For the sixth year in a row, Federal Way Public Schools (FWPS) Board of Directors has been recognized as a Board of Distinction. This year, FWPS is one of 34 school districts who received the award. There are 295 school boards across Washington state that may choose to apply for the distinction. 

The FWPS Board of Directors were recognized for “exemplary evidence of ongoing professional development, addressing opportunity gaps, and practicing governance that reflects the Washington School Board Standards,” according to Washington State School Directors’ Association (WSSDA) who granted the award. 

 “It’s been an honor to receive the Board of Distinction for six years in a row. As a board, we are committed to the success of each and every scholar in Federal Way Public Schools,” said FWPS Board President Geoffery McAnalloy. “We continue to see growth and success, even with the impacts of the pandemic - high graduation rates, increased student voice and family engagement, and more early learning opportunities. As a Board, we’ll continue our policy work to keep a focus on equity, continuous improvement, and each scholar graduating with the academic knowledge and 21st century skills ready to succeed as a responsible citizen.” 

Former FWPS Superintendent Dr. Tammy Campbell, shared, “The strength of the governance team in Federal Way Public Schools has been their consistent focus on leading for equity and excellence – they prioritized this work which allowed our scholars to thrive.”

“We are 100% committed to the success of each and every scholar in the district,” said Superintendent Dr. Dani Pfeifer. “This award is well-deserved and highlights hard work and dedication of our staff and the sponsorship of the FWPS Board of Directors. I’m fortunate to work alongside this group of individuals who are wholly focused on our scholars.” 

National research shows a correlation between highly successful school board actions and student outcomes. The Board of Distinction application is a rigorous process that provides evidence of the board of directors’ work in partnership with the superintendent and how their actions helped their school districts close opportunity gaps. 

FWPS’ Board of Directors’ application demonstrated clear data of how they positively impacted student success in three key areas:

• how the board engaged in professional development to support the success of the school district,
• how the board supported closing opportunity gaps,
• and how the board of directors ensured district information and decisions were clearly communicated across the community.

Multiple outcomes were shown for addressing the opportunity gap and supporting the success of FWPS scholars:

• growth among multiple racial groups in scholars entering kindergarten ready in all 6 domains, according to WAKids data;
• increase in FAFSA and WASFA completion rates, currently 20 percent higher than the state average;
• more favorable outcomes reported by scholars in engagement, school safety, supportive learning environments, and teacher student relationships between Fall 2019 and Spring 2021;
• and scholars of all races have increased taking dual credit and advanced courses; FWPS outperforms the RoadMap region in this area.

The FWPS Board of Directors will be honored with other Board of Distinction award winners on November 19, 2021 at the WSSDA Annual Conference. At that time, the association will also announce 2021 Boards of the Year winners.