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Governor's school finance reform introduced in Senate
The Senate Education Committee formally introduced the governor's school finance and career-technical education plans, called the Excellence in Education Act, into the legislative process. While the bill has not yet been assigned a bill number, USA|Kansas is making it available on the association's website, along with a document summarizing each of the 98 sections of the bill.
While much of the bill has been discussed for several months, there were pieces that surprised many education advocates. Most notable of these are sections 32 - 35 and 55, which dramatically alter educator evaluation and dismissal procedures in Kansas.
The State Board is tasked with developing acceptable teacher evaluation criteria that lead to an annual rating of educators as highly effective, effective, progressing, or ineffective. The rating category is to be based on employee performance using the following formula: 50% to growth in student achievement; 40% to input received by supervisors, peers, parents, families, and students during the school year; and 10% to contributions by the educator to the profession.
These sections become more onerous with three more provisions:
- The rankings of the educators are to be posted annually on the district's website, available for public viewing;
- Any educator receiving a rating of "ineffective" for two consecutive years may be dismissed by the local board; and,
- No student is to receive instruction from teachers rated as ineffective for two years in a row.
In bill briefings by the governor's staff, before various committees, these sections have received the most concern; above all, the requirement to post evaluation ratings on a public website.
The Act also includes the governor's plan changes in technical education. Receiving the most concern in this aspect is what is being called the "30-mile rule," which no longer allows funding for those high school programs of study that are also available in a postsecondary institution within 30 miles of the high school.
Questions abounded from legislators regarding what's truly "duplicative," the capacity of the other institutions to accept all students wanting to participate, and how the travel is to be managed, especially in light of students' other school activities. The governor's office explained KSDE will be given broad authority in determining these issues for schools. The bill (New Section 16, c) reflects the governor's response to concerns expressed earlier by administrators, by stating the school may continue offering the program if there is not sufficient capacity provided by the postsecondary institutions.
The authors of the bill acknowledge there is a level of detail not fully covered in the bill, but maintain that provides more authority for KSDE, the Board of Regents, and other stakeholders to develop rules and regulations that respond to various issues and concerns.
It is unclear now whether the bill will continue to receive consideration as a single bill or whether it will be broken in several parts - e.g, school finance, career-tech, educator evaluation - to allow legislators a better opportunity to scrutinize and consider each of the major reforms contained in the legislation.
Click here to view the bill, in its entirety, or visit www.usakansas.org
Click here to view the section-by-section summary, or visit www.usakansas.org
Legislators enthusiastic about K-12 learning innovations
Three legislative committees - House Education, Senate Education, and House Education Budget - expressed great enthusiasm about student learning reforms that are aimed at achieving better student outcomes and getting students more enthusiastic about the learning process. USA|Kansas organized committee presentations focused on innovative programs and services in schools across the state.
Administrators and students from selected districts were on hand Tuesday to describe how they are changing the learning environment to better fit the needs and expressed desires of students, parents, communities, and business leaders. The programs are as diverse as Kansas itself, but all share some important characteristics. These start with asking the community, "What do we want for our own kids? What are the outcomes we want to see achieved?"
Other common themes included getting parents and communities involved in achieving the desired outcomes; getting students "authentically" engaged in those outcomes; urging students to become more involved in their communities and becoming good citizens; helping youth find their learning passions; and creating learning environments that are meaningful and relevant to students.
Several students from the Blue Valley CAPS program spoke to legislators about the dramatic influence the program has had on their lives. These students are involved in graduate- and post-graduate level work in engineering, bioscience, technology, sports medicine, and more. One young man has seven patents in the works and anticipates applying for more before he leaves high school.
Another young man reported that he was as totally disengaged in the learning process as possible before he entered the CAPS program. He said school held no interest for him and his GPA reflected that. Now he is involved in biofuels research and plans to go to KU or Colorado and pursue a degree in molecular biology.
USA|Kansas wishes to thank the Blue Valley students and the following for participating in the presentations:
- Randy Watson, Superintendent, McPherson USD 418
Citizenship, College and Career Ready (C3)/Federal Waiver - Natise Vogt, Principal, Newton USD 373
Walton Rural Life Center (charter school) - Donna Deeds, Executive Director, Blue Valley USD 229
Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) - Mary Jo Taylor, Superintendent, and Natalie Clark, Stafford USD 349
Stafford Economic Development and Entrepreneurship Program (SEED) - Julie Ford, Superintendent, Topeka USD 501
Robotics program/Partnership with Stormont Vail Health Center - John Wyrick, Superintendent, Erie USD 101
Erie High Charter School - Project Based Learning Initiatives in engineering and construction - Cynthia Lane, Superintendent, KCK USD 500
College and Career Readiness - Don Wells, Executive Director, Kansas School Superintendents Association
Small Schools' Initiatives Mike Mathes, Superintendent, Seaman USD 345 (written only)
Washburn Tech-Seaman Home Construction Partnership
These presentations sparked the interest of even the harshest K-12 critics and are sure to create lively discussions in the future. Those who would like to have their districts' innovations highlighted in future legislative venues are encouraged to contact USA|Kansas' executive director, Cheryl Semmel, by calling (785) 232-6566 or emailing csemmel@usakansas.org.
Hearings of interest: Week of January 30, 2012
Monday, Jan 30
9:00am, House Appropriations, Room 346-S
Hearing on:
- Supplemental appropriations for FY 2012 and 2013 for various state agencies
1:30pm, Senate Education, Room 152-S
Review by staff:
- SB 69 - relating to school and dating violence
- SB 278 - concerning policies against bullying in schools
3:30pm, House Education Budget, Room 159-S
Presentation by:
- Kansas Open Gov on per pupil spending, carryover balances, and revenue by district (Note: This is a group affiliated with the Kansas Policy Institute.)
Tuesday, Jan 31
9:00am, House Appropriations, Room 346-S
Hearing on:
- HB 2400 - amendments to the definition of at-risk pupil
10:30am, Senate Ways and Means, Room 548-S
Report on:
1:30pm, Senate Education, Room 152-S
Hearing and possible action on:
- SB 278 - concerning policies against bullying in schools
3:30pm, House Education Budget, Room 159-S
Hearing on:
- HB 2439 - Counting of certain military pupils in school districts
4:15pm, KPERS Select, Room to be announced
Review of:
- KPERS Study Commission legislative proposals, actuarial report, and related bill
Wednesday, Feb 1
Noon, KPERS Select, Room 144-S
Review of:
- KPERS Study Commission legislative proposals, actuarial report, and related bill
Thursday, Feb 2
9:00am, House Education, Docking Room 784
Presentation by:
- Diane DeBacker, Commissioner of Education
1:30pm, Senate Education, Room 152-S
Report on:
- Educational Achievement in Kansas
4:15pm, KPERS Select, Room 152-S
Review of:
- KPERS Study Commission legislative proposals, actuarial report, and related bill
If you would like to provide written and/or oral testimony on any of these bills, please contact Cheryl Semmel, executive director, at csemmel@usakansas.org or (785) 232-6566 as soon as possible.
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