For Your Information
Vol. 21, No. 20
November 13, 2009
Click here for past issues of the For Your Information newsletter.
STATE BOARD TO DISCUSS BUDGET NUMBERS, CHARTER SCHOOLS DEC. 10
Action at Thursday’s state Board of Education meeting for K-12 seemed analogous to the adage, “something has to give.” A resolution unanimously approved by the board points to voracious health insurance and retirement costs – that could absorb more than 30 percent of education dollars in 2011 – as that “something.”
“We are in dire straits,” said state Superintendent of Education Dr. Joe Morton, “We have some school systems who can’t pay their bills.”
The resolution recommends:
- Freezing Public Education Employees’ Health Insurance Plan and retirement allocations at the 2010 level, so the PEEHIP and Retirement Systems of Alabama boards are taxed with devising a solution for balancing revenue and expenditures.
- Amending the law to increase from 5 to 6 percent the amount of salary employees pay toward retirement, effective for new education employees beginning July 1, 2010.
- Funding K-12 education in 2011 at no less than 70 percent of the total Education Trust Fund proceeds and considering a constitutional amendment to designate all funding for K-12, postsecondary and higher education be allocated on a per-student enrolled formula.
At Morton’s request, two recommendations were removed from the resolution prior to approval. The issues involve supporting a change in law to set minimums of age 57 and 30 years of experience to be eligible for retirement and to participate in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan. Both recommendations, Morton said, need additional study and will be discussed at a work session on Dec. 10. The state board’s regular K-12 meeting will immediately follow.
Also during the Dec. 10 work session, the state board is expected to discuss a more detailed education budget proposal, as well as the recently released rules regarding the $4.35 billion Race to the Top Fund. Morton said it’s time to discuss charter schools and the Race to the Top application process. States competing for the federal funds are being awarded points for having charter schools.
The U.S. Department of Education did clarify, after receiving public comment, that it doesn’t “believe that charter schools are the only or preferred solution to turning around struggling schools.”
To prepare the state for the application process, Morton says the state education department is seeking assistance from the Gates Foundation. The first round of state applications will be accepted in January 2010, with winners announced in the spring, while the second round launches June 1, with winners announced by Sept. 30.
In other business, the state board:
- Received the system-by-system list of average daily membership numbers on which state funding for local school systems is based. In regard to No Child Left Behind accountability provisions, Morton plans to request a waiver from the U.S. Department of Education for systems with an average daily attendance below 95 percent due to swine flu.
- Announced intent to change administrative rules that address the use of reasonable seclusion and restraint methods for students.
- Approved a resolution urging Alabama’s school systems to adopt “Idle Free Zones” on school campuses to reduce unhealthy emissions and improve air quality.
- Proclaimed Nov. 15-21 as American Education Week in Alabama.
Morton also reported that H1N1 clinics will begin the Monday following Thanksgiving for children age 9 and younger until additional vaccines can be supplied. Permission slips have been printed and more details will be presented to superintendents at a Nov. 18 meeting in Montgomery.
READY FOR CONVENTION? PRE-REGISTRATION ENDS NOV. 27
Arm yourself with the latest information on quality education and best practices. Stay up-to-date on the fiscal picture facing education. Ready yourself to fight for public education as a priority in Alabama. Attend AASB’s Dec. 3-5 convention, “A Vision for the Next 60 Years: Lead, Inspire, Change.” You still have time to register at the discounted rate.
The event features an agenda filled with inspiring, practical and informative clinic sessions. Hear from nationally acclaimed speakers William Draves and Salome Thomas-EL and interact with key legislators in a discussion about the education budget. Don’t miss AASB’s annual Delegate Assembly, including the election of officers, on Dec. 3.
The cost is $230 for AASB members, $430 for non-members. Go here for hotel and registration details. To learn more, contact AASB at 800/562-0601.
ARE YOU A NEW BOARD MEMBER OR
FIRST-TIME CONVENTION ATTENDEE?
First-time attendees to the AASB Annual Convention, set for Dec. 3-5, may contact LuAnn Bird, lbird@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org, to be matched with a mentor. Veteran school board members interested in serving as a mentor are also asked to let us know.
If you’re attending the convention for the first time because you’re a new school board member, then register for the Dec. 3 AASB Leadership II orientation course. The course is offered to new board members — and veterans interested in a refresher — just prior to the association’s convention. Leadership II is a component of AASB’s two-part leadership orientation that introduces skills new board members need to govern. Please note that you do not have to attend Leadership I in order to participate in Leadership II. The cost is $100 for AASB members, $200 for non-members. The course will be taught at The Wynfrey Hotel. To learn more, contact AASB at 800/562-0601.
AASB OFFERS TRAINING ON NEW POLICIES
By July 1, 2010, each school board must adopt a local policy pursuant to the Student Harassment Prevention Act (Act 09-571) passed by the Legislature this year. The state Department of Education has created a model policy , as directed by the statute, for local boards. AASB will be conducting its Jan. 11-Feb. 18 Winter District Meetings to help guide school boards in developing their local policy using the SDE model. At that time, school board members will be advised about the parameters of the policy and what school boards should or should not include in their local policies. AASB is pleased to have had the opportunity to have some input into the legislation and model policy. Also, school board members will soon receive information from AASB about sample policies for the orientation and ongoing training for board members. A local policy must be adopted by March 1, 2010, pursuant to Act 09-297.
EDUCATION TRUST FUND UPDATE
Receipts to the Education Trust Fund increased significantly (18.4 percent) in the month of October compared to the same period last year. However, it appears that growth was due to the timing of bond payments and income tax refunds, as well as, the timing of certain receipts in October 2008. Therefore, there appears to have been a real decline in tax receipts to the fund in October of approximately 11 percent, a figure consistent with recent trends in the ETF. However, it is too early in the fiscal year to draw any significant conclusions about the current level of revenues and their impact on the current prorated budget.
CONGRATULATIONS NEW DIRECTORS
AASB recently announced results of the 2009 district director elections. District Directors Bill Minor of District 2 and Pam Doyle of District 8 were re-elected. Newly elected directors include District 9 Director Dr. Jennie Robinson of Huntsville, District 4 Director Charlotte Meadows of Montgomery County and District 6 Director Larry Stewart of Calhoun County.
COMMITTEE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
School board members interested in serving on an AASB committee this year should notify Sally Howell, J.D., (P.O. Drawer 230488, Montgomery, AL 36123; 800/562-0601; or 334/270-0000, fax). The deadline to apply for committee membership is Feb. 22.
LEGAL ASSISTANCE FUND VICTORY
AASB’s Legal Assistance Fund filed a “friend of the court brief” in the Boone v. Birmingham Board of Education case. This action was brought by teachers who also held supplemental contracts as coaches and activity sponsors. When the board cancelled their supplemental contracts after the end of the school term, the teachers filed suit claiming that the board’s actions were in violation of Ala. Code §16-24-12, which requires boards to notify teachers before the end of the school year if their salary will be reduced. After the trial court ruled in favor of the board, the Court of Civil Appeals reversed the trial court. The board appealed, and, in a victory for all boards in this state, the Supreme Court held that the Court of Civil Appeals improperly extended the term “teacher,” as defined in Ala. Code §16-24-1 of the Teacher Tenure Act, to non-teaching positions. Accordingly, boards are not obligated to notify teachers that their supplemental contracts will be cancelled before the end of the school year.
REGISTER FOR NSBA WEBCASTS
Register for National School Boards Association’s upcoming Webcasts: Policymakers Addressing Childhood Obesity Through Collaboration and Policy Change on Dec. 1 and Pre-K Collaboration: How to Build Effective Partnerships on Nov. 19, both at 1 p.m. central time. Register for the pre-K event or register here for the obesity Webcast.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
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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