Our bills are still in limbo until the budget is signed, so there's not much to report this week. Rumor had it that legislators would be returning to Olympia on Wednesday morning prepared to agree on a supplemental budget and end the special session. However, without an announcement from the Senate or House leadership, it appears the session will go into next week. According to an article in the Seattle Times, the issue of teacher raises continues to be a sticking point.
However, there may be some hope for an adjournment before too long. The Associated Press' Rachel La Courte (@RachelAPOly) tweeted that the "forecast for next Thursday & Friday in Olympia is sunny and 70 degrees. Seems like the perfect incentive for #waleg to wrap things up soon."
While we're waiting for the legislature to resolve the supplemental budget hang-up, the Every Student Succeeds Act is marching on. If you've been following news about the transition to ESSA, you probably have a lot of questions. Here's an FAQ list from the Department of Education that may be helpful.
The OSPI ESSA page is another good resource that has just posted an updated team member list and timeline for development of Washington's Consolidated Plan.
The Seattle Times Education Lab published a two-part series this week comparing our schools to those in Massachusetts. It seems our states are demographically similar, yet Massachusetts has made reforms that have their schools near the top in all categories of achievement. Fascinating reading!
And, if you're just feeling a little grumpy about the legislature and school funding, here's an op-ed from Wednesday's Everett Herald that may validate your feelings. How about an "F for Effort"?
TVW: Watch live and archived legislative proceedings.
Note about
legislative updates:
CSTP relays these legislative updates to provide information on bills, budgets and legislative processes. CSTP doesn't have a legislative agenda, but does track legislative issues most relevant to teaching.
