State Board wants your input on improving graduation requirements
What life skills should students possess when they graduate from high school? Should there be different kinds of diplomas? Should high school graduation requirements align with college readiness standards? These are some of the questions that will be posed as the State Board of Education hits the road over the next several weeks for a series of community meetings on revising the state’s graduation requirements. The first meeting takes place next Tuesday (Oct. 30) in Bremerton, followed by sessions in Spanaway, Yakima, Vancouver, Spokane, Seattle and Everett. Learn how you can participate here…

Counting down to the WSSDA Annual Conference
The Nov. 6 deadline for Annual Conference online registration is fast approaching, so be sure to sign up soon. WSSDA has a another great lineup of speakers and sessions this year, including Teacher of the Year Andrea Peterson, futurist Jack Bacon, former astronaut Bonnie Dunbar and State Superintendent Terry Bergeson. Visit www.wssda.org/annualconference to sign up. Online forms are also available to make any registration changes that may result from school board elections.

Lake Wobegon comes to the NSBA conference
Speaking of annual conferences, the National School Boards Association has just announced the speaker list for its annual meeting in Orlando next spring. Presenters include retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, newsman and author Jim Lehrer, and radio host Garrison Keillor. Click here for more information.

Kent board is ‘tech-savvy’
The Kent School Board scored national recognition earlier this month by being named one of the country’s "Top Digital School Boards" by The Center for Digital Education and NSBA. The board was selected as a result of the Center’s annual Digital School Boards survey, which looks at how boards and their districts are using technology to improve community engagement and the quality of education. Learn more here…

Spellings taps SBE’s Smith for national panel
State Board of Education Vice Chair Warren Smith, a former school director and WSSDA president, has been appointed to the National Assessment Governing Board by U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. The NAGP develops policy guidance for the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as "The Nation’s Report Card." For more on Smith’s appointment and the work of the board, visit the U.S. Department of Education Web site.

Vikstrom joins the WSSDA staff
Please join us in welcoming Kate Vikstrom as WSSDA’s new communications specialist. Kate recently moved to Olympia from Ketchikan, Alaska, where she served as community relations specialist for Ketchikan General Hospital. She brings a strong background in graphic design and publishing to her WSSDA responsibilities, which include producing the association’s monthly newsletter and other information materials. To get in touch with Kate, see the WSSDA staff contact page.

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