Release Date:
OLYMPIA, Wash. – Letters of support for Senate Bill 6552 are rolling in from across the state, and the nation, including one from Kati Haycock, President of The Education Trust in Washington, D.C.
SB 6552 would authorize the 24-credit graduation requirement framework, provide flexibility to school districts in meeting the 1,080 instructional hour requirement, and expand math and science course equivalencies for Career and Technical Education programs.
"This bill is a step forward in ensuring that Washington’s students are better prepared for life after high school, and we urge you to support it,” Haycock said in her letter to the House Education Committee Chair. "The problem extends beyond students bound for college: among young Washingtonians interested in military service, many – including one-third of African American and one quarter of Latino students – struggle to meet the minimum requirements necessary to enlist in the Army, a traditional path to middle class lifestyle. Washington’s students deserve better – they deserve a meaningful high school diploma, one that signifies they are ready for both college and career.”
The Education Trust promotes high academic achievement for all students at all levels—pre-kindergarten through college. Their goal is to close the gaps in opportunity and achievement that consign far too many young people—especially those from low-income families or who are black, Latino, or American Indian—to lives on the margins of the American mainstream.
The bill will be heard in the House Education Committee today at 1:30 p.m.
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Contact: Sarah Lane, SBE Communications Manager, (360) 725-6501
About the State Board of Education: The State Board of Education provides advocacy and strategic oversight of public education. The board is comprised of 16 members: five are elected by school board directors, seven are appointed by the Governor, two serve as student representatives, and one serves as a private school representative. The Superintendent of Public Instruction is also a member.