Legislature(2021 - 2022)BUTROVICH 205
02/15/2021 09:00 AM Senate EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB19 | |
| SJR8 | |
| SB42 | |
| SB8 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 19 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SJR 8 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 42 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 8 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
SB 8-PRE-K/ELEM ED PROGRAMS/FUNDING; READING
10:12:41 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND reconvened the meeting and announced the
consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 8 "An Act relating to early
education programs provided by school districts; relating to
school age eligibility; relating to funding for early education
programs; establishing early education programs and a voluntary
parent program; relating to the duties of the Department of
Education and Early Development; relating to certification of
teachers; establishing a reading intervention program for public
school students enrolled in grades kindergarten through three;
establishing a reading program in the Department of Education
and Early Development; establishing a teacher retention working
group; and providing for an effective date."
He stated his intention to introduce and hold the bill in
committee. He invited sponsor Senator Begich to introduce his
bill.
10:13:04 AM
SENATOR TOM BEGICH, speaking as sponsor of SB 8, stated that he
would hold the sectional analysis until the next hearing.
10:13:24 AM
At ease
10:13:38 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND reconvened the meeting.
10:13:40 AM
SENATOR BEGICH explained that what the committee would hear was
not dissimilar from what they heard from Senator Hughes. He
asked the committee to read his sponsor statement, which focuses
more on the early learning components. In late 2019, he began to
work with the commissioner [of the Department of Education and
Early Development (DEED)] and the governor to address reading.
The committee has often discussed the state's reading scores.
Senator Stevens and Senator Hughes and others have been driven
by a desire to improve outcomes. In his discussions with the
commissioner, he recognized early on that this relationship
existed between reading and prekindergarten. That relationships
led himself, the commissioner, and the governor to sit down at
one point and identify the principles they believed needed to be
in a successful education bill if the state were to truly turn
the curve. A lot of that was built on the prior work of Senator
Stevens and Senator Hughes.
10:15:19 AM
SENATOR BEGICH said the three principles are 1) high-quality,
voluntary early education, 2) high-quality reading, and 3)
substantive support from DEED to ensure that teachers are
prepped and ready and the districts have the support to succeed.
All of this led to a comprehensive amount of research to
identify what programming worked best out there. They looked at
Mississippi, Florida, Colorado, and Oklahoma. They tried to draw
the best of the best in a collaborative effort. Last year, the
committee had seven hearings. The prior chair said thank
goodness it is Valentine's Day. May they finally show the love
to this bill and move it out, and the committee did. The
committee did it thoughtfully, not hastily. The committee
included almost everything suggested. The committee listened to
superintendents, teachers, education experts, the education
association, and the Alaska Policy Forum. The committee listened
to all the voices in between. Not everyone was satisfied with
the final product that came out of the committee, but everyone
recognized that a final product cannot be perfect for everyone.
It was not a bipartisan bill; it was a nonpartisan bill. The
difference is that a bipartisan bill takes one political opinion
and another political opinion and mashes them both up and comes
out with a piece of mud in the middle that is often reflective
of the worst, not the best, of an effort. A nonpartisan bill
does the opposite. It creates a consortium of ideas, taking the
best from either side, putting partisanship aside. This bill
does that. It takes a nonpartisan approach to education based on
evidence and moves that forward.
10:17:42 AM
SENATOR BEGICH said SB 8 and SB 42 both take a nonpartisan
approach to putting forward good, consistent education policy.
If the committee or this body passes policy that makes them feel
good for a moment, it doesn't solve the problem for generations
of children. It does the opposite. It sets them up for failure
not just of opportunity but of expectation. With that in mind,
SB 8 does not have as many items as SB 42. It focuses strictly
on the prekindergarten connection to reading, how those work
together with support from the Department of Education and Early
Development, how it provides support to teachers, and how it was
developed with all those elements in mind. His hope is that the
committee will see the wisdom of putting these ideas together in
a common bill that the entire committee can support and that
supports all of the elements that he is describing. If the
committee doesn't do that, he thinks it will be a mistake. He is
open to finding a process that works for everyone at this table
and in this legislature, and for the children and their parents.
10:19:20 AM
SENATOR STEVENS said both bills are extremely important. Years
ago he was involved in a Chamber of Commerce project to help
adults who cannot read. The committee would be amazed by the
number of adults who have difficulty reading. It is so unfair to
not help children learn to read. The committee has to make sure
that these waivers make sense. This is life threatening and life
enhancing. People who can't read will have problems their entire
lives. They will have lower incomes and be in prison more. He
hopes they address that very seriously and not just let children
be socially advanced. The committee should do the best it can to
make sure every child reads at level.
10:20:43 AM
SENATOR MICCICHE shared that when he arrived in the legislature
eight years ago, the partisan difference was that one party
thought if the reading issue was not faced head on, it would
solve itself. The other party was education at whatever the cost
may be. He has seen the two sides come together, which is
amazing. The evolution has been productive. Now a conservative
group like the Alaska Policy Forum is saying the state is ranked
dead last in the nation in fourth grade reading. That is a fact
and that is not good for anyone. He has four kids and one had a
reading problem. The reading intervention from the Kenai
Peninsula Borough School District was significant and turned her
life around quickly. He saw a significant difference in her
capacity to be successful in other subjects as well. Senator
Hughes talks about pockets of success. His hope for this process
is that even though they got one bill across the finish line in
the Senate last year, the committee will spend time with
successful districts to see what is and is not working. Perhaps
the committee can put something together to move the state from
beyond dead last after all these years. Money doesn't do it.
Senator Begich is right, just pouring money into it doesn't
deliver results. Senator Hughes has put a lot of thought into
what can be successful as well. He continued to say:
What we do know is we're lagging and will continue to
lag if we don't find the sweet spot. It doesn't matter
the party, doesn't matter the approach, it has to be
the right one. I am excited about working through
this. I do know that being a dad of some pretty
amazing kids, every child is different. It doesn't
matter how intelligent they may be if they don't have
the right intervention when they're running into a
problem, they're going to fall behind and stay there
and I hope whatever bill comes out of this committee
can help solve that problem.
10:23:40 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND held SB 8 in committee.