01.06.10: Race to the Top, State of the State and Assembly Updates

The Small School Districts’ Association (SSDA) Executive Committee has discussed the question of whether small schools districts should or should not sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Race To The Top (RTTT).  The Executive Committee reached the following recommendations:

1. If the small school district has a persistently low achieving school, as defined in Senate Bill 1 of the Fifth Extraordinary Session, then that school district definitely should sign the MOU because the school district will be required to do many of the activities in the MOU by state law in Senate Bill 1 of the Fifth Extraordinary Session. 

Senate Bill 1 of the Fifth Extraordinary Session defines persistently lowest achieving schools as the following:

1. The lowest 5% low achieving schools in program improvement
2. The lowest 5% of secondary schools, as measured by the API, that are eligible for but do not receive Title 1 funds.
3. Any high school with a graduation rate less than 60% in each of the last three years; and
4. Excludes to the extent allowable under federal law, specified special needs or alternative schools and those schools that have experienced academic growth of at least 50 points on the API unless the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) and State Board of Education (SBE)jointly overrule that exclusion.   Also authorizes the SPI and SBE to jointly exclude a community day school from this definition.

2. For all other schools, the Executive Committee makes no recommendation because of the high level of uncertainty regarding adequate funding, the ability to opt out, and any subsequent state funding cuts for education.  The Executive Committee is concerned for the following reasons:

1. What happens if the state is not funded or if the state is not fully funded? The MOU is tied to receiving the RTTT funding, but it does not say it is tied to adequate funding.  However, even if there is NO federal funding the Governor could propose all of these requirements as state law, and districts who signed the MOU would have to argue that it is a funding issue, not a good policy issue. As a funding issue then we are in the position of agreeing to a new categorical aid program paid for out of Proposition 98 funds rather than federal funds.
2. What happens if the Governor’s Budget proposes education funding cuts or Proposition 98 suspension? We have not seen the Governor’s 2010-11 budget proposals. If there are any cuts, or a Proposition 98 suspension proposed, school districts are at-risk to implement a commitment with potentially inadequate resources.
3. Will a 90 day opt-out be a formal part of the MOU and put in writing? The 90-day opt-out is a commitment that is vague.  The MOU clearly contains the ability for school districts to opt-out if there is a mutual agreement by the state to allow the school district to opt-out.  We do not know, should the state is successful in the RTTT competition, whether the federal government will limit the state’s ability to agree to have schools opt-out, and we do not know the degree to which the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education will put conditions on the factors they would accept as permissible reasons for allowing a district to opt-out.

The Executive Committee strongly believes a school district should consider signing the MOU if the school district believes the policies in the MOU are policies the school district wants to adopt regardless of whether or not there is new funding.

State of the State

This morning the Governor made his last State of the State address.  In that speech he stated there would not be education cuts in this budget.  He also stated his intent to pursue pension reform.  While SSDA appreciates the Governor not cutting education, this does not appear to address the question of the additional billion dollars owed to schools identified in 2009-10 by the Legislative Analyst’s Office.  To not cut education is not the same as not paying what is owed to education. 

SSDA will present a Webinar on the Governor’s Budget titled: “After the Storm: Wave Tossed or Beginning Calm” between 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on January 12.  The webinar will present all the details of the Governor’s budget proposal including his funding proposals for current year as well as 2010-11.  Click here for more information: http://www.ssda.org/vnews/display.v/ART/4b27b7bca31b2

Assembly Passes Compromise Legislation

SB 1 and SB 4 of the Fifth Extraordinary Session were passed by the Assembly yesterday.  These bills contain significant changes in state education policy that are not contingent upon the state having a successful application for federal RTTT funds.  I have every expectation the Governor will sign the bills, which then become operative by July 1, 2010.  The webinar will also include a summary of the more significant provisions in both bills.