This bill adds a legislative intent section and changes state law governing educator preparation by amending RCW 28A.410.275 and RCW 28B.10.033 and by adding new sections. It directs the Washington professional educator standards board (WPESB) to conduct periodic and ongoing reviews of approved teacher and principal preparation programs, publish review results on its website in a comparable format, update review components over time, notify programs of areas out of alignment, and require programs to identify corrective actions. The ongoing review must use components established by WPESB that include program standards, educator role standards, evidence submitted by programs, and input from community constituents and prekindergarten and K-12 partners. The bill requires each WPESB‑approved teacher preparation program, including alternative route programs, to develop and submit to WPESB a plan for partnering with school districts in its geographic region on student teacher field placements, to update the plan at least once every three years, and to allow the plan to include use of unexpended federal or state funds to support residencies and mentoring tied to placement districts. Plans must consider specified goals such as targeting high-need subject and geographic areas and using highly effective teacher mentors; mentor qualification is defined by receiving level 3 or above on both criteria 3 and 6 on the most recent comprehensive performance evaluation under RCW 28A.405.100, and having or receiving mentoring professional development. WPESB must post the plans and updates on its website. The act sets a specific effective date for Section 3 of January 1, 2027. The provided text does not give the full prior statutory language being changed, shows editorial markings without a legend, and does not specify effective dates for the other sections, so the full legal effect and any other timing details cannot be fully assessed from these excerpts.

If enacted, teacher preparation programs (including alternative routes) must work with nearby school districts to create and publicly posted plans for how student teachers will be placed and mentored, update those plans at least every three years, and prioritize placements in high‑need subjects and areas. Programs may use unexpended federal or state funds to support residencies and mentor training for candidates likely to remain in the placement district. The Washington Professional Educator Standards Board will expand ongoing program reviews, publish comparison‑friendly review results, require programs to fix any misalignment with standards, and regularly update its review components based on educator input and regulatory changes. The most affected parties are WPESB (which takes on more review, publication, and enforcement work), approved preparation programs (which must develop, submit, and periodically update partnership plans and meet review requirements), school districts (which must partner on placements and provide mentors meeting specified performance and training standards), mentors (who must meet evaluation criteria and receive mentoring PD), and student teachers (who are likely to get more targeted placements and mentoring). Programs and districts may face added administrative and training costs and need to reallocate available federal or state funds to support residencies; the text omits some implementation details and timelines beyond noting that one section becomes effective January 1, 2027, so precise duties and schedules are partially unclear from these excerpts.