Educators, School Officials Lobby Mccaslin For Legislation

Spokane Valley educators and school board members gathered earlier this week to ask legislators to restore a cut in school money, stem runaway paperwork and make it easier for schools to buy computers.

Sen. Bob McCaslin, the sole lawmaker to attend the session, advised that the educators prioritize their goals and lean on the appropriate legislative committee chairmen in order to accomplish anything.

“Don’t give me 11, give me one (bill) that you can’t live without,” McCaslin told the group.

Two of the three Valley school superintendents agreed their top priorities would be four issues backed by the Washington State School Directors Association.

Here are those issues:

Study the actual costs of public school education and revise the state’s funding formula to reflect those costs.

Return the limit on local school operating levies to 24 percent of a school district’s state and federal money. The Legislature reduced that limit by 4 percent a few years ago. The reduced limit will cost the three Valley districts roughly $3 million in 1998, the first year it goes into effect.

Also, increase state assistance for levies in poorer school districts.

Put a constitutional amendment before voters, allowing approval of school levies and bonds by a simple majority, with no validation required.

Currently levies and bonds require a super-majority of 60 percent. In addition, 40 percent of the voters who turned out in the previous general election must cast a vote. That is known as validation.

“My problem with the 40 percent validation,” said Cynthia McMullen, Central Valley School Board chairwoman, “is that it rewards people for staying home” instead of voting.

Allow school districts the choice of running levies for a four-year period, rather than every two years.

“I wouldn’t object to the four-year thing,” McCaslin said.

Other legislative proposals discussed at the joint board meeting included these:

Revoke changes and cuts in special education funding.

Larry Busse, special services director at East Valley, warned that the current limit on the number of special education students is not consistent with requirements to provide services to all students eligible for services.

“What it really means is that regular education picks up the cost,” Busse said.

He also warned of a backlash coming among parents and staff.

“The idea (behind recent legislative cuts) was to get the same rights for special education kids,” Busse said. “But if regular education is asked to do even more for special education, I think (the backlash) will get stronger.”

Busse also hefted an inch-thick stack of paper, saying that was the amount of paperwork required for each special education student.

“The time that people are putting in on the paperwork, is taken away from the kids.”

Allow schools to use money they would ordinarily pay in sales tax to purchase technology instead.

The state’s education reform movement includes an emphasis on teaching students to use up-to-date technology. But school districts struggle to find the money to buy that equipment, said Mike Pearson, secondary education director for Central Valley.

Funneling the state’s 8 percent sales tax on just the school construction projects under way in the Valley would provide millions of dollars for wiring, computers and other equipment.

“I don’t have any problem with the sales tax thing,” McCaslin said.

Move alternative education programs back to performance-based criteria.

Alternative ed programs are struggling under heavy loads of paperwork, said Bob Shill, director of Contract Based Education.

The Legislature recently passed a measure that made alternative education teachers log the number of hours students spend studying. Shill argued that that is a move backwards.

“If the kids do the work, they got the credit. Now, we’re logging seat time, just when the state reforms are moving away from all of that,” Shill said. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

Educators also discussed a measure that Rep. Mark Sterk plans to propose for a second time, giving districts the right to refuse enrollment to any student who has been expelled from other school districts for gang related behavior.

Pearson told the group that twice in recent weeks, Central Valley has found gang behavior in the backgrounds of students asking to be enrolled in schools.

Currently, districts must enroll such students. They can require a contract with the student stipulating that if the gang behavior continues, the student will be expelled.

, DataTimes