BILL REQ. #:  S-3583.1 

Read first time 01/12/2004.   Referred to Committee on Higher Education.

     AN ACT Relating to a master plan for education from prekindergarten through university; creating new sections; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that:
     (1) Education is the most important function of Washington state and is essential to the economic health, cultural diversity, civic vitality, and political well-being of the state and the nation;
     (2) There is significant evidence that citizens benefit by having an opportunity to access the education and training that will allow them to grow personally and professionally, address their future economic needs and those of their families, and to contribute to the healthy future of not only themselves and their families but also to the community at large;
     (3) Research supports that children's chances to succeed in school increase if they participate in high quality preschool and early childhood education programs;
     (4) Our public schools, through education reform, are expected to prepare an evergrowing number of high school graduates for entry into postsecondary education or the increasingly competitive work environment. Improving K-12 education will also reduce the need for remedial education at our colleges and universities;
     (5) The state will need to provide higher education opportunities for at least a projected thirty-three thousand six hundred more citizens by the year 2010 just to maintain current postsecondary participation rates;
     (6) A growing number of citizens affected by the fluctuations in the economic climate and shifts in employment opportunities enter and reenter the state's educational institutions to prepare for participation in the rapidly changing workplace;
     (7) Washington's citizens would be better served through access to high quality education without institutional or organizational barriers to ensure smooth progress through all levels of education they desire; and
     (8) Washington does not have a seamless education system nor does it have a system of coordinated education planning. Collaboration and coordination among all sectors of education including but not limited to prekindergarten, the K-12 system, the community and technical college system, the four-year college and universities, and the independent colleges and private career schools is essential to develop an educated citizenry.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   The senate committees on education and higher education and the house of representatives committees on education and higher education shall work collaboratively to study and make recommendations about a master plan for education from prekindergarten through university. The purpose of the plan is to develop recommendations to the legislature to support students' needs, focusing on the organization and management of delivery systems, to achieve the goal of eliminating barriers to a seamless education. The recommendations will address but not be limited to issues of access, achievement, accountability, affordability, and quality of our schools and institutions of higher education. In developing the recommendations, the committees shall involve interested parties including but not limited to: Educators including staff, faculty, administration, and governing board members, from both the public and private sector; regional and national public policy groups and state organizations; advocacy groups; researchers; business and labor leaders; community leaders; parents; and students. An interim report shall be completed by December 1, 2004. The final report shall be completed by December 1, 2005, if needed.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   This act expires December 31, 2005.