Education
Aim education dollars at student achievement programs. Reduce funding for non-teaching administrators to eliminate or consolidate many of these positions.
Student Achievement : Browse Popular Ideas
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I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »9 comments for Idea: Education -
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120 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »College budgets
2 comments for Idea: College budgetsReduce the amount of money going to college administration.
Every time their budget gets cut, colleges cut teaching staff.
The ratio of administration dollars to teacher dollars is way out of balance.
We end up cutting the education of our future work force.
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94 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »'Smart' year round use of our public school dollars
We really need to get 'smart' and implement year round accelerated public schools. What a tremendous waste of staff and facility resources having hundreds of closed buildings and thousands of employees idled for several months each summer all over the state. This type of year round accelerated school program would reduce our overall education costs while improving our children's education levels. States that have done ...more »
5 comments for Idea: 'Smart' year round use of our public school dollarsWe really need to get 'smart' and implement year round accelerated public schools. What a tremendous waste of staff and facility resources having hundreds of closed buildings and thousands of employees idled for several months each summer all over the state.
This type of year round accelerated school program would reduce our overall education costs while improving our children's education levels. States that have done it have found a significant positive impact on child learning and retention.
it also helps working parents who don't have to worry about their kids being on the streets for several months. Might reduce crime and help kids get ready for the real world that operates year round.
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86 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Return Failing Running Start Students to High School
3 comments for Idea: Return Failing Running Start Students to High SchoolForce failing running start students to return to high school. Currently running start students can essentially register for classes and "drop out" as long as they register each quarter while the state picks up the tab for their tuition plus part of the support at the high school, these students are expensive and they're tying up limited seats at the community college.
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59 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »No More Leadership Academy for Principals
1 comment for Idea: No More Leadership Academy for PrincipalsThe fact that we're allocating $900,000 to make principals better while cutting teachers and parapros who are closest to the kids is unreal. This program is the classic example of fat in the budget, and maintaining it while Rome burns is absolutely unacceptable.
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55 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Healthy children, better students
4 comments for Idea: Healthy children, better studentsEliminate over processed foods from schools, find how to feed organic, natural food to students. This has been shown in Appleton, Wisconsin to reduce behavioral problems to near zero. It must be good for learning. We had apple machines in my Junior High school. We must get rid of bottled water, or share 50/50 in the profits until we do. Most of our tap water is better regulated than any bottled water.
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48 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Superintendant Pay
5 comments for Idea: Superintendant PayDecrease school district superintenant pay by 6%. Even with their pay freezes, its not doing enough for the schools and the hundreds of teachers losing their jobs.
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41 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Enforce the Becca Bill
3 comments for Idea: Enforce the Becca BillMake sure students stay in school!
By keeping students in school you will reduce welfare costs!
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41 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Cut the Principal/Superintendent Intern Program
Add your comment for Idea: Cut the Principal/Superintendent Intern ProgramThe budget has $530,000 to provide grants for school employees looking to become principals and superintendents. These are people who already have a job--this money should be going into workforce development, not giving time off for people who are already drawing a paycheck.
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38 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Stop cutting funding for Higher Education
Add your comment for Idea: Stop cutting funding for Higher EducationIn our effort to balance the state budget, Higher Education has landed on the chopping block. I believe this is a gross mistake. Washington needs to continue to attract and retain the best and the brightest if we expect to sustain our economy for the future. Lets not become so short sighted in a time of economic crises as to threaten our future.
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32 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »No HSPE tests for profoundly disabled students
Stop requiring teachers of students with profound cognitive disabilites to write WASL portfolios (now HSPE). These students, who have functional levels of 6-12 months, don't even know they are taking a test. Teachers spend hours of time and districts hire substitute teachers so these portfolios can be written for students who have never done academics. Make an exemption for these students and don't punish the schools ...more »
1 comment for Idea: No HSPE tests for profoundly disabled studentsStop requiring teachers of students with profound cognitive disabilites to write WASL portfolios (now HSPE). These students, who have functional levels of 6-12 months, don't even know they are taking a test. Teachers spend hours of time and districts hire substitute teachers so these portfolios can be written for students who have never done academics. Make an exemption for these students and don't punish the schools for "failing" HSPE scores for these students.
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30 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Encourage and expand vocational Education.
Not all students are ready for a college track while in high school. Offering quality vocational education is a wonderful alternative to our kids wasting away and bored to death in high school. This training gives them the skills to join the work force and become responsible citizens. This can also delay going straight to college after high school. Many of our youth are not ready to go to college but feel the must ...more »
2 comments for Idea: Encourage and expand vocational Education.Not all students are ready for a college track while in high school. Offering quality vocational education is a wonderful alternative to our kids wasting away and bored to death in high school. This training gives them the skills to join the work force and become responsible citizens.
This can also delay going straight to college after high school. Many of our youth are not ready to go to college but feel the must or they are failures. Working at a job for which they trained can give them real life experience and maturity before they go to college. This would make these youth more successful in college.
It's time that we saw the benefits of real vocation education. Bright Future, in Seattle is an excellent program to look at for a model.
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29 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Higher education reform
Flip the state’s higher education model for the 4-year universities from funding the schools to instead providing a credit hour-capped stipend to eligible students. An example of this is a reform enacted in 2004 in Colorado that created the Colorado Opportunity Fund (COF). Rather than fund the institutions, Colorado provides eligible students a credit hour stipend to apply toward tuition. The stipend is only available ...more »
1 comment for Idea: Higher education reformFlip the state’s higher education model for the 4-year universities from funding the schools to instead providing a credit hour-capped stipend to eligible students. An example of this is a reform enacted in 2004 in Colorado that created the Colorado Opportunity Fund (COF). Rather than fund the institutions, Colorado provides eligible students a credit hour stipend to apply toward tuition. The stipend is only available until a student reaches 145 credit hours. Additional details on the COF available here: https://www.cu.edu/ums/cof/faq.html
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I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Tuition Reimbursement
I know employees are still get tuition reimbursement for college classes. I think if a state agency is going to pay for a college degree then the employee should have to sign a contract that makes them stay with the agency for a couple of years minimum. I have known several employees who have had the state pay for their degrees and then they go to the private sector for the higher salary. We need to stop this practice! ...more »
1 comment for Idea: Tuition ReimbursementI know employees are still get tuition reimbursement for college classes. I think if a state agency is going to pay for a college degree then the employee should have to sign a contract that makes them stay with the agency for a couple of years minimum. I have known several employees who have had the state pay for their degrees and then they go to the private sector for the higher salary. We need to stop this practice!
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24 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Colors of Money in Public Ed
School districts across Washington are apportioned funding via a many different mandated "pots" that then roll up into our "apportionment". The different 'colors of money' create constraints that inhibit best practices and effective use of funding received. Often, the amount of money in individually mandated pots only affords the district the opportunity to run mediocre individual programs instead of being able to ...more »
Add your comment for Idea: Colors of Money in Public EdSchool districts across Washington are apportioned funding via a many different mandated "pots" that then roll up into our "apportionment". The different 'colors of money' create constraints that inhibit best practices and effective use of funding received.
Often, the amount of money in individually mandated pots only affords the district the opportunity to run mediocre individual programs instead of being able to combine the pots to run a single program that is more effective and better addresses the student achievement gaps in our district.
Currently, if we don't run medicore Program "A", we lose that funding ($100K, for example) and if we run mediocre Program "B", we lose that funding ($100K for example). The end result is two separate mediocre programs collectively expending $200K. Mediocre success is better than no success. But, we would prefer to use that same $200K to run one outstanding program that produces better results. A bonus is reduced administrative costs tracking one program instead of several smaller ones.
As a school board director, I want our programs to be as effective and efficient as humanly possible. It makes no sense to run two mediocre programs instead of a single effective program. Don't consign us to mediocrity! Give us the latitude to move the same dollars to more effective programs and then, please, hold us accountable!
We want to be accountable. It is frustrating to be stuck in a system where we must 'use or lose' mediocre programs when we could do so much better for our students if we had the flexibility to use the same amount of funding to produce better results.
Respectfully,
Kathryn Simpson
School Board Director,
South Kitsap School District
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23 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Don't Appeal the School Funding Lawsuit
1 comment for Idea: Don't Appeal the School Funding LawsuitThe McCleary lawsuit established that we're not funding education the way we should. The state is clearly violating the paramount duty clause of the constitution; appealing the decision is a fool's errand that will cost $950,000. Drop the appeal and work on actually making progress.
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21 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Easier more efficient user-friendly admission process
Add your comment for Idea: Easier more efficient user-friendly admission processCreate a single portal for the Community Colleges' admission process, as Arizona has done.There is no evidence to support the variation in admission criteria as far as I can identify.This duplication wastes my tax dollars and make students apply multiple times; how is that friendly to them, particularly non-traditional students?
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19 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Stop divesting from our Public Universities!
Here's the transcript of the testimony delivered by the President of the Associated Students of the University of Washington at the Everett Public Hearing: Good evening, and thank you for the opportunity to offer testimony tonight. My name is Madeleine McKenna, and I serve as the President of the Associated Students of the University of Washington. Tonight I am proud to speak on behalf of the 42,000 students I represent. ...more »
1 comment for Idea: Stop divesting from our Public Universities!Here's the transcript of the testimony delivered by the President of the Associated Students of the University of Washington at the Everett Public Hearing:
Good evening, and thank you for the opportunity to offer testimony tonight. My name is Madeleine McKenna, and I serve as the President of the Associated Students of the University of Washington. Tonight I am proud to speak on behalf of the 42,000 students I represent.
As students at the University of Washington, we are proud to attend a world-class university right in our own backyard. But we are deeply concerned that if the State continues down a path of divestment in our University, the UW will no longer be a place that talented students from Washington’s middle- and working-class families will be able to afford.
Here’s a snapshot of declining affordability at the UW. In the time that I’ve been at the University, my tuition bill has gone up by almost 50%, while State support for the UW has dropped by a third. Last year, the Governor’s Book 1 Budget included a suspension of 60% of the funding for the State Need Grant, which currently supports the education of some 7,000 Husky Promise students.
Enough is enough. Unless State leaders stand up for higher education, the UW will quickly become an institution reserved for the elite. Cuts to financial aid and institutional funding will disproportionately affect students of color and first generation college students.
I thought I would close tonight with a story about a UW alumnus and dear friend of mine, Tim Harris. Tim comes from a working class family in Vancouver, WA. His father is a small business owner. Tim earned good grades in high school, and with support from the State Need Grant and the Husky Promise program, he became the first person in his family to attend a four-year college. At the University of Washington, Tim completed an Honors thesis in Psychology,, volunteered at a non-profit community health clinic, and was crowned Homecoming King.
Tim’s leadership and service activities helped earn him a spot in the prestigious Teach for America program. Eventually, Tim wants to move back to Washington to use cutting-edge technology to provide psychiatric care to rural and resource-poor communities.
Tim’s story, while impressive, is not necessarily a unique one. There are thousands of students who, like Tim, earned a ticket to a better future because of the State’s commitment to funding higher education and financial aid programs for the students that need it. The success of these students will pay dividends in economic development and prosperity for future generations of Washingtonians far beyond the State’s investment. There are some alumni in the room - and probably some alumni on the panel - who I think would agree.
We recognize that, over the coming years, the State must make tough decisions about how to spend scarce resources. But we ask the Governor and the Legislature to recognize that in these tough times, higher education is one of the smartest investments we can make — it’s an investment in jobs, learning, and the future of our state. It’s an investment in the future opportunities of thousands of working students and their families.
Thank you, and go Dawgs.
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19 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »4 year college course cost cutting
4 comments for Idea: 4 year college course cost cuttingCut the average state funding cost per credit hour by at least 10% thru increased average class size and average faculty teaching load with at least 1/3rd of the savings at each institution coming from the latter.
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18 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Increase school behavior intervention efforts
5 comments for Idea: Increase school behavior intervention effortsSignificantly increase intervention efforts with regard to school behavior issues to try to avoid the long-term personal and social cost consequences of kids who get on the wrong track.
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18 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Education
4 comments for Idea: EducationThe younger generation is the fundation of the World's future. Therefore, if we really wanted the best for ourselves, we would start by providing our children and younger generation with the best, practical, and most accesible education.
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18 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Suggestions
a. let people know where the dollars from the lottery are going, they say they are going for education but it does not appear that is true. b. legalize statewide gambling, if the tribes do not like it, tell them the state will not legalize it if they give 5% of their gross take to the state c: put the entire university system under state control, with the same salaries for all the staff and common tuitions, etc. Set ...more »
1 comment for Idea: Suggestionsa. let people know where the dollars from the lottery are going, they say they are going for education but it does not appear that is true.
b. legalize statewide gambling, if the tribes do not like it, tell them the state will not legalize it if they give 5% of their gross take to the state
c: put the entire university system under state control, with the same salaries for all the staff and common tuitions, etc. Set up a board of governors.
d. Have one early learning department, we have one state level and one at OSPI-we don't need two.
e. drop testing of pre-k and k-2 students; the feds are already doing this and do a follow through to 5th grade we can not do at the state level
f. End Of Course Exams in Mathematics-why is the state conducting these assessments; they should done at the district and the school level; this adds to the overall assessment costs at the state level, and probably will not reflect what kids know unless they follow a state dictated curriculum.
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I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »accelerated student advancement
Add your comment for Idea: accelerated student advancementEstablish test and evaluation programs programs which aim to increase the number of qualified students skipping ahead grades (thru achievement testing or extra classes or summer school or online course or whatever) . If they look good all things considered after 3-5 years expand further.
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17 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Let's Re-Think How We Test Students
The Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test is already used by hundreds of schools around the state. It's developed by a private company, the Northwest Evaluation Association. It's correlated to our standards. The results are immediate. Beyond that, though, the potential savings--given that it's computer based, we wouldn't need a staff member in every school and district to process the old WASL/MSP paperwork. Instead ...more »
Add your comment for Idea: Let's Re-Think How We Test StudentsThe Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test is already used by hundreds of schools around the state. It's developed by a private company, the Northwest Evaluation Association. It's correlated to our standards. The results are immediate.
Beyond that, though, the potential savings--given that it's computer based, we wouldn't need a staff member in every school and district to process the old WASL/MSP paperwork. Instead of pouring more money into OSPI to move towards computerized testing, why not just adopt a perfectly good computerized test that we already have available? The annual allocation for the testing we do now is tens of millions of dollars, and that doesn't take into account the local costs to districts. The MAP would be a much better way.
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17 votes
I disagreeThis idea is active.Student Achievement »Save College Costs
1 comment for Idea: Save College CostsConsolidate management of community colleges in any given county, so that there are not two or three of five separate HR departments. This will help save money that could be put into college education.
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