Democrats Leery Of Gop’s Back-To-Basics School Plan

The Legislature’s majority Republicans on Tuesday offered a back-to-basics plan to overhaul Washington’s public schools.

The GOP will push basic academics, particularly reading, along with discipline and school choice.

Democrats and the teachers’ union, however, see subtle attempts to undermine the Education Reform Act of 1993 and to push a conservative social agenda.

Republican leaders of the education committees of the House and Senate said the package includes what they call “the ADC’s of education.” That stands for academics with accountability, discipline and community involvement and choice.

The bills would:

Establish a statewide goal that 90 percent of all third-graders in public school read at or above grade level. Schools that meet the goal would be financially rewarded and their principals’ and teachers’ evaluations would reflect the accomplishment. Districts that don’t achieve the goal and make annual improvements would lose small amounts of state money.

Authorize charter schools. Those are publicly financed independent schools that would largely work without regulations. Voters rejected such a plan last fall, but Sen. Steve Johnson, R-Kent, says the new version is vastly improved.

Permit principals and districts to waive regulations that stand in the way of local efforts to improve schools. The bill would make it easier to remove problem teachers and allow districts to remove teacher assignments and the school calendar from collective bargaining.

Strengthen schools’ ability to crack down on gang activities and drug and alcohol problems, make it easier to kick out problem students, authorize school uniforms and allow districts to limit or ban student use of cellular phones or pagers.

Allow alternative teaching certificates. People with expertise in a subject matter could be hired to teach that subject and would be under the district’s supervision during probation. Such people could eventually be hired as regular teachers without going through the regular education courses and credentialing.

Ban student smoking on school grounds.

“We must raise the academic standards and establish an atmosphere of discipline in classrooms that allows teachers to teach and students to learn,” said House Education Chairwoman Peggy Johnson, R-Shelton.

Democrats saw a more sinister agenda. The ranking Democrat on the Senate Education Committee, Rosemary McAuliffe of Bothell and other Democrats object to the charter-school bill, waiver of regulations, alternative certification of teachers, and efforts to eliminate a “certificate of mastery” the reform law requires in addition to a diploma.

McAuliffe said she also sees “a social and moral agenda,” including Republican legislation against positive references to homosexuality, establishing English as the official language, and rejecting state ties to the federal Goals 2000 program.

In other developments:

Teen smoking

Gov. Gary Locke and Attorney General Christine Gregoire took aim at Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man on Tuesday, saying they want to snuff out teen use of tobacco.

The Democratic pair urged the Republican-controlled Legislature to ban cigarette billboards within 1,000 feet of schools or playgrounds as part of a crackdown on merchandising, advertising and sale of tobacco products.

Locke said tobacco use among teens is soaring by “alarming and unacceptable” levels. A new state government report shows that about half of Washington’s eighth-graders already are using or experimenting with cigarettes, up from 31 percent just five years ago, he said.

Most smokers begin as children, and the tobacco industry consciously targets them, the governor said.

Tax cut

Facing a deadline, Locke on Tuesday strongly hinted he will veto a broad property tax cut bill. Republican lawmakers, meanwhile, filed a measure to send the issue straight to voters if he does.

The Democratic governor, who must act on the bill by tonight, accused Republicans of trying to squeeze him so hard with property and business tax cuts that he will be forced to slash state spending beyond what he considers necessary for education and other needs.

House Speaker Clyde Ballard, R-East Wenatchee, scoffed at that. He said it was always the intent of Republicans in both chambers to make big property tax cuts the first order of business. Ballard said he is certain there will be enough money for education and other necessities.

The property tax cut bill, SB 5212, sets new limits on tax increases and assessments. If Locke should veto it, Ballard said the Legislature will pass a new measure to put the proposed reduction before voters in November. That bill, SB 4835, was filed Tuesday.