SJR 30-AMEND & FUND NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT  CHAIR GARY STEVENS announced SJR 30 to be up for consideration. DANA OWEN, staff to Senator Johnny Ellis, sponsor, explained that SJR 30 asks Congress to revisit the No Child Left Behind Act. He read the following sponsor statement: School districts across Alaska and the nation are increasingly discovering that the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, the most far reaching intrusion of federal control into education in the nation's history, imposes mandates that are awkward at best and counterproductive at worst. Moreover, these federal mandates are under funded, further burdening already strained budgets. Much of the problem lies in the act's one-size-fits- all approach. Policies that may appear workable from the vantage of Washington, D.C., turn out to be obstacles to success in practice. For example, under the act many excellent teachers would be prevented from teaching subjects they fully understand. An advanced degree in economics or physics would not qualify a teacher to teach basic mathematics, presenting a serious problem in small Alaska schools where a single person typically teaches all sciences and math. Schools are also required to demonstrate adequate yearly progress as defined by the act, not just for the majority of students, but for each subgroup defined in the act. Under this provision, many very successful schools can find themselves labeled as failing. Each year of failure brings increasingly harsh sanctions that would significantly drive up costs for school districts. Passage of SJR 30 would add Alaska's voice to those nationwide that are speaking out about problems with the No Child Left Behind Act. States as diverse as Arizona, Vermont, Hawaii, Virginia and Utah have seen legislative efforts protesting the burdens placed on them by the act. Some states and school districts are even considering opting out of federal oversight altogether. While such a drastic step would mean losing federal education grants and perhaps other monies, these states and school districts believe that the cost of complying with the act would be greater than the federal dollars they receive. SJR 30 recognizes that Alaska had taken strong steps to improve school performance even before passage of the federal law and asks that Congress give states more flexibility and greater financial support in meeting the act's mandates. SENATOR STEDMAN referred to page 2, line 25 and asked which changes they'd like to see Congress make. MR. OWEN noted that there are a number of suggested changes in the packets, but they aren't endorsing any specific changes because they recognize that the complaints regarding the act are so strong and diverse that it would be a huge effort for the Alaska Legislature to outline specific changes. It's better to send the legislation back to the drafters. It was a strong bipartisan Congressional effort that produced the bill and the original authors are best suited to address changes. Many states have outlined suggestions and the sponsor statement highlighted a very few. SENATOR STEDMAN asked for confirmation that the resolution would go unattached in that case. MR. OWEN said that's correct. CHAIR GARY STEVENS remarked that it's problematic in small communities where teachers teach multiple subjects even though they don't have advanced degrees in those subjects and may not meet the requirements. The fact that they may be very fine teachers wouldn't be taken into account. MR. OWEN agreed that is one of the main failures of the act. The sciences are an excellent example. Someone may have an advanced degree in physics or economics but they wouldn't be qualified to teach mathematics. That's a huge burden in small schools, he said. CHAIR GARY STEVENS repeated that this is a problem and a good reason to ask for relief. He asked for the pleasure of the committee. SENATOR STEDMAN motioned to move SJR 30 from committee with the attached fiscal note and individual recommendations. There being no objection, it was so ordered.