LEV In Action
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LEV Testimony
Here's a sampling of some of the testimony LEV staff, board members, and supporters have given during the 2010 session.
SB 6759 - Include early learning in basic education
As a researcher, I understand the critical importance of the early years to cognitive development. Dr. Pat Kuhl’s research from the University of Washington Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences on language development proves that kids from diverse backgrounds come to school with huge differences in the richness of their vocabulary. These are significant differences - more than million words. These differences put at-risk children at a great disadvantage right from the start.
Since we can’t very easily change home environment, we can at least as a civil society offer equal opportunities as early as possible for kids to help close the inequality gap.
Ensuring that every child in need attends quality preK would help close the inequality gap and help ensure children arrive to kindergarten ready to succeed.
Yaffa Maritz
LEV Foundation board member
View Yaffa's full testimony
Research from prominent economists has shows that for every dollar invested in high quality PreK saves taxpayers up to $7 later. Not only are there savings from remedial and juvenile justice programs, but over the long-term, these kids are more likely to graduate from high school, gain stable employment, and contribute positively to our community.
Protecting PreK investments would ensure that the program could not be cut and that all eligible children would be served.
Janet Levinger
LEV board member
View Janet's full testimony
If all at-risk children were guaranteed quality preK, my foster daughter would be leaps and bounds ahead of where she is right now. There would be no waiting lists. Parents and caregivers would not need to struggle to find quality. The State would save a lot of money. And, guess what? At-risk children would be much further ahead - where they deserve to be.
There are 19,000 other children in foster care in Washington State with stories like hers, and they need us to support them with real education FROM THE START in order to become productive citizens. Without our hard work right now, they won’t have the foundation to be the people they want to be.
Emma Margraf
Parent & LEV supporter
View Emma's full testimony
HB 2731 - At-risk children program
Research from prominent economists has shows that for every dollar invested in high quality PreK saves taxpayers up to $7 later. Not only are there savings from remedial and juvenile justice programs, but over the long-term, these kids are more likely to graduate from high school, gain stable employment, and contribute positively to our community.
Janet Levinger
LEV board member
View Janet's full testimony
Frank Ordway
LEV Director of Field and Community Partnerships
Senate Bill 6696 - Regarding education reform.
Race to the Top and its 4 priority areas are not trial balloons for flavors of the month. This focus on college and career ready standards, great teachers and leaders, using data to improve instruction, turning around lowest performing schools is right on the money .
Lisa Macfarlane
LEV Director of External Affairs
View Lisa's full testimony
Senate Bill 6562 - Regarding tuition-setting authority at institutions of higher education
Heather Cope
LEV Policy Analyst
HB 2670 - Expand the levy base to include funds that were cut from school budgets
Testimony Talking Points:
• LEV’s roots are in levies, and we support this bill.
• We support it for the same reason we support preservation of Local Effort Assistance.
• Districts are relying on these dollars to keep the doors open.
• Pass before Feb. 9th elections so districts can collect these funds.
George Scarola
LEV Legislative Director
HB 2915 - Regarding mathematics and science high school graduation requirements.
Testimony Talking Points:
• LEV opposes HB 2915.
• We acknowledge that we are not going to hit the current dates for math and science requirements -- but what is missing from this bill is a plan.
• Further, lowering the passing bar on exams would be a disservice to the children of our state.
• Our STEM employers are asking for graduates with more science and math mastery, not less.
• Math remediation rates at 2- and 4-year colleges range from 30 to 50 percent: lowering the bar would surely increase these rates.
• You all received a letter from the Excellent Schools Now coalition opposing HB 2915. LEV is a member of this coalition, along with many other advocates, including those representing the tech industries.
Heather Cope
LEV Policy Analyst
Chad Magendanz
Parent activist and Issaquah School Board member
HB 1949 - Appointing student members on the board of trustees for community colleges.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you this morning. My name is Maggie Wilkens. I am the youth organizer at League of Education Voters. I am speaking on behalf of community college students across Washington state and on behalf of the LEague of Education Voters in support of HB 1949. LEV has been working with community college students in the Seattle area who were not able to make it down today because they had class they weren't able to miss.
League of Education Voters supports HB 1949. We believe it is important to create consistency in how we incorporate student perspective between 2-year and 4-year students and their respective campus policies. Regardless of whether or not a student it attending UW or South Seattle Community College, both should have the right to take ownership of their educational experience.
There is no denying that students provide an incredibly useful perspective to the governing bodies of school campuses, and appointing students to their respective boards is merely staying consistent with the opportunities that are already granted to students at 4-year universities.
Maggie Wilkens
LEV Youth Organizer
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