- 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.
