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August State Board News
Career and Technical Education
Linda Oborny, KSDE, presented to the board the recent changes in Career and
Technical Education. Who will be administrator of the Carl Perkins Act on the
part of the state is the biggest change. Presently the State Department of Education
administers the act, but this has shifted to the Board of Regents this year.
Kansas receives $13 million from the Federal Government through the Carl Perkins
Act. Currently there are 23,360 students across the state enrolled in Career
and Technical Education which in years passed was referred to as Vocational
Education.
High School Restructuring
In July, the State Board looked at redesigning high schools. The board has
review materials from the High Schools That Work Trust and Education Trust learning
that students enter grades 9-12 with more complex needs and challenges than
faced by past generations. The State Board has already required a core curriculum
of all students through approval in 2002 of revised graduation requirements
that will begin with the freshman class of 2006. There was concern expressed
at the meeting that while the schools are moving toward a core curriculum the
content of those courses vary widely between districts. The example used was
an Algebra II course with a long list of the course content to be studied in
one year from a western Kansas school district. An eastern Kansas district's
Algebra II course had only three items listed in their course content list.
Much concern was expressed about the differences.
Presented to the board for their consideration and discussion were a number
of suggested initiatives. Included were:
Provide students with the opportunity to complete high school and graduate
at their own pace.
Create a set of task forces for each subject required for graduation to identify
what students should know and be able to do upon graduation.
Include in the accreditation of high schools, a review of how high school
students are meeting the requirements for graduation.
The board will continue to study and discuss the suggestions.
New Resource for Educators in Kansas
The Kansas Instructional Resource Center will soon be available to educators
in Kansas to assist with lesson development. The web site will have a wide
variety of materials available including supplemental resources, lesson plans,
curriculum supplements, links to other web sites, and answers to assessment
questions. Kansas educators will be notified of its availability via list
serves following Board release. An educator may pull up the standards, benchmarks,
indicators and lesson plans by grade level or subject area. We would suggest
that you stay alert for the release of this site.
Preliminary List of Title I Schools and Districts on Improvement
It appears that a smaller number of Kansas Title I schools will be on improvement
in 2004 than in 2003. The list of Title I schools and districts on improvement
presented to the State Board includes six school districts and 15 Title I schools,
compared to 7 districts and 30 Title I schools last year.
Schools and districts that do appear on the list have 30 days in which to
appeal their on improvement status. The state then has 30 days in which to decide
the appeal. Any school or district may be removed from the list if an appeal
is decided in its favor. Federal law requires that the information on Title
I schools and districts on improvement be released each year prior to the start
of school which is why the State Board received the information. Following the
appeals process, a final list of Title I schools on improvement will be made
available in October.
Title I Schools Identified for Improvement for 2004-2005
15 schools identified for improvement
5 schools identified for reading
11 schools identified for mathematics
5 schools identified for first time
8 schools on delay status for next level of sanctions as they made AYP in
spring 2004
14 schools are no longer on improvement
2 schools closed
AYP mathematics targets: K-8 is 53.5% proficient; 9-12 is 38.0% proficient
AYP reading targets: K-8 is 57.3 % proficient; 9-12 is 51.0% proficient
The complete list can be found at: http://www.ksde.org/pressreleases/2004_school_improvement_list.htm
Alternative Teacher Compensation
Board member Carol Rupe had requested the board to include a discussion of
Alternative Teacher Compensation at this month's board meeting. The board reviewed
seven different types of alternative compensation. These seven fell generally
under four categories of compensation. Single Salary, which is the traditional
salary schedule used for the compensation of teachers for years of experience
and degree(s) obtained. Demand Related Compensation, which pays teachers extra
in high demand areas such as Special Education, Math and Science. Merit Pay,
which is a bonus for performance often tied to test scores. Pay-for-Performance,
which pays teachers extra for the attainment of agreed upon performance goals.
Some board members expressed the need to find a way to pay teachers that go
above and beyond the call of duty. The board will continue to study the subject.
Legislative Matters
Adoption of the 2006 budget recommendations passed on a 7-3 vote with Gamble,
Waugh and Wagnon voting no. It was felt by those that voted no that the budget
did not include enough money to truly fund education in Kansas. Dale Dennis
presented a report on the Interim Committee meetings in the legislature which
are still in their early stages.
Bill Wagnon expressed the need for a legislative solution to the fiscal accountability
problem that has surface in USD 501 with the loss of a half a million dollars
through the fraudulent use of checks. The department will write some potential
legislation regarding school district fiscal accountability. Steve Abrams wanted
to include academic accountability in the legislation. There will be more to
follow in this discussion.
Civics/Government and Geography Standards
Last month Steve Abrams expressed a concern regarding the language in the
draft standards. The board agreed that Steve Abrams and Bill Wagnon would work
on the language and present changes to the board for their consideration. The
board passed the changes in the language and then sent them back to the committee
to be included in the final package to be voted on next month.
In other action, the State Board:
Approved request from USD 417, Council Grove, to hold a bond election.
Approved request from USD 209, Ottawa, to hold a bond election.
Approved recommendations for Visiting Scholar licenses
SEKESC, behavior analyst, approved renewal
USD 305, Salina, AP economics
Approved modification of NCKSEC interlocal agreement
Approved recommendations of the Evaluation Review Committee
University of Kansas' - "new program approved with stipulation" status
through June 30, 2006
Wichita State Univeristy - two programs "approved with stipulation"
status through June 30, 2005; "approved" status for the remainder
of WSU's programs through December 31, 2007.
Approved QPA waivers for
All Saints Catholic School, Wichita, adjust on-site visit
USD 321, Emmett Elementary, adjust on-site visit
USD 264, Clearwater Middle, adjust on-site visit
USD 455, Hillcrest Rural Schools, adjust on-site visit
Additional New QPA Pilot Schools
The following schools have applied to be pilot schools in 04-05 for the Pilot
Quality Performance Accreditation System with the new regulations becoming
effective July 1, 2005.
USD 233 Olathe: Central, Fairview, Heatherstone, Northview, Regency
Place, Rolling Ridge, Scarborough, Washington, Westview elementaries; Oregon
Trail, Pioneer Trail, Santa Fe Trail junior highs; Northwest High.
USD 328 Lorraine: Quivira Heights Elementary/JH, Quivira Heights High;
Wilson elementary, JH & HS.
USD 497 Lawrence: Lawrence Virtual Charter School
St. Joseph Catholic School, Wichita
Schools Receive Accreditation
The following schools received 5-year accredited status at the August State
Board meeting:
USD 229: Lakewood elementary
USD 247: Cherokee and Weir elementaries
USD 259: Cessna and Woodland elementaries and Mead MS
USD 267: Andale elementary
USD 275: Eastern Heights and Winona elementaries; Eastern Heights HS and Winona
HS
USD 369: Burrton elementary and HS
USD 379: Longford elementary and Wakefield HS
USD 381: Spearville elemenatary, JH/HS
USD 383: Woodrow Wilson elementary
USD 401: Raymond JH
USD 419: Canton-Galva elementary
USD 445: Roosevelt MS
USD 477: Ingalls elementary and HS
USD 500: Grant and Eugene Ware elementaries
USD 502: Lewis elementary and HS
USD 509: South Haven elementary
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KNEA Legislative Contacts
Blake West, President
Peg Dunlap, Director, Instructional Advocacy
Mark Desetti, Director, Legislative and Political Advocacy
Terry Forsyth, Director, Political Action
The KNEA Lobby Team consists of elected leaders and staff. The Lobby Team welcomes member feedback on issues before the Legislature and on this site.
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