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To: LWVO From: Joan Platz Education Update for December 10, 2007 1) 127th General Assembly: The Ohio House and Senate will meet in session this week and hold committee hearings. The House and Senate education committees are not meeting. -The House Government and Elections Committee, chaired by Representative Daniels, will meet on Tuesday, December 11, 2007 at 11:00 AM in hearing room 116. The Committee will hear testimony on HB 350 (Wolpert), which permits students in college to serve as precinct election officials in a county where they attend school, and permits up to two high school seniors to serve a precinct officers at polling places with six or more precinct officers. The Committee will also hear testimony on HJR3 (Stewart), which requires initiative or referendum to be placed on the ballot at the first regular or general election conducted more than one hundred twenty-five days after the petition is filed, and revises deadlines for filing petitions. -The House Financial Institutions and Real Estate and Securities Committee, chaired by Representative Widener, will meet on December 12, 2007 at 8:30 AM in hearing room 121. The Committee will hear testimony on SB148 (Faber), which revises eligibility requirements for members of the School Employees Retirement System. -Last week (December 4, 2007) the Ohio House concurred with Senate amendments to HB142 (Batchelder), which allows the Highway Patrol to provide emergency assistance to schools confronted with a bomb threat. On December 5, 2007 the Senate Judiciary-Criminal Justice Committee, chaired by Senator Grendell, amended and reported out favorably HB 181 (Setzer), which requires public and nonpublic schools to mark the records of students identified as missing children and notify law enforcement of requests for those records. Representative Robert Otterman (45th House District) also announced that he would be resigning from the Ohio House. There were also some changes announced regarding leadership in the Ohio House Democratic caucus. Representative Strahorn (40th House District) was selected as House minority whip, replacing Representative Steve Driehaus, and Representative Foley (14th House District), was selected as assistant minority whip. -The Partnership for Continued Learning, chaired by Governor Strickland, is required through 126-HB 79 to conduct a study of the operation and oversight of Ohio's community/charter schools and the Ohio Educational Choice Scholarship Pilot Program. The Partnership released a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) on December 5, 2007 to solicit proposals from those interested in conducting this study, which is scheduled to be completed by March 30, 2008. The deadline to submit a proposal is December 28, 2007. Information about the RFQ is available at http://www.pcl.ohio.gov/jcore/pcl/HomeContent.jsp 2) 110th Congress: Lawmakers returned to Washington last week to continue work on several bills including 2008 appropriation measures, which are past their October 1, 2007 deadline. President Bush vetoed on November 13, 2007 H.R. 3043, a funding bill for the departments of Health, Human Services, Education, and Labor. If a compromise bill is not approved, lawmakers will need to approve another continuing resolution, which will maintain funding for these departments at 2007 levels. 3) State Board of Education to Meet: The State Board of Education (SBE), Jennifer Sheets president, will meet on December 10 & 11, 2007 at the Ohio School for the Deaf, 500 Morse Road, Columbus, OH. The State Board's Education in the New Global Economy (EDGE) and School Funding subcommittees, met on December 9, 2007 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Columbus. The SBE's Coordination Committee, chaired by Eric Okerson and Carl Wick, will meet on December 10, 2007 at 8:00 AM to discuss the alignment of committee work. Following this discussion members of the Achievement and Capacity committee workgroups will meet at 10:15 AM to outline next steps, and then report back at 11:45 AM to the full Board. A presentation of the Pioneer in Education Award will take place at 12:30 PM. After lunch (1:30 PM) the SBE's Capacity Committee, Rob Hovis and Jane Sonenshein co-chairs, and the Achievement Committee, Michael Cochran and Ann Womer Benjamin co-chairs, will meet. The Capacity Committee will discuss the intent to adopt Rule 3301-44-09 entitled Postsecondary Enrollment Options; the proposed draft of the Educator Code of Conduct; proposed educator licensure fees; Rules 3301-102-02 through -06 regarding Community School Sponsorship Rules; Rules 3301-104-01 and -02 entitled E-School Expenditure Rules; the development of legislative recommendations for Performance Standards for Dropout Recovery Schools; and the school safety policy discussion from the November meeting. The Achievement Committee will discuss and approve the resolution of intent to amend Rules 3301-35-05 and -06 regarding Operating Standards; the resolution to refile new Rule 3301-51-05 entitled Procedural Safeguards; the resolution of intent to amend Rule 3301-51-15 entitled Gifted Services; and discuss proposed Chapter 3301-17 of the Ohio Administrative Code regarding Accurate Reporting of Data. At 3:30 PM the Board will review the agenda for the business meeting and hear reports from subcommittees. At 4:00 PM the Board will hold a Chapter 119 Hearing on the following rules: -Resolution of Intent to amend Ohio Administrative Code (OAC) Rules 3301-02-01-03; 05; 09; and 11 (Personal Information Systems) -Adopt OAC Rule 3301-02-13 (Contact if Unauthorized Access of Personal Information Occurs). -Resolution of Intent to amend OAC Rule 3301-04-01, (Notice of Meeting). -Resolution of Intent to amend OAC Rules 3301-24-05 (Licensure). -Resolution of Intent to rescind and adopt new OAC Rules 3301-51-01 and 3301-51-09 and rescind and adopt new Rule 3301-51-11 (Operating Standards for Children with Disabilities). Following the 911 hearing, the Board will also recognize National Blue Ribbon Schools, and then adjourn for the evening. On December 11, 2007 the State Board of Education's meeting will begin at 8:30 AM with a presentation about OAC Rule 3301-51-05 (Procedural Safeguards); Rule 3301-51-15, Gifted Services; Rule 3301-52-01, Screening and Assessment; Rule 3301-69-11 and 12, Head Start; Rule 3301-44-09, Postsecondary Enrollment Options; and the New Praxis II Subject Assessment Test and Passing Score for Licensure in Intervention Specialist. At 10:45 AM the Board will hear reports on State and Federal legislative activities and discuss the Federal legislative platform for 2008, led by John Bender and Carl Wick. The Board will convene its business meeting at 11:30 AM, and immediately proceed into executive session. The Board will reconvene its business meeting at 1:30 PM. The Board will hear the report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, public participation on agenda items, and take action on personnel items and the resolutions included below. The Board will then hear reports from Board members, accept public participation on non-agenda items, and adjourn. The next State Board of Education meeting is January 6-8, 2008. Agenda of the State Board of Education for December 11, 2007 -Resolution of intent to amend rules 3301-35-05 and 06, Operating Standards for Ohio Schools -Resolution to refile proposed new Rule 3301-51-05, Procedural Safeguards -Resolution of intent to amend Rule 3301-51-15, Operating Standards for Identifying and Serving Gifted Students -Resolution of intent to amend Rule 3301-52-01, Screening and Assessment Information -Resolution of intent to rescind Rules 3301-69-11 and 12, Title IV -A head Start and Title IV-A Head Start Plus -Resolution of intent to amend rule 3301-44-09, Participation by nonpublic schools -Resolution to adopt new Praxis II Subject assessment test and passing score for licensure in intervention specialist: Mild/Moderate; Intervention specialist: Moderate/Intensive; and Early Childhood Intervention Specialist -Resolution to rescind and adopt Ohio Administrative Code (OAC) Rule 3301-7-01, Standards for Ethical Use of Tests -Resolution to rescind and adopt OAC Rules 3301-13-01 to 06; and 08, 10, and 11, Assessments -Resolution to adopt OAC Rule 3301-13-07, Fairness Sensitivity Review Committees -Resolution to amend OAC Rules 3301-19-01 and 3301-91-04 - National School Lunch and Breakfast Program -Resolution to adopt Physical Education Standards -Resolution to adopt recommendations regarding the types of information that schools should submit to the eTech Ohio Clearinghouse -Resolution to transfer the Northwest Local School Career-Technical Programs and Services to the Butler Technology & Career Development Schools -Resolution regarding the appointment to the State Library Board -Resolution to deny the registration of the Ramah Junior Academy as a participant in the Ohio Educational Choice Scholarship Program for the 2007-2008 school year -Resolution to accept the recommendation of the hearing officer and revoke the charter of the Community of Faith Christian School, and deny the registration of the Community of Faith Christian School as a participant in the Ohio Education Choice Scholarship Program for the 2007-2008 School Year -Resolution of appointment to the Educator Standards Board -Motion to adopt the federal legislative platform For more information about the State Board of Education meetings, please visit http://www.ode.state.oh.us/GD/Templates/Pages/ODE ODEPrimary.aspx?page=2&TopicRelationID=574 4) OSU Researchers Release Report on Election Laws: Researchers at Ohio State University, Election Law @ Moritz College of Law, released on December 4, 2007 the results of a study of election administration in five states called "From Registration to Recounts". The researchers, Steven Huefner, Dan Tokaji, and Edward B. Foley, examined how elections were administered in Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, and found significant structural problems and noncompliance with federal election laws. The most significant problems were identified for Ohio in a chapter entitled, "Ohio Election Ecosystem, A Poster Child for Election Reform". According to the report, Ohio exhibits "a variety of moderate to serious difficulties" in election administration. These include several problems in Cuyahoga County; the partisan and political activities of the secretary of state's office; confusion about voter identification requirements and provisional balloting rules; misallocation of election equipment; third-party voter registration groups; and overuse of provisional ballots. "Indeed, in the 2004 presidential election, problems in virtually all of these areas of election administration occurred in Ohio. Perhaps as a result, almost 160,000 Ohio voters, or about 2.8% of those who made it to the voting booth, cast a provisional ballot in 2004, a rate well above the national average of about 1.6%. In the 2006 election, while most states were reducing their proportion of provisional ballots, Ohio saw this percentage grow to 3%." The report then provides an extensive review of the history and laws pertaining to election administration in Ohio, and examines in specific detail five particular areas of concern: The Role of the Secretary of State; The Functioning of Ohio's Statewide Voter Database; Rapid Changes in Voting Equipment and Processes; Troubles in Cuyahoga County; and Election Litigation. In a chapter called "Recommendations for Nine Areas of Election Administration," the researchers provide specific examples to improve election administration in the five states in the following areas: INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS -State election authorities must establish clear lines of communication with local officials. -State legislatures must give their election officials the tools to enforce consistency in the application of state law across counties and municipalities. -States should regularly audit their laws and consult with officials from peer states to keep pace with a rapidly changing election environment. VOTER REGISTRATION -States should work to improve both access and accuracy by relaxing barriers to registration and complying with existing federal laws governing registration. CHALLENGES TO VOTER ELIGIBILITY -If states allow challenges, they should implement procedures that protect individual voters and prevent bottlenecks at the polls. PROVISIONAL VOTING -States should provide clear guidance to local officials and poll workers on the circumstances under which provisional ballots should be issued and counted. EARLY & ABSENTEE VOTING -States seeking to promote voter convenience should consider in-person early voting instead of no-excuse mail-in absentee voting. VOTING TECHNOLOGY -States must ensure that localities provide an adequate number of ballots or machines, that equipment is thoroughly tested before Election Day, and that poll workers are properly trained. POLLING PLACE OPERATIONS -State and local officials must experiment with ways of recruiting qualified poll workers and training them to perform the difficult tasks that we expect of them. BALLOT SECURITY -State election integrity efforts should focus on "insider" fraud. POST-ELECTION PROCESSES -States should re-examine their post election procedures to ensure the evenhanded and prompt resolution of disputes. -Congress should revisit the federal law governing the resolution of presidential election disputes to allow states more time to complete their recount and contest processes. The report is available at http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/electionlaw/joyce/index.php 5) Fiscal Survey of the States 2007 Released: The National Governors Association and the National Association of State Budget Officers released last week (December 4, 2007) the biannual "Fiscal Survey of the States 2007". This survey started in 1979 and provides information about the general revenue fund expenditures, receipts, and balances as reported by state budget officers in fifty states. According to the report 38 states exceeded budget projections, four states met their projections, and eight states were below budget predictions. The growth in state revenue has slowed and some states may experience a significant deterioration in their fiscal conditions. One area for concern is the cost of health care and the uncertainty of federal funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program. The full report is available online at http://www.nasbo.org/Publications/PDFs/Fiscal%20Survey%20of%20the%20States%20December%202007.pdf 6) PISA Science Results Released: The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) released on December 4, 2007 the "PISA 2006 Science Competencies for Tomorrow's World". This report includes the results of an assessment of the knowledge and skills in science of over 400,000 fifteen year old students from 57 countries, and also provides information about student performance in mathematics and reading. This survey provides an analysis and data set for science learning, and also includes information about student interest and awareness in science; relates the performance of students, schools, and countries in the "context" of their social backgrounds; and identifies educational policies and practices that are associated with educational success. According to the report Finland was the highest-performing country on the PISA 2006 science scale (563 points) followed by Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Hong Kong-China, Chinese Taipei, and Estonia. Scoring above average were Australia, the Netherlands, Korea, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium and Ireland, Liechtenstein, Slovenia and Macao-China. Students in the United States scored below the OECD average with 489 points, but the percentage of U.S. students scoring at Level 6, the highest level, was the same as Korea, which scored 522 points overall. The survey also found that students' socio-economic factors accounted for differences between school performance variations in the United States, the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Slovak Republic, Germany, Greece and New Zealand, and the partner countries Bulgaria, Chile, Argentina and Uruguay. A summary of the results is available online at http://www.pisa.oecd.org/dataoecd/15/13/39725224.pdf 7) Bills Introduced: *HB406 (Peterson and Williams B.) Corporal Punishment - Prohibits corporal punishment in all public schools. *SJR4 (Schuring) Lottery Profits - Requires all lottery profits and a percentage of revenue from certain taxes to be devoted to funding primary, secondary, and higher education. 8) The Arts are More than Electives: The December 2007 issue of District Administrator includes an article by Gary Stager entitled "Arts Should Be for All! There should be nothing elective about "arts" education". The article describes the important concepts and skills that students learn through the arts, including the courage to perform in public and respond to criticism. According to the author, students who participate in the arts, "...experience what it feels like to succeed while struggling to improve upon their personal best. They develop discipline while gaining self-awareness, precision, attention to detail and setting personal goals. Students immersed in the arts develop a healthy respect for the contributions and accomplishments of others and the majesty of culture, while they themselves add to that artistic continuum. That builds a bridge between generations and inspires a more fluid reciprocal relationship between mentor and apprentice, teacher and student." The article is available at http://www.districtadministration.com/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=1343 |
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Ohio Fair Schools Campaign, 94 Columbus Road Athens, Ohio 45701 Tel. (740)592-2866 Fax (740)593-5451 |
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