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SESSION UPDATE: State Senate passes two special education bills

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Today was a momentous day for students with disabilities in Olympia, as the State Senate unanimously approved two special education bills (SB 5532 and SB 5901) that support families, train teachers and increase funding.

The pair of bills passed back-to-back during a Saturday morning floor session. Taken together these bills show a strong, bipartisan commitment to addressing unmet needs and improving outcomes for students with disabilities in the state of Washington.

Here are statements from the prime sponsors of each bill.

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From State Senator John Braun (R-Centralia) (SB 5532)

State Sen. John Braun (R-Centralia)

The state Senate today gave overwhelming support to a pair of bills intended to improve the delivery of special-education services in Washington’s public schools. Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia, is the prime sponsor of one of those measures: Senate Bill 5532, which focuses on policy changes to support families and equip teachers. He said this following the unanimous vote to send his bipartisan legislation to the House of Representatives:

“Our state can and should do better at serving students with special education needs, and the parents of those students have made it clear that funding is not the main issue. They’re looking for help in navigating the system, and advocating for the specific needs of their children, and a more effective transition to further education and training after high school. And they recognize that professional development for teachers – all teachers, not just those in special education – is key to including students with disabilities in a general classroom. This bill is about all of those things, and I’m glad it was supported by so many of my colleagues.

“It’s important to realize that if SB 5532 and the second special-education bill we passed today become law, support for special education would be on track to increase by nearly $900 million in the next budget alone. A commitment of that size is proof that our school districts don’t need more local-levy authority to support special education – it means the Legislature is ready to respond to this and other funding needs that reach across our state’s K-12 system. Especially when those needs are about ensuring fairness and complying with our constitutional obligation to provide for the education of all children.”

Funding for special education totals $2.04 billion in the current state operating budget, which runs through June.

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From State Senator Lisa Wellman (D-Mercer Island)

A bill passed today by the Washington State Senate increases funding for special education, paving the way for more inclusive learning environments. The bill passed with a unanimous vote.

Senate Bill 5091 is sponsored by Sen. Lisa Wellman (D-Mercer Island), who chairs the Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education committee. The additional special education funding comes at the request of parents, teachers and schools.

State Sen. Lisa Wellman (D-Mercer Island)

“We know that Washington’s special education students aren’t as successful as students in other states, and that is absolutely unacceptable,” Wellman said. “In order to make meaningful changes, including more inclusive learning environments, we must allocate additional funding to implement evidence-based practices.”

The bill changes the state’s cost multiplier for special education funding from 0.9609 to 1. This multiplier would be applied to calculate the amount of general education funding that each student receives in a given school district. For example, in a school district with $1,000 in per pupil funding, the district would be allocated $2,000 for each special education student.

The bill also replaces federal funding for the special education safety net with state funding – which allocates additional funding to schools with students who have high-cost Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). This frees up the federal funding to be used for other services such as professional learning for special education teachers.

Wellman amended the bill on the Senate floor to apply the same special education cost multiplier to incarcerated youth who qualify for special education. Currently, state and county institutions do not receive additional funding for these students, even though more than half of students in these facilities qualify for special education services.

In Washington, less than 4 percent of students with disabilities are identified as having an intellectual disability, and more than 90 percent have above average intellectual functioning, according to data from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. But only 55 percent are placed in general education for 80 to 100 percent of the day. For students of color, the number is even lower — only 47 percent.

“Evidence shows that students who are included in general education have better outcomes,” Wellman said. “We know that this takes more resources, but it’s what we should be working toward.” 

The bills now head to the State House of Representatives for consideration.

Proposed legislation would help families navigate special ed system

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Raising a child with a disability presents a host of challenges for families. There are often significant financial burdens, along with heavy demands on time in the form of therapy and medical appointments. Moreover, the emotional toll that comes with feelings of uncertainty about your child and their future can be overwhelming.

And then there’s school.

The laws governing the education of students with disabilities are complicated. Procedural protections for students are not always obvious nor widely understood. Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) spell out the program of special education instruction, supports and services students need to learn, but these are typically jargon-heavy and can be difficult for families to understand and navigate.

All of this makes the promise of meaningful participation by families and students – recognized as equal partners in special education decision-making under the law – at times an illusory one.

A new law (Senate Bill 5532) proposed by State Sen. John Braun (R-Centralia) and State Sen. Christine Rolfes (D-Bainbridge Island) looks to change this dynamic by providing help to families and students in the form of a special education advocate.

An advocate for the child

Under the proposed law, families would have access to a special education advocate at no cost. The advocate’s role would include:

  • Serving as a resource for a student with a disability who is eligible for special education
  • Advocating on behalf of the student for a free and appropriate public education
  • Helping parents develop or update their child’s education plan (“IEP”)
  • Attending IEP meetings to help present the parent and student concerns, negotiate components that meet the parents’ goals or requests, or otherwise help to navigate the process
  • Attending IEP meetings on behalf of the child when parents opt out or otherwise cannot attend [note: under current law, in these circumstances the school district can proceed unilaterally]

Bill Brownley is a special education attorney who has represented families and their children with disabilities for the past 15 years. Based in the Washington, D.C. area, he’s seen firsthand how challenging the IEP process can be for families, and why advocacy support can help:

“Parents often feel overwhelmed and outmatched in IEP meetings,” said Brownley. “Support from an advocate during the special education journey can resolve differences early on. This helps create a collaborative working relationship between the family and the school district so that the primary focus remains on the student and their success.”

An opportunity for big improvements

From Sen. Braun: “We have an opportunity this year to support big improvements in how special education is delivered, and the outcomes for students with disabilities. Those needs go much deeper than a budget appropriation,” said Braun. “Parents have told us it’s not strictly about money, which is why our proposal is strong on policies that are geared toward getting them and their schools the kind of help they can use most.”

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In addition to providing advocates for families, the bill also includes provisions to:

  • improve professional development for general education teachers to support best practices in special education
  • create local advisory committees to enable and support engagement between families and the school district
  • improve transition planning for students as they prepare to exit high school to better support job training and further education
  • adjust funding formulas to better align with actual costs
  • provide regular public reporting of critical data, such as graduation and drop-out rates, post high school education and employment, etc.

Read the complete bill “Concerning Special Education” (SB 5532) here.

Read Sen. Braun’s accompanying statement to the bill here.

Learn more about the bill’s provisions to create local education advisory committees for special education families here.

Sen. Braun bill gives families voice in local special ed decisions

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As lawmakers look to overhaul how we fund special education, a new bill from State Sen. John Braun (R- Centralia) and State Sen. Christine Rolfes (D-Bainbridge Island) would strengthen family engagement with the formation of local advisory committees in every school district in Washington. Through local Special Education Advisory Committees (“local SEACs”) parents and family members would have a consistent and predictable way to share feedback and engage in dialogue directly with their school district. Local SEACs would ensure families a permanent voice and guaranteed seat at the table when it comes to decision-making in their school district around educating students with disabilities.

How it works

Modeled after similar programs in other states, the local SEAC would provide families a forum to share ideas about how to improve the education of students with disabilities in their school district. The creation of local SEACs strengthens existing federal law, which requires a parent committee at the state level. By extending this model into each district, the bill recognizes Washington’s system of local control by supporting parents as equal partners in the education of students with disabilities at the local level.

Sarah Butcher, a parent, has served for the past three years on the Washington State Special Education Advisory Committee. “Our work at the state level has helped inform policy and elevate best practices from Olympia,” said Butcher. “But our 295 school districts present both unique challenges as well as opportunities for innovative local solutions. Schools and families must listen to each other and work together collaboratively if we want our systems of education to meet the needs of students with disabilities by design and ensure every student in every school has the opportunity to reach their full potential.”

Under the proposed law, a majority of committee members must be parents of children with disabilities or individuals with disabilities, along with a teacher. Additional school or school district personnel would serve as consultants to the committee, not as members.

State Sen. John Braun (Centralia)

The committee’s work would include:

  • Participating in the development of priorities and strategies for meeting the identified needs of children with disabilities;
  • Facilitating partnerships with community employers to provide appropriate transition services;
  • Facilitating trainings by experienced outside consultants not employed by the school district to teach families how to advocate for their child and to teach students with disabilities how to self-advocate;
  • Helping the school district in interpreting plans to the community for meeting the special needs of children with disabilities for educational and transition services; and
  • Reviewing the school district proposed policies and procedures for the provision of special education and related services

What parents are saying about local SEACs

We asked parents in Arlington, Virginia about their experience serving on a local SEAC. Under Virginia state law, every school division is required to have a SEAC.

From Heather Alderman, member of the Arlington (Virginia) School District local SEAC:

“I really cannot say enough about the empowerment and camaraderie and support I got out of the Arlington SEAC and how many skills and insights I gained that have helped me navigate special education and advocate for my child.”

From Nick Walkosak, Arlington (Virginia) School District local SEAC:

“Membership has allowed me to get to know parents from different schools and all levels of school. I am able to access their knowledge and experience with respect to IEP accommodations and meetings. I am also able to learn which schools are having problems and which ones are doing it right. Additionally, I am able to help other parents, especially new parents, as they learn about the disability their child has and navigating the supports and meetings.

Currently, I am chairing a subcommittee that is reviewing all school board policies for appropriate language to take care of our special ed students. Many policies do not even mention special ed and in most cases, there are different considerations our kids need, especially when discipline or atypical scenarios could cause behavioral issues.”

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In addition to providing advocates for families, the bill also includes provisions to:

  • improve professional development for general education teachers to support best practices in special education;
  • provide access to an advocate at no cost to help families navigate the IEP process;
  • improve transition planning for students as they prepare to exit high school to better support job training and further education, and
  • adjust funding formulas to better align with actual costs

Read the complete bill “Concerning Special Education” (SB 5532) here.

Read Sen. Braun’s accompanying statement to the bill here.

Parent concerns addressed in special education bill from Sen. Braun

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The education of students with disabilities is receiving a great deal of much-needed attention in the 2019 legislative session in Olympia.

State Sen. John Braun (R-Centralia) and State Sen. Christine Rolfes (D-Bainbridge Island) filed an important bill this week to help better support families and focus on improving outcomes for students with disabilities. It includes:

  • access to a free advocate for families who need help navigating the special education system
  • the creation of local special education advisory committees in every school district to give families an effective method of providing feedback
  • improvements to transition planning for students to help better prepare them for life after high school
  • teacher training
  • updates to funding formulas.

Here is the press release that accompanied the bill’s filing from the office of Sen. Braun, along with links to the original bill.

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OLYMPIA…Major new legislation introduced today in the state Senate would address parent-centered concerns about special-education services through a combination of policy updates and funding. The approach is reminiscent of the comprehensive 2017 proposal that ultimately moved Washington’s K-12 funding system into the 21st century.

“We have an opportunity this year to support big improvements in how special education is delivered, and the outcomes for students with disabilities. Those needs go much deeper than a budget appropriation,” said Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia and prime sponsor of Senate Bill 5532.

For instance, Braun noted Washington is in the bottom 10 states when it comes to inclusion, meaning how often a student with disabilities is educated in a general classroom. Barely half of special-ed students receive a diploma, which puts the state in the bottom one-fourth nationally.

State Sen. John Braun (Centralia)

“There’s a difference between wanting to serve these students and being equipped to serve them, in ways that will prepare them for productive lives. Parents have told us it’s not strictly about money, which is why our proposal is strong on policies that are geared toward getting them and their schools the kind of help they can use most,” Braun said.

SB 5532 would improve professional development for teachers to support best practices in special education. It also would improve the transition planning necessary to support further education and training for students with disabilities once they move on from high school.

Families would gain from receiving free access to advocates who would help them and their children navigate the special-education system, and from the establishment of local advisory committees to enable even more involvement and interaction with their school districts.

On the financial side, Braun explained, the bill includes updates to state funding formulas that would better align allocations with actual costs.

“This proposal blends things we know from a long history of supporting vulnerable Washingtonians and their families, and factors we emphasized more recently – like the importance of outcomes – during the successful effort to modernize basic-education funding,” said the Senate Republican budget leader. He was among a select group of lawmakers who crafted Washington’s landmark bipartisan K-12 funding reforms in 2017.

“It’s also the next step in our ongoing drive to address inequities in the public-school system, so students can achieve their fullest potential.”

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Full text of bill is here: SB 5532

Bill digest is here: SB 5532 bill digest

Why we’re excited for 2019

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The New Year is here, and at Eastside Education Network we’re excited about that.

Big changes are coming – We’ve been busy at Eastside Education Network preparing for 2019. We’ll have new projects, coverage of local issues, and insights into education from the parent and student perspective that you won’t find elsewhere.

Here’s a glimpse of what we plan to bring you in 2019:

  • Live online education workshops on a variety of topics
  • A Facebook group where EEN members can ask questions, connect with other families and learn more about issues that matter to them
  • Opportunities for local community members to serve as EEN advocates
  • Timely updates on the 2019 legislative session from Olympia
  • Advocacy at the local and state level to ensure the parent and student perspective is heard
  • In-depth coverage of local elections that impact our schools, including construction bonds, levies and school board campaigns
  • Feature stories spotlighting successful local programs
  • Analysis of what’s happening in education across the country and how it impacts our schools locally
  • Tools to help families and students understand how their school or school district is performing
  • And yes, a new website!

You won’t want to miss out – Please check back with us often, encourage your friends to sign up for our newsletter, like us on Facebook and stay connected. We know families are busy. We’re here to help you navigate our education system successfully.

Why we need to care about student apathy

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In our collective efforts to help students succeed in school, sometimes we adults forget to stop and ask “how is school going?” Because the answers students give to that simple question can tell us a lot.

Frustrated by what he perceived as his inability to keep students engaged after they moved on from his classes, one veteran teacher hit the road on a journey to ask current and former high school students across the country what motivates them. Teacher-researcher Chris Holmes traveled across 14 states in 30 days interviewing hundreds of students and recording their answers for his “Backtracking Apathy” project. His goal was to figure out why schools, teachers and parents too often are losing the apathy battle with students.

Here’s one powerful excerpt:

“In a suburban Kansas City, Missouri, coffee shop, a high school senior broke down in tears talking about lack of friends, struggles with school work and a disrespectful teacher. In Dodge City, Kansas, a recent graduate of an alternative high school talked about a loneliness that led her to self-harm and quitting school. On a sidewalk in Grand Junction, Colorado, a kid told me how boring school was, then cried when revealing that first his friends, then his teachers, then his parents had given up on him.

All of these students spoke of one teacher who truly cared—who bent over backwards for them, who went above and beyond for them—yet whose efforts ultimately weren’t enough. Sometimes even the superstar teachers—the inspirational, motivational “life-changers”—are limited in their abilities to create self-determination.”

So how can we re-engage students who have checked out? Here’s how Holmes sees the problem:

“It’s not students who are disengaged—it’s us. Teachers. Parents. Legislators. When we don’t engage students in what matters to them—autonomy, connection, competence—the components that actually create motivation—when we don’t involve students in the process of teaching and learning, then the problem is ours, not theirs.”

Learn more about Holmes’ approach in his writings and lectures.

Here in Washington State Superintendent Chris Reykdal believes schools can help students stay engaged in middle and high school by adding more guidance counselors. Currently there is no state law requirement that schools hire any counselors (though many do). King 5’s Drew Mikkelson reports that Superintendent Reykdal would like to see funding tied directly to hiring, so that schools and districts meet the recommended 250:1 student to counselor ratio (the current ratio in Washington is about 440:1). He points to middle schools as being the most “starved” for counselors.

Why do counselors matter? These days, counselors do a lot more than help students sign up for classes or meet graduation requirements. They often work with school nurses, social workers and others to make sure students are getting the supports they need. But their most important task may well be the time they spend with students who just need to talk. From NPR education reporter Clare Lombardo:

“Spending face–to–face time building relationships with students is key to establishing a healthy school environment, where kids feel comfortable coming to counselors with their worries—whether they’re about school safety, happiness, or day–to–day classroom concerns.”

Ready for the spotlight

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In the past six months the lives of persons with disabilities in Washington have taken center stage.

First, over the summer King 5 News began rollout of a multi-part series “Back of the Class: An investigation into Washington’s special education failures.” Reporters Susannah Frame and Taylor Mirfendereski exposed how Washington “lags behind much of the country” in serving students with disabilities. Here’s some of what they uncovered:

  • Just over half of the state’s 6 to 21-year-olds with disabilities spend 80 percent or more of their day alongside their peers in general education classes. This places Washington in the bottom eight nationally for measures of inclusion.
  • Only 58 percent of students receiving special education services earned a diploma in 2016. According to the U.S. Department of Education, only 12 states graduated fewer kids with learning disabilities than Washington that year.
  • The dropout rate for students with disabilities in Washington is among the worst in the nation, with 34 percent leaving school. Only Utah and South Carolina reported higher dropout rates in a 2017 U.S. Census Bureau Report.

For their efforts, King 5, Frame and Mirfendereski earned an Excellence on Disability Reporting award from the National Center on Disability and Journalism.

Second, this month The Seattle Times called on Gov. Jay Inslee to convene a special session of the legislature to address funding shortfalls in special education. Although the responsibility to pay for basic education (which includes special education) has now shifted from local districts to Olympia, many local districts are signaling they still must run local levies to fund their special education obligations. The Seattle Times contends this issue is too important to leave unresolved until lawmakers return to Olympia in 2019:

If lawmakers wait until January, when the Legislature convenes for its regular session, lawmakers are at risk of getting caught up in a whirlwind of competing priorities, and the children will be forgotten again until the budget debate heats up in the spring. . ..

The Legislature needs to take the special-education funding issue off the table. Special education is clearly basic education and therefore must be funded by the state budget, not by local levies, as the Washington Supreme Court made very clear in its 2012 McCleary decision.

Finally, this past summer, the City of Seattle hosted The Special Olympics USA Games, described as “the biggest sporting event to hit Seattle in the past 25 years.” If you were fortunate enough to attend, you saw more than 4000 athletes and coaches competing on a national stage while thousands of fans cheered. This event also showcased how Seattle-area business and organizations are doing their part to create communities where people with intellectual disabilities are valued, welcomed and included.

Time and again we hear of the marginalization of people with disabilities. Too often they are left behind in the classroom and out of the workplace. Let’s hope years from now we can look back on the past six months as a turning point for the disability rights community. Whether through award-winning journalism, influential editorial boards, or nationally-recognized sporting events, people with disabilities in Washington are making their presence known.

The report card families need

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Washington and Ohio’s public education departments both publish “Report Cards” for school districts.

Here’s what they look like:

Bellevue School District – OSPI Report Card

Loveland City School District – Ohio Department of Education Report Card

While both states call them “Report Cards” that’s where the similarities mostly end.

As you can see, Washington’s Report Card is heavy on charts and data with little in the way of narrative to help give context to the numbers. There are tables showing the percentage of students meeting state standards, then more tables that break down student enrollment and graduation rates. What’s missing is any discussion of whether or how those numbers reflect meaningful progress towards goals, how those numbers compare to similarly situated states, districts or schools, or other types of information to give the numbers meaning.

There are other places on the OSPI website that do provide narrative and context about school performance data, but these require lots of clicking through to more reports, which seemed written and designed for OSPI or district administrators, not really for busy parents.

By contrast, Ohio’s School Report Card presents information in a more accessible format requiring just a couple of clicks. It gives parents an easy-to-understand (and mostly jargon free) overview of school and student performance in six categories: Achievement, Progress, Gap Closing, Graduation Rate, Improving At-Risk K-3 Readers and Prepared for Success. Then, if parents want more information, they can click through and see the underlying data. There they will find more detailed explanations about the numbers, explaining what they measure, why it’s important and how that school district or school is doing.

Why does this matter?

If we want parents and communities to be active and knowledgeable participants in our schools, we would be much better served with Report Cards that provide a clear picture of how schools and school districts are performing. While charts that show student scores on state tests and graduation rates are a good start, Washington would do well to follow Ohio’s model and provide parents with jargon-free explanations, summaries of the data and visuals that are easier to follow. Families would especially benefit from explanations in words – not just charts – about the progress schools and districts are making from year-to-year.

In Spokane, getting more students ready for college

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The Spokane School District is stepping up to help more students prepare to take Advanced Placement (AP) classes in high school.

The eastern Washington district recently earned the distinction of being the only school district in the nation to qualify all their comprehensive high schools (five total) for a pilot program from The College Board known as “Pre-AP.”

According to The College Board, the Pre-AP Program – offered initially offered to just 100 schools – provides “instructional resources and classroom-based assessments to schools that are interested in earning an official Pre-AP designation from the College Board.”

Jim Allen of The Spokesman Review reports the District was eager to enroll in the program, which involved meeting these criteria:

  • aligning instruction to The College Board course framework,
  • participating in professional training and
  • opening the courses to all students

Why AP? AP courses remain a popular choice for high school students. Because many colleges offer college credit and/or advanced placement with qualifying AP test scores, AP courses can potentially help students and families save money on college costs (through earned credit) or place out of pre-requisite courses for the major (allowing more time to focus on higher level coursework). They’re also a way to demonstrate to college admissions’ officers that a student has taken challenging courses in their high school.

More broadly, AP classes give students the chance to experience rigorous coursework like what they’d encounter in their first year of college. Students are offered a deeper look at subjects that interest them while building their research and communication skills. According to The College Board, students who take AP classes are more likely to earn a college degree on time.

And the numbers speak for themselves. Nationally, more than 1.17 million students in the class of 2017 took 3.98 million AP exams, up from 1.14 million students in 2016 and 691,437 in the class of 2007.

Getting ready for college – with Pre-AP courses, The College Board hopes to encourage more students to give AP courses a try later in high school, especially students who may be worried they aren’t up to the task. The College Board and school districts also hope the program encourages more students from low-income families to explore AP.

Read Jim Allen, The Spokesman Review Spokane Public Schools’ pre-AP offerings unique in nation here.

Read more about The College Board’s new Pre-AP Program here.

How to start every IEP meeting

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Let’s face it, Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) are way too difficult to understand. They are full of jargon, acronyms and hard-to-parse technical language. And even for veteran parents or advocates, trying to get to the bottom line of what any IEP is doing (or trying to do) can be practically impossible.

Here’s one idea. How about at the start of every IEP meeting, the IEP case manager and the parent(s) (and the child if age appropriate) all share their big picture idea of what the child needs and how the IEP can help get them there.

What I’m proposing is different from the usual recitation of present levels of performance or specific goals or service minutes. The aim here is to help the team think about IEPs in a jargon-free way so that teachers and parents can share their collective vision for the child.

Just like every successful organization has a clear mission statement, successful education plans should do the same thing. Put another way, if your child’s IEP team can’t explain in a paragraph or two what your child needs and how the team can support it, then you’re probably lost in the education jargon woods.

Keep in mind, these summaries are not meant to replace IEPs. But if written (or spoken!) correctly, they can help your child’s team prioritize the work and stay focused on what really matters.

Here are some examples:

Thomas is a 6th grader who reads at around a 3rd grade level. He struggles with transitions and needs help staying organized. This year our goal as a team is to help Thomas become a better reader, navigate transitions with less help from adults, and stay on top of his class and homework assignments.

Katrina is a 2d grader who needs help communicating her wants and needs. This year we will work on developing a consistent way for her to communicate with her teachers, classmates and staff. We will try different devices with the help of the speech language pathologist, so that we can make sure she is improving her communication skills every day.

Tara is a 9th grader who is worried about transitioning to high school. Autism makes it hard for her to handle change in her life. This year, our team will focus on making sure Tara is supported across the school with the accommodations she needs to be successful in the classroom and in all other settings.

Next up: the most important question to ask at the end of any IEP meeting.