May Meeting Recap

Release Date:

Donalda, Pavan, and McKenna
SBE held its first hybrid Board meeting in two years on May 11-12 in Chelan, and discussed student voting authority on the Board, institutional education, interim planning, private school approvals, graduation pathways research, and more. Find documents from the meeting and links to TVW’s live stream on SBE’s meetings page.

Student Updates –

  • Student vote: SSB 5497, signed by the Governor on March 11, 2022, extends voting authority to student members on the State Board of Education. As a result of this change, the Board adopted changes to the bylaws consistent with the revised authority.
  • New student: The Board welcomed Donalda Brantley (current sophomore at Rogers High School in Spokane). Donalda will be officially appointed and sworn in as east-side student representative and member at the July 2022 meeting. (Photo: Donalda, Pavan, and McKenna).
  • Farewell, McKenna: The Board celebrated the work of student member, McKenna Roberts (graduating senior at Okanogan High School in Okanogan). McKenna plans to attend Barnard College in New York City this fall. Board chair, Bill Kallappa presented McKenna with a traditional blanket ceremony as an honored send-off.

Graduation Requirement Emergency Waivers – The Board and staff reviewed rules and possible amendments based on feedback. The Board adopted permanent rules amending Chapter 180-111 WAC that extend the current emergency waiver authority through the class of 2023 and a scaled back waiver for the class of 2024.

Institutional Education – The Board adopted minimum scores on General Education Development (GED) tests, World Language proficiency tests, and American Sign Language proficiency tests that students in, or recently released from, institutional education facilities can meet to receive high school credit in response to HB 1295 (“Providing public education to youth in or released from institutional education facilities”). The Board discussed staff recommendations and welcomed Veronica Trapani, Associate Director of Content, World Languages, at OSPI for the discussion.

Principal of the Year – Washington State Principal of the Year, Brad Wilson (Lake Chelan School District) presented to the Board about his work at Chelan High School.

Interim Planning – Staff gave brief background context on the Board's major streams of work for the next year and outcomes of the 2022 legislative session.

Basic Education – Staff updated the Board on the launch of the Basic Education Compliance Reporting tool scheduled for May 17, 2022. SBE annually conducts a data collection that allows school districts to confirm compliance with the program requirements of Basic Education. District responses are required by Friday, August 18, 2022.

Private School Approvals – Staff gave an overview of Board authority and processes concerning private schools. The Board approved schools for the 2022-23 school year:

Pathways Research – Strobel Consulting Staff presented an overview of past graduation pathway research and an update on the third year of research taking place this spring.

Upcoming Board Meeting
The next meeting is scheduled for July 13-14, 2022, in Spokane. It is both in-person and on Zoom. The agenda and materials will be posted one week in advance of the meeting on SBE’s meetings page.