AWSP Blog

School safety is not the responsibility of a single person, department, or profession—it is a shared mission that thrives when schools and communities come together. That belief is at the heart of the Lower Columbia School Safety Summit, an annual event dedicated to fostering a united, proactive, and resilient approach to school safety by bringing together key partners.

How you start the school year matters. The first days and weeks set the tone for everything that follows — and no one knows that better than Cathy Sork, 2024 AWSP Elementary Principal of the Year and principal at Dorothy Fox Elementary in Camas. In her recent article for NAESP’s Communicator, Cathy shares nine creative, practical ways principals can help students feel like essential members of their school community from the moment they walk through the doors.

You are the architect of your building’s culture, its systems, and its commitment to learning. That’s not small work—that’s transformational. So here’s your invitation: Before the first bell rings, take some time to reflect. What do you want to be true about your school by October? What will you design now to make that vision a reality? Let’s start strong. The blueprint is in your hands.

The Association of Washington Student Leaders (AWSL) and the Association of Washington School Principals (AWSP) will present 42 schools across the state with our Washington Schools on the Rise Award this fall. This is double of the submissions from the 2024 award year.

Dr. Selby was a legend whose influence on others across our state and country is truly unmeasurable. We remember her fondly at AWSP.