REPORT FOR JANUARY 23
 

• SB 6454 would create programs to improve the educational outcomes of students in foster care. Puget Sound ESD would have to designate a foster care program supervisor to coordinate programs and services for students in foster care. Additionally, Puget Sound ESD would create a grant program for school districts to improve stability and educational outcomes for students in foster care.
• SB 6453 would require education records of students who are the subject of child dependency cases to be transmitted to the Department of Social and Health Services within two days after receiving a request. This requirement is also included in SB 6454 above.
• SB 6377 is a comprehensive bill to enhance secondary career and technical education programs.
• SB 6280 would provide a new formula allocation to school districts for enhancing library programs and services.
• SB 6549 would create the Sustainable Environment Culminating Project grant program to provide students with environmentally related culminating projects that connect school academics with natural resource career possibilities.
• SB 6376 would provide an allocation to school districts to reduce class sizes in grades K-3 to a 1:17 teacher-to-student. This would be a "use it or lose it" allocation. Similar to Student Achievement Funds (Initiative 728), districts could initially use the allocation to provide improvements or additions to facilities directly related to class size reductions in grades K-3.

This afternoon, the Senate Economic Development, Trade and Management Committee held a public hearing on a bill of interest to schools: SB 6511. SB 6511 would require the State Board of Education to implement the Washington State Quality Award (WSQA) program and/or the Baldridge National Quality program as the state accountability system for public schools and schools districts. State agencies, including WSSDA, are already required to apply for WSQA reviews and some individual school districts have, on their own initiative, begun to apply for WSQA reviews. It is hard to tell if this bill will move this session, however, it is clear that many legislators believe the Baldridge (or WSQA) process can prove to be very beneficial to enhancing an entity's success. Be prepared to hear more discussion about Baldridge in the coming years.

Later this evening, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Education will hold a work session on K-12 issues. Included on the agenda are: Initiative 732 COLA's; English Language Learners; and costs and future directions of the WASL. We will provide a review of this meeting in Thursday's Update.

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Legislative Reports are prepared by WSSDA's Governmental Relations staff team: Dan Steele (360/252-3010) and Sheila Chard (360/252-3011). If you have questions, comments, or concerns, please contact us.