H-1600.1 _______________________________________________
HOUSE BILL 2000
_______________________________________________
State of Washington 56th Legislature 1999 Regular Session
By Representatives Santos, Talcott, Quall, Schual‑Berke, Stensen, Keiser, Conway and Veloria
Read first time 02/12/1999. Referred to Committee on Education.
AN ACT Relating to parental and community involvement grants; creating a new section; and providing an expiration date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that strong parental and community involvement in schools is of vital importance. When parents and others volunteer in their local schools, student learning improves and positive relationships are created between the schools and the broader community.
(2) The parental and community involvement grant program is established. The purpose of the voluntary program is to provide state support toward efforts in local schools to reach out to potential volunteers and help provide essential volunteer coordination for parents and others from the community who are willing to donate their time and energies in the schools. This is a pilot program, intended to fund at least one hundred applicants, including schools and school districts.
(3) Schools or school districts applying for funds under the pilot program in this section shall present a plan to involve parents and community members in strengthening efforts to achieve educational goals, including the state learning goals outlined in RCW 28A.150.210.
(4) Applicants are encouraged to develop program plans that include a goal of involving forty percent of the parents of students enrolled in the applicant school for at least fifteen hours each of volunteer efforts per year at the school.
(5) Grant recipients shall report to the office of the superintendent of public instruction on the results of their program, how funds have been expended, the activities supported by the program, the level of parental and community involvement achieved in the school, and the impact on student learning. The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall evaluate the results of volunteer recruitment and coordination efforts under this program.
(6) A local match from the applicant school or district is required, but may be in the form of in-kind contributions from the school or district or from private sources. The proportion is seventy percent state and thirty percent local.
(7) The maximum state grant is sixteen thousand dollars per school.
(8) The program in this section shall be administered by the office of the superintendent of public instruction in conjunction with principals' organizations and parent groups. The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall award grants based on criteria including, but not limited to, the following:
(a) Quality of the plan;
(b) Demonstrated needs of students in the schools; and
(c) The likelihood of impact on student learning.
(9) In awarding grants, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall seek to maximize the number of schools and school districts funded under this program.
(10) This section expires June 30, 2001.
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