Legislature(2001 - 2002)
04/17/2002 02:52 PM Senate HES
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HB 239-VOCATIONAL EDUCATION PILOT PROGRAM
REPRESENTATIVE RICHARD FOSTER, sponsor of HB 239, introduced
staff member Larry Labolle, Dr. Davis, Superintendent of the
Bering Straits REAA, and Dr. Lujan, Superintendent of the Nome
Public Schools. He then highlighted the bill as follows.
HB 239 creates a learning center, a cooperative program that
utilizes the existing Nome-Beltz school complex to develop and
operate a pilot regional learning program. Both the Bering Strait
School District and the Nome Common Council, the two educational
entities based in the entire Bering Straits area, support HB 239.
The bill is also supported by Kawerak and other non-profits in
the area.
HB 239 will provide students from the villages with several weeks
of training in skills they can use in the "outside world" once
they finish school. He is hoping that by pooling the resources of
both school districts, this pilot program will be successful and
provide hope for the students. Those districts are not offering
skill training to students right now and do not have much to look
forward to. He asked Dr. Labolle to testify.
MR. LARRY LABOLLE, PhD, staff to Representative Foster, told
members that House members asked why this program is different
from other boarding programs. It will differ because it will
emphasize short courses and bring students in from village high
schools for short periods of time. It will give them a
concentrated chance to take courses such as driver education and
water safety, and it will provide job shadowing with private
industry and government agencies in the Nome area. This learning
center will give students in the smaller high schools a better
idea of the job opportunities available to them when they finish
high school.
DR. LABOLLE said a second important concept behind the learning
center is to teach urban survival skills. Those skills include
planning, shopping and preparing meals when put in an independent
living situation. Vocational training will also be provided. For
those reasons, the learning center will be different from a
traditional boarding school where students remain all year.
Students will continue to be part of their communities, school
districts, and high schools and will be counted as such for
attendance purposes.
SENATOR LEMAN referred to page 2, line 5, and asked if there is
any significance to the July 1, 2001 date.
DR. LABOLLE said that date applied when the bill was drafted last
year so that date will have to be moved forward one year.
DR. JOHN DAVIS, Superintendent of the Bering Straits School
District, stated support for HB 239 and explained that the effort
between the two school districts represents a unique step for
their particular region and their students. Not long ago REAAs
began as school districts. During that time, the Bering Straits
School District had its headquarters in Nome; it is now located
in Unalakleet. During that era, there was little effort for the
two school districts to coordinate. Although both districts have
prospered and grown, economies of scale do matter and neither has
been able to offer a wide variety of programs. In speaking with
the superintendent from Nome, he found similar concerns. HB 239
was born out of an effort to resolve those concerns.
DR. DAVIS said various discussions have taken place around the
state on how to reform education. Former Representative Gail
Phillips came to Nome and asked the community about the boarding
school concept several years ago. The boarding school concept is
not particularly revered in that region of the state, based on
previous experience. However, there is a great need and desire
for students to be exposed to and explore the greater riches of
the world and what is available to them. He said he questions the
belief that there are no jobs in his region as he doesn't find
that to be true. Each year he must go outside of his region and
the state to fill teaching positions. The medical, aviation, and
government professions do the same, as well as the trades. He
feels it is necessary to help students to build assets.
DR. DAVIS said he does not want to use another boarding school
format. That format is successful for many students, but others
would rather stay home during the high school years. For those
students, the learning center will provide an enriched program.
He said he is sensitive to the state's reluctance to add new
programs, so this proposal will not add a new expense to the
foundation formula. This program will allow students to be
counted once in their resident school district. The program, in
order to be self-supporting, will take supplemental funds. The
two districts expect to secure those supplemental funds through
Alaska's congressional delegation, primarily Senator Stevens. He
comes to the legislature today in an effort to begin the process.
At the local level, the districts have begun the process of
consolidating support between the districts and local agencies.
However, Senator Stevens made it clear that for him to go
forward, he needs a level of state support as well. HB 239
provides that support.
SENATOR LEMAN asked if the level of support is reflected in the
picking up the total cost in the fiscal note or whether funding a
portion of the cost would suffice and federal funds would be used
for the remainder.
DR. DAVIS said they expect that Senator Stevens will be "close to
the chest" with what he considers to be support. They think the
costs in the fiscal note provide the level of support the
districts need to demonstrate that this is a viable idea. The
amount in the fiscal note will allow the districts to get the
program up and going.
SENATOR LEMAN asked what the federal funds will be used for if
the state funds it to the level in the fiscal note.
DR. DAVIS said he is hoping the federal funds will allow the
districts to rehabilitate the facility. The advantage of this
proposal is that the districts are not looking for new
facilities. The districts are looking for rehabilitation funds as
well as funds to sustain the program. It will obviously encounter
two ongoing components: the residential aspect and the program
itself. He anticipates both districts will end up supporting, to
a degree, the programs themselves and will look to the federal
government for additional support. Their dream is to take the
program beyond high school level students and track them to see
if the program has been successful.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN asked Dr. Lujan to address the committee.
DR. STAN LUJAN, Superintendent of the Nome School District, said
he has been asked over the last few days what is in this proposal
for the Nome students. During the last 6 to 10 years, the Nome
School District has downsized. It had four vocational education
teachers at one time and is now down to one. Vocational education
has turned into career and technology education, which has added
that critical component of technology. Many schools across the
nation are offering classes such as Cisco Systems and other
certification programs that can be as short as 6 months to 1
year. Those individuals are marketable in today's world.
Technology has been incorporated into vocational education and
districts must prepare their students for that piece. He sees the
learning center as a program that will enhance the districts'
abilities because of economies of scale, maximizing both
districts' resources and staff. The districts can consolidate
their efforts without drawing any more money from the foundation
formula and start to generate a viable program.
Both districts have been working with the Gates Foundation for
the last two years and use proficiency-based standards. Three
components were mentioned at the Gates Foundation presentation:
personal/social health; service learning; and career and
technology education. Those components will be incorporated into
the program at the learning center when students arrive from the
villages for two or three week modules. It will enhance the
program for Nome students as well.
Kawerak has estimated that $175 million will be spent in the Nome
area in the next year on new construction. Right now, the
villages average a 30 to 32 percent unemployment rate. The rate
for adults not in the workforce, outside that percentage, is
about 60 percent. The districts want to address that issue at the
learning center by starting to prepare students for the future
and tap into jobs available in the Seward Peninsula instead of
bringing in people from outside.
3:07 p.m.
SENATOR WILKEN said he had the pleasure to visit the Beltz Center
in Nome three or four years ago and is happy to see someone is
thinking about what to do with the facility. He then asked that
the sponsor to provide information to the Finance Committee on
the operating cost of the program during the first two to five
years so that members can get a sense of the positive or negative
cash flow upon the districts and perhaps the state. He also asked
how this differs from programs that are offered at Kotzebue Tech
or Av-Tech, and why the state shouldn't develop a more robust
program in those two places.
DR. DAVIS replied:
The difference is, number one, we don't think the
resources or the will right now is available to add yet
another program so we're going to look for capturing as
much as we can within our own system as well as federal
dollars that are out there and available. That would be
one. Programmatically it differs in the sense that we
want to preserve the integrity of the community school
that currently exists and we believe with a
supplemental program where students come out for a
week, two - three weeks, to work on specific skill
sets. We think that we can continue to build their
level of confidence so when they ultimately do engage
in the world of work and move out of the village, it
won't be quite as big of a shock. I try to help people
understand that moving into Anchorage after you've
lived in Brevig Mission all of your life is a heck of a
shock on a system and it's not always successful and we
hear about those stories. But can you just imagine
taking one of your own children, children who you know
have grown up in Anchorage or Palmer or Fairbanks, and
then suddenly putting them on Diomede and saying now
function as a successful adult in a subsistence
environment? That would be equally as shocking and if
you've ever heard a child say this place is boring,
imagine putting them on Diomede where the helicopter
might get out there once a month and there's no arcade,
there's no movie theater, you're lucky if there's any
cable or things of that nature. So the transition for
both children to move is one that takes time and we
want to do it in segments so that we feel that we're
having success.
SENATOR WILKEN asked how the programs in the new facility will
differ from those at Kotzebue Tech or Av-Tech.
DR. DAVIS said they wouldn't be nearly as comprehensive in their
scope. The learning center will be much more exploratory and much
more awareness oriented. It will also build on the components of
the Gates Foundation. As an example, water safety or drivers
education could be offered. Most people don't recognize that to
work in Anchorage or Nome, people need a driver's license and the
only way some students can get one is to go through a formal
program, which is not available at either school at this time.
SENATOR WILKEN said that Senator Ted Stevens has also put forth
money for a regional learning center in Bethel and asked how this
program will differ from it.
DR. DAVIS replied:
We expect to capture that money and of course this is
our effort to demonstrate good faith as well as a
program that is worthy of the funds that are available
there so we'll work on that simultaneously and we're
hoping to make use of that - not just to rehabilitate
the facility, but also to operate the program in the
future.
SENATOR WILKEN asked how the program will differ from the Bethel
program.
DR. DAVIS said he is not intimately aware of the Bethel program,
although he believes that program is based on students attending
for longer periods of time.
SENATOR WILKEN acknowledged that the Bering Straits and Nome
districts have a facility sitting there.
DR. DAVIS agreed and said one component not available in the
state right now is a program geared toward the student staying
home. Several programs use the boarding concept and are available
to students. This program will provide a niche for the other
student who has yet to be served.
SENATOR WILKEN said legislators had this same conversation three
years ago when it talked about the "Hutch" program in Fairbanks.
That program was designed to bring students in from any part of
Alaska and put them through a three or four week program. He
maintained this all blends together to increase the availability
of more robust programs.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN asked if legislation is required to implement
this program.
DR. LUJAN said they concluded that in order to receive funding,
legislation is necessary. They were not able to find any need for
legislation if funding was not attached.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN asked Eddie Jeans to review the fiscal note for
members. She then asked Mr. Jeans if the fiscal note contains the
state dollars needed for a new facility over a four-year period
in the amounts of $150,000, $236,000 and $310,000 for two years.
She also asked how this money would flow to a school district.
MR. EDDIE JEANS, School Finance Director, Department of Education
and Early Development, said he would first like to point out that
Senator Leman was correct in that the bill needs to be aligned
with the fiscal note. He explained that HB 239 would establish a
pilot program in the Bering Straits REAA, which only has two
districts, the Nome and the Bering Straits districts. DOEED would
enter into a grant agreement with the school districts to
administer this pilot program. DOEED would establish a contract
with the districts to operate the pilot program and require the
districts to provide periodic reports of the progress of the
program, as well as an assessment of student performance.
MR. JEANS said the detail on the fiscal note shows the
anticipated cost of initiating this pilot project each year. In
the first year, a program coordinator would travel between
communities and provide support. There would also be additional
travel from remote communities to Nome by school administrators
to see how the program might assist their students. It would also
provide funding for an engineer's report for renovation of the
housing unit. The districts would be seeking funds from Senator
Stevens for the actual renovation. DOEED does not believe the
renovation will be complete in the second year so students
participating in the program will have to be boarded throughout
Nome. The program coordinator will arrange housing in the second
year. DOEED anticipates the renovation to be completed in the
third year and two full-time house parents will be required.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN asked why this is not considered to be a capital
project.
MR. JEANS said the state money will not be used to renovate the
school, although it will provide funding for the engineer's
report. If DOEED was actually managing the capital piece of this,
it would be a capital allocation but this pilot project will be
done through a grant to the district.
SENATOR WILKEN said if in four years this program is found to be
a rousing success, where the funding will come from in the fifth
year.
MR. JEANS said the legislature will have to decide whether it
wants to support the residential component. DOEED has no
mechanism in place to support a residential program of this
nature.
DR. DAVIS said he was asked the same question by Chairwoman
Green. The districts provided her with a letter of commitment
saying that the districts will not ask for supplemental funding
from the state.
SENATOR WILKEN said it will be sink or swim in five years while
the people's investment will be $1 million over four years.
3:20 p.m.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN asked why the state would be obligated to pay
for transportation.
DR. DAVIS said the state is not obligated. The districts are
hoping to give this program a running start so that they can
demonstrate that it can be a rousing success. He said the basic
funding formula for schools is tight. The districts do get
supplemental funds but those funds are generally grant monies for
specific purposes. In order to make this pilot project work, both
districts need some latitude.
SENATOR DAVIS said she thinks HB 239 is a great concept,
particularly since the facility is available. Although the
districts will not come back to the legislature for funding after
the fourth year, they anticipate receiving other monies to
support the program, some being federal, so the program is likely
to stay intact. By that time, the districts may even be able to
take some money from their foundation formula funds. She noted
that residents of that area do not want their children to leave
home. She urged members to support the bill.
SENATOR WILKEN commented that he supports moving HB 239 to the
Senate Finance Committee, but there he will wear a different hat.
While he is encouraged by the use of the vacant facility, he is
struggling with the fact that the taxpayers of Alaska will be
contributing to those in unorganized Alaska that do not pay
anything for education. This bill takes that dilemma one more
step. He will wrestle with whether he can support this type of
expenditure without asking the people of that REAA to contribute
anything when the people of his district do.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN suggested that the district superintendents talk
to community members before the bill is heard in the Senate
Finance Committee. She believes that Senator Ted Stevens was
referring to local money when he spoke of state support. That was
the case when he spoke to the residents of her area and although
he didn't preclude state money, he referred to the local people
as generating part of the money. She cautioned that Finance
members are making some tough decisions so to ask for an increase
of this amount will be a very tough call.
SENATOR WARD moved HB 239 from committee with individual
recommendations and then withdrew his motion.
SENATOR LEMAN moved to change, on page 2, line 5, "2001" to
"2002" and "2005" to "2006" and to change the word "competed" to
"completed" on page 1, line 6 [Amendment 1].
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN announced that with no objection, Amendment 1
was adopted.
SENATOR WARD moved SCS HB 239(HES) from committee with individual
recommendations and its accompanying fiscal notes.
CHAIRWOMAN GREEN announced that with no objection, the motion
carried. There being no further business to come before the
committee, she adjourned the meeting at 3:26 p.m.
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