Flexibility for graduating seniors approved by State Board

OLYMPIA, WA- At a special Board Meeting April 8th, 2020, the State Board of Education adopted emergency rules allowing school districts to apply for greater flexibility in awarding a diploma to high school seniors impacted by closures.

The new rules are effective for the Class of 2020 immediately. They allow public school districts, charter schools, and tribal compact schools approved by the Board to waive certain state graduation requirements for individual students. To be approved, districts must make a good faith effort to give students opportunities to complete credits for high school graduation. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) gave districts guidance on how to offer students these opportunities. The waiver is an extra tool districts can use to make sure students graduate after the COVID-19 school building closures. https://www.k12.wa.us/about-ospi/press-releases/novel-coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-resources

Applications for the waiver should be available online by April 15. The Board plans to host a special meeting on April 21 to review the first round of applications.

– Washington State Board of Education

Washingtonians looking for their next career step have a new Compass

Olympia—The Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) has a new online resource: College & Career Compass is a tool that empowers adults to return to school, earn a credential, and advance in their careers. WSAC didn’t plan on launching this new tool during a public health and economic crisis. But as our local and global economy reels from the impacts of COVID-19, one lesson from the Great Recession is clear. Education after high school increases economic resilience—for individuals, their families, and their communities.

400,000 adults in Washington have some college credit but no degree. This could be the best time to go back and finish a postsecondary credential.

Before the economic fallout of COVID-19 began, about 70 percent of Washington jobs required education beyond high school. We don’t yet know the full extent of the current economic impacts or how they’ll reshape our labor market. But based on the Great Recession, we can expect that people with a postsecondary credential are less likely to find themselves unemployed and more likely to see their earnings bounce back.

Yet in Washington, too few working-age adults have the credentials—a short-term certificate, apprenticeship, or two- or four-year degree—to weather this crisis. Almost 1 million residents age 25-44 don’t have a postsecondary credential. That’s nearly half of all working-age adults in our state. Of these 1 million, about 40 percent have some college credit, placing Washington seventh in the nation for the number of adults who started but didn’t finish their degree.

That’s where College & Career Compass comes in. WSAC is launching Compass with an email campaign to over 100,000 adults who don’t have a postsecondary credential. The campaign urges people to visit the new online tool –https://compass.wsac.wa.gov/, learn about how colleges and financial aid have changed to be more supportive, and reconsider the prospect of finishing a credential.

Users can search through a wide range of schools and programs—from a three-month welding certificate to a bachelor’s degree in nursing. They can filter results by location, online and evening/weekend programs, or transfer options. When users find programs they’re interested in, they can permit the tool to share their contact information with colleges. Campuses will receive these referrals and follow up with users about programs of interest and topics that may be areas of concern. There’s still time to apply for financial aid and enroll in fall 2020.

The new Washington College Grant, one of the most generous and flexible financial aid programs in the nation, is a guaranteed benefit to students of any age who qualify. It could cover full or a partial amount of tuition, depending on students’ income. Learn more about the initiative at wsac.wa.gov/compass.

About the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC): The Washington Student Achievement Council is committed to increasing educational opportunities and attainment in Washington.

– Washington Student Achievement Council

Comcast Launches Xfinity Education Destination for Kids K-12 with Thousands of Free Resources

Comcast announced that it has made nearly 2,000 hours of programming and thousands of free titles available to Xfinity video customers to give children and parents quick and easy access to educational programming by grade level as part of the company’s comprehensive response to the COVID-19 crisis.

The collection is a joint effort with Common Sense Media, the leading source of entertainment and technology recommendations for families whose trusted age-based ratings and reviews are integrated into Xfinity on Demand. A subset of the education collection is also available on Xfinity Flex and across devices via the Xfinity Stream app and website.

“Xfinity is making thousands of hours of educational programming and resources available to our customers through Xfinity on Demand as we know how challenging it is for families right now who are suddenly homeschooling young children – many with both parents working, as well,” said Rebecca Heap, SVP of Video & Entertainment at Comcast. “The programming selected in partnership with Common Sense Media is available in one comprehensive destination organized by grade level to make it as easy as possible for parents to find what is most relevant to their family.”

Xfinity customers with X1 or Flex can say “Education” or, if their voice search language is set to Spanish, “Educación,” into the Xfinity Voice Remote to access content available to them by grades “K-2,” “3-5,” “6-8,” and “9-12” and also “for all ages” currently including: Free programs from subscription video on demand services (SVODS) Bluprint, CuriosityStream, The Great Courses Signature Collection, Grokker Yoga Fitness, HISTORY® Vault, Kids Room and The Reading Corner.

Educational series from networks and streaming services including Animal Planet, HBO, HISTORY®, Nick Jr., PBS KIDS, Prime Video, Smithsonian Channel and more. Spanish language programming available from networks including CBeebies, Discovery Familia and Kids Central.

“When schools close and other community places people congregate are off limits, it can feel overwhelming for families with kids, so we’ve partnered with Xfinity to curate a list of educational recommendations to help kids learn and keep them engaged during their time indoors,” said Ellen Pack, President of Common Sense.

– Comcast