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CEA President Tracey D. Johnson recently commented at a United Way of Central Ohio Meeting: “There is something happening in our communities where our children have so many needs. Our children are more than a test score. They are coming to us with social and emotional and mental needs that we’re not equipped to deal with.”

During the meeting on Sept. 15 , which she was attending as a trustee, Johnson was responding tearfully to the news that 13-year-old Tyre King, a student at Linden-McKinley STEM Academy, had been shot and killed by police the night before. He was running from officers who were investigating an armed-robbery report on the Near East Side when he pulled a BB gun from his waistband.

King is the 28th student in the district to die, and the 24th to die as the result of violence. CEA’s Social and Economic Justice Committee, led by Johnson, is working to help our families and their neighbors improve their lives. Stay tuned in to the CEA Voice for the work of this important committee.  Get involved.

Our students need you, now more than ever.

The Columbus School Board voted unanimously July 21 to ask voters this fall for a 6.92-mill tax increase to pay for the district’s general growth. The 17-percent property tax increase (a 14-percent increase for commercial property owners) would be spent over five years to add 325 staff—including 76 intervention specialists, 41 positions for expanding pre-kindergarten programs, 34 instructional assistants, 25 social workers, 16 positions in career-technical education, and 16 school nurses. Meanwhile, $125 million would pay for backlogged maintenance items such as roof and parking lot repairs, with $4.4 million set aside for annual maintenance. The board will now spend time reviewing a community panel’s facilities report, including its recommendation to keep all of the CCS high schools open. The tax would cost a homeowner an additional $242.20 for every $100,000 of valuation.

The Ohio Department of Education has opened an online survey through 5 p.m. on Aug. 1 for interested groups and individuals who wish to review and comment on the draft revisions to Ohio’s Learning Standards in English language arts and mathematics. The revision of Ohio’s Learning Standards in science, social studies and financial literacy will begin in late fall 2016. Register for updates.

Philly.com reported that Philadelphia city officials on Monday announced “nine schools that have been selected to receive extra money and support to create hubs for social, health, and other services in their neighborhoods as part of the new community schools initiative.” All nine schools were chosen “on the basis of poverty and risk factors in their neighborhoods”; five “are in police districts that had the highest number of shootings in 2014”; and four have more than 20 percent of their students learning to speak English. Mayor Jim Kenney “said the goal is to identify the specific needs of students, parents, and their communities, and then forge partnerships with private providers to offer the needed services in the schools.”

The Columbus Board of Education is working to shape a tax-increase rquest for the November ballot. Proposals set forth so far suggest an increase of between 17 and 22 percent. At issue is whether the tax should support operations, facilities maintenance as part of the district’s Master Plan, or both.

The district is poised to start work rebuilding 18 schools, and the central question is whether voters will support two separate issues.

A decision will come later this month.

The Columbus Dispatch reported: The State Board of Education lowered scores needed to meet state standards on two high-school math tests because 40 percent of students are at risk of not graduating as the result of low scores. There has been heated debate about whether this change will hurt or benefit students. Read more here.

The Raleigh News & Observer reported the following: Police arrested 14 people Wednesday evening, including several teachers, after they blocked a downtown intersection during a protest of Gov. Pat McCrory’s education policies. The Organize 2020 group, sponsored by the N.C. Association of Educators, had sought to meet with McCrory after a 23-mile protest march from Durham and North Raleigh to the State Capitol. Read more here.

The Denver Post reported on June 15 that Denver Public Schools officials say teachers and other school workers “are getting an average 2.61 percent raise in the upcoming school year.” The deal with the Denver Classroom Teachers Association “will add $7.6 million in teacher compensation for 2016-17 school year, with the possibility of $11.1 million if voters approve the district’s mill levy ballot proposal in November.”

Education Week summarizes two recent reports that said federal policymakers, in their regulation of teacher evaluation, have focused on “‘consequences’ before putting their emphasis on professional development, which had the effect of alienating teachers and making it harder for them to buy into the reforms,” while suggesting “that the new evaluation systems either hold a lot of promise.” Read more.

Barbara Byrd-Bennett, the former head of Chicago Public Schools, pleaded guilty to fraud on Tuesday, “admitting she steered $23 million in no-bid contracts to education firms for more than $2 million in kickbacks,” according to ABC World News. Associated Press reported that Byrd-Bennett “faced 20 fraud counts, each with a maximum 20-year prison term.” Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune reported that “Byrd-Bennett faces up to about 7 1/2 years in prison” for a single fraud count that her plea agreement required. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that Byrd-Bennett issued a “tearful apology” following her plea, in which she said Chicago’s children and educators “deserved much more, much more than I gave to them.” Byrd-Bennett served as CEO of the Cleveland Municipal School District from 1998 to 2006.

Education Week reported that “state and federal leaders, along with some advocates, are raising concerns that the state’s beleaguered charter sector may not deserve, or be ready for, such a windfall.” The article describes years of “scandal-ridden headlines” about Ohio’s charters, and notes that voices on both sides of the charter question “point to the Ohio charter sector as an example of the dysfunction that can arise from lax oversight.” The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that the Democratic members of Ohio’s congressional delegation are asking Education Secretary Arne Duncan “pointed questions about the $71 million grant Ohio just received to expand charter schools in the state.” (NEA Opening Bell)

Ohio Department of Education officials applied to the U.S. Department of Education for a boost in charter school funding despite the schools’ poor performance. A number of news outlets reported that federal lawmakers are investigating the details of Ohio’s $71 million charter expansion application because State Superintendent Richard Ross apparently waited until the application was submitted before addressing evidence of charter-school score scrubbing. Meanwhile, the Ohio legislature has sent to Gov. Kasich a bill overhauling charter school regulation.

From the NEA’s “Morning Bell” newsletter: Education Secretary Arne Duncan’s surprise announcement on Friday that he is stepping down generated a large amount of media coverage over the weekend, with reports focusing on the abrupt nature of Duncan’s departure, on his legacies as education secretary, and on President Obama’s decision to tap John B. King Jr. to serve as acting secretary for the remainder of his term. The Associated Press reported that Duncan’s seven years in office were “marked by a willingness to plunge head-on into the heated debate about the government’s role in education.” The Hechinger Report offers insight into Duncan’s “aggressiveness and urgency” as he pushed for more preschool funding and for performance-based teacher evaluations. It notes, however, that the tide is turning toward stronger state control over public education.

The U.S. Department of Education will distribute $157 million to create and expand charter schools throughout the nation, despite criticisms that the agency has done a poor job of overseeing federal dollars sent to charter schools. Read more here.

In related news, the North Carolina Senate voted 25-19 to share with charter schools more sources of funding that were previously available only to public schools. Read about it here.

On Sept. 16, CEA celebrated the progress made through five years of funding from the  National Education Association Foundation’s “Closing the Achievement Gaps” project. With more than $1.25 million in seed money to grow partnerships in the community, we initiated the pilot “100% Project” in the 14 schools of the Briggs and Linden-McKinley high school feeder patterns. With CCS and the United Way of Central Ohio, we brought teachers and families closer together; inspired more teachers to grow professionally; expanded teachers’ opportunities to collaborate; and significantly increased third-grade reading and math scores, gains on high school student performance and improvements in the graduation rate.

Pictured at our celebration on Sept. 16 are (left to right): W. Shawna Gibbs, Columbus Board of Education; Tracey D. Johnson, CEA President; Harriett Sanford, CEO of the NEA Foundation; Daniel Good, Columbus City Schools Superintendent; and Gary Baker, President of the Columbus Board of Education.

Your recent issue of the CEA Voice detailed the changes to the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System (OTES) that begin this year. We want to remind you of their importance.

The process of calculating and including value-added ratings for inclusion in the evaluation process is NEW. This year, ALL teachers must do two Student Learning Objectives (SLOs) at the beginning of the school year.

The Ohio Department of Education has also clarified that any employee who works with students 50 percent or more of the work day must be evaluated using OTES. That means that now, all tutors and part-time hourly teachers will be included in the teacher evaluation process.

Pertinent details of the CCS-adopted format for this school year include:

Half of the teacher rating is based on summative evaluation of performance, while the entire rating for Licensed Support Professionals (LSPs) will be based on performance.

• Teachers will develop student growth measures for half of their rating. They will have either professional growth or improvement plans, which they will discuss with administrators at their scheduled conferences. Conferences should be held by Sept. 30, 2015.
• Teachers will need to submit two (2) student learning objectives (SLOs) to the student learning objectives portal by Oct. 16, 2015, for approval by building assessment leaders.

Evaluations are at these intervals, depending on your rating:

• Accomplished: One full cycle evaluation every third year and the development of a professional growth plan; maintenance of an “average” or better rating on student growth measures to continue on the three-year cycle. See www.ccsoh.us/Downloads/2015-16_ACCOMPLISHED_revised_August_2015.pdf.
• Skilled: One full-cycle evaluation every other year and a professional growth plan developed collaboratively with the credentialed evaluator. See www.ccsoh.us/Downloads/2015-16_SKILLED_revised_August_2015.pdf.
• Developing and Ineffective: Full annual evaluation and improvement plan developed collaboratively with the credentialed evaluator.

See www.ccsoh.us/Downloads/2015-16_FULL_revised_August_2015.pdf.

Teachers new to CCS will be evaluated by their PAR Consulting Teachers. Teachers who have moved from an LSP position to a teaching position, or vice versa, will move through the full annual evaluation cycle in their new capacities.

The CCS ILEAD Portal will have up-to-date information regarding the CCS teacher evaluation process. If you have specific questions, contact Teri Mullins, CEA (253-4731) or Greg Mild, Office of Learning and Licensure (365-5039).

After failed negotiations, Seattle teachers formed a picket line today. The first day of school has been canceled for all of the district’s 53,000 students. The National Education Association shared that teachers are also going on strike in southeast Washington in Pasco while the state legislature struggles to increase funding for education due to a state supreme court order that sanctions the state $100,000 every day that the lawmakers failed to “adequately pay to educate the state’s 1 million school children.”

The Seattle School Board has voted to take legal action against the striking teachers. The strike in Seattle is the first in 30 years. Read more here.

Register for regular NEA education updates here.

Fun facts for our new school year:

• Classrooms are busy.
• School buses are back on the road.
• Ohio legislators still have not enacted tougher charter school regulations.

OEA Vice President Scott DiMauro spoke publicly about this issue just as we were getting ready to welcome our students. House Bill 2 was tabled just before summer recess.  The bill includes widespread reform for charter schools. It holds sponsors accountable for the schools’ successes and failures. It requires sponsors to monitor each school’s progress and provide technical assistance, including ensuring each has a plan to improve performance. Some legislators and officials want more fiscal transparency as well and some have called for key accounting changes to make it easier to monitor how the schools’ tax dollars are spent.

DiMauro said: “We’re troubled that the opportunity was lost to start a new school year with an improved system, and hope that members of the House will act swiftly to pass the Senate bill and resist pressure from some who profit from the current system to water down the legislation. Given the scandal around the Ohio Department of Education’s failure to enact charter sponsor ratings in a clean and lawful way, the urgency for action is greater than ever.”

Amen.

The people have spoken:

• 216,000 emails
• 15,000 phone calls to Congress
• 32,000 tweets
• 26,000 petition signers

The result: The U.S. Senate voted 81-17 on July 16 to pass the bipartisan Every Child Achieves Act.

Among other things, it provides more opportunity for all students, and reduces the high-stakes associated with standardized tests. The NEA declared that it “returns decision-making to the people who know the names of the students they educate — a paradigm shift from No Child Left Behind that will help restore the original focus on providing opportunities for all students, especially those most in need.”

The House of Representatives passed its own version (voting 218-213), the Student Success Act. The House tweaked it with help from educators, with an amendment to protect schools from being punished when parents choose to opt their children out of standardized tests.

Now members from the Senate and the House will meet in conference to hammer out a final bill that, if approved by both chambers, will then be sent to the White House. You can read more here and here.

Last week, the top official governing the state’s charter schools — School Choice Director David Hansen — resigned after admitting that he simply left out failing grades for some charter schools in their evaluations. He said that the “F” grades of those schools would “mask successes elsewhere.” Read some thoughts from a fellow educator on the Ohio Education Association’s blog.

Ohio will spend $23.6 million to replace PARCC with the American Institutes for Research (AIR) as its Common Core test provider. AIR will give Ohio’s math and English tests next year, along with the science and social studies tests AIR already gave this past year. Read more about AIR here.

The Ohio Education Association has expressed great disappointment in Governor Kasich’s decision to veto the Tangible Personal Property (TPP) provision. The TPP supplemental foundation aid in FY 2017 was intended to guarantee that districts do not receive less funding (state foundation aid and TPP replacement) than FY 2015 levels. This veto reduces approximately $78.3 million in FY 2017 for nearly 100 districts that are reliant on theses TPP replacement payments – most of them higher-wealth districts.

Legislators sent the governor a budget that included $955 million more in basic state aid for K-12 schools than the last two-year period. But Kasich’s pen stroke – that sealed vetoes on 44 items within the $71 billion budget – cut public school funding by a total of $84 million. Read more here. Read about the state budget here.

Summer break has started – but not at the Statehouse. As the budget deadline nears, the Ohio Senate Finance Committee adopted its own version of the House’s Bill 64, the state budget bill. This version includes fewer dollars for K-12 education than the House version On June 16, the Committee adopted an omnibus amendment with its suggested changes. After the Senate approves of the changes, a conference committee will begin its work to address differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill. The OEA has compiled an analysis here.

In case you didn’t hear about it, Columbus has had good news about its reading scores: 87 percent of third-graders met the state’s reading requirements and will move on to the fourth grade, compared with about 74 percent last school year. Our strategies are working, and we are not about to stop now. Thirteen percent of our third-graders still are at risk of failing. An extra-special thanks to our social workers, who in recent days have begun going door to door in the district to let families know that their children get another chance to take the reading tests, in July.

As we told you in the May 11 issue of The CEA Voice, the Ohio Senate Advisory Committee on Testing completed its recommendations to improve state testing for next school year:

• Shorten and scale the new tests back to once a year.
• Improve the accommodations for children with IEPs and inform parents.
• Train intervention specialists and paraprofessionals who assist students with IEPs.
• Return test results in a timely manner.
• Add more time to review the tests for standards alignment.
• Preserve the option for paper/pencil tests for at least the next two school years and provide needs-based funding for technology.

The 30-member panel, which included CEA member Kimberly Jones (Mifflin MS), took only two months to complete its task.  Read the full report here. The Senate is expected to review the proposals.

Under Gov. Kasich’s budget plan, more than half of Ohio’s school districts would receive less funding than in the previous budget. The reason? Formulas that determine which districts are “needy,” and which have the “capacity” to generate more local revenues. Charter schools also receive state funding, and according to a recent study, that funding affects the allocation to school districts. OEA is tracking the developments. See the full story here.

The Ohio Senate’s Advisory Committee on Testing has laid out its plan to address complaints about the time spent on, stress imposed by, and evaluative use of Ohio’s plethora of standardized tests. CEA Governor Kim A. Jones is on the 28-member panel of school teachers, administrators and policy experts. The first meeting, held March 18, focused on the next steps: review of the PARCC and AIR tests, and a review of the testing schedules across the state. The committee recently sent a survey to principals, teachers and superintendent asking them to describe amounts of time spent on testing versus instruction, technology issues they have experienced with the tests, and for any other comments. Jones said she believes the committee will conduct a thorough review. Its report is due later this spring. Learn more here. The committee’s website includes a public comment area.

The Ohio Education Association testified on House Bill 64 (Ohio’s proposed 2016-2017 budget) on March 5 regarding a number of changes to education policy. Among their concerns:

• The funding formula remains inadequate, with too much going to unaccountable charter schools.
• Use of shared attribution to evaluate teachers may not be the best route.
• De-regulation in hiring for high-performing schools is a slippery slope.
• Establishment of a Senate advisory committee is a positive first step to fixing problems with excessive student testing.

Read more here.

On Feb. 2, Gov. John Kasich presented his proposed budget for 2016 and 2017.  It sets limits on standardized testing time and eliminates the fall Third Grade Reading Guarantee. Kasich claims it will provide an additional $700 million in state foundation support to schools. However, the approximate $235 million cut in business’ tangible personal property tax reimbursements to school districts would result in a significantly lower amount. Read OEA’s analysis here.

CEA is offering a wonderful opportunity to learn how you can leverage your CEA membership by getting involved in the issues. We are holding an Organization and Activist Training session from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, March 7 at the OEA headquarters, 225 E. Broad St. There are so many issues that impact our abilities to make a difference on the job: election results, poverty, the availability of mental health resources for our students, OTES, SLOs, PARCC – and so much more. This event includes CEUs. Register at http://bit.ly/orgactivist.

The deadline to apply to become a PAR Consulting Teacher has been extended to Friday, February 27, 2015 at 5pm. Eligible teachers must hold a bachelor’s degree in education, an active teaching license, and a minimum of five years of teaching experience, three of them with CCS. Submit a letter of interest, resume and three reference letters (from your current building administrator, a current CEA member and another professional) to CEA President Tracey D. Johnson, 929 E. Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43205.

To download a list of the principal placements for Article 211, click here.

Please note: Article 211 of the Master Agreement permits members to request to staff reduce themselves from schools, programs or buildings for health or safety reasons or for philosophical differences (i.e. instructional program, teaching assignment, etc.). The reduction must be mutually agreed upon by Human Resources and CEA.

If you want to make a request to be staff-reduced from your current teaching assignment based on philosophical differences, you must write a letter that clearly states the reason(s) for your request. Letters should be sent to Victoria Frye, Human Resources, Columbus City Schools, 270 E. State St., Columbus, OH 43215. You should hand deliver the letter and ask for a copy to be time stamped for your records. The deadline to request to be staff reduced is Friday, Feb. 13 at 5 p.m. Emails and faxes will not be accepted. You will not be allowed to make requests for staff-reduction status after Friday, Feb. 13.

CCS is looking for Consulting Teachers (CTs) to join the Peer Assistance & Review (PAR) program. PAR CTs provide consulting, coaching and support services to intern and intervention teachers who enter the PAR program. Eligible teachers must have five years of teaching experience, including three in CCS.

PAR is a nationally recognized program that has become a model throughout the country. CTs also serve as evaluators for the Ohio Teacher Evaluation System.  Submit a letter of interest, a resume and three reference letters (from your principal, a current CEA member and one other professional) to CEA President Tracey D. Johnson, CEA, 929 E. Broad Street, Columbus, OH 43205.

The deadline is 5 p.m., Friday, Feb. 13 for voluntary staff reductions.

Submit signed written requests – with the specific reasons for your request – to Victoria Frye, Human Resources, Columbus City Schools, 270 E. State St., Columbus, OH 43215. Emails and faxes will not be accepted. CEA strongly suggests you hand deliver your letter and request a time-stamped copy.

This is likely the last opportunity for additional voluntary staff reductions until after the Feb. 13 deadline.