Hearing on Educator Support Legislation

On Thursday, February 17^th, Senate Bill 252 and Senate Bill 290 were heard by the Senate Education Committee.  Senate Bill 252 would set up a School District Collaboration Fund to which districts could apply to design local systems to better support effective teaching. Senate Bill 290 would ask the state to adopt performance standards for educators which districts would then incorporate into their locally designed evaluation processes.  

A number of educators and advocates testified in support of both bills.

Here are a few highlights from the testimony:

On SB 252: "And as a teacher, I can tell you, we are ready to be treated like professionals. We're ready for quality professional development, meaningful evaluations, thoughtful compensation systems, and real career opportunities."  -Dena Hellums, Middle School Teacher and Chair of the North Clackamas Chapter of Stand for Children  

On SB 290: "As a teacher I have one primary responsibility-to help students learn and grow. I should have to set goals. Those goals should be linked to student achievement. Those goals should be grounded in proven performance standards." -Todd Jones, High School Teacher and Chalkboard Advisory Council Chair    

The next step will be to work with other stakeholders on any amendments to the bills and then bring them back to the committee for a work session. Write to your legislator now and make sure they are ready to support SB 252 and SB 290.

 
What are some of the activities that take place throughout this program? 
Working with the institute director, Lewis & Clark Chair of Religious Studies Paul Powers, and guest scholars, teachers will spend an intensive weekend exploring the roots of fundamentalism through readings, discussions, films, and guest lectures. They'll consider what political and cultural factors contributed to fundamentalism's rise in the twentieth century, how it functions within American democracy, and how popular conceptions of fundamentalism affect religious tolerance within schools and communities. In addition to mainstream media and pop culture offering plenty of representations of fundamentalism to consider, the new policy on religious dress going into effect in Oregon schools this summer, as well as newly proposed state legislation on faith healing make this topic a fascinating and relevant one in Oregon right now.

What sets this professional development opportunity apart from others?   
Year after year, teachers tell us our program uniquely challenges them as learners - they study with top faculty in their disciplines and engage with teachers from very different backgrounds, schools, and communities throughout Oregon. Bringing teachers together across different disciplines to tackle a complex and, at times, controversial topic makes for truly fascinating learning and discussions. Our participants leave energized for the coming school year. I should also mention that teachers are often surprised that tuition, room, and board are FREE, due to generous funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Jackson and U.S. Bancorp Foundations. We charge only a $50 materials fee for those earning the 30 hours of continuing education. Two graduate credits are offered (optionally) at $84 per credit.

Who is eligible for this program?
All teachers working full time in Oregon secondary schools are eligible to apply for our institute, with preference given to first-time participants and those teaching humanities disciplines. We also select our teachers with geographic diversity in mind. To apply online, or for more information about this and our other education programs including Happy Campm visit the  Oregon Humanities' Website.