Our commitment to students, staff, and families stands firm: Every student enrolled in Tacoma Public Schools has the right to a free, quality education in a safe, respectful learning environment. 

We serve all students and staff regardless of their race, religion, color, national origin or ancestry, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital or veteran status or disability, or the use of a guide dog or trained service animal. In addition to those protected classes, we are committed to serving students regardless of their household income, housing or immigration status, or their involvement with the criminal justice system. 

In serving all students, we are also legally required to follow the Washington State Constitution. Whenever there is a discrepancy between state and federal laws, we defer to state laws until the dispute can be resolved.  

Keeping students and staff safe 
During business hours, all outside facing doors in our buildings must be locked. All students, families and visitors must enter through the main entrance, sign in and provide a form of identification. The principal may withhold approval or place limitations on access to school events or school property if they have reason to believe that the visitor’s presence at the school will disrupt classroom procedures or learning activity. All legal paperwork, including warrants and subpoenas, must be delivered to our Legal Department at our school district administration building.  

When families have a concern about the safety and well-being of a child or school staff member, they can and should speak with their child’s school principal.  

TPS prioritizes the protection and safety of personally identifiable information.  

As public employees, we are subject, by law, to public records requests. We must all know and understand our limitations for disclosing personally identifiable information under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).  

Keeping families informed 
TPS is committed to keeping families informed when changes happen at the federal and/or state level that impact our students, staff and families. Additionally, we are committed to identifying community resources to support students, staff and families.  Those resources can be found on the Families tab on the school district website.