As School-Related Personnel in Washington’s PreK-12 public schools, we write to you to request your help.

We work hard every day to provide a safe, clean, nutritious, caring, educational environment for our students. We support and care for students, we prepare the meals, type the documents, clean the rooms and hallways, keep students safe, drive the busses, tend the grounds, file the records, and maintain the machinery, among other vital work – all while also serving students as mentors and confidants. We are the backbone of our schools.

Despite doing this vital work, however, we are not treated with respect, not paid adequately, and not given the dignity that we deserve in the workplace. We are overworked, understaffed, underpaid, and undervalued.

We believe that you understand these things, but we need your help. We need wages that allow us to work just one job, afford the healthy foods our families need, and enjoy leisure time activities. We know that you will be submitting your OSPI formal budget request later this year. We call on you, in that request, to press Olympia lawmakers to allocate the money necessary to fund the salary increase for paraeducators that you requested in the 2024 session and expand it to include all school related personnel.

Adequate wages would demonstrate the respect we deserve and would contribute significantly to improving our quality of life, along with that of the students, families, and communities we work to support.

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