---

School Board News Bulletin
February 1999

---

NSBA PRESIDENT’S BOARD RECEIVES FIRST COPY OF NEW POSTER

SEVERAL TOP YOUTH VOLUNTEERS HONORED

GOVERNOR RYAN SIGNS BILLS ENDING SCHOOL BOND CRISIS

SAFEGUARD SCHOOL ELECTRONIC DATA

E-RATE APPLICATIONS DEADLINE EXTENDED TO APRIL 6

CHARTER SCHOOLS DON’T MEASURE UP: MINNESOTA STUDY

QUESTIONS SUGGESTED FOR SCHOOL FUND BROKERS

FEDERAL UPDATE

IRS may expand public school audits

IDEA provision to affect schools

After-school programs get a boost

Art instruction lagging

NEWS FROM IASB

Friend of the court" brief submitted to challenge TIF

IASB recognition program invites nominations

Honorary memberships awarded

IASB Service Award offered

ICSA special education subgroup meeting is productive

DEVELOPMENTS IN SCHOOL LAW

RESEARCH REPORTS

Public signals willingness to fund after-school programs

Teens don’t know much about government

WORKSHOPS & MEETINGS

School Board Institute builds leadership skills

Substance abuse prevention conference set

THE NATIONAL SCENE

Eligibility change criticized by early voucher supporter

Iowa school district runs on wind power

Recent mailings from IASB

The first copy of a special poster marking the 85th anniversary of the Illinois Association of School Boards was presented recently to Barbara Wheeler (third from left), president of the National School Boards Association, and her board of education colleagues in Downers Grove Community High School District 99. IASB President Jay Tovian (far right) made the presentation during the second general session at the Joint Annual Conference, November 20-22, in Chicago. In addition to Barbara Wheeler, other members of the District 99 school board on hand to accept the framed poster were (from left): board member Nick Mazzarella, superintendent David Eblen, Wheeler, board vice president Julia Beckman and board member Richard Rooney.

The colorful 22" x 28" poster, designed to grace school board meeting rooms or offices, combines the Code of Conduct for School Board Members with a contemporary sentiment about the ability of each individual to "make a difference." Copies of the poster, framed or unframed, are available for purchase from IASB Publications (extension 1108).

Table of Contents

SEVERAL TOP YOUTH VOLUNTEERS HONORED

Andrea Knoll, 17, and Maxwell Penning, 12, both of Barrington, recently were named Illinois’ top two youth volunteers for 1999 in the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. They each will receive a $1,000 award, a medallion, and an all-expense paid trip to Washington, D.C., in May, where they will have a chance to be named among the nation’s top ten youth volunteers.

In addition, eight other Illinois students were recognized for being among the top volunteers in the state. The National School Boards Association and NSPRA are among the sponsors of the awards.

Table of Contents

GOVERNOR RYAN SIGNS BILLS ENDING SCHOOL BOND CRISIS

Governor George Ryan has signed into law two bills approved by the legislature in January to put an end to a school bond crisis facing school districts in Lake, Hamilton and Wabash Counties. Senate Bill 560 (sponsored by Sen. Patrick J. O’Malley, R-Palos Park) and Senate Bill 200 (Steven J. Rauschenberger, R-Elgin), took effect immediately, thus allowing bonds to be issued for school districts and other taxing bodies that were unable to issue them because of technical problems with legal notices last November.

Voters had approved a total of $60 million for remodeling and expansion in school districts in Lake County alone. Yet a Chicago bond counsel firm held up the issuance of the bonds, and the building projects, due to minor technical errors in county clerks’ offices. The errors resulted from mis-aligned public notice provisions in state laws—that is, the school code differed from the election code regarding the timing and kind of public notice required before elections. A 1996 school code amendment called for 30-days’ public notice, for example, while the state elections code requires as few as 10 days’ notice.

This led to technical errors, noted by the bond counsel, which caused school districts to lose up to $2,000 per day in interest, according to Dave Bonner, Grayslake District 127 business official.

SB 560 also delays the implementation of new teacher re-certification standards until July 1, 1999.

Table of Contents

SAFEGUARD SCHOOL ELECTRONIC DATA

What would happen if someone broke into a local school’s report card files and changed the grades? Would the cost be $2,000 to re-key the information? Or $20,000 to re-administer the tests or $200,000 to settle legal suits? Or would the security breach cost the school district $2 million in lost technology funding when lawmakers became fearful of entrusting private information about their constituents’ children to record systems perceived to be unsafe?

These questions are raised in a new report from the Education Department’s National Center for Education Statistics titled: Safeguarding Your Technology: Practical Guidelines for Electronic Education Information Security.

This 140-page report says information security policies require the leadership, commitment, and active participation of top-level school leaders.

It suggests such policies should cover: computer and networking hardware and software used for instructional and administrative purposes; confidential student and staff information; and vital administrative information, including class management data, password archives, and financial records.

Contact: 877/433-7827; http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/index.html.

Table of Contents

E-RATE APPLICATIONS DEADLINE EXTENDED TO APRIL 6

The Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) has officially extended the closing date of the "year two" application window for the e-rate to 10:59 p.m. on April 6, 1999.

To qualify, applicants must file Form 470, wait 28 days, and then file Form 471 so that their entire application, including all paper attachments and certifications, is received by 10:59 p.m. on April 6. Technically, this means that the last day to file Form 470 and complete the rest of the process within the window is March 9. But applicants would have to sign any new contracts, complete and sign Form 471, and hand-deliver it to the SLD office in Lawrence, Kansas all on April 6 if they waited that long to file Form 470.

E-rate advisors strongly recommend that applicants file form 470 no later than March 5, 1999. The previous recommended Form 470 filing date was February 5 for a window closing date of March 11.

While this window extension gives schools and libraries almost a month more to start and complete their "year two" applications, officials urge applicants to begin filing as soon as possible. By filing Form 470 now, applicants will avoid the heaviest traffic on the official application Web site (http://www.slcfund.org) and customer service line (888/203-8100).

For help filing a Form 470, see "Top 10 Reasons You Should File Your Year 2 E-Rate Application NOW" (at http://www.slcfund.org or via fax-on-demand, 800-959-0733, document number 206) and the forthcoming "Quick Tips for Filing Your Form 470 —Even If You Don’t Have a 1998 Funding Letter Yet."

Source: Schools and Libraries Corporation, February 4, 1999.

Table of Contents

CHARTER SCHOOLS DON’T MEASURE UP: MINNESOTA STUDY

A state government study conducted by the Minnesota Office of Educational Accountability indicates charter schools have failed to measure up to non-charter schools on academic achievement, student attendance and graduation rates. The study is particularly noteworthy because charter schools have been operated in Minnesota for six years —longer than anywhere else.

The study released in January finds "low achievement scores, low attendance rates in secondary grades, and low graduation rates of some charter schools will pose a challenge to their sponsoring agencies."

Specifically, the report finds only 40 percent of students in charter schools met Minnesota’s graduation requirements for math, compared to 71 percent of non-charter students statewide.

Results were nearly as bad on reading achievement tests, with just 43 percent of charter school students meeting state standards, compared to 68 percent of non-charter students statewide.

Table of Contents

QUESTIONS SUGGESTED FOR SCHOOL FUND BROKERS

Individuals responsible for investing funds on behalf of their school district should consider asking their investment providers a list of questions prepared by Arthur Levitt, Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Though most of these questions, as listed in Louis Rukeyser’s Book of Lists, are primarily appropriate for individuals, they are also relevant for school districts.

Here are the top ten questions to ask before deciding to invest with a particular broker:

1. Has any action ever been brought against you by a client or a regulator?

2. When you recommend a product to me, will you tell me if you stand to earn a bonus, higher commission or a prize if I agree to buy it?

3. What is the risk involved in this investment, and how does that suit my district’s profile?

4. How liquid is the investment?

5. What is your personal investment philosophy?

6. Describe your typical client (risk aversion, status, etc.).

7. May I have the names of long-term clients to call for reference?

8. How do you get paid?

9. Will you alert me if you notice a trend in my investment activities that does not match my investment goals?

10. Are you willing to put all of the above statements, and other verbal guarantees, in writing?

Experts say the following questions are perhaps even more relevant for school districts:

1. Is the firm registered with the National Association of Security Dealers?

2. Is the firm a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation?

3. Are your representatives licensed with the NASD?

4. Is your firm registered with the FDIC as a CD broker?

5. How long has your firm been in business?

6. What is the capital of your firm?

7. What relevant business experience do the managers of the firm have?

8. Who provides legal, auditing and custodial services and oversight?

9. Are my securities kept safe under GASB Statement III, Category I?

Information contributed by Cadre Securities Inc., and the Illinois School District Liquid Asset Fund Plus.

Table of Contents

---

RESEARCH REPORTS

---

Public signals willingness to fund after-school programs

A poll by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation shows Americans support expanding after-school programs and are willing to pay higher taxes for that purpose. Education Daily reports 80 percent of 800 registered voters would be willing to pay an additional $10 a year to fund such programs. For more information, contact the foundation at 810/238-5651.

Table of Contents

Teens don’t know much about government

A new survey indicates too few American teens have even a basic working knowledge of their government, according to the National Constitution Center.

A nationwide telephone survey of 600 teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 found that only 41 percent can name the three branches of government, but 59 percent can name the Three Stooges. And 74 percent can name the city where the cartoon character Bart Simpson lives (Springfield), but only 12 percent know where Abraham Lincoln lived when elected President.

What’s worse, 25 percent know at least one of the constitutional rights the Fifth Amendment protects; nearly 64 percent know what "The Club" protects (vehicles). The center’s Web site is: <http://www.constitutioncenter.org>.

Table of Contents

---

NEWS FROM IASB

---

Friend of the court" brief submitted to challenge TIF

Recognizing common interests, the IASB, IASA, and IEA have submitted an Amici Curie brief challenging a Tax Increment Financing District (TIF). The associations join Mascoutah Community Unit District 19’s battle to reverse a TIF.

Jeff Funk, Miller, Tracy, Braun, Funk & Paisley, represents the three associations. The TIF area consists of 1,300 acres of productive farmland and 50 acres of improved parcels. The Amici brief argues that this TIF fails to meet the Department of Revenue’s guidelines for establishing a TIF. Specifically, the brief contends that the TIF qualifying factors are not present to a meaningful extent nor are they reasonably distributed throughout the TIF area. Unless the Court of Appeals reverses the TIF ordinance, the brief warns, all Illinois farmland will be in jeopardy of being TIFfed. Mascoutah Community Unit School District v. City of Mascoutah.

Table of Contents

IASB recognition program invites nominations

IASB annually recognizes people, agencies, corporations or non-governmental organizations whose actions have contributed to excellence in education for Illinois children. Recognition is provided through the Harold P. Seamon Award for Distinguished Service to public education, and nominations are now being sought for this prestigious award.

Recipients must have done one or more of the following: 1) display exceptional service and commitment to public education in Illinois; 2) provide innovative and creative approaches to meeting the challenges facing public education; 3) enhance local, lay control of, and responsibility for, the governance of public education by school boards.

The activity for which the nomination is made should extend statewide or have an impact on a large region of the state—NOT just a district-wide impact. Only one such award is given annually. The deadline to submit nominations is April 15. Outstanding nominees are sought from all walks of life—not just from the realm of professional education.

The award is presented at a general session of the annual conference in November. Past winners include the Chicago Tribune, Harold P. Seamon, and Brian Braun.

Table of Contents

Honorary memberships awarded

IASB Honorary Memberships for Exceptional Service are given to people who have rendered distinguished service to the Association or to public education generally. These contributions may be district-wide or regional. Up to three awards are made each year statewide. The awards are made at regional meetings.

Submit questions or nominees for either award to the awards committee liaison and a nominating form and instructions will be sent to you. Deadline for submissions is April 15 for both awards. Current school board members are not eligible to receive IASB awards.

Table of Contents

IASB Service Award offered

In addition, IASB offers the IASB Service Award to an individual who: 1) has given 25 years of service (not necessarily continuous) to schools and children; 2) has had a positive impact through that service; and 3) has had a close affiliation with and been of direct service to schools, either as an employee or volunteer. Service Awards are issued to as many people as meet the requirements to receive them. They are presented at regional meetings. There is no deadline for submission of names.

Contact: IASB Awards Committee Liaison, 2921 Baker Drive, Springfield, IL 62703-5929, phone IASB, ext. 1139, fax 217/753-2485.

Table of Contents

ICSA special education subgroup meeting is productive

On a recent Thursday evening a group of Illinois Council of School Attorneys (ICSA) members from the Chicago area, all of them experts in special education law, held an informal dinner meeting. They were looking to share information and present a sounding board for issues relevant to their practice. It seems that as the demand increases for the services of special education attorneys in school matters, they see a need to more regularly compare notes.

The new federal rules on the reauthorization of IDEA—expected by the end of February—should, by themselves, provide ample material for discussion. The attorneys plan to meet again March 25.

Table of Contents

---

DEVELOPMENTS IN SCHOOL LAW

---

Student drug screening: How large a net may schools use?

The serious, growing, and immediate emergency posed by illegal drug use among students poses a dilemma for school officials. As they earnestly seek to protect students from the dangers of illicit drug use, they must recognize the students’ constitutional privacy interest in being free from unreasonable searches, even while at school. This tension created by the desire to protect and the need to uphold privacy interests is readily apparent in those cases involving challenges to suspicionless drug screening policies. Typically these cases arise when a student challenges the policy’s reasonableness, urging that the school is using too large a net to catch illicit drug users.

A bit of history: students retain their constitutional rights while at school. Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969). Thus, students have a right to be free from unreasonable searches. To justify searching a student, however, school officials may use a relaxed standard as compared to the probable cause standard used by the police. New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325 (1985). A school official’s search of a student is permissible if it is justified at its inception and is reasonably related in scope to circumstances justifying it in the first place. To be justified at its inception, the student’s conduct must create a reasonable suspicion that he or she has evidence of a school rule’s violation in his or her possession.

Random drug screens, however, are suspicionless searches. In other words, a drug screen is not triggered by reasonable suspicion that a particular student violated school rules, but rather by a random drawing of a student’s name for drug testing. A different set of rules applies to determine when a suspicionless drug screen is permissible.

The U.S. Supreme Court approved suspicionless drug testing in a very limited context – the random testing of student athletes. Vernon School District 47J v. Acton, 515 U.S. 646 (1995). The Court determined the reasonableness of a suspicionless search is by balancing (1) the nature of the individual’s privacy interest and the character of the intrusion, against (2) the nature and the immediacy of the government’s concern. The student athlete’s privacy interests were less than other students’ interests because the activity was wholly voluntary and any sanction for a positive result did not affect the right to attend school. Plus, the athletes regularly engaged in communal disrobing. On the other hand, the nature and immediacy of the government’s concern was huge. That concern, when weighed against the student athletes’ lessened privacy interests, allowed the Court to uphold random drug screens of student athletes.

Subsequently, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, the federal court having jurisdiction over Illinois second only to the Supreme Court, upheld the random testing of all students involved in extracurricular activities. Todd v. Rush Count Schools, 133 F.3d 984 (7th Cir.1998). The students’ privacy interests in this case were different than those in the Vernonia. Most obviously, unlike with athletic participation, there is no communal undress in other extracurricular activities. However, two factors applied equally to those students who participate in athletics and those in all other extracurricular activities: (1) both groups of students voluntarily chose to participate in the activity, and (2) a sanction for a positive result did not affect the students’ right to attend school. Thus, the Seventh Circuit in Todd approved a school board policy allowing all public school students who participate in extracurricular activities to be subject, as a condition of their participation, to random drug testing.

This brings us to two recent decisions – one from the Supreme Court in Colorado and the other from the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. The Colorado case involved a drug testing policy that, similar to the one upheld in Todd, applied to all students in extracurricular activities. Trinidad School District No. 1 v. Lopez, 963 P.2d 1095 (Colo. 1998). The Seventh Circuit case involved a drug screen policy that required students, who were suspended for fighting, to undergo a drug test. The courts in both of these cases struck the respective policy.

The Colorado case was brought by a high school senior band student. As a condition for the participation in band, he was required to be a member of the school’s marching band – an extracurricular activity in that district. The nature of his privacy interest was quite distinguishable from those of student athletes. Obviously, there was no communal undressing. More importantly, however, the element of voluntariness was absent here: in order to pass the for-credit band class, a student had to participate in the extracurricular marching band. Thus, the Colorado Supreme Court struck the board policy.

We now have two decisions, one from the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals and the other from the Colorado Supreme Court, that reached different conclusions concerning random drug screens of extracurricular participants. The Colorado court was obviously bothered by the inclusion of students who must participate in the extracurricular marching band in order to pass a for-credit course. This element was not addressed by the Seventh Circuit. Illinois school districts, nevertheless, should take a lesson from the Colorado decision and make sure that students who participate in for-credit activities are not necessarily brought into mandatory drug testing because of their required participation in a co-curricular or extracurricular activity.

The Seventh Circuit struck a suspicionless drug screen policy in its most recent decision addressing the issue. Willis v. Anderson Community School Corp., 158 F.3d 415 (7th Cir. 1998). Believing that violence and the use of illicit drugs are directly related, school officials in an Indiana district passed a policy whereby all students who were suspended for fighting were drug screened. If the screen was positive, the student would not suffer an additional penalty, unless the student refused to go through a drug treatment program.

The student-combatant’s privacy interests were stronger than those of the students discussed in Vernonia and Todd. First, the student-combatant was not engaged in a voluntary activity. Second, there was no communal undress. His drug testing was a consequence of participating in a fight. As unsympathetic as this student might be, nothing reduced his privacy interest to justify a suspicionless search. In fact, before the suspension, a school official discussed the incident with the student-combatant. If the student displayed signs of drug use, reasonable suspicion to conduct a search, including a drug screen, would have existed. Thus, the school district’s interest could be met by a traditional suspicion-based approach.

Blanket drug testing of students, while it may be an effective investigative tool, is unconstitutional. The extent to which this investigative tool may be used, within Constitutional parameters, is still evolving. A small net may be used to screen those students who participate in extracurricular athletic activities. A somewhat larger net may be used to screen those students who participate in any voluntary extracurricular activity. However, a net is probably too large if it covers those students who must participate in an extracurricular event in order to pass a for-credit course. Additionally, the net is too large if it screens students for violating student conduct rules absent reasonable suspicion of drug use. The extent to which students’ privacy interests limit school officials’ use of a very effective investigative tool will continue to be fine-tuned as school officials seek to protect students and the learning environment.

Melinda Selbee is IASB’s general counsel.

Table of Contents

---

Workshops & Meetings

---

School Board Institute builds leadership skills

Now in its second-year, the IASB/Motorola "School Board Institute: Leadership for the 21st Century" will offer eight two-day sessions to build board member leadership skills this year. An outgrowth of an education and business partnership between the IASB and Motorola University, this institute aims to help board members become dynamic, effective leaders for the future.

Specifically, the institute allows board participants to identify and reflect on personal leadership skills and to practice dialogue and decision-making processes and skills. Each day’s seminar begins at 8 a.m. and ends at 5 p.m. on the Motorola University campus in Schaumburg. Participants stay at any of several motels in the immediate vicinity.

Tuition for the Institute is $400 per person. Registration for each session is limited to 25 board members. Participants may choose any of the following 1999 dates:

April 22-23

May 20-21

June 7-8

July 22-23

August 16-17

September 23-24

October 18-19

This is a legitimate board expense. The Institute earns 20 credits in IASB’s Leadership and Development Program. For more information, please telephone IASB at 630/629-3776; or 217/528-9688, ext. 1228.

Table of Contents

Substance abuse prevention conference set

The State Board of Education will co-host a conference on preventing substance abuse April 7-8 in Chicago. The conference, to be presented in cooperation with the Illinois Department of Human Services and Prevention First, will explore methods to develop, implement and extend a substance abuse prevention effort.

For further information, contact Theresa at 1/800-252-8951, ext. 209 or visit the Prevention First website at http://www.prevention.org.

Table of Contents

---

THE NATIONAL SCENE

---

Eligibility change criticized by early voucher supporter

The Democratic Wisconsin state legislator who championed the cause for publicly funded vouchers for poor Milwaukee children recently spoke out against changing the rules. According to the Hannah Online Educational News Service (Dec. 9), Annette Polly Williams said she knew from the outset that certain foundations and politicians would support her only if it served their own interests.

Milwaukee’s mayor now wants the vouchers available to all families, but Williams says that is wrong. According to the Boston Globe, she said, "…I’ve never seen a situation where low-income people, when they have to compete in education with people with far more resources, come out equal."

Table of Contents

Iowa school district runs on wind power

The Spirit Lake (Iowa) Community School District’s electrical needs soon will be supplied entirely by two wind-energy generators.

The district installed one 240-kilowatt wind turbine in 1993 to power Spirit Lake Elementary school. That’s enough electricity to power 188 homes for one year. Next year the district will add another wind generator to power the district’s middle school and high school.

According to Superintendent Harold Overman, the first turbine already has paid for itself, and the savings each year will be enough to equip a computer lab.

Contact: Harold Overman, 712/336-2820; or visit the district’s Web site at http://www.spirit-lake.k12.ia.us

Table of Contents

---

FEDERAL UPDATE

---

IRS may expand public school audits

During the recent Association of School Business Officials International meeting an IRS senior tax law specialist warned that the IRS is expanding the auditing of public school district 403(b) plans throughout the country.

The IRS’s main focus is the permissible employee contribution levels to 403(b) programs. Excess contributions beyond the maximum exclusion allowance can lead to under-withholding by a school district of employees’ state and federal income taxes. As employers, school districts are responsible for the proper withholding of taxes. What’s more, a school district cannot delegate its responsibility to withhold federal taxes properly to vendors, according to the IRS.

Table of Contents

IDEA provision to affect schools

A provision in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments may allow school districts to reduce their level of local expenditures for special education and related services, according to Rep. Bill Goodling, chairman of the Commit-tee on Education and the Workplace.

Under federal law, when appropriations for the basic state grant exceed $4.1 billion, local educational agencies may use up to 20 percent of the increase in federal dollars to reduce their costs associated with such services.

In 1998, Congress spent $300 million more than President Bill Clinton’s 1999 fiscal-year request.

Table of Contents

After-school programs get a boost

The Clinton Administration announced January 8 it will seek a $400 million increase in funding for after-school and summer programs.

Congress appropriated $200 million for the current year for such programs, which serve 380,000 students in 800 school districts.

For more information, visit the Web site at http://www.ed.gov/offices/OERI/21stCCLC/.

Table of Contents

Art instruction lagging

Results of an arts test given recently to eighth-grade students by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows students have little understanding of dance, music, theater and visual arts. The study blames inadequate resources devoted to the arts by U.S. schools, according to Education Daily.

The report was the government’s first effort to gauge art aptitude in more than 20 years.

Among the findings, the test showed few students could create basic musical compositions or sing melodies with reasonable accuracy. Children who scored well on arts-related written activities also scored well on performance and creativity tasks in all artistic disciplines.

Table of Contents

---

Recent mailings from IASB

---

Not all IASB mailings are sent to all school board members. For speed or economy, some mailings are sent only to the board president or district superintendent. This item was mailed recently. For more information, contact your board president or district superintendent or get in touch with IASB.

January 21: IASB Constitution & Position Statements booklet, mailed to district superintendents.

January 28: School board election mailing follow-up, to board presidents and district superintendents.

January 29: IASB collective bargaining workshop announcement, mailed to board presidents.

January 29: Student discipline workshop announcement, mailed to district superintendents.

Table of Contents

IASB ARCHIVES HOME

Illinois Association of School Boards

2921 Baker Drive
Springfield, Illinois 62703