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Readying
for the 2006 legislative session
State lawmakers return to Olympia Jan. 9, and WSSDA
is ready with a package of legislative positions
focused on ensuring schools have the resources and
support to continue forward with the state’s student
achievement goals. Meeting this past month in
Seattle, the WSSDA Board of Directors formally
adopted the association’s legislative package for
the 2006 session. The package underlines WSSDA’s
“stay the course” position on high school graduation
requirements while emphasizing the need for funding
and tools to carry out the job. For more on this
story,
click here. Also, visit WSSDA’s online
Legislative Information Section for the full
list of our Legislative Priorities and Positions.
Bergeson: ‘We can do this’
State
Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson
used her annual State of Education address to praise
WSSDA for its “courage and vision” in reaffirming
its support for the state’s graduation requirements.
At the same time, she acknowledged the apprehension
being felt and said her office will do all it can to
support school leaders in meeting the challenges of
education reform.
Click here to learn more.
Get the facts
on graduation requirements
OSPI has just published a new handbook that answers many
of the basic questions about the state’s graduation
requirements. The guide is available in PDF format on the
OSPI Web site.
SBE election results
to be announced this week
The voting is over and the ballots are about to be
counted in the races for five positions on the new State
Board of Education. OSPI is planning to announce the results
this Friday (Dec. 2) and certify the election on Dec. 12.
Meanwhile, Gov. Christine Gregoire says she’ll be looking to
WSSDA for assistance as she exercises her new authority to
appoint seven of the SBE members.
Learn more here.
WSSDA
completes elections, installs new officers
WSSDA concluded its 2005 Annual Conference with the
installation of new officers for the coming year. Sworn in
were President Quent Goodrich (Chimacum), President-elect
Cindy McMullen (Central Valley – Spokane) and Vice President
Ted Thomas (Longview). For a complete list of election
results for WSSDA’s board of directors and committees,
click here.
Weighted vote,
IAC proposals OK’d by Delegate Assembly
WSSDA’s
Delegate Assembly worked through several significant issues
during its annual meeting this past month, including a
proposal to revamp the association’s weighted vote
structure. The change was approved, as was a proposal to
confer “standing” status on the WSSDA Interscholastic
Activities Committee. For a roundup on this year’s Assembly
meeting,
click here.
Boards of the
Year, Diversity Awards
Congratulations to Battle Ground, Okanogan and West
Valley for being selected as WSSDA’s 2005 School Boards of
the Year, and the Northshore and Shelton School districts
for receiving WSSDA’s 2005 Diversity Awards. These awards
honor school leaders for their hard work in promoting
student achievement and diversity in their districts; they
also serve to highlight best practices that can be shared by
other districts. To learn more about the accomplishments
that led to this year’s awards, see our
Boards of the Year and
Diversity Awards articles.
Sullivan earns
first-ever Boardsmanship Mastery Award
Hats off to
Granite Falls School Board member Siobhan Sullivan, who is
the first school director in the state to earn WSSDA’s
Boardsmanship Mastery Award. The award is the culmination of
several year’s work in the WSSDA Lifecycle Training Program.
To learn more about Siobhan and the program,
click here.
Deadline
approaching for Leadership WSSDA applications
Now’s the time to pull together that application for
Leadership WSSDA, the association’s premier leadership
training program for school board members. Application
packets are due January 6, 2006.
Learn more…
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