04/03/2009 08:00 AM House EDUCATION

HB 206-HIGH SCHOOL ASSESSM'T/POSTSECONDARY CLASS                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
9:12:06 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SEATON announced  that the next order of  business would be                                                               
HOUSE  BILL NO.  206, "An  Act establishing  a career  assessment                                                               
requirement  in public  schools;  and  relating to  postsecondary                                                               
courses for secondary school students."                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
9:12:39 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SEATON  noted that although  the districts seem to  like HB
,  they   are  concerned  that  the   language  regarding  the                                                               
districts paying for the courses  after a student passes the High                                                               
School  Graduation   Qualifying  Exam  (HSGQE)  doesn't   have  a                                                               
limitation.  Therefore, he asked  the committee whether it wanted                                                               
to adopt  an amendment to  clarify that there isn't  an unlimited                                                               
requirement for  school districts to  fund all kinds  of distance                                                               
education and  not honor  the agreements  with the  University of                                                               
Alaska for reduced tuition rates.   In response to Representative                                                               
Buch,  Chair  Seaton  confirmed  that  he  is  referring  to  the                                                               
language on page 2, lines 21-23.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
9:14:29 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  WILSON related  her  understanding  that in  some                                                               
areas the  town, local Native  corporations, or fishing  fees pay                                                               
for these classes.  Therefore,  the language should be crafted to                                                               
accommodate the aforementioned, she indicated.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  SEATON suggested  that the  language could  be crafted  to                                                               
specify  that   the  district  will  secure   funding  for  those                                                               
additional courses, regardless of the mechanism.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
9:15:49 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  KELLER   recommended  deleting   this  [language]                                                               
because   every   community    has   a   different   arrangement.                                                               
Furthermore,  those arrangements  aren't carefully  regulated and                                                               
some of them are fairly creative.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
9:16:50 AM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SEATON suggested that the  discussion needs to focus on how                                                               
funding  will occur  and whether  there will  be a  limit to  the                                                               
benefit.    As  Representative  Keller  mentioned,  there  is  no                                                               
intention to  interfere with the  way districts have  aligned the                                                               
program.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
[HB 206 was held over.]