District/School Administration Administration
The Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

Board in Brief
Tuesday, October 30, 2007

This is "Board in Brief," issued at the request of Acting Commissioner Jeffrey Nellhaus to bring you up to date on Board of Education matters. This is a report on the regular meeting held on Tuesday, October 30, 2007 at Randolph High School.

Comments from the Chairman

Chairman Paul Reville said the Board was meeting at Randolph High School to call attention to the fiscal difficulties that Randolph and other communities are experiencing. The chairman noted that while the Legislature and the Administration have sole authority over school finance, the Board takes seriously its role as steward of the accountability system. He said the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has launched a study to identify the causes of budgetary problems affecting the schools in communities around the state.

Chairman Reville said the recruitment phase of the search for a new commissioner of education has begun. The Board's search consultant, the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), will accept applications through November 30, 2007. The Board hopes to appoint a new commissioner in January 2008. Information about the search is at: http://www.nasbe.org/commissioner_search/massachusetts_search.html.

Comments from the Public

Eight individuals spoke to the Board on topics including the Randolph Public Schools, MassCore, and the Board's FY 2009 budget.

Presentation by Randolph School Officials

Randolph Superintendent of Schools Richard Silverman led a panel presentation on the district's fiscal difficulties and the consequences for students. Other panelists included the president of the Randolph Education Association, the school committee chairman, the president of the Randolph Chamber of Commerce, a parent who served on the strategic planning committee, the student president of the Randolph High School senior class, and the board of selectmen chairman. The panel provided Board members with information about the district's recent budget history and program reductions. Board members then engaged the panel in a dialogue. The chairman thanked the panelists for their participation and said the discussion would help to inform the Board's FY 2009 budget proposal and policy recommendations.

Comments from the Governor's Education Advisor

The chairman welcomed Dana Mohler-Faria, Governor Patrick's education advisor. Dr. Mohler-Faria commended the Board for coming to Randolph and highlighting the problems this school district and others are facing. He said the Governor's Readiness Project is reviewing long-term solutions.

Supports for Students

Chairman Reville said this was the first in a series of discussions on how the Department could strengthen its work with other agencies and organizations to help schools provide various kinds of supports, beyond high quality instruction, to enable more students to succeed. To guide the Board's discussion, the chairman welcomed Rick Weissbourd, a lecturer on education at Harvard University's Graduate School of Education and Kennedy School of Government. Stating that strong instruction is the most powerful social service that schools can provide, Dr. Weissbourd suggested that the Board consider factors that impede academic achievement. Among other things, he said teachers need constructive strategies for dealing with serious behavior problems, some students need treatment of vision and hearing problems, and all students need a caring and connected relationship with an adult. Chairman Reville said the Board would continue its consideration of supports for students in its budget deliberations and at future meetings.

MassCore

Acting Commissioner Nellhaus presented the latest version of MassCore, the proposed recommended high school course of study aimed at increasing the number of graduates who are well prepared for college and the workplace. It describes a list of subject area credits, courses, and other learning opportunities that students should complete in high school. The Acting Commissioner explained that the Department revised the proposed MassCore in response to comments from the field. He said that MassCore would be a recommendation rather than a mandate, and it could be coupled with incentives for students and schools. The Board will vote on MassCore at the November 27, 2007 regular meeting.

Board of Education Budget Proposal for FY 2009

The Board had a preliminary discussion on its budget proposal for FY 2009. Acting Commissioner Nellhaus said the Department has organized the budget proposal to reflect strategic initiatives in four main categories - support for students; support for educators; support for schools and districts; and state leadership. Chairman Reville said the Board would have a more detailed discussion on the budget at its special meeting on November 1st. The Board will vote on its budget proposal at the November 27, 2007 regular meeting.

Commissioner's Recommendations on 15 Underperforming Schools

The Board heard the Acting Commissioner's recommendations on 15 schools designated as "underperforming" between 2000 and 2004 that have remained in this status, now called Commonwealth Priority Schools. One school is closing at the end of June 2008. Of the 14 remaining, the Acting Commissioner is recommending that four should no longer be designated as Commonwealth Priority Schools in light of the progress they have made, four should remain in Commonwealth Priority Schools status, and six should be moved to Priority 1 status because their performance levels and improvement are significantly below target. The Board is scheduled to vote on the recommendations at the November 27, 2007 regular meeting.

Regional School District Regulations

The Board approved amendments to the Regional School District Regulations (603 CMR 41.00) to establish the procedures to be followed under the state law that directs the commissioner to assume operation of a regional school district whose member towns have not adopted a budget by December 1st. The amendments were adopted as emergency regulations so that they would take effect before that deadline. The Board will solicit public comment on the amendments in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, and will vote in January 2008 on whether to make them permanent.

Charter Schools

The Board approved the renewal of charters for four charter schools: Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School in Worcester, Foxborough Regional Charter School in Foxborough, Mystic Valley Regional Charter School in Malden, and Sturgis Charter Public School in Hyannis. The Board approved a charter amendment for Uphams Corner Charter School in Boston related to changes in its leadership structure and curriculum model. Also, the Board approved a request from Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School to incur temporary debt beyond the term of the school's charter. Neither the Commonwealth nor the Board or Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has any liability for the loan and the extended term does not affect any action the Board might choose to take in the future with respect to the school's charter.

Advisory Council Appointments

The Board voted to appoint members to its 15 active advisory councils. The advisory councils are made up of volunteers who provide advice and comment to the Department and Board of Education in specific program areas. The advisory councils' FY 2007 annual reports were also presented to the Board this month. Information about the advisory councils is available at: http://www.doe.mass.edu/boe/sac/.

Grants

The Board approved state and federal grants totaling $330,000 under the following programs: School Redesign: Expanded Learning Time, planning grants ($230,000 - state funds); Perkins IV Leadership Academy ($20,000 - federal funds); and Charter School Dissemination Program ($80,000 - federal funds).

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the Board of Education will be held on Tuesday, November 27, 2007, at a location to be determined.