FutureReady

What's on this Page

Current Draft Proposal

Proposal Development Timeline

Opportunities to Get Involved

Resources to Learn More

Submit FutureReady Public Comment

Questions about FutureReady can be directed to:

Colton Kaltenfeldt, Communications Manager

Current Draft Proposal

Students, families, and educators across Washington consistently report that current graduation requirements can be difficult to navigate and do not always reflect what students need to succeed after high school.

The proposal is designed to create graduation requirements that give every student the opportunity to explore their interests, build real-world skills, and prepare for life after high school, while supporting schools in offering relevant, authentic, and interdisciplinary learning opportunities. It also maintains strong academic expectations that keep multiple postsecondary options open as students’ goals evolve.

While the proposal is still in development, the Board and Task Force have reached consensus on several important changes to current requirements. Please note that these items are not finalized and the final recommendation may differ from what is included here.

FutureReady Draft Graduation Requirement Framework — A draft of the FutureReady graduation requirement framework. Click here to view a PDF of this infographic.

Better Support Student Postsecondary Planning and Success by Integrating High School and Beyond Plan, Financial Education, and Life Skills Instruction into the Credit Framework

Many students and educators feel that the High School and Beyond Plan is a checkbox exercise that doesn’t give them the time and support to meaningfully explore interests, set goals, and prepare for life after high school. Additionally, students and families have consistently asked for more opportunities to learn financial education and life skills.

The proposal would create a one-credit Personalized Pathway Requirement focused on financial education, High School and Beyond Plan instruction, and life skills.

For this credit, the Board recommends developing a state model curriculum while allowing local school districts flexibility in how they deliver the content. Districts could offer the content as a single integrated course or incorporate it across multiple courses and instructional experiences.

Expand Flexibility Aligned with Postsecondary Goals by Shifting Some Core Requirements into Expanded Personalized Pathway Requirements

Under the proposal, some courses would move into expanded Personalized Pathway Requirements (PPRs), so students have more flexibility to tailor coursework to their interests and postsecondary goals without lowering academic expectations.

The PPRs are default courses that most students would complete. Students could substitute with other courses that help them prepare for a clear postsecondary plan that they have developed in collaboration with their family and educators in their High School and Beyond Plan.

Under this proposal, the following items would be included in the PPRs:

A one-credit Senior Year Quantitative Reasoning course. This would be an algebra-based science course or a math course beyond Algebra 2 taken in a student's senior year.
Two credits of a global language. This would be any two of the same world language, American Sign Language, or Tribal language credits. A student can also meet this requirement by receiving the Washington State Seal of Biliteracy.
Half-credit of Health
Half-credit of Physical Education

One credit of Career & Technical Education (CTE). Students are expected to complete at least one CTE experience, either as a standalone course or through a CTE course equivalency, unless they decide, per their HSBP, to substitute with an elective.

A one-credit Financial Education, High School and Beyond Plan, and Life Skills course. As noted above, districts could offer the content as a single integrated course or incorporate it across multiple courses and instructional experiences.

This approach gives students more time and support to meaningfully explore their interests, set goals, and prepare for life after high school. Students who take all the recommended default courses in the PPRs would remain on track to pursue a wide range of postsecondary options, including four-year colleges, apprenticeships, military service, and workforce training programs.

Streamline the Graduation Framework by Removing Graduation Pathways

Many students, families, educators, and school leaders have told us that graduation pathways are widely regarded as an administrative hurdle that doesn’t effectively check whether a student has the knowledge needed to succeed after graduation. The proposal would simplify the framework by eliminating this requirement and redistributing that time so educators can provide more consistent and thorough individualized guidance to students to help them prepare for life after high school.

Strengthen Math Preparation

The framework strengthens math expectations by requiring all students to complete coursework that prepares them with real-world quantitative skills. The proposal does this in two ways:

Ensure the default math sequence is aligned with college admissions expectations by setting the default third math credit to either Algebra 2 or Integrated Math III. For additional flexibility, a student may also satisfy the third math credit by taking Data Science, Statistics, or Financial Algebra.

Most students would be expected to take a senior year quantitative reasoning course as one of the default Personalized Pathway Requirement courses.

Increased Emphasis on Civics

Combine the current half-credit Civics course and half-credit Contemporary World History, Geography, and Problems course into a single one-credit Civics course.

Civic knowledge and engagement are essential for success in today's democracy. Combining these subjects creates a more cohesive learning experience while giving students additional time to explore contemporary world history, geography, and problems content through a civics lens.

Rebalance Health & Fitness Requirements

Update the health and physical education requirements to give students more opportunities to receive health education. The proposal would add an additional half-credit of health to the PPRs. Physical Education would be reduced from 1.5 credits to one credit. The remaining credit would be split into two half-credit requirements, with a half-credit remaining as a core requirement and a half-credit moved to the PPRs.

This gives students more flexibility to tailor coursework based on their High School and Beyond Plan if needed, while still ensuring they receive important instruction that supports long-term well-being.

Create a Consistent Statewide Policy for Flexible Credit Options

Students consistently express a desire for more hands-on learning experiences and greater flexibility in how they earn credits. While state law already allows school districts to adopt policies that meet this need— including competency-based crediting and Career Technical Education (CTE) course equivalencies— implementation and access vary considerably from district to district and existing CTE credit policies don’t always give students meaningful flexibility.

The Board’s proposal would address these concerns in two ways:

Establish consistent statewide policies for how students can earn competency-based credit, PE excusals tied to athletic participation outside school, and obtaining language credits as a multilingual learner. Creating statewide policies ensures that a student's location is no longer the determining factor in whether they can benefit from these policies.

Change the state’s CTE course equivalency policy by allowing students to earn two credits when a course allows a student to demonstrate competency in both the CTE standards and academic course standards. Under the current system, students can sometimes meet two subject-area requirements while earning only one credit, limiting flexibility within the 24-credit framework.

Definitions:

Core Courses: Must be completed by all students in order to earn a diploma. These courses must be offered each year by every high school.

Personalized Pathway Requirements: Courses most students are expected to take that keep all postsecondary options open. Courses may be substituted on an individual student basis in alignment with preparation for a clear postsecondary plan documented in the High School and Beyond Plan and in consultation with a student's family and educators. These courses must be offered each year by every high school.

Elective Credits: Any courses that allow a student to explore their interests and help reach 24 credits. Districts may waive up to two elective credits for individual student circumstances.

A Process Shaped by the Voices of Students, Educators, and Community Members

FutureReady was intentionally designed to be different from traditional policy-development processes. Rather than developing recommendations first and seeking feedback later, FutureReady was designed to foster a collaboration of ideas between the Board and community members. We made a particular effort to include voices that have historically been underrepresented in education policy conversations, including students with disabilities, multilingual families, migrant families, youth in foster care, and other underserved communities.

At the heart of this work is the FutureReady Task Force, which is made up of students, families, educators, employers, community organizations, and policymakers from across the state. To support meaningful participation of communities least well served by our education system, the Task Force includes six compensated community liaisons who help engage communities across Washington by reducing barriers such as transportation and childcare.

The Task Force meets every other month, typically in odd-numbered months, while the Board discusses FutureReady during its meetings in even-numbered months. This approach has ensured a continuous thread of two-way dialogue, allowing for an iterative process where both groups remain aligned and inform one another’s work.

The Task Force's work is also supported by expert-led subcommittees focused on key topics including math, financial education and life skills, technology and media literacy, implementation supports, and educator development.

You can learn more about the FutureReady Task Force by visiting our Task Force webpage.

In addition to perspectives shared by Task Force members, the Board has received input from hundreds of educators and other school staff across the state through engagement with educator and administrator associations.

To broaden our engagement with community members, the Board has also helped facilitate community listening sessions which have gathered input from hundreds of students and community members across the state. Populations included in these listening sessions include:

Youth who have recently graduated high school and now attend college.

Students from rural school districts

Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)

LGBTQIA+ individuals

Tribal communities

Military-connected families

Families with lower incomes

Migrant families

Multilingual families

Justice-involved youth

How We Got Here & What's Next for FutureReady

FutureReady launched in 2025. The initiative is divided into three phases.

Phase I: Visioning & Gap Analysis
(Completed)

The Board launched FutureReady to examine whether Washington's current graduation requirements prepare students for success after high school. Working with the FutureReady Task Force, the Board developed a shared vision for the high school diploma and identified gaps between that vision and the state's current graduation framework.

Phase II: Developing Recommendations
(Completed)

The Board and Task Force collaborated with students, families, educators, employers, community organizations, and subject-matter experts to develop recommendations that address gaps identified in the system.

Phase III: Legislative Proposal Development
(Current Phase)

After reviewing public feedback, the Board will refine its recommendations and develop a legislative proposal for consideration during the 2027 legislative session.

When Will Changes Take Effect and What Students Would Be Impacted?

Changes resulting from FutureReady would need to be finalized after the 2027 legislative session and some changes would require legislative action.

The earliest any new requirements proposed through FutureReady could take effect would be with students entering ninth grade in fall 2027 (the Class of 2031). Even then, some updated requirements may be phased in to allow for adequate support and effective rollout. A longer phase-in will be built in for bigger adjustments.

The Board, with input from the FutureReady Task Force, subcommittees, and community partners, will develop appropriate timelines and identify necessary resources and supports at both the state and local school district level to ensure successful implementation of proposed changes.

How Can You Get Involved?

Whether you're a student, parent, educator, employer, or community member, your input is invaluable. Here are a few ways you can share your thoughts and stay up-to-date.

Give a Public Comment

Have something you want to say? Comments submitted using this form will be shared with the Board and may be publicly posted.

Provide Public Comment

Subscribe to the FutureReady Newsletter

This is the best way to receive updates on the initiative and be the first to hear about important announcements.

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Want to Learn More?

Listen to our July Informational Webinars on the Draft FutureReady Proposal

In this webinar, Board staff share what they've heard from students, families, educators, employers, Tribes, and community partners. They discuss draft recommendations and talk about what comes next as the Board works to refine recommendations ahead of the 2027 legislative session.

Click here to view a copy of the slide deck used in this presentation.

Read the FutureReady 2025 Interim Report

We are excited to publicly release the FutureReady 2025 Interim Report.

This report summarizes the work the Board and FutureReady Task Force have accomplished during their first year of work. It talks about why we’re updating requirements, our process for determining gaps in current graduation requirements, and what the next steps are as the FutureReady initiative prepares to develop recommendations.

We extend our gratitude to all the individuals and organizations who have supported our work over the last year. We look forward to continuing this work in 2026 as we develop recommendations for a high school diploma that prepares all students for success after high school.

Read the 2025 Interim Report

Other Resources

Download our FutureReady Phase II handout for an overview of the initiative, its timeline, and what kind of topics we're exploring.
Our FutureReady FAQ section answers many of the questions we've received about the initiative.