FYI: State board doesn’t confirm charter school commission

Volume 27, Issue 5 - May 15, 2015 | Archives | AlabamaSchoolBoards.org

State board doesn’t confirm charter school commission

In a 3-4 decision Wednesday, the state Board of Education declined to appoint the Alabama Public School Charter Commission, an independent state entity that would hear appeals of charter schools rejected by local school boards. Law gives the board until June 1 to appoint commission members, a fact the state Department of Education’s general counsel emphasized when cautioning the board that litigation could be imminent.

Voting no were Vice President Ella Bell, Betty Peters, Dr. Yvette Richardson and Stephanie Bell. The yes votes were Jeff Newman, Dr. Cynthia McCarty and Mary Scott Hunter. Absent from the meeting were ex-officio President Gov. Robert Bentley and District 1’s Al Thompson, who resigned to serve on the recently appointed two-year college system board. This year, the Alabama Legislature stripped the state board of its oversight of two-year colleges.

Stephanie Bell, Peters and Richardson stated that receiving the 21 nominees’ information a week ago wasn’t enough time to review and then make a decision. Newman said he felt compelled to follow the law. Embarrassing was the word used by Hunter, who said the board had time to do its homework, and Ella Bell, who said the appointed commission established by the Legislature essentially usurps the voting public’s voice.

The 2015 Alabama School Choice and Student Opportunity Act created the 11-member commission. The governor gets four appointees, and there is one appointee for the lieutenant governor, two for the Senate president pro tem and three for the speaker of the House. Ten seats are appointed by the state board and one rotating member is to be chosen by the local board whose decision has been appealed.

The state board voted on a slate of appointees by paper ballot, cast by three of the seven members.

Below is the slate of appointees:

Governor’s appointees:

· Sally Howell

· Mac Buttram

· Thomas Rains

· Dr. Ed Richardson

Lieutenant governor’s appointee:

· Melinda McClendon

Speaker of the House’s appointees:

· Gloria Batts

· Terry Tomlinson

· Dr. Alma Freeman

Senate president pro tem’s appointees:

· Chad Fincher

· Dr. Quesha Starks

In other business, the state board appointed a Dyslexia Advisory Board, announced its intention to amend regulations to address dyslexia and approved Dr. Philip Cleveland’s promotion to deputy state superintendent for career and technical education and workforce development.

The state board expects to release Birmingham City Schools from state intervention, appoint a 2015-2016 State Textbook Committee for science and show the winning videos from AASB’s “How We Achieve Excellence in Our Schools” contest for grades 6-12. (The contest is co-sponsored by Alabama Public Television and Fairbanks LLC.) These items were discussed at Thursday’s K-12 work session, which also included recognition of 2015-2016 Alabama Teacher of the Year Jennifer Brown of Vestavia Hills High School in the Vestavia Hills school system.

At the work session, the board received reports on the 2015 Educator Preparation Chapter of the Alabama Administrative Code and the Comprehensive Counseling and Guidance Model for Alabama Public Schools.

With these proposals prospective educators will see a greater emphasis on what they should know and be able to do before earning their first certificate. All GPA requirements will be raised by .25, effective July 1, 2017, and the Alabama Quality Teaching Standards have been replaced by the Alabama Core Teaching Standards. Higher education institutions get more flexibility to meet the new state standards but are held accountable for program performance. Read more.

For now, the state board’s next regular K-12 meeting will be June 10 at 1 p.m., and its next work session is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. June 11 in Montgomery. But a meeting could be called on or before June 1 to re-consider the charter commission appointments. Since the state board is no longer responsible for two-year colleges, the board discussed meeting one Thursday per month for its K-12 meeting and work session.

Get update on latest education court cases, webinar May 21 at 11:30 a.m.

Join Francisco M. Negrón, the National School Boards Association's associate executive director and general counsel, Thursday, May 21, for A View from Inside the Beltway: NSBA’s Legal Advocacy Agenda for Public Schools.

Negrón’s webinar will give a dynamic survey of some of the year’s most interesting court cases involving public schools. Learn about NSBA’s legal advocacy efforts as your voice in the U.S. Supreme Court and in appellate courts across the country. Also learn about the growth of executive power and explore what federal agency overreach means for public schools. The cost is only $50 per person or $200 per group to register. The webinar begins at 11:30 a.m. and ends at 1 p.m. central time. Earn 1.5 training hours.

Earn hours & take orientation at Summer Conference, early registration ends soon

Alabama requires training for school board members, and June 30 ends the training year. The state requires new board members to take orientation courses and all school board members to earn 6 hours of individual training per year. AASB’s June 19-21 Summer Conference & Orientation offers both.

Earn 14 total hours for the Roles & Responsibilities and Effective Boards and Relationships orientation courses taught June 18 and 19. Orientation courses jump start new school board members’ service and are a refresher for veteran members. Orientation hours count toward meeting state training requirements and advancement in the AASB School Board Member Academy.

The annual AASB summer conference — featuring a discussion of the new charter school legislation — is worth 7 training hours. Space is limited, so register by the June 8 early registration deadline to save your seat.

John Couch, vice president of education for Apple, will be the opening session speaker. Other keynote speeches will be delivered on Getting it Right: National Standards for Authorizing Charter Schools by Amanda Fenton; The New Normal and The Participation Gap by Ray McNulty; and Making Charters Work for You by Alan Coverstone.

The Perdido, conference headquarters, is sold out, but nearby housing is still available at Phoenix Condominiums (800/221-0258, group code: 718068), Island House Hotel (800/264-2642, group code: 2369537), Hilton Garden Inn Orange Beach (800/445-8667, group code: ASB) and Fairfield Inn & Suites (800/228-2800, group code: ASBR).

Still can’t attend? School board members can earn orientation hours and individual training hours online at SchoolBoardU.org/aasb.

Attorneys to earn 7.5 CLE hours at June 20 & 21 Summer Seminar
School board attorneys serve a unique niche in a highly sensitive and ever-changing area of the law. School boards need attorneys who are on the cutting edge.

Earn 7.5 CLE hours by attending the highly informative Alabama Council of School Board Attorneys Summer Seminar June 20 & 21 at The Perdido in Orange Beach. Enjoy opportunities to network with other attorneys and with school board members. Register early to reserve your seat. Email acsba@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org for more information. View the agenda.

Alabama Association of Administrative Assistants Conference June 22-24

Superintendent and school board administrative assistants have special responsibilities and face unique challenges specific to their profession. With laws and state rules impacting key aspects of their job, they need a source of professional development that addresses such issues as public board meetings, public records, sensitive files, dealing with a variety of personalities and more.

Members of the Alabama Association of Administrative Assistants will gather for their annual professional development conference June 22-24 at The Perdido in Orange Beach. They will learn how to ensure their work helps make it possible for school boards to successfully carry out their duties. Registration is still available. Contact AAAA@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org for more details.

Subscribe to Policy Pipeline; don’t miss July 30 policy conference call

Policy experts who have kept a close watch on the new laws, state rules, court cases and other issues that affect board policies will update Policy Pipeline subscribers on July 30.

The subscribers-only conference call is a great opportunity to ask questions about policy maintenance and new developments that impact policies.

If your school board contracts with AASB to use its Policy Review & Analysis service, you will get a free, one-year subscription to the Policy Pipeline to ensure those policies remain up-to-date.

Alabama school board members also benefit from a 10 percent discount on the eBoardsolutions.com Policy Module, and AASB will upload your policies to that module at no charge. For more, call 800/562-0601 (toll free, in-state) or email policy@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org.

Has your board earned its 2 hours of whole board training for 2015?

Alabama requires 2 hours of training each year for the school board team. The deadline for that training is June 30. School board members who have earned the 6 individual hours still need the whole board training to be fully compliant with state law and rules.

Please schedule board training by contacting training@AlabamASchoolBoards.org. An external training application must be completed for training not conducted by AASB.

AASB’s trainers travel to a location you choose to provide the whole board training. Call us to book any of the following workshops or to pitch an idea for custom training specific to your school board’s needs.

Boardmanship 101 is available as a no-cost member service. A $400 fee charged for the 2-hour Board Self-Evaluation. A $500 fee is charged for the 2-hour Better Boardmanship, Community Engagement, Media & Public Relations, Superintendent Evaluation, Strategic Planning, Facilitated Goal Setting, Conflict Resolution, Data First, Are You Looking at the Right Numbers, Becoming a High Impact Board, Effective Board Meetings, Monitoring Your Financial Pulse, Communicate in Style (Persogenics) and The Board & the Law (your board chooses the legal topic) workshops. To schedule, email us or call 800/562-0601.

Save money & be prepared: 10% off early whole board training

Alabama requires 2 hours of interactive, facilitated whole board training each year. Were you struggling to get whole board training done this year? Didn’t enjoy the last-minute stress? Schedule training early to get a jump on earning your 2016 state-required whole board hours.

The 2016 training year runs from July 1, 2015, through June 30, 2016.

Earn a 10 percent off the regular fee if you schedule AASB-provided whole board training for July, August or September 2015. Call Leadership Development at 800/562-0601 for details.

Please enter new board members & superintendents in eMEMBERSHIP

In June and July, some school boards welcome aboard new board members and superintendents. Because AASB provides news, shares advocacy information and maintains board member training records in the eMEMBERSHIP database, it is important to quickly enter new members’ profile information.

AASB provides board administrative assistants with usernames and passwords, and members can access their records, too.

Former AASB members are encouraged to stay active in public education as an AASB associate member or member of the AASB Network. Contact membership@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org

to learn how.

Coming Oct. 4 & 5: Fall core course on optimal learning environment

The learning environment is more than just bricks and mortar. That’s why board members need to learn strategies for managing facilities, keeping schools safe, improving parental involvement, expanding internal communication and fostering teamwork.

The AASB School Board Member Academy presents its core course on Leadership to Create the Optimal Learning Environment Oct. 4 and 5 at The Renaissance Montgomery in downtown Montgomery. It will be taught again in 2018. School board members who take this academy required course will earn 6 hours, enough to meet the state’s requirement for annual individual school board member training.

Stay over for the Oct. 5 post-conference workshop When Social Media Attacks. Details about the workshop and conference will be posted online soon at AlabamaSchoolBoards.org.

President’s Award will be given at Aug. 31-Sept. 21 District Meetings

During the AASB Fall District Meetings, school boards are recognized if 60 percent or more of their members attended at least three AASB conferences in the academy year and, in that same year, all board members met state-mandated training requirements. These Aug. 31-Sept. 21 meetings are an excellent way to interact with your district directors and to network with school board members from your area.

The 1-hour training will focus on ways your system can use state innovation options to serve students more effectively. We will also preview the 2016 legislative session. The only cost is for dinner, but pre-registration is still strongly encouraged to reserve your seat and meal. The meetings all begin at 6 p.m. central time with the exception of District 5, which begins at 5:30 p.m. Meeting locations and other details will be posted soon at AlabamaSchoolBoards.org.

Facing accreditation/re-accreditation? Try our strategic planning service

Getting ready for AdvancED accreditation or taking that next step in visionary leadership by updating your school system’s strategic plan? AASB offers Strategic Planning as a member service. This systematic and sustainable approach to school system strategic planning engages the stakeholders to create universal ownership and support for system and school improvement. In addition, AASB offers training (for the board and/or your planning team) on strategic planning as well. To learn more, contact AASB’s leadership development team or call 334/277-9700.

Is there an unsung hero on your board? All-State nominees due Sept. 1

Honor the commitment and achievement of one of your board members by nominating him or her for AASB’s All-State School Board Member Recognition Program. The All-State award, one of AASB’s highest honors, celebrates the work of up to five past or present Alabama school board members who have exhibited exemplary boardmanship.

Nominations may be submitted following a majority vote of the school board. An individual board member may nominate another member provided the nomination is endorsed by a majority vote of the nominee’s board. Detailed nomination information has been mailed to board presidents and superintendents. Nominations are due Sept. 1. Call 334/277-9700 or email AASB at training@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org for details.

AASB Bylaws & Resolutions due

Please submit your proposed resolutions or changes to AASB Bylaws in writing by Aug. 14. Proposals will be considered by AASB’s Delegate Assembly in December. Fax submissions to AASB at 334/270-0000; mail to: P.O. Box 230488, Montgomery, AL 36123-0488 or email us.

Call for district director nominees, form to be mailed in August

AASB will soon open nominations or self-nominations of active members interested in serving as director in districts 2, 4, 6 and 8. Nomination forms will be sent out in August and are due to AASB’s executive director by Sept. 1.

Ballots listing eligible nominees will be mailed to district members by Oct. 1. Each board within a district gets one vote. The board president will certify that action was taken at a board meeting to choose a candidate, and the ballot must be returned to AASB by Oct. 31. If only one person is nominated, he or she automatically becomes district director.

District 4 Director Gwen Harris-Brooks of Lanett, District 6 Director Kathy Landers of Talladega County and District 8 Director Karen Duke of Decatur are eligible for re-election under AASB Bylaws. District 2 Director Donald Nichols of Perry County has served the maximum two terms and is ineligible for re-election.

View May 2015 Court Report

Looking for Court Report? The periodic publication of the Alabama Council of School Board Attorneys has been posted online. It covers news from legal and court actions.

It’s a date!

May 21 (1.5 hours)

Featuring NSBA's General Counsel, Webinar

May 18 & 20 (2 hours)

AASB Advocacy Days,
State House

June 18-21

AASB Orientation & Summer Conference,

Orange Beach

—info@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org

Denise Berkhalter and Emily Maxwell

contributed to this report.)

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