Legislative Update

Session has concluded, and the Governor has acted. Below is a brief summary of pension, health care, and other benefit legislation that will impact school districts, present and future retirees. The work continues...

ESB 5175 passed this last legislative session, allowing a district to offer a principal a contract of up to three years if certain conditions are met. The bill was introduced by Senator Lisa Wellman in order to help recruit and retain quality school leaders. We know it takes time to change systems and culture, and that nothing changes without relationships. A three-year contract might help reduce principal churn, and at the same time, help a principal lead with a long-term vision and plan.

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.

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.

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.