Supporting new and aspiring teachers
Coming up this week – take action now!
- An educator workforce development bill (HB 1565) has a hearing in House Education on Monday. It focuses on defining and expanding teacher residencies and beginning educator support programs to make the pathway into teaching more accessible. Sign in pro here.
- A bill that would give levy equalization to charter schools, (SB 5442) offering them more funding stability than our public schools have, will be heard on Thursday in Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education. WEA will be testifying against it. Sign in con here.
- Improvements to the Special Education funding formula (SB 5311 and HB 1436) are scheduled for hearing on Thursday at 4pm in Senate Ways & Means and House Appropriations. We will be testifying in support of these badly-needed increases in supports for students with disabilities.
- The House bill to provide free school meals to all K-12 students (HB 1238) is scheduled to be voted on in House Education on Tuesday. The senate bill (SB 5339) passed in Senate Early Learning & K-12 Ed and is now referred to Ways & Means.
If you’re interested in testifying on these bills, please contact WEA Lobbyist Simone Boe..
WEA members who testified this week: Holly Koon, Mount Baker EA, on 9th grade success grants; Janae Larsen, West Valley Yakima EA, on diverse and inclusive curricula; Oliver Miska, Seattle EA, against the extra-work bill on “parents’ rights” and Glenn Jenkins, Auburn EA, against education savings accounts (vouchers).
If you provided verbal or written testimony before the legislature, we’d like to do a shout-out about you! Please contact WEA Lobbyist Simone Boe.
Tracking our priorities
- We have concerns about HB 1550, as do other educational organizations. It is scheduled for executive session Thursday in House Education. It moves transitional Kindergarten to a grant program, which could have funding consequences, plus it changes licensing requirements for educators.
- The bill expanding multi-lingual and tribal language education (HB 1228) is scheduled for executive session in the House Education Committee on Tuesday.
- The bill to increase districts’ per-student levy maximum (HB 1244) passed in House Appropriations.
- The bills establishing minimum employment requirements for paraeducators (HB 1015) passed the House this week and is now headed to the Senate.
- The bill supporting student access to school library information and technology programs (SB 5102) is scheduled for executive session in Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee on Monday.
Get the news as it happens… Follow WEA Advocacy on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, plus subscribe to the Advocacy blog. Subscribe to text message action alerts by texting “Advocacy” to 833-258-6815.
