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.

A topic that has permeated many discussions with school leaders, students, and community members over the past several years has been vaping. With a rise in students vaping, specifically in schools, the stress of figuring out how to 'solve' this epidemic has fallen on our teachers, counselors, community members, school leaders, and students. Recently, we met with the AWSL Student Voice Network and asked them to weigh in on what we can start doing, stop doing, and keep doing to find solutions for this ongoing issue.

If we truly want to put equity into action, then perhaps we should consider redefining time throughout the system. How do we define an instructional “period,” a school day, the week, a month, or heaven forbid, the entire school calendar? We love our 180-day calendar so much that we’ve allowed that alone to drive the entire system for decades (the calendar, funding, collective bargaining, etc.) and subsequently blind us to new ways of thinking and doing. It is deeply entrenched and built around the needs of the adults working in the system, not the families we are trying to serve.

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.

October is National Bullying Prevention Month.  Not all behaviors we don’t like are bullying. Bullying is done on purpose, involves some kind of power imbalance, and is repeated – or likely to be repeated. The bottom line, it is hurtful or harmful in one way or another.  Did you know that the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognizes bullying as an  Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE)?

There are so many wonderful things I associate with October. The change of leaves, the final harvest from our garden, my son's birthday, and Friday night lights just to name a few. October is when the school year becomes real for our staff and students. The novelty of the start has worn off and it's fast and furious every day for our team. It is a month where you need to do something to celebrate your staff. This month's newsletter is loaded with a ton of ideas to help you achieve this. Make sure you check out the details of October 4 as it is becoming one of my favorite days of the year--but then again anything to do with tacos makes my heart happy. I also want to challenge YOU to put something on the calendar this month that will bring you joy. Maybe it will be coffee with a friend, a spa treatment, or going out for dessert with your partner. Do something intentional this month to bring joy to your heart. I believe in you! Cindy.

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.

Our advocacy team at AWSP works hard during the interim to get ready for the upcoming legislative session that begins in January 2023. This year’s session is a long session that runs from January through April and a new biennial budget for 2023-25 will be passed.  We are focused on solutions to address the needs of our school leaders through a holistic and multi-faceted approach addressing current policies, legislation, and funding so that we can attract and retain highly effective principals and assistant principals.

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.

Are you looking for ways to help build connections among your students all while supporting your SEL curriculum? Well, the Cispus Learning Center Challenge Course can support you in this endeavor. Let us come to you!

In 2002, our state legislature recognized that comprehensive district and school safety plans are of paramount importance and help to assure students, parents, guardians, school employees, and school administrators that our schools provide the safest possible learning environment. This year’s National Preparedness Month theme is A Lasting Legacy: The life you’ve built is worth protecting. Prepare for disasters to create a lasting legacy for you and your family. I think it’s safe to add: “and your whole school community.”

Ready Washington is a coalition of state education agencies, associations, and advocacy organizations that believe every Washington student should graduate prepared for a successful future. They have created many great resources to help your students, including this poster, which was co-created by four Washington young people, to encourage your students to use available resources to plan for their futures after high school graduation. We hope this poster engages students in accessing resources that will help them achieve their dreams.

Welcome to the September 2022 edition of the "School Celebration Newsletter." September is a critical month to keep yourself reminded of goals you set this summer. Are you getting enough sleep? Are you eating healthy most of the time? Are you getting exercise and taking timeouts from electronics? It is so important for all educators to make time this month and do something to charge their batteries. I want to challenge you to make a music playlist for yourself to listen to on your drive home to help reset your mind from work to family time. What will be your go-to song?

HB 2731 requires public schools in Washington to report diagnosed concussions sustained by students during athletic and other activities. DOH will provide information on its guidance and procedures on the Student Head Injury Concussion Reporting webpage, along with two training webinars on Wednesday, August 24 at 2 p.m. and Thursday, September 29 at 9 a.m.

Join educators across Washington state to learn about Breakfast After the Bell’s positive outcomes for students and schools as well as how to overcome common challenges. This webinar will focus on how teachers, principals, and building staff can collaborate with food services to create and sustain successful Breakfast After the Bell programs. Attend either September 1 or September 22 from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Each year, the AWSP Board President has the opportunity to select an individual or group who demonstrates support of principals and the principalship in the education of each and every student. The Association of Washington School Principals is thrilled to announce that our 2022 President’s Award has been awarded to Chase Buffington, Director of the Cispus Learning Center.

The Association of Washington School Principals is honored to present longtime AWSP member and friend Jim Eisenhardt with the first-annual Annalee Braley Membership Award. The award was officially presented to Jim during our annual luncheon at the AWSP/WASA Summer Conference in Spokane at the end of June.

Each year, AWSP’s Advocacy Advisory Council has the opportunity to select a state-level public servant who has demonstrated support of principals and the principalship in the education of all students. For 2021, the Council selected Senator Sam Hunt as AWSP’s 2021 Torch of Leadership Award winner. Senator Hunt is a Democrat representing the 22nd legislative district, which includes Olympia, Lacey, Tumwater, and the surrounding areas.

In partnership with AWSP, OSPI would like to hear directly from building administrators about how to best support you and your colleagues with beginning the implementation of your district’s SSB 5030/Comprehensive School Counseling Program (CSCP) plan this coming year. Your feedback will inform our collaborative work with AWSP to develop resources, tools and training that can help you to feel inspired, hopeful, and ready to leverage SSB 5030 to support improved student outcomes through the CSCP.

Last year was quite a year, to put it mildly. I suspect that we are all hoping to return to a bit more normalcy in 22–23. We know, though, that there will be a lot of change moving forward. Here are some school safety thoughts to help navigate the changes and find a new normal. Comprehensive school safety plans, sometimes referred to as Emergency Operations Plans or EOPs), are required by law (RCW 28A.320.125). This is not new. What is new, though, is the fact that now, for the 1st time, we have some required data around those plans. We will be collecting more this school year, as well.