Statewide Legislative Initiatives
The Washington Legislature is in session. There are a number of bills working their way through the system that focus on education and the overall well-being of students and families. Through the Washington State PTA, you can sign up here ( https://actionnetwork.org/forms/subscribe-to-wsptas-action-network-group) to receive (easy) daily advocacy actions you can this week to urge our legislators to meet the needs of students. This page ( https://www.wastatepta.org/focus-areas/advocacy/ )provides information on policy priorities of the WSPTSA this year.
HB 1611
HB 1611 focuses on two equity issues that our HiCap programs are facing across our state… Help us support this bill and promote equitable practices in gifted education! Write a sentence of support for HB 1611. To submit a comment click on Comment On This Bill. WAETAG (Washington Association of Educators of the Talented and Gifted) has a Legislative Update about this bill which may help you decide what to say.
SCPTSA
The Seattle Council PTSA has also put together a page ( https://scptsa.org/bills ) to inform parents of the bills in discussion that will be most likely to improve our education system. They encourage support of SB 5563 if you are concerned about schools losing staff due to low enrollment and support of SB 5595 and HB 1664 if you want schools to have increased funds for counselors, social workers, and nurses.
Not sure what to say?
The Seattle Council PTSA has a 30 minute video (https://scptsa.org/testify) to help you match your story with numbers to make an effective testimony or written statement in support of bills.
School Levies in Seattle
The February 2022 levies renew funding for Seattle students, staff, and schools. Seattle voters will be asked to consider renewing two school levies that expire in 2022 to continue funding for our students and schools: (1) Educational Programs and Operations, and (2) Building, Tech, Academic/Athletics. This money provides additional funds to our schools, beyond what they get from the state.
The Cascadia PTA Board endorses voting yes on both levies.
Ballots will be mailed out on January 19th, and ballot boxes will open on January 20th. We will have more information about the levies at our General Meeting.
