Over the last several years, the Northshore School District has faced declining revenues and increasing unfunded mandates from the state and federal government. This has inevitably led to deep budget cuts year after year. In order to maintain a balanced budget, Northshore has reduced or eliminated important services and programs.

Last spring, faced with a reduction in state revenues of approximately $7 million, the budget adjustments which Northshore was forced to make were particularly devastating. Among those cherished programs and crucial services lost are interventions for struggling learners, language arts and reading support for elementary students, the Elementary Outdoor Education Program (Camp Casey), the High School Distance Learning Program, the Junior High Advanced Placement program, the credit retrieval program, “7th Period” classes, measures to reduce class size, student supervision (deans), mentor program/teacher training, Project Hope (a specialized program meeting the unique needs of students with behavioral disorders and health impairments), the employee assistance program, Culminating Project supervisors and the International Baccalaureate coordinator position.

Northshore School District was also forced to reduce or redesign the following programs and services: Home School Network, the Parents Active in Cooperative Education program (PACE), the Dual Language Program, the Elementary Advanced Placement Program, the International Baccalaureate program, student support, administrative support, secondary sports and elementary and secondary music programs.

These are difficult times, to be certain; however the budget cuts our schools continue to experience are not new. Slowly, over many years, our district, like many across the state, has been forced to make painful decisions on which programs and services to save and which ones to sacrifice. The governor’s proposed biennial budget, if put into effect in its current form, will devastate the remaining educational programs throughout the state. The very support our students need in order to be truly successful in school and, ultimately, in life, is at risk. As a society, we cannot continue to take away from our children’s educational needs. Public-education funding must be protected in this budget and from future budget cuts.

We implore our state legislators to make the protection of public-education funding a priority in the upcoming Legislative session, and we ask the members of our community to contact your state legislators and let your voice be heard on this important issue.

Washington State Legislative contact information can be found here

The Northshore Council PTSA Board of Directors