a strong voice for kids 2nd Congressional District
a strong voice for kids 2nd Congressional District
Found that the decision of the Eaton School District in refusing to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding for the Hope Online Learning Academy Co-Op to operate a learning center within the boundaries of the district was not contrary to the best interests of the pupils, district, or community. The vote was 6:0 (the 7th CD seat on the SBE is vacant because Karen Middleton is no longer a member of the SBE due to her appointment to the State House of Representatives, and the Vacancy Committee’s election for a replacement will not occur until this coming Saturday).
The USDE Regional Secretary of Education Pat Chlouber brought us information about two opportunities for teachers to be more involved in education policy at a national level: either as a Teacher Ambassador Fellow and work closely with the USDE and the Secretary of Education from their home location, or as a Washington Fellow by going to Washington DC. To qualify, teachers must be currently teaching in K-12, be "highly qualified" by the NCLB definition, be a U.S. citizen, and have the approval of their principal. Applications are due by April 7.
Commissioner Jones reported on Reading First. We had some discussion at the Work Session yesterday based on a recognition of West Park Elementary’s receiving a Title I award. It was decided that because Reading First has had such a positive impact on schools around our state and the federal government intends to reduce funding for the program by about 62%, we would pass a resolution in support of it. Dr. Deb Scheffel reported to us that we have been receiving about $10 million per year for Reading First, and we will get about $4 million next year. However, due to some of this year’s funding still remaining unused, the Reading First schools in Colorado will receive only a 30% cut next year. CEE staff have met with the impacted schools. Read to Achieve, which also had been cut this year, has mirrored Reading First. We had 5% gains on CSAP in Reading from the implementation of these programs. CDE has resource consultants who have been helping the schools for these programs. They tell us that it is a lot of work but is successful.
On January 9, the Colorado Literacy Council was created [as a replacement of the former Reading Directorate] – which will work on reviewing teacher preparation programs, the PLACE exams, topics for research forums and prof development, and innovative literacy programs. Membership of the group will consist of 11 people, 5 from CDE and 6 from outside CDE, who will be from the Council of Deans, community colleges, an educator from rural school district, and a national literacy expert. It will be co-chaired by Turner and Scheffel, who will receive assistance from Jami Goetz (teacher licensure), Barbara Medina (English Language Acquisition), and Jeanette Cornier (Assistant Commissioner).
U.S. Deputy Secretary of Education Ray Simons has said that Colorado is designated as a state for U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings to come out to for discussion about NCLB and other federal programs. It will be on March 12. They will be meeting with groups from the field in the morning, and they would like to have lunch with the SBE and leadership of the House and Senate Education Committees.
Tony Dyl has a new boss, Nancy Wall, new First Assistant Attorney General, who is from Ohio with a great deal of experience in public law. She is also in charge of 6 other attorneys who work with the SBE and CDE.
Richard Wenning has been hired to work as a policy advisor through private funding of the Piton Foundation on the growth model, so it will be up and running by August. He is also a VP for the Colorado League of Charter Schools and consults with DPS. He has worked on an advisory panel for the USDE. He was once a clerk for the U.S. Senate Appropriations subcommittee.
The update on how the Forward Thinking plan is going has to do with the Colorado Legacy Foundation. Kelly Leid, Assistant Commissioner, said that they have met with the Piton Foundation, which has committed to a $120,000 grant. It will allow us to begin working formally. They are working on creating the Legacy Scholars program, to attract the best and brightest students to become teachers. There have been a number of conversations with for-profit companies about making contributions. We will have enough money to officially start the Legacy Foundation in March. It will put on the Commissioner’s Cup luncheon on June 25, at which time they will be announcing the Foundation’s formal agenda and honoring people for preparing kids for 21st century, as well as doing fundraising for the Foundation. There should be a prominent keynote speaker a the luncheon. There is good momentum for the Foundation.
There are bills likely to come forward dealing with the alignment of K-12 with the first year of college ("grade 13"). CDE has been working on this issue while doing the standards review. Jo O’Brien provided a timeline showing when things are planned to be done. Based on HB 07-1118, we must set the minimum standards or core competencies for high school graduation by the end of July 2008, after the Graduation Guidelines Council submits their recommendations for these by May 1. By December 2008, the revisions of the content standards initiated by Commissioner Jones and Forward Thinking will be done. Then by December 2009, the state assessments will be revised to fit with the revised standards. Berman asked O’Brien if "in an ideal world," we would do the standards revision after determining the graduation guidelines; O’Brien said the reverse order would be more logical. Berman asked if we want to request an extension of the deadline date – perhaps we should ask the sponsors of HB 1118. Jones said that CDE would entertain that notion, if the SBE would like to propose it. Littleton said that there is a new representative on the House Education Committee (Middleton) who might be open to this. O’Brien said that part of what will be done in the standards review will be consideration of career readiness, college readiness, and 21st century skills. She said that we will come up with a clear definition of these and will be consulting with WestEd on this and the other standards. It will enable us to do a "gap analysis" for making the changes. CDE will be putting together a stakeholder committee with representatives from across the state from business and the content areas to make recommendations; this may or may not support the SADI Council, if that is formed. CDE will also ask WestEd to do some trend analyses, including the Achieve Inc. work and other studies. Berman suggested that we create a clear, simple chart that proposes a timeline for all of this work, so we can clearly articulate it with others.
A review of budgeting within CDE has been ongoing. They have looked at budgets of other state departments. The final report should be done by the end of February. Commissioner Jones believes the report will be significant, in that it will show that in order for us to do the state’s work, we are severely underfunded. The small budget limits our flexibility to do our work. The operating budget of CDE is comprised largely of federal funding; the percentage is higher than any other state’s. Maryland, Minnesota, South Carolina, Alabama, and Louisiana especially were looked at. But we have the intellectual capacity to carry out the Forward Thinking plan and goals.
Commissioner Jones thanked the SBE for our work on taking positions on legislation; it is very helpful to the CDE, and the "field" appreciates our not being silent anymore. He knows it is difficult and time-consuming, but it is worthwhile.
He said that he is thankful to West Park Elememtary for their presentation yesterday. It’s so nice to get a reminder of how our work affects the field. He thanked the Regional Managers for their good work.
Approved notice of rulemaking hearing on April 9, 2008, for the Administration of the Accreditation of School Districts, and intent to pass the rules on April 10, 2008. [Proposed changes are necessitated by statutory changes to Accreditation laws. The changes are intended to improve the Accreditation process of public schools. The changes include direction from the "Forward Thinking" document created by the Commissioner and SBE and input from school leaders. The proposed changes implement the goal of CDE to provide greater assistance to school districts to rectify potential problems before they have Accreditation issues. Also, an increased focus is placed on postsecondary preparation of students.]
Approved or re-approved the educator induction programs as follows:
[The Educator Licensing Act requires school districts hiring new and new-to district licensed educators to implement induction programs approved by the SBE. In addition, the SBE rules require a cyclical review of induction programs.]
(3) DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS
(These remain confidential until action is taken by the Board.)
Approved charter school waiver requests from February 14, 2008, to June 30, 2010, for Aspen Charter School in the Aspen School District.
Approved the list of special education excess cost rates for eligible facilities. [The Exceptional Children’s Educational Act specifies that the excess cost rate "for educating a child with a disability in a community-centered board or a facility shall be established by the department and approved by the state board," and that this charge "shall be the maximum amount the school district of residence shall be obligated to pay for the special educational program." The Act also states that the SBE "shall promulgate rules and regulations to define the contract approval process, to define the types and amounts of costs in excess of the state average per pupil operating revenues, …and to define other applicable revenues that a school district of residence of a child with a disability shall pay as tuition to educate that child elsewhere at a community centered board or a facility approved by the state board." Community-centered boards and eligible facilities completed forms developed by CDE in accordance with procedures defined in the special education rules and regulations, and the Department has reviewed and approved the applications.]
Certified payments to school districts for state share of total program for the period February 2008 through May 2008. [Local districts are entitled to receive monthly payments from the state by the 25th of each month, under provisions of the Public School Finance Act of 1994, as amended.]
Approved emergency Type III educator authorizations for 41 initially and 1 renewal on a vote of 4:2 (DeHoff and Littleton dissented; there is currently no member for the 7th CD). [Local districts may request Type III Emergency Authorization to employ non-licensed teachers, principals, administrators, or special services providers if they agree to provide an induction program. The SBE’s approval is based on consideration of whether the district has demonstrated a shortage of licensed personnel and the employment of non-licensed personnel is essential to preserving the instructional program and to the well-being of the children enrolled.]
Approved the recommended amendments to the rules for the Administration of School District Budget Law. [Rules for Budget Law have not been updated since 1994. Legislation has been passed that has affected various elements of the Rules for Budget Law. Significant changes have occurred in this section of law with the expansion of choice involving charter schools and the Charter School Institute and related reporting requirements. Additionally, legislation in 2004 drove multiple changes in budget law due to financial deficiencies in two school districts. The proposed rule revisions incorporate all of the statutory changes and bring the rules into compliance with current accounting practices. Also of importance is that Articles 44 and 45 of Title 22 are cited within the Accreditation Indicators pursuant to 22-11-104(2)(k), C.R.S., again elevating the importance of bringing these rules into alignment with statute. The proposed rule changes have been reviewed by the Financial Policies and Procedures Advisory Committee with recommendation to forward proposed changes to the State Board.]
Vody Herrmann explained the changes that were made to the rules. There was nobody present to testify. The motion to close the oral portion of the hearing and adopt the rules at the March meeting passed unanimously.
Approved amendments to the rules for Accounting and Reporting. [Rules for school districts in Accounting and Reporting have not been updated since 1993. Legislation has been passed that has affected various elements of these rules. Significant changes have occurred in this section of law with the expansion of choice involving charter schools and the Charter School Institute and related reporting requirements. Additionally, implementation of GASB 34 (Governmental Accounting Standards Board Statement 34) requires changes in fund structures and reporting formats in school districts’ annual financial reports. The proposed rule revisions incorporate all of those changes and bring the rules into compliance with current accounting practices. Also of importance is that Articles 44 and 45 of Title 22 are cited within the Accreditation Indicators pursuant to 22-11-104(2)(k), C.R.S., again elevating the importance of bringing these rules into alignment with statute. The proposed rule changes have been reviewed by the Financial Policies and Procedures Advisory Committee with recommendation to forward proposed changes to the State Board.]
Vody Herrmann explained the changes that were made to the rules. There was nobody present to testify. The motion to close the oral portion of the hearing and adopt the rules at the March meeting passed unanimously.
We held a discussion that was supposed to lead to passage of the permanent rules for the Administration, Certification, and Oversight of Colorado Online Programs. [The SBE adopted emergency rules at the January 2008 meeting to meet the requirements of SB 07-215. Yesterday a hearing was held to review the emergency rules and consider additional amendments. The rules create Quality Standards to apply to any agreement entered into by a multi-district online program and a school district, as well as timelines and processes for application, reporting, certification, and monitoring of online programs. Approval for the location of a proposed Learning Center is contingent on any and all conditions listed therein.]
Suckla said that we had a lengthy hearing yesterday and discussed a number of issues. She said that we have a staff to work on this, and she apologized for us SBE members "getting out of control" with questions yesterday. However, she said that because we have received comments and questions from numerous people since that time [Peggy Littleton handed us a lengthy list of proposed changes], we should postpone approval of the rules until the next meeting. I said that I had been told there was a problem with doing that, because it would leave a month between April and May where there would be no rules. Dyl said that the emergency rules will still be in effect during the time that applications for online schools will be submitted. He said that if the emergency rules expire and the permanent rules have not been passed, "a case can be made for the emergency rules to be in effect as interpretive rules." He said that they would not have the same impact as legislative rules, but they would still be effective. Jones said that staff would appreciate the additional time to consider the recent input.
Therefore, we unanimously passed a motion to re-open the oral testimony to include consideration of new information submitted through February 19 and approve the permanent rules at the March meeting.
Dismissed the charge filed against a teacher with interim authorization (the vote was 5:1; Schaffer dissented, and the 7th CD seat was still vacant).
Approved unanimously a resolution "Declaring the Intent for the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children" which resolves that the SBE "stands in support of the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunities for Military Children, as it will promote flexibility and cooperation between the educational system, parents and the student in order to achieve educational success for the military student."
Approved unanimously a resolution which resolves that the SBE "fully endorses the Colorado Reading First model, as an example of a Response to Intervention reform effort that is working in Colorado for some of our most challenged students."
Approved unanimously a list of waivers for the Mesa Valley School District of laws regarding school district duties and powers (delegation waivers), licensure for teachers and principals, and employment, compensation, and dismissal rights for teachers (due process rights) for the creation of Mesa Valley Vision Home Community Program through June 30, 2011.
The district is requesting these waivers to create a "contract school," a school of choice. John Penn, Regional Manager, said that the district has been very transparent and cooperative in working to create the school. The school is based on a concept from Delta County’s Vision School, but it will have more district involvement. The school will utilize various services from the district; district staff will be on all of its committees and will work collaboratively with the school in every aspect of the program. All employees of the school will undergo the same background checks as regular district staff, as well as thorough screening by the district. CBLA requirements will be met by the program, and the students will take the same assessments as other students in the district. The school will participate in the regular Accreditation review. Penn said that each unit of CDE has reviewed the proposal and is comfortable with it.
The program asserts that its instructors will meet the Highly Qualified Teacher requirements of NCLB. I asked why the licensure law needs to be waived, in that case, since licensure is one of the requirements of HQT. I was told that the supervisors of the instructors will be licensed, as is required by NCLB; I pointed out that NCLB requires the supervising teachers of paraprofessionals to be HQT and questioned whether the instructors will be teachers or paraprofessionals – I did not get a clear answer. Nevertheless, I voted in favor of granting the waivers, as did all the other SBE members.
Action will be requested at the March 5, 2008, meeting to adopt "Facility and Safety Priorities" for public school capital construction. [SB07-041 establishes within the department an Advisory Committee for Public School Capital Construction to develop "Facility and Safety Priorities" and execute a priority assessment of school buildings and facilities in small rural school districts. The Advisory Committee was established by the State Board on August 30, 2007. The "Facility and Safety Priorities" have been developed by the Advisory Committee and will be used as a foundation to review grant applications and assist in conducting the Grant Priority Assessment of Colorado School Facilities. The resulting Grant Priority Assessment database will be applied by the advisory committee with review of Capital Construction Grants to help ensure that grant moneys will be used to accomplish viable top priority projects at a reasonable cost for recommendation of award to the SBE.]
Anne Barkis asked Terry Whitney, Democratic Senate Policy Director, to come and discuss the Innovation Schools Act legislation (SB 130) with us. Whitney said that it seeks to have teachers innovate with districts for school improvement. It changes the waiver process. The proposal helps with the fact that the waiver process is too "burdensome" and they would like to make it easier. I asked CDE staff (Deputy Commissioner Karen Mock) if the process for waivers is indeed burdensome or cumbersome at CDE; she said that the process might be more involved at the local district level [for districts of over 3000 students, which need to have the approval of the DAC and affected administrators and teachers]. Whitney said that there is discussion going on with the two state teachers associations in regard to the bill. The proposal is for a district to approve an innovation plan, including a number of waivers, which will be granted to the school(s) as long as the SBE approves of the plan. The automatic waivers are from teacher licensure, compensation, evaluation, transfer, and due process rights. Commissioner Jones said that we don’t have funding for the staff to review all the plans, but he told the bill’s sponsor, Senator Groff, that he would get the work done somehow. Berman asked whether the bill allows anything that is currently not allowed by state law. Whitney said that it could in fact be done now, but this bill would make it easier. Berman suggested that we support the bill. I said that I oppose it strongly. Littleton, DeHoff, and Schaffer said that they love the bill. Suckla said that she supports it. Thus, with a "supermajority" of 5:1, the SBE will support the bill.
Suckla submitted to us the testimony she plans to make in support of HB 1335, the BEST legislation, which expresses our concerns as well as support.
I brought up HB 1204, the bill I have been working on to improve the education at eligible facilities. The bill has an extensive amendment proposed to reduce the huge fiscal note. Jones said that staff has been working on the bill. Littleton and I said that we would like to support the bill, and the other three (Berman was missing at that time) would like to monitor it. With a vote of 2:3, the SBE will monitor the bill.
Because of the burdens to our Legislative Liaison of tracking all the education bills and the amount of time it takes to discuss them with the Board, there was discussion about holding our legislative meetings less frequently. We should prioritize the bills more. Suckla will discuss the matter further with Jones, Nevans, and Barkis to figure out how we can improve the system.
[Nobody came to speak. We were only about a half hour late for this portion of the meeting.]
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