Washington Elementary Tapped by State Board as 17-18 State Recognized School

May 20, 2019 — Washington Elementary has been chosen by the Washington State Board of Education (SBE) as a 2017-2018 State Recognized School. This distinction is part of the SBE’s newly redesigned school recognition system. 

The new system aligns with changes brought about by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) accountability system and by the desire of the organizations to make the school recognition system more equitable. The newly designed system also incorporates state level and local information to identify schools that are exemplars in terms of growth and achievement.

“We are excited about this new approach to school recognition, which is designed to identify schools throughout the continuum of support,” said Kevin Laverty, Chair of the State Board of Education. “Recognized schools are in the top 20% on multiple measures and are closing achievement gaps or have all student groups achieving at a high level. Every school which earned a State Recognized School distinction this year should be very proud of their students and their staff.”

Washington Elementary was one of 216 schools to be recognized which have demonstrated exemplary performance or who have made significant progress closing opportunity and achievement gaps in the Washington School Improvement Framework (WSIF) measures. 

“I am so proud of the commitment to excellence shown by our staff and students,” said Keith Collins, Principal at Washington Elementary.  “Earning this distinction affirms the work we do that aligns with our mission of helping each student learn at high levels.”