The Capital Metro Independent Investigative Team (CMIIT) is investigating an officer-involved shooting that occurred in Olympia around 3:15 p.m. Tuesday after officers responded to a disturbance call at a home off 6th Avenue Northwest.
While no fatalities were reported, the extent of any injuries is currently unknown as the investigation into what led up to the incident is underway.
OLYMPIA, Wash. – An investigation is underway after a shooting in Olympia on Tuesday.
What we know:
The incident happened at about 3:15 p.m.
Investigators said officers responded to a report of a disturbance at a home off 6th Avenue Northwest.
The Olympia Police Department said one of its officers was involved in the shooting.
There were no fatalities in the shooting, and injuries are not known at this time.
The Capital Metro Independent Investigative Team (CMIIT) is investigating what led up to the shooting.
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The Source: Information in this story came from the Olympia Police Department.
OLYMPIA, Wash. – A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump Administration’s plan of mass layoffs during the federal government shutdown. The court agreed with government employees and unions who argued that the layoffs were illegal.
The backstory:
Prior to the court ruling, the White House announced the firing of more than 4,000 government workers as part of the administration’s reduction-in-force (RIF).
The layoffs included 466 workers at the U.S. Department of Education. The agency already took a big hit in March 2025 when the Trump Administration reduced nearly half of its workforce.
Except for a few executives, the remaining staff in the department’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) were part of the layoffs, according to the union president that represents many Education Department (ED) employees.
“I worry that students with disabilities won’t get the legal protections and the investigative authority of the federal government to back them up,” said Chris Reykdal, Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction. “Right now, your state is the one that’s going to protect those civil rights because it looks like the federal administration is trying to back away from that.”
OSERS is responsible for enforcing the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Staff members help safeguard the civil rights of students with disabilities. Now that the employees could lose their jobs in the RIF, Reykdal said he fears for the students’ legal protection.
“The downside is that if there’s a really significant case that should involve the federal government coming in to try to do corrective action on a school district, or a non-profit provider, that doesn’t look like that’s going to be there. So now, you’re relying on each state, and then you get inconsistency. So, Washington might be leaning in, but will another state take it as seriously without the federal government there as a backstop?” Reykdal said.
December 9 is reportedly the last day for ED employees who received a RIF notice.
Local perspective:
The staff cuts also raised questions among Washington families about the special education services their child receives. Reykdal said the state has the funding and resources needed to provide programs without disruptions.
“There’s a lot of anxiety out there and I just want families to know that right now the money is flowing. In my office, we are fully committed to the work of civil rights, especially for students with disabilities, and right now we have the resources to do that,” said Reykdal.
In a post to X, U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon blamed Democrats for the government shutdown, stating it has “forced” agencies to evaluate federal responsibilities. Despite it being the 15th day of the shutdown, McMahon wrote, “millions of American students are still going to school, teachers are getting paid, and schools are operating as normal. It confirms what the President has said: the federal Department of Education is unnecessary, and we should return education to the states.”
McMahon said the department is taking steps to “root out the education bureaucracy that has burdened states and educators with unnecessary oversight.” The education secretary stated no education funding is affected by the RIF, including funding for special education.
“There’s no imminent danger to the funding but keep that on the horizon. That could be a risk coming,” said Reykdal. “We’re going to continue to ask our legislators don’t lose any ground on your investments in supports for students with disabilities.”
Staff in the Office for Civil Rights were also laid off, though the total number is unknown. The office works to protect students with disabilities from discrimination. The divisions affected by the layoffs include Seattle, Atlanta, and the District of Columbia.
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The Source: Information in this story came from Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal, an X post from U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, and FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
OLYMPIA, Wash. – The man accused of breaking in and damaging property in the Washington State Capitol building has been charged.
Gunnar Schubert, 29, was charged by Thurston County prosecutors with second-degree burglary and third-degree malicious mischief for the incident on Oct. 5.
The backstory:
Schubert is accused of using hammers to break through an office window, gaining access to the State Capitol. Once inside, video surveillance captured him tearing down barriers, flags and signs.
Photos showed toppled over statues, smashed glass, and burnt items after starting a fire inside the state reception room. Authorities say the whole thing happened within about 10 minutes.
Some of the damage at the Washington State Capitol Building. (Department of Enterprise Services)
Schubert was arrested on scene and later released on his own recognizance. Law enforcement stated they do not believe his actions were politically motivated, and that he may be dealing with mental health issues.
Charging documents state Schubert caused around $750 in damages.
Schubert is expected back in court on Friday, where he will enter a plea.
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The Source: Information in this story came from court documents filed in Thurston County Superior Court, the Washington State Department of Enterprise Services and FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
Four U.S. Army service members were on board a helicopter that crashed near Joint Base Lewis-McChord Wednesday night. The Army confirming Friday that they believe all four members aboard the helicopter died from the crash.
The crash happened at around 9 p.m. in a rural area near Summit Lake in Thurston County.
In an update Friday afternoon, the U.S. Army Special Operations Command confirmed that the four soldiers are believed to be dead, and recovery efforts were underway.
What caused the deadly helicopter crash in Washington?
According to U.S. Army Special Operations Command, the cause of the crash remains under investigation, though officials are calling it a “mishap”.
Who were the soldiers on board the helicopter that crashed in Washington?
Officials say the four soldiers were assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment and were part of a team called the Night Stalkers. Out of respect for the families, the U.S. Army will release the names of the soldiers when it’s appropriate.
What they’re saying:
“Our hearts are with the families, friends, and teammates of these Night Stalkers,” said Lt. Gen. Jonathan Braga, USASOC Commander. “They were elite warriors who embodied the highest values of the Army and the Army Special Operations, and their sacrifice will never be forgotten.”
A Black Hawk helicopter carrying four service members crashed in Thurston County Wednesday night, sparking a fire and prompting a large emergency response. The helicopter went down near Summit Lake, and authorities, including the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, were initially unable to approach the fiery scene. Military officials have not released information on the status of the service members or the cause of the crash, which remains under investigation.
Law enforcement, firefighters and personnel from JBLM will conduct the recovery effort.
“We thank the skilled professionals who are working tirelessly, around the clock to bring our Soldiers home,” said Braga.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
The Source: Information in this story came from the U.S. Army Special Operations Command, the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office and Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
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A constellation of salon-style fairs opened in Paris this week, perfectly timed to coincide with an increasingly intense and vibrant Art Basel Paris, helping solidify the French capital’s status as Europe’s premier art hub. Leading the charge on Tuesday was Paris Internationale, which took over the raw, abandoned Central Bergère once again. Its grungy, unfinished atmosphere mirrored the experimental art displayed in the booths. This year, the fair hosted seventy-five galleries from nineteen countries, and a bustling opening day led to strong sales. Japanese artist Kajiito Ito, presented by Tomio Koyama Gallery, sold out his entire collection of paintings and sculptures priced between $3,500-5,000. Meanwhile, Athens-based The Breeder made its debut, showcasing works by artist and choreographer Maria Hassabi alongside sculptures by Georgia Sagri. By the third day, the gallery celebrated the sale of one of Sagri’s works ($30,000-40,000) to a prominent European institutional collection, along with several editions of Hassabi’s golden mirrored photographs, which were placed in private collections for $20,000-30,000. Hassabi is set to present a solo exhibition at the gallery at the end of November.
LoBrutto Stahl’s solo booth featuring the intriguing, esoteric paintings of Georgian artist Tornike Robakidze sold out by the end of the first day. Düsseldorf’s Lucas Hirsch also reported strong early sales of works by Kassel-based painter Lukas Müller, who studied under Albert Oehlen, with paintings going for around $10,000 and a few gouaches for $4,500. By Friday, Ludovico Corsini, now operating independently after parting ways with CLEARING, nearly sold out his booth at Paris Internationale. Javier Barrios’ works of intricate symbolism sold in the $8,000-30,000 range, while pieces by Meriem Bennani moved for $18,000-45,000.
Another standout was the Shanghai-based gallery Plateus, which brought the nature-inspired, meditative abstractions artist Wang Jung created in the open air. The artist spent hours immersed in nature, painting and sketching in the forests of Guangzhou, China, seeking a deeper connection between humanity and the natural world. His lively, gestural brushstrokes convey the movement of the trees, the air in between and their lymph and energy.
Among the new fairs adding to the buzz of Paris Art Week was the first edition of NADA in the city, The Salon, launched in partnership with The Community. Unlike the sun-soaked Basel preview, this fair opened on a rainy, gray day in a modern building in the 10th Arrondissement that once housed SNCF, the French railway. The glass structure provided a sleek, seamless flow around the booths, though the atmosphere was noticeably quieter compared to other fairs—likely because Parisians are still warming up to this American-led event, which felt more like an “American community” gathering transplanted to Paris.
Despite the slower pace, some galleries saw early sales. Local dealer Cadet Capela presented a solo booth featuring works by Blake Daniels, selling two of the three pieces on display at prices between $20,000 and $25,000. “We had a great first day: dynamic, with a very international audience,” Mathieu Capela told Observer. Upstairs, New York favorites like Mrs. gallery showcased works by Alexandra Barth, Megan Bogonovich and Robert Zehnder. “We’ve had strong interest and a couple of small sales,” Sara Salamone, founder of Mrs., said. “We’re staying positive for the weekend and excited to engage with more Parisian and European collectors. It was quieter, but there was a good level of people.”
FR MoCA at The Salon by NADA. Courtesy of FR MoCA
In the next booth, Olympia presented Coleen Herman’s vibrant, gestural abstractions priced between $5,000 and $12,000 in an airy, atmospheric display that drew a lot of attention. Upstairs, Montreal-based Bradley Ertaskiran showcased Veronica Pausova’s intricate reflections on the feminine body, available for $9,000. One of the standout projects at The Salon was a show by the Fall River Museum of Contemporary Art (FR MoCA), a nonprofit, artist-led collective centered around themes of transparency, screens and porosity. Founded by Massachusetts natives Harry Gould Harvey IV and Brittni Ann Harvey, the collective focuses on alternative, cyclical systems to sustain artistic production and co-creation, often collaborating with other galleries to engage communities through their innovative space.
Another highlight was Shary Boyle’s mysterious ceramics, presented by Patel Brown, displayed alongside small canvases by Muriel Jaouich. Boyle’s new ceramic works, created at the Ceramic Work Centre in the Netherlands, have her signature unsettling style but explore themes of silence and the unspoken truths that resonate in today’s world. The collaborative booth by 52 Walker and Mitchell-Innes & Nash (which recently closed the New York gallery to become an art advisory) also made an impression, with several works by the late, great Pope.L.
Patel Brown at The Salon by NADA. JEREMIE BOUILLON
Asia Now, housed in the sumptuous historical palace of the Monnaie de Paris, opened on the same day with a highly curated selection from the very first room. Each year, it seems, the fair elevates its offerings, attracting more established galleries like Esther Schipper, which presented the work of young, talented Korean artist Lee Linju, selling out in the $20,000 range. Perrotin dedicated one side of its booth to Hong Kong artist Ya Chin Chang, whose meticulously detailed paintings quickly sold in the $20,000-25,000 range ahead of a New York show next year. The Drawing Room Manila from the Philippines showcased a solo booth of hand-carved woodwork by Roberto Faleo, with three pieces selling in the early hours for $5,000-7,000. Parisian gallery Galerie LJ also made a strong impression, selling visionary works on paper by Georgian artist Rusudan Khizanishvili in the opening hours.
Nearby, Berlin’s Kornfeld gallery saw quick success with the sale of a large work by Rao Fu for $44,000 in the fair’s first hours—Fu’s demand has risen notably since his collaboration with Perrotin. “We’re thrilled by the overwhelming response from prominent museum professionals, curators, and collectors across the globe, particularly from France and Southeast Asia,” a gallery rep told Observer. “The sale of Tamara Kvesitadze’s kinetic sculpture to a collector in China, along with the enthusiastic reception of Egani’s striking Jean-Michel Basquiat portrait, underscores the international resonance of the artists we represent. It’s a testament to the dynamic and diverse energy of the fair.” Square Street Gallery from Hong Kong echoed this satisfaction. “It’s been an incredible start to the fair,” director Leon Jago told Observer. “We brought Daisuke Tajima’s work to Asia Now for his inaugural European presentation, and we received an excellent response from collectors and curators alike.”
View of the entrance to Asia Now entrance. Courtesy of Asia Now
Last but not least, another relatively new fair that collectors seemed to have appreciated was OFFSCREEN, which took place not far from the Grand Palais at Grand Garage Haussmann (yes, a former garage) and featured twenty-five works by artists Alfredo Jaar, Gordon Matta Clark and Lita Albuquerque, among others. This avant-garde fair focuses on experimental, image-based artworks, including video, film, photography and mixed-media installations. The late Belgian director Chantal Akerman was this year’s guest of honor, and her work was displayed in collaboration with Marian Goodman Gallery.
No one knows what music in ancient Greece sounded like or how dancers once moved.Every two years, a new interpretation of the ancient performance gets a global audience. It takes place in southern Greece at a site many still consider sacred: the birthplace of the Olympic Games.Video above: Tune in to the Road to Paris podcastForty-eight performers, chosen in part for their resemblance to youths in antiquity as seen in statues and other surviving artwork, will take part Tuesday in the flame-lighting ceremony for the Paris Olympics.Details of the 30-minute performance are fine-tuned — and kept secret — right up until a public rehearsal Monday.The Associated Press got rare access to rehearsals that took place during weekends, mostly at an Olympic indoor cycling track in Athens.As riders whiz around them on the banked cycling oval, the all-volunteer Olympic performers snatch poses from ancient vases. Sequences are repeated and re-repeated under the direction of the hyper-focused head choreographer Artemis Ignatiou.”In ancient times, there was no Olympic flame ceremony,” Ignatiou said during a recent practice session.”My inspiration comes from temple pediments, from images on vases, because there is nothing that has been preserved — no movement, no dance — from antiquity,” she said. “So basically, what we are doing is joining up those images. Everything in between comes from us.”Ceremonies take place at Olympia every two years for the Winter and Summer Games, with the sun’s rays focused on the inside of a parabolic mirror to produce the Olympic flame and start the torch relay to the host city.Women dressed as priestesses are at the heart of the ceremony, first held for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Leading the group is an actress who performs the role of high priestess and makes a dramatic appeal to Apollo, the ancient god of the sun, for assistance moments before the torch is lit.Over the decades, new ingredients have been progressively added: music, choreography, new colors for the costumes, male performers known as “kouroi” and subtle style inclusions to give a nod to the culture of the Olympic host nation.Adding complexity also has introduced controversy, inevitably amplified by social media. Criticism this year has centered on the dresses and tunics to be worn by the performers, styled to resemble ancient Greek columns. Faultfinders have called it a rude departure from the ceremony’s customary elegance. Organizers hope the attire will create a more positive impression when witnessed at the ruins of ancient Olympia.Counting out the sequences, Ignatiou controls the music with taps on her cell phone while keeping track of the male dancers at the velodrome working on a stop motion-like routine and women who glide past them like a slowly uncoiling spring.Ignatiou has been involved with the ceremony for 36 years, as priestess, high priestess, assistant and then head choreographer since 2008. She takes in the criticism with composure. She’s still moved to tears when describing the flame lighting, but defers to her dancers to describe their experience of the five-month participation at practices.Most in their early 20s, the performers are selected from dance and drama academies with an eye on maintaining an athletic look and classic Greek aesthetic, the women with hair pulled back in neat double-braids.Christiana Katsimpraki, a 23-year-old drama school student who is taking part at Olympia for the first time, said she wants to repay the kindness shown to her by older performers. “Before I go to bed, when I close my eyes, I go through the whole choreography — a run through — to make sure I have all the steps memorized and that they’re in the right order,” she said. “It’s so that the next time I can come to the rehearsal, it all goes correctly and no one gets tired.”The ceremony is performed to sparse music, and final routine modifications are made at Olympia, in part to cope with the pockmarked and uneven ground at the site.Dancers describe the fun they have in messaging groups, the good-natured pranks played on newcomers and fun they have on the four-hour bus ride to the ancient site in southern Greece — but also the significance of the moment and the pull of the past.”I’m in awe that we’re going there and that I’m going to be part of this whole team,” 23-year-old performer Kallia Vouidaski said. “I’m going to have this entire experience that I watched when I was little on TV. I would say, ‘Oh! How cool would it be if I could do this at some point.’ And I did it.”The flame-lighting ceremony will start at 0830 GMT Tuesday. A separate flame-handover ceremony to the Paris 2024 organizing committee will be held in Athens on April 26.
ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece —
No one knows what music in ancient Greece sounded like or how dancers once moved.
Every two years, a new interpretation of the ancient performance gets a global audience. It takes place in southern Greece at a site many still consider sacred: the birthplace of the Olympic Games.
Video above: Tune in to the Road to Paris podcast
Forty-eight performers, chosen in part for their resemblance to youths in antiquity as seen in statues and other surviving artwork, will take part Tuesday in the flame-lighting ceremony for the Paris Olympics.
Details of the 30-minute performance are fine-tuned — and kept secret — right up until a public rehearsal Monday.
The Associated Press got rare access to rehearsals that took place during weekends, mostly at an Olympic indoor cycling track in Athens.
As riders whiz around them on the banked cycling oval, the all-volunteer Olympic performers snatch poses from ancient vases. Sequences are repeated and re-repeated under the direction of the hyper-focused head choreographer Artemis Ignatiou.
“In ancient times, there was no Olympic flame ceremony,” Ignatiou said during a recent practice session.
“My inspiration comes from temple pediments, from images on vases, because there is nothing that has been preserved — no movement, no dance — from antiquity,” she said. “So basically, what we are doing is joining up those images. Everything in between comes from us.”
Ceremonies take place at Olympia every two years for the Winter and Summer Games, with the sun’s rays focused on the inside of a parabolic mirror to produce the Olympic flame and start the torch relay to the host city.
Women dressed as priestesses are at the heart of the ceremony, first held for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Leading the group is an actress who performs the role of high priestess and makes a dramatic appeal to Apollo, the ancient god of the sun, for assistance moments before the torch is lit.
Over the decades, new ingredients have been progressively added: music, choreography, new colors for the costumes, male performers known as “kouroi” and subtle style inclusions to give a nod to the culture of the Olympic host nation.
Adding complexity also has introduced controversy, inevitably amplified by social media. Criticism this year has centered on the dresses and tunics to be worn by the performers, styled to resemble ancient Greek columns. Faultfinders have called it a rude departure from the ceremony’s customary elegance.
Organizers hope the attire will create a more positive impression when witnessed at the ruins of ancient Olympia.
Counting out the sequences, Ignatiou controls the music with taps on her cell phone while keeping track of the male dancers at the velodrome working on a stop motion-like routine and women who glide past them like a slowly uncoiling spring.
Ignatiou has been involved with the ceremony for 36 years, as priestess, high priestess, assistant and then head choreographer since 2008. She takes in the criticism with composure.
She’s still moved to tears when describing the flame lighting, but defers to her dancers to describe their experience of the five-month participation at practices.
Most in their early 20s, the performers are selected from dance and drama academies with an eye on maintaining an athletic look and classic Greek aesthetic, the women with hair pulled back in neat double-braids.
Christiana Katsimpraki, a 23-year-old drama school student who is taking part at Olympia for the first time, said she wants to repay the kindness shown to her by older performers.
“Before I go to bed, when I close my eyes, I go through the whole choreography — a run through — to make sure I have all the steps memorized and that they’re in the right order,” she said. “It’s so that the next time I can come to the rehearsal, it all goes correctly and no one gets tired.”
The ceremony is performed to sparse music, and final routine modifications are made at Olympia, in part to cope with the pockmarked and uneven ground at the site.
Dancers describe the fun they have in messaging groups, the good-natured pranks played on newcomers and fun they have on the four-hour bus ride to the ancient site in southern Greece — but also the significance of the moment and the pull of the past.
“I’m in awe that we’re going there and that I’m going to be part of this whole team,” 23-year-old performer Kallia Vouidaski said. “I’m going to have this entire experience that I watched when I was little on TV. I would say, ‘Oh! How cool would it be if I could do this at some point.’ And I did it.”
The flame-lighting ceremony will start at 0830 GMT Tuesday. A separate flame-handover ceremony to the Paris 2024 organizing committee will be held in Athens on April 26.
A lawmaker says the death of 4-year-old Everett boy Ariel Garcia might have been prevented were it not for a change in legislation that makes it easier for parents with drug abuse issues to keep custody of a child.
Representative Travis Couture, (R) District 35, says that legislation that was introduced this session would have put measures in place to better protect kids, but much of it did not pass.
On March 28, the search for Ariel Garcia ended in tragedy. His mother is now behind bars, accused of stabbing him around 16 times. Detectives say his grandmother had been trying to get custody of the 4-year-old, telling court officials in an audio recording that her daughter had been using drugs and alcohol.
“We don’t want instances like what we saw with this case with little Ariel where, you know, he’s murdered, he’s dumped like garbage on the side of I-5, like his life didn’t matter,” said Couture, a representative from the 35th District.
Couture feels the problem started in 2021 when the legislature passed the Keeping Families Together Act or House Bill 1227, making it more difficult for DCYF to remove juveniles from a home if the parents are addicted to drugs. The goal was to keep families together and reduce racial injustice. The law now states that the child needs to be at risk of imminent physical harm before caseworkers get involved.
Couture proposed a rebuttable presumption bill last session, that would have classified hard drug abuse as imminent harm while allowing parents to respond in court.
“What we would have been able to do is more easily remove kids from those dangerous situations,” he said.
Instead, he said lawmakers passed a “watered-down” bill and only addressed fentanyl.
“What that bill did is only for fentanyl and nothing else, no other drugs,” he said.
Couture says his bill might have also helped with an intervention in the case of Jordan Sorensen, a Port Townsend man who admitted that he hid his infant’s body in the bushes in January.
Couture says the death of children like Ariel could continue to rise without changes.
“The mother had been involved with CPS before, was known to use drugs, had something like my bill been in place, that death might have been prevented,” said Couture.
He plans to work on legislation before the next session to attempt to strengthen child protection laws and could pre-file in December.
OLYMPIA, Wash. – Thurston County detectives are investigating the suspicious death of a person who was found inside a house fire in Olympia Saturday morning.
Deputies originally responded to a reported structure fire at a home on Cooper Point Road NW near Freddie Lane NW at 8:30 a.m.
After the fire was put out, firefighters discovered a dead person inside.
The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office said the circumstances surrounding the victim’s death are considered “suspicious,” and detectives are now investigating.
Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at detectives@co.thurston.wa.us.
Washington paraeducators rally for respect, higher pay
The educators who take care of students with special needs and language barriers rallied on the steps of Washington’s Capitol Building Monday, calling for respect from lawmakers and better wages.
OLYMPIA, WA – On Monday, educators who help our state’s most vulnerable students rallied outside the Capitol, demanding respect and higher pay.
More than a hundred paraeducators and paraprofessionals spent their President’s Day Holiday working to bring change.
Paraeducators are the ones who work alongside students with special educational needs or who struggle due to language barriers. Paraprofessionals are hourly employees like bus drivers, lunchroom workers, and office staff.
These school employees say their request is simple, respect and higher pay. Unfortunately, meeting those demands is seemingly more difficult.
Officials with the Washington Education Association (WEA) tell FOX 13 News the two laws that looked to raise paraeducator pay, House Bill 2380 and Senate Bill 6082, have stalled this year.
The hope now is that lawmakers will hear their demands and add more funding to the education budget.
According to a study from the American Institute of Research, paraeducators are leaving their jobs in Washington at an increasing rate.
The report states that in the 2008-2009 school year, 8% of paraeducators quit, retired, or got fired. In the 2021-2022 school year, the number jumped to 23%.
Paraeducators say it is not hard to see why workers are leaving their roles.
“For the first seven years of my career, I was a single mom of three kids. I had to work two and three jobs and get financial help from my mom just to make ends meet. My own children suffered, and I was exhausted,’ said Kari Madden, the president of the Tacoma Federation of Education Support Professionals.
Officials with WEA say paraprofessionals can make more money going to work at retail stores.
“We must do better as a state, and we must look at the data that tells us the average para is making, what, $30,000 a year,” said April Berg, House Representative for the 44th District.
Officials with WEA said paraprofessionals did more than just rally on the steps. Several met with lawmakers one-on-one, and the WEA president even spoke during the education budget hearings.
“Our students deserve our best, and paraeducators deserve a living wage and respect in order to do that,” Madden said.
