From: STATE
SUPERINTENDENT
Sent: Friday,
November 15, 2002 4:35 PM
To: 'District
Superintendents, ROEs, Directors of Special Education'
Subject: Weekly Message
from State Superintendent Robert Schiller
11-15-02
Good
afternoon. My Weekly Message this week
is fairly brief. With the election now
behind us, we have reached out to the new administration to provide briefings
on the state of education in Illinois and to offer whatever assistance we can
to Governor Blagojevich’s Transition Team.
At the same
time, we have some responsibilities to the current Governor and staff to help
tie up “loose ends” as that era comes to a close. Most immediate, of course, is the General
Assembly’s veto session November 19-21 and December 3-5. Although ISBE has no vetoed legislation on
the agenda, we will be closely monitoring the deliberations for issues
affecting public education. We will keep
you posted if anything shows up on our radar screen.
In the meantime,
the Board is developing legislative proposals and strategies for the Spring
session. State Board member and former
local superintendent Bev Turkal has been an active, key leader in this process,
as chair of the Board’s Legislative Committee.
You will get more information from us as the budget and legislative
proposals are refined.
In this
week’s message:
Ÿ New
date for releasing superintendent salaries
Ÿ Your
feedback is essential to developing new assessment framework
Ÿ Hope
to see you at the Triple I Conference
Ÿ 20-Minute
State Board Packet
Ÿ Free
Online resources available to all Public Schools
New date
for releasing superintendent salaries
By now you
should all have reviewed the superintendent salary data we sent you in our
Mid-week update on Wednesday. We have
decided however, to postpone releasing the list to reporters who have requested
it until Friday, November 29. That means
the earliest stories would be published is the following week, although some
industrious reporter could have a story ready for Saturday or Sunday’s papers,
the 23rd or 24th.
Consequently,
we will not be giving this information to anyone except you, and we appreciate
your confidentiality until at least the 29th.
Your
feedback essential to developing new assessment framework
I first want to
thank those of you who have already responded to our request for input on the
draft proposal from the Assessment and Accountability Task Force. A quick overview of your comments has already
identified additional issues I know Task Force members will want to discuss.
I encourage the
rest of you to take advantage to of the chance for your voice to be heard on
this extremely important issue. Simply
go to http://www.isbe.net/aatf/pdf/assessprop.pdf or click on State Assessment
Proposal in my message on the ISBE home page (www.isbe.net) to review the brief document
and email or fax us your response by December 6 . The next Task Force meeting is Monday,
November 18 in Springfield, but the analysis and report on your feedback will
not be made until the December 10 meeting in Naperville. If you have any
questions, contact Gail Lieberman at glieberm@isbe.net or 217/782-5053.
********************
Hope to
see you at the Triple I Conference
ISBE will once
again be hosting an Information and Hospitality Room at the Joint Conference of
IASB, IASA and IASBO on November 22 and 23.
We will be in our usual spot in the Comiskey Room in the West Tower as
you come out of the lower-level tunnel from the East Tower.
A variety of
agency staff will be on hand to answer questions and highlight agency programs
and services. In addition, we will have
a schedule of topics and times for some of the more popular issues, so be sure
to check the poster outside the room for that list.
I will be in the
Comiskey Room off and on throughout the event, but I will post a specific time
on Saturday when I will definitely be there.
I look forward to meeting as many board members and administrators as
possible, so check the poster outside Comiskey for the specific time. It will probably be Saturday afternoon before
my 3:30 presentation in Sheraton 5 Ballroom in the fourth level. I hope you will have the chance to attend as
I share my candid views on our schools’ greatest challenges and my vision for
our public education system.
*********************
20-minute
State Board of Education packet for November 21 meeting
(Complete
meeting materials, including specific documents mentioned below, are available
at http://www.isbe.net/board/)
Location: Museum of Science & Industry -
Chicago
12:00 p.m. – Closed Session 1:00 p.m. – Meeting Reconvenes
Background
and Issues
· For
several years, the Museum of Science & Industry has offered a variety of
educational programs and services for students, teachers, and the general
public.
What will happen at the Board meeting
· Staff from the
Museum of Science and Industry will provide an overview of the educational
programs offered for teachers and students.
Next Steps
· A District
Showcase with a local school district will continue at the December Board
Meeting in Chicago.
Education
Policy/Planning Issues
NCATE Protocol and Partnership Agreement:
Action Item
Background
and Issues
· Subsequent to
the October 16-17, 2002, meeting of the State Board, staff has incorporated the
changes to the proposed protocol as detailed by Board members.
· The revised version has been shared with
the Partnership Committee and the State Teacher Certification Board.
· Additional recommendations issued by
these groups have been introduced to the agreement and protocol now submitted
for consideration by the State Board.
· Additionally, an expenditure survey was
directed to 26 educator training institutions to learn the costs associated
with State and NCATE accreditation reviews.
· The survey instrument also solicited
information on the expenditures attributed to the redesign of educator
preparation programs to align them with content standards and knowledge and
performance indicators.
· NCATE is scheduled to review the content
of its State Protocol form, and some revisions are anticipated. Because the ISBE/NCATE Partnership Agreement
and Protocol are due on January 1, 2003, NCATE has provided State Board staff
with the most recent draft of its documents.
While NCATE anticipates few changes in this version, the final agreement
and protocol submitted to the Board in December may differ slightly from the
version under consideration in October.
· Approval of the final Partnership
Agreement and Protocol will allow the State to continue its relationship with
the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, and Illinois
institutions that seek and earn NCATE accreditation will receive national
recognition.
· Failure to approve the final version will
mean that Illinois will not retain its affiliation with NCATE.
What will
happen at the Board meeting
· The Superintendent
and agency staff will:
o present the revised Protocol and
Partnership Agreement to the State Board
of Education.
· The Board will
be asked to:
o approve the proposed Partnership
Agreement and Protocol and authorize its filing with the National Council for
the Accreditation of Teacher Education by January 1, 2003.
Next Steps
o Staff will prepare a final version of the
NCATE/State Partnership Agreement and Protocol with accompanying attachments
for the State Superintendent’s signature by no later than December 20,
2002.
o Following
the endorsement of the Superintendent, the documents will be sent to NCATE
before December 30, 2002.
Alternative Routes to Teacher and
Administrator Certification Update
· The first of the Alternative
Certification laws was enacted in 1997 (105 ILCS 5/21-5b). This piece of legislation restricted
programming to cities with population in excess of 500,000 people and created a
certificate that was valid only in Chicago.
Enrollment in this program was capped at 260 new participants each year.
· The law was amended in 2000 to allow the
application of the certificate statewide and to exempt programs operating under
this statute from the five-year experience requirement.
· The amendment also created the Initial
Alternative Teaching Certificate that is valid for four years of teaching and
is not renewable, like the Initial Teaching Certificate.
· A second alternative certificate law,
Alternative Route to Teacher Certification, (ILCS 105 5/21-5c), was passed by
the General Assembly and enacted in 1998.
Under 5/21-5b, alternative programming was only available in
Chicago. The five-year experience requirement
was included in 5/21-5c, but the enrollment cap of 5/21-5b was eliminated.
· Currently, only Western Illinois
University offers and option to prepare superintendents in a non-traditional
program. Since its inception in 1999, 17
candidates have received the endorsement, and eight are currently employed as
superintendents.
· Agency staff suggests that the Board give
consideration to a legislative initiative to combine the common features of
5/21-5b and 5/21-5c, to remove the enrollment cap on 5/21-5b, and to establish
a single alternative certificate title.
· Agency staff also recommends that the
Board give consideration to a change in the alternative administrative
certificate (5/21-5d) to allow prospective building principals to be trained in
non-traditional programs.
What will
happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will:
o provide
the Board with an update on the alternative routes to teacher and administrator
certification programs in Illinois.
· The
Board will be requested to:
o review
the discussion item as an informational update on alternative certification
programs in Illinois.
Next Steps
· Staff will continue to conduct workshops
and to provide technical assistance to colleges and universities interested in
developing alternative certification programs for teachers and
administrators.
· All
non-traditional offerings will continue to be examined for compliance against
the content and unit standards during the Fifth-Year review process.
State of Illinois Five-Year Technology
Plan
Background
and Issues
· The 1995 State Technology Plan created a
policy and planning infrastructure that included technology standards for
students and educators; systematic planning at the local level; two state
funding streams; and a statewide backbone for connectivity.
· The 2002-2007 Plan has been shaped by
four key factors: the unfinished agenda from the 1995 Plan; the new federal
requirements for technology; the Illinois vision for education in the 21st
century; and a set of principles for policy and practice in the future.
· At the August 2002 Board meeting, the
Board authorized the distribution of the state plan for public comment.
· Agency staff incorporated several changes
in response to suggestions from members of the State Board and public. Changes were made in the strategies section
for goal 5; minor changes were made to clarify the adoption of the ISTE
National Education Standards and to standardize terminology; the final version
has been formatted to clearly present the plan in three sections that follow a
standard sequence of activities including the context for planning, the
framework, and the evaluation design; and, the words “stable and reliable” were
added to the description of a robust network on page 13. The complete report is available by visiting
the ISBE website.
What will happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and staff will:
o explain the changes to the report and
recommend the approval of the 2002-2007 State of Illinois Five-Year Technology
Plan.
· The Board:
o will be asked to review and approve the
final draft of the state technology plan and the changes that resulted from the
public comments received between August 23, 2002 to mid-October, 2002.
Next Steps
· The 2002-2007
State of Illinois Five-Year Technology Plan will be implemented upon its
approval by the Board.
· Staff will
prepare a business plan for implementation and a budget for each of the five
years.
Rules for Initial Review- Part 25
(Certification)
Action Item
Background
and Issues
· The amendments
contained in this set of rules will implement two major aspects of P.A. 92-796
(HB 1436).
· New
requirements for the renewal of administrative certificates are being
presented in Section 25.315 as a result of this legislation, to be effective
beginning July 1, 2003.
· Requirements
for the standard certificate
are presented in a series of new Sections in Subpart K of the rules.
· The proposed
revisions to Sections 25.720 and 25.725 are technical in nature and are needed
for further clarification of the applicability of the testing requirement for
certified individuals seeking additional certificates.
· These rules
were reviewed by the State Teacher Certification Board at its November
meeting. The STCB voted to recommend the
proposed amendments to the State Board of Education. Several minor changes were subsequently made
in the draft to clarify points raised by members of the Certification Board.
What will
happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will ask the State Board of Education to:
o authorize solicitation of public comment
on the proposed rulemaking for Certification (23 Illinois Administrative Code
25), including publication of the proposed amendments in the Illinois
Register.
o investigate the potential for legislative
action as discussed above with the Board’s Governmental Affairs Committee.
· The Board will
be requested to:
o authorize
solicitation of Public Comment on Rules: Part 25 (Certification).
Next Steps
· With the
Board’s authorization, staff will submit the proposed amendments to the
Administrative Code Division for publication in the Illinois Register to
elicit public comment. Additional means
such as the Superintendent’s Bulletin and the agency website will also be used
to inform interested parties of the opportunity to comment on this rulemaking.
Budget,
Finance and Operations Issues
Finance, Audit and Agency Operations
Action Item
Background
and Issues
· In June 2002,
the State Board adopted bylaws outlining a new committee structure under which
fiscal, audit and operations issues will be handled by the Fiscal and Audit
Committee. Superintendent Schiller
requested that the agency organize and standardize the financial and headcount
data provided to the Board for their future policy work and decision-making.
Currently the following Reports are provided or are being developed:
1. Budget
/ Annual Report (Annually in January)
2. Comptroller
SEA Report (Annually in February)
3. Board
Goals (Annually in November)
4. Appropriation
and Expenditure (Monthly)
5. Financial
Status Report - Contract/Grant Detail (Monthly)
6. Business
Plans at the Director Level (Quarterly)
7. Headcount
Reports (Monthly)
Personnel
Transactions
Staff
Detail by Division
Monthly Headcount Graph
What will
happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will:
o provide the Board standard reports with
key information on fiscal and administrative activities of the state agency.
· The Board will
be asked to:
o accept the Standard Monthly Reports:
Finance, Audit, Agency Operations Status Reports
Next Steps
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will continue to provide these reports pursuant
to the schedule provided above.
Fiscal Year 2004 Budget Development
Background
and Issues
· At the August meeting, the Board reviewed
the Budget Calendar and reviewed the financial and economic outlook for the
FY04 Budget.
· At the September meeting, the Board
reviewed the Education Funding Advisory Board (EFAB) recommendations with the
EFAB Chairman Bob Leininger.
· In September and October, the Board held
four Budget Hearings and held other discussions of budget and policy issues
with various representatives of the education community.
· Additionally, staff has shared various
materials with the Board that outline major budget and policy issues facing the
education system.
What will
happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will:
o provide
the Board with an update on the budget situation in Illinois.
· The
Board will be requested to:
o review
the report as an informational update on the budget situation in Illinois.
Next Steps
· At
the December meeting, the Superintendent will recommend a “State of Education”
document for the Board to approve, which will be distributed prior to
consideration and approval of a budget recommendation in January.
School District Financial Profile
(Plenary Session Only)
Background and Issues
· In March,
2002, staff met with the Board to release the final Financial Watch,
Financially Certified, and Financial Oversight Panel lists under the FAAS
measure and process. At that time, the
Board encouraged staff to finalize a new designation system and report progress
by mid-year.
· The
proposed School District Financial Profile is ready for use as an internal
management tool and was demonstrated to the Board at the October meeting.
What will
happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will:
o recommend
that the State Board approve the new School District Profile and Designation
System including the ranges and weightings which establish the new School
District Financial Designation System.
· The
Board will be asked to :
o approve
the new School District Financial Profile for use to present financial
information about school districts and to establish a financial designation
system.
Next Steps
· Agency staff
will proceed to implement the School District Financial Profile with FY02 AFR data
for use in the new designations in the early spring of 2003.
· This data will be made available to
appropriate school personnel as soon as possible for their use.
· Additional work will continue to make the
system more compatible for general public use over the internet.
Governmental
Affairs Issues
State Legislative Status Reports
Background
and Issues
· The Board’s
Governmental Affairs Committee has met to discuss legislative issues associated
with the fall and spring sessions.
· The Superintendent and members of the
Governmental Affairs Committee have been meeting with constituent groups, and
several more such meetings are scheduled for the coming month.
· The schedule for development of the
Board’s legislative proposals calls for completion of that process in December.
· The bulk of activity is geared for the
Spring 2003 session; however, there may be a need to take legislative action
during the November/December veto session.
What will
happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will discuss the process in developing
legislative priorities and proposals to support the Board’s goals and the needs
of school districts in Illinois.
Next Steps
· The
Governmental Affairs Committee, the Superintendent and staff will continue to
work with stakeholders toward development of a legislative proposal for
FY04.
Federal Legislative Status Reports
Discussion Item
Background
and Issues
· Governmental
Affairs staff continues to monitor activity in Congress regarding the FY2003
Labor/HHS/Education Appropriations bill through almost daily discussions with
the BGR firm.
· Congress is expected to return on
November 12th for session. At this point, it is too soon to tell if
they will be able to reach agreement on the FY 03 budget or if another
continuing resolution will be passed to take the discussions into the 108th
Congress.
· The Homeland Security bill and the FY 03
budget are expected to take up much of the session.
· No other major education related issues
are expected to occur during that time.
What will happen at the Board meeting
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will:
o provide
the Board with an update on Federal legislative activity.
· The
Board will:
o discuss
the federal legislative report and its implications for Illinois.
Next Steps
· The
Superintendent and agency staff will take action consistent with the results of
this discussion.
· Reports and
announcements by Board members and the State Superintendent
· Closed sessions
· The Board, Superintendent, and various
constituent groups will be participating in “Education Leadership Forums” with
local superintendents and board members on Friday & Saturday, November 22
& 23 during the Triple I Conference
***********************
Online
Resources Available to All Public Schools At No Cost
ISBE has been
able to access two extensive sets of online resources and make them available
at no cost to all Illinois public schools during the 2002-2003 school
year. Schools were recently sent
instructions for setting up accounts with the two resource providers.
Classroom
Connect, a division of Harcourt Education, and Encyclopedia Britannica were
selected from a field of 15 proposals to provide online resources to schools
this year.
Classroom
Connect is making available the tools and resources in its ConnectedIllinois
program, which includes Classroom Today and Connected University. Connected University is an online
professional development community for educators that provides high quality
professional development courses to help teachers successfully integrate
technology into their instruction.
Connected
University models best practices in teaching and learning, and uses ISTE/NCATE
(International Society for Technology in Education/National Council for
Accreditation of Teacher Education) Technology Standards as the basis for
assessment of teacher technology skills and methodologies. Three courses will
be offered through the program, each developed specifically to meet the needs
of Illinois teachers. Connected
University also features collaboration tools, message boards, resource
collections, Web Drive file/project storage, and project galleries. In addition, online tutorials, a rich
Web-link library and other resources are easily accessible within Connected University.
Classroom Today,
an online curriculum and learning resource for students in grades K-12,
combines curriculum topics, standards-aligned resources, and daily news and
information in one place, saving teachers a tremendous amount of time
researching and organizing classroom activities. Teachers can select from the more than 800
Classroom Today curriculum topics to meet their class' needs and schedules, and
. easily track how their selected curriculum activities match Illinois'
standards - all with a click of a mouse.
Encyclopedia Britannica
online resources include access to three encyclopedias, Britannica's Internet
Guide, videos, magazines and media.
Search avenues include the Britannica Elementary Encyclopedia, created
especially for intermediate readers at the elementary and middle school levels,
the Britannica Student Encyclopedia, with references from elementary to high
school levels, and the Encyclopedia Britannica, which contains the most
extensive collection of advanced reference materials.
The Britannica
Internet Guide sorts through thousands of quality web sites that have been
reviewed by Britannica editors. Student
researchers can also access an extensive collection of magazine articles
related to their topic. Magazines are
divided into K - 5 and 6 - 12 grade levels.
The Video and Media section contains links to hundreds of video clips
and media presentations. Also included
in the Britannica online resources for schools is Merriam-Webster's Dictionary
and Thesaurus, containing more than 215,000 entries with definitions,
pronunciation guides, word histories, synonyms, and antonyms.
To access these
online resources, public schools need only contact the appropriate
representatives and register. There is
no limit to the number of teachers and students in the schools that may use the
resources and no limit on the number of times they may be used.
Funding for
providing access to online resources comes from state funding for Technology
for Success, contained in the State Board of Education’s budget.
Robert Schiller
State Superintendent
of Education
statesup@isbe.net