is the primary agency charged with overseeing K-12 public education in
Washington state. Led by State School Superintendent Chris Reykdal, OSPI works with
the state’s 295 school districts to administer basic education programs and
implement education reform on behalf of more than one million public school
students. OSPI is housed in the Old Capitol Building in Olympia.
Every student ready for career, college, and life.
To provide funding, resources, tools, data and technical assistance that enable educators to ensure students succeed in our public schools, are prepared to access post-secondary training and education, and are equipped to thrive in their careers and lives.
OSPI staff align their goals with research-based
performance indicators. Goals are reviewed by the superintendent three times per year to ensure our work leads directly to student success.
The financial management of schools rests with locally elected school boards in the state’s 295 school districts. The state, through OSPI, supervises school district budgeting, accounting, and financial reporting to provide consistent financial management and accountability. The State Auditor conducts regular examinations of school districts’ finances to ensure sound accounting practices and compliance with state and federal fiscal policy.
We collect a great deal of data about our schools and operations. The School
Report Card is a parent-friendly resource for data on student demographics,
student performance and school staff in our state. The new Comprehensive
Education Data and Research System (CEDARS) is an online system that captures
every district's data on courses, students and teachers.
State and federal law requires testing to determine whether students are
achieving state standards. Our state tests fulfill the requirements of the
Washington State Educational Reform Law of 1993 (ESHB
1209) and the federal Every Student Succeeds Act.
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