Across the nation, there is a shortage of teachers who reflect the demographics of students. Even though the teaching workforce has diversified nationally in recent decades, teachers from diverse backgrounds, when attracted, depart schools at a significantly higher rate than white teachers (Ingersoll, Merrill, Stuckey & Collins, 2018). Over…

This report contains three parts: the "Graduation Pathway Options Report" with Foreword by the State Board, "Washington Graduation Pathway Options: Stakeholder Feedback Project Year 3, Volume I," and "Washington Graduation Pathway Options: Stakeholder Feedback Project Year 3, Volume II." The graduation pathway is one…

Each year, only 60% of high school graduates in Washington transition to postsecondary education within one year. Family engagement is a critical part of the college search and transition process. Families are often involved in campus visits, financial planning, and the shifting of norms and responsibilities when a student begins their higher…

While there is interest in pathways-aligned high school math reform among secondary education stakeholders, change in high school math depends a great deal on policies, practices, and norms at the higher education level. This report focuses on the role of higher education in influencing (encouraging or deterring) secondary education math reform.…

One of the first challenges state boards of education faced this spring was what to do for the roughly 3.5 million high school seniors whose graduations were derailed by the coronavirus. Most state policymakers across the country readily suspended end-of-year assessments and granted diplomas to those who were on track to graduate. A few states…

Washington is working to increase educational attainment so that 70 percent of all adults ages 25 to 44 have a postsecondary credential. However, ongoing inequities in education have impeded access to educational opportunities, and some racial groups are further from the statewide goal. Part of the issue is the transition from K-12 to…

Despite progress in the number of Washingtonians receiving postsecondary credentials, there are persistent gaps in attainment rates for underrepresented minority groups. Notably, the Hispanic population is the state's second-largest racial/ethnic group, but educational outcomes lag behind their white counterparts. Narrowing these equity gaps…

States and districts allocate hundreds of billions of dollars annually to fund K-12 schools, and this allocation is largely driven by one calculation: how states count student enrollment. They do this in one of five ways: (1) A single count on a single day; (2) Two counts twice per year; (3) Multiple counts over a period of time; (4) An attendance…

Racial disparities are evident across Washington's K-12 education system. This report provides an analysis of Washington K-12 education data and reveals that there are consistent opportunity gaps for students of color. The COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized the need to address racial disparities as communities of color have faced disproportionate…

We leverage nationally representative data and statewide data from Washington to investigate trends in occupational career and technical education (CTE) participation for students with and without disabilities. Consistent with prior work, we document declines in occupational CTE participation since the early 2000s, and provide the first empirical…

Educators, researchers, and policy makers concerned about college under-enrollment among underserved groups of students have traditionally focused reform efforts at the high school level. Over the last several decades, however, there has been a growing interest in improving college readiness beginning at the elementary level. Recently, the…

Students earning college credit while meeting the requirements of Washington's high school diploma are basic education students. Yet every year in Washington, students and their families pay out-of-pocket for the fees, books, and supplies that are required for participation in dual credit programs. This creates inequity by only allowing students…

This guidance is designed as a companion resource to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction's (OSPI's) "Reopening Washington Schools 2020: District Planning Guide" (ED606044), issued June 2020. The goal of this companion document is to provide guidance, best practices, resources, and unique considerations for supporting…

Before the 2011-12 school year, eligible students in the 11th and 12th grades were funded by the state for a combined maximum of 2.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) in both high school and the Running Start program each year. In 2011, the Legislature established a limit to this funding for a combined maximum enrollment of 1.2 FTE over one school year.…

College Preparatory Programs with Exams (CPPEs) include academically-rigorous high school classes that culminate in standardized exam-based assessments. Students take the classes as part of their high school schedule and apply them toward their graduation requirements, typically whether or not they take the exams at the end. Without the exam,…