North Dakota Commission on Education Improvement
Commission Meeting Minutes
August 9, 2006
Devils Lake High School Library, 1601 College Drive North, Devils Lake, North Dakota
The seventh meeting of the North Dakota Commission on Education Improvement was called to order at 9:02 a.m. by the commission's chair, Lt. Gov. Jack Dalrymple.
Commission members in attendance included Lt. Gov. Jack Dalrymple, Warren Larson, Martin Schock, Jon Martinson, Mark Lemer, Doug Johnson, Paul Stremick, Sen. Tim Flakoll, Wayne Sanstead, Sen. David O'Connell, Rep. RaeAnn Kelsch and Rep. David Monson. Gloria Lokken with the North Dakota Education Association attended as a designee for Joe Westby. Jack Maus was absent.
Sen. Tim Flakoll made a motion to approve the minutes from the July 6 meeting in Minot and Gloria Lokken seconded the motion. There was no discussion regarding the minutes and they were approved with no amendments.
Lt. Gov. Dalrymple discussed a timetable for proceeding with the draft report. Commission members would share the report with their respective stakeholders and generate input throughout the month of August. That input would be incorporated into the draft report for review and discussion at the September 6 meeting in Grand Forks. The revised draft would be presented to legislative leadership and committees in September and October, with a final report submitted to Gov. John Hoeven by the first of November for consideration as he prepares his executive budget. A final commission meeting will be held in October.
Lt. Gov. Dalrymple then distributed the draft report containing the commission's proposal for education funding in the state. Dalrymple stressed that the report was a working draft and would be obsolete by the end of the meeting. Commission members then reviewed the report and provided input for discussion and possible amendments to the draft.
Mark Lemer suggested that the actual agreement to stay litigation should be included verbatim in the report rather than trying to paraphrase the information. He was concerned that by not quoting the actual report, misperceptions could exist between the two documents. Rep. RaeAnn Kelsch recommended that where the report refers to proposed funding, it should specify the amount of at least $60 million.
Reference was made to the chart that listed baseline state funds appropriated for K-12 education programs and was qualified as a snapshot that will change. The baseline funds do not include transportation costs or minor grants; it includes major programs only. Tuition apportionment is included in the baseline and has a 2005-07 allocation of $71.6 million.
Lt. Gov. Dalrymple stated that Gov. Hoeven will need to consider whether or not tuition apportionment increases should be included in the proposed additional funding of $60 million.
It was suggested by commission members that additional definitions be added to the "Terminology K-12 Funding Formulas" page to make it easier for readers to identify acronyms and abbreviations utilized throughout the report, including ESY (extended school year); JPA (Joint Powers Agreement); CTE (career and technical education); and ADM (average daily membership). It was also suggested that the terminology page be moved to the beginning of the report, between the executive summary and the main funding formula, so that readers could review the terminology before reading the report.
Sen. Tim Flakoll recommended eliminating line 8 from the new main funding formula illustration having to do with Immigrant/Migrant English as a Second Language (ESL) for levels 3 and 4. His rationale for doing so was because the appropriation for those levels was small and therefore could be added to the funding for levels 1 and 2, helping those students with the greatest need. He added that this is how funding is currently handled for special education programs. Commission members agreed to roll the 0.02 weighting factor for levels 3 and 4 into the weighting factor for levels 1 and 2, combining them to provide more funding for the most disadvantaged students.
Warren Larson inquired about line 14 of the main funding formula involving at-risk students below the 5th percentile in AYP with a weighting factor of 0.01. It was his understanding that the commission was going to propose two lines for at-risk students, one covering academically-challenged students and one for students requiring free or reduced meals, both with a weighting factor of 0 used as a place holder for future funding. Larson would like to see both categories listed in the proposed formula even if they cannot be funded at this time. The commission agreed to include two categories, one to address at-risk students facing poverty and another to address at-risk students with academic challenges, both with a weighting factor of 0.
Sen. Tim Flakoll recommended a .60 weighting factor for the kindergarten ADM rather than the current .50. Mark Lemer was concerned that such an increase could provide a disincentive for schools currently offering half-day kindergarten to move to full-day.
Sen. Tim Flakoll revisited his suggestion to add student-teacher ratio as a possible weighting factor. The commission agreed that it cannot implement such a factor at this point, but that it should be studied for future consideration as the commission works to address adequacy in North Dakota's schools. It was suggested that this study be stated specifically in legislation to ensure it is successfully completed.
Commission members discussed special education and the possibility of raising school districts' base liability for student contracts to 4.5 times the state average per pupil cost of school-placed students from the 2.5 times covered today. The increase was recommended by Drs. Parrish and Harr, - consultants hired by the Department of Public Instruction to review the state's special education program - to set the excess cost liability to the state and greatly reduce the amount of paperwork required to file claims for state reimbursement.
Commission members also discussed whether or not to fund contracts for special education students 90 percent or 100 percent of the excess costs of the most costly 1 percent of the special education population. There were concerns that 100 percent coverage provided no incentive and that the Legislature could be hesitant to completely fund a program. After lengthy discussions, the commission decided to support state funding at 100 percent.
The commission broke for lunch at 12:15 p.m. and reconvened at 1:20 p.m.
Lt. Gov. Dalrymple updated the commission on his conversation with Department of Human Services (DHS) Director Carol Olson regarding the allegation that school districts are paying non-education expenses for agency-placed special needs students that might otherwise be funded through Human Services programs. According to Dalrymple, Olson stated that if such services can be accounted for, DHS would gladly determine whether these services would qualify for Human Services programs. It was suggested that school districts meet with Human Services representatives to determine what services fall under the responsibility of the districts and the department.
Commission members discussed the proposal to reduce the state's special education units from 31 to no more than 18 by June 30, 2009. Rep. David Monson expressed his concern about laying off directors and personnel, and mandating a deadline for reductions. He suggested deleting the deadline from the report, as well as the text that refers to reducing special education units by one unit every two months beginning July 1, 2007.
Lt. Gov. Dalrymple stated that the deadline should remain in the report in order to affect change. The commission agreed to include in the report the recommended deadline of June 30, 2009 for reducing special education units from 31 to no more than 18, but agreed to remove references about how that would happen, including the timeline of one unit every two months beginning July 1, 2007.
Sen. Tim Flakoll and Rep. RaeAnn Kelsch stated that special education units need to meet a minimum size requirement and must be sustainable. Mark Lemer expressed his concern about presenting the Legislature with an idea and not defining how to accomplish it. He added that there is a risk in having an idea eliminated because it is not substantiated.
Rep. RaeAnn Kelsch suggested that the special education and JPA subcommittees discuss the topic and present its recommendations for the next draft of the report at the September 6 meeting in Grand Forks.
At 2:15 p.m., members of the public had an opportunity to share their ideas and concerns regarding the draft report with the commission. Administrators and business managers from area school districts provided input regarding specific topics outlined in the report, and representatives from the North Dakota Indian Education Association voiced their concerns about potential funding reductions for reservation school districts under the new funding plan. Lt. Gov. Dalrymple stated that he would be meeting with association representatives soon to discuss options. The commission agreed that the report be amended to include a "Hold Harmless" provision guaranteeing that no school district receive less funds than the previous year on a per student basis.
Commission members discussed whether or not to leave a paragraph in the report that specifies that state dollars can be used to fund both service delivery and local administration for operating Joint Powers Agreements (JPAs) across the state. Rep. RaeAnn Kelsch commented that legislators are not eager to provide funding to hire more administrators; they want the dollars to be applied directly to programs for the students. The commission agreed to pull that paragraph from the draft report.
The draft report included a section that outlines the state's move toward an adequacy-based funding system. The section was presented as a work in process, requiring more detailed information and specific objectives. Commission members discussed how to proceed with identifying ideas and needs for adequacy-based funding and whether or not this section needed to be included in the draft report. Members agreed that showing a roadmap for adequacy is critical to gaining acceptance of the revised funding plan among all school districts and that the section needed to remain in the document with a disclaimer that it will be reviewed and rewritten. Superintendents will be asked to provide input and identify recommendations for the adequacy-based system.
Lt. Gov. Dalrymple, Doug Johnson, Mark Lemer, Warren Larson, Paul Stremick and Martin Schock will work on the adequacy portion of the report and revise it accordingly.
Commission members discussed their role during the next legislative session and ideas were mentioned, including testifying at committee hearings and hosting a reception with commission members and legislators prior to the session.
Lt. Gov. Dalrymple called for a motion to adopt the draft report with revisions discussed throughout the meeting as a working draft moving forward, excluding the section outlining an adequacy-based funding system. Warren Larson made a motion to adopt the working draft and Rep. David Monson seconded the motion. All commission members agreed with no objections. The motion carried.
Next steps were outlined for making the revised draft report available to stakeholders and the public for their review and input. It was agreed upon that the revised draft would be sent to commission members for their review before making it available to the public. Doug Johnson, Warren Larson, Paul Stremick, Martin Schock and Mark Lemer would hold regional meetings in Bismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks and Minot the week of August 14 to review the report with school administrators for their input. The revised report would also be posted on the Governor's Web site and other Web sites.
Based on feedback from administrators, legislators and others, revisions would be made to the draft report and presented for discussion at the commission's next meeting September 6 in Grand Forks, location to be determined.
The meeting was adjourned by Lt. Gov. Dalrymple at 4:53 p.m.
