SB 5139-S - DIGEST

(DIGEST AS ENACTED)

Recognizes that state education and higher education agencies are working on initiatives to communicate with parents and students about how high school graduates should gain and maintain the reading, writing, and mathematics skills they need to start immediately in college-level work.

Declares an intent that state education and higher education agencies place a higher priority on their work to address the issue of remediation and take concrete steps to make measurable improvements.

Provides that, within current budgets, the higher education coordinating board, the office of the superintendent of public instruction, and the state board for community and technical colleges shall convene a work group that includes representatives of the two and four-year institutions of higher education and school districts to address remediation issues. The work group shall: (1) Discuss standards and expectations for the knowledge and skills high school graduates need for college-level work and strategies for communicating those standards to all Washington high schools;

(2) Identify the causes of current gaps in knowledge and skills of recent high school graduates;

(3) Identify innovative strategies currently used by school districts and other initiatives or programs designed to provide graduates with the knowledge and skills for college-level work; and

(4) Develop and initiate actions to address the gaps in knowledge and skills so that the need for remediation of recent high school graduates in public higher education institutions is significantly reduced.

Directs the state education and higher education agencies to jointly submit a report to the education and higher education committees of the legislature by December 15, 2004.