Legislature(2019 - 2020)BUTROVICH 205
03/14/2019 09:00 AM Senate EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SJR9 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SJR 9 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
SJR 9-CONST.AM: APPROP. BILL FOR PUBL EDUCATION
8:59:49 AM
CHAIR STEVENS announced the consideration of SJR 9. He stated
his intent to introduce the bill, hear public testimony, and
hold the bill in committee.
9:01:02 AM
TOM WRIGHT, Staff, Senator Mia Costello, Alaska State
Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, introduced SJR 9, related to early
funding for education, on behalf of the sponsor. He reviewed the
contents of the bill packets including the legal memo from
Legislative Legal Services that explains that one legislature
cannot pass a statute that binds a future legislature. This is
referred to as legislative entrenchment. Both the U.S. Supreme
Court and the Alaska Supreme Court have ruled that legislative
entrenchment by statute is not allowed. However, it is
permissible for a legislature to entrench legislation through a
constitutional amendment.
MR. WRIGHT said none of the various education amendments before
the legislature from 1993 to the present have dealt with early
funding. SJR 9 requires a separate appropriation bill to fund K-
12 public education and requires the legislature to pass and
transmit an appropriation bill for K-12 education by the 45th
day of each regulation session. Currently, school districts by
statute must submit budgets to municipal governments by May 1.
These dates vary from March 1 to early May depending on the
municipal ordinance. Research done by Mr. Lamkin and Legislative
Research shows the legislature typically passes the operating
budget, which includes education funding, from mid-April to late
May and on some occasions, into June. Passage after May 1
creates uncertainty for school districts and municipalities. The
uncertainty forces school districts to issue pink slips if
contracts are not finalized by May 15 for tenured teachers and
by the last day of the school term for nontenured teachers as
outlined in AS 14.20.140.
MR. WRIGHT said the Institute of Social and Economic Research
(ISER) study in the bill packets shows that between 2016 and
2017, the turnover rates for teachers in rural areas was over 30
percent, 22 percent for hub communities, and 14 to 16 percent in
more populous communities. According to ISER, research shows
high teacher turnover hurts student achievement. According to
the National Education Association (NEA), 1,000 of the 8,900
teachers in the state turn over yearly. This comes at a cost to
each school district.
MR. WRIGHT said uncertainty among municipalities and local
governments when attempting to build a budget for the next
fiscal year is another reason to look at early funding. He noted
that SJR 9 has letters of support from the Alaska Council of
School Administrators, the Association of Alaska School Boards,
NEA, and many teachers and constituents statewide. SJR 9 does
not address funding sources. It does not talk about increases or
decreases, funding the Public Employee Retiree System or the
Teacher Retirement System, school bonds or debt, or pupil-
teacher ratios. It does remove education funding from late-
session negotiations that are conducted between the two
legislative bodies and the administration. He said SJR 9 is
about supporting K-12 education funding and removing the
uncertainty of funding for schools.
CHAIR STEVENS asked for an explanation of process for a
constitutional amendment.
MR. WRIGHT answered that the resolution requires a two-third
vote from each body and if it passes, it goes directly to the
ballot. The governor does not have much of a role.
CHAIR STEVENS said it requires a simple majority in the
election.
MR. WRIGHT agreed.
9:06:47 AM
SENATOR BIRCH said he is generally reticent to put things in the
constitution. He noted the talk about a flurry of pink slips and
said he wonders how much of that is a manifestation of labor
contracts that municipalities or school districts have engaged
in and the notice requirements for tenured employees. He
suggested that perhaps the budget should be passed in 90 days so
it doesn't drag out halfway through the summer. He asked Mr.
Wright to speak to the labor contracts.
MR. WRIGHT said there is a statutory requirement that requires
pink slips to go out by a certain date if the budget is not
finalized. He deferred further explanation to the NEA
representative.
SENATOR BIRCH said there is no mandate in statute to align
fiscal years and they often differ for cities and school
districts. He asked if that had any impact.
MR. WRIGHT answered no and added that Anchorage municipal
ordinance says the school district budget is due to the assembly
by the first Monday in March.
9:09:26 AM
SENATOR BEGICH said he supports the constitutional amendment and
wonders if the sponsor would consider amending the language to
allow for the possibility, if prekindergarten is statutorily
authorized, for prekindergarten to be included. He suggested
that the language could refer to expenditures to fund public
education to precollege.
MR. WRIGHT replied that he would respond after talking to the
bill sponsor.
SENATOR BEGICH referenced legislative entrenchment and offered
his understanding that it takes an act of the legislature to
choose not to be bound. The legislature passes a bill and the
legislature chooses to continue to act under the authority of
that statute that "binds" it but has the power to reverse it. He
said that is why he likes this constitutional approach.
MR. WRIGHT responded that without the Legislative Legal memo the
sponsor probably would have introduced statutory language like
the chair did in 2018 with Senate Bill 131.
9:11:31 AM
SENATOR HUGHES commented on the importance of certainty in K-12
funding and the short time the legislature has to figure the
education budget out. She asked if in the early 2000s there was
an attempt to fund education a year in advance. She noted that
would require double funding one year, which would be tough.
MR. WRIGHT answered that his recollection is that there was
forward funding some years back that ended three or four years
ago at the beginning of the budget crisis.
SENATOR HUGHES said she would prefer that because that would
allow the full time for vetting. She said she would be concerned
about a new governor laying out a revised budget February 15 and
the legislature having only 15 days to figure things out.
CHAIR STEVENS asked if the legal opinion raised the question of
forward funding.
MR. WRIGHT answered that it does not.
9:14:08 AM
SENATOR BEGICH said he was pleased to hear the legal opinion
does not affect forward funding because that is technically what
the legislature did last year when they passed two years of
funding. One year of funding was put in the public education
fund. He said the binding language is that the legislature
retains the right to repeal that action. He offered his
interpretation that the first year of a new administration's
budget regarding education is irrelevant because the legislature
has already funded it. That addresses the question because the
legislature didn't have to wait 15 days to review or revise. It
already happened because of forward funding.
SENATOR HUGHES asked if it would make more sense to prohibit
peeling back what was forward funded. It would be part of the
normal 90- or 120-days budget process the prior year.
CHAIR STEVENS said the committee certainly wants to hear about
the problems districts have.
9:16:48 AM
LISA SKILES PARADY, Ph.D., Executive Director, Alaska Council of
School Administrators (ACSA), Juneau, Alaska, said SJR 9 is an
important bill at a critical time. To address Senator Birch's
questions, she said ACSA agrees with his initial reticence to
support a constitutional amendment. Ideally the legislature
would do what it did last year or forward fund or do something
to ensure reliable funding. The whole point is for school
districts to operate efficiently and run like a business. In
order to do that, it is necessary to know the budget. ACSA
members appreciate that Senator Costello brought this forward.
At the end of the day, it needs to be consistent and reliable
and this seems to be the best pathway to ensure that.
DR. PARADY said the teacher shortage is a national crisis.
Alaska historically is reliant on recruiting teachers from the
lower 48, which makes the crisis worse. She noted that the ISER
numbers are a bit dated. Currently, teacher turnover in the
state is 25 percent and the trajectory is going up, particularly
in non-urban areas. In remote, isolated places, the turnover is
60 to 70 percent. That is devastating considering the research
on student achievement and the importance of quality staff in
classrooms. Principals are second only to teachers in terms of
student achievement and principal turnover is 26 percent. She
said the leadership component is also essential. In her five
years in office, she has seen almost a 70 percent turnover rate
of superintendents. Thinking of it as a business, the teachers
are the front line, the principals are the middle management,
and the superintendents are the CEOs. She asked what the output
of a business is with that kind of turnover.
DR. PARADY said it is important to look at districts as a
business as well. Districts are working hard to be efficient and
effective and serve their students in the best way possible. She
said all policymakers need to understand that reliable and
predictable funding is key to their ability to serve students.
Her organization just completed an impact survey to learn how
individual districts will be impacted by the governor's proposed
budget. Their initial takeaway shows Alaska is hemorrhaging
teachers because of the uncertainty. A principal told her
yesterday that two great nontenured teachers were leaving
because he can't give them their contracts. She mentioned the
letter she sent to committee members and the timeline and said
that unequivocally the highest priority is timely, reliable, and
predictable revenue for schools so that they can do the
appropriate planning the way the committee would like them to.
9:24:30 AM
CHAIR STEVENS asked her to go through the timeline for the
public.
DR. PARADY said pursuant to AS 14.14.060 school districts that
are a component unit of a city or borough must submit their
budgets to their municipality by May 1. Right now tenured
teachers' contracts are being signed. In many school districts
nontenured [contracts] are being held as a result of budget
uncertainty. If there is no resolution on education funding by
May 15, nontenured teachers will likely be pink slipped. That is
the hard deadline. There are different timelines in ordinances
for submitting budgets. Anchorage has a March 1 deadline. Many
deadlines are April 1. Districts are preparing their budgets in
December to present to their governing bodies.
CHAIR STEVENS said it is difficult for districts to do hiring
without knowing the budget. His sympathies go out to
superintendents who must decide what the budget is going to be
and must decide whether to hire people without knowing whether
the money will be there. It is an enormous problem for
superintendents.
SENATOR BIRCH said everyone is subject to a budget. His
frustration relates to being involved in local government. There
is a disconnect between the two masters. The State of Alaska
provides significant funding for education. There is also a
local component. A lot of the spending rests with the local
school boards, such as contract provisions and health benefits.
The legislature doesn't have any control over that. Anyone who
has been a parent or in a work environment strives to have
certainty and stability in both one's professional and personal
life. The pink slip kerfuffle that seems to happen when there's
a funding issue has always troubled him. If there is a budget
people are subject to, the budget has to be approved, whether
state, local, or federal. His frustration is that the pink slip
issue is largely a manifestation of a contract provision that
could be dealt with at a local level. It is not being dealt with
effectively. If the money is not there, someone is not going to
have a job. He doesn't know anyone who discounts the importance
of education. He has four kids in the Anchorage School District.
The fact is that they will fund education this year. He is
concerned with the issue of contract requirements. There are
hard and fast dates for tenured vs. nontenured. He asked if the
difference is a manifestation of state law or a contract
provision.
DR. PARADY said school districts do not have control over many
costs, such as health insurance. Addressing some of those things
from a policy level would provide some relief to school
districts. A superintendent this year looks at a budget that
takes funding back to 2005 levels, which is what the governor's
budget does, and looks at inflationary costs of health insurance
since 2005, which districts have no control over, but they
absorb those costs in their budgets. If a superintendent in that
situation knows and believes that the legislature will not fund
education at the 2005 level, but also knows that is all there is
at this point, how does the superintendent budget for that. What
happens is multiple budget scenarios. One is for the worst-case
scenario. The Kenai School District will cut all sports.
Districts will do x and y. Enormous amounts of energy are spent
trying to anticipate where the budget will land. And then there
are the statutory requirements, the tenured/nontenured dates,
the ordinance dates, and any specific collective bargaining
agreement pieces. It is a complex way to plan for districts. She
thanked the committee for what the legislature did last year. It
was hard fought and gave everyone in education the opportunity
to plan and do budgets with some assurance that they could offer
contracts in a timely way and retain and attract teachers. They
want to encourage legislators to stay the course. The law is
clear. That action did not bind the hands of future legislators.
They were within their rights to put an extension of the
effective date on existing funds. That was legal, it will hold
if it goes into law.
9:33:46 AM
SENATOR BIRCH commented that testimony in Senate Finance related
to education indicated that the cost of health care increased
from $300 million to $600 million. He said he doesn't understand
why local district would not have control over that because they
negotiate labor contracts that define how health care is paid
and how much is paid.
DR. PARADY said she was referring to the extreme escalating cost
of health insurance. Her organization is in the private,
nonprofit sector and she's had not control over the 37 percent
increase in insurance. Furthermore, she said she doesn't know of
a district that has not negotiated with teachers and others to
address escalating costs in health care. It's not possible to
keep up with the extreme increases even if health care
provisions are changed in collective bargaining agreements.
SENATOR HUGHES asked if she had any information on how district
employee contributions compare with contributions for federal
and state employees and most private sector employees. She said
her understanding is that district employee contributions are
smaller.
DR. PARADY answered no but she would think that it would look
different for each collective bargaining unit. She suggested
that NEA may have that information.
SENATOR HUGHES reiterated her understanding but acknowledged
that she did not know the numbers.
SENATOR BEGICH reminded the committee that tenure rights are a
statutory issue, not a negotiated issue.
DR. PARADY added that teachers become tenured on the first day
of their fourth year. This is not negotiated.
9:37:04 AM
TIM PARKER, President, National Education Association (NEA)
Alaska, Fairbanks, Alaska, said he is an English teacher from
Lathrop High School. He represents 13,000 members from across
the state, both teachers and education support professionals. He
said NEA's mission and job is to make sure student learning
happens so proposals like this and others that increase student
learning are very important and will receive NEA support. He
noted that there seems to be unanimous consensus today that
stability and certainty are what everyone is looking for. Issues
arise when that is disrupted. He thanked the sponsor for this
legislation and the entire legislature for the work it did last
year in an attempt to provide some stability and consistency. He
said that work did not have the intended effect because of the
budget proposal. It's a topic statewide but in particular for
teachers because their limited term to obtain contracts has
started. People are or are not being offered contracts and they
are choosing to stay or leave the state. An unintended
consequence is that some teachers anticipate they won't receive
a contract and they are leaving now. Some of the best teachers
are leaving the state.
He thanked the entire legislature for last year's work, which
was an attempt to do something similar to this--provide some
stability and consistency. It should have had that intended
effect. It is not having the entire intended effect now because
of the budget proposal that's become the topic of the
legislature. Everyone in the state is talking about it. Teachers
are talking about it. Teachers have a limited term to obtain
contracts. Their window has already started. People are being
offered or not being offered contracts. Some are anticipating
leaving. That is the unintended consequence. People look down
the line and see they are the person who will be let go so they
might as well leave. Some teachers of the best teachers are
talking about leaving the state because of the lack of
certainty.
MR. PARKER said it's critical to focus on attracting and
retaining professionals because there is a national teacher
shortage and Alaska is in competition with the rest of the
country. He noted that more than 20 governors have proposed
increasing teacher pay. In Washington state last year salary
increases of 20 percent were common. Alaska is not keeping up in
the competition. At the same time, recent research shows that
enrollment in teacher colleges has dropped 35 percent throughout
the country. In part it's because the profession has been picked
on and insulted. Alaska has to hire many teachers from Outside
because Alaska colleges produce 200 to 250 teachers a year, and
the state needs close to a thousand teachers every year.
MR. PARKER said another factor is that Alaska has the worst
retirement in the country for teachers. Forty-nine states have
defined benefits or a hybrid. Alaska is the only state that has
defined contributions only and no Social Security. The youngest
educators realize that it is a mammoth risk factor and they are
leaving. Portability that was put in the 2006 package looked
attractive when salaries were going up everywhere else combined
with the disruption in Alaska created a perfect storm and people
are leaving. It is hurting the system.
MR. PARKER advised that the Alaska Education Challenge (AEC)
report was on the DEED website. He said the commissioner is
highlighting the trajectory to prepare, attract, and retain
effective education professionals and the State Board of
Education is leaning into that. The national research cited in
the report suggests that outcomes improve when students receive
quality instruction from well-prepared teachers and that teacher
turnover negatively affects student outcomes.
MR. PARKER described SJR 9 as part of the solution to high
teacher turnover rates. It provides stability and that leads to
better student outcomes. Teachers who stay are able to form
relationships and improve student trust, all of which increases
the likelihood that learning will occur.
9:48:47 AM
CHAIR STEVENS said that his experience in high school was that
forming relationships with teachers who were there year after
year was very important in building trust.
SENATOR BEGICH explained that by statute, tenured teachers must
be notified by May 15 and all others by the end of the school
year that they will not be retained. That is not part of
contract negotiations.
SENATOR BIRCH asked if it was necessary to issue pink slips
because they're inevitably turned around. He shared that he
supports advance funding for education like the legislature did
last year.
MR. PARKER replied he didn't know if they were necessary. He
said pink slips are a question mark and people are forced to
make career decisions based on that question mark. Some choose
to stay but most do not.
9:51:32 AM
SENATOR BIRCH commented that when he was in local government the
Anchorage School District health care plan was always shrouded
in mystery and not very transparent. He asked how health care is
generally offered to teachers across the state.
MR. PARKER said that health care is an important component
because everyone has suffered from explosive health care
increases. Health care in Alaska is outpacing prices in the
lower 48, which is why people fly to Seattle for low-level
things like colonoscopies. He said NEA members, who tend to be
slightly older and mostly female, place a high premium on health
care. Other memberships, like a group of 25-year-old men, might
place a different value on health care. He said various
arrangements are made for health care throughout the state. The
Public Education Health Trust is one of the larger options that
can be negotiated. Other areas, like Fairbanks and Kenai, are
self-insured. Trusts cannot stop increases in health care costs
because they are subject to the same hospital and doctor charges
as everyone else. He said he doesn't know what to do about it.
That is not his area of expertise.
SENATOR HUGHES asked if he could speak to the average employee
contributions for health care in districts across the state. She
said her understanding is that those contributions are low
compared to federal and state employee contracts.
MR. PARKER said he would follow up with the numbers comparing
the two groups. He continued to say that the only difference is
that NEA puts a high premium on health care. In general, NEA
members on average are 52 years old and female. NEA bargains
health care and is always willing to pay more to keep members
from going without health care.
SENATOR HUGHES asked him to follow up with the information.
MR. PARKER agreed to do so.
9:56:30 AM
CHAIR STEVENS said the National Conference of State Legislators
had a federally-funded program called Legislators in the
Classroom. It was a wonderful program that stopped when the
grant funding ran out. He said there was no cost to it and he
would hope that school districts would invite legislators into
classrooms. He related that last year he spent an exhausting
half-day in a first grade class and he was in awe that the
teacher, a woman in her 50s, had complete control of the class.
He emphasized the importance for all legislators to take time to
go into the classroom.
SENATOR HUGHES expressed concern about the national teacher
shortage, the loss of teacher accreditation [for the University
of Anchorage (UAA) Alaska School of Education], and the national
reduction in students enrolling in teacher preparation programs.
She asked if there was any information that shows the
correlation between schools with high turnover rates and lower
academic performance. She said that is important information for
legislators as they consider education funding.
MR. PARKER said that by any measure, whether it is the National
Assessment of Educational Progress, the state's PEAKS
assessment, MAP [Measures of Academic Progress] assessments, or
teacher assessments, high teacher turnover horribly disrupts
students' ability to learn in the classroom. Studies show that
it is never good when positions can't be filled or are filled by
long-term substitute teachers, but that situation is becoming
more common.
He said NEA is watching the UAA situation carefully. If the
university system were to produce fewer teachers than it does
now, recruitment from outside Alaska would need to increase.
ISER studies show it costs $25,000 to recruit a new teacher from
the lower 48. He noted that University President Johnsen has
talked about ways to increase the numbers in the teacher
programs in the state and NEA supports that, especially if
people from across the state enter the programs and then return
as teachers to wherever they came from. He noted that at Lathrop
High School all the teachers who attended Lathrop as students
are recognized in the first assembly of the year. It's very
powerful for the students to see that. He said the successes in
the system are almost always associated with a solid community
base and it's important to build on that. It's a win for
everyone.
CHAIR STEVENS opened public testimony.
10:01:09 AM
NILS ANDREASSEN, Director, Alaska Municipal League, Juneau,
Alaska, said the Alaska Municipal League (AML) is comprised of
165 municipalities and incorporated cities and boroughs across
the state. State budget appropriations and allocations are of
extreme importance to the health and well-being of local
governments. AML is the advocacy arm of Alaska's municipalities.
He said AML believes that SJR 9 is beneficial to local
government. The National Conference on State Legislatures (NCSL)
knows that states bear the burden of ensuring that the statewide
school finance system is founded on sound governance principles.
This includes promoting predictability and stability of
education revenues and expenditures over time. He said every
state constitution contains a clause that requires the state to
provide a system of free public education. The Alaska Municipal
League has been a proponent of forward funding the education
budget. In 2006 and 2007, after ISER studies of the time, AML
voted on resolutions that advocated for stable and predictable
funding. Since 2012, AML position statements have included
support for full forward funding of education foundation
programs, school bond debt reimbursement, and construction
programs.
MR. ANDREASSEN said AML remains committed to giving school
districts the lead time needed to recruit and retain qualified
and high-performing teachers and opposes reductions to school
funding or school bond debt reimbursement. He said sudden
alternations in funding and dramatic shifts in funding levels
cause havoc as districts try to implement programs and local
governments try to respond. Thus, funding stability is required
for the adequate management of school districts. He pointed out
that billions of state and local dollars have been expended on
educational infrastructure and sudden reductions in funding
inevitably cause the deferral of maintenance for such massive
investments. This increases the eventual price tag when minor
maintenance issues become critical failures.
MR. ANDREASSEN said AML cannot comment on whether SJR 9 should
be a constitutional amendment or a statutory change, but they
are advocating for something to be done to shift the state from
uncertainty and conflict towards sustainable, affordable, and
predictable solutions. Such solutions cannot come at the cost of
student achievement. They should be implemented over time and
should correspond to local conditions, planning, and negotiated
agreements. At the local level and for school districts, this
resolution is a critical step toward improving educational
attainment in Alaska. This improves municipalities' ability to
budget accordingly and plan for increases or reductions to local
school districts. He highlighted that there is a wide range in
the ability of local governments to respond to funding increases
or decrements. One borough recently pointed out that there is a
six-month lag between a state decision that affects the
borough's budget and their ability to implement a tax to make up
the difference. He said local taxes can shift according to local
need and SJR 9 builds on this responsiveness.
10:06:16 AM
SENATOR BIRCH asked if he could speak to the status of the
Teacher Retirement System (TRS) and Public Employee Retirement
System (PERS) liability from a community standpoint.
Mr. ANDREASSEN replied the TRS and PERS issue is critically
important and a component of education funding. He said his
understanding is that municipalities are challenged by this
issue. PERS affects 64 of the 165 municipalities AML represents.
He said he doesn't know the number of school districts affected.
It is a large percentage of district and local government
budgets. Right sizing a budget in response to a state funding
decision doesn't take away any of those liabilities. A reduction
in the state workforce increases the overall net pension
liability for all employers and municipalities make up 18
percent of that employer base. State reductions or reductions
across the employer pool add to the net pension liability and
overall the unfunded liability, which increases the state
contribution or on behalf payment. He said it is a significant
issue. School districts or local governments are challenged to
anticipate increases in health care costs and the state pension
system is similarly challenged. AML's perspective is that health
care increases within the pension system have been the greatest
destabilizer to PERS and TRS over the last 20 years.
SENATOR BIRCH said he looked forward to working together on a
solution.
10:09:04 AM
SARAH SLEDGE, Director, Coalition for Education Equity (CEE),
Anchorage, Alaska, said CEE's mission is to champion an adequate
and equitable public education for every Alaskan child. A top
priority is adequate state investment in Alaska's public
education system. This includes ensuring that public education
funding is reliable and that funding decisions are made in a
timely manner to enable school districts to plan efficiently and
responsibly. SJR 9 puts students first by removing the financial
uncertainty schools have faced year after year throughout the
budgeting process and is critical for ensuring a long-term
fiscal plan for public education. She said CEE is continually
asking school districts to plan and budget effectively, looking
for efficiencies where possible.
MS. SLEDGE said that the Alaska Association of School Business
Officials (ALASBO) testified last year about the ways that
school districts are able to plan budgets more efficiently when
they have advance knowledge of the budget. They can look for
contracts, budget travel, and hire teachers. She related that
when she worked with United Way of Anchorage, she worked on
research around protective factors and children outcomes. It
correlates certain protective factors with positive behaviors
and academic outcomes in students. The top protective factor for
students is a supportive adult relationship. That correlates to
positive behaviors like attending school, better grades, and
decreases in risk factors such as depression and suicide. She
highlighted that this is an increasing concern, especially in
the rural areas of Alaska.
MS. SLEDGE said that most school districts that she represents
are rural and have just a handful of teachers. Mr. Parker
mentioned how difficult it can be to build that trust
relationship with young people. But in some of those schools,
those relationships are built quickly, and children come to
depend on their teachers for that support. When those teachers
leave year after year, it is devastating to the students. She
emphasized that increasing teacher retention is critical to the
success of these kids.
MS. SLEDGE said any effort to stabilize K-12 funding will allow
public schools to budget effectively and efficiently, which
leads to greater ability to recruit and retain quality educators
and greater capacity to focus on maintaining and improving
quality instruction for Alaskan children.
SENATOR BIRCH noted that later today another committee will
consider telemedicine. He asked her perspective of using
distance learning in rural areas for K-12.
MS. SLEDGE replied that some school districts are successfully
using a video teleconferencing model to expand curricular
options in the smaller villages. She emphasized that it does not
replace having an adult in the classroom, but it can expand the
content that is provided.
SENATOR BEGICH asked about the limits on broadband and
connectivity in rural villages, which create obstacles for that
type of learning.
MS. SLEDGE replied that many communities don't have access to
the broadband needed for video teleconferencing. Others might
have the bandwidth, but it is another budgeting concern for
school districts to get access to the bandwidth needed to do
video teleconferencing.
SENATOR HUGHES said she has a bill for that and the senator from
Bethel has a broadband funding bill, which is timely and will
open opportunities, help with the teacher shortages, and
increase academic learning. She thanked Ms. Sledge for her
insights. She commented that there are pockets of excellence and
some districts do a phenomenal job, but overall the statewide
academic performance is lacking. The legislature has work to do,
she said.
10:17:21 AM
TAMMY SMITH, State Director, National Education Association-
Alaska, Fairbanks, Alaska, said that she is a teacher on spring
break and thrilled to be in Juneau because this is so timely.
She emphasized that districts need to be able to plan ahead.
Being able to recruit and retain teachers is critical to
students and to improve student learning. She related how
traumatic it was to receive pink slips as a young teacher in
1989, 1990, and 1991. She considered leaving Alaska. She said
when she was pink slipped in the past, there were many
applicants for positions and now that isn't the case. The
shortage of teachers is real across the country. For Alaska to
sustain the education environment it is necessary to be
proactive.
MS. SMITH said she also wanted to address Senator Birch's
comment about using technology for distance education. She
suggested the committee ask students how it feels to be put in
front of computers before looking at technology as a way to
support districts. She is a special education teacher for K-8
students who struggle with reading, writing, and math. They get
tired of being in front of a computer too long. They like being
with a teacher.
CHAIR STEVENS asked if she would say that distance learning is
valuable in some cases but doesn't fit all situations and all
students.
MS. SMITH answered absolutely.
10:24:10 AM
SENATOR BIRCH asked what year she received her first pink slip.
MS. SMITH replied in 1989 or 1990.
SENATOR BIRCH said he remembers that.
MS. SMITH noted he was on the borough assembly at that time.
CHAIR STEVENS thanked her for persevering and staying in Alaska.
SENATOR BEGICH referenced earlier discussion about distance
learning and explained it related to a bipartisan omnibus bill
the legislature worked on the last two years to improve
education. The testimony in Florida and New York made it clear
that a capable teacher must be in the room and that distance
learning is for bringing content experts that would not
otherwise be available. It is never the intent to replace
classroom teachers. That was said on the record many times. The
idea was always to enhance the classroom as opposed to replacing
classroom teachers.
SENATOR BIRCH commented that his children got a great start in
school as Pearl Creek Puffins in the Fairbanks North Star
Borough.
MS. SMITH said her students were the Nordale Tigers.
10:26:44 AM
CHRISTINE VILLANO, National Education Association (NEA)-Alaska,
Fairbanks, Alaska, supported SJR 9. She said she has been
involved in education for 40 years. She taught in Saint Mary's
in rural Alaska and later in Fairbanks, mostly at Denali
Elementary. As a young mother she advocated with the Parent
Teacher Association to Senator Birch who was on the borough
assembly to rebuild and keep Joy School. She said she has a
passion for education as a parent, grandparent, and teacher
leader. She noted that one of her daughters teaches special
education in Shishmaref and one is a scientist at the University
of Alaska Fairbanks and does outreach in classrooms.
MS. VILLANO said that in her experience, budget stability leads
districts and educators to focus on the core mission of student
success and support. As a village teacher, it is not only
important to build relationships with kids, but also with their
families and the community. That is true in towns also. In
Fairbanks she sees people she has known for years. Senator
Kawasaki came to her Girl Scout troop with his sister.
Relationships are the core of good education. When she was at
Denali, she started teaching kids of kids. They knew and trusted
her. She was pink slipped as a beginning educator. It makes
people want to quit and leave the state or profession. Now with
the teacher shortage, the best and brightest will leave,
especially as there is not a good retirement system. One of the
teachers of the year, who she has known since he was a kid, told
her he is going to leave Alaska because he does not have a good
retirement. He is in his mid-30s and that gives her concern for
the future of Alaska. When she was pink slipped, she was very
worried and concerned, and that ripples down to kids. That is
why she supports SJR 9.
SENATOR BIRCH said teachers achieve tenure on the first day of
the fourth year. He asked if pink slips are only given to
nontenured teachers.
MS. VILLANO said her understanding is that nontenured teachers
are pink slipped first and then tenured teachers can get pink
slipped.
10:38:15 AM
ERIC PETERSON, President, Alaska Association of Elementary
School Principals; Principal, Paul Banks Elementary School,
Homer, Alaska, supported SJR 9. He said early funding is the
most important topic in the budget discussion. He has three
teachers without contracts for next year because of not knowing
what the funding will be for next year. His fear is that he will
lose them. As a principal, he invests a lot into his new
teachers, but they may be taking those skills and knowledge to a
new city or state. If funding does come after he has dismissed
these teachers, he fears he will be hiring in the summer. In the
past when he has had to hire in the summer, the candidate pool
got shallow very quickly. Most importantly, without knowledge
about funding and who will be teaching in the school, he cannot
build classrooms for next year. That pushes all that work until
the fall. He loses a window of opportunity for his students. He
has a Title 1 school with high-needs students. They are
deliberate about who they put where. When he knows who the
teachers are, they can start building relationships with those
high-needs students. That practice reduces fear in students
because they know where they will be next year. His school is
also a special education magnet school with an intensive-needs
preschool. In the spring there are transition meetings. When he
has early funding, they can meet with parents and build teams.
It helps relationships and builds trust. Many teachers will do
activities in summer and invite those students. People assume
the school year starts in the fall, but it starts in the spring.
From a principal's standpoint, not being able to answer parent
and community questions doesn't allow him to build trusting and
relationships as much as he would like. He asks the legislature
to fund school districts early.
10:42:04 AM
DAVID NEESE, representing self, Anchorage, Alaska, supported SJR
9. He said it is a good component because it reinforces Judge
Sharon Gleason's comments in the Moore vs. State of Alaska
decision that education in Alaska is K-12 in nature. That is not
in the constitution. With mandatory education beginning at age
seven, it is important to clarify that. He said the information
in the bill packet is eye opening. The history of the budget
shows that for the most part the legislature has missed the May
1 date that this proposes. The main problem is AS 14.14.060, as
Dr. Parady pointed out, which requires the budget to be
submitted by May 1. He said the big problem is there is a hold
harmless clause for funding schools, but not for teachers. It
would solve the problem to put a hold harm clause in AS
14.14.060 that districts will have to continue sending their
state funding into the teacher positions. Moving to a later date
would also work, but it's been pointed out that the school year
ends in May and many teachers are looking for where they are
going to be next year so the decisions in June on rehire is not
good. Pink slips could be eliminated by added a hold harmless
clause that said if the budget is not resolved by a certain
date, school districts will keep employing people in the same
round as last year. He said he appreciated the testimony from
the people in the education industry. He asked if any members of
the committee received funds from NEA. If so, they should
declare a conflict. He said he is pleased that Senator Costello
brought this forward to make sure that the constitution says
that education is K-12.
CHAIR STEVENS stated that he did not receive campaign funds from
NEA in his last election.
10:46:00 AM
DIANNE SHIBE, President, Matanuska-Susitna Education Association
(MSEA), Wasilla, Alaska, supported SJR 9. She said forward
funding is an anomaly in this state. That makes this resolution
imperative to reduce the guessing game and the chaos that too
often ensues in districts every spring. This uncertainty does
not help make teaching an attractive profession, which is
essential to improving the education system in Alaska so
districts stop losing teachers and incurring the cost of
constant recruitment. Those funds could be going into the
classroom.
10:46:53 AM
DAN CARSTENS, President, Alaska Association of Secondary School
Principals; Principal, Nikiski Middle-High School, Nikiski,
Alaska, supported SJR 9. He said he experiences the need for
forward funding on a yearly basis. The reality of pink slips is
that if a contract is not offered to a nontenured teacher, they
automatically receive a contract on their last day of work, so
what happens is by the middle of May, they will receive a letter
saying they are nonretained due to cause or nonretained due to
budget. Right now a lot of teachers will not be retained due to
budget. Most of those teachers do not come back once they have
left the state. His district must submit a budget by April or
the board meeting the first of May. Historically his school has
not received a budget from the state by then. School requests to
the borough to fund to the cap are sometimes successful and
sometimes not. Principals then have the task of preparing
different scenarios with different pupil-teacher ratios. They
prepare an initial budget with no idea if that will be the
actual budget. When nontenured teachers leave, tenured teachers
often end up teaching in content areas they are not certified
in. This is permissible because as long as a teacher is teaching
over 50 percent in their content area, the teacher can teach in
other areas if working toward certification in that area.
MR. CARSTENS said every spring kids are asked what classes they
want to take next year, but there is no guarantee of what they
will be able to offer. Students have to make five or six choices
which makes it difficult to schedule fall classes. Forward
funding would let schools know what they are looking at and what
staff they will have. That is huge for planning for subsequent
years, he said.
10:51:52 AM
SHAWN ARNOLD, Superintendent, Valdez City Schools, Valdez,
Alaska, supported SJR 9. He said he is also president-elect of
the Alaska Superintendents Association. He reported that ISER
research from last year shows that it costs a district a minimum
of $20,000 for every teacher turnover. He saw that impact
firsthand when he was superintendent of Nome public schools for
four years. The average turnover rate for the district was about
ten to 15 teachers a year, which was a significant cost.
MR. ARNOLD said he does a lot of research into other education
systems. Many comparisons are made to Finland, and one thing
Finland does right is to forward fund. That makes education
funding predictable and timely. There is no discussion of cuts
every year. A general principle in effective funding of
education systems across the globe is ensuring that funds are
allocated in a transparent and predictable way. The value of
predictability for Alaska school districts cannot be overstated.
When funding levels are obscure, complicated, and unstable,
districts are forced into bad behaviors. It takes more than two
to three months to comprehensively evaluate spending, reflect on
progress, and develop new budgets, yet districts are forced to
wait for final cuts to be handed down from the legislature
before their local budgets can be finalized.
MR. ARNOLD said that if districts are expected to spend
responsibly, they need to be given the time to plan accordingly.
Equally important, legislators need the ability to project state
investments years into the future for sound debt management.
Strategic thinking and long-term planning are central to
successful governance of complex education systems. Timely,
reliable, and predictable funding of future resource needs
ensures the education system long-term fiscal sustainability and
development of clear implementation paths for education reforms,
such as the Alaska Education Challenge. Forecasting resource
needs in education involves anticipating developments and the
demand for services across different education levels and
sectors as well as their implications for human, pedagogical,
fiscal and financial resource needs. By providing for
predictable funding for K-12 schools, legislatures are investing
in the economic future of the state and the future of Alaska's
children.
10:56:44 AM
PETE HOEPFNER, School Board Member, Cordova School District,
Cordova, Alaska, supported SJR 9. He said creating a separate
education budget will let school districts budget with certainty
and predictability. In the past, education was forward funded
for multiple years. At one point districts had three years of
forward funding. Over the last few years education funding has
not been determined until late in the session, leading to
uncertainty. The present teacher shortage in the nation and the
uncertainty in Alaska does not create a healthy work
environment. School districts need reliable and known funding.
10:58:05 AM
ROY GETCHELL, Superintendent, Haines Borough School District
(HBSD) , Haines, Alaska, supported SJR 9. He said Haines is a
Title 1 school, but one of the highest performing ones in the
state. One of the reasons is that they have high-quality
teachers who have been there a while. In Haines and across
Alaska, kids are in classrooms and teachers are teaching while
the debates go on about their future. The yearly angst created
by not knowing what programs will be cut or funded, jobs lost or
gained, strategic plans implemented or shelved, is a dilemma for
school districts. It is impossible to properly plan, it is bad
for morale, and it requires reaction vs. strategy. Putting aside
the devastating cuts, SJR 9 would help HBSD's strategic plan to
hire another math teacher to give high school students higher
level options. That aligns with what the governor talked about
in his campaign and with the Alaska Education Challenge. But due
to the funding uncertainty the district faces, that option is
off the table. He shared that in 1991 he was at Captain Cook
Hotel at the Alaska teacher job fair with 3,500 other teachers
and he didn't get a job. He said this is his first opportunity
to work in Alaska and he is privileged to be here. Before being
hired in Haines, he worked overseas for the United Arab
Emirates. That country is probably importing a thousand or more
American teachers a year. That pales in comparison to other
countries who value American training and are promoting English
within their own systems. Thus, Alaska is facing a two-headed
monster of predictable funding and being able to recruit and
retain the best.
11:01:11 AM
PATRICK MAYER, President, Alaska Council of School
Administrators (ACSA); Superintendent, Yakutat School District
(YSD), Yakutat, Alaska, supported SJR 9. He said it is
exceedingly important for school districts to have timely,
reliable, and predictable revenue for schools. This is a key
component in ACSA's 2019 joint position statement. School
districts cannot operate efficiently and effectively without
knowing their revenues. For example, Yakutat and other small
school districts operate on a thin financial margin. Yakutat has
just one teaching position to fill this year, but that is 16
percent of their certified staff. It is difficult to make the
decision to go forward with that hire because of the governor's
budget proposal and the fact that staff costs make up the
majority of a school district's budget. The current situation
suggests a particularly protracted timeframe for budget finality
and now is the hiring season. He said YSD has decided to roll
the dice and try to hire the one teacher, but they are aware
that the decision comes with some risk. He asked the committee
and legislature to take the issue of timely, reliable, and
predictable funding seriously. Early notification of funding is
crucial to sound financial management as well as to recruiting
and retaining quality educators. Stabilizing districts
budgetarily will improve student achievement. He said he also
wanted to note that the bandwidth disparity is a huge equity
issue in the state. He concluded that getting rural districts
enhanced bandwidth would be phenomenal.
11:04:50 AM
JILL SHOWMAN, representing self, Palmer, Alaska, supported SJR
9. She said she is a teacher who is not concerned about losing
her position, but several of her colleagues are. Nontenured
teachers get nervous this time of year because they don't know
if they will have a position next year. Mat-Su will not issue
contracts to nontenured teachers until the budget is set. The
anxiety of the new teachers is real and affects their community
and comes into the classroom. She said she moved from Iowa in
1997 and was pink slipped three years in a row when she lived on
the Kenai Peninsula. She chose to stay, but others left because
there was no guarantee of a job the next school year. Alaska
lost a lot of great teachers then and can't afford to do that
now, particularly with the uncertainty at UAA. She related that
she also taught an elementary education class for the University
of Alaska Southeast about a decade ago. At that time the highest
enrollment in her class, which was the last curricular class for
teachers entering elementary education, was 12 to 13. She said
Alaska already has to recruit teachers from Outside and those
candidates also must be retained. It is easier to retain current
staff than recruit new candidates. She agreed with earlier
testimony that Alaska is not only competing with the U.S. but
with international schools.
CHAIR STEVENS said the UAA regents are considering the loss of
accreditation now and he is convinced they will find a solution
by using other campuses while working to get UAA accreditation
back.
11:08:00 AM
CONNIE NEWMAN, Superintendent, Iditarod Area School District
(IASD), McGrath, Alaska, supported SJR 9. She said Iditarod is a
Regional Education Attendance Area in the heart of Alaska.
Forward funding enhances recruitment and retention of highly
qualified staff, supporting student success in school and life.
She shared that she was pink slipped in her first year in
education in Idaho and she left and did not return. She
described the challenge of teacher turnover in the Iditarod Area
School District. IASD started recruiting in January and February
last year to get their staff. They anticipate losing 11
positions, which is more than 54 percent of the district
teaching staff.
CHAIR STEVENS commented that a remarkable number of testifiers
have experienced the anxiety of being pink slipped.
11:09:59 AM
BRIDGET WEISS, Ph.D., Superintendent, Juneau School District
(JSD), Juneau, Alaska, supported SJR 9. She said she was born
and raised in Juneau. She spent the first 26 years of her career
in Washington. She came back to Alaska and was principal of
North Pole High School for four years. She brought teachers on
board who worked effectively with existing staff and energized
that system. She was put in a position of sitting face-to-face
with new, effective teachers and telling them they might not be
back in August. That was very detrimental to young teachers
starting their careers. Before becoming superintendent in
Juneau, she was director of student services in Juneau and
supported the special education program. Looking at teacher
openings in the state shows that year after year districts are
desperate to fill special education positions. That is one of
the most challenging and crucial positions to fill. That type of
vulnerability makes it hard to recruit. For a whole family to
move, there must be a perspective of state stability. SJR 9 is a
critical lifeline to make that possible. There are so many
interconnected pieces and critical overlays. Attracting and
retaining quality educators is strongly tied to this. It is one
of the Juneau's school board initiatives. It is a legislative
priority for the administrators' association. It is critical to
work being done around student achievement in Alaska. Most of
the school districts in Washington increased their teacher
salaries from five to 18 percent through legislative action.
That makes it harder for Alaska to compete. She emphasized the
importance of having a desirable economic environment to provide
the opportunities for people to come and fill these most needed
positions. What is done in education is the lifeline for the
future and economy of the state. Like herself, many students
return to Alaska and contribute to their communities and the
economy.
11:14:48 AM
CHAIR STEVENS closed public testimony.
[CHAIR STEVENS held SJR 9 in committee.]
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| 01_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_BillText_VersionA.PDF |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 02_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_SponsorStatement_13March2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 04_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_FiscalNote01_DEED_Foundation.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 05_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_FiscalNote02_DEED_PubEdFund.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 06_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_Research_Constitutional References.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 07_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_Research_AK Budget Passage History_22Jan2018.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 08_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_Research_Ed Budget Timelines_11March2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 09_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_Research_LAA Legal Memo_19Feb2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 10_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_Research_CAEPR_Teacher Turnover Costs.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 11_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_SupportLetter_Costello_Press Release_06March2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 12_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_SupportLetter_ASCA_08March2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 13_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_SupportLetter_AASB_11March2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SB 11 SJR 9 |
| 14_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_SupportLetter_NEA_12March2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |
| 15_SJR9_EarlyEdFunding_SupportEmails_13March2019.pdf |
SEDC 3/14/2019 9:00:00 AM SJUD 4/10/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SJR 9 |