AN ACT Relating to district-based management of common schools; 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 shall be 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 district-based management.

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

To carry out the purposes of section 1 of this act, the superintendent of public instruction shall:

(1) Be authorized to grant funds to local school districts to establish pilot projects in district-based management that encourage innovation to improve educational performance on a district-wide basis;

(2) Develop guidelines, in consultation with school districts, that focus on factors found by research to be effective in improving schools for optional use by participating districts in developing their district-based management improvement programs;

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

(4) Prescribe the manner of the school improvement reports required in section 3 of this act and the format in which they must be developed and submitted;

(5) 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) The board of directors for each school district participating in the pilot project program authorized by section 2 of this act shall be required to prepare an annual school improvement report. This report shall include district and individual building needs, goals, objectives, improvements, and plans for the use of resources. The written report shall be submitted to the superintendent of public instruction not later than September 1 of each year.

(2) Each board of directors in participating districts shall establish an improvement council at each school in the district and a district-level council to coordinate and monitor the district's improvement plan while allowing maximum building-level flexibility.

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 to carry out the purposes of this act.