The House Education Committee received a broad orientation to Washington’s K‑12 system on the first day of the 2025 legislative session, with committee staff outlining the system’s historical roots, the roles of state agencies and regional partners, and basic counts for students and districts.

Ethan Moreno, senior research analyst to the committee, told members that the state’s public school system dates back to territorial laws in the 1850s and that its administration is intentionally distributed across state, regional and local actors. "The administration of the public school system is designed by a whole to be complex and to include a diverse array of decision makers," Moreno said, adding with a touch of levity, "there will not be a test at the end of the meeting." The presentation ran through the historical Common School Law and the constitutional provisions that now shape Washington education policy.

The briefing emphasized three tiers of responsibility: state-level offices (including the superintendent of public instruction, the State Board of Education and other agencies), nine Educational Service Districts that provide regional support, and 295 locally elected school boards that govern school districts. Moreno said the state serves roughly 1,100,000 public school students and that the state’s 295 districts implement the statutory program of basic education.

Moreno described additional public-school partners: 17 charter schools (about 4,800 students), seven State Tribal Education Compact schools, the Washington State School for the Deaf and the Washington State School for the Blind. He also summarized the State Board of Education (a 16‑member body), the Professional Educator Standards Board and the Washington Charter School Commission and noted how gubernatorial appointments feed those boards.

Chair Sharon Tomiko Santos prefaced the briefing and told new committee members the presentations were intended to ground later policy work. The orientation included how the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and regional ESDs fit into state policy and funding flows.

The presentation closed with a reminder that board and district authority is shaped by statute and constitution: state law and Article IX of the Washington Constitution set limits and duties for providing an ample education to all children within the state.

Looking ahead, staff said the orientation material would serve as a foundation for more targeted briefings and committee work this session.