STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
Thursday June 19, 2008
Public Service Building, Room 251-A/B
255 Capitol St. NE, Salem, OR 97310
Members Present:
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Jerry Berger Chair
Duncan Wyse Vice-Chair
Brenda Frank Second Vice-Chair
Steve Bogart Board Member
Lew Frederick Board Member
Art Paz Board Member
Nikki Squire Board Member
Allan Bruner Advisor, K-12 Teacher Rep.
Jenna Chiono Advisor, K-12 Student Rep.
Terry Kneisler Advisor, K-12 Admin. Rep.
Michael Dembrow Advisor, CC Faculty Rep.
Greg Hamann Advisor, CC President Rep.
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Other Participants:
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Susan Castillo Superintendent of Public Instruction
Camille Preus Community College Commissioner
Krissa Caldwell Deputy Commissioner
Ed Dennis Deputy Superintendent, ODE
Doug Kosty ODE, Asst. Supt., Assessment
Debby Ryan Executive Specialist, ODE
Jan McComb Board Administrator
Salam Noor Asst. Superintendent, ODE
Joni Gilles Learning Ops Director, ODE
Tony Alpert Assessment Director, ODE
Helen Maguire Teaching & Learning Director, ODE
Colleen Mileham Secondary Trans. Director, ODE
Eric Richards Special Education Director, ODE
Pat Burk Chief Policy Officer, ODE
Sue MacGlashan Asst. Supt., Finance, ODE
Nancy Latini Asst. Supt., Student Learning, ODE
Gene Evans Director of Communications, ODE
Steve Nelson Chief IT Strategist, ODE
Tim King Sisters/Marcola Web Academies
Jessica Barr Scoring & Reporting Mgr, ODE
Dianna Carrizales Monitoring Systems Dir., ODE
Margaret Bates PE/Charter Ed. Specialist, ODE
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Preliminary Business
Call to Order/Roll Call/Flag Salute/Introductions
Chair Jerry Berger called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m., led the room in the flag salute and asked that roll be called; excused was Michael Dembrow. He asked the audience to introduce themselves.
Chair Comments
Chair Berger briefly reviewed the agenda.
· The proposed fingerprinting OAR had been removed from the agenda and the Commissioner’s report had been postponed until tomorrow.
· English Language Learner rule was on consent calendar for tomorrow—it had been distributed to members.
· The Division 22 rules re-write had been pulled from the agenda.
· Revised board policy on charter schools had been distributed to members.
· The diploma rule had been moved from Friday to Thursday—the materials were in the Friday packet.
· Leslie Shepherd had been nominated to replace Director Bogart. Her confirmation was scheduled for next week. She would join the board in August. Director Bogart would be missed but his efforts would live on.
· Chair Berger stated he would leave early tomorrow for funeral. Vice-Chair Wyse would take his place when he left.
Committee Updates
No committee updates.
Member Reports
Advisor Chiono –Chiono thanked the board and expressed her appreciation for all the opportunities and experiences the board gave her. Berger thanked Jenna on behalf of the board; who was extremely pleased with her involvement.
Director Paz – Paz recognized the Springfield district representatives that were present. He noted a recent literacy event where every student received a book. Representative Beyer put on an educational workshop that he participated in, which was very interesting. He attended a high school graduation at University of Washington. There was a local board member that talked about community involvement in rounding out a student. They did not talk about future threats such as diversity challenges, global warming and global economies, but the school’s web page contained that information. It could have been 1950, given the comments. He would like to address that disconnect to critical issues in society. The University of Washington was starting an environmental college, so that is hopeful for the future. Students have overwhelmingly supported the college. Paz stated that the question of our time was “environment.”
Advisor Kneisler – Terry Kneisler recounted recent high school graduations with their remarkable tapestry of student diversity. Students recognized their responsibility to the community and environment.
Public Comment
Ann Schuster – Schuster spoke on behalf of the Sustainable Oregon Schools Initiative (SOSI). SOSI addressed many areas of school sustainability, including facilities and operations; systems and services; community and culture and education. She stated that she thought the state needed a comprehensive plan. SOSI had created a “how to” manual for schools interested in sustainability. SOSI was a multi-stakeholder effort. The resources were being created by teams that include school districts, non-profit and for-profit organizations, government agencies and parents. They were building on existing knowledge and already established examples.
Francis Charbonnier – Charbonnier spoke of assessment concerns. Assessments needed to assess the student’s overall future potential. Grades and GPAs was a fair system. He described the problems associated with conjunctive models of assessment. It was not a fair assessment of individual students. The proposed new diploma was a conjunctive model.
Nancy Golden, Superintendent of Springfield School District - Golden spoke in favor of the assessment of Essential Skills. Students did not take the state test seriously; they said it didn’t count toward graduation. State testing made us focus on state standards; this would increase teachers working together for student achievement and also increase student accountability. Students needed to be accountable and educators needed to be accountable to get the students to the standards. She stated that she liked the multiple options and the proficiency element. There would need to be clear communication with parents about the requirements. The schools belonged to the community. Springfield would help the state get there.
Paula Praus Williamson, HomeSource – Preus Williamson commented on proposed rules for alternative education programs. She asked the board to not require an interdistrict transfer for students who did not attend HomeSource prior to 2008. She testified that she did not believe this was the intent of the legislation. Prior rule interpretation did not require interdistrict transfer. This requirement would cause problems. HomeSource asked that the board make one change to OAR 581-021-0019, related to interdistrict transfer agreements. Section 2 (b) read, “This section does not apply to qualified homeschooled children described in Section 4, Chapter 846, Oregon laws 2007.” She asked that the board change this provision to read, “Section 2” of the same chapter. Without the change, a child who did not attend HomeSource prior to July 31, 2007 could attend only with an interdistrict transfer agreement.
Chip Bower – Bower urged statewide reforms to reduce the human impact on the environment. Schools and universities were not addressing the cultural roots of environmental crisis. As more and more scientists were warning about the urgency of addressing the environmental crises, public school teachers and faculty in colleges of education need to be motivated to introduce reforms in pedagogy and curriculum that will contribute to slowing the rate of environmental change. Educational reform must go beyond that of encouraging students to recycle and toward thinking of themselves as stewards of the earth. Professors of education and classroom teachers must be able to recognize how the language in the curriculum and in other learning situations carried forward the misconceptions and biases of earlier thinkers who were unaware of environmental limits.
Action Items
Diploma - Action
Director Frank joined the meeting via phone at 9:45 a.m. Superintendent Castillo reviewed the work that has taken place to date. She thanked ODE staff for their incredible work getting the board and the system to this point. She also thanked all the volunteers and task forces for their contribution. Thousands of people participated in this effort.
James Sager, Office of the Governor, presented a letter from Governor supporting the new diploma efforts. He read the letter for the record.
Chair Berger stated that the board had received a number of letters of support, including one from Chancellor Pernsteiner. Commissioner Preus had also worked closely with the board on the diploma.
Director Bogart observed that the new diploma was built on prior board work. The new diploma reflected the most meaningful aspects of the school reform that was geared toward workforce and societal needs. The interaction the board has had with the public had increased substantially over past boards. Citizens were more attuned to board actions and rationale and that would help support success of this effort.
Chair Wyse thanked Superintendent Castillo, staff, and the field. They had gotten a lot of advice. He had been inspired by the teachers who had participated. He appreciated the governor’s support and the legislature’s support. He stated he was very focused on next year’s 8th graders. He wanted to inspire those students to gain the skills they needed to be successful. By giving students many options to show their mastery, they would be better prepared for their future.
Director Paz agreed with Bogart and Wyse. The transparent process had been important. Multiple options for assessment had alleviated many concerns. Applied context was added—this was important because it supported equity for all students. The balance that Oregon was striking was very important. The board needed to clarify that this was not an exit exam; it was stronger than that. The board needed to clarify the strengths of Oregon’s new requirements and how we were rolling that out for all students.
Director Frederick stated that he was pleased to see change in the social contract with the community. He was pleased to see that we were finally moving away from a “reject pile” mentality. The board was talking about options—saying to students this was where we wanted you to go and this was what we would do to help you. This was different from the past when it was okay for some kids to just not make it. Those unskilled jobs were just not available now. This was really encouraging—there was a sense of future and how we planned to get to that future.
Director Squire thanked Superintendent Castillo for her leadership in this effort.
Director Berger thanked the board members for their attendance and involvement. He thanked them for listening to feedback and for looking at statewide policy that met most students’ needs. He also asked the department to look at K-12 standards. Transparency of student success in elementary schools would lead to high school success. The board looked at what it takes to get students to this level of achievement. The board wanted the high school diploma to be meaningful and prepare students for the future.
Advisor Kneisler stated that he appreciated the degree of district engagement. The Essential Skills were foundational, visionary and comprehensive. There were thoughtful options for students to demonstrate these skills and a deliberative phase-in.
Director Frank commented on the diploma work that has been done. Adopting assessments for Essential Skills was a big step; it had been a tremendous effort over the years.
Advisor Alan Bruner noted that every finish line was the starting line of the next race. The next real challenge would be implementation. He was glad to see the governor’s comments on resources. It will be a challenge of capacity and resources.
Donna Foxley, US Dept. of Education, stated that was an exciting time for education. The goal was to prepare students for a successful future. She had been monitoring board meetings and materials—it was challenging to sort through so much input. The board had never lost sight of the children they were serving. She commended the board for listening to all those involved. The state has had many challenges, but the board never stopped moving forward. The new diploma work had been done with integrity and transparency.
Diploma Requirements OAR 581-022-1130 - Action
Chair Berger briefly described the rule. The board has seen it last month, as well.
MOTION: Director Wyse moved to adopt OAR 581-022-1130; Director Paz seconded the motion.
Discussion:
· Director Bogart voiced support that board continue to work toward credit by proficiency.
· Director Paz noted the work done to align the diploma with higher education and recognized that the local school boards would be the entities, with the communities, to make this work—that was where the heavy lifting would be done.
VOTE: The motion passed unanimously, 7-0.
Assessment of Essential Skills 581-022-0615 - Action
Doug Kosty, Tony Alpert, Salam Noor, Pat Burk; ODE
Kosty summarized the public input on the rule. The board first saw the proposed rule language in April. A public hearing was held on May 28, and the rule was amended in response. Among the changes was to allow IEP teams to allow options for individuals with disabilities. There was additional work to be done, but the rule was a solid foundation. For instance, ODE will develop a monitoring process, contact ACT and SAT to explore making that an option.
Discussion:
· Director Paz noted how important this work was. He was pleased with assessment options. Districts would be looking for tangible descriptions of the options. Clarifications would be helpful to the district.
· Director Squire asked if there was a quality assurance for the IEP option—it was extremely important to have accommodations for students who needed them.
· Chair Berger clarified that accommodations were not an “out” for students to get out of getting a standard diploma.
· Director Squire asked about the wording in subsection 2. Would that wording prevent students from using multiple options? Kosty and Alpert clarified that this was the floor, not the ceiling, to insure that each student has the opportunity to leverage the assessment option. Squire noted the importance of careful wording. She expressed that students should have unlimited opportunities to demonstrate their proficiency.
· Burk clarified that this wording required local assessments.
· Director Wyse stated that districts would have to develop local assessments. It was not enough to rely on the Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (OAKS). Communication with the district would be important.
· Director Squire didn’t want the language in subsection 2 to limit opportunities to students.
· Advisor Knisler stated that he didn’t think the OAKS would be the default. Wyse said that there needed to be flexibility for the districts, but some standardization to provide multiple options.
Director Wyse introduced Superintendent Deborah Sommer, who had served on the Quality Education Commission for the diploma workgroup. They had been working with educators as to what changes needed to be made to the model in order for all students to achieve the new diploma. They were hopeful that their recommendations would have an impact. There needed to be an alignment of messages and practices—there was a perception that things were firmly set, then they change. Panel members were supportive of the diploma. The panel surveyed school administrators and that information would be included in the final report. Additional resources would be needed. There needed to be flexibility and time to phase-in the new diploma. They hoped that the diploma work was tied to a school improvement fund. Schools needed additional math elementary teachers, staff training, and time to develop interventions throughout the system. She noted that ODE needed additional resources as well.