More on charter schools: The Los Angeles experience
The Washington State Charter Schools Commission met last week to "consider how it can keep monitoring the independent public schools while making plans to dismantle itself" (it also suspended applications for new charter schools). The commission finds itself in this strange position after the state Supreme Court, controversially, ruled in September that charter schools are unconstitutional. Some lawmakers are considering ways to counteract the ruling, […]
October 15 , 2015 - Mary Strow
October 12 , 2015 - Emily Makings
School construction in Yakima, and a reminder about class size requirements
I was in my hometown of Yakima last month, and for the first time in several visits, I happened to drive by Eisenhower High School. The transformation of the campus from what it had been while I was growing up was astounding. I wondered how much the new school and fields had cost. Almost on […]
October 07 , 2015 - Mary Strow
Washington scores good – not great – on new "Opportunity Index"
Our friends at Opportunity Washington are out today with a brand-new assessment – called the “Opportunity Index” – of how Washington stacks up against the rest of the country on education, transportation and economic vitality. In partnership with the Association of Washington Business and the Washington Roundtable, the Research Council conducted a data-driven analysis of performance of all 50 states […]
October 02 , 2015 - Mary Strow
InFocus: Possible charter schools ruling re-do, construction jobs, paid family leave study
This week we’re discussing the Attorney General’s request that the state Supreme Court reconsider its ruling that charter schools are unconstitutional, the number of construction jobs staying essentially flat statewide, and a federal grant for Washington to study the feasibility of paid family leave implementation. In this episode:
September 30 , 2015 - Mary Strow
September 25 , 2015 - Emily Makings
AG asks Court to reconsider charter schools decision, makes a key point about initiative funding
Yesterday Attorney General Bob Ferguson asked the Supreme Court to reconsider its decision that charter schools are unconstitutional. His motion states, Ultimately, the State urges the Court to reconsider its decision to set aside the entirety of Initiative 1240, as adopted by the people. But even if the Court rejects that request, it should narrow […]
September 24 , 2015 - Mary Strow
Taxes: The grass is always greener…
With the first meeting today of Gov. Inslee’s legislative McCleary workgroup, we’re likely to see another round of calls for new taxes – specifically, an income tax and/or a capital gains tax – to fund the rest of the state’s K-12 obligations. Arguments in favor of new forms of taxation include: Washington’s tax system is unfair and regressive, […]
September 23 , 2015 - Mary Strow
September 22 , 2015 - Mary Strow