More hotels available for WSSDA Annual Conference – but don’t wait to register!

WSSDA’s official Annual Conference hotels are filling up fast, so be sure to register soon to take advantage of special rates. Because of increased demand, two hotels have been added to the list – the Mayflower Park and the Hotel Max. Both are within a block-and-a-half of Conference headquarters. Reservations must be made at Conference hotels by Nov. 1 to receive special rates. Complete hotel information is available on the WSSDA Web site.

WSSDA’s 2005 Annual Conference takes place Nov. 16-19 at the Seattle Westin Hotel. This year’s Conference includes a lineup of great speakers (Gov. Christine Gregoire, Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson, NSBA President Joan Schmidt, Eric Lui and Consuelo Kickbusch), nearly 100 breakout sessions and more than 50 exhibitors from around the state and the nation. Don’t miss it!

Same time, different place for 2006 NSBA Conference

The National School Boards Association (NSBA) has opted to move its 2006 Annual Conference from New Orleans to Chicago. The Conference will take place on the same dates – April 8-11, 2006 – at Lakeside Center at McCormick Place. Conference registration will open Nov. 1 and housing will open Nov. 29 for attendees and exhibitors.

“We regret having to move our Conference from such a great city as New Orleans, but feel it is in the best interests of our attendees and exhibitors,” said NSBA executive director Anne Bryant,. “We look forward to New Orleans remaining in our Conference rotation and NSBA returning there in 2010.”
For more information, visit the NSBA Annual Conference Web site.

Consumer alert message from NSBA

NSBA has learned that a number of people have been receiving telemarketing calls offering them an $8,000 line of credit from an organization identifying itself as "NSBA." The offer is coming from an organization calling itself the National Small Business Alliance. This organization has received an "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau. If you receive such a solicitation, keep in mind that the National School Boards Association does not offer credit products and is not affiliated with this offer.

Final AYP numbers announced

The number of Washington state schools and districts falling short of federal achievement goals has grown in the last year. According to final figures released by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) this past week, 404 schools and 87 districts missed “AYP” (adequate yearly progress) targets in 2005, compared with 282 schools and 69 districts that did not make AYP last year.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson emphasized that a significant majority of schools and districts did meet AYP in 2005, and some that fell short only missed one or two of the dozens of categories required under federal law.

“I hope parents will go beyond the simplistic ‘yes’ or ‘no’ labels we’re required to give to each school to learn more about the positive things their schools are doing to improve student learning and where the biggest challenges remain,” Bergeson said.

For more on the final report and Bergeson’s perspective, go to the OSPI Web site.

Class of 2008 mailing under way

The Campaign for the Class of 2008, a partnership of a dozen education and state organizations, has launched its latest effort to increase parent and student awareness about the state’s new graduation requirements.

During October, postcards are being mailed to class of 2008 families, all middle school and high school teachers, principals, superintendents, school board members, community and business leaders, and state and local government officials. Materials also are available in Spanish, Russian, Chinese and Korean.

WSSDA is participating in the Campaign. The Campaign's communications work over the past two years has found that frequent and easy-to-understand information helps grow parent support for the changes in our schools.

To view PDF files of the postcards, go to the Partnership for Learning’s Web site. The Partnership has also launched a new Web site makehighschoolcount.com, which offers a wealth of information about the requirements as well as standards and the WASL.

Feds retreat on bond refinancing restrictions

A proposal to sharply curtail bond refinancing by school districts has been dropped in the face of protests from school leaders. The proposal, put forth by the U.S. Treasury, would have eliminated local governments’ ability to refund bonds prior to their call dates, a practice known as advance refunding. Many local school districts have refinanced their bonds at lower interest rates in recent years, lowering their debt service payments and saving taxpayers billions of dollars.

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee dropped the proposal in the face of strong objections from school boards and school district officials, particularly from Washington and other northwest states. Observers caution, however, that the proposal will likely resurface next year.

WSSDA joins coalition to push for lower BPA rates

WSSDA has endorsed regional effort to secure fair power rates for Northwest electricity customers from the Bonneville Power Administration, which provides nearly half the electricity used in the Northwest. The Northwest Coalition for Affordable Power is a broad-based alliance consisting of cities, school districts, businesses, chambers, utility districts and a host of others. If your district is interested in participating, contact the coalition at 206/239-0116.

College Preparation and AP Conference for Rural School Districts

OSPI will host a “College Preparation and AP Conference” for rural school districts on Nov. 15 at Interlake High School in Bellevue. The conference will address the benefits of college preparatory and Advanced Placement courses in rural schools and how districts can start up and support these programs. The keynote speaker will be Gaston Caperton, President of the College Board and former governor of West Virginia. School board members, superintendents, and principals from rural school districts are encouraged to attend. For registration information, contact Kay Whalen at the Bellevue School District (425/456-4131). Questions about the conference or the AP program can be directed to OSPI's Barbara Dittrich (360/725-4990).

RETURN TO TOP