The Cheney School District board of directors approved a resolution adopting the board’s priorities it looks to promote to the state Legislature during its current biennial budgeting session. Superintendent Rob Roettger told the board the four areas align with similar priorities advanced by the region’s Education Support District 101.
At the top of the list was the need for “ample and dependable funding” to meet the requirement’s of the state Supreme Court’s ruling in the McCleary case in 2012. Roettger said this priority breaks down into four categories: transportation, materials and operating costs, full-day kindergarten and class sizes along with employee compensation.
In earlier remarks during her legislative update, Director Suzanne Dolle noted of the 250 education-related bills before the legislature, two dealt with addressing McCleary. The Democrat House Bill 1843 isn’t specific on funding, while the Republicans Senate Bill 5607 would make significant changes to the way school districts use their local levies.
Dolle was concerned about a clause in the Senate bill that would send the measure to the voters for approval.
“If voters deny it, where does that leave school districts?” she asked.
Cheney’s resolution notes that bills passed in 2009 and 2010 provide blueprints for funding education. It also asks that any new requirements passed by the Legislature contain funding mechanisms.
Besides funding, the resolution lists “support to attract and retain a quality workforce” as another priority, and requests the recommendations of a 2012 compensation working group be updated and followed. It also noted that as part of this, the Legislature must address the effects of the loss of levy equalization should the levy cliff not be avoided —something that would mean a $1.1 million hit to the district’s budget.
Cheney’s priorities also include changes to the way the state handles school construction, asking to employ an actual cost method rather than the current formula as well as make changes so that schools can be sited and built outside of urban growth areas. Finally, the district would like to see the Legislature create and maintain fair assessment and accountability systems, rather than the current model that always seems to be influx. The district would also like to see state assessments “delinked” from high school graduation.
In other new business, the board held a first reading of a new policy for promotion/retention of students. Associate Superintendent Sean Dotson said the policy was recommended to augment the district’s current practices regarding moving students to the next grade level or retaining them to repeat a grade.
“It’s generally a last resort option; we try many other things first,” Dotson said.
Roettger added nobody was a proponent of retaining students. The policy came at the recommendation of the Washington State School Directors Association, and was not meant to change current practices.
“Don’t take this the wrong way,” he told the board.
The board held a second reading and final approval on a revised policy regarding the enrollment rights and services for homeless students, and took similar steps in approving new polices dealing with students in foster care and implementing an infection control program.
In an update, Executive Director of Finance Kassidy Probert said enrollment had flattened out since November. The district has 4,498 enrolled students in both January and February, a number still significantly above the 4,360 monthly average budgeted for the 2016–2017 school year.
John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.
Reader Comments(0)