Compromise budget includes $50 million for MSOC, $2 million for timber districts

House and Senate budget negotiators gathered at 12:30 today to sign the compromise supplemental operating budget, which:

• includes $50 million in additional MSOC;
• shifts the $97 million from 1,080 instructional hours to begin a phase in of a  24-credit diploma; and 
• restores $2 million to school districts with 57% poverty in counties that receive federal timber payments. 

All three issues support positions adopted by the 2013 Legislative Assembly. 

Additional funding for MSOC will help the Legislature be better prepared for the 2015-17 biennial budget and the phase in of the McCleary decision and ESHB 2261 (2009). Over the interim, school districts identified issues with the funding for 1,080 hours and several bills were introduced to make sure the funding was spent in a meaningful way. The federal timber payment issue has been on the WSSDA positions list for years.

Budget being printed, Senate action signals it's done

While the Twitter world is going crazy, sharing that the budget has been agreed to and is at the printer's, the Senate just sent up a flare by putting the bill on the next order of Senate business.

ESSB 6002 is expected to receive a "Do Not Concur" vote in the Senate, which will send the budget as it passed the House back to the House.  This procedural action is necessary because the Senate can't amend its own bill at this point. The House will then take up the supplemental operating budget again with the agreed upon spending plan, the House will pass it to the Senate, and the Senate will concur.

If all goes as planned, activity should be complete by tomorrow, which is the end of the 60-day regular session. Lawmakers can go until midnight and still meet the deadline, although folks are feeling a bit more confident it will all be over earlier.

Things we'll be watching for include funding to implement the McCleary decision (specifically MSOC), as well as $2 million in restored basic education apportionment payments for districts that receive federal timber payments.

Budget and 24-credit agreement reached - I think

After a marathon negotiating session that ended around 3 a.m. but continued until about 5:30 a.m., it would appear there is a budget agreement on the big pieces. Negotiators are meeting now to discuss the various provisos, which could include the federal forest funding which is referenced in SB 6002 Section 502. In a good sign, however, HB 2207 was pulled from the House Rules committee and is ready for a vote.

Also appearing to have reached agreement among the four corners is SB 6552 which, among many objectives, would authorize a 24-credit diploma starting with the graduating class of 2019 but offer a waiver of up to two years for districts that need more implementation time.

The "Hunt" amendment is available for review and includes the following - all of which are supported by WSSDA:

1. Authorize the 24 credit diploma for the graduating class of 2019, but allow districts to complete an application to the State Board of Education to move implementation to 2020 or 2021. The SBE would be required to grant the waiver from 2019 at the next SBE meeting.

2. Require school districts to grant a CTE course equivalency for at least one math or science class.

3. Allow school district boards of directors to adopt a policy that would allow a two-credit waiver of the 24 credits for individual students under exceptional circumstances. WSSDA would be required to develop a model policy by June 30, 2015.

4. Direct the Office of the Education Ombuds to convene a task force to review barriers to the 24-credit diploma for students with special needs.

5. Make the culminating project voluntary.

All of the changes listed above have been advocated by WSSDA and the Washington CTE association the past week and past few days. The Washington PTA also has been working with us on all except the amendment related to making the culminating project voluntary.This morning LEV agreed to the changes and has been actively supporting the Hunt amendment.

Stay tuned!

Hurry up and wait

Last Friday was the deadline for bills to pass out of the opposite chamber but few education bills were left hanging. For the most part, bills that passed out of the policy or budget committee also passed off the floor.

One casualty was the Breakfast After the Bell bill, which failed to make it out of the Senate budget committee. A bill that would have required school districts to begin identifying students of military families died on the Senate 2nd Reading calendar.

Bills on expanded learning opportunities, identifying homeless students, preserving the economy and efficiency waiver, and recognizing graduating seniors with a seal of biliteracy all passed the House and are securing the necessary signatures to reach the Governor's desk for signature.

The past two days have seen a flurry of activity by teachers opposing any effort to change the teacher and principal evaluation system by requiring the use of student test scores as one of multiple measures for teachers in grades and subjects that have reading, writing, and math assessments. At risk is the state's waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind law, which requires schools to set aside 20 percent of its Title I funding for private vendors. House Democrats "caucused" on the bill last week, but neither HB 2800 (Inslee and Dorn) or SSB 5880 have seen action.

In addition, one of the other big issues is E2SSB 6552 - particularly the components related to implementation of 24 credits. Last Friday the number of amendments stood at 20 to the bill; since then another three have been added. Fear not, some amendments are to the House Appropriations Committee version while others are to a different version offered by Rep. Monica Stonier.

WSSDA has framed the conversation as one of: funding, fairness and flexibility. The House plan earlier today was to caucus on the various amendments, count how many votes support which amendments, and then pass the bill. It's nearly 3 p.m. and they are still in caucus, so we'll see what happens.

Senate adopts fix to 1,080 hours issue

The Senate passed E2SSB 6552 today by a vote of 45 to 4. The bill would make the following changes:

• Change the requirement for 1,080 instructional hours from grades 7-12 to grades 9-12;
• Allow for a district-wide averaging of instructional hours for purposes of basic education apportionment;
• Authorize a 24-credit framework for the class of 2019, as adopted by the State Board of Education on January 9, 2014;
• Require district boards of directors to grant academic credit for math and science CTE courses, starting in the 2015-16 school year; and
• Redirect the $97 million appropriated in the 2013-15 operating budget for the 1,080 hours to be used for an additional $130 in MSOC per student in grades 9-12, additional high school guidance counselors, and reduced lab science spaces.

Speaking in favor were co-sponsors Sen. Bruce Dammeier, R-Puyallup, and Christine Rolfes, D-Bainbridge Island.

"We need to be about the what, not the how," said Dammeier, telling the Senate that the legislature should set the target - in this case, 24 credits - but not how districts get there. - the hours.

Reminding the Senate that getting to 24 credits would require additional funding beyond the $97 million was former Northshore school director Rosemary McAuliffe. "By the year 2019, we need to make sure our schools are whole and can take advantage of this opportunity for our students," she said.

Speaking against the bill was Sen. Bob Hasegawa, D-Beacon Hill, who raised concerns about students who are already behind trying to get to 20 credits. Hasegawa likened it to a high jump set at 6 feet, and said many students of poverty and color aren't able to get over this height.

"This is like raising the bar to 7 feet, without providing the springboard to get them over the 6 feet first." He argued the legislature should focus on the recommendations put forth by the Educational Opportunity Gap Accountability & Oversight Committee the past few years.

House and Senate working bills

The House and Senate have been meeting in caucuses and spending time on the floor today passing bills in time for next Tuesday's 5:00 p.m. deadline.

That also means keeping a steady supply of fresh bills in the pipeline. The Senate today "pulled" 10 education-related bills from the Rules committee straight to the floor.

This included bills that would require OSPI to keep a web portal of all school district collective bargaining agreements, including whether the CBA has a "no strike" clause and how the CBA will help close the education opportunity gap. (2SSB 6062 and SSB 6250).

Also pulled to the floor was SB 6061, which would mandate that districts use an automatic enrollment policy, placing students who pass a statewide assessment in a specific subject area into the next most rigorous level of courses. A bill that made the policy permissive was adopted by the legislature last session, and WSSDA issued a model policy that could be adopted by districts seeking to have an academic acceleration policy and take advantage of a small grant program created to help districts get their program started.

The Rules committee was also relieved of 2SSB 6163, which started out life as a summer learning pilot program of 20 additional days for up to 10 school districts and has been whittled down to a study of the feasibility of creating a program to mitigate summer learning loss.

Also potentially of interest is SB 6242, which would allow up to five school districts with fewer than 500 students to apply to the State Board of Education for an economy & efficiency waiver, which is a fancy way of saying a four-day school week.

For its part, the House passed the school equipment nutrition grant program bill and a bill designed to help student who are homeless. Last night the House passed a number of education bills. Check www.leg.wa.gov and use the House and Senate floor tracking sheets for the latest information on bills.

Next up on today's Senate's schedule is 2SSB 6552, the omnibus bill that spans the 1080 hours, 24 credits and academic course equivalencies along with repurposing the $97 million appropriated last year.

House Education Committee hears simple majority for bonds bill

Articulate parents from Tacoma, Lake Washington and Vancouver spoke strongly in favor of HB 2441 and HJR 4216, bills that would lower the 60% requirement to a simple majority for school bond elections. The parents are active members of their local PTAs and have worked on their bond measures.

Also speaking in favor were WSSDA, WEA, the Education Alliance, and the Puget Sound Schools Coalition.

Of the 24 bond measures on the ballot February 11, representing nearly $3 billion in requests, in unofficial results, 13 are failing. Of those, 10 would have also passed with a simple majority.

Speaking on other bills were school directors Anne Moore (Issaquah) and Glen Morgan (Rochester) on a bill that would allow school districts to post legal notices on their web site instead of in the closest daily newspaper. While the savings to the district isn't huge, both argued that it would cut some costs and provide broader reach in many cases.

HB 2319 is sponsored by Rep. Chad Magendanz, R-Issaquah, and is a WSSDA-adopted position titled "Legal Notices." Magendanz said that legal notices,in all but one case, were significantly more expensive than the general advertising rate. "School district need the flexibility to communicate in the best way," he said. "We require that school districts buy a product," and it's time to change that practice, he said.

Speaking against the bill were representatives of the newspaper industry.

School director Karen Vialle (Tacoma) testified in favor HB 2291, a bill that would require a majority of school board members on both of the boards considering a boundary change to agree before school boundaries could be changed.

Sponsored by Rep. Liz Pike, R-Camas, the bill was shared with the WSSDA legislative committee last summer; the committee did not adopt a position but was split on the issue. Lawmakers also seemed unconvinced, and Rep. Kathy Haigh, D-Shelton, said she had put the ESD as the neutral party in place years ago to avoid some of the issues that were being raised in the hearing.

WSSDA president Mari Taylor speaks in favor of professional development

WSSDA President Mari Taylor kicked off a panel of school district representatives during a work session on professional development before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Education..

Taylor, a 14-year veteran of the Lake Stevens School Board of Directors, said that state funding for professional learning for our classroom teachers, paraeducators and principals is critical, particularly in light of recent changes in the past few years.

Districts specifically need to focus on training around common core state standards and the next generation science standards, along with using data to improve student achievement and the new evaluation system.

Taylor shared how Lake Stevens is embedding professional learning throughout the district on an on-going basis and in a collaborative manner. The best learning doesn't occur in short bursts, said Taylor. Rather, learning occurs throughout the year, and is intimately connected to daily work, she said..

WSSDA has prioritized professional development funding as one of its top priorities, and is promoting companion bills in the House and Senate (HB 2313/SB 6161) that would require at least two days of state funding for training for all certificated instructional staff, building-level administrators, and paraeducators who work with LAP, ELL, highly capable, and special education students.

School leaders from North Thurston, Tacoma, Vancouver, and Mary M. Knight school districts also discussed the importance of systematic professional learning and collaboration that is thoughtful and relevant.

Choose kids over big oil, say HB 2465 proponents

Supporters of closing a tax preference policy that has been extended to oil refineries testified in favor of HB 2465 this morning. Sporting buttons that read, "Choose little kids over big oil," several bill proponents said that the state's paramount duty is to fund education and closing this loophole would add $30 million a year for education..

In addition to Shawn Lewis of WEA, Clifford Traisman, representing the Washington Environmental Council, flagged passing this bill as one of its top two priorities this session. The WEC represents 23 environmental organizations; Traisman said that the bill is about fairness and it was more important to invest in kids over investing in fossil fuel companies.

On the other side of the debate were representatives of oil refineries and business organizations. Company owners said they already made significant contributions to education in their communities and through taxes, and closing this tax preference would have a negative impact on their business.

A similar bill passed the House twice in 2013 and has been targeted by former Gov. Christine Gregoire and by Gov. Jay Inslee as part of a larger package to reach $200 million for investments in education this session..

Senate and House education committees act on bills

Earlier this morning, the House Education Committee moved four out of more than a dozen bills before the House policy deadline took effect. Left on the table were bills that would have authorized the 24-credit framework and fixing the 1,080 minimum instructional hours requirement.

3SHB 1680 passed out of committee on nearly a party-line vote, with  Republican Kevin Parker, R-Spokane, joining all Democratic members to pass the bill from committee. The bill would implement recommendations from the Educational Opportunity Gap Oversight & Accountability Committee, and ranges from changes to discipline to requiring bilingual instructors in ELL classes.

Democratic committee members turned down several amendments offered by ranking member Cathy Dahlquist, R-Enumclaw, designed to minimize the impact on school districts and students.

The bill moves to the House Appropriations Committee.

The House Education Committee also moved out SHB 2540, which would require school districts to grant course equivalency to CTE courses starting in the 2015-16 school year.

In the Senate, a majority voted in favor of SSB 5986, a bill that would restore basic education apportionment payments to 215 school districts that receive federal forest payments. Voting against the school-director supported bill were Senators McAuliffe, D-Bothell; Billig, D-Spokane; Mullet, D-Issaquah; and Cleveland, D-Vancouver.

The bill moves onto the Senate Ways and Means Committee.

House education committee hears bills on culminating project, 1080 hours

With a packed agenda today, the House Education Committee heard bills that would support expanded learning opportunities, eliminate the culminating project as a state requirement, and delay implementation of the 1,080 hour requirement to the 2015-16 school year.

A student from East Valley (Yakima) spoke in favor of HB 2402, which would remove the culminating project as a state graduation requirement. In her remarks, the student mentioned that most students just see the culminating project as a hoop to jump through on their way to graduation. She pointed out that most students don't take the requirement seriously, particularly if they don't see any value in the effort.

Also speaking in favor were representatives from the League of Women Voters, WASA and a teacher from East Valley High School, LWV and WASA emphasized local control, and the option that this would still be available to districts that wanted to keep it as part of the mix. The teacher said that some students may conduct significant projects while others either don't have the time or don't have the inclination to make the senior project a meaningful event.

Signing in with concerns was the Workforce Development & Education Training Board, which emphasized that their concern was making sure students had an opportunity to reach into the community for workforce experience, but it didn't have to take place through the culminating project . The school principals association indicated a recent survey of members was split 2 to 1 in favor of eliminating the culminating project and shared some comments from both sides.

Signing in against the bill was the State Board of Education.

Committee members also heard from many in support of  HB 2548, which would delay the 1,080 hour requirement from the 2014-15 school year to the 2015-16 school year and fix the instructional hours issue related to students graduating from high school who currently have the a five-day grace period at the end of the school year.

The bill was requested by Superintendent Dorn and is sponsored by Rep. Steve Bergquist, D-Renton.

Speaking in favor were representatives from OSPI, WEA, AWSP, WASA, Pat Jenkins, a school director from the Puyallup School District, and district superintendent Tim Yeomans.

Shawn Lewis of WEA suggested lawmakers pass the bill and keep the funding in the budget and allow districts the opportunity to use the funding in a flexible way and focus on students who are struggling.

Yeomans said that 24 credits, under the most recent State Board of Education framework, is important and asked lawmakers to redirect the funding to be used for phasing in the 24-credit requirement.

Ben Rarick of the State Board of Education said they were technically opposed to the bill, but supported the fix for seniors. Their opposition is to the section that would delay implementation of 1,080 hours. "We have made a commitment to an extra 80 hours, whether it is a few minutes in the day or an extra 15 days, and this bill would be a step backward."

The hearing is available on TVW.

Educators speak against 24 credit requirement bill

Superintendents from the greater Spokane area and WEA lobbyist Shawn Lewis raised concerns about HB 2181 which would authorize the 24-credit framework adopted by the State Board of Education on January 9, 2014.

Specifically, Lewis flagged the lack of funding to truly implement a 24-credit framework in schools across the state, including the need for additional staffing, materials and supplies, and building space for new course requirements. He mentioned several OSPI capacity reports that described the funding necessary to get to 24 credits for high school students.

With a full agenda, and more than 20 people signed in to testify, Chair Sharon Tomiko Santos left the public hearing open on HB 2181 after hearing from a few speakers.

Acting Executive Director James Koval signed in to testify with concerns, mainly about the bill's assumption that funding provided in the 2013-15 biennial budget was sufficient to meet the 24 credits proposed by the SBE. In addition, a consistent message from school directors has been to ensure sufficient choice is available to students to keep them engaged in school and graduate with meaningful diplomas.

Koval's recommendation would be to hold off on authorizing the 24-credit framework created by the Board until the Legislature has a clear plan for phasing in the funding to meet all aspects of the state's redefined program of basic education and the system was better funded.

Another bill, proposed substitute House Bill 1656, also focused on graduation credits with an attempt to create even more flexibility for students. Kim Reykdal, a Tumwater School District school director who is a school counselor in her "day job," spoke to the need for strong high school and beyond plans and counselors to help students and parents find their way through maze of credit requirements.

Ranking member Cathy Dahlquist, R-Enumclaw, questioned Reykdal about the funding, listing increases to MSOC, LAP, instructional hours, guidance counselors, and family engagement. Reykdal responded by focusing on the guidance counselor allocation of $11 million, which wouldn't sufficiently fund the prototypical schools model for school counselors.

School directors and superintendents speak in favor of HB 2207

School directors from the Mount Baker, Sequim, and Centralia school boards and superintendents from the Davenport and Tonasket districts testified in favor of a bill that would restore basic education funding that is reduced, dollar for dollar, to school districts that receive federal forest payments.

This bill supports a long-standing WSSDA position, which was ranked 15th at the 2013 Legislative Assembly. WSSDA has taken the lead, working with Whatcom County school districts and the other 215 districts that would see a boost in basic education funding for the 2014-15 school year.

Will Clark, a research analyst for WSSDA, also spoke on the legislation, encouraging the committee to support the bill and include restored basic education funding in the 2014 supplemental budget.

Legislative committee staff mentioned that the fiscal impact could vary each year, based on the federal forest payments to districts, but is initially estimated at about $7 million for the next year. In the 2012-13 school year, 215ndistricts had reductions in basic education by $8.3 million.

Superintendents, school directors challenge bill that would limit early release, late start days

School director Michael Howe, Sequim, was joined by seven superintendents from the greater Spokane area to oppose SB 5982, a bill that would limit the number of late starts and early releases to seven in a 180-day school calendar.

Testifying before the Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee, school leaders emphasized that limiting the number of times a school district can bring its staff together to talk about student achievement and improve instruction could be detrimental to student outcomes.

Riverside School District Superintendent Roberta Kramer compared a high school basketball team that practices together, evaluates team performance, and shares ways to improve for the next game with the way her district approaches the collaborative time associated with late start and early release days.

Jim Kowalkowski, Davenport's superintendent, asked lawmakers whether they would be more likely to send their child who needs brain surgery to a surgeon who has training once a year or a surgeon who talks regularly with peers and is on the cutting edge of the best technology and practices. Kowalkowski said he'd pick the one more current.

Listening to the testimony, Sen. Andy Billig, D-Spokane, asked whether the number of early releases and late starts had increased with the elimination of learning improvement days. The answer, overwhelmingly, was yes.

Chairman Steve Litzow, R-Mercer Island, asked each panelist what was their high school graduation rates and percentage of students eligible for free and reduced price meals. District superintendents shared graduation rates ranging from 90 percent to 98 percent, which received positive feedback from Litzow.

Hearing from local education leaders such as our superintendents and school directors is critical in this short session, and legislators truly appreciate hearing from you.

House Education Committee moves bills

After a quick public hearing on HB 2167 that would change the date for OSPI to identify school districts for Required Action District status from December 1 to February 1, the House Education Committee moved five bills out of committee this morning.

The bills included:

HB 2017 - would authorize school districts and ESDs to send contract nonrenewal notices to certificated employees by June 15 if the omnibus budget wasn’t adopted in the regular session.

SHB 1709 - would direct the Office of the Education Ombuds to examine the feasibility of creating an education interpreter training program, including the use of volunteer interpreters. The study is due February 1, 2015.

SHB 1815 - would direct WSSDA to convene a work group to develop a model policy and procedures on the use of adult language interpreters and to define what constitutes "high stakes educational situations." The model policy and procedures would be due June 1, 2015; districts would have until August 1, 2016 to adopt the model policy and procedures.

3SHB 1424 - would enhance the statewide K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and re-engagement system, including adding this to the prototypical funding formula and basic education. The bill passed out of committee on a party-line vote, with ranking member Cathy Dahlquist, R-Enumclaw, stating Republicans supported the concept but couldn't agree with adding this to basic education at this time.

SHB 2158 - would add dropout prevention, intervention, and re-engagement activities by educational service districts as a core service and would allow, through interagency agreement, an ESD under contract with a district to award credit for the official transcript for students residing in the district.