Investing in education

Senate Democrats put students first

From our youngest preschoolers to high school seniors, Washington’s students will soon reap the benefits of a legislative session that saw historic investments in both early learning and K-12 education. Guided by the Washington Learns recommendations, Senate Democrats worked hard to secure a place for Washington’s public school system among the top in the nation. Our many successes this session include:

• Securing the largest education funding increase in state history.
• Creating a voluntary rating system of early learning programs so families can make informed choices about child care.
• Approving the phase-in of all-day kindergarten, beginning with high-poverty schools.
• Making the biggest investment in K-12 education in our state’s history, including full funding for voter initiatives to reduce class size and increase teacher pay.
• Creating a career and technical education program for middle school students to give them a competitive edge in math, science and technology careers.
• Dedicating a record $880 million for school construction so our students can learn in safe, modern schools.
• Creating a dropout prevention program to give at-risk students the tools they need to complete high school.
• Establishing a statewide leadership academy for school administrators.
• Expanding alternative ways to demonstrate the skills and knowledge measured by the Washington Assessment of Student Learning.
• Creating the College Bound Scholarship to reduce barriers to higher education for low-income students and provide incentives to middle school students and their families to consider college.

Senate Democrats are dedicated to a statewide system of early learning and K-12 programs that prepare students for college and work. This session, we made enormous strides toward helping every student achieve academic success.