor Jay Inslee released his education and revenue budgets today, with a request for $3.9 billion in total spending over the two-year budget cycle. In a Monday preview, staff indicated that nearly two-thirds of the funding would boost compensation for all educators and add…
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Category: Advocacy , Education , Legislative

November 18, 2016

ESSA Draft Consolidated Plan Outreach

Shape your public education system for years to come by providing feedback on Washington’s Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) draft Consolidated Plan, through the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI). Washington State PTA was involved in the draft process, and OSPI wants the viewpoints of their constituents well represented. OSPI was one of…
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Category: Advocacy , Education

November 10, 2016

Social Emotional Benchmarks Report

Washington State PTA has worked on Social Emotional Learning (SEL) as a top legislative priority for several years*. During the 2015-17 biennium, SEL has been a top five priority. In June of 2015, the Legislature provided funding for a workgroup to develop Social Emotional Learning Benchmarks (SELB) for K-12 education based on the foundational work done in…
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Category: Advocacy