Legislature(2013 - 2014)CAPITOL 106
03/29/2013 08:00 AM House EDUCATION
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s):|| Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development | |
| Professional Teaching Practices Commission | |
| University of Alaska Board of Regents | |
| Professional Teaching Practices Commission | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 151 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
March 29, 2013
8:06 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Lynn Gattis, Chair
Representative Lora Reinbold, Vice Chair
Representative Gabrielle LeDoux
Representative Dan Saddler
Representative Paul Seaton
Representative Peggy Wilson
Representative Harriet Drummond
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S):
Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development
Sue Hull - Fairbanks
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Frances Roberts - Homer
Eric Fry - Juneau, Alaska
Martin Laster - Juneau
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
University of Alaska Board of Regents
Gloria O'Neill - Anchorage
Dale Anderson - Juneau
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
SUE HULL, Appointee
Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke as an appointee to the Alaska State
Board of Education & Early Development.
LES MORSE, Deputy Commissioner
Office of the Commissioner
Department of Education and Early Development (EED)
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified and answered questions during the
confirmation hearings for the Professional Teaching Practices
Commission.
FRANCES ROBERTS, Appointee
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Homer, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke as an appointee to the Professional
Teaching Practices Commission.
ERIC FRY, Appointee
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke as an appointee to the Professional
Teaching Practices Commission.
GLORIA O'NEILL, Appointee
University of Alaska Board of Regents
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke as an appointee to the University of
Alaska Board of Regents.
DALE ANDERSON, Appointee
University of Alaska Board of Regents
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke as an appointee to the University of
Alaska Board of Regents.
MARTIN LASTER, Appointee
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Spoke as an appointee to the Professional
Teaching Practices Commission.
ACTION NARRATIVE
8:06:35 AM
CHAIR LYNN GATTIS called the House Education Standing Committee
meeting to order at 8:06 a.m. Representatives Gattis, Reinbold,
Seaton, P. Wilson, Saddler, Drummond, and LeDoux were present at
the call to order.
^CONFIRMATION HEARING(S):
^Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S):
Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development
8:06:57 AM
CHAIR GATTIS announced that the only order of business would be
confirmation hearings for the various boards and commissions.
Attention was first turned to the Alaska State Board of
Education & Early Development.
8:07:43 AM
SUE HULL, Appointee, Alaska State Board of Education & Early
Development, announced that she was currently serving on the
Fairbanks School Board and had been involved with education for
more than 30 years. She stated that she had served on the
Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development in the
1980s, and had served as the President of the Alaska PTA, as
well as on the national PTA board. She reported that she had
also been the Chair for the development of the national
standards for parent and family involvement.
8:08:46 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND asked if she had previously served on
the Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development.
MS. HULL replied that she had served from 1982 - 1987.
8:09:13 AM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON asked why Ms. Hull would like to serve
on the board.
MS. HULL replied that she wanted to promote a closer
relationship between the school districts and the Department of
Education and Early Development (EED). She referred to earlier
pilot programs which had not considered local communities in the
planning process.
8:10:41 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked for her perspective on the
statewide public school system, and to include commentary on its
standout features and its opportunities for improvement.
MS. HULL offered her belief that there were many extraordinary
teachers, schools, and administrators statewide. She noted that
although scores were improving across the state, there were
still challenges. She expressed interest for enhancing
graduation rates and student achievement. She pointed out that
there was national interest for making schools better.
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked what role Ms. Hull would take, and
the state would take, to address the challenges of low
achievement and low graduation rates.
MS. HULL replied that, as a board member, her job was "to ask
the right questions, to speak up on behalf of kids, to talk
about how the policies that the state sets really impact kids in
the schools." She compared the school system to any bureaucracy
with inertia. She opined that the public election of school
boards allowed input for improvement from members from outside
that system.
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked whether the current public school
system only needed more funding and resources, or if there was a
need for systemic changes.
MS. HULL responded that any organization, including schools, was
not healthy if it remained static. She stated that it would
require a focus on continuous improvement. She declared her
support of options in schools, while in a search for excellence.
8:15:07 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked about the common core standards
adopted by many of the larger school districts in Alaska, and
noted that the state had adopted Alaskan specific standards.
Directing attention to the state's use of common core
assessments for progress, he questioned whether there was any
disconnect for the use of an assessment to a standard which had
not been adopted statewide.
MS. HULL declared that the new assessments would be a challenge
for all users. She offered her belief that it should not be a
problem, as the Alaska standards were comparable to the common
core standards and aligned well enough to provide assessment.
She opined that the assessments would drive change, as
nationwide testing had reflected a significant drop in
proficiency. She declared that it was "an act of courage to
tell people where students are actually performing in terms of
world class standards and then go to work at raising those
scores." She expressed her support for the assessments.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON clarified that his concern was that the
assessments were not based on the standards being taught, should
a comparison be made to other states where the assessment was
based on the standard being taught. He noted that the
assessment included the testing for integration of complex ideas
versus testing for the knowledge of specific facts. He asked
how the Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development
would view a change of teaching methodology toward the
integration of complex ideas.
MS. HULL replied that instruction had to change, and she
expressed her desire for school districts to discuss the shift
of instruction toward the common core. She detailed one
challenge to be for the existing text books, as they were not
aligned with the common core. She opined that instructors were
aware of the challenges and had begun to review change. She
discouraged the idea of sheltering staff from change, as
everyone would need to "step up" to the new accountability
measures.
8:19:53 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD moved to advance the confirmation of Sue
Hull to the Alaska State Board of Education & Early Development
for consideration in joint session by the House and Senate.
There being no objection, the confirmation was advanced.
CHAIR GATTIS reminded members that signing the reports regarding
appointments to boards and commissions in no way reflect
individual members' approval or disapproval of the appointees,
and that the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
^Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
8:21:15 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND requested a brief update on the
Professional Teaching Practices Commission and any requirements
for the nominees.
8:22:02 AM
LES MORSE, Deputy Commissioner, Office of the Commissioner,
Department of Education and Early Development (EED), explained
that the Professional Teaching Practices Commission was housed
in EED and its role was for the investigation and enforcement of
the professional teacher ethics rules. He noted that the
qualifications of each nominee were determined by the governor's
office, and that the commission was comprised of educators,
including higher education, as well as an EED representative.
8:23:43 AM
FRANCES ROBERTS, Appointee, Professional Teaching Practices
Commission, reported that she had been a mathematics high school
teacher for 19 years, and that she had a Master's Degree in
mathematics. She said that she was very interested in
education, community and civic involvement, and teachers'
rights. She expressed her long term interest in serving on the
Professional Teaching Practices Commission.
8:25:00 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked if there were any professional
teaching practices that were required of the new generation of
teachers, but had not been required in the past.
MS. ROBERTS responded, "None that I'm aware of."
8:25:30 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD moved to advance the confirmation of
Frances Roberts to the Professional Teaching Practices
Commission for consideration in joint session by the House and
Senate. There being no objection, the confirmation was
advanced.
CHAIR GATTIS reminded members that signing the reports regarding
appointments to boards and commissions in no way reflect
individual members' approval or disapproval of the appointees,
and that the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
8:26:48 AM
ERIC FRY, Appointee, Professional Teaching Practices Commission,
reported that he worked for EED.
8:27:03 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND expressed her concern for a non-educator
representative on the Professional Teaching Practices
Commission.
8:27:55 AM
MR. FRY explained that the commission pertained to the rules of
ethics, not to competency as an educator.
8:28:31 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER stated his support for the nominee,
noting that the applicant's resume was well rounded and
qualified to be a representative on the commission.
8:29:02 AM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON clarified that Mr. Fry was currently
serving on the commission, and she asked for examples of the
cases brought to the commission.
MR. FRY replied that about 20 cases annually resulted in final
orders, with about half related to early departure from
contracts by teachers. He noted that many cases also resulted
from teacher disputes with other teachers, as the ethics rules
dictated that teachers would not disparage one another. He
stated that a very small number of cases resulted from the
misuse of school equipment, specifically computers or i-pads.
8:29:58 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND, confirming that Mr. Fry was currently
serving on the commission, inquired as to the length of terms
and term limits.
MR. FRY replied that each term was for three years, with no more
than two consecutive terms.
8:30:22 AM
REPRESENTATIVE LEDOUX offered her belief that it was appropriate
for a person outside of the profession to have a seat on the
commission.
8:31:07 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER asked if there were any general trends of
problems being brought to the commission for consideration.
MR. FRY explained that the problems tended to revolve around
teachers breaking contractual agreements and the need for some
consequence, which was typically suspension of the teaching
certificate for a year. He noted that many of the disparaging
personal disputes were in small towns. He said that it was very
rare to have a harmful action. He added that, although others
on the commission were members of the educator unions, he had
never witnessed any excuses for a union member who had
misbehaved. He stated that the commission members were very
concerned with the enforcement of high standards of behavior.
8:32:58 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD asked if the commission investigated
school principals.
MR. FRY replied that the commission covered public school
teachers and administrators, as well as instructors in higher
educations.
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD relayed anecdotes of two recent
situations involving drugs and inappropriate personal behavior
with school personnel. She then asked who were the monitors and
what were the preventative measures taken. She expressed her
concern for a lack of evaluation.
MR. FRY replied that monitoring was handled by the school
district administration, and that illegal activity was handled
by legal authorities.
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD asked how many principals or teachers
were fired annually.
MR. FRY replied that, as this was handled internally by school
districts, it would not be reported to the commission. He
clarified that the commission handled complaints about rules of
ethics. He stated that the commission did not supervise teacher
conduct in every aspect of their work.
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD asked how many ethics complaints were
received.
MR. FRY offered his belief that the executive director of the
commission would review 50 complaints per year, and would
determine that all the local grievance procedures had been
handled. He said that there were about 20 final orders each
year, which all pertained to ethical rules.
8:36:32 AM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON asked if the trend for teachers who
break contracts existed primarily on or off the road system in
Alaska.
MR. FRY replied that many Anchorage teachers break contracts,
although he would not estimate to the actual percentages.
8:37:27 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND read a definition for the causes for
suspension or revocation from the Professional Teaching
Practices Commission annual report, which stated: "The
Commissioner or the Professional Teaching Practices Commission
may revoke or suspend a certificate for the following reasons:
incompetency, immorality, substantial non-compliance with the
laws, and a violation of ethical or professional standards."
She said that incompetency was defined as "the inability or
unintentional or intentional failure to perform the teacher's
customary teaching duties in a satisfactory manner." She
offered her belief that this could come into the commission's
purview.
8:38:37 AM
MR. FRY said that he had never seen a complaint related to non-
performance by a teacher. He apologized if he had misstated.
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND expressed her concern that the House
Education Standing Committee was not clear about the assessment
of requirements for the Professional Teaching Practices
Commission.
8:39:48 AM
MR. MORSE clarified that although the commission was housed
under EED, the executive director was appointed by the governor
and reported to the commission. The executive director was
aware of the detailed requirements. He said that AS 14.23.70-AS
14.25.100 established the powers of the commission. He provided
examples of violations that could be presented to the
commission, which it would consider. He pointed out that the
code of ethics for teachers had been adopted by the commission,
even though it was not in statute. He suggested that the
executive director could better attest to the violations
addressed by the commission.
8:42:55 AM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON suggested that an incompetent teacher
would be identified and the issues resolved by the school
district administration, and thus not reach the level of the
PTPC.
MR. MORSE, drawing from his experience as a principal, added
that more often an administrator would have the teacher removed
instead of bringing a charge to the PTPC.
8:44:27 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD moved to advance the confirmation of
Eric Fry to the Professional Teaching Practices Commission for
consideration in joint session by the House and Senate. There
being no objection, the confirmation was advanced.
CHAIR GATTIS reminded members that signing the reports regarding
appointments to boards and commissions in no way reflect
individual members' approval or disapproval of the appointees,
and that the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
^University of Alaska Board of Regents
University of Alaska Board of Regents
8:45:24 AM
GLORIA O'NEILL, Appointee, University of Alaska Board of
Regents, reported that she was the President and Chief Executive
Officer of the Cook Inlet Tribal Council (CITC). In response,
she said that she had been appointed to the board by the
governor in January and had served for one meeting. She
explained that, as a regent, she had been through the
orientation, spoken with the other members of the board, and had
reviewed the 600 page packet which had been distributed for the
first board meeting. She pointed out that she had served on the
academic affairs committee, which was addressing the "Growing
Teachers for Alaska" program. She declared her need for due
diligence, and voiced her passion for this program. She offered
her belief that the time had arrived for the University of
Alaska to review the mentoring and support programs for "growing
rural teachers for Rural Alaska," and to make any necessary
changes. She voiced a need for a system of success for
students.
8:49:28 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD stated the top issues as she understood
them, which included the transfer of credits, the wait list for
the nursing program, the cost of maintenance for the university,
and the need for teachers in Alaska. She asked for suggestions
for improvement to any or all of these issues.
MS. O'NEILL explained that she would be an impact member in any
role that had importance. She noted that it was difficult to
change systems from the inside, and that working with the
University of Alaska Board of Regents for positive impact would
be an approach for systemic change. She stressed that the issue
regarding the transfer of credits was "ridiculous," as it was
practical and sensible. She stressed that this issue was a
priority of the president of UA, and that the University of
Alaska Anchorage had made great strides for this transfer of
credits within the University of Alaska (UA) system. She
addressed the difficulty of enrollment in the UA nursing
program, and explained that CITC had formed partnerships with
organizations to train nurses. She opined that it was necessary
to review what worked best for offering Alaskans opportunities,
especially in the health care industry. She declared a
necessity for the creation of public-private partnerships, as
"different pathways work for different people." She said that
she was still studying the university budget to gain a better
understanding for the issue of high cost, while ensuring the
maintenance of the university and the delivery of a quality
experience. She emphasized that the university needed to be
accountable to Alaskans and it was necessary to invest in the
development of a workforce for the state.
8:54:23 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON asked how the university would incorporate
teacher education methodology to include the assessment
requirements that had been adopted nationally for integration of
knowledge. He requested her thoughts on the direction for this
program.
MS. O'NEILL acknowledged her lack of information for the teacher
training program. She offered her belief that it would be
prudent for the board to review the relevance of each of the
assessments, as it was important for pertinent learning.
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON stated that the assessments based on
common core have been negative as the instructional methods have
focused on fact retention, and not the integration of knowledge.
He expressed his desire that the teaching methodologies would
move toward the integration of knowledge.
8:58:31 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND expressed her appreciation for the focus
on the "Growing Teachers for Alaska" program, especially from
the Rural and Native communities. Noting the difficulty for
placement of teachers in rural communities, she asked for a plan
of action.
MS. O'NEILL stated her interest in teachers who were drawn to
Rural Alaska, regardless of cultural background. She opined
that passionate, inspired teachers would succeed in any
community. She pointed out that some teachers from a village
would have difficulty "going home" after seeing the
opportunities in the larger communities and school districts.
She questioned the cost to the state for a teacher to locate to
a rural community for a few years, and then leave. She offered
her belief that it was a high cost to the state and to the
children. She asked what it would take to change this system.
She pointed out that education was changing rapidly, and that it
was no longer solely in the classroom.
9:03:19 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND noted that, as Ms. O'Neill begins her
tenure on the board, school districts and UA would be laying off
many staff members. She pointed to the criticism of UA for a
lack of teaching candidates, which necessitated the hiring of
teachers from outside of Alaska. At the same time, the State of
Alaska had been flat funding education for the past three years.
She suggested that a collision of all of the issues was in the
future.
MS. O'NEILL acknowledged that this could also be an opportunity
to "make the system better."
9:04:41 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD moved to advance the confirmation of
Gloria O'Neill to the University of Alaska Board of Regents for
consideration in joint session by the House and Senate. There
being no objection, the confirmation was advanced.
CHAIR GATTIS reminded members that signing the reports regarding
appointments to boards and commissions in no way reflect
individual members' approval or disapproval of the appointees,
and that the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
9:05:31 AM
DALE ANDERSON, Appointee, University of Alaska Board of Regents,
directed attention to his qualifications, which included a broad
based exposure to a lot of Alaska in both the public and private
sectors. He declared that he was uniquely qualified for the
appointment, and had served on the board for the past year
fulfilling the term of another regent.
9:08:08 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD, directing attention to the budget for
the University of Alaska, expressed her concern "'cause there's
a lot of people fighting for that money and there's lots of need
throughout the state." Noting the appointee's financial
background, she asked "to curb the appetite there [UA budget]."
9:09:23 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON stressed the need for teacher training
methodology and courses to incorporate the integrated knowledge
assessments in lieu of the fact assessments.
9:10:31 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD moved to advance the confirmation of
Dale Anderson to the University of Alaska Board of Regents for
consideration in joint session by the House and Senate. There
being no objection, the confirmation was advanced.
CHAIR GATTIS reminded members that signing the reports regarding
appointments to boards and commissions in no way reflect
individual members' approval or disapproval of the appointees,
and that the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
^Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
9:11:20 AM
MARTIN LASTER, Appointee, Professional Teaching Practices
Commission, reported that he was a retired K-12 superintendent,
the current director of the Master Degree in Education
Educational Leadership program at University of Alaska
Southeast, and that he would be seated on the commission in the
higher education position.
9:12:21 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON noted the papers and publications written
by the appointee, and expressed his appreciation for the
expertise of the appointee.
9:12:47 AM
REPRESENTATIVE REINBOLD moved to advance the confirmation of
Martin Laster referred to the Professional Teaching Practices
Commission for consideration in joint session by the House and
Senate for consideration. There being no objection, the
confirmation was advanced.
CHAIR GATTIS reminded members that signing the reports regarding
appointments to boards and commissions in no way reflect
individual members' approval or disapproval of the appointees,
and that the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
9:13:51 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND asked if there would be another
opportunity to review the two appointees who were not available.
CHAIR GATTIS replied that this would be pursued at another
meeting.
9:14:52 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Education Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 9:14 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| Education & Early Development - Hull #3.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |
EED Board |
| Professional Teaching - DeVaughn #3.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Professional Teaching - Mann #3.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Professional Teaching - Roberts #3.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Professional Teacing - Fry #3.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |
|
| Professional Teacing - Laster #3.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |
|
| U of A Bd of Regents - Anderson #1.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |
|
| U of A Bd of Regents - O'Neill #1.pdf |
HEDC 3/29/2013 8:00:00 AM |