Kate Simkowiak

Advocacy

Budget information, legislative activities, WAETAG conferences, etc.

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – March 13th

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BUDGET PROPOSALS

Of interest to all Highly Capable advocates is what the budget proposals will provide for HCP funding. As part of basic education, costs of a classroom, utilities, teachers, administration, transportation, etc are covered under basic education funding. The considerable costs of identification, professional development, special curriculum and textbooks are covered by the supplemental HCP funding provided by the funding formula.

Everything on the budget is happening AFTER Gifted Education Day. The Revenue Forecast Council releases its quarterly revenue forecast on March 20th. This lets the Governor and Legislators know how much revenue the state expects to have this fiscal year.

It is the Senate’s turn to put out a budget first this year and the Senate Majority Coalition Caucus plans to present their budget proposal the week of the 25th and the House Democratic Caucus shortly thereafter. At some point Governor Inslee is expected to propose either a budget or an outline of spending priorities – which is not clear from news reports.

The current biennial budget provides $8,759,000 for FY 2012 and $8,842,000 for FY 2013 for HCP, a total of $17,601,000. The last budget prior to inclusion in basic education provided  $17,993,000 for the biennium.

Governor Gregoire’s last budget proposal called for $9,472,000 for FY 2012 and $9,594,000, a total of $19,268,000; approximately a 9% increase. Since the HCPTWG and QEC Recommendations (see next paragraph) call for a new funding formula which we estimate as yielding about $45,000,000 per fiscal year, it is clear that no “real and measurable progress toward achieving full compliance” has been made toward full and ample funding as part of basic education.

McCleary calls for compliance by 2018, so the Legislature has a long way to go to reach this goal for Highly Capable Programs. We strongly suggest that it begin with this budget, enacting a new formula based on 5% of students, in a class size of 15, 6.5 hours for grades K-6 and 3.1 hours for grades 7-12.

Legislators are talking about an additional $900 billion to $1.6 billion for basic education. Surely they can find an extra $45 million for HCP!

GIFTED EDUCATION DAY  – AND AFTER

We have been attempting to get HB 1560 amended to provide for a new formula, with little visible progress to date.

Last week we sent you a draft of a proposed resolution in the Legislature. This week we are pleased to send you a copy of the actual resolution, co-sponsored by 47 of 49 Senators. It is a very strong statement of support for gifted education but we should take it cautiously – many may have co-sponsored as a professional courtesy without reading it carefully and becoming aware of its implications. Different versions of this Resolution are circulating in the House and as a Proclamation from the Governor.

If the sponsors really believe what the resolution states, then they should immediately vote to implement the recommendations of the Highly Capable Program Technical Working Group as endorsed by the Quality Education Council. They should vote a more adequate and equitable funding formula to enable these programs to reach more students and help close the opportunity gap. They should substantially increase Highly Capable Program funding in the upcoming biennial budget and reach full and ample funding by 2018.

So come down to Olympia on March 19th and talk to your Legislators about the need for and value of Highly Capable Programs to both the student and the state; the requirements of the McCleary Decision for full and ample funding; and the recommendations of the HCPTWG and the QEC.

Before you do so, take a close look at the power point from NEWS, the plaintiffs in McCleary, presented March 10, http://waschoolexcellence.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/McCleary-presentation-3-10-13.pdf. The Coalition is a member of NEWS.

Be ready to push harder on the budget if the various budget proposals don’t “do right” for Highly Capable Programs when they come out. We will let you know if such action is necessary.

To end the State’s violation of Washington children’s constitutional rights by 2018, each State budget must:
(1) “demonstrate steady progress” implementing education funding reforms under ESHB 2261, and
(2) “show real and measurable progress toward achieving full compliance with article IX, section 1 by 2018.”
July 18, 2012 Supreme Court Order at ¶4

Gifted Education Day Information from the CPA

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Thank you so much for your planned participation in Gifted Education Day this Tuesday, March 19th.

In preparation for the day, we wanted to cover some important items.

  1. Since the Coalition activities start at 9:00am in Olympia, we will not be meeting at Terrace Park in the morning as a group to arrange carpools. If you have arranged to meet independently, that is fine. Please allow for time to park at the Capitol.
  2. When you arrive in the Columbia Room, please check in with the Coalition to receive a name tag. CPA board members will be in the Columbia Room to answer any questions you may have. We will have copies of the schedule and maps in case you need them. Throughout the day Tina Raghu will be in the Columbia Room for any questions or directions needed.
  3. One of the first meetings of the morning is with Senator Joe Fain in the Columbia Room. This is being coordinated by the Coalition and we have a short amount of time to present him with a binder of student letters. We have arranged for a few students to talk and a few more to stand in support. If your child is not a part of this presentation, please know they will have a chance to speak with our legislators at the afternoon meetings we have arranged.
  4. Attached is an updated agenda for the day. Please note that we will assign a leader to each meeting with our legislators. The leader will introduce our group and the purpose of our meeting. At these meetings, we will ask if any student would like to say a few words. Please see the attached prompts to cover with your child to prepare them if they would like to speak. The message this year is to say thank you for including highly capable within the definition of basic education and also for maintaining the funding for highly capable in the current budget.
  5. On the agenda, we have specified districts of each representative we are meeting. We ask that you try to attend the meetings with the representatives from your district or when there are no conflicting meetings, we all try to attend.

IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS FOR DOWNLOAD

Family GED 2013 Info and Schedule
GED Family Invite Form
GED Checklist
GED FAQs
Legislative Districts
Maps
Kids Speaking Prompt

Thank you again for your participation!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Tina Raghu or Leslie Rinehimer.

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – March 10th

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RECENT ACTIVITIES UPDATED
You haven’t heard from us recently as everything we have been doing in advocating for Highly Capable Programs has been pretty much “behind the scenes.” We are conferring and negotiating with key legislators regarding HB 1560, which purports to enact the recommendations of the Quality Education Council for the HC program. And the QEC recommendations pretty much are those of the Highly Capable Program Technical Working Group. Unfortunately, only a small part of the two sets of recommendations is contained in this bill and we are working as hard as we can to get the full recommendations for identification, services and funding as an amendment to the pending bill. If we are successful in getting a sponsor for our proposed amendment, we may be contacting you asking that you get in touch with your representatives and ask them to vote for the amendment. It all depends on how these touchy negotiations go….

Attached as a pdf file is the fact sheet we are using in our conversations with legislators. It attempts to distill pages and pages of material into a single page fact sheet. Because key Legislators seem to be fixated on issues of equity and the opportunity gap and not on the needs of our gifted students, we have focused our efforts on things which interest them.

GIFTED EDUCATION DAY, MARCH 19
Preparations for Gifted Education Day continue, now that I am back from vacation. We are looking forward to large student contingents from Edmonds and Puyallup as well as smaller groups from other districts. We have a full line-up of speakers. Please be in the Columbia Room no later than 9:10 so we can start our program and finish on time for you to meet with your legislators, with whom you have already made appointments – we trust you have made appointments. If not, do so immediately, please.

We have a Proclamation of Gifted Education Day from the Governor and expect passage of Resolutions in both houses for both Gifted Education Day, March 19, and Gifted Education Week, March 17-23. The exact wording of these three documents may vary slightly, but attached is the text of the Senate Resolution as a pdf file. The Resolutions are being sponsored by new “friends” of gifted education – we have had a core group of faithful Legislator friends for several years now and the group is expanding with these new members: Rep. Marcie Maxwell in the House and Senator Ann Rivers in the Senate. We welcome their support!

We need as large a turn out on March 19th as we can muster to support our efforts with Legislators to get HB 1560 amended as we suggest. Please come to Olympia and support us. If you can’t come to Olympia, contact your Legislators during the week of the 18th and express your support for Highly Capable Programs and tell your Legislators about how important they are for both students and the state. Information on contacting your Legislators is in the Gifted Education Day Handbook for 2013.

In Olympia, we will provide name tags, note paper and envelopes, note cards, and cards with contact information on them for you. Regulations on handing out materials in the Columbia Room keep us from providing printed materials there so print out whatever you need and bring it with you.

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – Feb. 20th

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Lots of little but important items in this email.

1.    Help us build our bona fides in Olympia. We would like to reach 750 followers on Facebook during session. Please “like” us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/wagifted
and follow us on our blog at http://wcge.wordpress.com

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2.    While you need to work on an almost daily basis with your local building and/or district, we offer a special opportunity to interact with state legislators. We look forward to working with you on educating our legislators on Gifted Education Day in Washington, Tuesday, March 19, 2013. Since appointments are easier to arrange for a small group to meet with a legislator, rather than a number of individual appointments, consider joining with other advocates in your area and making a joint trip to Olympia. Coming jointly makes parking easier to find and less expensive.

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3.    You can now submit comments on any pending bill by clicking on “comment on this bill” on the bill home page. The first time you use it you will be asked to set up an account with your email and a password. You will also be asked for your name and address. I tried it and it is easy to set up and use. Comments are limited to 1000 characters. Quick and easy – except for counting the number of characters in your message. If you are a Twitter user you already do that. This is a test run to see how much it is used and how much value it has to legislators.

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4.    Seabury School is presenting Dr. Susan Daniels on “Raising Creative Kids” on February 20th in Tacoma. Creative children think outside the box! They are driven by curiosity and innovation. Parenting them, however, can be both EXCITING and EXHAUSTING. Learn strategies for cultivating and supporting creativity, as well as parenting strategies for nurturing the social and emotional development of your creative children. For more information, go to http://www.eventbrite.com/event/4844821993

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IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO KNOW

5.    Your correspondent is taking time off for a much needed vacation trip. While I am gone, due to the wonders of forwarding email, other Coalition members will be receiving/responding to any messages you send to us at wagifted/earthlink. They will be sending any messages needed about contacting legislators or informing you about actions in Olympia about pending bills using a wagifted@gmail address. Even though the address is different, the email is indeed from us. If you have message filters, be sure they are set to receive mail from wagifted@gmail.com

6.    Bills are starting to move out of committees to the floor. Besides any emails we may send out, important information and updates will be available on our Facebook page, so be sure to check there.  http://www.facebook.com/wagifted

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7.    The following material is adapted from Advice for New Gifted Education Specialists by Tamara Fisher on her blog Unwrapping the Gifted. Ms. Fisher is a nationally recognized leader in the field of gifted education and is the gifted specialist in a district in Montana. Her blog appears on Education Week Teacher at http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/unwrapping_the_gifted/

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – Feb. 2nd

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Unverified rumors floating around indicate that there is some thought being given to amending 2261 to eliminate some programs, including HCP, from the definition of basic education. We must hold on to our place in basic education. Without it, there is little hope for continuation of state funding for HCP and without state funding, there go the district programs.

So, the foremost necessity is to educate legislators about the need for appropriate educational opportunities for children of high potential.

We have been asked for a rational for appropriate services for children of high potential. The following is quoted from Preparing the Next Generation of STEM Innovators: Identifying and Developing our Nation’s Human Capital, Introduction, page 5-6, The National Science Board. The complete report can be downloaded at http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/stem/

“The U.S. education system too frequently fails to identify and develop our most talented and motivated students who will become the next generation of innovators. Whether this group of students has access to appropriate resources seems to be an accident of birth—whether they are a part of a supportive and knowledgeable family or are residing in a community that has programs and opportunities available to them. There are students in every demographic and in every school district in the United States with enormous potential to become our future leaders and to define the leading edge of scientific discovery and technological innovation. Some of our Nation’s most talented students—perhaps through sheer individual will, good fortune, and circumstance—rise through the educational system and become leading contributors to the scientific workforce. Regrettably, far too many of our most able students are neither discovered nor developed … The possibility of reaching one’s potential should not be met with ambivalence, left to chance, or limited to those with financial means. Rather, the opportunity for excellence is a fundamental American value and should be afforded to all.

“Although many past and current educational reforms have focused on the vital goal of raising the general performance of all students, far fewer have focused on raising the ceiling of achievement for our Nation’s most talented and motivated students. The Board asserts that educational opportunity is not a zero-sum game: true equity means we must address the needs of all students. Mutually reinforcing results can be realized when we improve general educational performance as well as identify and stimulate potential leaders whose creativity and ideas can benefit all. The critical goal of increasing general scientific literacy does not compete with, but rather complements, today’s renewed clarion call for excellence.”

What does a basic education look like for a Highly Capable student? Here are two different approaches to an answer to this question. Choose the one you are most comfortable with.

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – Jan. 28th

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1. Our overriding goal this session is to maintain our place in basic education and to obtain full funding. Governor Gregoire was required by the Constitution to submit a budget proposal. Hearings are being held on it even though it is basically DOA. More budget proposals will be forthcoming from Governor Inslee and from the two houses.

Here is a direct quote from the testimony of Ramona Hattendorf of the state PTA regarding former Governor Gregoire’s budget proposal for the coming biennium.

“The legal obligation to Washington children, however, extends beyond early learning and the primary grades. The state laid out its intent to fully fund basic education with passage in 2009 of ESHB 2261. Yet four years later, this state still doesn’t pay for a basic six-period day, and our 24-credit career- and college-ready graduation requirements are on hold indefinitely. This affects every child in the state. Students aren’t reaching their academic potential because schools can’t consistently give them access to the education they need.

“Struggling readers continue to struggle in ineffective programs. Too many of our K-3 teachers and principals do not understand the science behind reading, do not recognize the indicators for dyslexia or other reading disabilities, do not understand the importance and relevance of phonological screening in the K-3 years. Middle-schoolers ready for algebra continue to be denied access, simply because there aren’t enough slots for them.

“Our schools are stressed.  State funding doesn’t cover the operational costs of what most community members assume is a standard six-period day that can offer a basic college prep program, career and technical classes, arts and physical education. All of our large, successful school districts have foundations, booster clubs and PTAs raising significant private funds to cover basics like curriculum and staffing. State funds to support school improvement plans are nonexistent.

“For this reason, Washington State PTA is concerned that the budget proposed by Gov. Gregoire doesn’t go far enough to address the McCleary court decision. The minimum components of basic education, as defined in law, are not being met and there is no schedule for full implementation.

“Minimum components of basic education, as described in RCW 28A.150.220, include:

▪   Instruction in the essential academic learning requirements and accompanying state assessment system (The new “Common Core” standards in math and English language arts fall under this category, along with other learning standards)

▪   Instruction that “provides students the opportunity to complete twenty-four credits for high school graduation, subject to a phased-in implementation of the twenty-four credits as established by the legislature.”

▪   Supplemental instruction and services for underachieving students through the learning assistance program

▪   Supplemental instruction and services for English Language Learner students through the transitional bilingual instruction program

▪   The opportunity for an appropriate education at public expense for all eligible students with disabilities

▪   Programs for highly capable students

“Education must be prioritized in the budget and legal commitments met. Fully implementing and funding 2009’s HB 2261 will get you there. This bill extends well beyond K-3 class size and full-day kindergarten and has significant components for grades 4 to 12 at all schools.”

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves! Our thanks to the PTA for their support.

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – Jan. 19th

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1.    A lot has been going on in Olympia. The state Legislature appears to have organized itself and committee assignments have been made. Because there are so many newly elected Legislators and so many moving from the house to the senate, the committee make up is quite different this session. For the first weeks, committees are going into learning mode – getting up to speed on basic background, recent reports on various studies they have authorized, etc. and very little actual legislating.

If you are interested in which Legislators sit on which committees, go to http://apps.leg.wa.gov/rosters/CommitteeMembersByCommittee.aspx and search by committee or to http://apps.leg.wa.gov/rosters/CommitteeMembersByMember.aspx and search by name.

2.    You might find state web sites in a state of flux as all the changes are made over the coming days so be patient.  www.governor.wa.gov now shows Jay Inslee. The “Find my Legislator” page now shows the current (new) districts.

3.    A report of great interest to gifted advocates has been submitted to the Legislature and is wending its way through hearings. Further action (including filing of specific bills to implement the recommendations) is not yet known. The Quality Education Council presented its Report to the Legislature on January 15th. The QEC is the body designated by the Legislature to organize the implementation of educational reform based on bills passed in recent sessions. This report is available at http://www.k12.wa.us/LegisGov/2013documents/QEC2013Report.pdf

The three state-wide gifted organizations have written to all legislators strongly supporting the QEC recommendations on the Highly Capable Program – pasted into the next paragraph – on page 14. We urge you to make this support the basis of your contacts with your Legislators in the coming months. We want to retain our status as a part of basic education and, if possible in this session, obtain a new funding formula. Input from advocates such as you can take us a long way toward achieving these goals.

Priority Area 3: Close the Opportunity Gap for Disadvantaged Students and Students of Color
5.    The Legislature should support the strengthening of the Highly Capable Program to ensure that all students have equal access to it, consistent with the recommendations of the Highly Capable Program Technical Working Group**:
a.    The Legislature should adopt a new and uniform definition of Highly Capable Program students, as provided in the Technical Working Group report to the Legislature; and
b.    The Legislature should direct OSPI to create a common and consistent identification process for Highly Capable Program students.
c.    The Legislature should direct OSPI to create rules that allow flexibility for small school districts to implement highly capable programs until the full funding recommendations* of the QEC can be adopted by the Legislature.

*“Full funding recommendations of the QEC” can be found on page 15 of the August 13, 2012 meeting materials, Past QEC recommendations http://www.k12.wa.us/QEC/PastMeetings/default.aspx

**The Highly Capable Workgroup report can be found online at: http://www.k12.wa.us/HighlyCapable/Workgroup/default.aspx in the right sidebar.

4.    I hope that lots and lots of you are making plans to be in Olympia on Gifted Education Day, March 19, 2013. We’ll be in the Columbia Room of the Legislative Building beginning at about 8:30. Program is scheduled for 9:00 to 10:30 and then you are free to attend to the most important business of the day, talking with your legislators and educating them on the unique educational needs of highly capable students and why such programs benefit not only the individual student but society as a whole.

We’ll be providing you with a lot of material you can use in formulating your message – it is just a bit late in getting sent out due to some unexpected (aren’t they always unexpected) health problems of your correspondent and her husband taking up a lot of time just now and the big project contacting every individual legislator (147) with the statement of support of the QEC recommendations. 147 personalized emails takes a lot of time and effort!

5.    This week the Coalition formally became a member of the Network For Excellence in Washington Schools (NEWS) the lead appellant in the McCleary case. The decision in that case calls for ample (full) funding of basic education and since HCP is a part of basic education (and is not amply funded) it seemed a good match for us to be part of the appellant group.

P.S. We’re up to 645 supporters on Facebook. We need to reach 750 before GEDay so if you are a user of Facebook, please “like” us now!

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – Jan. 3rd

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HAPPY NEW YEAR

The Coalition needs your input.

Have you talked with a legislator in the past year about Highly Capable Programs/gifted education? If yes, please send us an email at wagifted@earthlink.net and tell us:

– Who you talked with
– Their District
– Topic of the conversation
– How the Legislator views the issue of programs and funding for Highly Capable students – e.g. enthusiastic supporter prepared to speak up; lukewarm; not in favor of; needs more information; a believer that “all students are gifted;” etc.
– Your name and email address in case we need to contact you.

We need this information to target our planning to build legislative support for ample funding of HCP. Thank you for your participation.

Opportunities for advocates:
1. A reminder of the Connections Conference sponsored by our partner the Northwest Gifted Child Association on February 9, 2013.

2. We present the following as an informational piece only. This does not constitute either a recommendation or endorsement.
Seabury School, Tacoma, is presenting its 3rd Annual Gifted Education Seminar on February 20th. Click here if you are interested in this event.

3. Last, but certainly not least, Gifted Education Day, March 19, 2013, Columbia Room of the Legislative Building in Olympia. More information will be forthcoming soon. Please plan to join us – March 19th.

If you are planning to be in Olympia, you can find a lot of excellent information at Visiting the State Capitol.

Other reminders:
4. We are up to 637 followers on Facebook. We hope to reach 750 by the time the Legislature begins considering ample funding for HCP. If you use Facebook, please “like” us NOW.

5. As usual, all three gifted groups need funding. Attached are two membership/donation options: The Joint Memberships in the Coalition, NWGCA and WAETAG or membership in the Coalition only. Please consider joining/donating to one or more of these support organizations.

Message from The Washington Coalition For Gifted Education – Dec. 10th

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At our general meeting on November 30, members of the Coalition decided on our priority for the next legislative session. Our main effort will be to increase state funding for HCP. This can only be done by changing the formula. In order to change the formula, we will need specific legislation since the current formula is enacted in statute.

We are waiting to see what the QEC recommends to the Legislature regarding HCP funding. In prior recommendations they have asked the Legislature to enact a new funding formula. If their recommendations this year continue to request this, and they suggest a specific piece of legislation, we will support that bill. If the recommendation does not contain suggested legislation, we will have to feel our way forward, depending on the mood of the Legislature.

We recognize that 2013 may not be the year to request more money. However, the McCleary decision requires the Legislature to show year by year progress to full funding for basic education, and a new formula for HCP goes some way to meet that requirement at a relatively low cost.

Last year, advocates gathered in Olympia to say thank you to legislators for making HCP an integral part of basic education. Our theme for Gifted Education Day, March 19, will be to continue to educate legislators on the unique needs of gifted students. Approximately 1/3rd of the Legislature will consist of new members so we have a gigantic job ahead of us. The upcoming Gifted Education Day Handbook will contain a number of suggested themes you can use when talking with your legislators. A list of legislators will be forthcoming. Start planning now to join us in Olympia on March 19th.
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Have you talked/corresponded with a legislator recently? Will you be talking/corresponding with one in the coming months? If yes, we will appreciate hearing from you about the conversation. Please email us the following information about any contacts you make.

Name and title of person contacted:

Type of contact (personal or group visit)  (email contact)  (letter)  (phone)

Issues discussed:

Is the Coalition expected to follow up with this contact?

Describe any follow-up needed:

Notes and comments; was contact supportive or enthusiastic about HCP:

Your name:

Group, if any:

Your email address or other contact information in case we need to check with you:

Note:  Legislators now request that we send everything by email and not send printed letters and materials unless specifically requested. Email addresses of current or re-elected members are on the legislature web site. Email addresses of newly elected members will be available after the start of session, January 14th.
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On the federal level, a petition garnering support for the TALENT Act, is on line. If you wish to support the petition, you can use the links on our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/wagifted  or go to NAGC  and click on Petition on the Talent Act to lend your support. http://www.nagc.org/
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Are you looking for educational opportunities online for yourself or your gifted students? The Coalition’s internet service provider recently sent this list of online education resources. I checked them and they are legitimate. Sending this list to you does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement; it is for informational purposes only.

Kahn Academy: award-winning education site for all ages (free)

Starfall: specializes in pre-K & K-2 phonics and reading (free)

Funbrain: popular free site for educational games & comics

Study Ladder: videos, activities, worksheets & more in 10 subjects (free trials + subscriptions)

Academic Earth: free videos & courses from top U.S. universities

Purdue OWL: leading free writing lab; great writing & grammar exercises

MIT OpenCourseWare: get virtually all MIT course content for free

Coursera: free online courses from the world’s top universities

Smarthistory: art history education by time, style, artist or theme

CreativeLIVE: free workshops in photography, design, filmmaking & more

Petition on TALENT Act: Sign Today!

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Please consider signing this petition to Washington DC to support the Talent Act – a piece of federal legislation for gifted — a first.

Gifted ed advocates are signing a petition on the White House website urging the Obama Administration to address the academic needs of gifted students by supporting the TALENT Act. Add your support, and share the petition with others.

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/support-unique-learning-needs-academically-gifted-students-passing-talent-act/4l6t1z05

More info can be found on the NAGC site as well.