This bill amends existing law governing the PASS (dropout prevention) program and school meal facility use. It changes RCW 28A.175.145 to allow a high school that demonstrates improvement in its dropout prevention score (as calculated under RCW 28A.175.140) to receive a PASS award beginning in the 2011-12 school year, subject to funds available in the account in RCW 28A.175.155. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) must determine award amounts based on appropriated funds and eligible schools, establish a minimum award, and set objective prioritization criteria if funds are insufficient. OSPI may require demonstration of community matching funds or in-kind services, may withhold funds if the superintendent finds willful manipulation of dropout prevention indicators, and the statute specifies that 90 percent of each award goes to the eligible high school and 10 percent to the district, with the high school principal deciding use of the school’s share after consulting parents and staff. The amended statute also lists permissible uses of PASS funds for dropout prevention, intervention, and reengagement activities. The bill also amends RCW 28A.235.120 to allow school district directors to make kitchens, lunchrooms, or other facilities available to furnish meals at cost to children in private nonprofit educational, training, or care programs and to students attending private elementary and secondary schools. It recodifies RCW 28A.623.030 into chapter 28A.235 RCW and repeals a specified set of RCW sections listed in the bill. These are modifications to existing law, a recodification, and a set of repeals. The changes create new eligibility and procedural rules for PASS awards, set allocation and oversight procedures, and expand permissible use of school meal facilities; they do not create new crimes or change criminal penalties. Funding and award availability are expressly subject to appropriations or otherwise available funds. Important details not included in the provided text are the exact method for calculating the dropout prevention score, the definition and duties of “graduation coaches,” the content of the recodified RCW 28A.623.030, the specifics of the funding account in RCW 28A.175.155, and any effective dates or appropriation amounts beyond the stated 2011-12 start for awards.

If enacted, more high schools that show measurable improvement in their dropout-prevention score would become eligible for targeted PASS grant money starting in 2011-12, with most of each award (90%) going directly to the high school under the principal’s control after consultation with parents and staff and 10% to the district. That money would likely be used for things like graduation coaches, tutoring, reengagement programs, internships, counseling, early warning systems, mentoring, parent outreach, and early learning; OSPI will decide award sizes, set a minimum, create prioritization rules when funds are limited, can require community matching or in-kind support, and can withhold funds if it finds indicators were manipulated, so schools and districts face new opportunities for local programming but also new administrative responsibilities, possible fundraising needs, and compliance risks. The bill also allows districts to make school kitchens and lunchrooms available so private nonprofit programs and private school students can be served meals at cost, provided food expenses don’t exceed expected revenues (including federal aid and donations), which may let more children get meals without district subsidy but requires careful budget tracking. Important details needed to judge budget and operational impact are missing from these extracts—specifically how the dropout-prevention score is calculated, the funding available in the referenced account, and precise definitions (for example, of “graduation coaches”)—so the exact sizes of awards, net costs, and enforcement practices remain uncertain.