Washington State’s Schools Chief Is So Fed Up About Underfunded Schools He Might Run For Governor

Washington State’s Schools Chief Is So Fed Up About Underfunded Schools He Might Run for Governor

Randy Dorn is frustrated. As the superintendent of schools in Washington state, he deals with chronic underfunding due to the lack of support from the legislature and Governor, even after receiving criticism from the state’s supreme court.

Dorn, who has a background as a middle school teacher, principal, and Democratic state legislator, is contemplating running as an independent candidate against incumbent Governor Jay Inslee. This may seem like a challenging campaign, but Dorn believes it is an opportune time to bring attention to the issue of school spending.

Dorn emphasizes that he has not yet made a definite decision on running, but is exploring the possibility. He sees this as a unique opportunity in the state and believes that an independent run is not out of reach for him.

The source of Dorn’s discontent lies in the lack of substantial action from the legislature following a 2012 decision by the Washington supreme court, known as "McCleary". The court declared that the state has consistently provided insufficient resources to school districts compared to the actual costs of the basic education program. Although the legislature made some progress, it failed to fully implement the court’s decision. In 2014, the court held lawmakers in contempt, and in 2015, it issued a fine of $100,000 per day, which has been largely ignored. This year, an advisory task force was established, but lawmakers adjourned without addressing the funding problems.

Dorn attributes the lack of progress to elected officials unwillingness to openly state that taxes need to be raised, instead of suggesting that revenue increases from economic growth or reallocating funds would be enough. He acknowledges that these assertions may not be deliberate lies, but rather overly optimistic wishes.

The state of school finances in Washington is deeply troubling. According to a report from the Education Law Center, which advocates for increased school spending, Washington ranks among the lowest in funding relative to the size of its economy compared to other states. The report also reveals that high-poverty districts in Washington generally do not receive additional funding to support disadvantaged students, and access to early childhood education is limited. Research shows that increased school spending generally leads to better student outcomes.

Dorn highlights that Washington is currently experiencing a severe teacher shortage and believes that increasing funding for teacher salaries will help address this issue.

Estimates of the amount of new spending required to meet the court order vary. Dorn’s office estimates it to be around $8 billion, while other projections range from $3.5 billion to over $10 billion. Dorn argues that even the lower-end figures would necessitate new revenue, which is essentially synonymous with taxes in political terms. He does not propose a specific plan for generating this revenue but is open to discussing any proposals that can gain enough support in the legislature.

If Dorn chooses to run for governor, he will face significant challenges. Currently, Alaska is the only state with an independent governor. Although Dorn has been elected twice statewide in nonpartisan races for state schools superintendent, running as an unaffiliated candidate against an incumbent would be much more difficult. It is likely that he would struggle to raise funds without the support of a political party or a clear cut constituency. During his superintendent races, he only needed to raise moderate amounts of money.

Dorn has strong criticisms for Governor Inslee, a fellow Democrat. He believes that Inslee has not taken the time to truly understand the funding issues and lacks a clear vision. According to Dorn, this is due to political reasons – Inslee does not want to develop a plan because he knows the next question will be about how to pay for it. A spokesperson for Inslee’s re-election campaign declined to comment.

When Inslee initially ran for governor in 2012, he stated that raising taxes would not be necessary to meet the court’s funding requirements. However, since then, he has proposed new taxes and an initiative to increase teacher pay by eliminating certain tax breaks. Inslee recently received the endorsement of the state teachers’ union, which strongly supports the court’s funding decision.

Bill Bryant, a commissioner at the Port of Seattle, stands as the sole representative carrying the Republican flag in this race. The position of Port Commissioner has not seen a Republican candidate successful at the polls since 1980, although the elections have been highly competitive.

Nate Bowling, an esteemed high school teacher in Tacoma and the recipient of the Washington state Teacher of the Year award, expressed his admiration for Randy Dorn’s focus in an interview. "I deeply appreciate Randy’s goals… I believe that running for governor will provide him with a platform to advocate for increased funding," he stated.

While Bowling is not very optimistic about Dorn’s chances of victory, he does emphasize that "we have prolonged the issue of funding for so long, the idea that we can solve it without generating revenue is not a realistic approach."

Dorn has garnered support from the editorial board of the Seattle Times, which, although not an outright endorsement, acknowledges that his candidacy will bring much-needed attention to the support of schools.

Dorn himself believes that the race will be worth it if he can shed light on these issues. He explains, "Entering this race is not only about winning for me, but also about ensuring that the other two candidates engage in meaningful discussions about education and its funding."

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