Institutional Education

Contact Information

Ada Daniels
Lead Institutional Schools Program Supervisor

Emmelia Wargacki
Institutional Education Specialist

Washington state provides K–12 basic education services to incarcerated and previously incarcerated juveniles. The goal is to provide these students the opportunity to meet the same learning standards that all children in the state are expected to meet. OSPI oversees all nine Educational Service Districts and more than 25 school districts that provide these services to six programs:

Residential habilitation centers
Long term juvenile institutions
Community facilities

County detention centers
Department of Corrections
County and city jails

Education Advocate

Education Advocates provide counseling support, case management, academic and vocational coaching, and referral to youth who have been previously incarcerated or diverted from the juvenile justice system. They also provide these supports to those who have dropped out of school to successfully transition back to schools, vocational training, college, GED programs, or jobs. 

Children & Families of Incarcerated Parents

Children and Families of Incarcerated Parents Support aims to provide information and technical assistance to parents, families, teachers, school administrators and the public, in order to improve services to those children with parents in prison.

Structure & Accountability Advisory Group

The Institutional Education Structure and Accountability Advisory Group provides advice, assistance, and information to OSPI and the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) for the development of recommendations for a reformed institutional education system.