Legislature(2009 - 2010)CAPITOL 106
03/08/2010 08:00 AM House EDUCATION
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB360 | |
| HB297 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 360 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 297 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 206 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HB 360-YOUTH ACADEMY: STUDENT RECORDS
8:07:40 AM
CHAIR SEATON announced that the first order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 360, "An Act relating to the provision of
information regarding a student by a school district to the
Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs, Alaska Challenge
Youth Academy."
8:08:29 AM
REPRESENTATIVE MUNOZ moved to adopt CS for HB 360, 26-LS1482\P
as the working document.
CHAIR SEATON objected for the purpose of discussion.
8:09:01 AM
SUSAN WALLEN, Staff to Representative Nancy Dahlstrom, Alaska
State Legislature, informed the committee the Committee
Substitute (CS) addressed questions concerning "opt-out"
notification to parents and students by changing the
notification time to the beginning of the school year. She said
this change would also reduce mailing costs to school districts.
8:10:08 AM
CHAIR SEATON drew attention to the written comments submitted
from school districts that were provided in the committee
packet. Also included was a legal opinion from Ms. Jean
Mischel, Attorney, Legislative Legal Counsel, Legislative Legal
and Research Services, Legislative Affairs Agency, regarding
consequences to a school district for failure to comply with the
records provisions contained in the bill.
8:11:25 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON noted the comments in opposition to the
bill from rural school districts, and asked whether the
provisions in the bill created an unfunded mandate to school
districts.
MS. WALLEN expressed the sponsor's hope that the CS addressed
the concerns from school districts. In fact, most of the
expenses borne by a school are mailing costs associated with
notifications sent out after a student drops out. Changing the
notification to the beginning of the school year would alleviate
that issue. Although an additional reporting date would be
required of school districts, she opined this should not prove
to be a burden.
8:13:34 AM
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER pointed out that the testimony from
Woodie Wilson, Superintendent, Wrangell Schools, stated that the
information required by the bill was already available from the
Department of Education and Early Development (EED) on its
[Report Card to the Public].
8:14:02 AM
MCHUGH PIERRE, Deputy Commissioner/Chief of Staff, Office of the
Commissioner/Adjutant General, Department of Military &
Veterans' Affairs (DMVA), informed the committee EDD does
receive that information; however, the department does not have
parental consent to share the information with the Department of
Military & Veterans' Affairs (DMVA). House Bill 306 provides
this authorization. He further explained that the information
could be provided by the school districts in July, but DMVA's
goal was to also have the information in January in order to
contact drop-outs from the first and second semesters.
8:15:28 AM
CHAIR SEATON opened public testimony.
8:15:54 AM
BRIGADIER GENERAL TOM KATKUS, Adjutant General/Commissioner,
Department of Military & Veterans' Affairs (DMVA), stated that
the Alaska Military Youth Academy (AMYA) "falls under my
section." He stressed the importance of the need to be able to
contact at-risk youth at the earliest opportunity after they
have decided to leave school. House Bill 360 does not call for
a recruiting effort, but does provide a good opportunity to make
contact and help at-risk youth make a change.
8:18:01 AM
MR. PIERRE added that the CS addressed the concerns previously
identified by school districts, EED, and legislators.
8:18:34 AM
MS. CAROL COMEAU, Superintendent, Anchorage School District
(ASD), stated the Anchorage School District is very supportive
HB 360. However, given that many parents of seniors do not
attend registration, she questioned whether the amendment would
require schools to mail a request for parental consent to every
senior over 18 years of age. Although in agreement with the
idea of the bill, the mechanics and cost of mailing would be a
burden to her school district.
8:19:45 AM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON asked for Ms. Comeau's opinion
regarding the possible cost of an unfunded mandate created by
the bill.
MS. COMEAU said she was unsure of the cost. Her biggest concern
would be that parents of seniors do not attend registration to
complete the directory information form, but then question why
the school supplied information about their student to AMYA.
8:21:54 AM
REPRESENTATIVE MUNOZ asked how parental consent was obtained for
other things such as medication.
MS. COMEAU said the school attempts to get parental consent for
directory information to "opt in or opt out." She warned this
could become a big issue for parents with strong feelings about
recruiting, even though recruiting is not the intent of AMYA.
8:22:45 AM
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER asked whether there are other programs of
which these students need to be aware.
MS. COMEAU responded that the high school education department
was a strong supporter of the AMYA, but once students who leave
school are located, graduation coaches provide them with a range
of options.
8:23:37 AM
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER asked what the range of options includes.
MS. COMEAU answered that the options include Nine Star Education
& Employment Services, independent on-line study courses, the
King Career Center, and other continuation and alternative
programs that provide individual learning plans.
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER then asked how the school district would
comply with [subsection] (b) of the bill.
MS. COMEAU envisioned that the directory information parental
permission form would be revised to include AMYA. The biggest
challenge would be having the permission forms returned.
8:26:18 AM
CHAIR SEATON referred to page 2, line 4, and suggested
alternative language.
MS. COMEAU clarified that the form must be provided annually,
and said, "So I think it's fine, the way it reads." Permission
for students arriving during the school year would be included
in the registration packet. She asked whether all students aged
15 and over were affected by the provisions in the bill.
8:28:20 AM
CHAIR SEATON acknowledged that a compulsory age was a concern as
many schools track by grade versus age. He returned to the
situation of a continuing senior without parental permission on
file at the school
8:29:13 AM
MS. COMEAU further explained that every fall, for every grade,
every student fills out a directory information form. However,
many seniors do not bring their parents, thus the consent forms
are not signed on an annual basis without a concerted effort by
the school.
8:30:14 AM
CHAIR SEATON surmised there was no problem with the structure of
the CS, but whether there was a penalty for non-compliance
remains a question. He advised that the intent of the committee
was for the school district to make "a good faith effort."
MS. COMEAU asked for assurance that the district can "do the
best we can, but without basically putting somebody on point to
go after 500 kids who didn't turn back their form."
CHAIR SEATON asked whether the committee interpretation was that
the district will make a good faith effort. There was no
objection from committee members.
8:32:38 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON expressed his strong support of AMYA and
the intent of the bill. He asked whether a brochure received in
the mail with an alternative to school may have a different
impact in Anchorage than in rural Alaska.
MS. COMEAU noted that the Anchorage high school division and its
graduation coaches are supportive of the benefits of AMYA.
Sending notification in the mail is not always the best approach
even in Anchorage due to the great cultural diversity of the
student population. Personal contact is always the best
approach, although the most effective communication may be
different in rural communities.
8:35:53 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON observed there might be a more effective
means to inform rural students about the AMYA, rather than
sending a brochure. He suggested this requirement may not
"measure up" for all districts.
MS. COMEAU acknowledged AMYA has many means to provide
information about its program, including statements from
successful graduates.
8:37:48 AM
CHAIR SEATON related that he had spoken with a rural
superintendent and discovered that annual intake forms were not
being completed in some schools.
8:39:38 AM
EDDY JEANS, Director, School Finance and Facilities Section,
Department of Education and Early Development (EED), expressed
his understanding that if parents do not "opt-out," the
directory information is provided at the beginning of the school
year. On the other hand, for the youth behavior survey, parents
must "opt-in." Thus, if there is no written consent, directory
information can be published. In terms of the penalty phase,
EED has broad sanctions for school districts that do not comply
with state laws and regulations. Mr. Jeans advised AMYA would
inform the department of a school district's non-compliance, and
EED would contact the district.
CHAIR SEATON assumed EED would provide notice and an opportunity
for the school district to take corrective action before
withholding state funds.
MR. JEANS indicated yes.
8:41:41 AM
CHAIR SEATON concluded that if a parent does not sign to opt-
out, the information would be provided.
8:42:22 AM
JACK WALSH, Superintendent, Bristol Bay Borough School District,
said that although there are only 150 students in his school
district, "we pay close attention, like Anchorage does, and
every other district, to where each of those children are and
the kinds of things that they are doing." Compliance with the
provisions in the bill would not be as great a challenge for
smaller school districts; however, his school district is
already staying in contact with students who did not continue
through school. Mr. Walsh pointed out that AMYA would not be
the program for every student, but military academies are able
to provide what many "need to get on to the next steps in their
lives." He agreed with the previous witness that providing
directory information on every 15-19 year old student is a
concern for his district; however, he expressed his desire to
cooperate with AMYA and other programs that could serve students
who have left the school system.
8:44:42 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON asked whether the bill would help promote
a program like this to drop-outs in a school district of 150
students.
MR. WALSH indicated yes. A small school does not have a
counselor on staff to assist students who are at-risk of not
finishing school, and AMYA offers opportunities and hope to
families. Although schools do their best, he concluded that
schools are not perfect for every child and every family.
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON then asked whether are there any AMYA
graduates formerly from the Bristol Bay Borough School District.
MR. WALSH said he was unsure. He added that students who fail
to graduate from his school district often move to other
communities, raising the cost to "track them."
8:48:06 AM
CHAIR SEATON remarked:
I think the question of all 15 year olds is off the
table, because it had to have been someone who was
enrolled but is no longer enrolled. ... [For]
clarification for your question from the sponsor as
well, that we are talking about students [who] were
enrolled in that year, and then dropped out during
that time and ... not a cumulative number of people
that were enrolled at some time and left, so that this
would be a cumulative growing list.... I don't think
that is the intent.
MR. WALSH agreed the sponsor and AMYA presented the bill as a
way to contact students about an opportunity, but not as a
vehicle to "push them in the direction of military service."
8:49:47 AM
CHAIR SEATON closed public testimony.
8:50:02 AM
CHAIR SEATON confirmed that the intention of the bill was to
affect students that were enrolled at the start of the reporting
period, and are no longer enrolled at the end of that reporting
period. Furthermore, the reporting period does not carry over
to subsequent reporting periods.
MS. WALLEN said that was her understanding.
8:51:21 AM
REPRESENTATIVE EDGMON moved to report the CS for HB 360,
[Version P], out of committee with individual recommendations
and the accompanying fiscal notes.
8:51:36 AM
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER objected for the purposes of discussion.
She then directed attention to a letter in the committee packet
suggesting a reference to whether a student is deceased, and
questioned if this reference should be added to the bill.
8:52:16 AM
MS. WALLEN advised that students who are deceased are coded
differently in the school enrollment system, and would not be
indicated on the roll as a drop-out.
8:52:53 AM
REPRESENTATIVE GARDNER removed her objection.
8:52:57 AM
There being no further objection, CSHB 360, Version P, was moved
from the House Education Standing Committee.
8:58:00 AM
The meeting was recessed to a call of the chair.
9:37:41 AM
CHAIR SEATON called the committee back to order. Present at the
call back to order were Representatives Seaton, Gardner, Edgmon,
P. Wilson, and Munoz.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB 206 Version P February 4, 2010.pdf |
HEDC 2/5/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 2/10/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 2/12/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 2/19/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/1/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/8/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/17/2010 8:00:00 AM |
HB 206 |
| CS HB 297 GPS Work-Draft.pdf |
HEDC 3/8/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/10/2010 8:00:00 AM |
HB 297 |
| HB 360 Work-Draft.pdf |
HEDC 3/8/2010 8:00:00 AM |
HB 360 |
| HB 297 ACPE response.pdf |
HEDC 3/8/2010 8:00:00 AM |
HB 297 |
| HB 360 legal opinion.pdf |
HEDC 3/8/2010 8:00:00 AM |
HB 360 |
| HB 206 version P Sponsor Statement February 4, 2010.docx |
HEDC 2/5/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 2/10/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 2/12/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 2/19/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/1/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/8/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/17/2010 8:00:00 AM |
HB 206 |
| HB 206 Version P Amendment.pdf |
HEDC 2/19/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/1/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/8/2010 8:00:00 AM HEDC 3/17/2010 8:00:00 AM |
HB 206 |