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School Board News Bulletin
February 1995

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Critics are wrong: Schools have improved

Schools have improved over the last 20 years, concludes a new study by the Rand Corporation, a research institute in Santa Monica, California.

National critics would have you believe that families and schools are failing and government programs and policies don't work, says the study's lead author, David W. Grissmer. But this study "challenges this conventional wisdom on all fronts."

The study was based on test results of students aged 13 to 17 who took the National Assessment of Educational Progress between 1970 and 1990. The scores were analyzed alongside information from government surveys of families.

The Rand study says math and reading scores increased the equivalent of 3 percentage points for whites, 11 points for Hispanics and 19 points for blacks. It suggests desegregation and increased spending on schools-- especially programs targeted at minority students, as well as Head Start and nutrition programs for poor children--have paid off.

The most beneficial factors for student achievement, the report found, were better-educated parents and smaller families. Two trends that have worried policymakers--an increase in the number of working mothers and more single mothers--had no significant effect when considered alone, the study found.

Student Achievement and the Changing American Family is available for $15 from Rand Corp., 1700 Main St., P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407. Phone 310/451-7002.

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Is our information highway really super?

Question: Does IASB really offer any worthwhile information via the Access Illinois bulletin board service?

Answer: It depends on what you consider worthwhile. Recent additions to the information files available online with Access Illinois include:

1. A catalog of school districts seeking new superintendents with the help of the IASB search service.

2. A directory of the 857 IASB member school districts that includes addresses, telephone numbers, and name of superintendent. The directory can be accessed by any of the 21 IASB divisions, by county, or by district name.

If you look under Access to IASB Services, you will find--among many other things--a Calendar of Coming Events, Legislative Reports, the Digest of Bills Passed and New Laws, a directory of state government officials, a Calendar of Legal Dates for School Districts, recent issues of Illinois School Board Journal and the School Board News Bulletin.

Under Information about IASB . . . . Governance and Operations, you will find IASB position statements on key legislative and policy issues, as well as a listing of officers and staff.

You can even send and receive Internet e-mail via Access Illinois.

Question: How do I get access to this new resource?

Answer: You will need a computer and modem. For satisfactory performance, the computer needs a color monitor and the modem needs to run at 9,600 bps or above. Dial 217/787-6255 and follow the instructions. A helpful guide was distributed with the December issue of the News Bulletin. If you missed it, call IASB Springfield, 217/528-9688, extension 108.

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Annenberg gift to help Chicago schools

Chicago school reform efforts got a boost from billionaire philanthropist Walter Annenberg, who announced a $49.7 million gift to the district January 23. The challenge grant, if fully matched with other funds from public and private sources, would bring $147.6 million to the schools over the next five years. It is part of Annenberg's $500 million effort announced in 1993 to improve the nation's public schools. So far, Annenberg's foundation has awarded $50 million to New York City's schools and $53 million to Los Angeles schools.

The grant to Chicago would bypass the school board and go directly to about 75 schools. It could not be used to finance the central bureaucracy or help eliminate an expected budget shortfall next fiscal year of $300 million.

Instead, it would be used for such classroom benefits as reducing class size or allowing more time and flexibility to prepare curricula.

An Annenberg adviser, Brown University President Vartan Gregorian, says Chicago has gone farther than any other major city in shifting control of education to local school councils.

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Principals salaries too low, NASSP says

While the increase in average salaries paid school principals approximates the cost of living increase this year, questions remain whether the salaries are enough in many districts to attract the quality of leadership necessary for restructuring of schools nationwide.

That is the contention of the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), which released a survey in February showing high school principals' salaries rose 2.47 percent between the 1993-94 school year and the current year. The highest paid principal in the survey earns $107,447; however, the lowest paid receives only $26,000.

"Frankly, the highest paid principals are doing well," said Paul W. Hersey, NASSP director of professional assistance. "But salaries at the other end of the range are a national disgrace."

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Interactive multi-media eyed as key technology

Multi-media--linking computer software, hardware, and peripheral equipment to offer a rich mix of text, sound, graphics, animation, full-motion video, data and other information--is the key technology in education's future. So said a recent story in The Futurist magazine (November/December, 1994). Only recently has multi-media become a major focus for commercial development, although some Illinois schools are already using it. Millions of people are receiving fast, effective training at low cost by major corporations and the federal government, said the author of "Telelearning: the Multi-Media Revolution in Education."

Multi-media will be used by schools and colleges around the world. Knowledge-based systems can be thought of as an elementary form of visual intelligence.

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Teacher-parent communication most effective

Need to communicate educational achievement to parents? Use direct teacher-to-parent conversations, says the National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards and Student Testing.

"Parents [of third graders] overwhelmingly believe they learn most about their child's progress by listening to the teacher," the center reports. "Report cards, talking to the teacher and work samples received strikingly higher usefulness ratings than did standardized tests," the report continues.

"A small subgroup of parents, however, said they prefer standardized test results because they are cut and dried, aligned to instruction and easier to communicate. A few believed they are better for reporting progress in mathematics because `there is only one right answer in math.'"

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Federal status of charters questioned

"In many states, they say charter schools should get [federal] money. Other states can interpret just as easily that they are not eligible." That quote, attributed to educational consultant Louann A. Bierlein in a recent Education Week article (February 1, 1995) reveals the crux of a new U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) report.

The GAO report recommends federal officials determine the status of charter schools to clear up widespread disagreement.

Without increased direction from the federal government, the report said, "uncertainty will persist that could impede charter schools' implementation." So far 11 states have adopted laws to allow charter schools.

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Top principal says don't drop out--tutor others

The national principal of the year for 1995 is a Kansas educator who sends potential high school dropouts to tutor younger children, an arrangement that benefits both groups of students.

"I don't think I'm the best principal in the country; I'm a representative of good principals," said George V. Tignor of Parsons, Kansas, who was selected for the honor by the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP). Tignor says one of his management skills is to recognize good programs and replicate them. He got the idea for his anti- dropout program from a similar program in San Antonio.

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IDEA battle nears over financing special education

Is it fair to require taxpayer funds to be used to pick up the tab when parents opt to send their children to expensive private schools? No way, according to the National School Boards Association (NSBA), which is lobbying to enact changes to the federal law on the subject.

Use of taxpayer funds to pay for private school tuition for students with disabilities should occur only when all other means of educating them fail, NSBA explained.

Parents should not be able to opt for private placement unless public schools have been informed well beforehand about the special education services they seek for their children, NSBA said. NSBA made that recommendation to Congress with regard to this year's amendments to the federal law on special education.

"In this way, educators have the opportunity to provide these services in the public school," NSBA wrote.

NSBA also is asking Congress to modify "the time-consuming, expensive and overly adversarial dispute resolution process." Under current law, minor disputes over special education services can be appealed through two levels of administrative hearings as well as through the court system. Years of costly litigation can result, which delay the provision of educational services and drain public resources.

In one case, according to NSBA, a district was required to pay $13,000 in attorneys fees for a dispute over educational services costing less than $1,000.

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Balanced budget amendment is on Congressional fast track

School boards could face the possibility of massive cuts in federal education funding if the U.S. Constitution is amended to require a balanced budget.

The amendment is a major priority of the Republican leadership. It was considered on the House floor in January and was to go to the Senate in a matter of days. The plan needs a two-thirds majority vote in both houses to pass. It then must be ratified by two-thirds majorities in three- fourths of state legislatures.

A balanced budget amendment would put "enormous pressure on domestic discretionary investments," says NSBA Senior Associate Executive Director Michael A. Resnick. The Republicans want to increase defense spending and protect certain entitlements, as well as cut taxes. Education programs most at risk include impact aid, school infrastructure grants, technology grants, and Goals 2000.

Eight out of 10 Americans favor a balanced budget amendment, yet two of three would not support it if it means that education or Social Security would be cut, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released January 6.

"If Congress is truly concerned about the future, it should approve a more responsible total federal budget and support a greater investment in the future through a higher priority for education," Resnick said. "Education is only 1 percent of federal spending."

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Three want feds out of education business

Three Republican party insiders want the federal government to "virtually withdraw" from elementary and secondary education and relinquish the authority it has seized in this domain."

The three -- U.S. Senator Dan Coats of Indiana and former education secretaries Lamar Alexander and William Bennett -- denounced Goals 2000 legislation in a recent National Review magazine article.

The article claims that the reauthorization of HR 6, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, would be "bad for children, for education and for American federalism" because it "sets back the cause of serious school reform, wastes billions of dollars and erodes local control of American schools."

Coats said he plans to introduce legislation to almost entirely remove the federal government from elementary and secondary education.

Public opinion is against Senator Coats' plan. Poll results announced December 8 by the Times Mirror Center for the People & the Press found that 64 percent of those surveyed would increase spending on public schools if given the chance to set federal budget priorities.

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Welfare reform threatens school lunch program

If Congress passes the welfare reform package proposed in the House Republicans' Contract with America, one consequence would be substantial reductions in the school lunch program. The proposed Personal Responsibility Act not only makes major changes in the welfare programs, it combines the school lunch and breakfast program into a block grant with other federal food programs, including food stamps; the special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children; the emergency food assistance program; and the nutrition program for the elderly.

Further, funding would be subject to an annual appropriations process rather than the quasi-entitlement status school lunch funding now enjoys. NSBA President Boyd W. Boehlje wrote to members of Congress January 25 urging them to reject this approach. "Funding for the nutrition programs would become subject to the changing political winds as well as the enormous budgetary pressures on domestic discretionary spending," Boehlje says. "Thus the ability of these programs to ensure that children are well nourished and ready to learn would be seriously undermined."

The bill (H.R. 11) would authorize the nutrition block grant at just $35.6 billion in fiscal 1996 and would allow as little as 20 percent of each state's block grant to be used for the school nutrition programs. This is expected to result in a 17 percent cut in funding for the school food programs.

Congress can proceed with major welfare reforms without destroying the school nutrition programs, Boehlje says. "We urge Congress to withdraw the school nutrition program from the block grant proposed in the [bill] or structure the block grant in a way to ensure that students are well nourished and ready to learn."

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Gore wants FCC-auction money for school technology

Vice President Al Gore says schools should get some of the funding raised by the Federal Communications Commission auction of licenses, and the money should be used to link schools to the information superhighway.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Gore hopes to work with Congress to find a way to fund high-tech communication links for schools. Gore made his remarks just before the FCC began auctioning 99 licenses to offer next- generation cellular services.

"When we invest our public resources, we should think about it as an investment in our future," Vice President Gore said.

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Restructuring supported by study

Schools taking a non-traditional approach to education are showing greater achievement gains than other schools, reports a study sponsored by the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

Research on 11,000 students in grades 8 to 10 at 820 high schools across the country found students made greater gains in math, history, reading, and science in schools restructured along "communal lines," where teachers work in teams and help make decisions, parents are actively involved, students with diverse talents are grouped together and students stay in the same homeroom throughout high school.

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College grads can read, but can they take the right bus?

Although college graduates can read and write better than high school graduates, a majority would have a hard time deciphering a bus schedule or writing a creditor about a billing error, according to a recent report. Literacy among college graduates varies tremendously, said a report by the Educational Testing Service of Princeton, New Jersey. In fact, just 42 percent of college grads taking part in the study were literate enough to write about an argument contained in a long newspaper piece or compare and contrast the opinions presented in two editorials about current technologies for making fuel-efficient automobiles.

Only about 11 percent of four-year graduates and 4 percent of two-year graduates demonstrated the highest literacy levels. Thus they displayed the ability, for example, to summarize descriptions of two methods by which a lawyer may challenge a prospective juror.

Fully half could not read a bus schedule or use a pamphlet to calculate the yearly amount an eligible couple would get in supplemental security income. College graduates "are certainly more literate, on average, than those who do not go to college or do not graduate," the report said, "but their levels of literacy range from a lot less than impressive to mediocre to near-alarming."

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Results of choice panned

Milwaukee students attending private schools at taxpayer expense under a pilot choice program do no better than their peers in city public schools, according to a report by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Students using vouchers to attend private schools had slightly higher attendance rates, and they and parents were happier with their schooling than students in public schools. But there was no difference in the two groups in terms of academics.

State schools superintendent John Benson says the experimental choice program "has not provided the dramatic academic improvements in student achievement that would label it a success."

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Jobs key to cutting dropout rates among black males

Part-time work, summer jobs and employment training are essential to keeping young black males in school, pollster Lou Harris said recently. Young African Americans ages 17 to 22 rate jobs higher than participating in school sports, according to a random poll funded by the Commonwealth Fund, a New York charity. Fifty percent of those young men who chose to stay in school had jobs, compared to 34 percent of those who dropped out. The survey consisted of 360 interviews with randomly chosen African American males from New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta. Those polled included dropouts, those in school, and graduates.

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U.S. Department of Education offers new online library

The U.S. Department of Education now offers research reports, statistics, and legislation via the Internet on its new "Online Library."

The service, known as "INet," includes the full text of the recently reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), descriptions of more than 75 promising schoolwide programs under Title I of ESEA, A Teacher's Guide to the U.S. Department of Education, reports by the National Education Goals Panel, the National Commission on Time and Learning's Prisoners of Time report, and much more, as well as information on how to access other education resources.

INet can be accessed through E-Mail (almanac@inet.ed.gov), Worldwide Web (http://www.ed.gov/), Gopher (Gopher.ed.gov), or File Transfer Protocol (FTP.ed.gov).

For more information, contact INet project manager, 202/219-1547.

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Groups begin partnership to teach values

The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) and the Community of Caring recently announced a partnership designed to help schools, families,and communities reduce student destructive behaviors-- such as early sexual involvement, teen pregnancies, drug and alcohol abuse, and dropping out of school.

The multi-faceted program to be launched by the groups will provide teachers with materials and training to implement a community-wide approach to help teenagers understand the importance of fundamental values in their everyday lives. NASSP will promote the materials to its 42,000-plus members during a five-year agreement.

"The Community of Caring program is working," said Laurel Martin Kanthak, associate executive director, NASSP. "It has been used in more than 150 schools around the country since its inception in 1986. The goal is to make it available to all middle level and high schools throughout the nation."

Schools will be able to receive on-site training as well as training manuals; pamphlets on AIDS, sexuality, community service, family involvement, and Teen Forums; instructional guides for teachers, lesson plans; and other materials.

For more information, contact Lew Armistead at 703/860-0200, ext. 233.

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Level I bargaining clinic to be repeated downstate

Due to high demand IASB will be offering a third downstate Level I Bargaining Clinic, Saturday, March 11 at the Effingham Hampton Inn. This intensive one-day training is designed to increase the effectiveness of school management bargaining team members. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn new, as well as fundamental, techniques to improve their bargaining skills through practice bargaining training exercises and discussions.

George M. Kohut, Miller, Tracy, Braun & Wilson, Ltd., will once again serve as chief facilitator and presenter.

Tuition is $115 per person; $100 per person if four or more register from one board. Meals are included in the fee. Registration must be received by March 9. Space is limited, so register early to ensure attendance. You may call Jenny Covi in the Springfield office at 217/528-9688, ext. 118 for additional information and to register.

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Session set on winning over public opinion

"Winning in the Court of Public Opinion" is the theme of a conference sponsored by the Illinois Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association to be held at ServiceMaster headquarters, Downers Grove, March 24 & 25. Presented by the Academy for School Communications, the session will: examine what parents and other taxpayers expect from their schools; help you identify opinion leaders and put them to work for you; and build a strategic plan to market your schools in the court of public opinion. Sponsors say academy attendees will learn the techniques of conducting reliable focus groups and other opinion research tools--both formal and informal. The Academy was recently founded to provide high-quality workshops and training in communications management for all school leaders. Watch your mail for information about the event, or call NSPRA at 703/528- 5840.

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Visit librarian's conference exhibits

Do your school libraries need to be upgraded? School board members, administrators and their schools' librarians will have a wonderful opportunity to begin the process this summer. The place to go to see the most recent developments for school libraries is the upcoming American Library Association's (ALA) Annual Conference, June 22-28 in Chicago. McCormick Place Convention Center will be filled with hundreds of exhibits from librarians and services around the nation. Now is the time to write for free exhibit passes. Librarians from the area, whether attending the Annual Conference or not, are invited to visit the exhibits. Free badges are available by writing: Visit the Exhibits, ALA Conference Service Office, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611. Please include a stamped, self-addressed envelope and specify the number of free admissions desired. Request for badges received after June 1 will not be processed.

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In memorium . . .

Pershing Broome, who served on the South Holland District 151 Board of Education for the past 26 years, passed away January 11. He had represented the South Cook Division on the IASB Board of Directors since 1990. A distinguished faculty member at Thornton Township High School in Dolton, he was active in local government in Phoenix, and served as a leader of the South Cook Division of IASB from 1972 until the time of his death. Mr. Broome was 73 and is survived by his wife Annette, and four children.

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Suzanne Humphrey retires--

Suzanne Humphrey, IASB director of field services for policy, retired on January 31. She first joined the staff in April, 1979, as a policy specialist.

Over the years, Suzanne conducted dozens of workshops on policy development all across the state and worked with several hundred school boards in the development of their policy manuals.

Anyone wishing to congratulate Suzanne on her retirement may send letters to her in care of the IASB Springfield office marked "personal" and they will be forwarded.

Inquiries regarding policy development services should be directed to Cathy Talbott (Lombard) or Cindi Allender (Springfield).

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Submit nominations by April 15 for IASB awards.

The names of nominees must be submitted by April 15 for the Harold P. Seamon Award or for honorary membership in the Association. One Harold P. Seamon Award (formerly called the IASB Prize for Distinguished Service to Public Education) and up to three honorary memberships are awarded each year by IASB.

Nominations are reviewed by a committee, and award recipients are determined by a majority vote of the IASB Board of Directors. Specific criteria for the Harold P. Seamon Distinguished Service Award include: 1) exceptional service and commitment to public education in Illinois; 2) innovative and creative approaches to meeting the challenges facing public education, and 3) enhancement of local, lay control of, and responsibility for, the governance of public education by boards of education.

Judged annually, the Harold P. Seamon Distinguished Service Award may be given to an individual, agency, corporation, or other appropriate nongovernmental organization. The activity or service for which the nomination is made should extend statewide or have an impact on a large region of the state. To nominate an individual or organization for the Award, send a letter explaining how the nominee fits the three criteria to: IASB Awards Committee, Illinois Association of School Boards, 2921 Baker Drive, Springfield, IL 62703-2831.

Honorary memberships are given to those who have rendered distinguished service to the Association or to public education in general. Current board members are not eligible for IASB awards.

To nominate an individual for the honorary membership, send a letter to the address listed above (in bold type) explaining why the nominee should be chosen. Please write on the envelope "Awards Committee."

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Boards asked to join push for graduated tax

Illinois' reliance upon the property tax to fund schools has resulted in a situation where wealthy school districts routinely provide the best of everything, while other districts have to scramble just to provide the basics.

Would your school board like to help find a better statewide revenue source to fund schools? Boards can do just that by formally joining with IASB in the push for a 1996 statewide constitutional referendum on adoption of a graduated state income tax.

The IASB Delegate Assembly last November overwhelmingly endorsed a campaign for a referendum on a graduated income tax--which taxes income at gradually higher rates in upper income brackets--like the federal income tax. Specifically, the IASB resolution stated: Be it resolved that the Illinois Association of School Boards shall support the placement and passage of a constitutional amendment calling for a graduated state income tax on the 1996 general election ballot in order to generate needed revenue for education and other human services. The IASB's support shall also include coalition building with education and other human services groups, a program of public education and legislative lobbying.

Advocates of the plan noted that many school districts are shortchanged by the present revenue system, which relies heavily on the property tax to fund schools. The result is a wide variation in funding and quality of schools from one community to the next.

Statewide, for example, the wealthiest elementary school district now spends five times as much on education as does the neediest elementary district--approximately $10,000 more per student.

The sponsors of the IASB resolution explained: "The present taxing structure in Illinois is a regressive one. Lower and middle income people in Illinois pay a disproportionate share of taxes. A graduated state income tax brings a progressive balance to the Illinois tax system. Illinois has a great disparity between its capability to fund education and other human services and its actual funding performance."

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What can your board do?

School boards can help by adopting resolutions in support of a graduated state income tax referendum. Such a resolution might, for example, use the language of the IASB resolution shown above, substituting the district's name for the Association's name.

Please register your board's adopted resolution or other action on this issue by filling in the form below and sending it to: Patrick G. Patt, Superintendent, Oak Grove District 68, 1700 S. O'Plaine Road, Green Oaks, IL 60048-1599.

PRESS Previewed by IASB

The latest Policy Reference Education Subscription Service (PRESS) issue will be mailed soon. This issue highlights the following important school policy issues:

• Improving America's Schools Act's impact on policy, including its sections on:
  1. School prayer
     
  2. Gun-free schools
     
  3. Criminal justice referral

• Employee commute options

  Two years ago, the Illinois General Assembly passed the Employee Commute Options Act in response to the federal Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. The Illinois Act requires certain school districts to eventually develop and implement an employee commute options program. The scope and deadlines of this Act are covered.

• Legislation amends the Education for Homeless Children Act

  The Education for Homeless Children Act gives a parent or guardian the option to continue their child's education in the school the child attended when permanently housed, or in which the child was last enrolled ("school of origin"), or to attend the school according to the attendance area in which the child resides. The Act is discussed and relevant policies are updated.

• Drug and alcohol testing for school bus drivers

  The May 1994 PRESS, Issue 8, included a pamphlet describing the federal drug and alcohol testing requirements for school bus drivers. The screening mandates were effective on January 1, 1995 for districts that had 50 or more drivers on March 17, 1994; they will be effective for all other districts on January 1, 1996. A sample policy and implementing regulations are included.

• New bus driver licensing procedure

  New state legislation will alter the method for granting permits to drive a school bus. The changes are discussed and relevant policies updated.

• Tobacco-free school requirements clarified

  Federal law did not completely supersede state law regarding the tobacco use on school property. The scope of each is reviewed.

IASB's Policy Reference Education Subscription Service is a reference tool for school administrators, school board members, school attorneys, or anyone looking for well-reasoned sample policies plus the legal rationale and references supporting them. A subscription to PRESS includes the IASB Policy Reference Manual. Timely updates and revisions, plus informative bulletins, are mailed to subscribers. The annual subscription fee is $400 and either IASB office can provide samples and additional information.

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