Legislature(2001 - 2002)
04/03/2002 01:40 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
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
JOINT SENATE HEALTH, EDUCATION & SOCIAL SERVICES
AND COMMUNITY AND REGIONAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEES
April 3, 2002
1:40 p.m.
SENATE MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Lyda Green, Co-Chair
Senator Jerry Ward
Senator Gary Wilken
Senator Bettye Davis
Senator John Torgerson, Co-Chair
Senator Randy Phillips
Senator Pete Kelly
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Loren Leman
Senator Alan Austerman
Representative Georgiana Lincoln
OTHER LEGISLATORS PRESENTS
Senator Donny Olson
Representative Reggie Joule
Representative Fred Dyson
Representative Con Bunde
Representative Sharon Cissna
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
STATEWIDE SCHOOL SAFETY/MCQUEEN SCHOOL CLOSURE, KIVALINA
WITNESS REGISTER
Commissioner Shirley Holloway
Department of Education &
Early Development
th
801 W 10 St.
Juneau, AK 99801-1894
Commissioner Glenn G. Godfrey
Department of Public Safety
PO Box 111200
Juneau, AK 99811-1200
Mr. Charles Mason, CEO
Northwest Arctic Borough School District
PO Box 1110
Kotzebue, AK 99752
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 02-24, SIDE A
Number 001
CO-CHAIR LYDA GREEN called the Senate Health, Education & Social
Services Committee meeting to order at 1:40 p.m. Senate HESS
members present were Senators Ward, Davis, and Green. Senate CRA
members present were Senators Kelly and Chairman Torgerson. She
announced the primary purpose of the meeting is to hear from the
Department of Education and Early Development (DOEED) about the
McQueen School Fact Finding Team's report.
COMMISSIONER SHIRLEY HOLLOWAY, DOEED, thanked Chairwoman Green
for postponing the hearing until she and Carl Rose, the team
leader of the fact finding team, could present the report to the
community of Kivalina, the Northwest Arctic Borough School
District (NWABSD) and the regional school board. She introduced
DOEED staff: Dr. Ed McLain, Yvonne Chase, Dr. P.J. Ford-Slack,
and Terry Campbell; Assistant Attorneys General Ken Truitt and
Jeanne Mischel; Paula Paulowski of the state board of education
and Megan Kaufman (ph), student member of the state board of
education. She noted that Mr. Rose was very disappointed that he
could not be present. As the team leader of the fact finding
group, Mr. Rose he did an exemplary job of leading his team and
reporting to the community.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY began her review of the report and referred
to two items in the letter she received from Mr. Rose. The first
reads:
All team members are of the firm belief that competent
outside facilitation is necessary to assist in creating
an educational environment at McQueen School where
children can achieve at high levels. The fundamental
responsibility for improving the situation in Kivalina
should remain within the Kotzebue region.
The second item reads:
The team further references the NWABSD Board of
Education as the sole entity with the responsibility
and authority under Alaska law to incorporate the
recommendations found in this report.
She then noted the team chose the title, "McQueen School: A
School in Crisis - A School at a Crossroad," very carefully
because it believes when a school is in crisis, the question must
be asked: Do we want to improve and can we improve? If not, the
school is at a crossroads, meaning the state will have to explore
redesigning the delivery system for rural education - a serious
matter. Mr. Rose spent considerable time talking about, from the
team's perspective, the difference in the two options.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY then read the introduction on page 2 of the
report:
The irony was too apparent to ignore as Mildred Sage,
Kivalina octogenarian, wondered what had gone so wrong
with the very school she had been instrumental in
opening thirty years ago to force its closure due to a
legacy of disheartening stories of student (and at
times, adult) misbehavior and alarmingly low student
achievement.
McQueen School was the first village high school in the
Northwest Arctic region - a groundbreaking institution
that promised to serve as a model for other villages as
they sought to educate their children. Unfortunately,
due to recent events, McQueen School looks as if it may
serve as another model for village schools - not as a
beacon of student success, but as a troubling snapshot
of what many have feared rural education has become.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY then referred to page 3 in the background
section of the report and noted the team spoke many times to the
fact that this situation did not come about overnight. The
problems in Kivalina have been growing for many years and, in a
variety of ways, a lid has been kept on those problems. She
called members' attention to the bottom part of the second
paragraph, which presents the complex reasons the teachers
departed. She read:
Departing teachers also mentioned other frustration:
(in no ranked order) divergent staff philosophies;
challenges associated with establishing the education
climate (climate discipline) necessary to hold students
to even minimal academic expectations; frustration over
classrooms full of students lacking basic literacy
skills; poor student academic performance; overall
angst caused by numerous instances of aggressive
student acts towards teachers; angry parent
confrontations occurring during which adults supported
negative student behavior; and, finally, disappointment
in being targeted by innuendoes levied against staff
through unsubstantiated student allegations.
She confirmed there were many reasons that five of eleven
teachers asked to be reassigned. She then commended the members
of the fact-finding team because not only did they spend hours in
Kivalina and Kotzebue, they also called many people and
deliberated until the early hours of the morning about the core
issues.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY moved to the conclusion section of the
report on page 7 and said that presenting it to the community was
a hard pill to swallow. State Trooper Andy Greenstreet,
Representative Joule and Senator Olson accompanied she and Mr.
Rose to the community to present those conclusions. The first
paragraph says "the closure was the result of a long and complex
chain of events in a dysfunctional school in a dysfunctional
community..." Mr. Rose made it clear to all of the groups they
talked to that he was not there to debate or defend the report
but it was being presented as a guide to the next steps that need
to be taken. She indicated the label "dysfunctional" was very
hurtful to the community. Community members did not argue whether
it is true, rather they were open about the fact that their
community was being labeled that way. Mr. Rose was careful to
identify why that term was chosen. In a functional community-
school relationship, there are shared behavioral standards. The
community, families, teachers and parents have agreed upon
appropriate behavior. In a functional community, those same
groups have agreed upon the delivery and importance of education
and what children should learn to do; that is not there either.
In a functional community-school relationship, the community is
involved in the school - that is not there. Kivalina does not
have those shared standards. That is the basis on which the team
chose the word "dysfunctional."
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY noted the team categorized the issues in
Kivalina as follows: community issues; instruction and curriculum
issues; governance and leadership issues; school discipline and
safety issues; and professional development-staff training
issues. She highlighted the following from those categories:
· Community issues - the team felt there was disconcertingly
low community expectation and a common acceptance for
substandard student achievement. From the team's
perspective, there appeared to be a pervasive community
tolerance of student misbehavior. No matter where the team
went, she felt there was an unwillingness to assume
responsibility among parents, teachers, school board
members, advisory board members, or central administration
staff. One of the biggest problems identified by the team
was a lack of communication from the district office clear
down to the classroom level.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked where the lack of communication is addressed
in the report.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said it is addressed in the governance and
leadership issues category. She then continued highlighting
problems discussed in the conclusions section.
· Under the instruction and curriculum issues category,
student achievement data suggests that standards-based
instruction is not being delivered. The community is
concerned that the curriculum is not being delivered so that
students can connect what they are learning to their own
culture and daily lives.
· Under the governance and leadership issues category, a lack
of cooperation and communication was noted. A lot of finger
pointing was done. Mr. Rose repeatedly pointed out an
inconsistency in communication. For instance, each group had
a completely different explanation of the events leading up
to the school closure and the actual closure. The team felt
there was enough blame to go around and that everyone needs
to roll up their sleeves and get to work rather than do any
more finger pointing. In addition, there was little evidence
that effective training for the McQueen advisory board had
taken place.
· Under the school discipline and safety issues category,
there were numerous serious documented incidents of
aggressive student behavior toward staff this year. The team
reported that unruly student behavior has been the rule
rather than the exception in the Kivalina community. There
is a strong perception that negative student behavior is
rationalized and even sometimes supported by parents.
Differences in philosophies inhibit a healthy learning
environment. And, although the regional school board
provided documentation that it had approved the statutorily
required school disciplinary school safety program, there
was no evidence of that in the community. That statute
requires that parents, teachers and students be a part of
that program.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked if the School Disciplinary Safety Program is
an official report that must be submitted to DOEED, yet DOEED has
no evidence of one from Kivalina.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY explained the regional school board
provided DOEED with minutes of a meeting at which a plan had been
approved. She added it appears that for 20 years the Kivalina
school was a laissez-faire operation. Then, within one year came
a design for high behavioral standards. It also appears that very
little work occurred with the community to implement the higher
behavioral standards.
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON asked if the new standards are unreasonably
high.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said they are not, but they are very
different and were implemented immediately without the necessary
conversations and instruction. She maintained that when a new
discipline plan is implemented, instruction about the
consequences must be designed. The team did not find such a
design. The community's perception was that the teachers were
being mean and unreasonable. To illustrate, she explained that
an older lady told her she had five adopted children she sent to
school everyday. If those children were tardy one minute, they
were sent home. The older lady questioned how those children will
get an education.
SENATOR PHILLIPS questioned what is wrong with expecting students
to show up to school on time and asked for an example of the
standards under the laissez-faire policy.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said if, for 20 years, it was acceptable to
show up a little late and then all of a sudden the hammer comes
down and the community doesn't understand why, a miscommunication
has occurred. She said another example is the use of tobacco,
which is not allowed under the new discipline plan.
SENATOR PHILLIPS asked for examples of the low and high standards
over the last 20 years.
2:01 p.m.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY noted that students could walk out of the
classroom and be tardy from class to class. She felt that most
people would find that the new rules require behavior that most
parents want. However, had the implementation been done with
thoughtfulness, involvement and instruction, the clash that
occurred would not have happened.
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA asked what training the teachers were given
to prepare the community.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said the fact-finding team found very
little evidence of professional development or preparation of the
new teachers. One agenda was presented to the new teachers that
did not contain quality professional development information. In
addition, the district office did not appear to offer a lot of
support to the local school.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked members to hold their questions until
Commissioner Holloway finished her report.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said on page 10, the fact-finding team
listed the resources available to the community and the school.
Pages 11 and 12 contain a list of the facts discovered by the
team. She then called members' attention to a bullet on page 13,
which says there is no full-time on-site VPO or VPSO in Kivalina.
She said Alaska State Trooper Andy Greenstreet is working very
hard to correct some misinformation that was originally given to
the staff about what constitutes an assault. He is encouraging
staff to identify and report those incidents immediately.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY directed members to the fifth bullet on
page 13, which says "The NWABSD administration has developed and
is beginning initial implementation of a plan that addresses the
safety and educational challenges at the McQueen School..." but
when she and Mr. Rose presented the report to the community and
school staff, no one had ever heard of a plan.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY pointed out (page 14) that the fact-finding
team found the re-opening of the school to be orderly, well
planned and safe. However, within six days, threatening and
disruptive behavior was reported. When the school re-opened, a
security officer was hired to be on-site.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY referred to the section on page 15
entitled, The Issues Surrounding the Closure of McQueen School,
and read:
Many parents and community members expressed
surprisingly low levels of concern when informed about
McQueen School's low student achievement test scores.
Both interesting and troubling is the fact that parents
and community members expressed more concern and
dissatisfaction with what they perceived were
unrealistic discipline policies and excessively harsh
enforcement of those policies than they did about
student achievement. This deep-rooted cross-cultural
challenge may best be summed up by a Kivalina student's
comment to a fact-finding team member, 'We don't
understand white people - they don't understand us -
they get threatened easily.'
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said that passage disturbed her more than
anything else in the report. When she visited Kivalina, she made
a point of sharing her concern about that comment with individual
members of the community and asked if they agreed with it. In her
31 years in rural Alaska, one consistency she has found is that
families may not fully understand what school is all about, but
they want the very best education for their children and see it
as important. The community members she interacted with expressed
that same view.
She then pointed out the team found that the McQueen School
Advisory School board did not meet regularly or take an active
role in guiding the school program and was unable to determine
whether that is a school leadership or community issue. She
indicated that two advisory school board members attended the
meeting when she and Mr. Rose presented the report.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY read two bullets from page 16:
Members of the Kivalina community members were
convinced that outside educators do not understand the
Inupiat culture and, consequently, have difficulty
interacting appropriately with students, parents and
community members. Team members believe this encourages
students to interact negatively with the new teachers
and principals.
The fact-finding team heard many comments from both
within and outside of the Kivalina community asserting
that long-standing conflicts within factions of the
Kivalina community hindered school efforts to promote
cooperative initiatives that promised to improve the
McQueen School program.
She stated that many folks described to her a "Hatfield-McCoy"
situation. In addition, a few staff members have been at the
school for a very long time - 12 years. There is some internal
conflict within the school as new teachers try to implement a
standards-based program and higher academic standards. She likens
the situation to one in which new teachers come to a school full
of hope and positive energy and are told to not work so hard.
She noted that she worked with two of the veteran teachers from
Kivalina who told her there is not enough for young people to do
in the village. The new teachers are getting involved in
providing new activities that parents are viewing positively.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY referred to page 17 and read:
There was a perception among some Kivalina community
members and others throughout the Northwest Arctic
region that Kivalina did not have equal influence on
the Northwest Arctic Borough School Board.
She noted that one member of that board represents both Noatak
and Kivalina. She then explained that page 18 contains a positive
snapshot of the good things that are happening in Kivalina that
can be taken advantage of. Mr. Rose told the community that it
must take this opportunity or, ultimately, it will surrender
local control over its school.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said, regarding the recommendations made to
the NWABSD, the team felt the board needed to put together a
small but very intense group of people from the region who are
honest and have the best interest of students at heart to begin
to work with the community on two primary objectives. The first
objective is to address the immediate issues that led up to the
closing of the school, which are primarily behavioral and safety
issues. The second objective is to get an outside expert to work
with the community and school and guiding team to develop a true
plan that is a shared mission and understanding of what that
school is about.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY cautioned that this issue is not just about
Kivalina or the NWABSD. This is about the efficacy of rural
education in Alaska. The team asked the district administration
to report a budget for the McQueen School and was told that its
budget methods differ. The team estimated the McQueen School is a
$1.2 to $1.5 million operation. Mr. Rose addressed the cost-
benefit analysis and how important it is in light of the state's
fiscal realities, to show real results for the investment made in
all schools. The team emphasized to the group that what it
decides to do next is much bigger than just one school.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY then addressed the summary section of the
report (page 20) and read:
In general, members of the Fact Finding team
appreciated the openness and cooperation demonstrated
by the majority of teachers, administrators, and
community members during the team's visit to Kivalina
and the NWABSD.
Ultimately, the closure of the McQueen School, which
has heightened community, regional and statewide
awareness, presents Kivalina with a unique opportunity
to face issues that have long been ignored. All
concerned have an opportunity to do what is right for
students.
The Fact Finding team is concerned that if the NWABSD
school board does not immediately move forward with
significant systemic school improvement initiatives led
by a united team of educators, parents and community
members, the future of McQueen School and its students
will be in jeopardy.
State law recognizes the NWABSD School Board as the
governing body of the district's schools. This means
the NWABSD School Board has the authority and the
responsibility to make sure that students are learning
in a safe and supportive environment.
Evidence clearly indicates that Kivalina's students are
not currently presented with an opportunity to meet
State of Alaska Content and Performance Standards in a
safe, supportive environment due to a long list of
reasons and this needs to change.
If the School Board does not act immediately and
decisively, this Fact Finding Team recommends that the
State of Alaska consider direct intervention in the
operation of McQueen School.
Each team member firmly believes Kivalina can have an
effective school where children are learning, teachers
and students are safe, and of which the community is
deeply proud.
At this point, the future success of McQueen School
depends more on the behavior of adults than on the
behavior of children. The challenge is clear.
CO-CHAIR GREEN said she would ask Mr. Godfrey to testify next and
then like to divide the committee discussion into three
categories: rehashing what happened and why; the current status
and what needs to be done around the state; and what
responsibility belongs to the legislature, DOEED, the district,
community and parents. She noted that people in Juneau are asking
some very tough questions and she wants the people of Kivalina
and in other areas of the state with schools that are approaching
dysfunction, to know there will be tremendous oversight. She
wants everyone to understand that this legislature is ready to
respond and that it does not have to be involved in financing an
education system that has failed. She said that is her opinion
but believes many others agree. She then asked Mr. Godfrey to
discuss the need for a VPSO or state trooper in Kivalina.
COMMISSIONER GLENN GODFREY, Department of Public Safety (DPS),
first thanked Commissioner Holloway for her efforts to have
Trooper Greenstreet be part of the fact-finding team. DPS wants
to do anything it can to assist in this endeavor. He explained
that a VPSO position in Kivalina is vacant and that active
recruitment is underway. Kivalina has a public safety facility
that is rundown. It has been difficult to fill that position and
it appears that housing is a serious issue.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked him to review the recruitment process.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said that the VPSO is an employee of a
Native non-profit corporation in Kotzebue. The Alaska State
Troopers and non-profit corporation work together to actively
recruit for that position. They try to find someone who will be
acceptable to the community and can work in the community. It
appears that no one living in Kivalina at this time is willing or
able to fill that position so recruitment outside of the
community is taking place.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked if she could have found that vacancy posted
on the Internet for the past year.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said he would hope so but could not verify
that. Active recruitment is done by the non-profit corporation.
The Troopers are involved because of their statewide contacts.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked if he received any phone calls prior to this
incident asking for a VPSO sooner rather than later.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said he does not recall a flood of phone
calls coming out of Kivalina prior to this incident.
2:20 p.m.
SENATOR WARD said, to his understanding, Maniilaq has had that
vacancy posted for the last year.
SENATOR DAVIS asked whether names have been submitted and
rejected or whether no applicants have applied.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY explained that applications are submitted
directly to Maniilaq. If acceptable, the State Troopers would do
a background investigation. Then, Maniilaq and the village would
decide whether to hire that particular individual. He said he
does not have a list of applicants or know whether any background
checks were done.
SENATOR DAVIS asked Commissioner Godfrey to provide her with that
information because she would like to know whether everything
possible was done first to find someone from within the village.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said he could provide that information.
CO-CHAIR TORGERSON asked about the hiring timeline and whether
there is a contingency plan.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY told members that DPS has a lot of
flexibility with regard to hiring timelines in rural Alaska. It
is his understanding that position has been vacant for a long
time.
CO-CHAIR TORGERSON responded that Kivalina is a village in crisis
and DPS must do something, maybe move a State Trooper into the
area. He asked what the plan is.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said DPS has increased its visits to
Kivalina and Larry Wallace has been hired as a security officer
at the school. Mr. Wallace was the Chief of Police in Kotzebue
and worked for the Kotzebue police force for a very long time. In
the meantime, Maniilaq continues to actively recruit for a VPSO.
He noted that the same housing problem would arise if a state
trooper was stationed in Kivalina.
SENATOR WILKEN asked if state troopers are directly responsible
for the activities of VPSOs in certain locations and whether
there is a ratio.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said each hub area technically has an
oversight trooper who is responsible for the VPSO program in that
area. However, the other troopers, when they make routine visits
to the villages, also give the VPSOs needed support. Depending on
the manpower situation, a rule of thumb statewide is that an
oversight trooper has control of about four to seven VPSOs at
this time.
TAPE 02-24, SIDE B
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said he tries to keep the ratio down to
three to five VPSOs per oversight trooper.
SENATOR WILKEN maintained that a VPSO knows exactly which trooper
to call anytime he or she needs further assistance.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY replied:
Absolutely. We found, throughout the several years
we've been involved in the program, that's very, very
critical and, in the past, when that did not occur,
that caused some real concerns for us and was a direct
impact on the turnover in the program. The VPSOs have
sent us a strong message that they expect and want that
contact 24 hours a day, seven days a week if the need
arises and we do the best we can in giving them that
support that they do need.
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA asked what crises DPS has had in the past
that come near the level of the crisis in Kivalina.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said Kivalina, in and of itself, is not one
of the villages that the troopers get the most calls about. It
may fall in the middle of the pack regarding the calls serviced
out of Kotzebue. He said he cannot recall an incident of that
has come to the level of requiring trooper involvement in closing
a school in recent history.
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA said it seems that this incident is
unprecedented and that sending in outside assistance might not
help yet a safety backup is necessary. She said it might be close
to impossible to hire someone to do that right now.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said on a permanent basis, Representative
Cissna is correct in that DPS is having a difficult time finding
a public safety officer to live in Kivalina. He noted that
immediately after the incident took place, DPS rotated public
safety officers into Kivalina and will continue to do so in the
future if necessary. DPS is keeping in close contact with Larry
Wallace and will continue to provide support until a more
permanent solution is found.
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA asked Commissioner Godfrey if it might be
advisable to have two VPSOs in that community until everything
has settled down.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said that would be the ideal situation in
every community in rural Alaska but that is a difficult mandate
when hiring one VPSO has been so difficult.
CO-CHAIR GREEN commented:
Thank you Commissioner. I do want to say, though, that
I find it very, very, very distressing when the
availability of a VPSO has been there for a very, very
long time and, under the worst of circumstances we do
not have to live in a lawless manner in a community
that does not happen to have a law enforcement officer
there and that we should set aside that concern if the
regional council or the IRA has not moved forward to
aggressively find a VPSO. And it speaks volumes to me
that they cannot find someone in 300 people that's
willing to take that job but many people will be very,
very happy to have an opportunity.
COMMISSIONER GODFREY said it is his understanding that the
Kivalina position has been advertised statewide and out-of-state
so it appears the non-profit corporation is working more
aggressively. DPS will continue to work close with them to get
that position filled.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked Commissioner Holloway to review the chain of
events that led up to the school closure. She said committee
members are not concerned about the decision to close the school
but she is concerned that the gym was reopened in the following
days. She questioned why the gym would be open when the school
was closed because of the behavior of students and lack of safety
and why it was so important to reopen the gym.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said she was notified of the situation the
day the school was closed. She was not involved in any
conversations prior to that decision although Deputy Commissioner
McLain may have spoken with Charles Mason. According to school
staff and the community, they were not involved in the decision
to close the school.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked if it was strictly the superintendent's
call.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said that is correct.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked how the superintendent was getting
information that led him to agree to the closure.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said when she mentioned earlier differences
in the sequence of events, she was initially led to believe the
school closure was both a safety and workforce issue because five
teachers were leaving. However, according to the teachers and the
principal, they learned of the school closure through the news.
They were called later and convened a meeting with the CEO who
asked them if they wanted to stay, be transferred or leave.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked if Commissioner Holloway believes that time
sequence is out of sync.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said that she would have involved the
principal, community and staff in the decision to close the
school. The community was outraged that the school was closed
without any involvement or notification. Involving the advisory
school board and staff would have been a good idea.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked what entity is comparable to the advisory
school board.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said it could be a PTA or an advisory
school council. She then explained that she wrote two letters to
CEO Mason. In the first letter she applauded him for closing the
school if, in fact, there was concern of physical harm. She
expressed disappointment that the situation was not dealt with
earlier, and she felt he needed to work immediately on a concrete
plan to secure safety and reopen the school. She offered to help
and suggested DOEED help recruit additional teachers, if
necessary, and provide facilitators and mediators. In the second
letter, she reminded him that each student has the right to
attend school during the school term under AS 14.03.080 and that
he needed to begin to think about when the school would be
reopened. However, she again said he needed to develop a plan to
ensure the safety of students. She noted that there is a
difference of opinion about what was going on. According to the
principal, nothing happened in the two-week period after the
school closed. Five teachers left and the remaining teachers
worked on curriculum materials. From their perspective, nothing
was being done to make changes.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked if community meetings occurred.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said a community meeting was held after the
school was closed. That meeting was videotaped. During that
meeting, people vented for four hours. Her understanding, from
Mr. Mason, is that he was using that time to extract commitments
from different entities in the community. He wanted everyone to
commit to obeying the rules so he was working on getting letters
and resolutions from the Kivalina tribal council, advisory school
board, and other folks. His first priority was to get a safety
officer in the village, which she believes was a good one. He was
able to get a safety officer in the village before the school
reopened. She did not want him to reopen the school if he deemed
if unsafe, but she also did not believe it was in the best
interest of the community to have children running about.
2:40 p.m.
SENATOR KELLY asked if the fact-finding team was able to
determine how much of the problem was racially motivated.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said the fact-finding team did not perceive
racial conflict to be part of the problem. Misunderstanding was,
as well as a lack of understanding by new staff of the cultural
mores.
SENATOR KELLY asked how many school staff members are Native.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said one teacher is an Alaska Native.
SENATOR KELLY asked if the team inquired about the verbal
assaults on teachers.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said it is her understanding that the fact
finding team found that none of the incidences rose to the level
of criminal activity. Most of the incidents involved harassment
and misbehavior. One teacher reported to her that she was hit by
a student.
SENATOR KELLY asked if the team did not feel that calling the
teachers "white trash" and telling them to go home did not have
racial overtones.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said she cannot speak for the team and does
not know how it interpreted those comments.
SENATOR KELLY said it seems to him, from other reports, that the
problem was blatantly racial. He felt the fact that the team did
not come to that conclusion makes its report suspect.
SENATOR PHILLIPS commented that toward the end of Commissioner
Holloway's presentation she mentioned the NWABSD and that she was
putting the blame on the top when he believes it should be from
the bottom-up. He noted the NWABSD can issue all kinds of rules,
regulations and policies, but unless they are accepted by the
students and community, there is not much the NWABSD can do. He
said the State of Alaska is paying to educate those students and
expects certain standards to apply. He said he doesn't believe
the state should be playing the role of parents and that certain
changes must be made at the family level or the community will
lose control of the school. He asked if the team came up with
recommendations other than the findings in the report.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said she is not blaming the district office
because communication goes both ways. She was saying the fact
finding team found that very little communication was going in
any direction.
SENATOR PHILLIPS said the solution has to come from the bottom
up. He noted when he and Senator Olson visited the Arctic Winter
Games, they heard of a very similar situation in the extreme
north of Saskatchewan so Alaska is not alone. He expressed
concern that this same situation could occur all over the state.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY commented that the Kivalina situation
presents an opportunity when identifying and designating schools
in crisis. What the legislature decides to do and what it decides
the state should do is very important for the future. She said
she welcomes this opportunity.
SENATOR WARD said he helped to appropriate about $5 million for
the Kivalina school about 20 years ago and then about $1 million
per year has been appropriated since that time. He asked if
students were not required to show up for school on time and no
disciplinary policy was in place for the last 20 years.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said she is reporting what was told to her
by members of the community. She does not know whether it is true
but the perception is that the school has not had high behavioral
standards for as long as anyone can remember.
SENATOR WARD maintained that he knows people that attended
McQueen School and that was not their impression. He said he
never agreed with the Molly Hooch decision, which required
schools to be built all over the state but he also does not like
boarding schools so he does not have the answer. However, he
believes both of those issues need to be discussed at this point.
He maintained:
Parents have a responsibility to raise a child and the
parents clearly have some responsibility in this but if
we for 20 years have not been giving them the criteria
to go to school and become educated and be productive
members of the community at large - all of Alaska and
the United States, then we have raised a group of
people not to know how to assimilate into this society.
So we bear responsibility and clearly throwing $25
million at it certainly isn't helping whatsoever. My
question is, first off I don't agree that it's been
going on for 20 years. I think they probably have had
this problem for about five years now - it's about 10
percent of the population that have been running wild
in that school district and getting away with it. If
that happened in Nikiski, Alaska, that 10 percent would
get thrown out on their ear. It's just as simple as
that. The troublemakers would be gone and enabling the
troublemakers to stay there and empowering them - if I
was in that school and I saw the troublemakers getting
away with something, then instead of 10 percent it
would become 11 percent because I probably would join
in.
The comments that the Senator from Fairbanks made about
it being racial - you know I fully understand that
there is racial overtones. Most of the people that come
into these small communities - they are not Native and
that's where we have somewhat of a responsibility to
try to recruit more educators but I can't ever recall
in the public school system that I grew up in one
Native educator - not one. I seem to have got through
it okay. My question is - back and forth in this
discussion now, what is exactly your opinion as
Commissioner of Education, on the picture of us
supplying the proper education to these kids because
about 80 percent of these students didn't do anything
wrong and they are being punished now and they are
being punished because parents - and this is not the
education system and it's certainly not the funding
mechanism of this body. The parents, for whatever
reason, of that 10 or 20 percent have not performed the
discipline things that they need and for that we now
have some other children at risk. So is the answer to
start back into a boarding school situation so that we
can centralize and demand discipline or is it to try to
build bigger and more gymnasiums and high schools in
every little village? By the way, do you know how long
this community has been in existence?
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE said it was probably incorporated in the
late 1800s or early 1900s but there have always been people in
the area.
SENATOR WARD agreed but said until government started spending
some of its billions of dollars of oil wealth, a lot of these
communities looked different until they were cemented into one
location. He is not saying that was the wrong thing to do, but
questioned whether government is trapping people in a cycle. He
expressed concern that students are being trained to go to the
University when many should be trained to attend vocational
school. He asked what DOEED is looking at for the long term
regarding the best way to deliver education.
REPRESENTATIVE JOULE noted the oil money did not start flowing
until the 1970s and his grandfather taught school in the 1920s so
the village has been there a long time. Regarding the issues that
Senator Ward raised regarding who to blame and where we go from
here, the NWABSD board has met for the last few days and CEO
Mason can address where the district is headed.
SENATOR OLSON agreed that a minority of students is being
disruptive and that certainly the sentiment of the school and the
community is that they do put a value on education. The school
was given the name McQueen School after a principal teacher who
was very well liked by the community. In addition, in spite of
what may appear on the surface, many successful students come
from small rural communities.
CO-CHAIR GREEN told members she would like to now give CEO Mason
the opportunity to speak and she reminded members that the
committee must discuss the timeliness of benchmark and graduating
exams, school designators and professional standards. Had those
requirements not been in place, DOEED would not have some of the
quantifiable information it has. The problems in Kivalina can be
blamed on any or everyone but the legislature and state
department officials cannot let students down. She said she joins
Senator Kelly's concern about racism, however she is more
concerned about a total lack of respect on the part of some
people.
MR. CHARLES MASON, CEO of the NWABSD, said that he took notes
while Commissioner Holloway was speaking and wanted to clear up
some incomplete information. He said in his opinion, the focus
should be on responsibility. He stated that one conclusion
reached at yesterday's NWABSD's board meeting was that Mayor
Schaefer and, hopefully, a pastor from Kivalina will visit each
home in Kivalina next week and try to get as many people to
attend the advisory school board meeting as possible. They need
to impress on everyone the importance of this issue. It will take
an effort by someone from outside of the school district to get
the ball rolling at this point in time.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked how that comports with Mr. Rose's letter to
Commissioner Holloway (dated April 1, 2002) that says the NWABSD
is the sole entity with the responsibility and authority under
Alaska law to incorporate the recommendations in the report. She
asked if the NWABSD will oversee and coordinate all efforts with
Maniilaq, Mayor Schaeffer and NANA.
CEO MASON said it will take a joint effort with all the resources
the NWABSD can pull together to make this work.
CO-CHAIR GREEN repeated that the letter says it is the NWABSD's
responsibility and asked if he will be taking over the authority
for the group that oversees and begins to do the work.
CEO MASON said the NWABSD will take that over but is looking to
others for help and assistance. He then asked to clarify some
comments made previously and said:
Our budget at Kivalina - $1,361,250 - that means
nothing as far as how it develops by money if you
follow the formula. That's simply what it costs us to
run that with our staffing formula and discretionary
dollar formula but that school does generate
approximately that much money. If anybody answered that
question, that's not the way we do a budget, that's
because what we have at the sites is only the money
they can spend under discretionary dollars. We don't
worry at the local site with what personnel costs are.
That's our district that does that and we staff that
based on a formula. We talked about staff development
earlier, the school district has ...
CO-CHAIR GREEN interjected to asked if he is saying that someone
at the school, rather than the district, was asked that question.
CEO MASON said he doesn't know who was asked that question.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said her understanding is that Carl Rose
asked district personnel for the budget and was told that was not
the way the NWABSD did its budget.
CEO MASON said he can't answer that question except to say the
team was visiting at a time when he and the assistant
superintendent were there but the school was on vacation so he
does not know who would have been asked. He then explained that
teachers are hired for 190 days, many of which are for staff
development. The school calendar contains 181 school days. During
the first week of school, almost a full day is devoted to
cultural related activities for new teachers. The district also
spends a large amount of time reviewing the standards and
assessments in early August. The district has purchased materials
in recent years and has a math and language arts program that
follows the state standards.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked CEO Mason to send her a copy of the school
calendar and materials used.
CEO MASON said he can make that available. He noted that the
district has 12 different calendars - one for each school, and
that the district uses the same curriculum for all schools. He
repeated that the district has worked very hard on that during
the last three years. He then stated that, regarding the comment
that nothing took place for two weeks after the school shut down,
which is absolutely incorrect. On the Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday of the first week, students in grades 3, 6, and 8 were
given the benchmark exam and high school students were given the
qualifying exam. On the following Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday, students in off grades were given the Terra Nova test
using available staff. Central office staff was busy trying to
find replacement staff.
3:10 p.m.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked if she would see any difference if she
compared the scores from this year's tests to the last three
years.
CEO MASON said the district has been working in that direction
and would hope so. He commented that he has seen a big difference
in scores at the third grade level. The district has been trying
to build this program by addressing it bottom up. It is difficult
and unproductive long term to try to get anything addressed at
ththth
the 9, 10, and 11 grade levels.
CEO MASON asked to comment on the students with behavioral
problems. He told members that two high school students were
expelled last year by the school board. This year four or five
middle grade students were given 20-day suspensions, the maximum
allowable before an expulsion. One of those students was expelled
at the March board meeting.
SENATOR WARD noted CEO Mason has a very difficult job. He then
asked if the group, including the Mayor and the pastor, will
visit individual homes and talk with parents.
CEO MASON said that is his wish.
SENATOR WARD said he believes that will prove to be a good model
because he suspects many parents do not feel empowered to control
the school, while a small group was leading the school in the
wrong direction. He said if that is the case, he would like the
district to figure out how that parental involvement can be
applied to other places.
CO-CHAIR GREEN acknowledged the presence of Representatives
Cissna, Dyson, Joule and Senator Olson.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked Commissioner Holloway what kind of team or
person will go in Kivalina to follow-up and let people know just
how serious this incident is. She also expressed concern about
the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and
asked if the state will be doing the exact reverse of what the
legislature intended so that a school in distress will get more
money. She asked where a school, such as the McQueen School, will
fall within the spectrum of ESEA.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said DOEED has a lot to do to get ready for
ESEA. It has to talk about where the McQueen School fits in the
ESEA scenario. She thanked Mr. Mason and the board for the strong
leadership role it has taken. She then said that the report she
received about the two weeks immediately after the school closure
did not have to do with the assessments given to students, it had
to do with a lack of actions taken to bring the community and
school together. She stated the Alaska Association of School
Boards has offered to provide training and facilitation. DOEED
has offered to provide technical support and has worked on a
graph outline of follow-up procedures for DOEED and contains a
plan for what will be done if nothing happens. DOEED has been
thinking through this process because it sees it as a precursor
to the conversation about school designation. DOEED is already
looking at a compliance review in relationship to the state and
federal plans for school improvement, safety, and community
involvement. DOEED will send a notice to the NWABSD and the
regional board in terms of where they are in regard to
compliance. DOEED will then explore some contract or cooperative
agreements in which it might provide advisory and consultant
services in partnership with the Kivalina school district. That
model is based on work done with Ketchikan.
TAPE 02-25, SIDE A
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY noted the district may want to contract
with private organizations, which is perfectly acceptable. DOEED
is recommending that it seek support from a lot of different
entities and it has already taken that action. She said DOEED has
also outlined more serious steps that it might want to explore
for future schools in crisis. She thanked members for their time.
CO-CHAIR GREEN asked Commissioner Holloway to provide the
committee with an outline of who is responsible for what under
Alaska's Constitution and statutes. Her second request has to do
with FERPA. She would still like to find a way to get access to
information without violating anyone's privacy. The state has to
figure out how to get information out, otherwise all of the grief
the legislature went through when implementing the requirement
for a high school graduation exam was worthless. She pointed out
that some states have been granted a waiver from FERPA or have
found a way to exchange information but not publish it. She said
the committee needs the ethnic comparisons statewide and would
alike to know what other areas of the state the legislature
should be concerned about - schools that may not have reached the
same level as the McQueen School. She wants to know with
absolute certainty that between now and 2005 the legislature is
getting information about schools in crisis so there are no more
surprises.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY responded that DOEED has wanted to put
together a prevention and crisis team and has asked for money for
the Alaska Center for Student Excellence for that purpose. She
would like to see districts be comfortable enough right now to
call DOEED and ask for help or an audit. Then, DOEED needs a
crisis team that is ready to go if a situation arises similar to
Kivalina.
REPRESENTATIVE DYSON said his reading of all of paperwork placed
in front of him shows that the local, Native teachers were also
treated with disrespect. That flies in the face of the belief
that the problem is a racial one. He stated he was disappointed
that the school did not follow the state law that requires it to
go through a process with the community to establish agreed-upon
behavior and safety standards, and he was disappointed to find
that was not in the report until Mr. Rose talked to his staff. He
didn't think the team considered that as a factor, and he looks
forward to DOEED writing regulations to enforce that requirement.
He then referred to page 20, and said that the discussion about
the solution refers to "educators, parents and community
members." He believes the order is wrong and that educators
should be last. He then asked Commissioner Holloway to consider
two questions before the next meeting, the first being how to get
community buy-in for these schools so that communities understand
the school is theirs. The second question is how to get more
responsible and independent school boards.
CO-CHAIR GREEN said she would like to schedule a follow-up
meeting the next week and asked members to let her know if anyone
has questions of the Commissioner or the team or anyone else
involved.
SENATOR WARD requested a copy of Mayor Schaeffer's report when it
is completed.
COMMISSIONER HOLLOWAY said the entire fact finding team is open
to a discussion.
CO-CHAIR GREEN then adjourned the meeting at 3:25 p.m.
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