The District 9 representative to the Kansas State Board of Education visited the Emporia school district during a board of education meeting Wednesday evening in Mary Herbert Education Center.
State board member Jana Shaver told the board that her mission recently has been to attend board meetings of all 65 school districts in her 20-county district. Improving communications with constituents and policy-making groups is one of the state board’s goals, she said.
Shaver said she especially wanted to be in Emporia before Superintendent John Heim leaves the district to become executive director of the Kansas Association of School Boards.
Shaver had been a teacher and curriculum director in Independence, where Heim graduated from high school. She said it was “always a joy” to see those graduates become successful.
“I want to compliment John to tell him how proud we all are of him, to wish him well in his new endeavor,” Shaver said. “So, thank you, John, for all that you have done.”
Heim drew laughs from board members when he muttered into his microphone, “Well, that’s not what the principal said when I left.”
Shaver then spoke seriously about the state board’s role in education, whose mission includes overseeing rules for teacher licensure, hiring a commissioner of education and overseeing school accreditation, among other tasks.
One of three initiatives that had been targeted in recent years was the shortage of teachers in the state. The board relaxed some of the rules and changed some of the licensing requirements to allow people into teaching from alternative routes and from other states.
“Well, you know that’s not an issue any more because of the economic situation,” Shaver said.
Shaver said the board needs to do more with career technical education so students coming out of high school will be trained and ready to go to work in Kansas communities.
“Sure, we need good college preparation, and we have that in Kansas, but … the economic vitality of this state depends on having a well-educated work force and as we come out of this recession, that is going to be one thing that drives our success,” Shaver said.
The goal of a plan to identify career pathways is to allow students to achieve national certification in whatever area they choose to study. Career assessments in middle school was one step mentioned that could help start students toward their careers.
Shaver said that the elementary and secondary education act is due to be re-authorized at the federal level. She expects it to be based on a “blueprint for reform” that has come out of the U.S. Department of Education. The state board also is studying the plan and making recommendations about how certain aspects might harm states with small populations.
“One was that they seem to favor funding title programs on a competitive basis instead of an entitlement basis as has been done in the past,” she said, “and we have written a letter to the secretary of education, telling him what a disadvantage that would be for small states.”
Shaver said that one bright spot in the blueprint was a change in measuring student progress, as set down by No Child Left Behind, and changing to what she termed a “growth model” instead of the percentage numbers currently used to measure progress.
“I think No Child Left Behind, that whole plan, will be gone, but there will be a new plan in place and we want to have a voice in that and we want to be prepared,” Shaver said.
Kansas has consistently ranked among the top 10 states in terms of student performance, she said.
“And we want to keep going in that direction.”
kseyetie (anonymous) says...
Good points, Ms. Shaver. Kansas is doing a fine job, spending less than most states to achieve laudable results. We will not continue this trend without sufficient funding, however. Technical education is critical and always has been. People who are interested in high-income careers should check this out. A four-year college degree is also a wonderful thing, but universities are not trade schools and education in its purest sense is for the mind and spirit, not the pocketbook.
June 1, 2010 at 8:18 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )