WASHINGTON STATE

Washington State House Democrats

HOUSE DEMOCRATS

Schools struggle with population boom, need more classrooms

Overcrowding is a growing problem at many local schools, according to a story by the Associated Press:

More than a dozen Washington school districts have added at least a school worth of students over the past two years.
   
Finding enough classrooms for those children is becoming a challenge.

The districts growing the fastest worry the problem will deepen as the Legislature makes good on its promise to require schools to shrink class sizes in kindergarten through third grade and to give every child access to free, all-day kindergarten.

That promise comes from the state Supreme Court’s McCleary ruling, which said lawmakers aren’t meeting the constitutional duty to fully fund basic education.

While money in the budget for teachers and books has gotten most of the attention, the justices also ruled that overcrowded classrooms need to be addressed in kindergarten to third-grade. Fixing the situation means building about $700 million in new classrooms around the state.

The AP story references a bipartisan effort in the House of Representatives to do exactly that, with $700 million devoted to building schools under House Bill 2797.

That legislation was co-sponsored by many Republicans and passed the House on a strong 90-7 vote, but the Senate would not allow a vote on the idea.

Local funds aren’t enough, according to the AP story:

The Pasco school district in central Washington grew by nearly 1,000 students over the past two school years. The district, which has 16,607 students this year, grew the equivalent of an elementary school in each year of the past decade, said John Morgan, the district’s assistant superintendent for operations. …

Since the district is near the bottom of the state’s list of assessed value to be taxed for schools, Pasco has struggled to keep up despite support from taxpayers and impact fees.

In a district with 14 elementary schools, three middle schools, two high schools and an alternative school, Pasco is using 196 portable classrooms. The new elementary schools they are building will be able to accommodate 750 students, which is well above the state and national average.

You can read more about House Bill 2797 here.