S-0510.1
SENATE BILL 5210
State of Washington
69th Legislature
2025 Regular Session
By Senators Liias, Harris, Cortes, Gildon, Hasegawa, Nobles, Pedersen, Salomon, Shewmake, and C. Wilson
Prefiled 01/09/25. Read first time 01/13/25. Referred to Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education.
AN ACT Relating to establishing the ninth grade success grant program; adding a new section to chapter 28A.175 RCW; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that ninth grade is a pivotal year for students and that ninth grade success is one of the most predictive indicators of on-time graduation. Research indicates that students are more likely to fail a class in the ninth grade than in any other grade, but also shows that students who pass all their ninth grade classes are up to four times more likely to graduate.
The legislature further finds that targeted approaches have been shown to increase ninth grade on-track scores in schools. These approaches include establishing success teams that regularly review data regarding student attendance, behavior, and grades to identify when a student may be falling behind and intervene with strategic supports. Through coaching and collaboration these success teams also share best practices, evaluate outcome data, and progress towards creating a sustainable framework that can be implemented in subsequent school years.