State Rep. Jim Moeller isn’t thrilled with Gov. Chris Gregoire’s plan to transfer supervision of the state School for the Blind and the Washington State Center for Childhood Deafness and Hearing Loss from her office to the state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Moeller, D-Vancouver, will hold a legislative forum Saturday in Olympia to hear public comment on the plan. He told a state Senate committee this week that the governor’s proposal to “realign” the two Vancouver-based schools has received “neither the appropriate level of fiscal scrutiny nor the appropriate level of public involvement.”
Under current law, the Washington State School for the Blind is administered by its superintendent, Dean Stenehjem, who works with a board of trustees. The governor appoints both the superintendent and the trustees.
The governor also appoints the director of the Washington State Center for Childhood Deafness and Hearing Loss and its trustees. The former Washington School for the Deaf was given a new name and a broader mission under legislation passed in 2009.
Both residential schools serve students from throughout the state and also provide support to non-resident students in their home districts. Under the governor’s plan, both would become programs administered by the state schools chief.
Reason not understood
Moeller said Thursday he fails to understand the reason for the change, which was announced by the governor as part of her budget roll-out.
“I have not seen any evidence from the governor’s office that it would save any money,” he said. “I’m waiting to see that, because why fix something unless it’s broken? I simply haven’t heard any concrete reasoning, either financial or otherwise, for making such a dramatic change in the way these two long-standing institutions are governed.”
He also said the governor has failed to do enough to involve students, parents and advocates for children in the decision-making process.
“I understand that there’s a huge budget and revenue crisis, and I know that we have to make some very big changes in the way we do things. But we need to be sure that we are not making changes just for the sake of making changes,” he said.
In terms of day-to-day operations, Moeller said, the current system gives the schools “a direct line to the governor’s office. That’s important to have if you are having problems or need assistance. If you are buried in a large agency like OSPI, I don’t think you are going to have that direct contact with the executive branch.”
Superintendents
Superintendents of the two schools declined to say how they view the governor’s proposal.
“I believe the statement from the governor was that this was part of a reorganization,” said Rick Hauan, superintendent of the Washington State Center for Childhood Deafness and Hearing Loss. “The way the bill is written, it just transfers governance. We work very closely with OSPI now.”
Stenehjem said there were still “a lot of unknowns” about the change.
“It’s part of governmental reform,” he said. “They are looking at aligning functions within government.
The biggest change, he said, is that “the OSPI at this time does not operate schools. This would be new for them.”
Moeller’s forum will be from 10 a.m. to noon in Hearing Room A of the John L. O’Brien Building on the Capitol campus. Interpreters and Braille copies of the proposed legislation will be provided.
Moeller expects representatives from the governor’s office, OSPI and stakeholder groups to be in attendance. “We can all sit down in the same room and have a conversation,” he said.
Kathie Durbin: 360-735-4523 or kathie.durbin@columbian.com.
