Washington State Wire presents an op-ed by Jana Carlisle of the Partnership for Learning, calling attention to the reform efforts that are part and parcel of this year’s struggle over K-12 education funding.

Gov. Jay Inslee signs SB 5329 May 7, the biggest ed reform bill to cross his desk this session — so far.

The endgame of the 2013 Legislature is here – one that inevitably will center on last year’s Supreme Court’s McCleary decision, which held that Washington state was not amply funding public K-12 education. To address that decision, lawmakers will be required to invest approximately $1 billion over the next two years — money that will largely be spent by the state’s 295 school districts without restriction. That’s a hefty price tag with little accountability to go with it.

We believe it is the state’s responsibility to ensure that all students are receiving a basic K-12 education and to intervene when they are not.  To complement its increased investment into public education, the state should hold our schools, principals and teachers accountable for improving student outcomes.

Prior to the special session, the Legislature, in a strong bipartisan manner, passed two key education reform bills that begin to move the state toward stronger accountability for schools: Senate Bill 5491 and 5329, which was signed by Gov. Jay Inslee last week. These bills establish an accountability framework designed to provide oversight of Washington’s education system and intervention in its most persistently lowest-achieving schools. These bills should receive quick consideration and sign-off from Gov. Inslee.

SB 5491 will track the overall health of the state education system, establishing statewide indicators that will be used to identify realistic but challenging system-wide performance goals. SB 5329, a concept that has long languished in the legislature, gives the state the authority to intervene in schools that fail to improve after undergoing a three-year turnaround plan.

Both of these bills are important to ensure that all students receive a strong basic K-12 education and that the state’s increased investment is spent prudently and wisely.

As we soon move into a special session, the Legislature still has plenty of work to do on several bills that will continue to increase the education system’s accountability to the public. These bills are:

• Senate Bill 5237: Requires the State Board of Education to monitor the results and progress in third grade reading. This is a crucial point in a student’s education. Research shows that if students are reading at grade level by third grade, they have a difficult time ever catching up.
• Senate Bill 5242: Requires both the principal and teacher to agree on placement in a school and ends the “forced” placement procedures that occur now. It gives school principals greater authority in hiring teachers that best meet the needs of the school and students.
• Senate Bill 5328: Creates an A-F school grading system to help the public better understand which schools are performing best under specific measures: reading, writing, mathematics and science achievement as well as reduction in achievement gaps.

In addition to the accountability bills, we must continue to press forward with education reforms as state legislators negotiate a final budget. Washington must continue to strive to deliver a world-class public education system. We urge them to provide funding for the following programs:

• Phasing-in of the 24-credit high school diploma, as adopted by the State Board of Education under board resolution on November 10, 2010.
• Professional development to support the implementation of Common Core Standards and the Teacher and Principal Evaluation Program.
• Computer science Advanced Placement courses and grants to support computer science programs in high school, as provided for in House Bill 1472.
• The STEM Education Innovation Alliance to provide better coordination, support and accountability for STEM efforts in the state.
• Academic acceleration programs, created in Senate Bill 5243 and House Bill 1642, to encourage students to enroll in more rigorous high school courses.

Washington has the 12^th largest achievement gap in the United States, and is one of the few states where the gap continues to grow. In addition, less than half of our students graduate from high school prepared for college, having to take remedial classes when they reach the postsecondary level.

This 2013 legislative session will provide far greater resources for our inadequately funded education system. But we, the public, need to continue to insist that schools are not only held accountable for how those funds are spent, but for the improvement of student performance.  Our students deserve no less.

Dr. Jana Carlisle is the executive director of Partnership for Learning, the education foundation of the Washington Roundtable, which represents the state’s largest employers.

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