 We hope you all had a relaxing, enjoyable, fun-filled summer and now let the 2023-2024 school year begin! Here are few reminders to start the year off.
Over the summer the Foster Care Education Team at OSPI created a Foster Care Liaison Toolkit. We want to make sure you have the tools to do the hard work you do every day. Take some time to go through the documents and let us know if you have any suggestions, questions, or concerns. This is your toolkit so we want to make sure it works best for you.
Don’t forget the Best Interest Determination Toolkit! This is a great resource to help you schedule, plan, conduct, and start documenting Best Interest Determination meetings.
Last, stay tuned for the Building Point of Contact Toolkit – Coming Soon!
Training for Foster Care Building Point of Contact will be held on:
Wednesday, September 27th from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Tuesday, October 3rd from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
More information on registering and clock hours coming soon!
Over the summer, the U.S. Department of Education sent out a Dear Colleague Letter highlighting the key requirements for the education of students in foster care. We have added this letter to the Foster Care Liaison Toolkit, but please take some time to read and refresh your knowledge on those vital components of foster care education.
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Office Hours will resume next month and are the 2nd Thursday of every month from 1:00p.m. to 2:00 p.m. This is a great way to ask any questions you may have and connect with other liaisons.
Below is a list of the dates of our office hours so you can mark you calendars.
- September 14th
- October 12th
- November 9th
- December 14th
- January 11th
- February 8th
- March 14th
- April 11th
- May 9th
- June 13th
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The Foster Care Education Program at OSPI is creating a Foster Care Education Advisory Team and we want you to join!
The Foster Care Education Advisory Team is a group of individuals from across the state representing school districts throughout Washington State. Participants represent Foster Care Liaisons and Building Point of Contacts. We encourage diversity on the team and appreciate the wide state representation. Members will: have an open forum to share their viewpoints on areas of focus and achievements from their district/community; review and provide feedback to the OSPI Foster Care Education Team on new (or revised) OSPI documents/resources; raise questions, concerns, and recommendations regarding supports for foster care students; and engage as an active participant with the group during meetings.
Participants will serve on the Advisory Team for at least one year.
Meetings will be Friday mornings at 11 am to 12pm.
Meeting dates are 10/20, 11/17, 12/8, 1/19, 2/23, 3/15, 4/19, 5/17
Please have your application submitted by September 29th.
As the school year begins, please remember:
OSPI does not require that districts withdraw students for apportionment purposes or for CEDARS reporting.
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OSPI has recently published updated guidance on the state requirements that impact student enrollment and withdrawal.
- Compulsory Attendance (Truancy)
- Apportionment
- CEDARS
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You can find this and more guidance on withdrawing students on the Attendance Guidance, Policies and Data Reporting webpage including:
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OSPI Withdrawing Students Webinar (March 2023). Listen to OSPI clarify the state requirements and learn from local districts how they keep students enrolled while meeting apportionment and CEDARS requirements.
Overview of District Requirements when Students are Absent
 This webinar will provide an overview of the truancy process, including state laws, OSPI rules and guidance. We will share best practice examples from local districts that support students to stay engaged in a supportive, strength-based manner.
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We know a lot of districts have role changes with the start of the new school year. If you know of a turnover or addition to the Foster Care Liaison or Foster Care Building Point of Contact in your district, please remember to go to our website and update the information. Thank you! |
OSPI Foster Care Education Office 360-725-6505| fostercare@k12.wa.us
Stacey Klim, Foster Care Program Supervisor | stacey.klim@k12.wa.us
Savanna Cavalletto, Foster Care Program Specialist | savanna.cavalletto@k12.wa.us
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