Association of Educational Service Districts (AESD)

AESD. Representing Washington’s Nine Educational Service Districts…our taxpayers best investment!

ESDs were formed when individual County Superintendent of School offices were consolidated and reorganized to reduce duplication, equalize educational opportunities, and provide a more effective reporting and accountability system to the state legislature.

ESDs link local public and private schools with one another and with state and national resources. ESD Cooperatives and programs enhance educational opportunities because they realize significant savings, allowing districts to send more dollars directly to the classroom and provide special services that might otherwise be unavailable to their regions.

As you can see, ESDs play a crucial role in addressing the challenges in our public schools. Geographically closer to local schools and their district offices, the ESDs serve as regional liaisons between the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), State Board of Education, and the Legislature.

As ESDs enter the middle of their fourth decade of service, the scope and nature of linking and service responsibilities reflect the change facing our public schools today. In a time of increased public accountability, of both student performance and management of public resources, ESDs in Washington are “the” model of efficiency and leverage. In the 2003-04 school year alone, the nine ESDs leveraged approximately $4 million dollars of state funding into approximately $186 million dollars in grants, cooperatives, and other professional services to local school districts. Stated another way, ESDs created approximately $40 of service for every $1 of taxpayer investment!!

As our state’s citizens demand higher standards and ever increasing demands on educational programs, the ESDs of Washington state will continue to provide critical services such as teacher and staff training, networking and technology integration, and direct services for students with special needs and early childhood education. We will continue to create new opportunities, leverage more resources, and facilitate broad support for the benefit of all students and their families in Washington State.