2017 WSPTA Legislative Assembly Recap
Delegates from across the state gathered for inspiration, advocacy education, networking, and to consider the addition of new positions to the policy platform, as Washington State PTA held its 39th annual Legislative Assembly, October 20-21. Some highlights of the WSPTA Legislative Assembly included an insightful and detailed update on the 2017 legislative session from WSPTA…
Governor Jay Inslee has declared October to be Dyslexia Awareness Month.
WSPTA members adopted Resolution 18.32, “Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia, and Dyspraxia” in 2016 to support early screening for signs and symptoms of language processing disorders including but not limited to dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia, with parental notification; and to support legislation for funding to support training of parents, teachers and other school personnel in early identification…
Category:
Advocacy
New: 2017 End of Session Legislative Report for WSPTA Members
Read about the 2017 session’s legislation that passed and didn’t pass, find an overview of the state’s education funding plan, HB 2242, and high-level operating budget investments in education.
Category:
Legislative
Guest Post: Youth Advocacy Resources
Washington State PTA is a member of the Washington Healthy Youth (WHY) Coalition. The following was shared by fellow coalition member Julie Peterson, Senior Director of Policy at Foundation for Healthy Generations. The Youth Advocacy Guide and Hannah’s Tips, featuring youth advocate extraordinaire Hannah Stewart, are resources aimed at encouraging the youth of Washington to make their voices heard. Created…
Category:
Advocacy
Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal Submits Washington’s Federal Education Plan (ESSA)
Washington State’s plan grants schools more flexibility over meeting the needs of every student and places an intentional focus on historically underserved populations of students. According to OSPI, student success will be gauged using many variables, not just test results. Schools will create improvement plans that identify and close gaps in student success. And districts…
Category:
Advocacy
Washington Capital Budget
Dear WSPTA Member, Many schools in Washington are overcrowded or in desperate need of updating in order to provide a healthy and safe learning environment. One billion dollars in School Construction Assistance is at stake! We are asking you to contact your legislators to do the right thing in supporting Washington’s children and bring the…
Category:
Advocacy
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Legislative
Inslee calls 3rd special session, tells legislature it’s time to get their work done
Wednesday, June 21st marked the end of the 2nd special session and the start of the 3rd special session. Governor Inslee called the third special session, clearly frustrated with the lack of progress. Under intense media questioning, Inslee said that he would veto a 30-day budget bill if one came to his desk. “The differences…
Category:
Legislative
Op-Ed Article by Representatives Dolan and Stonier
Here is an informative op-ed piece (Seattle Times) from two state representatives, Dolan and Stonier, that supports WSPTA’s Resolution 18.13, which states no single factor should determine a student’s advancement such as graduation from high school. HB 1046, the bill that has passed the state House three times by a wide bipartisan margin, would still require the…
Category:
Education
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Legislative
Office of Financial Management K-12 Education Funding Comparison
Below is a side-by-side summary, from the Office of Financial Management (OFM), of the different McCleary proposals. This is a simplified look at the proposals—it is not comprehensive nor does it have all the details of each plan. The second document below is a look at the dollars based on the state fiscal year. For a district…
Category:
Education
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Legislative
Action Alert for House Bill 1046
On behalf of the Legislative Committee, we are asking you to use the message below to contact your state senator in support of House Bill 1046. HB 1046 would continue the practice of using statewide high school assessments in English Language Arts, Math, and Science for federal accountability purposes, but would remove the requirement to…