Washington
April 30, 2015
WA: Dale Chu – Will the Education Department Go for the State’s NAEP-like Assessment Plan?
March 31, 2021
Testing 1-2-3 commentator Dale Chu kicked off a new Power Rankings series on the Collaborative’s Assessment HQ platform by evaluating Washington state’s proposal to administer a sampling of its annual summative assessment this school year. Across four categories – opportunity to demonstrate learning of all...
WA: Uber-Like Program Brought Into Spokane Public Schools to Meet Transportation Needs
January 28, 2021
HopSkipDrive, a Los Angeles-based transportation service originally started by a group of working mothers, has begun providing services to students in Spokane Public Schools to help meet the challenges of transportation during the pandemic. “This is part of an ongoing effort of being innovative and...
WA: New Report Details Statewide Enrollment Trends During Pandemic
January 18, 2021
New analysis from CRPE shows declines in statewide enrollment at public schools in Washington state amid the pandemic, though charter schools saw a sharp 35% increase. The report explores enrollment trends for schools in the state, which were the first in the nation to close...
Deciphering Washington State’s New Report Card
February 18, 2019
According to Neal Morton at the Seattle Times, late last year, Washington state “released new school report cards online for parents and guardians to see how well their children’s schools performed.” But the “website broke.” The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction then “stabilized...
Washington State Also Deploys School Rating System
April 18, 2018
Thomas Clouse reports for the Spokesman-Review that Washington state parents “have a new way to examine how schools are doing” via the state ESSA plan’s school rating system, which federal officials have given the nod. State Superintendent Chris Reykdal says “the new system will help...
Editorial Board Upbeat on New State Reporting System
March 19, 2018
Washington State parents “have a great new tool for tracking how their public schools are succeeding—or failing—to close achievement gaps, graduate students and make other improvements,” says the Seattle Times editorial board. This new online framework—a result of the state’s ESSA plan—“focuses on data, showing...
State ESSA Plan Receives Good Reviews from Two Outlets
December 17, 2017
The Union Bulletin’s editorial board found two recent reviews of the state’s ESSA plan “encouraging.” The Thomas B. Fordham Institute, found, “Washington’s new system for how to evaluate schools is one of the best in the nation.” Additionally, Check State Plans found that, “Washington has...
State ESSA Plan Receives “Positive Marks”
December 12, 2017
Paige Cornwell reports that Washington State’s ESSA plan “has set ambitious goals for its students that other states should emulate, says a panel convened by Bellwether Education Partners in partnership with the Collaborative for Student Success.”
State Plan Submissions and Drafts
October 17, 2017
Approved State Plans Alabama: Final Plan Approved (5/7/18) Alaska: Final Plan Approved (5/16/18) Arizona: Final Plan Approved (9/6/17) Arkansas: Final Plan Approved (1/16/18) Colorado: Final Plan Approved (5/7/18) Connecticut: Final Plan Approved (8/15/17) Delaware: Final Plan Approved (8/2/17) District of Columbia: Final Plan Approved (8/28/17) Georgia:...
WA State Announces State ESSA Plan
September 18, 2017
Washington state officials announced their ESSA plan on September 18, the federal deadline for submission. “Graduation rates will be 50-percent of the formula,” said state schools chief Chris Reykdal. “We include things now like absenteeism of students, and how they’re performing in the 9th grade,...
School Improvement Changes Ahead for WA Parents
August 26, 2017
When ESSA takes effect this year, Washington State “parents won’t receive letters that their child’s school ‘needs improvement’ because the school didn’t meet federal test-score targets, like some did before” because, under ESSA, there “are no federal test-score targets.”
WA Accepting Public Comment on State’s Draft ESSA Plan
August 21, 2017
Washington is accepting public comment on the state’s ESSA plan through Sept. 5.
WA Dept. of Ed Announces Plan to Submit ESSA Plan in September
April 12, 2017
The Washington State Dept. of Education announced it will submit an ESSA implementation plan in September. According to Superintendent Chris Reykdal, “Submitting our plan in September allows for continued engagement on some of the remaining issues and provides us the opportunity to align our final...
WA Public Comment Period Deadline for State’s ESSA Plan, Feb. 15
January 27, 2017
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction announced the public comment period deadline for the state’s ESSA plan. To date, over 120 comments have been submitted. The deadline for comment submission is February 15, 2017.
WA State Office of Public Instruction Examines Ways to Address Absenteeism Under ESSA
January 15, 2017
According to the Union Bulletin, the Washington State Office of Public Instruction is examining ways to track absenteeism under the state’s new ESSA plan. One in five students in Washington miss 10 percent of the 180-day school year. State Education Superintendent Chris Reykdal stated that...
WA Superintendents Approve of Delayed ESSA Plan
December 15, 2016
Washington superintendents are “glad that the state office of public instruction had delayed the ESSA plan until the spring,” according to The Daily News. The state will continue to collect public comments on the draft plan until January.
WA Announces Postponement of ESSA Plan Submission
November 29, 2016
State education officials in Washington announced that they will postpone ESSA plan submission. As reported by the Yakima Herald, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction announced it would offer the “public at least two more months” to “weigh in on a 241 page...
WA Releases Draft ESSA Plan, Accepting Public Comments
November 16, 2016
The Washington Dept. of Education released a draft of Washington’s ESSA state plan. The public comment period will be open through December 15.
WA Announces Date for Release of Draft ESSA Plan
November 3, 2016
Washington’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) announced that they intend to release the state’s draft plan for public comment early November.
State Education Leaders Visit Yakima, WA
July 11, 2016
State education leaders visited Yakima, WA this week to discuss ESSA with community members. This is the fourth meeting in a set of regional forums in the state. Superintendent Kevin Chase noted that he sees ESSA benefiting English Language Learners by putting less pressure on...
Forums to Be Held Across WA on ESSA Opportunities and Challenges
June 14, 2016
Gil Mendoza, deputy superintendent of K-12 education, and Gayle Pauley, assistant superintendent of special programs and federal accountability, hosted the first of seven forums on how the state will implement ESSA. Each forum will cover opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, how ESSA is similar...
WA Announces Dates for ESSA Implementation Forums Across State
June 3, 2016
The Office of the Superintendent of Public instruction announced the date for several forums across the state to provide an overview of ESSA implementation in Washington. The first forum will be held starting next Tuesday and go until early August. Read more here.
Workshop Helps WA Education Leaders Better Understand ESSA
May 27, 2016
Kati Haycock, president of The Education Trust, spoke at a workshop to help Washington education leaders and advocates better understand ESSA. Read more here.
Puget Sound Educational Service District Announces Seven Public Meetings
May 22, 2016
The Puget Sound Educational Service District announced a series of seven public meetings in June and July to discuss ESSA. Read more here.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Releases State ESSA Primers
May 16, 2016
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s primers include individual state by state accountability system fact sheets, which detail each state’s current accountability system, what could change under ESSA, and what to be asking state leaders. See details about your state here.