(Editor's note:  At the Thursday meeting of the State Board of Education, Superintendent Kathy Cox announced that Georgia 8th grade students had reached the national average on the writing assessment portion of the National Assessment of Educational Progress.  For more information, click here.)

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After a planning retreat in lieu of a March meeting, the State Board of Education's April agenda was a lengthy one.  Returning to the Board's normal routine, the work session, or Committee of the Whole, met on Wednesday, with the official meeting of the Board on Thursday.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

The Budget Committee considered contract and grant items for inclusion on the Thursday agenda.  The Committee recommended 18 contracts and grants for consideration by the full Board.

The Charter Schools Committee received staff reports on the status of Federal funds, a Charter Division monthly report, a legislative update, and a report on the status of charter petitions.  The Committee recommended charter implementation grants, one new charter petition, and five charter schools renewals.

The Rules Committee recommended action on two State Board rules, class size waivers, two additional system requests for waivers and the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program (see Thursday report).  The Committee heard a state and federal legislative update and discussed rules to be considered at a later meeting.

The Operations Committee received reports from the three standing committees and made recommendations for items to be included on the Thursday Board agenda.

A public hearing was held on State Board Rule 160-4-2-.20 List of State-Funded K-8 Subjects and 9-12 Courses for Students Entering Ninth Grade in 2008 and Rule 160-7-1-.04 Accountability System Awards and Consequences. No one spoke on either rule.

The Committee of the Whole reviewed items recommended for action by the standing committees and approved an agenda for the Thursday meeting.

Department of Education staff reported on the upcoming Title I Summer Leadership Academy; the FY 2008 Supplemental Budget, the 2007-2012 State Technology Plan, the Perkins CEAE Act Five Year State Plan, and the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Initiative.

Kelly Henson, Georgia Professional Standards Commission, reported on teacher retention initiatives. 

Thursday, April 2, 2008

The State Board met in executive session to consider personnel matters, legal issues, appeals of local board decisions, and requests for waivers and variances of State Board Rules.

The meeting was called to order by Chair, Wanda Barrs.  Mr. Hodge, Dr. Murray, and Ms. Nielson were absent. (one vacancy exists on the Board).

Board member Dr. Mary Sue Polleys gave an inspiration and let the Pledge of Allegiance.  

The Board recognized students and educators for Excellence in Technology and Career Education; Science; and Foreign Languages.

Contracts and Grants:
The Board approved the following:

• Contract, Vendor TBA ($TBA) for playground equipment and installation at the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf.
• Contract, Georgia Aquarium ($65,250) to host the Georgia Teacher of the Year banquet.
• Contract, Georgia State University ($205,000) for training of 45 additional Reading Recovery teachers.
• Contract, 60 Georgia teachers ($91,280 total) to provide training for high school mathematics teachers in GPS mathematics standards.
• Contract, Classic Center, Athens ($60,000) to provide space for a Reading First Conference.
• Contract, Houghton Mifflin Learning Technology ($250,000) for purchase of on-line textbook learning resources for Mathematics I course.
• Contract, University of Georgia ($141,773) for evaluation of the Supplemental Services programs.
• Contract amendment, Pioneer RESA ($878,245) for additional instructional segments for Georgia Virtual School students.
• Grant, Even Start Literacy - Ben Hill County ($161,638) from the Department of Early Care and Learning for family literacy program continuation.
• Grant, Residential Treatment - Dublin City Schools ($29,473) for reimbursement of financial support provided a residential treatment center.
• Grant, Title IID - 80 schools ($7,867,405 total) to provide professional learning support for a media specialist and four teachers in each school address improvement of standards and technology integration into the curriculum.
• Grant, Residential and Reintegration Services for Special Education - to eligible school districts ($1,658,859 total) for funding placement of students in private residential facilities.
• Grant, Reading First - 35 school districts ($26,527,263 total) to fund 113 Reading First projects.
• Grant, Newton County Schools ($294,000) for sewer repairs at the FFA/FCCLA Center.
• Grant, Lee and Rockdale Counties ($10,000 each) for recognition of Lee County Middle and Conyers Middle (Rockdale) as Lighthouse Schools.
• Grant, Title I School Improvement - 15 school districts ($1,652,189.52 total) for school improvement grants.
• Grant, Graduation Coach - for qualifying school districts ($7,443,617 total) for training and experience funds for High School Graduation coaches employed during FY 07.

Charter Schools
The Board:

• Denied charter status for Tree of Life Knowledge Charter School (Atlanta)
• Denied charter status for Clayton County Virtual Charter School.
• Denied charter status for Global Learning Academy (Clayton)
• Approved charter status for Savannah Gateway to College Academy (Chatham)
• Approved charter status for The P.R.E.P. Academy (Thomas)
• Renewed charter status for KIPP South Fulton Academy.
• Approved Charter Implementation Grants for:
  • Ivy Preparatory State Chartered Special School, Gwinnett County ($600,000)
  • Webster County High ($400,000)
  • Morgan County Middle ($200,000)
  • Sawyer Road Elementary, Marietta City ($400,000)
  • North Springs High, Fulton County ($400,000)

Rules
The Board:

• Adopted Rule 160-4-2-.20, List of State-Funded K-8 Subjects and 9-12 Courses for Students Entering Ninth Grade in 2008
• Initiated an amendment to Rule 160-8-1-.01, Georgia Virtual School.  Allows alternative education students, Georgia Network for Educational and Therapeutic Support Program students, state school students, and residential students to take more than one Carnegie unit of state funding per semester.
• Approved class size waivers for the following school districts:  Berrien, Bibb, Bremen, Carrollton, Cartersville, Cobb, Columbia, DeKalb, Douglas, Effingham, Fayette, Franklin, Hall, Irwin, Long, Thomasville.
• Approved a waiver request from Butts County allowing an eight period day at Jackson High School.
• Approved a waiver request from Barrow County allowing a student to enroll in more than one unit of credit per semester at the Georgia Virtual School.

Other Business Items
The Board:

• Approved 17 private schools for participation in the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship program for FY 09.
• Approved a resolution with several entities to form a task force to study national school board governance practices.
• Approved the 2007-2012 State Technology Plan.
• Approved the addition of the English/Language Arts K-3 writing standard.
• Approved posting of the GPS for Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education.
• Approved posting of the GSP Standards for American Sign Language.
• Adopted the Perkins CTAE Act Georgia State Plan.
• Approved GPS standards or cut scores for CRCT in Mathematics (grades 3-5 and 8), Science (grade 8), and Social Studies (grades 6-8)
• Approved local facilities plans these school districts:  Early, Jenkins, Taliaferro, Terrell, Vidalia, Wilkes.
• Approved personnel recommendations.
• Approved minutes of the February 14 and March 12 meetings.
• Redirected $250,000 of the Bonds for Buses revenues for FY 2007 for use by the three State Schools.
• Accepted the FY 2008 Supplemental Budget.

Items for Information
The following items or reports were presented to the Board for information:

• Upcoming contract, (Vendor TBA), ($99,000) for a school wide communications system for the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf.
• Upcoming contract, Pioneer RESA ($3,000,000) to serve as fiscal agent for the Georgia Virtual School.
• Upcoming contract, Desire 2Learn ($275,000) for provide course management services for the Georgia Virtual School.
• Upcoming contract, Northwest Georgia RESA ($100,000) to coordinate PSC approved certification endorsement programs.
• Upcoming contract, Edvantia, Inc ($55,204) for online professional learning modules for Reading First teachers.
• Upcoming contract, The Classic Center, Athens ($311,600) to host Reading First conferences.
• Upcoming contract, Dr. Sharon Walpole ($219,000) for the professional learning architect for Reading First.
• Upcoming contracts with multiple vendors ($90,000) to serve as mediators of special education disputes.
• Upcoming contracts with parents of students with disabilities ($75,000) to be trained in the Focused Monitoring process.
• List of contracts under $50,000 approved by the Department of Education, February and March, 2008
• Upcoming grants to eligible recipients ($5,434,960 total) to improve the quality of Mathematics and Science instruction.
• Charter petitions expected for action:  Habersham Career Academy, DeKalb Academy of Technology and Environment (renewal); Addison Elementary (Cobb-renewal), Gateway to College Academy (DeKalb-renewal) Oglethorpe Charter (Chatham-renewal), KIPP West Atlanta Young Scholars Academy (renewal).
• Class size waivers report.

Notes:  
Beginning with the May, 2008 State Board meeting, the Thursday Executive Session will be held 8:00 - 9:30 a.m., with the Regular meeting beginning at 9:30 a.m.

This report is for information only and is not intended as an official record of actions of the State Board of Education.