VSBA ACTION ALERT

CHARTER SCHOOL CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

Call Your House of Delegates Members 

Thank you for your continued efforts opposing the charter school constitutional amendment, which divests local school boards of the sole authority to approve charter schools. The VSBA lobbying team has been diligently working to share our opposition to this legislation but WE NEED YOUR HELP! 

This morning the House Privileges and Elections committee narrowly passed, on a 10-9 vote, the charter school constitutional amendment (HJ1) and accompanying legislation (HB3). This very close vote is a testament to your advocacy efforts and we need your help again! Now the amendment and legislation will be going to the floor of the House for a vote. By Tuesday morning, please CALL YOUR DELEGATES and ask them to vote NO on the charter school constitutional amendment (HJ1) and accompanying legislation (HB3). Please utilize the attached VSBA talking points and share with your legislators that VSBA does support high-quality charter schools, as defined by local school boards, not an unelected Board of Education.

Thank you again for your continued support of VSBA. Your voice makes a difference in Richmond. 

Quick Update from the Senate Education and Health Committee

This morning the Senate Education and Health committee convened for their weekly meeting. The docket was lengthy but only contained a few education related bills. Below is a summary of the bills and committee action. Check back tomorrow for the weekly round-up from Richmond.  

SB368 (McDougle) authorizes the Board of Education to review the accreditation status of a school once every two years or every three years and requires any school that receives a multiyear accreditation status other than full accreditation to be covered by a Board approved multiyear corrective action plan for the duration of the period of accreditation. The bill also provides that when the Board of Education determines a corrective action plan submitted by a local school board is not sufficient to enable all schools within the division to achieve full accreditation, the Board may return the plan to the local school board with directions to submit an amended plan pursuant to Board guidance. The bill was unanimously reported, with amendments, from the committee.

SB612 (Garrett) is identical to HB131. This legislation prohibits school divisions from joining an athletic/interscholastic organization that doesn’t allow home school students to participate in public schools athletics or interscholastic activities. It allows students to be charged reasonable fees for participation. It also states that eligibility of a student receiving home instruction shall be limited to participation the school serving the attendance zone in which the student lives and will be subject to policies governing participation that the local school board may establish. As with previous years the bill was reported from the committee on an 8-7 vote.

SB665 (Marsden) prohibits a middle school student from participating on or trying out for any school athletic team or squad with a predetermined roster, regular practices, and scheduled competitions with other middle schools unless such student has submitted to the school principal a signed report from a licensed physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant acting under the supervision of a licensed physician attesting that such student has been examined and found to be physically fit for athletic competition. The bill was unanimously reported with an amendment from the committee and is a recommendation of the Youth Commission on Youth.

Highlights from the House Education Committee and House ESE Subcommittee

It was another busy day at the General Assembly with back to back committee and subcommittee meetings. Both meetings had very full dockets. I’ve included the highlights from the House Education committee and House Elementary and Secondary subcommittee meetings below. Check back tomorrow for updates from the Senate Education and Health committee and Senate Public Education subcommittee. 

House Education committee

HB166 (Cole) requires that a local school division school division provide instruction in Braille or the use of Braille to visually impaired students unless the IEP or 504 team, after an evaluation by a certified Teacher of the Visually Impaired (TVI), determines that it is not appropriate to meet the student’s educational needs. The Committee voted to report and refer the bill to the Appropriations committee.

HB365 (Davis) establishes the Adaptive Learning Tools Grant Fund where the Department of Education awards grants on a competitive basis to local school divisions that demonstrate the effective use of adaptive learning tools. The bill was reported and referred to the Appropriations committee.

HB753 (Greason) is another school calendar bill similar to HB571 but does not require an extended break over the Labor Day weekend. This bill makes local school boards responsible for setting the school calendar and determining the opening date of the school year and eliminates the post-Labor Day opening requirement and "good cause" scenarios for which the Board of Education may grant waivers of this requirement. The bill was reported from the committee on a 16-6 vote.

HB353 (Greason) authorizes local school boards to enter into agreements with nonpublic schools to provide student transportation to and from school field trips. Current law authorizes such agreements for transportation to and from school. The bill was unanimously reported from the full committee.

HB196 (Lingamfelter) requires the Board of Education to adopt policies to ensure that the Department of Education does not require public elementary or secondary schools or local school divisions to provide certain duplicate information or certain information that is not necessary or required pursuant to state or federal law. It also requires the Board to permit public elementary and secondary schools and local school divisions to submit all information and forms to the Department electronically and annually evaluate and determine the continued need for the information that it collects from local school divisions. The bill was unanimously reported from the full committee.

HB571 (Robinson) makes local school boards responsible for setting the school calendar and determining the opening date of the school year and eliminates the post-Labor Day opening requirement and "good cause" scenarios for which the Board of Education may grant waivers of this requirement. However, the bill requires local school boards that set the school calendar with a pre-Labor Day opening date, except those schools that were granted a "good cause" waiver for the 2015-2016 school year, to close all schools in the division (i) from the Thursday immediately preceding Labor Day through Labor Day or (ii) from the Friday immediately preceding Labor Day through the Tuesday immediately succeeding Labor Day. The bill was reported from the committee on a 16-6 vote.

House Elementary and Secondary Education subcommittee

HB279 (Byron) directs the Board of Education to establish a Virginia STEM adjunct faculty provisional license and a Virginia STEM adjunct faculty renewable license for qualified individuals to teach high school science, technology, engineering, or mathematics courses on a part-time basis. The bill prescribes requirements for such licenses. HB279 was unanimously reported from the subcommittee.

HB306 (O’Quinn) permits local school boards to display advertising material on the sides and rear of school buses, provided that no such material obstructs the name of the school division or the number of the school bus or pertains to alcohol, gambling, or tobacco. After much discussion and concerns from stakeholder groups the bill was tabled by the subcommittee.

HB357 (Loupassi) requires at least 20 minutes of physical activity per day or an average of 100 minutes per week during the regular school year for students in grades kindergarten through five beginning with the 2018-2019 school year. The current requirement for a program of physical activity available to all students in grades six through twelve with a goal of at least 150 minutes per week remains unchanged. The subcommittee recommended reporting the bill on a 6-3 vote.

HB942 (Wilt) requires local school boards to provide reasonable access to school property to any youth group listed as a patriotic and national organization in 36 U.S.C. Subtitle II, Part B, such as the Boy Scouts of America and the Girl Scouts of the United States of America, to provide written materials and speak to students at times other than instructional time during the school day to encourage such students to participate in the activities and programs provided by such organization. The bill was reported from the subcommittee on a 6-3 vote.

HB516 (Landes) requires the Board of Education to establish a policy to require each public elementary or secondary school to (i) notify the parent of any student whose teacher reasonably expects to provide instructional material that includes sexually explicit content, (ii) permit the parent of any student to review instructional material that includes sexually explicit content upon request, and (iii) provide, as an alternative to instructional material and related academic activities that include sexually explicit content, nonexplicit instructional material and related academic activities to any student whose parent so requests. The bill was unanimously reported from the subcommittee.

HB487 (McClellan) removes language in § 9.1-110. pertaining to school resource officers employed by the School Resource Officer Grants Program from the obligation to enforce school board rules and codes of student conduct as a condition of their employment. The subcommittee recommended reporting the bill on a 7-2 vote.

Tuesday Update from the General Assembly

The House Education subcommittee on education innovation met this morning to consider a series of bills including the school calendar legislation. While there were several bills before the committee a few were taken by for the day to work on bill language. Below is a report on the bills and actions of the subcommittee. Those bills that passed the subcommittee will be considered in the full committee on Wednesday.

HB265 (Davis) provides that if the amount appropriated to the local school board by the local governing body for public schools relates to its total only, the per pupil funding provided to a public charter school by the local school board shall also relate to its total only, unless otherwise negotiated in the charter agreement. Some legislators expressed concern about the real need for this legislation thus the bill was laid on the table and will not be moving forward.

HB365 (Davis) establishes the Adaptive Learning Tools Grant Fund where the Department of Education awards grants on a competitive basis to local school divisions that demonstrate the effective use of adaptive learning tools. The bill was reported and referred to the Appropriations committee.

HB571 (Robinson) makes local school boards responsible for setting the school calendar and determining the opening date of the school year and eliminates the post-Labor Day opening requirement and "good cause" scenarios for which the Board of Education may grant waivers of this requirement. However, the bill requires local school boards that set the school calendar with a pre-Labor Day opening date, except those schools that were granted a "good cause" waiver for the 2015-2016 school year, to close all schools in the division (i) from the Thursday immediately preceding Labor Day through Labor Day or (ii) from the Friday immediately preceding Labor Day through the Tuesday immediately succeeding Labor Day. The bill was reported from the subcommittee on a 7-2 vote.

HB753 (Greason) is another school calendar bill similar to HB571 but does not require an extended break over the Labor Day weekend. This bill makes local school boards responsible for setting the school calendar and determining the opening date of the school year and eliminates the post-Labor Day opening requirement and "good cause" scenarios for which the Board of Education may grant waivers of this requirement. Delegates Kory and Adams had identical bills which were rolled into HB753. The bill was reported from the subcommittee on a 7-2 vote.

HB894 (Greason) makes tweaks to the membership of the SOL Innovation Committee to include at least one representative from a four-year public institution of higher education, one representative from a two-year public institution of higher education, and specifies that the business representative(s) on the Committee shall represent the business community. The bill also staggers the terms of the legislative and nonlegislative citizen members. The bill was unanimously reported from the subcommittee.

HB1165 (Dudenhefer) requires the Department of Education to establish a system and procedure, consistent with secure mandatory testing requirements, by which teachers may electronically submit evidence and student evidence identification tags for each completed Virginia Grade Level Alternative assessment. After discussion by the members and some concerns about the cost to implement the legislation, the bill was laid on the table by the subcommittee and will not be moving forward.

In addition to the subcommittee meeting the House Republicans outlined their “Opportunities in Education” agenda. Much of their agenda focuses on school choice including the charter schools constitutional amendment, the Parental Choice Education Savings Account legislation, expanding tax-credits, and the establishment of the Virginia Virtual School, a full-time virtual school. Also included in their agenda are bill relating to early childhood education and the home school sports legislation. You can read the full press release from this morning’s announcement here.

Finally, Dr. Steve Staples, State Superintendent of Public Instruction presented to the House Appropriations Elementary and Secondary Education subcommittee. He gave a great presentation on the many successes and challenges facing our schools. You can access his presentation here.

A Quiet Day around the General Assembly Building

We hope everyone has been able to dig out from the aftermath of Winter Storm Jonas. As you may have heard, the General Assembly called a rare snow day on Friday and had a delayed opening today with all morning committee meetings cancelled. The House and Senate did go into session at noon today but there were several empty seats around the chamber. This morning’s delayed opening impacted the House Education Committee meeting which was cancelled. Your VSBA lobbying team took advantage of the quiet day and met with several legislators to discuss their bills. The regular schedule will fully resume tomorrow with the House Education Subcommittee on Education Innovation meeting at 7:30a.m. Check back tomorrow for a report on the subcommittee’s actions. 

Senate Education and Health Committee Update

Yesterday morning the Senate Education and Health committee held their first meeting of the session where they considered legislation. Much of the agenda focused on health legislation but there were a few education-related bills as well as a presentation from Dr. Stewart Roberson, Chair of the SOL Innovation Committee. Additionally, Senator Steve Newman, chair of the committee, announced the members of the Senate Public Education subcommittee. Senator Bill Carrico will serve as the chair the subcommittee along with Senators Janet Howell, Mamie Locke, Tom Garrett and Siobhan Dunnavant. Below is a report on the bills and actions of the full committee. 

SB17 (Stanley) establishes the STEM Education Fund to be administered by the Board of Education for the purposes of providing grants for science, technology, engineering and mathematics education programs in qualified schools. Beginning in 2017, a STEM organization that provides funds to a qualified school (a public elementary and secondary schools at which at least 40 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch) for use in STEM programs may apply for a grant, up to 50,000 for organization per year, from the Fund. This bill was reported and referred to the Finance committee.

SB211 (Miller) requires at least 20 minutes of physical activity per day or an average of 100 minutes per week during the regular school year for students in grades kindergarten through five beginning with the 2018-2019 school year. The current requirement for a program of physical activity available to all students in grades six through twelve with a goal of at least 150 minutes per week remains unchanged. This bill was reported from the committee on a 10-4 vote.

SB246 (Stanley) establishes a grant program, beginning in 2017, to establish STEM competition teams at qualified schools. The bill defines a qualified school as a public secondary school where at least 40 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Grants are capped at $10,000 per school per year. This bill was reported and referred to the Finance committee.

SB250 (Black) allows local school boards to enter into agreements with nonpublic schools to provide student transportation to and from school field trips. Current law authorizes such agreements for transportation to and from school. This bill incorporates SB275 and was unanimously reported from the committee.

SB360 (Howell) requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to develop and implement a system to track teacher turnover and to annually report the findings to the Governor and General Assembly. The bill was unanimously reported from the committee.

SB573 (Ruff) directs the Board of Education to allow the issuance of temporary part-time teacher permits to qualified professionals with expertise and credentials in career and technical education areas who are recommended for the permit by employing school divisions. Part-time teacher permits may be issues to individuals who meet criteria established by the Board and may be extended upon the request of the employing school division. The bill was unanimously reported from the committee. 

House Education Committee update

This morning the House Education Committee met to consider four bills including two from yesterday’s Education Innovation subcommittee meeting and two bills that have been before the committee several times over the past few years. As expected, all of the bills were reported from the committee with HB8 and HB389 being referred to the House Appropriations Committee. Below is a report on the bills and actions of the full committee. 

HB 8 (D. Bell) establishes the Virginia Virtual Schools, a full-time virtual school governed by the Board of the Virginia Virtual School. The bill requires the School to be open to any school-age person in the Commonwealth and provide an educational program meeting the Standards of Quality for grades kindergarten through 12. It also requires the average state share of Standards of Quality per pupil funding for each enrolled student to be transferred to the School. HB8 was reported and referred to the House Appropriations Committee on a 14-7 vote.

HB389 (LaRock) allows a parent of any student to apply to the residing school division for a one-year, renewable Parental Choice Education Savings Account that consists of 90 percent of the SOQ per pupil state funds in which the student resides. The bill also permits the parent to use the Savings Account funds for education-related expenses of the student, including tuition, deposits, fees, and required textbooks at a private, sectarian, or nonsectarian elementary or secondary school or preschool that is located in the Commonwealth and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin. The bill also allows the parent to put up to $2,000 in a college fund.  HB389 was reported and referred to the House Appropriations Committee on a 13-9 vote.

HB259 (LaRock) prohibits the Board of Education from implementing the Common Core State Standards without prior approval of the General Assembly but permits the Board of Education to continue or create an educational standard or assessment that coincidentally is included in the Common Core State Standards. The bill was reported from the full committee on a 20-2 vote.

HB131 (R. Bell) prohibits school divisions from joining an athletic/interscholastic organization that doesn’t allow home school students to participate in public schools athletics or interscholastic activities. It allows students to be charged reasonable fees for participation. The bill also states that eligibility of a student receiving home instruction shall be limited to participation the school serving the attendance zone in which the student lives and will be subject to policies governing participation that the local school board may establish. The bill was reported from the committee on a 14-8 vote. 

Update from the first House Education Subcommittee on Education Innovation

The House Education subcommittee on education innovation met this morning for their first gathering of the year.  While there were several bills before the committee many were taken by for the day to work on bill language. However, there were two bills that the committee did take action on. 

HB389 (LaRock) – You may remember a similar bill last year from Delegate LaRock creating the Parental Choice Education Savings Account. Last year we were successful in defeating this bill in the Senate but Delegate LaRock has decided to bring the bill back again this year with a broader focus. The bill allows a parent of any student to apply to the residing school division for a one-year, renewable Parental Choice Education Savings Account that consists of 90 percent of the SOQ per pupil state funds in which the student resides. The bill also permits the parent to use the Savings Account funds for education-related expenses of the student, including tuition, deposits, fees, and required textbooks at a private, sectarian, or nonsectarian elementary or secondary school or preschool that is located in the Commonwealth and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin. The bill also allows the parent to put up to $2,000 in a college fund.  The bill was reported from the subcommittee and referred to the House Appropriations Committee on a close 5-4 vote. It will be heard tomorrow morning in full committee.

HB259 (LaRock) – Again you may remember a similar bill from last year. This year’s version prohibits the Board of Education from implementing the Common Core State Standards without prior approval of the General Assembly but permits the Board of Education to continue or create an educational standard or assessment that coincidentally is included in the Common Core State Standards. The bill was reported from the subcommittee and will be heard tomorrow morning in full committee.

Check back tomorrow for more updates from the General Assembly. 

VSBA Advocacy in Action at the General Assembly

This morning, the co-chairs of the VSBA Task Force on Workforce Readiness, Mr. Bill Kidd (VSBA President; School Board Member, Wythe County) and Dr. Tom Brewster (Superintendent, Pulaski County) presented to the House Education Committee to update the committee on their work and share the results of the recently completed statewide survey of Virginia school divisions on workforce readiness programs and initiatives.

Task Force co-chairs Bill Kidd and Tom Brewster present to the House Education Committee 

Since its creation, the task force has worked diligently to develop their mission, create the statewide survey, and analyze the results of the survey to offer key findings and recommendations. Some of the key findings outline the need for increased funding to sustain current programs, develop new programs, update equipment and resources, and obtain the highest quality instructors and greater collaboration between business/industry leaders and CTE. They also found that the ability to employ the most qualified personnel for CTE instruction is an ongoing issue and that increased collaboration with business and industry, the community college system, and the core school setting is necessary.

Task Force co-chairs respond to questions from legislators. 

The legislators were very receptive to the information shared by the task force co-chairs and were very engaged with thoughtful questions and comments. After the presentation, the co-chairs along with task force member, Dr. Greg Smith (Superintendent, Richmond County) met with additional members of the General Assembly. We came away from the meetings encouraged and energized. We heard genuine interest in working together to help students better prepare for the new economy. VSBA will continue to capitalize on this momentum throughout the session and into the coming months.

Members of the Task Force meet with state Senator Bill Carrico to discuss their survey results and key findings. 

For more information about the VSBA Task Force on Workforce Readiness please visit the VSBA website. 

Committee changes

The 2016 General Assembly is off to a fast start and will be in full swing this week. Due to retirements and elections there have been a few changes in committee leadership and additions to committee membership.  Below is summary of changes to the education and money committees.

House Education Committee

Delegate Steve Landes will continue to serve as chair along with Delegate Brenda Pogge as vice-chair. Delegate Tag Greason will again chair the Education Innovation subcommittee and Delegate Dickie Bell will chair the Elementary and Secondary Education subcommittee.  Delegates Mark Dudenhefer, David LaRock, and Lamony Bagby have been added to the full committee membership.

Committee Membership - Landes (Chairman), Lingamfelter, Cole, Pogge, Massie, Greason, Bell, Dickie, LeMunyon, Robinson, Yost, Dudenhefer, Davis, Leftwich, LaRock, McClellan, Tyler, Bulover, Keam, Hester, Lindsey, Bagby 

Senate Education & Health Committee

Senator Steve Newman has been selected to chair the Senate Education and Health committee. Senator Bill Carrico will lead the Senate Public Education subcommittee again this year.  Senators Siobhan Dunnavant, Amanda Chase, and David Sutterlein have been added to the full committee membership.

Committee Membership - Newman (Chairman), Saslaw, Lucas, Howell, Locke, Barker, Black, Carrico, Garrett, Petersen, Cosgrove, Lewis, Dunnavant, Chase, Suetterlein 

House Appropriations Committee

Delegate Chris Jones will again serve as the chair of the House Appropriations committee and Delegate Jimmie Massie will lead the Elementary and Secondary Education subcommittee. Delegates Nick Rush, Delores McQuinn, and Joe Lindsey have been added to the full committee membership.

Committee Membership - Jones (Chairman), Ingram, Cox, Landes, O'Bannon, Lingamfelter, Poindexter, Massie, Peace, Greason, Knight, Anderson, Garrett, Stolle, Rush, Torian, Hester, Sickles, James, Carr, McQuinn, Lindsey. 

Senate Finance Committee

Senators Tommy Norment and Emmett Hanger will serve as co-chairs of the Senate Finance committee. Senator Steve Newman will serve as the chair of the Senate Finance K-12 Education subcommittee.  Senators Mark Obenshain, George Barker, and Siobhan Dunnavant have been added to the full committee membership.

Committee Membership - Hanger (Co-Chair), Norment (Co-Chair), Howell, Saslaw, Lucas, Newman, Ruff, Wagner, McDougle, Vogel, Carrico, Alexander, Obenshain, Barker, Dunnavant 

The 2016 General Assembly Session begins

Today is the first day of the 2016 General Assembly session. For the next 60 days, the 140 members of the legislature will debate thousands of bills ranging from education and transportation to public safety and veterans affairs. Additionally, they must work together with the governor to develop the 2017-2018 biennial budget.  

Right now there are hundreds, if not thousands, of bills that have been filed with the House and Senate Clerk's Office and we expect to see many more coming online in the next few days. Some of the major themes we’re seeing in education include additional changes to the Standards of Learning assessments and school accountability, weapons on school campuses, workforce readiness and CTE, virtual and blended learning, and school choice. Your VSBA lobbying team has been very busy meeting with legislators, reading bills, and developing our overall strategy to ensure success for our students, schools, and local school boards. 

Be sure to visit the VSBA Legislative Blog throughout session to get updates and details about what’s happening in Richmond. Additionally, we’ll be providing quick updates on the VSBA Twitter Handle – @VASchoolBoards. I would also encourage you to review the latest edition of the VSBA newsletter which includes an article about “Preparing for the 2016 General Assembly Session.”

Finally, don’t forget to attend the upcoming VSBA Capital Conference February 10-11 at the Richmond Marriott. This conference offers you an opportunity to interact with your legislators and advocate for your school division and public education. You will receive key presentations on Virginia’s political landscape and updates on legislation and the state budget. In addition to the presentation, you will have the opportunity to hear directly from Governor Terry McAuliffe, Secretary of Education Anne Holton, Secretary of Commerce and Trade Maurice Jones, and Dr. Glenn DuBois, Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System as well as attend the always-popular VSBA Legislative Reception. We look forward to seeing you in Richmond! 

Preparing for the 2016 General Assembly Session

Next week marks the start of the 2016 General Assembly. It’s going to be a tough year for public education with the always challenging biennial budget process and several pieces of school choice legislation including the charter school constitutional amendment. With a continued focus on education by the General Assembly, it’s important to have a strong, coordinated message that is communicated regularly to your local legislators. 

During session, VSBA needs your assistance and active support to engage the public and your elected officials. The VSBA Lobbying Team are your daily boots on the ground, but legislators want to hear from YOU! Your voice as a constituent and local leader is extremely valuable to them. So how do you communicate effectively, create a strong message and stay on topic? Below are a few how-to tips for you to utilize during the sessions and throughout the year with your advocacy work:

• Make personal, face-to-face contact with your legislators whenever possible. Remember to call ahead when you will be in town to meet with your legislators. If you can’t travel to Richmond, don’t hesitate to pick-up the phone to have a conversation with them. The personal interactive is key to developing and continuing that strong relationship. 
• Time is always limited when meeting with your legislators. Be prepared by knowing the issues and having facts to support your position. If you don’t know an answer to one of their questions, be honest and follow-up with the answer after your meeting. 

• Be sure to know the basic legislative process. Your input about the local impact of legislation can be helpful at any time. However, be sure about when and to whom to lobby. Depending on where the bill is in the legislative process, concentrate your efforts on the appropriate members.

• Always remember to be courteous to your member and respect their time limitations. 

• Legislative aides are an important part of the process. Even when you can’t talk directly to a legislator, speaking with their legislative aide is vital. They are most often advising the members on specific bills and preparing them each day for session. 

Over the next few months, VSBA will be calling on you through various action alerts. When we put out an alert, we ask that you follow up with a call or email to your legislator(s) urging their support or opposition to a bill. Also, don’t forget to share VSBA’s legislative priorities and express your opposition to the charter school constitutional amendment. 

You can stay up-to-date on the happenings at the General Assembly through the VSBA Legislative blog, Facebook, or Twitter account. We look forward to seeing you at the 2016 VSBA Capital Conference on February 10 and 11 at the Richmond Marriott.