Washington Innovative Schools - Six in Pierce County

More accolades for Tacoma area schools.

First the Tacoma School of the Arts was recognized by the Kennedy Center as an innovative school, and the Lincoln Center at Lincoln High School was honored with a Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Education. And now both schools, along with four other Pierce County schools (four total in Tacoma) have been recognized by the Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction as Designated Existing Innovative Schools. The Lincoln Center, the School of the Arts, the Science and Math Institute, and Stafford Elementary (all in Tacoma), along with nearby Clover Park and Bonney Lake high schools have been recognized for the bold, creative and innovative ways in which they provide instruction to their students. The schools also share in common high expectations of students and teachers, and a wide range of educational options and support.

Identifying these schools, and others around the state is a part of legislation passed earlier this year to identify and recognize Washington State schools already implementing innovative approaches, and to encourage other schools to implement creative and high quality programs. There’s been a lot of conversation around the impacts that budget cuts at all levels will have on the education available to public school students. Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn has a tough job, but in his announcement of the Innovative Schools list, he made clear a commitment to retaining basic education funding, taking a position against a shorter school year. There are a lot of tough decisions to be made in terms of budgets right now, but our public school system will be important to the state’s future, and innovative schools like those recognized on this list seem to offer a lot of potential in strengthening our communities.

For more on the program, and a complete list of schools honored, visit the OSPI website.