The Ready Washington Coalition released a new video highlighting a local elementary school’s success in applying the Common Core standards in its classrooms.

“Our school approached the Common Core by selecting three standards, one for English language arts and two for math,” said Nancy Melius, principal of North Hill Elementary. “And then we really just dug in deeper to understand what did that standard say, what did that look like for kids.”

The approach paid off, as the school saw impressive results in the spring 2015 Smarter Balanced assessment in those subjects.

The video speaks to the importance of standards in education as a way to prepare students for college and career. We know that 70 percent of jobs will require postsecondary education by 2020 and, already, thousands of good jobs have gone unfilled in Washington because employers here can’t find enough qualified candidates. In fact, a study we released with The Boston Consulting Group in 2013 looked at the growing job skills gap in Washington state. At that time, there were 25,000 unfilled jobs in Washington due to the job skills gap — a number expected to rise to 50,000 by 2017.  We must do more to prepare our students for the great opportunities that exist here.

As the state Legislature works to address the Washington Supreme Court’s McClearly ruling, it should do so in a way that ensures education investments lead to demonstrable gains in student achievement. Lawmakers should tie resources to strategies that support increased teacher effectiveness, expanded STEM education, and career and college readiness for all students.

Doing so will lead to more schools with results like North Hill’s — schools that better prepare children to take advantage of tomorrow’s opportunities here in Washington state.

 

 

Big news today in the Washington Legislature.

SB 6194, a bipartisan bill to fix the way public charter schools are funded, passed the Senate with a vote of 27-20.

The bill represents a solution to the state Supreme Court ruling in September that declared the previous funding mechanism for public charter schools unconstitutional. Washington’s eight public charter schools currently serve more than 1,100 students.

Finding a fix to public charter schools was a priority for the Washington Roundtable, as seen in our 2016 Policy Agenda. It’s also been a priority for numerous editorial boards across the state, including the Seattle Times and Spokesman Review.

Earlier this week, we talked about the need for the 2016 Legislature, now on its fourth day of the short 60-day session, to act on a fix for public charter schools. The previous funding mechanism was ruled unconstitutional last year by the state Supreme Court.

It’s a high priority for us (as outlined in our 2016 Policy Agenda), for the 1,300 students currently enrolled in public charter schools, and for the progress of our state’s education system.

Editorial boards are lining up in support as well, urging legislators to act swiftly to fix the public charter school system in a way that closely resembles the voter-approved initiative passed in 2012:

Seattle Times: Legislature shouldn’t put charter schools on the back burner

Sen. Steve Litzow, R-Mercer Island, and Rep. Eric Pettigrew, D-Renton, have proposed an approach that is most promising in mirroring the charter school bill and allowing charter schools to continue and new ones to start. Senate Bill 6194 would use the Washington Opportunities Pathways account to pay for charter schools and other publicly funded education programs that also don’t qualify as common schools, such as tribal schools and the Running Start program.

Spokesman Review: Good news for charter schools

We support the schools because they provide an outlet for innovation and a learning environment for students who may not thrive in a traditional setting. If successful, they can provide the impetus for traditional schools to adopt more effective methods.

Given the will shown by so many to make these schools succeed, we are confident a solution will emerge that earns a passing grade from the Supreme Court.

Tri-City Herald: Our Voice: Legislators face huge decisions, but have little time

Another educational issue that must be addressed immediately is finding a fix for charter schools around the state. The state Supreme Court ruled last fall that charter schools did not fit the state constitution’s definition of a common school and are not eligible to receive common-school funding.

Washington has nine charter schools serving 1,200 students who need lawmakers to save their school system, and they need it now.

 Yakima Herald: Legislature has a lot to do and not a lot of time

Meanwhile, in response to another state Supreme Court ruling, the Legislature needs to come up with a fix to the state’s charter schools law, which voters narrowly approved by ballot initiative in 2012. The court ruled charter schools aren’t “common” schools and are not constitutionally entitled to public school money.

Charter schools operate in more than 40 states but have had a tough time getting a foothold in Washington. While they are not a panacea and require strong oversight, they can provide a laboratory for educational innovation, and lawmakers need to find a way to keep them viable.

We are encouraged by the early attention to this issue across the state and in Olympia. Just today, SB 6194, a bill to fund these schools and keep them open, passed the Senate Education Committee. It now moves to the Senate Ways and Means Committee, where a hearing is scheduled for Monday.

Two major education issues face the Washington State Legislature as it reconvenes this week for the shorter 60-day session — McCleary and public charter schools.

Building off unprecedented new investments in public education in recent years, lawmakers still have more work to do to address the Washington Supreme Court’s McCleary rulings regarding education funding. In our 2016 Policy Agenda, we urge the Legislature to “address the Washington Supreme Court’s McCleary rulings in a manner that leads to student achievement gains, maintains the state’s commitment to career and college readiness, and supports economic health.”

The other issue – one that must be addressed during the short session – relates to finding a fix for the state’s public charter schools. A Washington Supreme Court decision last September declared our public charter school law to be unconstitutional, putting in jeopardy more than 1,300 students enrolled in the state’s nine public charter schools.

A Seattle Times editorial this morning urged the legislature to prioritize the charter schools fix “in a way that aligns closely with the original, voter-approved initiative.” The piece highlights SB 6194 (“Concerning public schools that are not common schools”):

Sen. Steve Litzow, R-Mercer Island, and Rep. Eric Pettigrew, D-Renton, have proposed an approach that is most promising in mirroring the charter school bill and allowing charter schools to continue and new ones to start. Senate Bill 6194 would use the Washington Opportunities Pathways account to pay for charter schools and other publicly funded education programs that also don’t qualify as common schools, such as tribal schools and the Running Start program.

The editorial board for the Spokesman Review also supports a solution that will keep charter schools operating. From an editorial on Sunday (“Good news for charter schools”):

We support the schools because they provide an outlet for innovation and a learning environment for students who may not thrive in a traditional setting. If successful, they can provide the impetus for traditional schools to adopt more effective methods.

The challenge for lawmakers is to propose a way for charters to retain autonomy while being directly accountable to the public, or to find a funding source that would pass constitutional muster.

The continued operation of public charter schools is a a top priority for us in 2016, as noted in our 2016 Policy Agenda:

Nearly two-thirds of students in Washington’s existing public charter schools are from low-income families and almost 70 percent are students of color. Lawmakers should support current and future students by passing legislation allowing for the continued operation of public charter schools.

We’re pleased state lawmakers aren’t wasting any time. A hearing is scheduled for Monday at 1:30 PM to discuss the charter school bills introduced thus far. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for updates on this issue throughout the session.