Education bill moves through committees
By Terry Murry on Wednesday, February 24th, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
OLYMPIA — A duo of lawmakers from both parties are watching their education bill jump hurdles on its way to the floor of the Washington Legislature. The bipartisan Senate Bill 5147 has already been approved by the Senate Education Committee and just won the approval of the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
The measure is aimed at aiding learning recovery due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. It includes a pilot project to help districts voluntarily reform their school calendars. The measure is sponsored by Sen. Lisa Wellman (D-Mercer Island) and Sen. Brad Hawkins (R-East Wenatchee. Wellman chairs the senate’s education committee and Hawkins is its ranking Republican member.
The bill includes an amendment that would fund three additional instructional days to all school districts in the coming school year, and direct the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction to create and administer a grant program for school districts to facilitate a week-long re-engagement program prior to the start of the year.
The amendment, authored by Hawkins and Wellman, would also advance a balanced school calendar program to allow up to 20 districts to explore using their 180 state-funded school days differently to implement an 11-month school calendar beginning with the 2022-23 school year.
“This bill took a significant step forward by being approved by the Ways and Means Committee,” Hawkins said. “The substitute version that Sen. Wellman and I developed broadens the bill to help school districts address learning stabilization and recover in both the short term and the longer term.”
The bill now goes to the Senate Rules Committee for further consideration.
