Register to VOTE!

Did you know only 50% of parents in the Issaquah School District are registered to vote? Be a part of the process and let your voice be heard.  Register to vote at:

http://www.kingcounty.gov/elections/registration.aspx

Legislative News

    The Special Session that stared on November 28th, 2011 concluded on December 14th, 2011 and the legislature began work to decide how to address the nearly $1.4 billion short-fall that remains in this biennium budget and to put $600,000 in reserves.    An "Early Action" 2012 supplemental budget of about $480 million was passed in the House 86-6 and the Senate 42-6.  It is a combination of actual cuts, transfers and delayed payments, as well as $50 million in unclaimed property and another $83 million of savings captured from "under-spending" and budget adjustments.

Two funding changes for K-12 were made: moving bus depreciation payments from October to the following August - for a one-time savings of $49 million; and adding a June count day for enrollment purposes - for anticipated ongoing savings to the state in general apportionment payments to school districts and in categorical programs.

The regular 60-day session begins on January 9th, 2012.  That's when the really tough decisions face lawmakers.  Cuts to big-dollar, unprotected education spending remain on the table, including cutting school days, reducing or restructuring Local Effort Assistance (LEA) which may also affect our local levy lid, increasing class sizes or reducing K-12 staff salaries again.  Other ideas still in play are shifting the June 30 apportionment payment to July 1, thereby shifting the obligation to the following year; reducing bonuses for National Board Certified Teachers; and anything else not explicitly seen as protection under "basic education".

In addition, Gov. Chris Gregoire had an even larger list of "cuts" ideas she delivered to the legislators in October.  Any of those may be fair game, although some, such as eliminating all bus transportation for students, is so unpopular it is highly unlikely to be in the final supplemental budget.

While legislators couldn't agree on the types or size of big cuts to make, they do agree that K-12 will be touched when they return next year.  Both House and Senate leadership have stated there is no way to close the budget shortfall without K-12 taking some cuts - how much and where those cuts will fall is still up for debate, as are the various proposals floating around regarding new revenue.  Such revenue proposals include:

* Gov. Gregoire's proposed half-cent sales tax increase for 3 years
* Eliminating or limiting tax exemptions
* Requiring sales tax collection on Internet Sales (this would need to be done at the Federal level)
* A property tax shift dedicated to K-12 (increasing State education property tax and reducing local levy authority)
* An Income Tax

Check here throughout this short session to find out how the budget cuts will affect our school.

Remember to stay involved! Contact your legislators and let them know your thoughts. They want to hear from you. You can make a difference!

To find out who your legislators are visit: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/

 

ALL IN FOR KIDS!

After a four month marathon of mailings, school displays, Click for Kids Days and calling nights, the Issaquah Schools Foundation’s All in for Kids Annual Fund Campaign came to a close on Saturday, November 19 having raised $325,000 in support of Issaquah School District students and schools. The final figure reflects a 37% increase over the 2010 campaign receipts and indicates the community’s growing recognition of the need for private support of public schools.

"We are thrilled by the outpouring of support,” stated campaign Co-Chair, Camille Vaska. “Our message of ‘All In’ really resonated with the community, and we received donations of all amounts, from $5 to $5,000. This was our goal—to encourage as many people as possible to give what they could afford." Added fellow Co-Chair, Karen Stevens, “It’s not how much you give that matters. What’s important is that you, as a parent, resident or business owner, play a role in ensuring the current health of our schools and the future success of our children.”

All in for Kids campaign donations will be used to support Foundation programs that enrich and expand learning opportunities for all Issaquah School District students. Included are free After-School Homework Labs, the VOICE Mentoring Program, Financial Literacy, National Board Certification Scholarships to teachers and Academic Enrichment Grants that fund innovation and creativity in classroom instruction as well as basic needs and the arts. In the past two years, the Foundation has also added initiatives that expand student’s education in critical STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields—Robotics Clubs funding, Computer Science and Web Design classes, Career and Tech Education scholarships for teachers, and support for an elementary science curriculum adoption. This spring, the Foundation will use a portion of All in for Kids proceeds to help the District underwrite the cost of its fall 2012 Elementary Literacy Curriculum adoption.

Contributions to the All in for Kids Annual Fund Campaign will be accepted through the end of the year. Readers may go to www.isfdn.org to learn more about the Foundation and to make an online donation. Donations are also accepted by phone at 425-391-8557