Ninth graders interested in taking the Washington Assessment of Student Learning exam will have to wait until next year, according to a statement released Thursday by the state Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction.

For the past three years, ninth-grade students had been able to take the 10th-grade WASL if they desired. But this year, Superintendent Randy Dorn has chosen to eliminate that option in the interest of saving the OSPI $477,000, according to the department’s statement.

WASL requirements will not change for third, eighth and tenth graders.

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