FINAL BILL REPORT

SHB 2711

C 233 L 20

Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description: Increasing equitable educational outcomes for foster care and homeless children and youth from prekindergarten to postsecondary education.

Sponsors: House Committee on Education (originally sponsored by Representatives J. Johnson, Corry, Stonier, Ormsby, Appleton, Caldier, Davis, Leavitt, Lekanoff, Ramel, Senn, Chopp, Goodman, Fey, Pollet, Callan and Chambers).

House Committee on Education

House Committee on Appropriations

Senate Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education

Senate Committee on Ways & Means

Background:

Department of Children, Youth, and Families.

The Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) administers child welfare, early learning, and juvenile rehabilitation programs. The Children's Administration division of the DCYF includes Child Protective Services, the Family Assessment Response program, and foster care and adoption support programs.

Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) supports students in foster care by encouraging innovative practices that reduce educational disruptions, promote school stability, and improve academic performance. The OSPI designates a statewide education of homeless children and youth coordinator to review policies and create procedures to ensure that children and youth experiencing homelessness can attend school.

Office of Homeless Youth Prevention and Protection Programs - Department of Commerce.

The Office of Homeless Youth Prevention and Protection Programs (OHY) of the Department of Commerce coordinates various efforts to reduce youth homelessness and improve the safety, health, and welfare of youth who are experiencing homelessness. Among other duties, the OHY collects and analyzes data, develops recommendations and measures to reduce youth homelessness, and distributes grants to providers serving youth who are experiencing homelessness.

Student Achievement Council.

The Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) provides strategic planning, oversight, advocacy, and programs to support increased student success and higher levels of educational attainment in Washington.

Project Education Impact Work Group.

In 2018 the DCYF was directed, in collaboration with the OSPI, the OHY, and the WSAC, to convene a temporary work group with aligned nonprofit organizations to create a plan for children and youth experiencing foster care and homelessness for the purpose of facilitating educational equity with their general student population peers, and closing the disparities between racial and ethnic groups by 2027.

The resulting Project Education Impact Work Group (Work Group) submitted a report to the Legislature in January 2019 that recommended legislative and administrative changes necessary to achieve its goals. The report also recommended that the Work Group continue its efforts beyond the expiration provided in the 2018 legislation.

Programs of Education for Dependent Youth.

The OSPI and the WSAC are required to create and maintain outcome-driven services to support foster youth in completing high school and postsecondary education. These services include contracts between the DCYF and the OSPI, and the DCYF and the WSAC, that require partnership with at least one nongovernmental agency to administer an individualized education coordination program for dependent youth.

A report related to the collective progress in making Washington a national leader in foster care performance must be submitted by the OSPI, the WSAC, and the DCYF to the Governor and Legislature biannually.

Education Data Center.

The Education Data Center (EDC) conducts collaborative analyses of early learning, kindergarten through grade 12, and higher education programs and education issues across the preschool, public school, and higher education systems. Among other duties, the EDC works with state agencies and qualifying private institutions to develop data-sharing and research agreements to facilitate the work of the EDC.

Summary:

Joint Agency Work Group.

The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), in collaboration with the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), the Office of Homeless Youth Prevention and Protection Programs (OHY) of the Department of Commerce, and the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) must convene a work group to address the needs of students in foster care, experiencing homelessness, or both. The work group must also include:

• representatives of nongovernmental agencies;

• representation from the Educational Opportunity Gap Oversight and Accountability Committee (EOGOAC); and

• four legislators with experience in issues of education, the foster care system, and homeless youth, as appointed by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

The work group, which must seek to promote continuity with efforts resulting from the Project Education Impact Work Group, is charged with developing recommendations to promote the following for students who are in foster care, experiencing homelessness, or both:

• the achievement of parity in education outcomes with the general student population; and

• the elimination of racial and ethnic disparities for education outcomes in comparison to the general student population.

In developing the recommendations, the work group must complete specified tasks, including:

• reviewing education outcomes by examining student data that is disaggregated by race and ethnicity, including data related to early grade reading and math skills, high school completion, postsecondary enrollment, school attendance, special education status, and school discipline;

• evaluating the outcomes, needs, and service array for students in foster care, experiencing homelessness, or both, and the specific needs of students of color and students with special education needs;

• engaging stakeholders to provide input on the development of recommendations; and

• preparing annual reports by October 31, 2021, 2022, and 2023 that identify progress toward achieving education parity, recommendations that can be implemented using existing resources and rules, and recommendations that would require policy, administrative, and resource allocation changes prior to implementation.

To assist the work group in its duties, the OSPI, the DCYF, the WSAC, and the OHY must provide updated education data and other necessary data to the Education Data Center (EDC). The EDC must provide annual reports to the work group regarding delineated education outcomes by March 31, 2021, 2022, and 2023.

The work group must submit a final report to the Governor, the appropriate committees of the Legislature, and the EOGOAC by July 1, 2024. The final report must include specified recommendations and may include a plan for achieving those recommendations.

Provisions establishing and governing the work group expire on December 31, 2024.

Biannual Report of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families, the Washington Student Achievement Council, and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Modifications are made to reporting requirements of the DCYF, the WSAC, and the OSPI by removing directives to report on collective progress related to becoming first in the nation in foster care according to specific performance metrics.

Cross-System Collaboration Reports.

An expired reporting requirement regarding the state's plan for cross-system collaboration to promote educational stability and improved educational outcomes for foster children is repealed.

Votes on Final Passage: