Legislature(2021 - 2022)BUTROVICH 205
03/26/2021 09:00 AM Senate EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation(s) Hearing(s) | |
| SB111 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| *+ | SB 111 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
March 26, 2021
9:07 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Roger Holland, Chair
Senator Gary Stevens, Vice Chair
Senator Shelley Hughes
Senator Peter Micciche
Senator Tom Begich
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION(S) HEARING
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Jennifer Stafford - Palmer
- CONFIRMATION ADVANCED
SENATE BILL NO. 111
"An Act relating to the duties of the Department of Education
and Early Development; relating to public schools; relating to
early education programs; relating to funding for early
education programs; relating to school age eligibility; relating
to reports by the Department of Education and Early Development;
relating to reports by school districts; relating to
certification and competency of teachers; relating to assessing
reading deficiencies and providing reading intervention services
to public school students enrolled in grades kindergarten
through three; relating to textbooks and materials for reading
intervention services; establishing a reading program in the
Department of Education and Early Development; relating to
school operating funds; relating to a virtual education
consortium; and providing for an effective date."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 111
SHORT TITLE: EARLY EDUCATION; READING INTERVENTION
SPONSOR(s): EDUCATION
03/24/21 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/24/21 (S) EDC, FIN
03/26/21 (S) EDC AT 9:00 AM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
JENNIFER STAFFORD, Appointee
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Department of Education and Early Development (DEED)
Palmer, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as the governor's appointee to the
Professional Teaching Practices Commission.
ED KING, Staff
Senator Roger Holland
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented the sectional analysis for SB 111
on behalf of the sponsor.
ACTION NARRATIVE
9:07:28 AM
CHAIR ROGER HOLLAND called the Senate Education Standing
Committee meeting to order at 9:07 a.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Begich, Stevens, and Chair Holland. Senators
Hughes and Micciche arrived shortly thereafter.
^CONFIRMATION(S) HEARING(S)
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
9:08:20 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND announced the consideration of the governor's
appointee to the Professional Teaching Practices Commission,
Jennifer Stafford. He invited Ms. Stafford to testify.
9:08:31 AM
JENNIFER STAFFORD, Appointee, Palmer, Alaska, said that she has
been an educator for 17 years. She believes that truly effective
education prepares students to succeed in a diverse and
interdependent world. She has the passion necessary to improve
the standards and practices within the education profession,
which in turn will prepare educators and students for success.
Her strength as an educational leader lie in her experience and
her sincere desire to grow highly functional educators committed
to working together to best serve students. In 2012, she
received her administration degree from the University of Alaska
Anchorage and in 2016 received a doctorate in K-12
organizational leadership through Grand Canyon University. She
has taught all grades, K-8, has been a department leader,
assistant principal, instructional leader and a coach and mentor
to teachers. She has a broad understanding of how communities
influence educators' perspectives and in turn the education
profession. She has served on health agency boards. That,
combined with her education experience, has helped her to
analyze school problems with a broader understanding of major
ethical and social economic influences. She also has grounded
experience with working with individuals from all walks of life.
Along with her knowledge of the education profession, she
demonstrates compassion, integrity, and a passion for helping
others. Her strong interpersonal skills, sense of humor, and
honesty are important tools to be an excellent educational
leader.
CHAIR HOLLAND commented that a sense of humor and honesty are
core criteria for most occupations in life.
9:12:17 AM
SENATOR BEGICH observed that the position is for a classroom
teacher and her resume said she is an instructional coach. He
asked if she is a classroom teacher.
DR. STAFFORD answered yes, although her title is instructional
coach.
CHAIR HOLLAND noted that she teaches a third grade parallel core
literacy and skills block class.
DR. STAFFORD said she also teaches smaller groups of students
who are struggling with reading.
SENATOR BEGICH asked when she was appointed.
DR. STAFFORD answered in December.
SENATOR BEGICH asked if she is familiar with the code of ethics
for educators and if she is prepared to issue reprimands and
suspensions and revocations of teaching certificates for those
who might violate that code of ethics.
DR. STAFFORD answered yes.
9:14:02 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND opened public testimony, ascertained there was
none, and closed public testimony.
9:14:18 AM
SENATOR STEVENS stated that in accordance with AS 39.05.080, the
Senate Education Standing Committee reviewed the following and
recommends the appointments be forwarded to a joint session for
consideration:
Professional Teaching Practices Commission
Jennifer Stafford - Palmer
CHAIR HOLLAND reminded members that signing the reports
regarding appointments to boards and commissions in no way
reflects individual members' approval or disapproval of the
appointees; the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
9:14:59 AM
At ease
SB 111-EARLY EDUCATION; READING INTERVENTION
9:16:39 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 111
"An Act relating to the duties of the Department of Education
and Early Development; relating to public schools; relating to
early education programs; relating to funding for early
education programs; relating to school age eligibility; relating
to reports by the Department of Education and Early Development;
relating to reports by school districts; relating to
certification and competency of teachers; relating to assessing
reading deficiencies and providing reading intervention services
to public school students enrolled in grades kindergarten
through three; relating to textbooks and materials for reading
intervention services; establishing a reading program in the
Department of Education and Early Development; relating to
school operating funds; relating to a virtual education
consortium; and providing for an effective date."
CHAIR HOLLAND noted this was the first hearing for SB 111. It is
a committee bill that builds on the work done over several
years. He plans to treat it as a starting place to develop
something that works for Alaska. In this spirit, his office is
already taking notes on potential amendments. As the committee
walks through the sectional analysis, he hopes members are
willing to discuss and debate components of the bill.
9:17:35 AM
SENATOR MICCICHE arrived.
CHAIR HOLLAND said he hopes to hear from stakeholders about
strengths and weaknesses. He presented the sponsor statement for
SB 111 that read as follows:
[Original punctuation provided.]
The Academic Improvement and Modernization (AIM) Act is a
bipartisan effort to improve reading skills through
increased accountability, well placed resources, and by
leveraging the modernization efforts we have already begun
during the pandemic. This bill affirms it is time to rise
to this challenge and invest in the success of our
children.
Unfortunately, Alaska currently ranks 50th out of the 50
states in fourth grade reading even though Alaska spends
more per student on education than most other states. This
is not a new problem. The data shows Alaska has been well
below the national average for decades. And, since at least
2014, the legislature has been debating how to close the
achievement gap. It is time for action.
SB 111 seeks to improve our student outcomes through
several avenues. First, the bill recognizes that students
must be ready to learn when they enter kindergarten. In the
most recent assessment of early education quality across
the United States, Alaska scored just one out of ten. That
is why the AIM Act establishes a financial incentive for
districts to improve the quality of their early education
programs by allowing districts to include students of high-
quality early education programs in the foundation formula.
The bill also creates a targeted grant program for low
performing districts that need to develop or improve their
early education programs.
Next, the AIM Act calls on the Department of Education and
Early Development (DEED) to establish assessment tools, as
those described in the nationally acclaimed Florida Model,
to identify students that are falling behind. Also referred
to as the "Read By 9 Program," this model then directs
school districts to provide intervention services to those
students that need it. This "testing with purpose" process
will provide real help to Alaskan students.
In addition to the assistance provided to students, the AIM
Act ensures that teachers are well prepared to meet the
challenge. This bill adds six reading specialist positions
at DEED that will work directly with teachers across the
state to improve the quality of education in Alaska. It
also requires the Board of Education to establish training
and testing requirements in evidence-based reading
instruction.
Finally, SB 111 creates a virtual education consortium,
managed by DEED. Such a consortium has been under
consideration even before the 2020 pandemic, but this
timely effort will leverage the recent investments in
virtual learning. It will allow students that did well
working remotely to continue to do so and will modernize
the way Alaska's teachers access professional development
courses.
Thank you for your consideration of the Academic
Improvement and Modernization Act.
CHAIR HOLLAND said that student performance is not a new
problem. Parents, educators, politicians, and even students have
been trying to figure out the solutions for years. He has no
preconceived notions that the committee can fix the education
problems in Alaska. It will take the good work of legislators,
the commissioner, superintendents, teachers, parents, and
students to improve the performance of students in Alaska.
Hundreds of hours of work went into the previous bills from
which SB 111 was constructed. It relies heavily on the past work
of others. Most of the proposed changes reflect the simple act
of combining previous bills and making changes to conform to the
fiscal constraints of the state today. SB 111 has sideboards for
fiscal accountability. As an Alaskan senator and chair of the
Senate Education Committee, two of his highest priorities are to
be accessible and to be willing to listen. In every venue he
tries to make himself as accessible as possible. This is first
chance to do it on the record. He encouraged people to contact
him in whatever fashion they prefer, email, cell phone, text, or
phone calls.
9:22:47 AM
SENATOR HUGHES said this is a big day to have the bill before
the committee for the first time. She thanked him because she
went to the chair early in the session and said that the
concepts in the bill are bigger than any one person and that it
could be an Education Committee bill because many senators and
hopefully the house can get behind the bill. She loves that the
bill is so focused on student outcomes. It will also be helpful
to teachers as well. She has heard from teachers in other states
who were frustrated until their states had read-by-nine
[initiatives] and found it rewarding to be successful after. In
the long term, it will be something that teachers love.
SENATOR HUGHES said that it will take a lot to get it up and
going, but it will be good for teachers and students.
Legislators hear many bills on many important subjects, but for
the future of the state and the direct impact on individuals and
families, this bill rises to the top. This can change the course
of a student's life. Members have all heard that education is
key and can be the great equalizer, so someone from a
disadvantaged, low-income background can break out of that
cycle. But they can only do so if they learn to read. The
committee is providing a key to children just being born. More
will break the barriers. When she thinks about the future of
individual lives, this is positive. When students learn to read
and are able to function well in high school and able to move on
some form of higher education or training, they are less likely
to be dependent on the state, less likely to end up in the
correctional system. They are less likely to be on welfare and
Medicaid. It will help Alaska overall. That seems like a high
goal, but there are so many practical things that this will make
more of a difference than just about any bill in the building.
SENATOR BEGICH said he appreciated the opening comments from the
chair and the comments from Senator Hughes. A bill that seeks to
address the challenges of education in Alaska has to rise to
those challenges. Using the baby analogy, the bill is a newborn.
He asked what it will be in 15 or 20 years. At this point the
bill doesn't rise to the premise of the sponsor statement, but
he hopes it does by the end of the process. Right now the bill
identifies elements of past bills that were bipartisan,
constructed in good faith based on evidence. Pieces of those
bills appear in this bill. There is no denying that. The
critical elements that are described in the sponsor statement
are ultimately removed from this bill by repeal and the state
returns to the early education status quo that preceded this
bill. The language even returns to where it is today. Other
bills in the committee have been designed to permanently move
the state forward, to make a covenant with parents, teachers,
and students to show legislators truly believe education can be
transformed. His support will depend on whether the committee
ends up with a product that truly transforms education. The
bill, as he and the chair have discussed, does not do that. It
does not fundamentally meet those challenges. The committee will
go through a process and walk through the bill section by
section and identify those things that are clearly based on
evidence and work. In the end, the committee has had many
presentations which have underscored the evidence about what
will turn the curb for Alaska education. This bill before him
does not do that, but the committee should have that robust
discussion and go through the process. Hopefully, it will be as
Senator Hughes described and all have desired, a bill that will
transform education. If it isn't that bill, all will have to
take some responsibility.
CHAIR HOLLAND expressed appreciation for the comments and said
they will agree to disagree, but he looks forward to hearing
where the bill has shortcomings.
9:29:10 AM
SENATOR MICCICHE said he appreciates the committee approach for
the bill. Alaska has a problem. The spending is one issue, but
the biggest issue is Alaska being the 50th state of 50 states.
Alaska has a lot of work to do. He likes many parts of the bill.
He is a supporter of early education. Alaska obviously has a
problem with reading skills. Senator Hughes captured that well.
It is key to improving outcomes. He likes the reading
intervention sections. He likes that there is a way for parents
to waive a child who is not being promoted. He likes the midyear
option for advancement if someone does catch up. The bill has
incentives for parents and students and financial incentives for
district performance. The committee has a lot of discussion to
improve this bill. He is interested in hearing from others to
make the best possible bill. He has an open mind about how to
make it the best possible legislation to make a difference for
the kids of Alaska who are struggling, particularly this year.
His kids are going back to the classroom for the first time in
over a year, so he likes the virtual education aspects of the
bill as well.
SENATOR MICCICHE said he is excited about what the committee can
do with this as a starting point. He noted that not everyone is
as comfortable with the way it has come together, but it is a
new starting point. The committee can work together for the best
product possible. He hopes legislators can get something across
the finish line that will truly make a difference and perhaps
demonstrate a level of effectiveness that continues the programs
provided in this bill to perpetuity. If they actually deliver
the results the committee thinks they can, he can imagine these
programs having the support of Alaskans going forward.
CHAIR HOLLAND stated that he gives his cell phone number out at
meetings every chance he gets, and the phone doesn't ring often
enough.
9:32:30 AM
SENATOR STEVENS said this bill has been a long time coming. The
legislators have discussed this for years. A task force went
into great detail. The committee has had a lot of testimony from
experts. He is looking forward to the discussion and debate. It
is an issue the committee must address. He has been surprised to
find there are adults who cannot read, who never had the
opportunity to learn to read. In his life he has always been a
reader. With two grandchildren, he is in awe of the magic of
reading. This is such an important thing. He loves the idea of
reading by nine. It is a great hope for the future.
CHAIR HOLLAND asked Mr. King to present the sectional analysis.
9:34:45 AM
ED KING, Staff, Senator Roger Holland, Alaska State Legislature,
Juneau, Alaska, said this bill is important not only for current
students but for the future economy. As an economist, he sees
this as an economic development bill. If this bill is successful
in achieving what it is aiming to do, the children who graduate
from high schools and go to trade schools and college will be
higher skilled and provide higher value-added to the state's
economic system. Looking out over the next decade and beyond,
this is an important bill from many aspects.
MR. KING said the intent is to present the sectional analysis
and hopefully to have discussion along the way.
MR. KING said the title, the Alaska Academic Improvement and
Modernization (AIM) Act, is important and meaningful. It is not
called the Reading Improvement bill because reading is important
for all a student's academic performance. A student who can read
better can do math word problems better. The student can learn
science and history and every other topic better. Reading
improvement leads to academic improvement. The modernization
aspect is for two components. The bill modernizes the way
reading in Alaska is approached. It brings Alaska on par with
about 30 other states that have adopted comprehensive reading
intervention policy. The bill also addresses technology by
bringing in the virtual consortium to modernize the state's
system by leveraging technology. The acronym AIM is also
important. Policies that are deliberate and strategic are
effective. The idea of aiming at a target is more effective than
a shotgun blast approach.
MR. KING began the sectional analysis for SB 111:
Sec. 1 7/1/21 [Effective Date]
Establishes this Act as the Alaska Academic Improvement and
Modernization (AIM) Act.
MR. KING said that Section 2 adds the term "approved by" to
reflect that the Department of Education and Early Development
(DEED) is given additional responsibility to approve pre-K
programs, not merely supervise them.
Sec. 2 7/1/21 [Effective Date]
AS 14.03.060(e), relating to the definition of an
elementary school, is amended by:
• Changing the term "pre-elementary" to "early
education" (defined in sections 10 and 14).
• Adding the term "approved by" to conform to the
addition of AS 14.03.410(a)(2) (added by section 10).
• Making clearer the relationship between Head Start
agencies and DEED.
• Removing the language regarding ADM count, as it is
moved to AS 14.03.410(f) (within section 10) and AS
14.17.500 (section 21).
9:38:20 AM
SENATOR HUGHES said the title Read by Nine was part of last
year's Alaska Reads Act. She asked if SB 111 includes that title
and if not, if the committee would entertain that.
MR. KING answered that is not the title of the article added to
the bill.
SENATOR BEGICH said the Alaska Reads Act is an identified
process that the committee went through for over a year with the
commissioner, governor, and numerous stakeholders who attached
their names to the Alaska Reads Act. This bill doesn't meet the
standards of the Alaska Reads Act. He would be loathe to call
this the Alaska Reads Act. The staff has clearly identified why
it is called the Alaska Academic Improvement and Modernization
Act. The title is consistent with what the bill is attempting to
do. He said he thinks sticking with the current title makes more
sense so as to not cause confusion for the public,
CHAIR HOLLAND said that a side-by-side comparison of SB 8 and SB
42 and SB 111 would show that many parts, including the central
portion of the Alaska Reads Act, are included in entirety in SB
111.
SENATOR HUGHES said the commissioner was interested in keeping
the title Read by Nine for that section. She doesn't see a
problem. She respects Senator Begich's thoughts on that. She
understands that when she has introduced legislation, it changes
during the process. There is enough similarity that she would
feel comfortable calling it that. The commissioner did mention
that to her. He worked on the bill with Senator Begich and
seemed comfortable with that title.
CHAIR HOLLAND said the Read by Nine program is difficult to find
in internet searches because it goes by so many different names.
9:42:36 AM
SENATOR BEGICH said that if the bill stays as it is now, all
that will be left after 10 years is the Read by Nine component.
The bill can be called whatever name, but in the end, after all
the repealers in this bill, all that will be left is hard
retention and the reading part with none of the supports and
none of the early education pieces. All that is left is virtual
education and the reading component. If that is the will of the
committee, then he does believe they will see an outcry from
educators and parents. The staff has made a strong argument for
why it is called the AIM Act and he supports that.
CHAIR HOLLAND said this is an agree-to-disagree point. He
mentioned fiscal sideboards in his earlier comments. In 10
years, whoever is on the committee will have to evaluate the
efficacy of the program. The best legislation has sunsets,
programs have to be revisited and reevaluated. The bill makes a
change to the foundation formula and it should have that fiscal
control.
SENATOR HUGHES said she likes the term AIM; it covers the whole
bill. She was just referring to the reading intervention piece.
Senator Begich is concerned about the repeal. She sees it as a
sunset and a chance for the legislature to review and make
improvements to the legislation. If the pre-K pieces are
working, there will be data. Legislators put sunsets in a lot of
things. It forces legislators to come to the table to consider
programs. If it is working well, she would expect that it will
continue. If she is convinced about something with a sunset
date, she does not worry much about the sunset because the proof
will be in the pudding. She doesn't share the same concern. If
it works, it will continue.
SENATOR BEGICH said he will address those points as they go
through the sectional.
9:45:50 AM
SENATOR MICCICHE said Senator Begich captured his concern. A
sectional is to lay out what is in the bill. This bill has 47
sections. The public should know what it is in the bill. He
encouraged the committee to move forward [with the sectional] as
the committee will have lots of time to discuss the details.
MR. KING continued with the sectional:
Sec. 3 6/30/32 [Effective Date]
AS 14.03.060(e), relating to the definition of an
elementary school, is amended in 2032 to reverse the
addition of "approved by" in section 2. This change is
required to conform with the repeal of AS 14.03.410
(related to early education funding) in section 38.
SENATOR BEGICH asked if the later section removes the criteria
for high quality pre-K and Section 22 removes pre-K from the
formula because of the sunset provisions.
MR. KING answered yes; the repealer sections, as well as Section
22, are sunset provisions. The drafter's request was to put
sunset provisions in the bill.
SENATOR BEGICH said he understood and wants to clarify that DEED
would no longer be in a position to approve a pre-K program
because the state will be where it is today where the department
doesn't have that authority.
MR. KING replied that is correct. If the repeal provision takes
effect, then the conforming amendments would also take effect.
MR. KING continued the sectional:
Sec. 4 7/1/21 [Effective Date]
Amends AS 14.03.072, related to providing information to K-
3 parents, to incorporate the reading intervention services
added by section 33 and changes the word "literacy" to
"reading."
SENATOR BEGICH said this segment of the bill was drawn from SB 8
and SB 42 with one exception, the words "culturally relevant"
before "intervention strategies" are not included. That was
based on documentation DEED provided. He asked if that will be
addressed in a committee substitute.
9:49:26 AM
CHAIR HOLLAND said this was the original language from Senate
Bill 6, the original version of SB 8 from the previous year.
MR. KING said the culturally responsive language did not
translate from SB 8 to this bill, but it is one of more than a
dozen potential amendments that are being considered.
SENATOR BEGICH said that Senate Bill 6 changed at the end of the
legislative process because the committee worked with
stakeholders who reminded the committee and DEED of culturally
responsive schools, for which the legislature adopted standards.
CHAIR HOLLAND said he is sure that the amendments will make
their way through the process.
SENATOR HUGHES referenced Section 3 that says DEED would need to
approve or supervise a Head Start program. She questioned
whether DEED oversees Head Start as she thought it was a federal
program. The state match for Head Start is $6 million.
CHAIR HOLLAND replied that DEED will be able to answer that. He
asked Mr. King for a response.
MR. KING responded that his intuition is that DEED is not in
charge of Head Start agencies. He deferred to the Department of
Education and Early Development to answer that question.
SENATOR BEGICH added that DEED has answered that on the record
in the committee. Where Section 3 says "including a program
operated by a head start agency as a head start program" is
simply conforming language with the Head Start statutes. His
office has a legal opinion from Legislative Legal that it
provided in the past and can again. The state cannot direct that
federal program. The state does have the authority for program
supervision over a Head Start within a school, but the state
cannot dictate what the program looks like. Most Head Starts are
partnerships with nonprofits and other agencies. This language
was added by Head Start agencies to an earlier version of the
bill to clarify that.
SENATOR HUGHES asked if the chair's intent is to get through the
sectional or is it an opportunity to ask questions.
CHAIR HOLLAND said the intent was for light questioning during
the sectional analysis with more in depth discussion with
invited testimony, but committee members were encouraged to ask
questions at this time.
9:53:28 AM
SENATOR HUGHES said that at some point she would like DEED to
speak about Head Start and what it means when the department
supervises a program. Normally an agency has some input when it
supervises a program.
SENATOR BEGICH said he would submit the Legislative Legal memo.
MR. KING said the intent is to continue the sectional at the
next hearing and it is helpful to get the questions on the
record so they can be addressed going forward.
CHAIR HOLLAND said his office already has plans for changes that
Mr. King might bring up during the sectional.
MR. KING said that Section 5 clarifies that reports from the
department are not limited to subsection (d) but include all the
report under Section 120. The language on page 3, from line 20,
onto page 4, line 5, has two paragraphs added. Section 9 of the
bill is a separate section of the report, which requires the
department to provide information on the implementation of the
reading intervention programs.
Sec. 5 7/1/21 [Effective Date]
Amends AS 14.03.078(a), related to DEED reporting
requirements, by:
• adding school districts as a recipient of the DEED's
annual report.
• expanding the reporting requirement to incorporate all
reports in AS 14.03.120, including those listed below.
• adding ratios of administrative employees to students,
administrative employees to teachers, and teacher to
student ratios to the annual report.
• adding a progress report of the reading intervention
programs established by section 33.
SENATOR BEGICH said this section is from SB 8. It had a Section
10 related to reporting on the Teachers as Parents program. He
asked why that was removed from the reporting requirements.
MR. KING answered that was missed in drafting and will be
addressed in the next draft.
MR. KING said that Section 6 is also about DEED reporting and
definitions. This language came largely from SB 42.
Sec. 6 7/1/21 [Effective Date]
Adds two subsections to AS 14.03.078, relating to
department reporting requirements, which requires reports
to be posted online and defines an administrative employee
(as referenced in section 5).
MR. KING said that Section 7 is complicated and is a section
identified as perhaps needing additional work. This requires a
school-age child to be five before June 1 instead of September
1. There is a lot of history in the language that leads into
this section that is related to other sections of law that could
be complicated.
Sec. 7 7/1/26 [Effective Date]
Amends AS 14.03.080(d), related to entering public school,
by changing the date for early kindergarten start from
September 1 to June 1 and applies stronger admission
allowance for taking a readiness examination. This section
doesn't take effect for five years (section 44).
SENATOR BEGICH said the committee is talking about ensuring that
there is evidence that the bill works in Alaska. He asked if
there is evidence that supports this section and is this section
eventually repealed if it does not work.
MR. KING suggested that Senator Hughes could speak to the intent
of this section.
9:58:53 AM
SENATOR HUGHES explained that it is based on the evidence from
other countries where they begin teaching reading a little later
and testimony from teachers about the difference in the maturity
of students entering school. A few months can make a huge
difference. This will not kick in immediately to accommodate
families and their work schedules. She asked for the effective
date.
MR. King answered the effective date for Section 7 is July 1,
2026.
SENATOR HUGHES said that gives families lots of time. It does
not keep a child out of school. Four-year-olds could be tested
to show they are ready. She has heard from teachers that they
appreciate this, but she hears from families not to do this
right away because they have not planned on it, so that was why
the date was moved out.
CHAIR HOLLAND said Section 7 has no sunset clause, but one could
be added.
SENATOR BEGICH said evidence was provided about Finland,
Australia, Denmark, and some other countries. Each of those also
had consistent early education programs with more than 90
percent [of children] participating. He does not think education
policy should have sunset clauses. He is just noting the
inconsistency with sunset clauses in some areas of the bill and
not others. He is hoping that the sunset clauses with the
exception of the grants program will be removed by the end of
the process.
CHAIR HOLLAND thanked him for the clarification.
SENATOR MICCICHE asked why not give families an option for an
earlier start if the family is prepared for that.
CHAIR HOLLAND said that the bold part of Section 7 talks about
how a student with a passing score on an assessment approved by
the department may enter public school kindergarten. There will
be an assessment to allow children to enter kindergarten even if
they turn 5 after June 1.
SENATOR HUGHES clarified that four-year-olds will always have
the option to begin early. Kindergarten teachers will say that
in their cohorts there are children who could stand to wait a
few months. She is hearing that many families decide to wait a
year because they would rather their child be at the top of the
class rather than the bottom. It is reasonable and the goal is
for the children to have a good experience. If they are not
ready to enter, it can be hard on the child and teacher.
10:03:49 AM
MR. KING said this provision is not affected by the bill, but
compulsory education under AS.14.30.010 requires that all
children ages seven-18 attend a school. Everything prior to the
age of seven is voluntary. This provision is related to a
voluntary program. Changing this date doesn't prevent students
from entering a voluntary pre-K or kindergarten program. It
changes, by three months, whether that child needs to take an
assessment.
SENATOR BEGICH said that with a good, voluntary pre-K program,
this component can work quite well, as Senator Hughes has shown.
That is a robust discussion on policy that could lead the
committee to a good place.
SENATOR HUGHES said if this piece stays in the bill, the state
could be leading in this policy area in the nation. There are
kindergarten teachers across the United States with the same
situation as kindergarten teachers in Alaska. It is sensible to
line it up this way.
CHAIR HOLLAND said the intent is to leave it in the bill, but
there is a problem with the phrasing.
MR. KING referred the committee and the public to AS
14.03.080(c), which is not impacted by this bill. That is the
readiness assessment for any child under school age, and the
bill does not change that. SB 111 will not prevent a child from
entering a program if it is the parents' wish.
MR. KING said that Section is also a change to AS 14.03.080 by
adding a new paragraph allowing a child who is at least four to
enter a pre-K program. It adds a year of voluntary programs.
Sec. 8 7/1/21 [Effective Date]
Adds a subsection to AS 14.03.080, relating to entering
public school, which allows a four or five-year-old that is
not entering kindergarten to enter an early education
program.
SENATOR BEGICH said that is exactly right. It is also designed
to narrow the early education component so it doesn't go down as
far as three. That is another definition used in Head Start, so
it doesn't compete with Head Start
MR. KING said that Section 8 is from SB 8. Section 9 is related
to district reporting requirements about the performance metrics
to the reading programs.
Sec. 9 7/1/21 [Effective Date]
Adds a subsection to AS 14.03.120, relating to district
reporting requirements, which establishes an annual report
regarding student performance metrics in kindergarten
through third grade.
CHAIR HOLLAND clarified, and Mr. King affirmed, that those
programs, the Read by Nine, are what people accept as the
Florida model.
MR. KING said that Section 10 was largely built from SB 8. This
is a new section of law related to early education with multiple
subsections.
Sec. 10 7/1/21 [Effective date]
Establishes early education programs and grants under AS
14.03, which includes the following subsections:
• AS 14.03.410(a) directs the DEED to provide training
to help districts develop and approve early education
programs.
• AS 14.03.410(b) authorizes DEED to award 3-year early
education grants.
• AS 14.03.410(c) requires DEED to rank the districts
and determine the eligibility for a targeted early
education grant.
• AS 14.03.410(d) limits the number of early education
programs eligible for ADM inclusion (section 21) to
$3M per year.
• AS 14.03.410(e) authorizes up to two additional years
of grant funding, if the program is not able to
qualify for ADM inclusion at the end of the 3-year
grant.
• AS 14.03.410(f) requires DEED approval of quality
standards for ADM inclusion.
• AS 14.03.410(g) makes clear that the grants are
subject to appropriation.
• AS 14.03.410(h) provides definitions.
• AS 14.03.420 codifies the Parents-as-Teachers program.
SENATOR BEGICH suggested that this would be a good time to
break.
CHAIR HOLLAND agreed.
SENATOR BEGICH said the chair's process is good. It will allow
discussion about each section and fully vet the bill and then
provide the chair guidance about choices about where to go with
the bill. He thanked the chair for the process.
CHAIR HOLLAND apologized for a 38-page bill, but said this will
be an effective way to resolve these questions. He held SB 111
in committee.
10:09:55 AM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Holland adjourned the Senate Education Standing Committee
at 10:09 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| EDC_Jennifer Stafford Resume_Redacted.pdf |
SEDC 3/26/2021 9:00:00 AM |
|
| SB 111 Sectional Analysis.pdf |
SEDC 3/26/2021 9:00:00 AM |
SB 111 |
| SB 111 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
SEDC 3/26/2021 9:00:00 AM SFIN 1/25/2022 1:00:00 PM SFIN 3/15/2022 9:00:00 AM |
SB 111 |
| SB 111 Legal Memo Regarding Head Start.pdf |
SEDC 3/26/2021 9:00:00 AM SFIN 3/15/2022 9:00:00 AM |
SB 111 |