Annie Pennucci - January 2008

The Washington State Legislature directed the Institute to “develop an estimate of the number of students statewide likely to participate in” high school completion programs authorized by 2007 legislation (HB 1051). Based on the most recent data available, up to 424 students in the class of 2008 would be eligible statewide. This report briefly reviews the methods used to develop this estimate.

Stephanie Lee - January 2008

The 2007 Washington State Legislature directed the Institute to study programs and policies that show evidence of reduced involvement in the child welfare system. The study intends to provide the legislature with reliable estimates of the costs and benefits of evidence-based prevention and intervention programs; this update outlines our research steps.

Laura Schrager, Corey Nunlist - January 2008

The Foster Care to College Partnership is a three-year collaboration among six agencies to improve high school graduation and college enrollment rates among foster youth. One of the major initiatives undertaken by the partnership is a four-day summer program to encourage post-secondary enrollment and persistence among youth in foster care.

This report presents information from surveys filled out by participants at the first three summer programs. These surveys show an increase in readiness to apply to college, knowledge of how to apply for financial aid and pay for college, and knowledge of college life. Later reports by the Institute will examine whether the program affects college enrollment and college persistence rates.

Robert Barnoski - December 2007

This presentation was given by Robert Barnoski, Ph.D., at the Honoring Cultural Communities in an EBP World conference, held December 4, 2007 in Tacoma.

Steve Aos, Marna Miller, Annie Pennucci - December 2007

The 2007 Washington State Legislature created the Joint Task Force on Basic Education Finance (Task Force). The Task Force must review and propose changes to the definition of basic education and current funding formulas. The legislative goals include: (a) realigning the basic education definition with the “new expectations of the state’s education system” and, (b) developing a funding structure “linked to accountability for student outcomes and performance.” The Legislature directed the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (Institute) to provide staff support to the Task Force. In addition to general staff services, the legislation requires the Institute to provide three reports to the Task Force: an initial report by September 15, 2007, a second report by December 1, 2007, and a final report by September 15, 2008. This document is the Institute’s second report.

Wade Cole, Annie Pennucci - December 2007

This final report addresses both components of the Institute’s assignment. The first section summarizes performance on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) and analyzes the characteristics of students in the classes of 2008 and 2009 who have not yet met standard. The second section considers the impact of alternative assessment options on overall met-standard rates, discusses the cultural appropriateness of various student assessment options, describes the initial implementation of the Collection of Evidence (COE) option, and provides an overview of “multiple measures” assessment systems.

Mason Burley, Jim Mayfield - December 2007

In 2005, the Washington State Legislature passed E2SSB 5763, making a number of changes to the provision of substance abuse and mental health treatment funded by the state. The law directed the Department of Social and Health Services to establish two sites for the Integrated Crisis Response (ICR) Pilot Program.

The legislation also directed the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (Institute) to determine if the ICR pilots cost-effectively improved mental health/chemical dependency evaluation, treatment, and outcomes of clients detained under the new statute. This preliminary report describes the key characteristics of clients investigated and detained at the ICR pilot sites during the first 16 months of the program. A final report will be published in September 2008.

Elizabeth Drake - November 2007

The 2007 Legislature directed the Institute to evaluate whether participation in Washington’s work release facilities impacts key outcomes, such as recidivism. The Institute was also directed to conduct a comprehensive review of all research evidence on work releases.

Elizabeth Drake, Laura Harmon, Robert Barnoski - October 2007

In 2005, the Office of Financial Management (OFM) obtained grant funding and contracted with the Institute to conduct an audit of Washington State's criminal history records systems for adult felonies. Databases included in the audit are from the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), Department of Corrections (DOC), Sentencing Guidelines Commission (SGC), and Washington State Patrol (WSP). The audit focuses on the completeness and accuracy of Washington's criminal history data system.

Our findings demonstrate that, although the state's criminal justice databases are not 100 percent accurate and complete, they are reasonably accurate. The databases can be improved by relying on: fingerprints for offender identification, electronic transmission of data without manual intervention, and a multi-agency criminal records work group to implement improvements.

Scott Matson, Roxanne Lieb - October 2007

Nine states have statutes that authorize the confinement and treatment of highly dangerous sex offenders following completion of their criminal sentence: Arizona, California, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Dakota, Washington, and Wisconsin. These laws are commonly referred to as “sexual predator” laws. Other statutes authorize commitment and treatment for sex offenders as an alternative to sentencing. This paper reviews the four principle categories of civil commitment laws for dangerous sex offenders. Summaries of individual state statutes are also included.