BILL REQ. #:  H-3188.2 

READ FIRST TIME 01/24/14.   

     AN ACT Relating to enhancing the statewide K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system; amending RCW 28A.175.025, 28A.175.035, 28A.175.045, 28A.175.055, 28A.175.074, 28A.175.075, 28A.150.260, and 28A.175.145; adding new sections to chapter 28A.175 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 28A.150 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 28A.310 RCW; creating a new section; repealing RCW 28A.175.150; and providing an effective date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) The legislature finds that laws enacted in 2007, 2010, and 2011 provide a framework for a statewide dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system that focuses on local partnerships between schools, families, and communities, as well as state-level collaboration among multiple agencies and organizations. However, support for the system continues to rely primarily on temporary grants. There is a need to continue to develop ongoing programs and sustainable funding sources, as well as the local and regional capacity to deliver services. There is also a need to ensure that the various program initiatives operate in a coordinated fashion.
     (2) Therefore, the legislature intends to take steps to enhance the current dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system by clarifying the laws pertaining to the statewide system and the state-level work group charged with overseeing the system and providing specific additional support for some of the highest need students, including those who have already dropped out of school and those who are enrolled in chronically low-performing schools.

Sec. 2   RCW 28A.175.025 and 2007 c 408 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     Subject to the availability of funds appropriated for this purpose, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall ((create a grant program and)) award grants to local partnerships of schools, families, and communities to ((begin the phase in of a statewide comprehensive)) design and implement a K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and ((retrieval)) reengagement system as defined in RCW 28A.175.074. ((This program)) For purposes of RCW 28A.175.025 through 28A.175.075, these grants shall be known as ((the)) building bridges ((program)) grants.
     (((1) For purposes of RCW 28A.175.025 through 28A.175.075, a "building bridges program" means a local partnership of schools, families, and communities that provides all of the following programs or activities:
     (a) A system that identifies individual students at risk of dropping out from middle through high school based on local predictive data, including state assessment data starting in the fourth grade, and provides timely interventions for such students and for dropouts, including a plan for educational success as already required by the student learning plan as defined under RCW 28A.655.061. Students identified shall include foster care youth, youth involved in the juvenile justice system, and students receiving special education services under chapter 28A.155 RCW;
     (b) Coaches or mentors for students as necessary;
     (c) Staff responsible for coordination of community partners that provide a seamless continuum of academic and nonacademic support in schools and communities;
     (d) Retrieval or reentry activities; and
     (e) Alternative educational programming, including, but not limited to, career and technical education exploratory and preparatory programs and online learning opportunities.
     (2) One of the grants awarded under this section shall be for a two-year demonstration project focusing on providing fifth through twelfth grade students with a program that utilizes technology and is integrated with state standards, basic academics, cross-cultural exposures, and age-appropriate preemployment training. The project shall:
     (a) Establish programs in two western Washington and one eastern Washington urban areas;
     (b) Identify at-risk students in each of the distinct communities and populations and implement strategies to close the achievement gap;
     (c) Collect and report data on participant characteristics and outcomes of the project, including the characteristics and outcomes specified under RCW 28A.175.035(1)(e); and
     (d) Submit a report to the legislature by December 1, 2009.))

Sec. 3   RCW 28A.175.035 and 2011 c 288 s 9 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall:
     (a) Identify criteria for building bridges grants and evaluate proposals for funding in consultation with the workforce training and education coordinating board;
     (b) Develop and monitor requirements for grant recipients to:
     (i) Use a dropout early warning and intervention system to identify students who ((both fail the Washington assessment of student learning and drop)) are at risk for academic failure and use data systems to identify youth who have already dropped out of school;
     (ii) Identify their own strengths and gaps in services provided to youth;
     (iii) Set their own local goals for program outcomes;
     (iv) Use research-based and emerging best practices that lead to positive outcomes in implementing ((the building bridges)) a local program; and
     (v) Coordinate an outreach campaign to bring public and private organizations together and to provide information about ((the)) building bridges ((program)) grants to the local community;
     (c) In setting the requirements under (b) of this subsection, encourage creativity and provide for flexibility in implementing ((the)) a local program using the building bridges ((program)) grants;
     (d) Identify and disseminate successful practices;
     (e) Develop requirements for grant recipients to collect and report data, including, but not limited to:
     (i) The number of and demographics of students served including, but not limited to, information regarding a student's race and ethnicity, a student's household income, a student's housing status, whether a student is a foster youth or youth involved in the juvenile justice system, whether a student is disabled, and the primary language spoken at a student's home;
     (ii) ((Washington assessment of student learning)) Scores on the statewide student assessment;
     (iii) Dropout rates;
     (iv) On-time graduation rates;
     (v) Extended graduation rates;
     (vi) Credentials obtained;
     (vii) Absenteeism rates;
     (viii) Truancy rates; and
     (ix) Credit retrieval; and
     (f) Contract with a third party to evaluate the infrastructure and implementation of the partnership including the leveraging of outside resources that relate to the goal of the partnership. The third-party contractor shall also evaluate the performance and effectiveness of the partnerships relative to the type of entity, as identified in RCW 28A.175.045, serving as the lead agency for the partnership((; and
     (g) Report to the legislature by December 1, 2008)).
     (2) In performing its duties under this section, the office of the superintendent of public instruction is encouraged to consult with the work group ((identified)) established in RCW 28A.175.075.
     (3) In selecting recipients for grant funds appropriated under RCW 28A.175.135, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall use a streamlined and expedited application and review process for those programs that have already proven to be successful in dropout prevention.

Sec. 4   RCW 28A.175.045 and 2007 c 408 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
     In awarding ((the grants under RCW 28A.175.025)) building bridges grants, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall prioritize schools or districts with dropout rates above the statewide average and shall attempt to award ((building bridges program)) grants to different geographic regions of the state. Eligible recipients shall be one of the following entities acting as a lead agency for the local partnership: A school district, a tribal school, an area workforce development council, an educational service district, an accredited institution of higher education, a vocational skills center, a federally recognized tribe, a community organization, or a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation. If the recipient is not a school district, at least one school district must be identified within the partnership. The superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that grants are distributed proportionately between school districts and other recipients. This requirement may be waived if the superintendent of public instruction finds that the quality of the programs or applications from these entities does not warrant the awarding of the grants proportionately.

Sec. 5   RCW 28A.175.055 and 2007 c 408 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
     To be eligible for a building bridges grant ((under RCW 28A.175.025)), grant applicants shall:
     (1) Build or demonstrate a commitment to building a broad-based partnership of schools, families, and community members to provide an effective and efficient ((building bridges program)) K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system. The partnership shall consider an effective model for school-community partnerships and include local membership from, but not limited to, school districts, tribal schools, secondary career and technical education programs, skill centers that serve the local community, an educational service district, the area workforce development council, accredited institutions of higher education, tribes or other cultural organizations, the parent teacher association, the juvenile court, prosecutors and defenders, the local health department, health care agencies, public transportation agencies, local division representatives of the department of social and health services, businesses, city or county government agencies, civic organizations, and appropriate youth-serving community-based organizations. Interested parents and students shall be actively included whenever possible;
     (2) Demonstrate how the grant will enhance any dropout prevention and intervention programs and services already in place in the district;
     (3) Provide a twenty-five percent match that may include in-kind resources from within the partnership;
     (4) Track and report data required by the grant; and
     (5) Describe how the dropout prevention, intervention, and ((retrieval)) reengagement system will be sustained after initial funding, including roles of each of the partners.

Sec. 6   RCW 28A.175.074 and 2010 c 243 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     The definitions in this section apply throughout ((section 3, chapter 243, Laws of 2010 and RCW 28A.175.075)) this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) (("Critical community members" means representatives in the local community from among the following agencies and organizations: Student/parent organizations, parents and families, local government, law enforcement, juvenile corrections, any tribal organization in the local school district, the local health district, nonprofit and social service organizations serving youth, and faith organizations.
     (2))) "Dropout early warning and intervention ((data)) system" means a systemic approach to identify students at risk of dropping out and an intervention process to link identified students to the appropriate services and support, relying on a student information system that provides the necessary data ((needed to conduct a universal screening to identify students at risk of dropping out, catalog student interventions, and monitor student progress towards graduation)) in an easily interpreted format.
     (2) "Graduation coach" means an individual, working in consultation with counselors and other school staff as provided in the model policy on graduation coaches developed by the office of the superintendent of public instruction in 2012, who is assigned to identify and provide intervention services to students who have dropped out or are at risk of academic failure or of not graduating on time through the following activities:
     (a) Monitoring and advising on individual student progress toward graduation;
     (b) Providing student support services and case management;
     (c) Motivating students to focus on a graduation plan;
     (d) Encouraging family and community engagement;
     (e) Connecting families and students with appropriate school and community resources;
     (f) Securing supplemental academic services for students;
     (g) Implementing schoolwide dropout prevention programs and interventions; and
     (h) Analyzing data to identify at-risk students.
     (3) "K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system" means a system that provides all of the following functions:
     (a) Engaging in school improvement planning specifically focused on improving high school graduation rates and other indicators correlated to being on track for graduation, including goal-setting and action planning, based on a comprehensive assessment of strengths and challenges;
     (b) Providing prevention activities including, but not limited to, emotionally and physically safe school environments, implementation of a comprehensive system of learning support with tiered intervention, social-emotional and behavioral skills development, expanded opportunities for students to develop sustained and meaningful relationships with caring adults, a comprehensive guidance and counseling model facilitated by certified school counselors or other qualified staff, core academic instruction, frequent feedback on student progress, and career and technical education exploratory and preparatory programs;
     (c) Identifying vulnerable students based on a dropout early warning and intervention ((data)) system;
     (d) Providing timely academic and nonacademic group and individual interventions for vulnerable students based on ((a)) the specific challenges and assets of each child by using a tiered intervention system such as the response to intervention model, ((including)) planning and sharing ((of)) information at critical academic transitions, using intervention resources from the school system and the broader community, and assessing the effectiveness of each intervention provided;
     (e) Providing graduation coaches, school success coaches, mentors, certified school counselors, ((and/or)) or case managers for vulnerable students identified as needing a more intensive one-on-one adult relationship;
     (f) Establishing and providing staff, such as family and community engagement coordinators as described under section 10 of this act, to coordinate a ((school/family/community)) school, family, and community partnership that assists in building ((a K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement)) the system;
     (g) Providing retrieval or reentry activities; ((and))
     (h) Providing alternative educational programming including, but not limited to, credit retrieval and online learning opportunities; and
     (i) Designing and providing wraparound services to support vulnerable students.
     (4) (("School/family/community partnership" means a partnership between a school or schools, families, and the community, that engages critical community members in a formal, structured partnership with local school districts in a coordinated effort to provide comprehensive support services and improve outcomes for vulnerable youth.)) "School success coach" means an individual, working in consultation with counselors and other school staff, who is assigned to identify and provide early intervention services for students using similar strategies as a graduation coach, but targeted toward elementary and middle school students to facilitate their continued enrollment, engagement, and progress in school.
     (5) "Vulnerable students" means students who are in foster care, involved in the juvenile justice system, receiving special education services under chapter 28A.155 RCW, recent immigrants, homeless, emotionally traumatized, or are facing behavioral health issues, and students deemed at-risk of school failure as identified by a dropout early warning data system or other assessment.
     (6) "Wraparound services" means a team-based approach to delivering dropout prevention and intervention services that is based on the needs and strengths of students and their families; uses an array of community and regional resources; addresses academic, social, emotional, health, and economic issues as needed; and is culturally competent and outcome-based.

Sec. 7   RCW 28A.175.075 and 2013 c 23 s 46 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall establish a state-level ((building bridges)) work group that includes K-12 and state agencies that work with youth who have dropped out or are at risk of dropping out of school, to be known as the graduation: a team effort (GATE) work group. The purpose of the GATE work group is to establish a common vision and agenda for helping all students reach high school graduation. The following agencies shall appoint representatives to the work group: The office of the superintendent of public instruction, the workforce training and education coordinating board, the department of early learning, the employment security department, the state board for community and technical colleges, the department of health, the community mobilization office, and the children's services and behavioral health and recovery divisions of the department of social and health services. The work group should also consist of one representative from each of the following agencies and organizations: A statewide organization representing career and technical education programs including skill centers; the juvenile courts or the office of juvenile justice, or both; the Washington association of prosecuting attorneys; the Washington state office of public defense; accredited institutions of higher education; the educational service districts; the area workforce development councils; parent and educator associations; educational opportunity gap oversight and accountability committee; office of the education ombuds; local school districts; agencies or organizations that provide services to special education students; community organizations serving youth; federally recognized tribes and urban tribal centers; ((each of the major political caucuses of the senate and house of representatives;)) and the minority commissions. Other agencies, organizations, or individuals may be invited to participate in the work group.
     (2) ((To assist and enhance the work of the building bridges programs established in RCW 28A.175.025, the state-level)) The GATE work group shall:
     (a) Build on the materials and work accomplished by the building bridges work group first established in 2007;
     (b) Align the objectives and operation of individual dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement programs and initiatives, including but not limited to the various programs established under this chapter;
     (c) Convene working subgroups as needed to support development of a statewide K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system;
     (d) Identify and make recommendations to the legislature for the reduction of fiscal, legal, and regulatory barriers that prevent coordination of program resources across agencies at the state and local level;
     (((b))) (e) Develop and track performance measures and benchmarks for each partner agency or organization across the state including performance measures and benchmarks based on student characteristics and outcomes specified in RCW 28A.175.035(1)(e); and
     (((c))) (f) Identify and disseminate research-based and emerging best practices regarding prevention, intervention, and ((retrieval)) reengagement programs.
     (3)(((a) The work group shall report to the quality education council, appropriate committees of the legislature, and the governor on an annual basis beginning December 1, 2007, with proposed strategies for building K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement systems in local communities throughout the state including, but not limited to, recommendations for implementing emerging best practices, needed additional resources, and eliminating barriers.
     (b) By September 15, 2010, the work group shall report on:
     (i) A recommended state goal and annual state targets for the percentage of students graduating from high school;
     (ii) A recommended state goal and annual state targets for the percentage of youth who have dropped out of school who should be reengaged in education and be college and work ready;
     (iii) Recommended funding for supporting career guidance and the planning and implementation of K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement systems in school districts and a plan for phasing the funding into the program of basic education, beginning in the 2011-2013 biennium; and
     (iv) A plan for phasing in the expansion of the current school improvement planning program to include state-funded, dropout-focused school improvement technical assistance for school districts in significant need of improvement regarding high school graduation rates.)) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall submit a biennial report to the education committees of the legislature by December 1st of each odd-numbered year that includes activities undertaken and measurable indicators of progress toward achieving a statewide K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system.
     (4) State agencies in the ((building bridges)) GATE work group shall work together, wherever feasible, on the following activities to support ((school/family/community)) partnerships of schools, families, and communities engaged in building K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement systems:
     (a) Providing opportunities for coordination and flexibility of program eligibility and funding criteria;
     (b) Providing joint funding;
     (c) Developing protocols and templates for model agreements on sharing records and data;
     (d) Providing joint professional development opportunities that provide knowledge and training on:
     (i) Research-based and promising practices;
     (ii) The availability of programs and services for vulnerable youth; and
     (iii) Cultural competence.
     (((5) The building bridges work group shall make recommendations to the governor and the legislature by December 1, 2010, on a state-level and regional infrastructure for coordinating services for vulnerable youth. Recommendations must address the following issues:
     (a) Whether to adopt an official conceptual approach or framework for all entities working with vulnerable youth that can support coordinated planning and evaluation;
     (b) The creation of a performance-based management system, including outcomes, indicators, and performance measures relating to vulnerable youth and programs serving them, including accountability for the dropout issue;
     (c) The development of regional and/or county-level multipartner youth consortia with a specific charge to assist school districts and local communities in building K-12 comprehensive dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement systems;
     (d) The development of integrated or school-based one-stop shopping for services that would:
     (i) Provide individualized attention to the neediest youth and prioritized access to services for students identified by a dropout early warning and intervention data system;
     (ii) Establish protocols for coordinating data and services, including getting data release at time of intake and common assessment and referral processes; and
     (iii) Build a system of single case managers across agencies;
     (e) Launching a statewide media campaign on increasing the high school graduation rate; and
     (f) Developing a statewide database of available services for vulnerable youth.))

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   A new section is added to chapter 28A.175 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Subject to funds appropriated specifically for this purpose, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall develop and make available a dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system assessment tool to support school, family, and community partnerships in designing and implementing a local system. The assessment tool must have the capacity to identify school and community strengths and gaps in services, and evaluate the effectiveness of existing strategies to prevent and reengage dropouts. Existing community needs assessments, such as the community health improvement plan or other plans, may also be used to provide data for identifying strengths and gaps related to the dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system.
     (2) The office of the superintendent of public instruction, in consultation with the GATE work group and within available funds, shall continue development of a comprehensive and customizable dropout early warning and intervention system for use by school districts and school, family, and community partnerships.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   A new section is added to chapter 28A.175 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Subject to funds appropriated specifically for this purpose, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall establish a program to provide graduation coaches to high schools that are struggling to improve their high school graduation rates and school success coaches to selected elementary and middle schools whose students enroll in these high schools.
     (2) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall rank order all public high schools in the state based on a combination of factors, including but not limited to graduation rates, dropout rates, attendance, suspension and expulsion rates, results from dropout early warning and intervention system data, teen pregnancy rates in the surrounding county, and evidence that the high school and the elementary and middle schools whose students enroll in the high school are ready to support and benefit from graduation coaches and school success coaches. The office shall place a significant priority on graduation rates as a ranking factor.
     (3) Each year the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall allocate funds to support one graduation coach per five hundred students enrolled in grades nine through twelve in a high school and one school success coach per five hundred students enrolled in grades kindergarten through eight in selected elementary and middle schools whose students enroll in the high school. Funds shall be allocated starting with the lowest-ranking schools until all available funds have been allocated. The office must fully fund the allocation of coaches in an eligible high school and the selected elementary and middle schools before allocating funds for the next group of schools on the ranked order list. The allocation amount per coach shall be based on the school district's allocation for salaries as calculated under RCW 28A.150.410 for certificated instructional staff, plus fringe benefits as established in the omnibus appropriations act.
     (4) A school district receiving funds under this section must use the funds to assign individuals to the schools that generated the funds to conduct the activities of a graduation coach or a school success coach as defined under RCW 28A.175.074. Schools may use the funds to assign employees to serve as coaches or may create partnerships and contracts with community-based organizations to assign individuals from the community to serve as coaches. The recipient schools must also use the dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system assessment tool developed under section 8 of this act to design additional dropout prevention and intervention strategies for those schools.
     (5) To the extent funds are available, recipient schools are eligible to receive funds under this section for three consecutive years or until the schools no longer qualify for the allocation based on their ranking, whichever is longer.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 10   A new section is added to chapter 28A.150 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The legislature finds that research studies have found a positive relationship between family and community engagement in students' education and improved attendance, behavior, social skills, and academic achievement. This relationship holds across families of all economic, racial, ethnic, and educational backgrounds and for students of all ages.
     (2) Using funds allocated under RCW 28A.150.260 and from other available sources, school districts are encouraged to assign family and community engagement coordinators to schools. Examples of activities conducted by family and community engagement coordinators may include, but are not limited to:
     (a) Developing school, family, and community partnerships to deliver academic and nonacademic wraparound services for students and build a comprehensive K-12 dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system as described under RCW 28A.175.074;
     (b) Encouraging and facilitating family engagement in student learning, both at home and at school;
     (c) Creating opportunities for expanded communication and dialogue with families that includes outreach, input, responsiveness, and collaboration;
     (d) Engaging in culturally competent outreach and partnership with diverse families and communities;
     (e) Serving as the school or district liaison for community-based activities such as mentors, before and after-school programs, family education, and health and social services; and
     (f) Coordinating services delivered by community-based organizations and local agencies to assure that services are focused on priorities identified by the school based on student needs.

Sec. 11   RCW 28A.150.260 and 2011 1st sp.s. c 27 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     The purpose of this section is to provide for the allocation of state funding that the legislature deems necessary to support school districts in offering the minimum instructional program of basic education under RCW 28A.150.220. The allocation shall be determined as follows:
     (1) The governor shall and the superintendent of public instruction may recommend to the legislature a formula for the distribution of a basic education instructional allocation for each common school district.
     (2) The distribution formula under this section shall be for allocation purposes only. Except as may be required under chapter 28A.155, 28A.165, 28A.180, or 28A.185 RCW, or federal laws and regulations, nothing in this section requires school districts to use basic education instructional funds to implement a particular instructional approach or service. Nothing in this section requires school districts to maintain a particular classroom teacher-to-student ratio or other staff-to-student ratio or to use allocated funds to pay for particular types or classifications of staff. Nothing in this section entitles an individual teacher to a particular teacher planning period.
     (3)(a) To the extent the technical details of the formula have been adopted by the legislature and except when specifically provided as a school district allocation, the distribution formula for the basic education instructional allocation shall be based on minimum staffing and nonstaff costs the legislature deems necessary to support instruction and operations in prototypical schools serving high, middle, and elementary school students as provided in this section. The use of prototypical schools for the distribution formula does not constitute legislative intent that schools should be operated or structured in a similar fashion as the prototypes. Prototypical schools illustrate the level of resources needed to operate a school of a particular size with particular types and grade levels of students using commonly understood terms and inputs, such as class size, hours of instruction, and various categories of school staff. It is the intent that the funding allocations to school districts be adjusted from the school prototypes based on the actual number of annual average full-time equivalent students in each grade level at each school in the district and not based on the grade-level configuration of the school to the extent that data is available. The allocations shall be further adjusted from the school prototypes with minimum allocations for small schools and to reflect other factors identified in the omnibus appropriations act.
     (b) For the purposes of this section, prototypical schools are defined as follows:
     (i) A prototypical high school has six hundred average annual full-time equivalent students in grades nine through twelve;
     (ii) A prototypical middle school has four hundred thirty-two average annual full-time equivalent students in grades seven and eight; and
     (iii) A prototypical elementary school has four hundred average annual full-time equivalent students in grades kindergarten through six.
     (4)(a) The minimum allocation for each level of prototypical school shall be based on the number of full-time equivalent classroom teachers needed to provide instruction over the minimum required annual instructional hours under RCW 28A.150.220 and provide at least one teacher planning period per school day, and based on the following general education average class size of full-time equivalent students per teacher:

       General education
       average
       class size
Grades K-3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 25.23
Grade 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.00
Grades 5-6 . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.00
Grades 7-8 . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.53
Grades 9-12 . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.74

     (b) During the 2011-2013 biennium and beginning with schools with the highest percentage of students eligible for free and reduced-price meals in the prior school year, the general education average class size for grades K-3 shall be reduced until the average class size funded under this subsection (4) is no more than 17.0 full-time equivalent students per teacher beginning in the 2017-18 school year.
     (c) The minimum allocation for each prototypical middle and high school shall also provide for full-time equivalent classroom teachers based on the following number of full-time equivalent students per teacher in career and technical education:

       Career and technical
       education average
       class size
Approved career and technical education offered at
the middle school and high school level . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.57
Skill center programs meeting the standards established
by the office of the superintendent of public
instruction . . . . . . . . . . . . 22.76

     (d) In addition, the omnibus appropriations act shall at a minimum specify:
     (i) A high-poverty average class size in schools where more than fifty percent of the students are eligible for free and reduced-price meals; and
     (ii) A specialty average class size for laboratory science, advanced placement, and international baccalaureate courses.
     (5) The minimum allocation for each level of prototypical school shall include allocations for the following types of staff in addition to classroom teachers:
     

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 12   A new section is added to chapter 28A.310 RCW to read as follows:
     Subject to funds appropriated specifically for this purpose, a corps of intervention specialists shall be located at educational service districts, as determined by the office of the superintendent of public instruction, to assist schools and school districts in developing responses to intervention models; positive behavioral interventions and support systems; compassionate schools models; strategies to improve school climate and prevent harassment, intimidation, and bullying; and other research-based approaches to providing early intervention and support for students.

Sec. 13   RCW 28A.175.145 and 2011 c 288 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) Subject to funds appropriated for this purpose or otherwise available in the account established in RCW 28A.175.155, beginning in the 2011-12 school year and each year thereafter, a high school that demonstrates improvement in its dropout prevention score compared to the baseline school year as calculated under RCW 28A.175.140 may receive a PASS program award as provided under this section. The legislature intends to recognize and reward continuous improvement by using a baseline year for calculating eligibility for PASS program awards so that a high school retains previously earned award funds from one year to the next unless its performance declines.
     (b) The office of the superintendent of public instruction must determine the amount of PASS program awards based on appropriated funds and eligible high schools. The intent of the legislature is to provide an award to each eligible high school commensurate with the degree of improvement in the high school's dropout prevention score and the size of the high school. The office must establish a minimum award amount. If funds available for PASS program awards are not sufficient to provide an award to each eligible high school, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall establish objective criteria to prioritize awards based on eligible high schools with the greatest need for additional dropout prevention and intervention services. The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall encourage and may require a high school receiving a PASS program award to demonstrate an amount of community matching funds or an amount of in-kind community services to support dropout prevention and intervention.
     (c) Ninety percent of an award under this section must be allocated to the eligible high school to be used for dropout prevention activities in the school as specified in subsection (2) of this section. The principal of the high school shall determine the use of funds after consultation with parents and certificated and classified staff of the school.
     (d) Ten percent of an award under this section must be allocated to the school district in which the eligible high school is located to be used for dropout prevention activities as specified in subsection (2) of this section in the high school or in other schools in the district.
     (e) The office of the superintendent of public instruction may withhold distribution of award funds under this section to an otherwise eligible high school or school district if the superintendent of public instruction issues a finding that the school or school district has willfully manipulated the dropout prevention indicators under RCW 28A.175.140, for example by expelling, suspending, transferring, or refusing to enroll students at risk of dropping out of school or at risk of low achievement.
     (2) High schools and school districts may use PASS program award funds for any programs or activities that support the development of a dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement system as described in RCW 28A.175.074, offered directly by the school or school district or under contract with education agencies or community-based organizations, including but not limited to educational service districts, workforce development councils, and boys and girls clubs. Such programs or activities may include but are not limited to the following:
     (a) Strategies to close the achievement gap for disadvantaged students and minority students;
     (b) Use of graduation coaches as defined in RCW ((28A.175.150)) 28A.175.074;
     (c) Opportunity internship activities under RCW 28C.18.164;
     (d) Dropout reengagement programs provided by community-based organizations or community and technical colleges;
     (e) Comprehensive guidance and planning programs as defined under RCW 28A.600.045, including but not limited to the navigation 101 program;
     (f) Reduced class sizes, extended school day, extended school year, and tutoring programs for students identified as at risk of dropping out of school, including instruction to assist these students in meeting graduation requirements in mathematics and science;
     (g) Outreach and counseling targeted to students identified as at risk of dropping out of school, or who have dropped out of school, to encourage them to consider learning alternatives such as preapprenticeship programs, skill centers, running start, technical high schools, and other options for completing a high school diploma;
     (h) Preapprenticeship programs or running start for the trades initiatives under RCW 49.04.190;
     (i) Mentoring programs for students;
     (j) Development and use of dropout early warning data systems;
     (k) Counseling, resource and referral services, and intervention programs to address social, behavioral, and health factors associated with dropping out of school;
     (l) Implementing programs for in-school suspension or other strategies to avoid excluding middle and high school students from the school whenever possible;
     (m) Parent engagement activities such as home visits and off-campus parent support group meetings related to dropout prevention and reengagement; and
     (n) Early learning programs for prekindergarten students.
     (3) High schools and school districts are encouraged to implement dropout prevention and reengagement strategies in a comprehensive and systematic manner, using strategic planning, school improvement plans, evaluation and feedback, and response to intervention tools.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 14   RCW 28A.175.150 (PASS program -- Graduation coach) and 2011 c 288 s 6 are each repealed.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 15   Section 11 of this act takes effect September 1, 2014.