Preamble
The State Board of Education (SBE) is committed to helping create an equitable education system, where each student receives what they need to thrive in civic engagement, careers, postsecondary education, and lifelong learning. Historically public education has not served all students equitably due to unequal access to resources including, but not limited to, culturally relevant and challenging curriculum, safe and modern facilities, and highly skilled staff. Until the system and its leaders recognize students’ needs and the barriers they face, the system falls short in providing each and every student the opportunity to reach their full potential. It is the intent of the Educational Equity and Inclusion Statement with its Glossary and the Equity Lens, to provide a clear understanding of the importance of educational equity to our education system. The words chosen in the Educational Equity Statement reflect the law, policies, and commitments of the Washington State Board of Education. 

To fulfill the promise of equitable treatment to our students, parents, and educators, we seek to:

• Actively listen to those we serve.
• Speak out when we see wrongs.
• Make changes to promote equity in public education.

Educational Equity and Inclusion Statement
The Washington State Board of Education centers educational equity as a guiding principle in fulfilling its statutory charge, strategic planning, and policymaking.

The Board believes that the state’s school system exists to empower each student to develop the skills articulated in Washington’s Profile of a Graduate and ensure they are caring, contributing, and civically engaged community members. Our students will learn in inclusive environments where each student experiences belonging, thrives, and is on a path to reach their full potential.

The Board is committed to  ensuring that every student meets the goals of basic education (RCW 28A.150.210). Access and opportunity gaps must be eliminated in order to narrow academic achievement gaps and eradicate disproportionality and predictability in student outcomes by factors such as race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, caste, and socioeconomics.

To accomplish this, the Board will act with transparency and consult with students, educational, and community partners in culturally appropriate ways to:

• Ensure that educational equity is understood as a process to identify and eliminate structural and institutional racism manifested through existing policies, practices, and procedures that reinforce and perpetuate predictably disparate educational outcomes;
• Honor and actively engage with Washington’s underserved communities as partners in developing and advocating for educational equity-driven policies, practices, and resources that meet the needs of each student; and
• Use educational equity as a lens to assess and improve policymaking to support our school system’s commitment and ability to meet the needs of every student.

View as a downloadable PDF. (Updated September 2023)

See SBE equity lens.