Olsen: Accountability Bill May Not Happen This Session
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 29, 2014
Senate Education Committee Chairman Luther Olsen (R-Ripon) has pulled the revamped school accountability bill, Senate Bill 286, from the committee’s executive session for tomorrow, meaning the bill will not be voted on. Olsen also suggested to the media that the accountability bill may get stalled and not pass this legislative session.
You might recall that the SAA established two major conditions for its support of SB 286 during the September 12 public hearing on the original draft of the legislation: 1) all schools educating students with public funds are included, and 2) no preferential treatment for any type of school in the accountability system. We were disappointed that the revamped SB 286 fails on the second condition, allowing voucher schools to choose whatever assessment they want for their report card and count whichever students they desire. The bill also abandons the performance categories established by the Accountability Design Team and replaces them with politically-charged A-F letter grades. Finally, the timeline for sanctioning the lowest performing schools provides preferential treatment for voucher schools.
The bottom line is the private school voucher proponents do not want real accountability, they are very powerful politically, and so far they are getting their wish. It remains to be seen now if Senator Farrow will release an accountability bill he has been working on. If so, the SAA will update the membership on it as soon as possible. Stay tuned.
See the latest news article from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
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Public Hearing on Phy. Ed. Bill Tomorrow
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 28, 2014
The Assembly Committee on Children and Families will hold a public hearing tomorrow on Assembly Bill 609, relating to physical education in the public schools. AB 609 requires that every school district operating grades kindergarten to 5 ensure that pupils in those grades participate in physical education for at least 30 minutes each day on which school is held.
The SAA is planning to testify in opposition to the bill. We believe that this well-intended bill is an unfunded state mandate that would require school districts to take time and money away from their primary objective — educating students to higher levels of academic achievement.
See SAA Testimony.
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Committee Vote on Accountability Bill Set for Thursday
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 28, 2014
As you may know, Senate Education Committee Chair Luther Olsen (R-Ripon) has scheduled a committee vote on a revamped SB 286 for this Thursday. Please find linked below the revised bill as well as a summary document provided by Senator Olsen’s office. The DPI and SAA are continuing to analyze these documents. Our initial look at the bill has revealed a number of concerns.
You might recall that the SAA established two major conditions for its support of SB 286 during the September 12 public hearing on the original draft of the legislation: 1) all schools educating students with public funds are included, and 2) no preferential treatment for any type of school in the accountability system.
We will update you with new information as it becomes available. Stay tuned.
Topics: Legislative Action, SAA Capitol Reports, SAA Capitol Reports with Email Notifications | No Comments »
Schultz Announces Retirement
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 27, 2014
State Senator Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center), longtime friend of public education, has announced he will not seek reelection this year.
For more, read here.
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Key Senators Say “NO” to Special Needs Voucher Bill
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | January 24, 2014
On January 21st, Senators Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa) and Alberta Darling (R–River Hills), and Representatives Dean Knudson (R–Hudson) and John Jagler (R–Watertown) unveiled a revamped special needs voucher bill that would offer special needs students who have been denied open enrollment a taxpayer-funded voucher (reportedly worth up to about $14,000) to attend another school district, a charter school or a private school.
Key GOP state senators immediately signaled that the bill would not move forward in the Senate. Senate President Mike Ellis (R–Neenah) said the bill was not a priority for him and staff for Senator Luther Olsen, Chairman of the Senate Education Committee (R–Ripon) announced that Olsen was not interested in making the bill law in Wisconsin. Of particular concern to these senators was the recent case of LifeSkills Academy, a poor-performing Milwaukee voucher school recently closed by its operators. The operators then turned around and opened a voucher school in Florida supported by that state’s special needs voucher program.
The School Administrators Alliance (SAA) has long opposed special needs voucher legislation, and we join advocates for disabled children in their opposition to this legislation. It is important to note that no statewide disability group in Wisconsin has endorsed special needs vouchers. In response to the new bill draft, Disability Rights Wisconsin, and Stop Special Needs Vouchers both expressed their strong opposition.
Consider the following:
- Special needs vouchers take tax dollars out of public schools, hurting students who remain in those schools. Under this bill draft, the voucher would be funded as a first draw on the general school aids that would otherwise be payable to all school districts receiving general aid in the state. And because local school districts are allowed to levy property taxes to cover the reduction in state aid, this bill could result in higher local property taxes.
- Voucher schools are not required to employ special education teachers or therapists, and have no obligation to meet a student’s specific needs.
- Families who use a special needs voucher to send their child to a private school would give up their child’s rights and protections under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), including the right to an enforceable Individualized Education Program (IEP. As Lisa Pugh of Disability Rights Wisconsin said in response to this bill draft, “We haven’t seen support for real accountability in the private school sector that would ensure that students with disabilities would be protected.”
Even though key state senators have signaled the bill will not move forward in their house, it does appear that the bill will receive a public hearing in February. The SAA will keep members informed of these developments so we can emphatically express our opposition to this proposal. Stay tuned.
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