SBE HIGHLIGHTS
SBE HIGHLIGHTS JUNE 6-7, 2007
Special Note:To review background materials on each item, please go to http://www.ncpublicschools.org/stateboard/meetings/2007/06. Click on the appropriate agenda category: Globally Competitive Students (GCS); Twenty-First Century Professionals (TCP); Leadership for Innovation (LFI); Twenty-First Century Systems (TCS); or Healthy Responsible Students (HRS).
Action Agenda
Future-Ready High School Core Curriculum Framework (GCS 1) - Board members approved a Future-Ready Core Course of Study, which affects the entering freshmen class of 2009-2010. The Future-Ready Core Course of Study requires students to take the following 21 units of credit: four mathematics (Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, or Integrated Math I, II, III, and a fourth math course to be aligned with the student's after high school plans. At the request of a parent and with counseling provided by the school, a student would be able to opt out of this math sequence.); four English; three Social Studies (World History, US History, Civics and Economics); three Science (Biology, an environmental science and a physical science); 1 Health and PE; and six electives (two electives must be any combination of Career Technical Education, Arts Education or Second Language). In addition, the Board recommended that local districts require a concentration of four courses developed around student interests.
Annual Report: State Advisory Council on Indian Education (GCS 2) - Board members received the State Advisory Council on Indian Education's 2007 Report, Seeking New Pathways for Student Success: The Vision and the Reality of American Indian Student Achievement. The report analyzes American Indian student achievement at the primary and secondary education levels, advanced placement opportunities for these students and the dropout and graduation rates for this population.
Proposed Standards for Standard Course of Study in American Sign Language (ASL) Secondary Level (GCS 3) - Proposed standards for the American Sign Language Standard Course of Study were approved. A team comprised of NCDPI staff, Department of Health and Human Services staff, and community college and university staff wrote the standards.
Ready Schools Task Force Recommendations (GCS 4) - Board members adopted the "Definition and Pathways" of a Ready School; endorsed the "Power of K" position paper as a Ready School foundational support; and supported the recommendation that elementary schools develop a "ready school plan" to be integrated into the School Improvement Planning process.
Governor's School/Board of Governors (TCS 1) - Board members approved the reappointment of Genie Wilson (District 6) and the appointment of William Howard (District 1) and Jane Behan (District 7) to the Governor's School/Board of Governors. Members serve a three-year term.
Pre-Approval of Financial and Business Services' Policy Manuals (TCS 2) - Pre-approval of Public School Personnel State Salary Schedules and Manual, the Allotment Policy Manual and the Benefits and Employment Policy Manual for Public School Employees upon adjournment of the General Assembly was approved. Pre-approval allows Department staff to incorporate changes approved by legislative action that do not require State Board approval to change any policy directives. It also allows for timely distribution of these materials to local districts and charter schools.
Federal Reauthorization of ESEA/No Child Left Behind (TCS 3) - Board members approved recommendations related to Adequate Yearly Progress, School Choice and Supplemental Educational Services, Supporting Schools and Districts Technical Assistance, Improvement Status/Corrective Actions, Special Populations, Teacher Quality, State Authority and Flexibility, and Resources as they relate to the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act/No Child Left Behind. The recommendations will be shared with federal policy makers.
Response to the Report on Professional Development from the Center for School Leadership Development (TCP 1) - Board members approved the response to the Report on Professional Development from the Center for School Leadership Development and asked Center staff to identify by Sept. 1: specific professional development needs from the topics/lists provided that it can assist in addressing in the 2007-08 school year; specific strategies/activities that will be used to address the identified needs in the 2007-08 school year; and the measures that will be utilized to evaluate the impact of the strategies/activities for the 2007-08 school year.
Revision of the Standards for Teacher Evaluation (TCP 2) - Revised standards for teacher evaluation, which were developed and presented by the NC Professional Teaching Standards Commission, were approved. Work will now begin on the development and validation of a new evaluation instrument.
Proposed Standards for Licensure in American Sign Language (ASL) (TCP 3) - American Sign Language (ASL) was approved as a teaching area for licensing purposes as were proposed standards for ASL teacher education programs and requirements for a provisional license in ASL.
Proposed Revision to Praxis II Testing Requirements for Exceptional Children's Teachers (TCP 4) - Board members approved a proposed revision to Praxis II testing requirements for Exceptional Children's teachers that enable them to be certified as Highly Qualified under NCLB. The proposed change permits a single test that covers English, math, science and social studies to be used. Also approved was the elimination of one of the current tests required for initial exceptional children's licensure so that teachers do not have to complete three tests to be licensed. The new test takes effect Jan. 1, 2008.
Renewal Recommendation for Less Than 10 Years for The Academy of Moore County (LFI 1) - A three-year charter renewal for The Academy of Moore County was approved. The school is currently on financial probationary status from NCDPI's School Business Division.
Action on First Reading
Recommended Interim Academic Achievement Standards (Cut Scores) for the NCEXTEND1 Alternate Assessments and the NCEXTEND2 OCS Writing Assessment at Grade 10 (GCS 5) - Interim academic achievement standards (cut scores) for NCEXTEND1 in the areas of reading and mathematics grades 3-8 and 10 and writing grades 4, 7 and 10, in addition to the academic achievement standards for the NCEXTEND2 OCS Writing at grade 10 were adopted for implementation effective with the 2006-07 school year.
Request from Craven County for the Flexible Use of Mentor Funds (TCS 5)- Craven County's plan for the flexible use of mentor funds was approved. Craven County plans to employ three full-time mentors to support 75 teachers in the first and second year of the Beginning Teacher Program.
Approval of Federal Grants (TCS 6) - Federal grants were approved to support the following programs: 21st Century Community Learning Center Summer Program (Building Better Teens and Castles - Wayne County; SMMART - Clinton City; Students Achieving Success - Brunswick County; Wake County Human Services and Spare Idol Quest - Wake County; Project Aberdeen Alive - Moore County; Trinity Christian School - Cumberland County; Think Smart Outreach - Harnett County; ACE - Mecklenburg County; First Foundations - Davidson County; and Builder's Club), Even Start Family Literacy Programs 2007-08 (Continuation Funding - Asheboro City, Burke, Cumberland, Quality Charter/Forsyth, Greene, Lee, Richmond, Rutherford, and Washington counties; New funding - Ashe, Bertie, Caldwell, Craven and Lenoir), and Title I Distinguished Schools' Recognition.
Madison County Waiver Request (TCS 7) - Board members approved the waiver of penalties assessed against Madison County through April 30, 2007 in the amount of $92,599.30. The penalties were incurred on outstanding salary audit exceptions dating back to fiscal year 2002-03. Madison County has been granted a 10-year repayment plan, which will include a 1 percent interest assessed monthly to the remaining balance of the loan.
Discussion Agenda
K-2 Literacy Assessment Task Force Recommendations (GCS 6) - Board members discussed two major recommendations of the K-2 Literacy Assessment Task Force: revise the North Carolina K-2 Literacy Assessment for enhanced curriculum alignment based on current research, greater applicability and adaptability for all children; and assure educators receive professional development in using the North Carolina K-2 Literacy Assessment. Districts would be required to implement the tool, participate in aggregate of data at the state level and share best practices.
Membership on State Advisory Council on Indian Education (TCS 8) - Board members discussed the re-appointment of Rhonda Truitt, Ginger Stone and Katina Lynch Rolon-Lopez and the appointment of Marcia Hollifield, Kara Stewart and Gwendolyn Locklear to the State Advisory Council on Indian Education. Members would serve two-year terms
Teacher Education Program Approval Recommendations from the State Evaluation Committee on Teacher Education (TCP 8) - Program approval recommendations for Barton College, Guilford College, High Point University, UNC-Greensboro and Warren Wilson College were discussed. The Board will act on these recommendations at its July meeting.
Proposed Standards for the Approval of Pilot Programs for the Licensing of Lateral Entry Teachers (TCP 9) - Proposed standards for the approval of pilot programs for the licensing of lateral entry teachers were discussed. The pilot programs would be designed to meet the unique and specific needs of lateral entry teachers and the school systems employing them.
Job Descriptions for Occupational Therapist, Physical Therapist and Speech-Language Pathologist (TCP 10) - Revised job descriptions for Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists and Speech-Language Pathologists working in North Carolina public schools were discussed. NCDPI staff rewrote the job descriptions with input from university staff, related service personnel in local districts and professional organization representatives to reflect the current nature of work and the requisite knowledge, skills, training and licensure necessary for these positions in the state's public schools.
Recommendations for Preliminary Approval of 2007 Charter School Applications (LFI 2) - Three charter school applications were brought forward for review for the two openings for new charter applications in 2007-08: Duplin Charter School (Duplin County), Triad Math and Science Academy (Guilford County) and Endeavor Charter School (Wake County). Members were asked to carefully review the applications and forward to the chair any comments on the applicants if they cannot attend the scheduled July 10 interviews (1 p.m. - Duplin Charter School; 1:30 p.m. - Triad Math and Science Academy; and 2 p.m. - Endeavor Charter School). The approved schools will go through preliminary planning next year in preparation for opening to students the following year. Applicant recommendations will be brought to the full Board at its August meeting.
NCVPS Operating Policy Proposal (LFI 3) - Discussion began on four policies governing the administration of the North Carolina Virtual Public School affecting enrollment, course credit, teacher licensure and end-of-course score reporting were discussed.
Special Presentation
Educational Travel to Mexico - Wendy Miller, 2005-06 North Carolina Teacher of the Year and a teacher with Craven County Schools, and three representatives from the 2005-06 Teacher of the Year team discussed their trip to Mexico that they took with representatives from the Center for International Understanding. There were five goals for the trip: learn about Mexico's culture, increase their understanding of the country's economic issues, increase their understanding of the country's educational system, enhance their individual classroom curriculum based on their experiences, and make any changes based on their school system's demographics. Susan Poindexter with Guilford County Schools discussed the group's cultural experiences, Jo Anne Honeycutt with Johnston County Schools summarized Mexico's education system, and Gloria Schwartz with Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools and Wendy Miller talked about understanding the people, their feelings and attitudes.
Information Agenda
North Carolina State Improvement Project (SIP II) Five Years of Progress Report (GCS 7) - NCDPI Exceptional Children Division Director Mary Watson summarized for Board members the progress the state has made in the academic performance of students with disabilities as a result of the Department's receipt of a five-year State Improvement Grant. The grant enabled the Division to plan and implement a statewide comprehensive system of personnel development and program support services to affect improvements in the performance and success of students with disabilities. The project's primary focus was to improve the quality and effectiveness of reading instruction for this group of students. The project also initiated school improvement efforts that included remedial mathematics and writing instruction. A secondary focus of the project was to improve the quality and quantity of new teachers for students with disabilities. In 2005, the Exceptional Children Division successfully applied for an additional five years of funding to build on the foundation of improvement strategies developed under the initial grant.
NC Virtual Public School (LFI 4) - NC Virtual Public School (NCVPS) Interim Director John Boling briefed Board members on the school's projects. He said June 11 marks the first day of summer school for NCVPS and that 3,100 students have registered to take classes. The school has 150 instructors and may need as many as 200 for this summer (850 teachers have requested to teach online). To date, 4,610 students have registered for summer/fall courses (3,146 summer school and 1,464 fall) and that number is growing by approximately 100 registrations a day. He added that 312 public schools are represented. Boling said that of the 73 online providers nationwide, only five have more certified Advanced Placement classes than NCVPS.
Committees' New Business
Twenty-First Century Systems' Business/Finance and Advocacy Committee
Teacher Pay Issues - Alexis Schauss, section chief for Information Analysis and Reporting, provided committee members with an overview of the state's teacher salary structure, including the history of changes to the teacher salary schedule and the rationale for how the schedule is organized to include larger increases for some schedule steps. North Carolina teachers are paid on a 30-step salary schedule. Beginning teacher pay in North Carolina is lower than the beginning salary in other Southern states, but 27th in the nation when average salaries for teachers are compared. The average compensation for classroom teachers totals $46,410 (2007). The typical teacher has 13.44 years of experience. One-third has a master's degree and 10 percent have achieved National Board of Professional Teaching Standards certification. Both additional credentials earn recipients additional pay - 10 percent in the case of master's degrees and 12 percent for NBPTS certification. The minimum pay for classroom teachers is $28,908; the maximum pay for a teacher with more than 30 years' experience, a master's degree, National Board certification, a maximum local supplement, mentor pay, longevity pay and an ABCs bonus would total $78,968. As part of this comprehensive presentation, NCAE representative Cecil Banks presented the North Carolina Association of Educators proposal to create a 15-step salary schedule model.
Intern Project Update - Jackson Miller, the intern coordinator in NCDPI's Financial and Business Services Section, provided an overview of the projects being conducted by the research interns currently employed by NCDPI, including research to identify recommendations for improving recruitment and retention of teachers in geographically isolated areas. The interns plan to present their findings at a special research seminar for State Board of Education members in August.
Twenty-First Century Professionals
Professional Development - Dr. Michael Hickman with the Teacher Academy gave an update on the Academy's work in regard to Professional Learning Communities.
Revision of Teacher Education Program Approval Process - The committee was given an overview of discussions about revising the Teacher Education Program approval process. The goal of such revisions is to evaluate teacher education programs in a way that focuses more on performance and outputs and less on inputs.
Review of Licensure Policies - Committee members discussed a review of policies concerning licensure to give NCDPI staff direction on how they would like the revision process to proceed. Revisions are needed to ensure that teacher licensure policies align with 21st century goals and priorities.
Leadership for Innovation Committee
Turnaround Schools Update - NCDPI Consolidated Assistance Director Pat Ashley updated committee members on the three cohorts of schools the Consolidated Assistance staff are working with to improve student performance. The first cohort contains the 17 schools identified by Judge Howard Manning. This group's administrators have completed the Principals' Executive Program training. The second cohort of schools contains the 18 schools whose student performance composite has been less than 60 percent for the past two years. These administrators are going through similar training as the first cohort of schools. They've been visited by assessment teams, principals and teachers have received professional development, the schools have submitted their framework for action (guiding plan for school improvement), leadership coaches have been assigned to the schools, and they've identified a reform or redesign model. On July 1, the first and second cohorts will combine. They will perform self-assessments looking at their end-of-course scores to determine what their high school turnaround plan will be for the coming year. They will revise their framework for action as appropriate based on that self-assessment, teachers will receive additional professional development and the administrators will receive professional development sponsored by the McREL balanced leadership program. The third cohort of schools contains 54 schools that were identified this year with a student performance composite less than 70 percent for the last two years. Assessments are currently being sent to the schools. Once end-of-course results are in, schools will be identified for similar assistance as that provided to the first two cohorts. Ashley said she hopes to show committee members progress of schools in the first two cohorts over the past year in mid-July or August. She also mentioned that the High School Turnaround program has a new Web site - http://www.ncpublicschools.org/highschoolturnaround.
Special Recognition
Out-Going Board of Education Advisors - Board members thanked outgoing Superintendent Advisor to the State Board Dr. Larry Price, Principal of the Year Advisor to the State Board Dr. Meghan Doyle and 2005-06 Teacher of the Year Advisor to the State Board Wendy Miller and presented each with a plaque in recognition of their service and dedication to the Board.
Good News - Presentation of Student and Graduation Projects
Board members presented Kyle O'Donnell, a student at Southwest Guilford High (Guilford County Schools) and Sarah Schach, a student at Northwest Guilford High (Guilford County Schools) with State Board mugs honoring their participation in the Beijing Youth Science Creation Competition. O'Donnell said all students received honorary first places because the "competition is bout the exchange of ideas and not which country has the best project."
Board members presented Spencer Blalock, a student at West Johnston High (Johnston County Schools), with a State Board mug honoring his graduation project, a theatrical production of "Into the Woods."
Resolution Presentations
Board members presented retiring NC Department of Public Instruction Associate Superintendent for Curriculum and Instructional Services Dr. Elise Leak a resolution honoring her extensive service and dedication to public schools' educators and students.
Board members presented resolutions to outgoing State Board Vice Chair Dr. Jane Norwood and State Board member Edgar Murphy honoring their service and commitment to the State Board of Education, public school educators and students.
Chairman's Remarks
The Chairman recognized State Board of Education Executive Director Rebecca Garland, who updated board members on the Legislature's efforts to agree on a budget, and specifically, the differences between the two budgets proposed by the House and Senate and work underway to finalize the budget. Garland recognized State Board of Education Assistant Executive Director Betsy West who reviewed the purpose and details of the Board's upcoming trip to Washington, D.C. for a breakfast meeting with the North Carolina Congressional delegation and staff, meeting with the U.S. Department of Education Deputy Secretary, and lunch with a delegation from the Chinese Embassy.
Superintendent's Report
State Superintendent June Atkinson highlighted a number of items in her monthly report including the N.C. Adolescent Literacy Initiative: Public Awareness Campaign Poster and Logo Contest Winners. East Rowan High School student Brittany Newman submitted the winning poster and East Burke High School student Bryan Berry submitted the winning logo. Atkinson also discussed the release of the National Center for Education Statistics "Mapping 2005 State Proficiency Standards" report, the state's receipt of three awards from the U.S. Department of Education for its work with the EdFacts/Education Data Exchange Network Project, and how North Carolina was the first state in the nation to sign a Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of the Army to address the special educational needs affecting military students. She also mentioned various DPI professional development opportunities that will be offered to educators this summer, recent activities of the State Superintendent's office, and upcoming meetings including the Summer Leadership Conference, which is scheduled for June 24-27 at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville.
New Business
As a result of the ending of Jane Norwood's term on the State Board, Board members elected Wayne McDevitt to serve as vice chair of the State Board of Education.
Ongoing Business
Deputy State Superintendent J.B. Buxton updated Board members on several projects:
Learn and Earn Online College Course Opportunity - Efforts to provide high school students with the opportunity to participate in the Learn and Earn Online College Course program are underway. Approximately 250 high schools are on board to participate in this initiative. Students are already being enrolled in the program in anticipation of funding from the General Assembly.
Boston Consulting Group - The comprehensive review and overhaul of the state's assistance programs, contracted out to the Boston Consulting Group and fully funded by the Gates Foundation, is progressing steadily. The four month-long review will provide staff an opportunity to see what is working and to create a unified, comprehensive consolidated assistance program. Over the next six months, the Boston Consulting Group will come back once a month to review progress and make sure benchmarks are being met.
Client/Stakeholder Survey - Surveys are being prepared by various areas of the NCDPI to gauge client/stakeholder satisfaction with work done by the agency