Salute your senior
Posted Thursday, May 2, 2013
By Pam Haukaas
Monday I was able to touch the future!
How you ask? Well, I shook the hands of 200 of our top academic graduating high school seniors in the State of South Dakota.
It was a thrill to share this day with the many students, parents, educators and special guests in attendance at the 2013 Academic Excellence Banquet.
To see pictures from the event, visit the ASBSD Facebook.
This year marked the 23rd year that ASBSD, in cooperation with the Governor's office, School Administrators of South Dakota and the Department of Education and event sponsors the S.D. Community Foundation and Citibank, joined together to recognize the top one percent of graduating seniors from our state’s public, private and tribal schools.
As school board members, I encourage you to personally congratulate the student from your district. Download the honoree list to find the student(s) from your district.
These students, with their talents and skills, represent the next generation of leaders and the future of our state.
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State’s top seniors honored at banquet
Posted Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Gov. Dennis Daugaard joined in celebrating an accomplished group of graduating seniors and encouraged them to grow their own roots in South Dakota during Monday’s 23rd Annual Academic Excellence Banquet in Pierre.
“Some of the greenest pastures in America are right here in South Dakota,” Gov. Daugaard said, noting the low cost and high quality of living South Dakota offered.
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Gov. Daugaard gave an impassioned speech at the luncheon.
Hosted by the Associated School Boards of South Dakota and sponsored by the South Dakota Community Foundation and Citibank, the banquet honored more than 200 students from the state’s public, private and tribal schools.
“Today we celebrate excellence and this is what it looks like,” ASBSD President Pam Haukaas of the Colome Consolidated school district said.
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ASBSD President Pam Haukaas and Gov. Daugaard paused for a photo.
Schools are asked to identify one student for every 100 graduating seniors based on academic criteria, such as grade-point average and scores on college readiness tests.
“I do give all you students a great deal of credit,” Gov. Daugaard said. “You don’t get here just by luck. It takes hard work.”
Parents and high school principals are requested to join each student and share in the celebration, which drew over 500 students, parents and educators.
Honorees and their special guests packed the Ramkota River Center.
“We need to recognize how many people helped you along the way,” Gov. Daugaard.
An impassioned Gov. Daugaard urged students to show their appreciation for the dedication of those closest to them as he reminisced about his parents’ commitment to be there for him.
“Remember all the people who got you here,” Gov. Daugaard said. “Remember that they love you.”
To see more photos from the event, visit the ASBSD Facebook page.
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Extension and Innovation
Posted Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Capital Outlay sunset date extended
Senate Education committee members stretched the provision allowing school districts to use capital outlay funds for certain insurance, energy, utilities and motor fuel costs at Tuesday’s meeting.
The committee voted 7-0 to extend the sunset date to 2018 as part of Senate Bill 194. The provision, introduced in 2009, was set to expire in 2014. ASBSD delegates voted to support the extension of the sunset date at November’s Delegate Assembly.
“The bill offers school districts, that may need it, some relief on certain expenditures,” Executive Director Wade Pogany said. “Right now, with funding where it is for schools any flexibility helps.”
Bill sponsor Sen. Bill Van Gerpen (19) testified that school districts could see a more than 10 percent increase to health insurance costs and Milbank Superintendent Tim Graf told the committee his district saw the flexibility “as really the only realistic option to maintain even basic education services.”
During the committee’s discussion, Sen. Mark Johnston (12) noted each year since the capital outlay flexibility had been in place the total dollar amount has increased. In fiscal year 2009 school districts flexed a little more than $1 million with steady increases in FY 2010 and 2011 and topping out at over $15 million in FY 2012.
The bill now heads to the Senate floor.
Senate Bill 76 hoghoused
Rerouted from the Senate floor to the Senate Education committee, Senate Bill 76 underwent an overhaul on Tuesday.
The bill, which originally passed through Senate Education more than two weeks ago, was hoghoused by the committee and referred to the Senate Appropriations committee. SB 76 originally appropriated $150,000 in state funding for Education Service Agencies, which lost funding in 2009.
The new version of the bill creates an innovation grant program for ESAs and school districts. Sen. Johnston told committee members the updated SB 76 combined parts of the original version and House Bill 1133, which was deferred to the 41st legislative day by the House Education committee.
Johnston said the bill would “create business processes to ensure the long-term survivability of the (small) districts and most importantly improve student achievement.”
Johnston said he expected the hoghoused version to exceed the $150,000 attached to the previous version, but he did not specify an amount. Currently, there is one dollar attached to the bill.
The state Board of Education would select grant recipients from school districts and ESAs that apply for funds. Applicants must have matching funds to be eligible.
ASBSD will continue to monitor the bill, check the ASBSD blog and bill tracker for updates.
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Three bills deferred to 41st
Posted Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Increased funding bill blocked
House Bill 1201, which called for an increase to the per-student allocation dollar amount for the next three years, was deferred to the 41st Legislative Day on 9-4 by the House State Affairs committee.
“The bill was in for a battle,” Pogany said. “Although it’s disappointing it was defeated, the committee acknowledged something needs to be done and the conversation to develop a stable, ongoing funding source for schools is far from over.”
The committee deferred action on another funding bill that would change the index factor increase for education funding from three percent to four percent. House Bill 1202’s hearing continues Monday.
Levy name change deferred
Senate Bill 99, which proposed changing the term "opt out" to "instructional support levy," was deferred to the 41st Legislative Day by the Senate Taxation committee on 4-3 vote. Pogany testified the bill was for the betterment of education because it explained the tax increases true purpose.
House Ed. moves hearing
The hearing for House Bill 1166, which would reward school districts based on the number of past year graduates not taking remediation courses in post-secondary schools, was deferred by the House Education committee. ASBSD opposes the bill because it removes dollars needed by school districts from the general fund.
Instead the committee held a hearing for House Bill 1176. The bill defines truancy as any child absent from school for more than three days without a valid excuse. The committee deferred the bill to the 41st Legislative Day on a 12-2 vote.
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Committee stops effort to lower grad age
Posted Thursday, February 25, 2010
Students will have to stay in school until they graduate or
turn 18, members of House Education decided Monday. The 9-5 vote turns back an
effort, found in HB 1168, to reverse a law passed in 2007 that increased the
state’s compulsory attendance age from 16 to 18.
The bill’s prime sponsor, Rep. Kristi Noem, R-Castlewood, made
a reasoned case for the repeal.
She argued that requiring school attendance until age 18
isn’t proven to improve graduation rates and stands in the way of a family’s
choice to manage their child’s education. Rep. Noem also questioned whether
schools were up to the challenge of meeting the needs of students who struggle
to stay in school.
The Castlewood lawmaker was the only one to speak for the bill before a wave of
opponents lined up against HB 1168. Representatives of the Department of
Education, Department of Corrections, school boards, school administrators,
large schools, small schools and teachers all asked lawmakers to defeat the
bill.
Wade Pogany, the director of assessment and technology for
the education department, was the sharpest in his criticism, challenging
lawmakers to stick with state’s policy.
“Leadership is not about doing what’s convenient,” Pogany
said, admitting that schools will have a tougher job under the new law but
insisting that the state's education systems are up to the job. He spoke at length about
how schools have prepared for the law to take effect and asked lawmakers to
give schools more time to work.
A teacher by trade, Rep. Jim Bolin, R-Canton, outlined his
support for the repeal by suggesting his colleagues have thanked him for not
supporting the “line of the educational establishment.” He challenged the
notion that the law can make a difference for kids.
“Family, moral and spiritual issues are just as important as
a compulsory attendance effort by the state,” he said.
Committee members weren’t ready to abandon the compulsory attendance
law, which only took effect last July.
After acknowledging the difficulty of educating students
at-risk of dropping out, Rep. Bill Van Gerpen, R-Tyndall, explained that a vote
against the legislation was a vote of confidence in the state’s public schools.
“Schools are willing to take-up the challenge because of
their sincere concern for children,” he said.
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ACT scores: Let's take a look.
Posted Wednesday, August 19, 2009
South Dakota students once again scored above the national average on the ACT test. Scores didn't improve, but they held steady. Good news, for certain.
We frequently write congratulatory posts, but we're going to make a point with this one – especially while the data is so fresh and easily searchable.
Let's talk about education funding.
Some against devoting additional funding to K-12 education argue that money doesn't equal outcomes. Expenditures can't be related to student results, they say.
And, when opponents of increased funding make that argument, they often compare South Dakota, ranked among the lowest in per-student education expenditures, to Washington, D.C, which consistently has the highest per-student expenditures in the nation.
The point of the opponents' argument: South Dakota spends less while performing better on standardized tests. Which is true, in a way.
But, consider this. The chart below shows average ACT scores for sub-groups of students, broken down by ethnicity.
|
|
South Dakota |
D.C |
National |
|
All Students |
22.0 |
19.4 |
21.1 |
|
Caucasian |
22.4 |
26.2 |
22.2 |
|
African American |
17.3 |
15.7 |
16.9 |
|
American Indian |
17.6 |
16.6 |
18.9 |
|
Hispanic |
20.9 |
19.5 |
18.7 |
Though South Dakota compares well to the national average, and particularly to D.C., in the "All Students" category, taking apart the numbers shows a different trend.
Caucasian students in D.C. score better than their peers in South Dakota. Much better, actually.
Here's the difference. In South Dakota, Caucasian students, who traditionally fare better than the national average on standardized tests, represent about 84 percent of the student population. In D.C., African American students, who traditionally don't score well on standardized tests, make up about...84 percent of the student population.
Now, there's a lot to be said about achievement gaps, the need to close achievement gaps, and the high cost of educating students who live in poverty. But, the data just begs the question, if four out of every five students in South Dakota come from a sub-group that traditionally scores higher on standardized tests, then does it help create the impression that our students out-perform students in other states?
In the same line of thought: Are the majority of South Dakota students prepared to compete against college seeking students in other states?
There's no question South Dakota schools do a remarkable job with the resources provided. But, when we see statistics like this, it makes us wonder what our students could achieve if we adequately funded our schools.
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