AWSP Blog

This content is emailed weekly to leaders in special education and Section 504. Each newsletter contains tips and resources on a variety of topics that are meant to keep you informed and up to date. Please consult your district attorney if you are looking for legal advice.

In this episode of AWSP News, we discuss mental, physical and spiritual rest, our “A Matter of Principals” podcast, the I AM: WE ARE MLK Day Celebration program, the opportunity to share the amazing things happening in your school and district at the AWSP/WASA Summer Conference, our Washington Principal magazine, sharing your successes with us, gearing up for the legislative session and our continued advocacy for principals and assistant principals in our state, and our 50th Anniversary as the Association of Washington School Principals.

Schools used to be a place where students and adults would use the lessons learned from mistakes or failure to move forward and improve, but not anymore. The new normal is to no longer have grace, assume best intentions in others, or respect those placed in leadership positions. What does that mean for school principals and assistant principals? An already nearly impossible job becoming even more impossible.

This content is emailed weekly to leaders in special education and Section 504. Each newsletter contains tips and resources on a variety of topics that are meant to keep you informed and up to date. Please consult your district attorney if you are looking for legal advice.

I have started this month’s school safety blog many times. Many times. A tragedy occurred, yet another school shooting. The focus of this blog changed. I have been talking to educators, parents, and others. I have been reading, seeing, and listening to stories. I am sure that you have, as well.

These emails are sent out weekly to leaders in special education and Section 504.. Each email contains tips and resources on a variety of topics that are meant to keep you informed and up-to-date.. Please consult your district attorney if you are looking for legal advice, as that is out of my realm.

In 1975, it was a different world for children with disabilities. Prior to the enactment of IDEA, more than 1.8 million students with disabilities were denied access to an education. For those who receive any services, most were delivered in segregated settings and few children had access to the same educational curriculum as their non-disabled peers.

As school leaders and staffulty wait for the return of SBA data, do not let the information (aka attendance and re-engagement data) we have on AND from students (daily, weekly, monthly) go unnoticed! Lean into this data to guide your leadership moves. Timely analysis of attendance data can help your system identify factors that are contributing to chronic absences. School culture, relationship building, team responses to data, simple communications that are easily accessible by busy families, and grading practices, all could be contributing! Get your teams meeting/huddling regularly and start with tier 1, universal (low lift/high-yield) efforts. If you’d like to know more about how to become more Data Literate, sign up to participate in our winter series of the Data Literate School Leader!

These emails are sent out weekly to leaders in special education and Section 504.. Each email contains tips and resources on a variety of topics that are meant to keep you informed and up-to-date.. Please consult your district attorney if you are looking for legal advice, as that is out of my realm.

What is the "Devious Lick Challenge"? It is a challenge on TikTok, where students are encouraged to take something from their school; these items may include the bathroom sink, a soap dispenser, or even a teacher's desk. Schools have tried a multitude of ways to stop students, yet this challenge is just as popular today as ever. Clearly, many solutions aren't working. So what is the solution?