AN ACT Relating to school-based management; adding a new section to chapter 28A.03 RCW; adding new sections to chapter 28A.58 RCW; making an appropriation; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 28A.58 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The legislature is committed to the belief that the goals of basic education for the schools of the state of Washington shall be:

(a) To recognize that each student is a unique human being, with particular needs, abilities, and limitations, to be encouraged and assisted to learn, grow, and develop in his or her own manner to become a contributing and responsible member of society;

(b) To assure that all students continually achieve academic proficiency, commensurate with their unique capabilities, in the essential areas of skill and knowledge, including but not limited to mathematics; the use of the English language, including reading, writing, speaking, and listening; and to perform intellectual functions such as problem solving, decision-making, goal setting, selecting, planning, predicting, experimenting, ordering, evaluating, critical thinking, and independent judgment;

(c) To provide students appropriate and meaningful opportunities to develop skills, knowledge, awareness, and appreciations in a wide variety of other aspects of the curriculum, such as arts and humanities; foreign languages; physical, natural, and social sciences; physical, mental, and emotional health; consumer economics; career education; multicultural education; home management; parenting; and participatory government;

(d) To provide a range of alternatives in instructional settings and formats to adequately and appropriately respond to the different ways research has shown that individual students learn;

(e) To offer students the opportunity to become adults who have developed senses of:

(i) Responsibility‑-one's personal and social accountability;

(ii) Respect‑-the esteem of both self and others;

(iii) Resourcefulness‑-pursuing the creative use of one's innate talents and skills and to strive for successful relationships with family, coworkers, and society; and

(iv) Responsiveness‑-having concern for and cooperation with others;

(f) To maintain, by means which cause no physical or mental harm to anyone, orderly and efficient school campuses which encourage positive attitudes among students and high morale and high quality teaching from teachers;

(g) To involve parents and community members in a broad range of activities at each school, recognizing the vital role parental attitudes and values have in children's education; and

(h) To maintain a school-wide process for the involvement of parents, principals, teachers, other school personnel, students, and members of the community in the development of school improvement plans.

(2) The legislature further believes that teachers, principals and other school administrators, parents, students, school district personnel, school board members, and members of the community, utilizing the results of continuing research on effective education, can best identify the educational goals, needs, and conditions of the community and develop and implement a basic education program that will provide excellence.

(3) To meet the goals set forth in this section, it is the intent and purpose of the legislature to encourage improvement of Washington's public school system by returning more control over the operation of local education programs to local districts through a program of pilot projects in school-based management.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 28A.03 RCW to read as follows:

To carry out the school-based management pilot projects of section 3 of this act, the superintendent of public instruction shall:

(1) Grant funds to local school districts that apply for funding on a grant proposal or other basis, to establish pilot projects in school-based management from funds appropriated to include that purpose or from funds otherwise available;

(2) Develop guidelines, in consultation with school districts, for school-based management programs;

(3) Assist districts and schools, upon request, to design, implement, or evaluate school improvement programs authorized by section 3 of this act;

(4) Submit a report to the legislature no later than January 1, 1988, on the results of the pilot projects and any recommendations.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 28A.58 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Each school that participates in the school-based management program authorized by section 2 of this act shall be required to establish a school site council. The council shall be minimally composed of the school principal, teachers, other school personnel, parents of pupils attending the school, nonparent community members from the school's service area, and, in secondary schools, pupils. Existing school-wide advisory groups or school support groups may be used as the school site council if such groups conform to the general membership requirements of this section.

(2) The exact size of the council and the term and method of selection and replacement of council members shall be specified in the school improvement plan developed pursuant to subsection (3) of this section.

(3) Each school site council shall be required to develop an annual school improvement plan containing improvement objectives as established by the council under guidelines developed by the superintendent of public instruction.

(4) The board of directors of each school district in which a school is participating in the school-based management program authorized by section 2 of this act shall review and approve or disapprove planning applications and school improvement plans consistent with, but not limited to, rules and regulations adopted by the superintendent of public instruction. No school improvement plan may be approved unless it was developed and recommended by a school site council. The board of directors shall notify the school site council in writing of specific reasons for not approving the school improvement plan. Modifications to the plan shall be developed and recommended by the council and approved or disapproved by the board of directors.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. This act shall expire January 1, 1988.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The sum of .......... dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1987, from the general fund to the superintendent of public instruction for the purposes of this act.