• Cultural Calendar
September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month

For far too long, suicidal thoughts have often been unfairly stigmatized, with those suffering them actively discouraged from revealing their struggles. Yet such struggles occur across all ages, genders, and backgrounds, making it vitally important that the issue of suicide awareness be brought into the light.

To help accomplish this task, September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, offering an ideal opportunity to speak out and raise awareness on this vital topic — an awareness that is urgently required, with suicide the tenth leading cause of death among adults in the U.S. — and the second leading cause of death among children and young people aged 10–24. Unfortunately, these rates are increasing, and those who are young, LGBTQ, or BIPOC are especially vulnerable. LGBTQ youth are four times more likely to attempt suicide, while transgender adults, meanwhile, are almost 12 times more likely than the general population to attempt suicide.

As we promote awareness of suicide prevention and mental health treatments, services, options, and other resources, let us use this opportunity to remove the stigma and remind all that such thoughts are highly treatable and preventable. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) offers a useful list of helpful resources for parents and caregivers, children and teens, mental health providers, educators and school staff, policy makers, and more.

Meanwhile, if you or someone you know is in an emergency, call 911 immediately. If you are in crisis or experiencing difficult or suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Hotline at 1–800–273 TALK (8255), or if you would prefer text help, you can also text NAMI to 741–741 to be connected to a free, trained crisis counselor on the Crisis Text Line.

For more information, visit: https://www.nctsn.org/resources/public-awareness/national-suicide-prevention-awareness-month.

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Smiling schoolchildren next to a school bus

When districts need to understand their financial health but can’t afford expensive data visualization tools, they’re at a disadvantage. Joli Valentino, PSESD’s executive director of business and operations, envisioned a fiscal dashboard that would serve all districts. Under her leadership and the direction of Justin Lanting, director of school finance, a team spanning four educational service districts — PSESD, ESD 113, ESD 114, and ESD 171 — built a free, interactive fiscal dashboard using data from OSPI.

Read More about Making School Finance Data Work for Everyone
A smiling woman holds flowers in the middle of three people posing for an award photo.

Puyallup School District has announced their 2026 Celebrating Excellence Award recipients.

Now in its fourth year, the Celebrating Excellence awards program honors and recognizes staff, volunteers, and community partners for their outstanding work and unwavering commitment to excellence in supporting the success of students and schools within the Puyallup School District. This annual program serves as a testament to the remarkable dedication and contributions of those who go above and beyond in fostering a thriving educational community.

Read More about Puyallup School District Announces the 2026 Celebrating Excellence Award Recipients
An image of the Washington State Superintendent's Award for Educational Excellence

This week, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) announced something new: the inaugural State Superintendent's Award for Educational Excellence. Forty-six school districts across Washington are being recognized — and 16 of them are right here in the PSESD region, serving students in King and Pierce counties and on Bainbridge Island.

Read More about 16 of Our Region's School Districts Just Earned a Statewide Honor
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Deadline alert!

The School Counselor of the Year program honors the best of the best in Seattle Public Schools—counselors who are providing excellent service for their elementary, middle, or high school community! And today is the final day to receive nominations to recognize school counselors for their unique and integral roles in their schools.

Read More about Last Day to Nominate a School Counselor for Top Honors at Seattle Public Schools!
A young black girl works on a math equation on a white board.

Math helps in developing logical reasoning, analytical thinking, and effective problem-solving, and it's also essential for managing personal finances, cooking, and navigating. In addition, math skills are part of a vital foundation for those pursuing work in science, technology, engineering, business, and more.

The Association of Educational Service Districts (AESD) offers regional math coordinators who operate as a statewide system to improve math instruction and increase student achievement through coordinated professional learning and customized district support.

Read More about Helping Teachers and Districts Support Student Learning in Math
A chart demonstrating Washington's goals to reduce chronic absenteeism each year.

Last month, Washington state joined a nationwide effort led by Attendance Works to change what attendance means in our schools. It's not about tracking who shows up—it's about recognizing that when students are in class, they're connected to teachers, peers, and the support systems that help them to thrive.

The National Chronic Absence Challenge set an ambitious goal: to cut chronic absenteeism in half over five years. For Washington, that means reducing chronic absence from 27% to 14% by 2029. Our school districts across PSESD are stepping up to meet this challenge.

Read More about Getting Students in the Door: Why Washington's New Attendance Challenge Matters
A young girl shares her scientific project in class.

Today, according to statistics from UNESCO, women continue to represent less than one third of the world's researchers.

Taking place each year on February 11, the International Day for Women and Girls in Science is working to change that, and the day helps to showcase existing good practices and solutions for building more inclusive Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) ecosystems. 

Read More about Celebrating The International Day for Women and Girls in Science