Voters defeat Initiative 1033

More than 56 percent of voters said NO to Tim Eyman’s Initiative 1033. Voters in 22 of 39 counties on both sides of the Cascades got the message about I-1033’s devastating impact on schools and universities and city, county and state services we all rely on.

I-1033 lost largely in part to an unprecedented coalition of more than 200 organizations representing education, seniors, health care, environment, labor and business. And, hundreds of volunteers stepped up to phonebank night after night to remind voters that I-1033 would have diverted $8 billion away from classrooms, police and fire, parks and other investments we count on to maintain our quality of life.

Referendum 71 leading

Referendum 71 supporters are optimistic the narrow lead will hold. Half the ballots left to count are from King County where R-71 is winning by large margins. We are disappointed that it’s not receiving broader statewide support. R-71 extends the same legal protections afforded to married couples to families headed by same-sex partners or seniors. Whether at school, a hospital or work, no one should be discriminated against.

Thank you to an education champion

In the 16th Legislative District, which includes Pasco and Walla Walla, Laura Grant lost her bid to return to the State Legislature. It was not for a lack of effort. Laura campaigned vigorously to continue to fight for reforms that will help local schools.

Although Laura’s late father, Bill Grant, represented the district as a moderate, independent Democrat for more than 20 years, she faced an uphill battle running in a traditionally conservative district. We will sorely miss not having this education champion, and the Legislature’s only active teacher, in Olympia.

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November results: Election offers varied impact for education

So what’s the reason for the three-year-lag in getting my voting gears rolling? Some might call it youthfulness, apathy, or laziness even-but I know there has to be more to it than that. I guess I never thought my vote mattered!

We were all sparked by the 2008 election, no matter which party you party with. But young people really got sparked. I never felt more like a member of my own generation than when I dove headfirst into democracy. Who’s with me?!

This year, when 2009 election time rolled around, I still had the democratic bug, bad. Despite being an “off year” for voters, not only did I vote, but I recruited five friends to vote, helped lead two phone banks for the no on 1033 campaign, spent my Saturday doorbelling TWICE (shout out to Laura Grant and Trick or Vote!!) and took part in an important yearly ritual: election parties.

Maybe the bug that bit me was on beast mode, but I don’t think so. I hope not, actually. I want young people to prove that I’m not an anomaly. I didn’t see many student faces out there last night… and for now I will just assume it’s because they were at home being good studiers. But LEV’s college intern Genna was actually doing her homework at the no on 1033 party last night, so, I’m just saying… When Genna asked herself the tough question of “do I celebrate political triumph or do I educate my mind?” She chose both.

A big thank you to everyone in Washington State-especially all my young people who voted and volunteered this year-for rejecting 1033 and approving Ref 71. It’s because of these results we can continue to do our work at LEV!

Conversation with Dr. Carol Dweck

Thursday, November 12th from 7 to 9 PM
Seattle Public Library
1000 Fourth Ave., Seattle
FREE public event

RSVP to Kelly at info@educationvoters.org or via our Facebook event page.

And, Lisa Brummel, Senior VP for Human Resources at Microsoft Corporation and co-owner of the Seattle Storm Women’s Basketball Team, and Kristin Rowe Finkbeiner, founder of MomsRising, will join Dr. Dweck for a lively discussion about how to foster a growth mindset in education, business and sports.

Dr. Carol Dweck is one of the world’s leading researchers in motivation and renowned author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.

So, where does Washington stand?

With a national averaged freshman graduation rate of 73.9 percent, Washington’s average of 74.8 percent looks better. And it is: in comparison to data collected for the previous year, 2005-2006, Washington’s high school graduation rate went up by nearly two full percentage points from 72.9 percent.

However, Washington is squarely in the middle of the national pack, which means we could do better. In the 48 states that submitted data, the graduation rate ranged from 52 percent to 88.6 percent, and 16 states had rates of 80 percent or higher.

Washington’s dropout rate for the 2006-2007 year was 5.1 percent as compared to the national rate of 4.4 percent. The previous year Washington’s dropout rate was 5.6 percent. The dropout rates ranged nationally from 2.0 to 7.6 percent, with 27 states at 4.0 percent or less.

To be more specific: the data show that 16,945 Washington high school students dropped out of school in 2006-2007.

Yes, we can definitely do better.

The NCES report shows data collected over five years, from 2002 to 2007, and breaks it down to illustrate graduation and dropout rates by high school grade - the numbers get worse as the kids get closer to graduation - as well as by ethnicity and gender.

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Here’s a list of election night parties:

Seattle
Twist Belltown
2313 1st Ave, Seattle
5:30 PM - 9:30 PM
Host: The Municipal League, PubliCola, Seattle Works, the Washington Bus and the Alki Foundation

No on Initiative 1033

Seattle
The Edgewater Hotel, Alki Room
2411 Alaskan Way, Pier 67
7:00 PM

Approve Referendum 71

Seattle
Pravda Studios
1406 10th Ave., Suite 200, Seattle
7:00 PM
Host: Campaign Chair Anne Levinson and Campaign Manager Josh Friedes

Tacoma
Home of Ryan Mello & Jerry Hallman
1514 South Oakes Street, Tacoma
7:45 PM
Host: Approve 71 campaign

Bellingham
Rumors Cabaret
1119 Railroad Ave, Bellingham
8:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Host: Stephanie Kountouros

Olympia
Darby’s Cafe
211 5th Ave SE, Olympia
8:00 PM - 10:30 PM
Host: Approve 71 campaign

Tri Cities, Pasco
Out & About
327 W Lewis St, Pasco
6:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Host: Approve 71 campaign

For additional election night parties for King County and City of Seattle races, click here.

Early Learning Town Hall Meeting

Wednesday, Nov. 4th from 7:00 - 8:30 PM
St. Luke’s Community Education Center
3333 Squalicum Parkway, Bellingham 98225 (MAP)
Download the Event Flyer (PDF)

Email Frank at info@educationvoters.org to RSVP for this Early Learning Town Hall Meeting.

It’s a chance to have your voice heard by the leaders who have the power to affect the cost and quality of preschool, childcare and early learning for all children in Washington State, including your children.

Here are some questions to think about:

• Do you believe it’s time for preschool to be part of basic education?
• Is the cost of childcare going through the roof?
• Do you think full-day kindergarten is key?

Good, bad, funny, or sad–our leaders want to hear about it. Your feedback will help shape early learning recommendations for the 2010 Legislative Session. We need you to ensure Washington’s Early Learning Plan will help your children succeed in school and life.

9:05am-9:10am

Update on Funding Formula Technical Working Group - Julie Salvi

[It happened, in 5 minutes, take away: group has more work to do]

9:10am-9:25am

Financial Outlook - Bryon Moore

Presentation here

>>Rep. Skip Priest brought up the Doran I and II court decisions, which coincided with the economic downturn of 1979-81/83. Sen. Rosemary McAuliffe asked if Mr. Moore’s office is presuming the stimulus funds will go away. Mr. Moore answered that they are presuming the federal stimulus will not be renewed and the state will probably face a $4-5 billion hole.<<

9:25am-10:45am

Early Learning Work Group Update - Dr. Bette Hyde

Document here

-Near-term policy priorities

• Early literacy
• All-day kindergarten
• Voluntary universal pre-K for 4-year-olds (mixed delivery)
• Birth-to-3 continuum
• Health insurance and medical home
• Strengthen partnerships with families
• Support and resources for QRIS
• Enhance/strengthen early learning system infrastructure

[Dr. Hyde described how doctors use books to assess development of children and the doctors' need for books. Sen. Curtis King mentioned a book program started by Dolly Parton. Rep. Bruce Dammeier looked up the actual name of the program, and Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn joked he could now get off the Dollywood site...Jokes! Before 10 a.m. even.]

>>Rep. Priest mentioned work by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy that found all-day kindergarten didn’t produce significantly greater results than half-day kindergarten. On the Basic Education Finance Task Force they wrestled with this; he asked Dr. Hyde her opinion. Dr. Hyde responded that studies have found that benefits of all-day K can peter out after 1st grade, which is why they want this to be a P-3 initiative, with supports in place through 3rd grade.

>>Rep. Pat Sullivan brought up that so many children coming to kindergarten are already behind, so it’s important to make an investment in 3- and 4-year-olds, as well as all-day kindergarten. Dr. Hyde agreed.

>>Mary Jean Ryan came out swinging in favor of a robust early learning program, with full-day programs for 3- and 4-year-olds, quality curriculum and trained/certificated teachers. She does not think a 300-hour program is adequate. Dr. Hyde does not disagree. Speaker Frank Chopp would like to have more cost information, since we’re currently serving 16 percent of eligible children, we need to know what it would take to serve all kids (by ramp up by quartiles).

>>Stephen Rushing agreed more or less with Ms. Ryan and made the point that the average elementary student is in school for 5 or 5.5 hours a day, but only receiving about 4 hours of instruction. We can do so much by investing in programs for 3- and 4-year-olds.

>>Sen. McAuliffe said she wouldn’t advocate one way or the other for including early learning in basic education, but does appreciate the work being done on the early learning plan. She also wanted to remind everyone about the one million children in our K-12 system, and too many of them are dropping out each year.<<

11:05am-12pm

Continued Workplan and Implementation Plan Discussion - Jennifer Priddy

Follow-up on questions/comments/need for clarification from yesterday

-Baseline/crosswalk: put into law? Consensus: Yes

>>Sen. McAuliffe would like it to be called a baseline. Speaker Chopp agrees.

-Ending values/2018 values: Recommendations or set?

>>Sen. King has concerns over setting concrete values, ranges may be better. Rep. Sullivan thinks that the QEC’s recommendations need to be bold; there is an expectation that the QEC will show leadership on this. Dr. Hyde would also like to have the end picture, but not all of the subgroups will finish their work in the next month, so can’t set the 2018 values yet.

>>Sen. Eric Oemig thought this to be meaty and may be better to flag those issues without consensus and come back to them. Supt. Dorn pushed back, saying the QEC needs to make bold recommendations.

>>Sen. Joseph Zarelli asked if the QEC has yet defined prototypical schools. He understood the crosswalk idea, but wasn’t clear on the specifics. Sen. Oemig explained the model school formula (base shell) and the prototypical schools (with numbers filled in). Sen. McAuliffe said they need to create a QEC proposal to make sure the numbers in the proposal reflect the values of the QEC, and that is a task for 2010.

>>Speaker Chopp asked when the QEC would get to setting the 2018 values. Sen. King said, for him, it’s after the QEC gets reports back from all the subgroups. Speaker Chopp said the baseline report from the Funding Formula Technical Working Group will be given at the end of the month, but the QEC should move up other work groups and get to work on determining end values. Sen. King pushed back that he, again, doesn’t think they can set the values until they have all the information from the other groups.

>>Rep. Priest said some prototype model values are clear, while others will require more work. QEC can’t waste more time “chatting,” but need to get other parts going so the QEC can keep moving. Dr. Hyde said she agrees there are things they “can do, and they should do them,” while continuing to work on other areas. Ms. Ryan asked if that is what Reps. Priest and Sullivan were advocating for in their proposal. Reps. Priest and Sullivan said “yes,” there are certain things the QEC can recommend the Legislature put in statute in 2010, and other things the QEC needs to keep working on.

>>Sen. Oemig joked “so much for tabling this.” He went on to cite the expected budget shortfall in the next year, and expressed caution. Rep. Dammeier reaffirmed his commitment to the effort, and said he doesn’t think anyone is expecting the QEC to figure it all out by December. However, they do need to keep moving forward, and certain items are ready for action/implementation/phase-in now. He would also like to see the Compensation and Local Finance work groups start earlier. The QEC can do certain things now, but he is not ready to vote on 2018 values. Sen. King said there are certain things he feels comfortable moving forward on - transportation, MSOCs, baseline for prototypical model - but not 2018 values.

>>Supt. Dorn asked Reps. Priest and Sullivan to flesh out their proposal more and have it ready for distribution in the next two weeks, allowing QEC members to comment and discuss at the December meeting. Sen. Zarelli said he still has questions about LAP, ELL, all-day kindergarten and early learning. He does think increasing MSOCs makes sense, but other things they don’t know enough about.

>>Rep. Priest said they’ve learned a lot in the past two days, their proposal presented yesterday was a draft and they do plan to get a revised proposal out soon.

>>Sen. McAuliffe said she appreciates the work of Reps. Priest and Sullivan, but would like a larger subgroup to make recommendations and for at least two other people to join them. Supt. Dorn said he views everyone as in the group and everyone is free to make proposals, etc.

>>Mr. Rushing expressed concern that too much time is passing and the QEC needs to take positions or offer feedback to the FFTWG so the subgroup can complete its work. Dr. Gutting said she feels a little bit better because they have a meeting scheduled for early January, and impressed by the members of the subgroups. Dr. Hyde agreed that she would like to spend more time talking to one another rather than having more people talk at them. Mr. Rushing added that the discussion over early learning today teased out some concerns, and the QEC hasn’t discussed other important issues and they need to.<<

Lunch break…

1:05pm1:40pm

Continued Workplan and Implementation Plan Discussion - Jennifer Priddy

-CORE 24

>>Questions over how CORE 24 fits in with ESHB 2261. Ms. Ryan explained that certain parts of CORE 24 are already in motion, namely the Algebra II requirement. And while other parts do still need action, 2261 seemed to support CORE 24 by saying high school should prepare students for post-secondary life. Ms. Priddy along with legislative staff clarified that 2261 has language that will go into effect in 2011 (including increase in instructional hours), but doesn’t mandate there be a implementation plan attached. However, the QEC’s January report is required to have an implementation recommendation.

-Instructional hours: 1,000 in elementary, 1,080 in secondary

>>Mr. Rushing asked what is considered “instructional.” Ms. Priddy said administrative code (WAC) lists what type of activities can be counted, and they will make that available. Sen. King asked if there are cost estimates for increasing instructional hours. Ms. Priddy said the increased instructional hours are meant to provide the opportunity for students to earn 24 credits in high school, and the baseline will be helpful in answering that question.

>>Dr. Hyde asked if the proposed accountability framework will be implemented without funding. Ms. Ryan said she hopes the State Board of Education can present on its work (CORE 24, accountability) at the December meeting to help people understand how it all comes together.

>>Ms. Ryan suggested that the QEC work with the proposal from Reps. Priest and Sullivan, make strong recommendations in January and then spend 2010 perfecting values. She also hoped the FFTWG could not dissolve, as the QEC is going to need technical guidance as they move forward. Rep. Sullivan said that if they want to move up other subgroups’ timelines, they can certainly include language to maintain the FFTWG.<<

1:40pm-1:55pm

Pupil Transportation - Isabel Muñoz-Colon

Presentation here

>>Sen. Zarelli asked why the cost went up. Ms. Muñoz-Colon said it did because the initial cost estimate did not include a transportation GIS analyst. Sen. Oemig asked if regulations around things like bus stop locations can be relaxed or loosened.

>>Supt. Dorn said the Legislature can decide to build the new transportation system whenever it has $806,000 to implement those changes. Funding the new system will come down the road.<<

1:55pm-2pm

Question Follow-Up - Isabel Muñoz-Colon

Presentation here

>>Sen. Zarelli asked if they can look at funding with salaries and benefits separated out, along with student-teacher ratio. Sen. Oemig asked if they can find out how many support staff are employed in other states.<<

2pm-2:50pm

Public Comment

Pat Montgomery, Auburn parent volunteer - clarifying earlier testimony, advocating for equity of opportunity for all students

Marie-Anne Harkness, librarian in Federal Way - thank you for keeping teacher-librarians in formulas, please implement increases sooner rather than later

Philip Mosely, high school science teacher in Fife - important to fully fund any program increases so schools don’t have to cut other offerings; reduction in class size is important

George Scarola, League of Education Voters - proposal from Reps. Priest and Sullivan is a good start, gets implementation started, recognizes three distinct cost categories (compensation, fundamentals, and program); like the investment in early learning, LAP/ELL programs, Beginning Education Support Team program, CORE 24; QEC should adopt 2018 values

Kim Howard, WA PTA - QEC needs to adopt crosswalk; need to consider how to phase-in new model as allocations with evidence of new programs

>>Sen. Zarelli asked a follow-up question about the allocation versus categorical issue. Ms. Howard said the end goal is to have a allocation model, but until the system is fully funded any increases may need to be categorical.

Lorraine Hirakawa, teacher in Puyallup - need to attract quality people to teaching

John Traxler, chemistry teacher - worried about use of National Board certified teachers as evaluators of other teachers

>>Dr. Hyde asked if he would be willing to serve as a coach or mentor. Mr. Traxler said he currently serves in that role and is happy to do it.

Molly Prater, teacher in Snoqualmie Valley - paraeducators are valuable in classrooms

Jim Kainber, Stand for Children - support adoption of crosswalk; appreciates inclusion of BEST program in proposal from Reps. Priest and Sullivan

Anne Melgaard, 3rd grade teacher in Snoqualmie Valley - teacher collaboration is important

>>Dr. Hyde asked if Ms. Melgaard is advocating for common planning time, or for teachers to not evaluate other teachers. Ms. Melgaard said she agreed with Mr. Traxler that teachers should not evaluate other teachers. Speaker Chopp asked if any teacher supports the idea of teachers evaluating other teachers. Answer from the audience: “no.”

Janice Trabin, Seattle parent - does not want the QEC to delay implementing ESHB 2261; fully fund gifted/talented education; budget cuts are limiting course offerings, decreasing counselors

Heidi Bennett, Seattle parent - basic education is underfunded, Washington students can’t get into state public universities; embarrassed by funding disparities between districts; high school graduation requirements are not adequate, need CORE 24

Deb, citizen from Pierce County - please include feedback from parents

Former Apple executive to lead U.S. Ed-Tech Office

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