|
Full ERC Meets in Tifton
The full Education Reform Commission convened by Governor Deal met in Tifton, GA on Friday, April 17, 2015. It was a packed meeting, and observers overflowed into hallways.
At the full commission meeting, Commission Chair Charles Knapp, outlined goals for the funding subcommittee which he also chairs. A new education funding formula recommendation, which is expected by Governor Deal by August 1, 2015, will have the following three components:
- Provide school districts with greater funding flexibility
- Be simpler and more transparent
- Allow money to follow the child
Knapp explicitly stated that the ERC is not intended as an exercise in determining the actual cost of educating Georgia students. The ERC will develop a student-based funding model through which funds will follow students to the public schools students attend. Knapp said his subcommittee is considering a new education funding model that will use the education dollars appropriated by the General Assembly and plug them into a base that will be assigned to each Georgia student. Different student characteristics like poverty, special ed, and K-3 will probably be weighted differently. Some categorical weights will be outside the base.
|
|
ERC Subcommittee Reports
In her report on the work of the Early Childhood Subcommittee, DECAL Commissioner Amy Jacobs said that her group is examining several topic areas:
- Building access to Georgia pre-k
- Pre-k Lead teacher salary and benefits
- Pre-k assistant teacher salary and benefits
- Class sizes
- Non-instructional costs
In his Move on When Ready Subcommittee report, chair Matt Arthur presented a PowerPoint and explained that his subcommittee has divided into small subgroups to study grades K-5, 6-8, 9-postsecondary subcommittees.
Arthur referenced SB 2 and SB 132 which passed during the 2015 legislative session and recommended that every high school student be enrolled in at least one higher ed or industry certification course.
Nels Peterson, chair of the Expanding Educational Options/School Choice subcommittee, reported that his subcommittee waited to see what school choice legislation would come out of the 2015 General Assembly. His subcommittee did not meet at the conclusion of the full commission Friday though the other subcommittees all did so. Peterson reports that his subcommittee plans to meet on May 4 and May 29. He requested that those interested communicate their thoughts now.
Pam Williams, who chairs the Teacher Recruitment, Retention & Compensation subcommittee, reported that her group has been "very intentional" in its work and has been hesitant to explore solutions until teachers concerns are well captured. Williams has held multiple teacher input sessions and reported that curriculum, instruction, and assessment are of deep concern to Georgia educators.
After the subcommittee reports were complete, public comment was heard. Notably, several educators, including administrators, from Tift County Schools explained their funding and logistical challenges, and Quitman County School Superintendent Allen Fort described the challenges his low-wealth district encounters.
Review upcoming dates for the commission HERE.
|
|
Funding Subcommittee Meeting - Input Needed
After the full commission adjourned, subcommittee chairs convened their groups. Review subcommittee assignments HERE. Because all the subcommittees, barring one, met simultaneously, non-commission-member attendees were hard pressed to cover all the action.
HERE is the presentation from the Funding Subcommittee.
Funding subcommittee discussion about whether to build appropriation for educator teaching and experience into the student base made clear that the subcommittee needs additional input and that whatever formula the subcommittee recommends is likely to be controversial with some groups. Currently, funding for teacher training and experience moves separately in the state budget and is based on the actual level of teacher training and experience that school districts report to the state. If a teacher training and experience average of some kind is built into a per pupil funding base, it may inadequately cover the cost of employing veteran teachers with advanced degrees and serve as a disincentive for schools to employ such educators.
|
|
Teacher Recruitment, Retention & Compensation Subcommittee Meeting
Over in the teacher subcommittee, group discussion revolved around the teacher input sessions that chair Pam Williams has held. See Williams' compilation of teacher comments HERE. Subcommittee member Robert Avossa, the current superintendent in Fulton County schools, has accepted a new position in Florida and was not present at Friday's meeting.
Williams reports that themes from teacher input sessions include:
- Desire for Uninterrupted Planning Time
- Concern about amount and consistency of assessments
- Implementation of curriculum, instruction, and assessment changes
- Financial Compensation - increasing starting teacher salary
- Nervousness about Pay for Performance
- Interest in state tax credits, loan forgiveness, and bonuses
- Professional growth opportunities without having to leave the classroom
- Mentoring of new teachers
- Support for involvement of teachers in state-level decisions
- Desire to lower the TEM component in educator evaluations
- Placing shared accountability on students and parents
After discussion of the educator input sessions, the group turned its attention to presentations by Fulton County and Marietta City school districts on educator pay.
Ken Zeff from Fulton County Schools reported that Fulton has been working to attract high quality potential teachers to the district, retain high performers, and leverage excellent teaching with its new compensation system that includes paying Fulton's best teachers an additional $20,000 to move to low-performing schools.
Fulton's plan contains elements of advanced degree tuition reimbursement and a career ladder. It's available online HERE.
Dr. Emily Lembeck, Superintendent of Marietta City Schools described her district's changes to teacher compensation. Initially, like Fulton, Marietta City worked with Education Resource Strategies to design a new compensation system. Recently, Marietta has moved in another direction and has retained Greenway Strategy Management. (Editor's Note: Read a related story from the Marietta Daily Journal HERE.)
Lembeck explained that the teacher compensation plan was from the start designed to be affordable and sustainable. The district is piloting a degree reimbursement program but has decided to move more slowly with regard to other compensation changes.
|
|
Input on ERC Subcommittees
ERC subcommittees are meeting frequently throughout the summer, and meetings are open to the public. Public input is needed and can be submitted online HERE. PAGE will continue to report on the work of the full commission and subcommittees. |
