BILL REQ. #:  H-3700.1 

READ FIRST TIME 02/05/14.   

     AN ACT Relating to a mentoring and service learning opportunity program for students in K-12 and postsecondary education; adding a new section to chapter 28B.35 RCW; and creating a new section.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that mentoring and service learning opportunities help to improve the academic success of low-performing, high-risk students in K-12 and postsecondary education in addition to other benefits. The legislature intends to increase mentoring and service learning opportunities for K-12 and postsecondary education students who are at risk of not completing their programs of study.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 28B.35 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Western Washington University shall host a statewide consortium of public and private institutions of higher education with the purpose of providing and increasing the number of campus-based mentoring and service learning opportunities in K-12 education and at eligible institutions as defined in RCW 28B.12.030. The consortium shall develop and administer a state campus compact between eligible institutions, and shall partner with nonprofit organizations that provide mentoring services including:
     (a) A nonprofit organization that provides higher education advocacy and opportunity to young people struggling to overcome poverty and adversity in King county; and
     (b) A nonprofit organization that provides opportunities for fifth to twelfth grade students from traditionally underrepresented and diverse backgrounds in Whatcom and Skagit counties to be mentored by university students.
     (2) The mentoring and service learning opportunities developed under the state campus compact are intended to serve the following target populations of students:
     (a) For K-12 students, those who are at risk of dropping out of school, not on track to complete their high school diploma on time, from a low-income family, in or transitioning from foster care, or from a family with no previous experience in attending college; and
     (b) For postsecondary education students, those who are not on track to complete their degree or certificate on time, enrolled in one or more precollege level courses or programs, from a low-income family, in or transitioning from foster care, from a family with no previous experience in attending college, or veterans of the armed services.
     (3) The mentoring and service-learning opportunities of the state campus compact shall be designed to:
     (a) Increase student engagement in learning and postsecondary education;
     (b) Develop workforce, financial literacy, and citizenship skills;
     (c) Improve student attitudes and behaviors; and
     (d) Improve academic success and retention.
     (4) The state campus compact shall address:
     (a) Training and outreach to postsecondary students to serve as mentors and increase the number and retention of participating mentors;
     (b) Coordination of service learning projects;
     (c) Training for successful partnerships between institutions and schools;
     (d) Financial literacy training for mentors and mentees;
     (e) Methods to improve the accountability of the program by compiling statewide data to measure the impact of mentoring programs and implementing statewide assessment tools by measuring:
     (i) Academic improvement;
     (ii) Retention and completion rates;
     (iii) Access to institutions of higher education; and
     (iv) Development of workforce and citizenship skills, attitudes, and behaviors;
     (f) Increased tutoring support for developmental education students taking online math courses; and
     (g) Dissemination of best practices and impacts of mentoring programs statewide.