State confirms Last Day of School for Students and Seniors

On April 29 the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) adopted temporary rules related to school instructional days during the 2019-20 school year as a result of the impact of COVID-19 campus closures. Based on guidance released to school districts on April 30, the last day for Walla Walla Public School students will be pushed back five days from Friday, June 12 to Friday, June 19. Graduation dates remain the same for high school students.

As part of the state's new order, all school districts must add five instructional days to their school year to make up for lost learning time. In order to maintain graduation dates, seniors will be provided five additional days of learning experience the week following graduation. A focus on college, career, and post-high school planning will be the focus of instruction as seniors partner with counselors, advisors and other staff in order to ensure a successful launch beyond high school. 

While OSPI expects most districts across the state will also need to apply for an instructional day waiver, despite the added five days, Walla Walla will not. One of few districts across the state, Walla Walla was able to quickly convert to a distance learning program following the Tuesday, March 17 school closure order by Governor Inslee. Requiring only five days to convert and prepare for the transition, Walla Walla's distance learning program officially began on Tuesday, March 24 after learning materials, Chromebooks and WiFi hotspots were delivered to families on Monday.

"I am so proud of our staff who rose to the call so quickly ensuring minimal loss of instruction for students was realized during this unprecedented closure," stated Superintendent Dr. Wade Smith. "In mere days, customized learning packets were created, secondary instruction was converted to Google Classroom, and communication and coordination with families was implemented."

As the district approaches the end of the school year additional communication will be shared with students and families regarding technology check in and other end of year processes. Families are encouraged to visit the district's Distance Learning webpage regularly at https://www.wwps.org/distancelearning or contact their school if they have any questions.