Commissioner's Newsletter
October 1, 2001
Dear School Administrator:
On Tuesday, September 11, we were hosting a "summit meeting" in Jefferson City on early childhood education, with nearly 200 school superintendents in attendance. We considered this to be a very important meeting. The governor was scheduled to speak in the afternoon. Then we got the news about the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C. The crowd began to scatter immediately, and we cut the meeting short.
The atmosphere has been so sad and somber, almost eerily quiet, ever since. At the same time, we all understand that this is and will be a watershed event in our nation’s history. Public schools play a crucial role during such times, serving as a resource for children and families, a place of security, and a vital place for communities to come together for grieving, recovering, sharing, unifying – and learning.
Now, all of us are trying to "get back to normal," but I expect that this school year will be different for all of us as a result of the attacks and the nation’s response.
Here are several IMPORTANT AND TIMELY items for your information and use.
INFORMATION ABOUT "SCHOOL DISTRICT REPORT CARDS"
We have received numerous calls lately about the "new requirements" for the annual reports that school districts must publish each year. As you know, the legislature passed a measure this year that revises what must be included in your district’s annual report.
Here is what you need to know.
Your report for this year (due by December 1) may be "business as usual." You may issue your report just as you have in the past. You MAY omit the detailed information about extracurricular activities and the costs associated with those activities.
Following are the state-level figures that you need to include in your annual report this fall. These are the state averages that you are required to use as comparisons with your local information:
Average Teacher Salary (regular term) $35,091
Average Total Teacher Salary $36,762
(including Career Ladder, extra duty, etc.)Average Administrator Salary $65,008
The State Board of Education meets this month on October 18-19. At that time, we will submit proposed amendments to the current regulations concerning "school accountability report cards," which is the term used in the revised law. We will share the proposed revisions with you and gather comments about the revised regulation. The final regulation will be adopted early next year. The new policy will be in effect for the 2002-2003 school year.
Along with proposed changes in the regulation, we intend to provide a prototype of the "standard form" for school reports, as required by the new law. Schools may use this "template" if they choose. We hope to provide a model that most schools and districts will find both practical and user-friendly.
The new law provides for only a couple of substantial changes in the way school districts must report information to parents and patrons. These include:
The revised law focuses on providing information for each attendance center. It still requires a variety of district-level data, but the emphasis is on providing reports directly to parents and patrons at the building level.
Reporting of disciplinary actions (suspensions and expulsions) will be mandatory. This information is already required in Core Data, so it is not really a new issue.
Following the October State Board of Education meeting, I will send you the full text of the proposed changes in the current regulations. It will be important for you to review this information carefully and offer your comments and suggestions.
SCHOOL VIOLENCE HOTLINE BEGINS OPERATING
Today (October 1), Governor Holden is announcing the start of a statewide "School Violence Hotline." It will allow students, parents and citizens to call a toll-free number and report potential threats affecting schools, students and school personnel. This initiative is being funded under a grant from the Missouri Department of Public Safety. It will be operated by the Department of Social Services. Our staff were involved in the initial planning for this project. As you may know, the concept of this prevention program has been discussed in Missouri ever since the tragedy at Columbine High School. Some states already have similar programs in operation.
When the School Violence Hotline receives information about an incident or a potential threat, the information will be forwarded to local school and law enforcement authorities.
The hotline number is 1-866-748-7047. I encourage you to share this information with your principals, security personnel and other staff immediately. You may also need to discuss this program with law enforcement officials and review your respective procedures for dealing with potential threats that are reported via the new hotline.
DESIGNATION OF ACADEMICALLY DEFICIENT SCHOOLS
At its meeting on September 20, the State Board of Education formally designated three high schools and two middle schools in the Kansas City School District as being "academically deficient." This is the first time that individual buildings have been identified this way, as required under provisions of the Outstanding Schools Act of 1993.
During the last school year, these five buildings were identified as "concerned" schools, according to the criteria established by the State Board of Education. In May, 10-member "audit teams" visited each of the five buildings and conducted a thorough, three-day review of each. The teams were composed primarily of teachers and administrators from other school districts.
These teams prepared formal reports about conditions at the five schools and determined that they should be declared academically deficient. These reports were officially presented to the State Board on September 20, and representatives of the audit teams discussed their findings with the Board. This was a difficult assignment for the audit team members, and we are grateful for their assistance.
Now, we must appoint outside "management teams" to work with the school district and staff in these five buildings to make recommendations for ways to improve student achievement. Although the law refers to them as "management" teams, they will function only in an advisory capacity. All decisions regarding possible changes and improvement strategies in these schools will remain with the local school board and the schools themselves. Our goal will be to provide practical and constructive advice to the district and the building-level staff.
The designation of these five schools was a "pilot" effort, designed to make sure that these procedures are effective and workable. We limited the process to the Kansas City School District this year since it is the only unaccredited district in the state.
Later this month (October 19), the State Board of Education will receive a report identifying another 20 buildings across the state as "concerned" schools. This will affect several school districts in the state. Under our current policy, no more than five buildings in the same district may be identified as "concerned" in a given year. In the coming months, we will assemble new "audit teams" to visit the 20 additional buildings. This will be a major project for our staff and for the team members who are assigned to visit these schools.
We recognize that being designated as a "concerned" or "deficient" school is not a pleasant prospect for school personnel, districts or their communities. This process, however, is required by law and it reflects the national trend toward focusing accountability measures on low-performing buildings. While this process may be viewed by many as being punitive, it can provide impetus for positive change, and we will do everything we can to make the process as fair and helpful as possible.
MILITARY RESERVISTS CALLED TO ACTIVE DUTY
As you know, members of the National Guard and the military reserves are being called to active duty in response to the September 11 terrorist attacks. School districts have not had to deal with this issue since the Gulf War in 1991. We know that at least a few school district employees have already been called to active duty. There are likely to be more in the months ahead.
If you have not done so, you should review your policies concerning employees who are called to active military duty, so that your board and staff clearly understand what procedures need to be followed.
COMING SOON: HONORARY DIPLOMAS FOR VETERANS
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is now working with the Missouri Veterans Commission to implement a new program known as "Operation Recognition," which was established this year by the General Assembly. Through this statewide program, we will award honorary high school diplomas to eligible Missouri veterans who dropped out of school to serve in the armed forces. World War I, World War II and Korean War veterans (alive or deceased) are eligible for this honor.
At this point, we expect to announce or award the first honorary diplomas next month – on or about Veterans Day, November 11.
The Missouri Veterans Commission is already accepting applications from Missouri veterans who are interested in the honorary diploma. Enclosed is a sample copy of the application form that veterans must submit in order to verify their eligibility. If someone in your community contacts you about this program, you may provide them a copy of this application and encourage them to contact the Veterans Commission.
Our Department is producing the actual diploma that will be awarded. In most cases, however, we will ask local school officials to cooperate in the presentation of these awards. We expect that most recipients of the honorary diploma will want to receive the award where they live currently or from the school they attended years ago. This will provide an opportunity for you to conduct special recognition ceremonies (at a school board meeting, for example, or in conjunction with regular commencement programs) to honor community members who served our state and nation in the armed forces.
A few school districts in Missouri have already been issuing honorary diplomas; there are similar programs operating now in several states. These awards may be issued posthumously, so we also expect that there will be cases in which family members will request the honorary diploma on behalf of a deceased veteran.
We will keep you posted about the plans to announce and publicize this program at the state level. At this point, we have no way to determine just "how big" this program could be. There may be a few hundred candidates, or a few thousand! In every case, however, Operation Recognition will be an excellent opportunity for schools and communities to say thank you to their veterans, to encourage more interaction between students and veterans, and to promote wider recognition of those individuals who sacrificed their education to serve in the military.
CUT-OFF DATES FOR GRANTS AND CONTRACTS
To ensure timely processing of grant and contract payments to your district during this fiscal year, please alert your staff about the following deadline dates:
May 15, 2002 - Grant reimbursement requests for known expenditures are due to the appropriate DESE divisional contact.
May 15, 2002 - Professional Development Money grant or contract reimbursement requests for known expenditures are due to the appropriate DESE divisional contact.
June 25, 2002 - All other contract reimbursement invoices for known expenditures are due to the appropriate DESE divisional contact.
These deadlines apply to grants and contracts that are funded from both state and federal sources. Allowable expenditures not included in the above requests may be submitted for reimbursement after June 30 and will be paid from Fiscal Year 2003 funds. Your help in meeting these deadlines is appreciated.
DEADLINE IS REVISED FOR SUBMITTING
APPLICATIONS FOR
NEW VOCATIONAL PROGRAMS FOR 2002-2003
As part of its continuing efforts to improve its services and administrative procedures, our Division of Vocational and Adult Education is extending the time period in which school districts may apply for new or expanded vocational education programs. The FV-3 Applications for Expanding/New Regular Vocational Education Programs are being accepted NOW and through May 1, 2002. Previously, these applications could not be submitted until after January 1. This change will give districts more flexibility and more time to plan and budget for new or expanded programs next year.
The revised FV-3 application form with the new deadline date is available on the Department’s Web site. If you have any questions about this, please contact Dennis Harden, Coordinator of Vocational-Technical Education, 573-751-3500February 8, 2008 PLANNING REVISITED
The recent terrorist attacks have made citizens and government officials at every level think again about their level of preparedness for potential crises. If you have not already done so, this may be a good time for you and your staff to revisit your emergency-response plans and to think about how schools could be affected by a terrorist incident that occurs closer to home.
Governor Holden has appointed a new cabinet-level officer to review and coordinate state-level security and crisis-response measures. Increased security measures for the Capitol and state office buildings are now being considered. I am sure that our Department will be working with the State Emergency Management Agency and others to review and improve our own preparedness.
We will keep you apprised of these efforts and share information that may be useful or applicable for local schools. In the meantime, you may wish to visit the DESE Web site and review the resources on school safety and crisis response that have been compiled by our Special State Instructional Programs Section. To access this information, visit DESE’s main Web page (www.dese.mo.gov), and click on "What’s New."
GOVERNOR ANNOUNCES "ADOPT A HERO" PROGRAM
One of the remarkable side effects of September 11 has been the enormous outpouring of public praise and admiration for firefighters and all the other emergency workers who responded so bravely and selflessly to the attacks at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
In response to these recent events, Governor Holden last week announced a program called "Adopt A Hero." He is encouraging Missourians, and schoolchildren in particular, to recognize and honor the unsung heroes in their own communities. It is a good idea. I encourage you to share this idea with your teachers and principals.
COMMUNICATING VIA E-MAIL
In the past few weeks, I have sent a couple of e-mail messages directly to superintendents to inform them of "breaking news" (such as the release of MAP scores and information about state-level budget cuts). This approach appears to be working well, but we will appreciate your cooperation as we refine the e-mail system to more efficiently meet your needs.
Until now, we have been deliberately avoiding the use of e-mail to communicate directly with superintendents. It is difficult to create and maintain an accurate address list, and we do NOT want to inundate school officials with e-mail messages just because it is quick and easy to "punch that button." However, the events of recent weeks have made it clear that we NEED a fast, reliable system for disseminating information to key school officials about hot issues.
A few administrators have told me they do NOT want e-mail from the Department, but the vast majority of administrators seem comfortable with it. We will continue to use it – and we will do our best not to abuse it.
At this point, we are drawing superintendents’ e-mail addresses from Core Data information, but this file is not complete. In my recent messages, for example, I know that about 80 districts did not receive the messages I sent. If you do not recall receiving any e-mail from me within the past three weeks, I encourage you to ask your district’s Core Data coordinator to verify your e-mail address on Screen 4 on the Web. Only persons with a security password may update this Core Data information.
For my purposes, I would like to know that e-mail from my office will reach the superintendent personally – or someone with close proximity who monitors e-mail regularly. If you do NOT use or read e-mail personally on a daily basis, I urge you to develop a system so that someone in your office will be able to check your e-mail traffic promptly and regularly.
It is important for you to understand that we now have a "two-track" system for distributing information electronically. In addition to the direct e-mail system (which I will limit to superintendents and a very few others for my own messages), we also have a PUBLIC bulletin to notify subscribers about news from our agency. The "DESE Bulletin" provides a brief e-mail notice whenever we publish a news release or other time-sensitive information. The number of subscribers to this service is growing rapidly.
Anyone may subscribe to the "DESE Bulletin." If you are not familiar with this service, visit our main page (www.dese.mo.gov) and click on "News." At the top of the news release page, you will find directions on how to subscribe to this e-mail service.
I realize that e-mail is not always a good substitute for printed communications. In some cases, however, it is clearly the fastest and most effective means of sharing urgent news. In light of the austerity measures that we are taking this year, e-mail also offers an attractive and economical alternative to printing and mailing.
On a related note, we will soon be launching a "new look" for DESE’s main Web site. The address will not change. However, the structure and appearance are being revised in order to make the site more useful and responsive to our growing number of visitors. The redesigned site should be operational within the next month. Look for it. I will probably send you an e-mail when we are ready to launch!
Sincerely,
D. Kent King