Education Policy Updates

With all the focus on the superintendent search this week, several other education-releated topics have gotten much less coverage.

School levies
From the PI's A simple majority for levies? It's voters' call

The state Senate voted Thursday to ask voters to eliminate the state constitutional requirement of a 60 percent supermajority for school levy approval. The Senate vote was 33-16, barely enough for the two-thirds needed for passage. Since the House passed the measure on a 79-19 vote exactly a month earlier, it now goes to the voters, who can approve it by a simple majority.

From the Seattle Times, Proposed amendment would make it easier for schools to pass property-tax levies

In the past eight years, 170 school operating levies in Washington won more than 50 percent of the vote but failed to reach the supermajority required to pass, according to the Washington Association of School Administrators. Local property-tax levies are a major source of money for public schools, helping pay for everything from teacher salaries to textbooks to utility bills. The proposed constitutional amendment wouldn't change the requirement that school bond issues, often used for construction projects, must get at least 60 percent of the vote to pass.

WASL
From the PI's House votes for leniency on math test

The House version of the bill, which passed on a 81-17 vote, would call for end-of-course tests in math and science to replace the WASL, if it is determined that they do a better job of assessing students. The Senate version only calls for a study of the end-of-course tests, but does not presume that they will replace the WASL.

From the Seattle Times, Parts of WASL dealt a blow

The bill now will go to a conference committee. In the meantime, a group of 38 school superintendents are making a last-minute push to convince legislators that passing reading and writing on the WASL should be delayed past 2008, like math.