OSPI, the State Board of Education, and the Washington Student Achievement Council held a webinar this week where they shared updates on new legislation related to graduation, as well as career and college readiness. These groups provided updates on changes coming to graduation pathways, the High School and Beyond Plan, the Washington College Grant, Mastery-Based Learning, and more. Here are some highlights. The State Board of Education explained HB 1308, which establishes another graduation pathway that districts can choose to use for their students. This performance-based pathway is an opportunity for students to demonstrate knowledge and skills in a real-world context, providing evidence that the student meets or exceeds state learning standards in English and mathematics.

Kaiser Permanente, Healthier Generation, and OSPI are excited to offer an opportunity for districts to apply the Multi-tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework to staff wellbeing. Using a learning cohort model, we are inviting up to eight (8) district teams to join us in the 2023-24 school year. Experts in MTSS and staff well-being will guide teams through a series of learning and activities that will prepare them to implement key elements of workplace well-being within the context of MTSS. This process will assure compliance with SHB 1363: Addressing Secondary Traumatic Stress in the K-12 Workforce (WSSDA Model Policy 5515).

OSPI recently released an important bulletin related to certificate renewal requirements for all teachers and administrators who need to renew their certification after July 1, 2023. Educators may renew early. An educator may choose to renew a certificate at any time during the validity of their certificate. It is the responsibility of the educator to ensure that they hold a valid certificate and renew that certificate in a timely manner. OSPI recommends that those wishing to renew a certificate apply for their renewal as soon as they have completed the required number of hours.

These resources are sent out weekly to leaders in special education and Section 504. Each post contains tips and resources on a variety of topics that are meant to keep you informed and up-to-date.

Conducting an annual Comprehensive School Counseling Program (CSCP) program review, as required in the CSCP written plan, should include feedback from school administrators and other educational partners. SSB 5030 requires each school to develop a process for conducting an annual CSCP review, but it allows schools to develop their own process. If you have not yet established a process for collecting feedback, allow us to make a suggestion: consider a simple open-ended survey.

The Executive Teams from AWSP and WASA met on April 25th for a discussion to begin exploring opportunities for collaboration as related to the health and future sustainability of the principalship here in Washington state. This interest is not only shared by our respective associations, but also by principals and superintendents alike. We know that superintendents view the principal as a key member of the district leadership team, and more importantly an essential element in the creation of superior schools and sustaining that level of excellence over time.

As a 2022 interim project, Senator Lisa Wellman (D-Mercer Island), Chair of the Senate Committee on Early Learning and K-12 Education, asked committee staff to put together a document that identifies and categorizes references to parents and guardians in state law, rules, and model policies. The final document organizes these policies by topics such as attendance and truancy, classroom access and parental involvement, curriculum and instructional materials, special education, graduation, and more.

We are excited to have made our final edits to a new publication called The AWSP Equity Guide: The Heart Work of School Leadership. The AWSP Equity Guide is really a guide of self-discovery, providing a “zero entry” pool to the deep end, and resources and learning opportunities for leaders who are intent in growing their skillset and knowledge about equity and how it intersects with our leadership practices. The AWSP pro-learning team has used the guide as a primary resource in our AWSP New Principal Mentor Training program and Implementation Sessions. The goal is to have the guide available to schools and districts by the AWSP/WASA Summer Conference, taking place June 25-27 in Spokane.

Mr. Regalado died 9 years ago. Thousands of students, like me, who spent time in the darkroom at his side with our negatives and prints, asking about exposure, composition, and what made a good photograph good, mourned when we heard the news. He was one of those teachers that zealously approached his subject, mastered the command of his ship (à la his classroom), and built a community of learners at the tables in his room. From his class, I remember learning about Henri Cartier-Bresson, AKA "The Father of the Decisive Moment."

Welcome to the beautiful month of May. I would say that May is a magical time for the students and staff we serve. It is the final push of knowledge and skills for our students to ensure they are ready to move on to the next grade, level of content, or post-high school graduation. Our staff is digging deep this month and truly giving their students everything they have left. They (like us) are exhausted but we are all determined to dig a bit deeper to finish strong. The month of May is full of celebration opportunities for you to utilize to celebrate with your staff. Some are ridiculously simple and others will require a bit of prep work. I have no doubt that this month's School Celebration Newsletter has something for everyone. Let me know if I can support you or ever be a listening voice. You can find me on Twitter @sholtys or drop me an email at cindy.cromwell@kelsosd.org anytime. I believe in you!!

The AWSP Mentor Implementation Sessions have wrapped up, and a big thank you to all of you who participated in mentoring, training, and walking with new school leaders this year. We were able to mix things up a bit and keep many school leaders in their buildings by hosting our virtual implementation sessions to complete training requirements. We also learned much about facilitating a large statewide network, and with the help of post-session feedback, we adjusted presentation content and learning as the sessions unfolded. This was a big lift! Thank you to my AWSP colleagues, David Morrill and Dameon Brown, for their support on the technology side and problem-solving and learning between sessions to meet the learner's needs.

The House and Senate pounded their gavels one last time on Sunday, April 23, as they declared “Sine Die” for the 2023 Legislative session. This Latin term means “without a day,” and it is used to describe an adjournment when the date to reconvene is not specified and when the Legislature intends to leave town for the last time. However, there is a bit of a caveat to that statement since the Legislature may come back for a special session to address the Blake Decision. More on that later.

Speaking of EQUITY… have you ever heard of the ARD Newlsetter? Talk about powerful and impactful daily learning on all things related to the topic of Anti-Racism. As our team has been working to find resources for the AWSP Equity Guide, The Heart Work Of School Leadership, I stumbled across this organization and its newsletter. They have podcasts to listen to as well as professional learning opportunities. I have added this daily read to my morning workflow and have pushed myself to continue reading and learning about how racism creeps into almost everything. From bank bailouts to exploitation of farmworkers and how inequality fuels a global water crisis to questioning your understanding of “authentic” food…I’m getting curious and thoughtful and paying a bit more attention to so many different inequalities as they are exposed and, at times, right under my very nose!

Sine Die approaches and a sense of glee and panic pervades the air as multiple bills either pass or fail to advance. Concurrence, recession, and just plain obstruction are on display. Multiple bills, close to 400, will be sent to the Governor who is even now in the process of signing them. To date, there have been no vetoes. Below is a summary of what is known. A year-end, post-Session report will be more definitive.

These resources are sent out weekly to leaders in special education and Section 504. Each post contains tips and resources on a variety of topics that are meant to keep you informed and up-to-date.

As Sine Die approaches, the legislature will go ‘dark’. Negotiations between both chambers, caucus members, the Governor’s office, and legislature leadership will be taking place outside of the public eye. Budgets need to be adopted, and altered bills need to be reconciled/concurred by the opposite body. The balls/bills will continue bouncing back and forth until finally caught by the Governor. Bill signings are occurring.

Just ten more days of this year’s legislative session remain. All policy bills had to pass off the floor of the opposite house by April 12. Once again, there were some very late nights and some bills that didn’t make it past this deadline. Over the next few days of the session, legislators will pass bills necessary to implement the budget, continue work to concur on different versions of bills that have passed, and come to an agreement over a final budget. And all of this should end by Sunday, April 23.

A great mentor of mine told me once that I have five jobs in life, and only five. My mentor would say if you do these five jobs, what kind of teacher will you be? If you do these five jobs, what kind of school leader will you be?

We are in the final few weeks of this year’s legislative session, which should end on time on April 23. This week the April 4 cutoff date passed for bills to move out of budget committees. Now the House and Senate are focusing their efforts on meeting the next cutoff date of April 12, when bills (except those necessary to implement the budget) need to pass off the floor of the opposite house. Between now and the end of the session, the action will be both on the floor and behind the scenes as budget negotiations occur.

As Sine Die approaches, action on bills received from the opposite house continues at a brisk pace. And bills (balls) continue bouncing. As mentioned earlier, some bills passed in the form they were received will go to the Governor; some will not move at all, and others will be amended and then sent back. If there is no agreement, they are then sent back again. And on and on.