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December Board Meeting Recap |
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The State Board of Education met for its regularly scheduled meeting on December 4 via Zoom. Find the complete agenda, supporting materials, and links to TVW’s video footage of the meeting on SBE’s
The Board approved Northwest Association of Independent Schools (NWAIS) as a recognized accreditor of student living accommodations for private schools.
This approval follows new rules the Board adopted in April 2025 to implement ESSB 5515 (2023). Under that law, private school student residential facilities are no longer automatically exempt from licensing by the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF). To qualify for an exemption, these facilities must now be accredited by an organization that has been formally approved by the Board.
According to SBE rules (WAC 180-55), any organization seeking this approval must first be reviewed by the Private School Advisory Committee (PSAC). PSAC’s role is to determine whether the organization’s accreditation standards adequately match DCYF’s expectations for residential programs. At its October 2025 meeting, PSAC unanimously found that NWAIS’s standards do align with these requirements.
Accreditation of a residential program is a supplemental accreditation status. An accreditor recognized by the Board for the purpose of accrediting student living accommodations must also meet the criteria in WAC 180-55-017. An appropriately recognized accreditor may accredit the residential program only for schools that are fully accredited for their academic program by the same accrediting body.
The Board received a presentation from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) on the agency’s Washington State Learning Standards Review process, including proposed updates to the standards and the anticipated adoption timeline for new standards. As required by state law, OSPI must notify the Board before initiating any development or revision of the state’s learning standards. Additionally, OPSI must present any new or revised standards to the Board and take any response it may provide under consideration prior to final adoption.
In this meeting, OSPI outlined its plans to:
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Revise math standards and include standards for data science in every grade level.
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Update financial education standards to more clearly define expectations by grade level.
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Update the English language arts (ELA) standards to integrate media literacy and digital citizenship.
In preparation for the 2026 legislative session, the Board received an update from Board staff on emerging legislative priorities from over a dozen key partners and community stakeholders.
The common themes emerging from our partner engagement include:
- Fully funding basic education to meet constitutional and statutory requirements.
- Preventing further reductions in K–12 funding, given current fiscal pressures.
- Addressing persistent funding gaps in MSOC (Materials, Supplies & Operating Costs), special education, and student transportation.
- Pausing unfunded mandates that strain district capacity.
- Protecting maintenance-level funding to ensure continuity of essential services.
During our meeting there was a disruption on the online platform that prevented the orderly conduct of our business. Pursuant to the authority delegated to the Chair in our bylaws, the virtual portion of the meeting was quickly reconvened on a new link, which was posted to our website. Our in-person location in Olympia did not change. A member of the public was able to rejoin the meeting and give public comments, and we have not received any information about individuals being unable to rejoin. We reject the disturbing words and images used to cause the disruption and support all members of our board and community impacted by this incident. We will continue our efforts to prevent similar disruptions from occurring in the future.
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Board Meetings Archive
Find the agenda and materials for all SBE meetings. New ones will be posted one week in advance of the meeting on SBE’s meetings page.
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