News
An educational legacy…
Nora B. Adams, born in Texas, November 20, 1928; her father was the local principal of the African American school and her family encouraged her to seek the best education possible. Nora moved to Dallas and graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in 1945. In 1946, Nora moved to Seattle and received her B.A…
Working for equality…
Bertha Pitts Campbell was born in Kansas, June 30, 1889; she became a prominent civil rights activist in Seattle. Bertha was the only African American student at Montrose High School where she delivered the valedictorian address in 1908. She attended Howard University as one of the 22 women at the school and co-founded Delta Sigma…
Securing Washington's Clean Energy Future
From Jay Inslee, January 2018 Policy Brief SECURING WASHINGTON’S CLEAN ENERGY FUTURE Inslee’s proposal will cut emissions, promote clean energy and protect state from worsening fires, floods, droughts Signs of climate change are all around us. In Washington state and along the West Coast, we are experiencing droughts, record heat, salmon die-offs in warmer streams,…
Access to Democracy
Democracy Handout Over 1 million Washingtonians were eligible to register to vote in 2016 but didn’t, and of those registered nearly 1 in 5 didn’t vote. The November 2017 General Election set a record low for voter turnout – only 37 percent of voters returned their ballots. Gov. Jay Inslee is joining legislators to introduce…
Going the distance…
Helga Estby born May 30, 1860 traveled from Norway and arrived in Michigan in 1871. In 1876, she married and ventured to Mica Creek near Spokane, Washington. Due to the Panic of 1893 and her husband’s injuries, the family farm and the family of ten were in jeopardy. The mother and eldest daughter took on…
Ode to Ramona…
Beverly Atlee Cleary born April 12, 1916, became one of the most famous female authors in the world. Growing up in Portland, Oregon, she struggled with reading until she found the librarian that opened her world. In 1939, she graduated with a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Washington. Ms.…
Running the Race….
Yolanda Gail Devers born November 19, 1966 in Seattle, Washington, became a two-time Olympic champion in the 100 meters race. In 1988 Devers started training for the Summer Olympics and, although qualifying, she faced mounting health problems and was eliminated from the semi-finals. Diagnosed in 1990 with Graves’ disease, Ms. Devers underwent radioactive iodine and…
Sick Leave Changes
On January 1, 2018, civil service rule changes will go into effect as a result of I-1433 (also see the Paid Sick Leave Factsheet for more detailed information), which requires all employers to provide paid sick leave to their employees. How does this affect you as a state employee who already accrues paid sick leave?…
Promoting Community…
Dawn Mason was born July 2, 1945, the youngest of three daughters, she received her BA in 1989 from The Evergreen State College and earned her M.Ed. from Antioch University in 2002. Dedicated to education she became the co-founder of Parent for Student Success in 1989. She served as the president of First Place serving…
Local politics…
Carrie Shumway born September 7, 1858 in Massachusetts and moved to Skagit in 1883 and Seattle in 1888. Ms. Shumway graduated from Mount Holyoke College, a rare achievement for women of the time. As a school teacher, she worked at T.T. Minor Grad School, Seattle High School, becoming Vice Principal, and helped establish Tacoma’s first…