Every Voice at General Assembly Helps Shape What Comes Next for WSSDA Advocacy

WSSDA’s General Assembly is one of the most important school board events of the year, and the opportunities to engage before, during, and after the event serve as your board’s direct connection to shape the advocacy work of the association. Taking place in the fall, this event is when school boards vote on revisions to the WSSDA catalog of positions that guide the actions of staff and others, particularly during legislative advocacy.

Marisa Peloquin, a school director from the University Place School District and Legislative Committee chair reminds us that “our positions, adopted by the membership, address issues which affect school communities across the state rather than just their own.”

Why Should My Board Engage?

The General Assembly functions at its best when every school board participates. Arlista Holman, a school director from the Auburn School District and Resolutions Committee chair, believes that “the best decisions are made when districts of every size and region of the state have a voice in the conversation.”

Engaging at the General Assembly will ensure your board is part of statewide conversations and votes that determine the association’s permanent and legislative positions.

What’s the Process?

Like I say all the time, advocacy is a year-round process. I could say the same about the work that makes the WSSDA General Assembly effective. Here’s an overview by season.

Spring: The platform revision window opens for boards to submit proposals between April 1-30. This is your board’s opportunity to propose amendments, consolidation, or retirement of existing positions, or propose new ones. Each submission, unless withdrawn by the submitting board, will be placed on the General Assembly agenda for discussion and vote.

Summer: After platform revision proposals are submitted, WSSDA’s Resolutions and Legislative Committees, comprised of school directors from each area of the state, meet to review them and prepare recommendations for the body of either “do pass” or “do not pass.” Those recommendations are added to the pre-amendments version of the General Assembly handbook, your guide to what’s been proposed for discussion and vote to be released on July 1. In early August, each board can suggest amendments to any proposal included in the handbook. Those are added to a post-amendments (final) version of the handbook published soon after.

Fall: The final handbook is released at least 30 days before the assembly. WSSDA staff and board members also convene each of the association’s three caucuses to discuss proposals. For 2026, WSSDA’s General Assembly will be held virtually and is currently scheduled for just one day, Saturday, September 19. Immediately after the assembly, all boards are invited to submit a form indicating what they think are the most important WSSDA legislative positions. That information informs the development of WSSDA legislative priorities for the next session.

Winter: After legislative priorities are identified, it’s time to band together and participate in the legislative session. As you do, remember to add weight to your advocacy by highlighting when your board’s positions align with WSSDA’s. And when they don’t, that’s OK too because each district is unique. Follow along and engage with WSSDA’s InSession Legislative Updates to see how we’re using WSSDA positions to advocate.

For more information or questions about this process, visit wssda.org/GA or contact us at strategicadvocacy@wssda.org.

This article originally appeared in the Spring 2026 issue of WSSDA Direct. Visit wssda.org/direct to see all the latest issues of WSSDA’s newsmagazine.