Washington State Board of Education Home Page

The Washington State Board of Education is working hard to improve student achievement and ensure that all students receive a high-quality, equitable education that prepares them for the demands of the workplace, postsecondary education and citizenship.

The Board is an advocate for all students, educators, schools and districts across our state. The Board is committed to creating policies and finding the tools and resources to help every school and every district improve student achievement. Working together, we can help all students succeed.

The sections below highlight the some of the Board's important work. We also encourage you to explore more through our initiatives and responsibilities pages.

SBE Case Study - Crownhill Elementary (Bremerton)

From September 2010

To spotlight effective practices, the Washington State Board of Education (SBE) is highlighting schools that are closing achievement gaps and performing at high levels.

In 2009, SBE partnered with the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to create the Washington Accountability Index. The Index is a new way to measure schools’ improvement, the degree to which they close gaps for low income students, and, starting in the 2009-2010 school year, the closing of the gap for students of color. Through the Measurement of Student Progress (Washington Assessment of Student Learning prior to 2010) as well as graduation data, the Index provides schools with a ‘snapshot’ of their achievement in language arts, math, science, and extended graduation rates. The Index takes into account improvement from the previous year and a school’s relative performance compared to demographically similar schools.

In the spring of 2010, SBE and OSPI awarded top Index performers with the Washington Achievement Award. A statewide recognition ceremony honored 174 schools for exemplary performance in language arts, math, science, graduation rate, gifted education, and Overall Excellence (top five percent statewide).

From the list of Overall Excellence award winners, SBE selected a few schools with the highest percentages of low-income students (measured by students eligible for free and reduced price meals) and students of color. These are examples of schools that are beating the odds and are closing the academic achievement gaps. The purpose of this and following case studies is to learn from Crownhill’s extraordinary success and hopefully incorporate similar professional practices in other schools.

The Washington Achievement Awards & Accountability Index Tool and Survey - Check it out!

Washington Achievement Award Winners - detail below:

2009 Washington Achievement Awards (link)
2009 Accountability Index Results (excel) and Rules (pdf)
2009 Accountability Index Results with two year averages (excel)
2009 Accountability Index FAQ (pdf)

Pictured: Crownhill Elementary staff and students. Crownhill is a 2009 Washington Achievement Award Winner.

Accountability Index Tool and Survey

We are always looking for ways to make our data more accessible to users. Our 2010 school lookup tool is our most recent endeavor. Note: to use this tool, right click on the link and save it to your desktop. Then, open the program from there. Be sure to maximize both the parent (Excel) and child (worksheet) windows once the program is open.

This excel program empowers users to get clear and comprehensive data on how their school is performing in reading, writing, math, science, and in the case of secondary schools, the extended graduation rate, over the last three years. That data is further broken down to show how low income and non-low income students are performing, how a school has or has not improved over time, and how a school compares to peer schools with similar demographics.

This is great tool for anyone looking for a clear measurement on their school's academic performance.

We encourage you to download the file (excel) and give it a try. We would also greatly appreciate your time in filling out a very short survey. The data you provide will greatly help us continue to create a product that will meet the needs of our most important audience - you!

Student Video Contest

Here are the winning videos from the 2010 SBE student video contest.

For the high school category, Leah Andrews, Corrine Pruett, and Conrad Pearson from Vashon High School providedthe highest scoring video. The judges were impressed by its professionalism and ample student voice.

Our first place finishers in the middle school category are Oakland Bay Junior High School's Coreless Fletcher, Colby Fuller, and Priscilla Ramirez. In addition to the outstanding choir and perspective, the judges were especially impressed with the insight into the importance of the arts.

Honorable Mention

Claire Asplund, Rachel Kim, and Angela Page of Redmond High School.

What the judges said: "I really liked the music and the opening. Very, very well done; Interesting beginning with the tape; Loved the tope with writing shown at the beginning, very cute; The color pallet used the same concept; The art does the talking; Very creative and memorable."

The State Board holds its public, bi-monthly meetings in venues across the state. Additionally, Board members and staff participate in a variety of meetings revolving around our work. Agenda and materials made available during those meetings are available here. Click on the meeting on the left to see the materials.

Board Meetings

2011
2010
2009
2008
1998-2007 Minutes

Work Sessions

Core 24/Meaningful High School Diploma
Systems Performance Accountability
Science Panel Advisory
Math Panel Advisory

2011 Board Meetings
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2010 Board Meetings
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2009 Board Meetings
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2008 Board Meetings
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1998-2007 Minutes
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Core 24/MHSD Work Sessions
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Science Advisory Work Sessions
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The State Board will issued flyers, graphics, media releases, and op-eds pertaining to our initiatives.

Additionally, newspapers and other sources will release material relating or referring to the Board's work. The table below represents this collection, which can be sorted by subject, date, and graphic/release.

Subject	Date	Graphic/Release
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The Board has three overarching goals:

Improve achievement for all students.
Improve graduation rates.
Improve student preparation for post-secondary education and the 21st century world of work and citizenship.

More information about SBE's goals, mission, and vision is available in our Strategic Plan (pdf). A summation of the Board's work over the last four years is also available (pdf).

The State Board of Education is one of the longest existing institutions of Washington State government. It has operated continuously since 1877, when it was created by the Legislature of the Territory of Washington.

The Board has been reconstituted by the Legislature five times: 1897, 1909, 1947, 1992, and 2005. In 2005 the Legislature established the board which exists today by passing Senate Bill 5732. Information is available on the Board's composition, membership, and elections.

The State Board of Education members, listed below, are supported by seven full time staff members.

Washington State Board of Education Members
Dr. Bernal Baca	Amy Bragdon	Jared Costanzo	Dr. Steve Dal Porto
Yakima Appointed 2006.01 Term expires 2013.01	Appointed 2006.01 Term expires 2013.01	Pasco (student) Eastern Washington Term expires 2012.05	Quincy WSSDA Elected 2006.01 Eastern WA, Position 1 Term expires 2012.01
Randy Dorn	Connie Fletcher	Dr. Sheila Fox	Phyllis Bunker Frank
Superintendent (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction) Elected Statewide	Issaquah WSSDA Representative via SBE Appointment 2010.01.20 Term expires 2011.01	Bellingham Appointed 2006.01 Term expires 2014.01	Yakima WSSDA Elected, 1998.01 Eastern WA, Position 2 Term expires 2014.01
Bob Hughes	Anna Laura Kastama	Eric Liu	Dr. Kristina Mayer
Kirkland WSSDA Elected, 2009.01 Western WA, Position 4 Term expires 2013.01	Tacoma, Student (Western Washington) Term expires 2011.05	Seattle Appointed 2006.01 Term expires 2011.01	Port Townsend Appointed 2006.01 Term expires 2011.01
Mary Jean Ryan	Warren T. Smith	John C. Schuster	Jeff Vincent
Seattle Appointed 2006.01 Term expires 2014.01	Spanaway Elected, 1998.01 Western WA, Position 5 Term expires 2014.01	Ocean Shores Private Schools Rep. Elected 2004.01 Term expires 2012.01	Bainbridge Island Appointed 2006.01 Term expires 2014.01

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