For Your Information
Vol. 21, No. 17
September 25, 2009
Click here for past issues of the For Your Information newsletter.
STATE BOARD FACES DIFFICULT DISCUSSION ABOUT FY2011 FUNDING
Thursday’s K-12 state Board of Education work session may be a cake walk compared to the upcoming October work session when the painful process of finalizing 2011 education funding suggestions for the governor begins.
Demand for the state’s shrinking revenue is even steeper since an estimated $282.6 million is needed to cover increased insurance costs for retirees and education employees. For 23 years, teachers in the Public Education Employees’ Health Insurance Plan have contributed $2 monthly to their health insurance. The family insurance coverage cost for teachers in PEEHIP is $134. The state foots the rest. PEEHIP is requesting a $243 per month increase per employee to keep plan benefits as they are.
The board also took a difficult look at existing education funding wounds.
There was 11 percent proration for 2009, dropping $557 million from the education budget compared to the 2008 fiscal year and leaving a K-12 budget of $3.59 billion. Education Trust Fund dollars for K-12 education in 2010 were up a bit at $3.65 billion, but the year has just begun. State Superintendent of Education Dr. Joe Morton predicts 6 percent across-the-board budget cuts for 2010, but other education leaders are projecting higher.
The 2010 budget, as state board members discussed, has no funding for character education, gifted education, after school/extended day programs, media centers, professional development or classroom supplies. The Other Current Expense line item used to fund school operations and maintenance is underfunded. Local boards received $17.50 per student for textbooks, and the state’s Teacher Mentoring Program was appropriated a nominal $7,500 for 2010.
Level funding, Morton said, would practically prevent the Alabama Reading Initiative, now in all K-3 schools, from expanding to reach middle school students. The Alabama Math, Science and Technology Initiative is only reaching half of the state’s students. Morton also expressed concern about funding teacher testing, distance learning, incentives for National Board Certified Teachers and school nurses, particularly in the midst of the H1N1 flu pandemic. Alabama has one nurse per 1,000 students. The goal under Alabama’s School Nurse law is one nurse per 500 students.
“If the Legislature did some miracle, which right now it looks like they could not do, and found $282 million new dollars and gave it all to PEEHP, then we would still be underfunded in all those programs,” Morton said. “There is this real crescendo building that has already hit but is going to be better recognized when the Legislature assembles. We have these demands for funds – be they instructional demands, school transportation demands or insurance demands – that far outstrip the available revenue. There just won’t be enough money to do it all.”
The state board will discuss its education budget recommendations in the Oct. 22 K-12 work session, and vote on the final recommendations Nov. 12. Those recommendations go to the governor, who submits his final budget proposal to the Legislature. The regular legislative session convenes Jan. 12.
In other business, the state Department of Education’s Craig Pouncey and Jerry Lassiter proposed a new transportation funding formula to reimburse local boards, ensure cost containment measures are in place and more uniformly distribute state transportation dollars.
The new formula would fund: route buses plus spares at a maximum of 20 percent of route buses; benefits only for earned positions and not to exceed set amounts; earned positions based on set amounts and limit those positions based on fleet size; and non-salary costs based on an equitable amount of the total non-salary costs.
Thursday’s work session also included the School Superintendents of Alabama’s presentation of their Next Steps advocacy publication. Prepared over two-years, the document outlines the “next steps” SSA believes should be taken to implement the state Board of Education’s Educational Ruler. The plan — endorsed by AASB — calls for safe and supportive learning communities; challenging curriculum; and quality teachers and leaders to ensure student success in the 21st century. There are action steps included for the state board, Legislature and local boards of education.
The state board’s next regular meeting is Oct. 8.
PEEHIP INCREASES 2011 REQUEST
The 2011 fiscal outlook is already bleak and just got bleaker, and the budget process hasn’t started.
The PEEHIP board estimated additional costs to fund benefits at the current level in FY2011 to be about $157 million. However, it now appears that the amount needed to fund PEEHIP for 2011 is approximately $282 million, which represents 5 percent of the FY2010 Education Trust Fund budget.
These funding amounts do not include additional costs of funding TRS in FY2011, which are estimated at $57 million, and will create additional challenges in creating the budget for FY2011. As discussed during the AASB district meetings, the Legislature will also need to adjust at the state level for the level of proration anticipated Oct. 1 — which is projected to be in the range of 6 to 8.5 percent.
FALL DISTRICT MEETINGS CONTINUE THROUGH OCT. 5
Missed your district meeting? No worries. Just sign up for one of AASB’s upcoming Fall 2009 District Meetings that continue through Oct. 5. Hear presentations about how to read student achievement data, identify trends and understand gaps. There will also be a legislative financial update. Networking begins at 6 p.m. Central Time, and the 45-minute program that follows is free for AASB members. The only cost is dinner. The remaining meetings will be: District 6 on Sept. 29 at Classic on Noble, 1024 Noble Street, Anniston; District 4 on Oct. 1 at Hilton Garden Inn Hotel, 2555 Hilton Garden Drive, Auburn; and District 3 on Oct. 5 at Colby’s Country Cooking Restaurant, 129 S. East Ave, Ozark.
REGISTER FOR OCT. 25-26 CORE COURSE
AND OCT. 25 EARLY BIRD WORKSHOP
Don’t miss your opportunity to attend AASB’s Core Course on Leadership to Create the Optimal Learning Environment Oct. 25-26 at the Montgomery Renaissance Hotel and Convention Center. Before you can complete the final level of AASB’s School Board Member Academy, you must have all eight core courses, as well as the prerequisite hours. Each core course is taught every three years. Register and attend the Optimal Learning course to hear from national child advocate Kati Haycock, a panel of teachers and students, as well as fellow education leaders, including Assistant State Superintendent for Finance Craig Pouncey.
Come early for the Planning for Pre-kindergarten: Tools for School Boards workshop. The early bird session, facilitated by state Department of Children’s Affairs Commissioner Dr. Marquita Davis, will be 1-3 p.m. Oct. 25 and is worth two AASB School Board Member Academy hours. Registered workshop attendees will receive The Center for Public Education’s pre-K planning toolkit. Early bird workshop registration is $65 for members and $130 for non-members.
AASB conference registration is $125 for members and $250 for non-members by Oct. 20. There is a $10 on-site registration fee. Call 800/468-3571 and mention the code “AASB” to book your hotel room. Register online at www.AlabamaSchoolBoards.org, call 800/562-0601 or fax your conference registration form to 334/270-0000.
BALLOTS DUE OCT. 31 FROM DISTRICTS 4 AND 6
Be sure your board casts its ballot for AASB District Director in districts 4 and 6. Each board within a district gets one vote. The board president will certify that action was taken at an October board meeting to choose a candidate, and the ballot must be postmarked by Oct. 31 and returned to AASB. Seeking to serve as District 4 director are: Gail Holley of Lanett, Charlotte Meadows of Montgomery County and Matilda Woodyard-Hamilton of Tallapoosa County. The Rev. Preston Nix of Attalla, Skip Smithwick of Sylacauga and Larry B. Stewart of Calhoun County are vying for the District 6 directorship.
KNOW AN EXEMPLARY BOARD MEMBER?
AASB is once again bestowing its highest award upon current or past board members who have shown exemplary boardmanship. AASB’s coveted All-State School Board Member recognition award will be presented at the association’s annual convention in December. Nomination materials have been mailed to superintendents and board presidents and are due by Oct. 1. For more information, contact AASB at 334/277-9700.
POST PAID INVOICES ONLINE
Beginning in October, boards will begin a process approved by the state board to enhance transparency. The state Board of Education adopted an administrative rules amendment recently that requires local boards to post paid invoices on their school systems’ Web sites.
STEP UP FOR KIDS, READ TO KIDS OCT. 8
Step up for Kids Week 2009 is a national Every Child Matters Education Fund observance set for Oct. 5-9 to increase public awareness about challenges children face. The week includes a spirited rally at 10 a.m. Oct. 8 on the Capitol steps in downtown Montgomery. Educators and child advocates are encouraged to attend. Call 334/546-1995.
In an unrelated event, school board members, education leaders and others willing to take a moment to participate in the national Jumpstart Read for the Record early literacy campaign are asked to read Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar to grades K-1 on Oct. 8. To participate, contact Judy Stone, 334/353-1570.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
T+L Conference 2009
Oct. 28-30 at the Colorado Convention Center
Presented by the National School Boards Association’s Technology Leadership Network
www.nsba.org/tl/
AASB 2009 Annual Convention
Dec. 3-5 at The Wynfrey Hotel in Birmingham
A Vision For The Next 60 Years: Lead, Inspire, Change!
Call 877/796-3922 to book housing
NSBA 2010 Annual Conference
April 10-12, 2010, at McCormick Place in Chicago
Online registration is open and housing opens Oct. 7
www.nsba.org
— Denise L. Berkhalter,
publicrelations@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org
Alabama Association of School Boards:
Celebrating 60 years of developing excellent school board leaders through quality training, advocacy and services.
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