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Washington Education Association urges transparent rulemaking for continuity process
Summary
A Washington Education Association representative told JARC school closures disrupt students and urged that the Commission's continuity policy should have gone through public rulemaking with clear timelines and notice; the union also flagged concerns that an RFP could place unrelated operators into existing authorizations.
Nasuena Sheena, representing the Washington Education Association, told the committee that school closures "are very difficult" for students and families and urged a transparent process to protect continuity of services. "We want to ensure that students and families have access to education services in our state and that their education is uninterrupted and as seamless as possible," Sheena said.
Sheena criticized the Commission's April continuity process for not following a public rulemaking path and said the RFP approach raised concerns that a new operator selected through the Commission's process might not preserve mission, location or student continuity for the departing school. She called for notice, opportunities for public input and alignment with statutory requirements on transfers.
