On January 11, 2017 Superintendent Chris Reykdal spoke at the State Board of Education meeting attended by the Private School Board Member Judy Jennings and Suzie Hanson, ED of WFIS.
In his presentation, SI Reykdal differentiated the roles of the State Board and those of the Districts. He defines the job of the Districts as “teaching students.” Whereas the State Board he said, is to “interpret law with enough flexibility so Districts can serve their students.” Superintendent Reykdal also reconfirmed his commitment to not using standardized testing as a gateway to a diploma.
The Superintendent talked about the postponement of the states application for ESSA. He is looking for more community engagement on priorities and is having Deputy Superintendent Micheala Miller head this effort. As a result, WFIS is in a holding pattern before work can start with the OMBUDS that is critical in assuring equitable services for our students.
WFIS has written a welcome letter to the superintendent on behalf of our schools and will be meeting with him in the next couple of weeks to gain clarity on his perspective regarding private schools and our role in the education framework in the state.
