HeadlinesA News Report for Michigan Education Leaders

The recent changes in Michi-gan’s collective bargaining laws

covering school employees in general, and teachers in particular, are nothing short of monumental. These changes will dramatically impact negotiations for the 2012-13 school year. While many of the changes are clear, there are still questions and it may take time before we have definitive answers as to the full impact of the new laws.

It’s vital that school administrators and board members deal carefully and thoughtfully with these matters, and that you check with your legal counsel before acting on any of these changes. There are many nuances and technical matters which must be addressed and, as stated above, there are still a num-ber of unknowns about the new law.

This article is part one of a two-part series. In part one we identify changes to the law in broad terms.

Part two will provide additional legal background, suggestions on how to make changes in your contracts and an explanation of how to address union concerns and strategies.

PA 103 – This law reflects the core of the changes in collective bargaining for teachers in regards to discharge, discipline, layoff, recall, observations for evaluations and placement. If your teacher bargaining unit has non-teachers, such as social workers or counselors, they’re not covered by the new changes in the law that address these subjects. This may require that your district identify provisions for non-teachers that are different than those for teachers. Check with your attorney, negotiator and/or human resources specialist. Further, because the changes specifically refer to teach-ers—and in some cases administra-tors—the amendments won’t affect the negotiations or the collective bar-gaining agreement for support staff.

The main effect of the law is to render certain topics that had been “mandatory” subjects of negotiations with teacher groups to “prohibited”

topics. This means that the topics list-ed below can’t be included in contract provisions that cover teachers, and a district or union can’t negotiate them. These topics still may be discussed outside of negotiations. However, the distinction between negotiations and discussion is crucial. Negotiations car-ries a far greater obligation for a dis-trict and includes elaborate obligations if the parties disagree. Check with your legal counsel before entering into discussions outside of negotiations on any of these topics. It’s important to approach them properly.

November 21, 2011

Membership in the MASB-SEG Property/Casualty Pool is available only to districts that belong to MASB. This is the nation’s largest property/casualty pool serving school districts exclusively, based upon its total insured value. Last year, 464 districts received a total of $5 million in premium reductions.

MASB Service Dashboard

Premium Reductions for Members

MEMBERSHIP

House makes its move to combat bullying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Even year November elections finally a mandate for boards . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Smoothing the transition for new trustees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Michigan opts to delay its ESEA waiver application until February . . . 7

$5,000 gift allows two districts to enhance outdoor education . . . . . . . 8

inside this issue:

Volume 2, Issue 22Michigan Association of School Boards1001 Centennial Way, Suite 400Lansing, MI 48917

Highlights• Subjects previously mandatory,

now prohibited in bargaining.• Changes will dramatically impact

2012-13 negotiations.

Changes in law expand prohibited subjects of bargaining

Prohibited, continued on page 4

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 20112

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www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 2011 3

In the next chapter in Michigan’s push to end bullying, the House

passed House Bill 4163, a bill that requires all school districts to have a policy prohibiting bullying and harass-ment of all students. The floor debate involved several emotional stories from members from both sides of the aisle and culminated in an 88 to 18 vote in favor of the bill.

This new bill comes the week after the Michigan Senate passed SB 137, a bill aimed at the same goal but with one highly contentious amendment. SB 137 drew national media attention after the Senate added an amendment to the bill that would provide an ex-ception for a “statement of a sincerely held religious belief or moral convic-tion of a school employee, school volunteer, pupil or a pupil’s parent or guardian.” Critics were quick to declare this a “license to bully” while proponents argued that it affirmed First Amendment rights.

MASB has a position of support for legislation that requires school districts to have a policy (see box at right), but leaves the specifics of the policy up to the local community and board of education. HB 4163 main-tains those stipulations, without the religious exemption, and has the sup-port of your association.

The bill requires that school boards adopt a policy prohibiting bullying within six months of the law’s effec-tive date. A board must also hold at least one public hearing on the policy,

which can be a part of an already scheduled hearing. The following items must be included in the policy:

• A statement prohibiting bullying of a student.

• A statement prohibiting retaliation or false accusation against a target of bullying, a witness or another person with reliable information about an act of bullying.

• A provision indicating that all students are protected under the policy, and that bullying is equally prohibited without regard to its subject matter or motivation.

• The identification, by job title, of school officials re-sponsible for ensuring that the policy is implemented.

• A statement describing how the policy is to be publicized.

• A procedure for providing notification to the parent or legal guardian of a victim of bullying, and to the parent or legal guardian of a perpetra-tor of the bullying.

• A procedure for prompt investiga-tion of a report of a violation of the policy or a related complaint, iden-tifying either the principal or the principal's designee as the person responsible for the investigation.

• A procedure for each public school to document any prohibited incident that was reported, and a procedure to report all veri-fied incidents of bullying and the resulting consequences, includ-ing discipline and referrals, to the board of the school district on an annual basis.

After the completion of a public hearing, the school board has 30 days

to submit its policy to the Depart-ment of Education. If a school district already has a policy in place, it may submit that policy to the Department of Education within 60 days of the law becoming effective (as long as the policy meets the above mentioned minimum requirements). It’s worth noting that the policy requirements described in the list is merely a start-ing point. Boards of education are

permitted to go beyond the scope of what the bill requires.

The bill now goes to the Senate where it’s assumed it will pass with little-to-no modification, since the bill that passed the House is nearly identi-cal to the bill that has already passed the Senate. However, as with anything in the legislative process, there are no guarantees. Gov. Snyder has made it clear he’d like to sign a bill that re-quires policies that prohibit bullying.

For questions, contact Don Wotruba, dwotruba@masb.org, 517.327.5913 or Peter Spadafore, pspadafore@masb.org, 517.327.5912.

Legislative UpdateHighlights

• Districts must adopt policy prohib-iting bullying within six months of law’s effective date.

• Must hold public hearing.

House makes its move to combat bullying

4.10 Equal Rights, Discrimination, Harassment

and Bullying (2010, Rev. 2011)

The Michigan Association of School Boards supports equal rights for

all, and the MASB urges immediate action by all district boards to adopt policies on discrimination, harassment and bully-ing. The MASB also encourages boards of education to consider the State Board of Education’s model policy on bullying when they are reviewing, amending or adopting their local policy.

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 20114

Topics now prohibited from nego-tiations and inclusion in a contract:

Placement and Assignment – The law specifies that, “any decision made by the public school employer regard-ing the placement of teachers, or the impact of that decision on an individ-ual employee or the bargaining unit...” are now prohibited topics of negotia-tions. For example, a contract shouldn’t include a vacancy and transfer provi-sion that requires the use of seniority or any other standard that inhibits a school’s right to fill vacancies or make voluntary or involuntary transfers.

Layoff and Recall – The law pro-vides that, “decisions about the development, content, standards, procedures, adoption and implemen-tation of the public school employer’s policies regarding reduction in force...” are prohibited subjects of bargain-ing. Additionally, PA 102 specifies a set of criteria that must be used when conducting a layoff. The bottom line is that while you may still have a defini-tion of seniority in your contract, the timing and order of a layoff and recall must be outside your contract. Also, under the new law, layoff or recall by strict seniority is no longer permis-sible. Seniority may only be used as a tie breaker when all other factors are equal. Layoff clauses will, by and large, be removed from contracts and replaced by board policy. The new requirements will take administra-tors more time to prepare a layoff list as several individual factors must be applied to every employee in order to determine the appropriate order.

Evaluation – According to the law, “decisions about the develop-ment, content, standards, procedures, adoption and implementation of a public school employer’s performance evaluation system adopted under Section 1249 of the Revised School Code… decisions concerning the

content of a performance evaluation of an employee… or the impact of the decision on an individual employee or the bargaining unit...” are prohibited topics for negotiations. This means that all matters regarding your dis-trict’s evaluation of teachers should be contained in an evaluation instrument that’s separate from the teachers’ col-lective bargaining agreement.

Discharge and Discipline of Tenured Employees – Changes to both the Tenure Act and the Public Employment Relations Act mean that schools must exclude decisions about discharge and discipline as subjects of negotiations. Any just cause lan-guage that covers teachers should be removed from individual contracts and collective bargaining agreements. Further, the law provides that, “a pub-lic school employer shall not adopt, implement or maintain a policy for discharge or discipline of an employee that’s different than the arbitrary and capricious standard...” that’s included in the revised Tenure Act. In effect, the law provides greater authority and flexibility for schools in dealing with the dismissal and discipline of teachers.

Merit Pay – Districts are now prohibited from negotiating on “deci-sions about the development, content, standards, procedures, adoption and implementation of the method of compensation required under section 1250 of the Revised School Code...” This references merit pay, including decisions about how an employee performance evaluation is used to determine an individual’s merit pay or the impact of that decision on the indi-vidual employee or the bargaining unit.

Notification of Ineffective Teach-ers – Decisions about “...the develop-ment, format, content and procedures of the notification to parents and legal guardians...” of a teacher designated as “ineffective” for two years in a row are prohibited from inclusion in a collec-tive bargaining agreement.

If you have any questions, or need assistance from MASB, contact Brad Banasik, bbanasik@masb.org, 517.327.5929 or Tom White, tom-white@masb.org, 517.327.5928.

Prohibited, continued from front page

Keep your negotiations on track with MASB

MASB offers a host of labor relations and negotiations

services to assist districts at the bargaining table. Our knowledgeable, experienced staff and consultants can help make sure your negotiations keep moving forward.

• Contract AnalysisReview for prohibited topics and/or a full contract analysis.

• Preparing for NegotiationsCustomized workshop for your board and administrators to review the law, and lead discussion on strat-egies, priorities and goals.

• At-the-Table RepresentationMASB has an experienced negotiator available in your area and negotiators who are backed up by MASB legal counsel and public relations staff.

• Background SupportMASB staff can work with your district behind the scenes assisting in preparing for bargaining, providing useful background information and providing advice and general assis-tance as requested. This doesn’t cover at-the-table representation.

• ConferencesConsider attending the Labor Con-ference, Feb. 23-24 in Lansing (see page 9).

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 2011 5

After repeated attempts in recent years to move school board

elections to November, legislation is finally on its way to the governor. Gov. Snyder hasn’t yet been presented the bills requiring even year November elections, but it’s expected he’ll sign them after the Thanksgiving holiday. He’s indicated his support of manda-tory November elections for school boards so we have no doubt the bills will be signed.

House Bill 4005, introduced by Rep. Heise (R-Plymouth), and Senate Bill 427, introduced by Sen. Colbeck (R-Canton), passed their respective chambers during the last week of ses-sion before the November break.

MASB testified in opposition to both of these bills, as did many others in the school community. Legislators cited two major reasons for ignoring the opposition: cost of elections and low voter turnout. MASB made the case against this switch and outlined the potential problems, but it seemed that many of our members were re-signed to the fact that this change was going to happen.

Both pieces of legislation make significant changes with only minor alterations in the law. SB 427 offers only technical changes; while HB 4005 changes one sentence related to schools, simply stating that after Janu-ary 1, 2012 all school board elections will be held during the November gen-eral election. Nearly 150 districts have already moved to some combination of November elections since 2003, but the remainder will be mandated to do so next year.

Keep in mind this change only im-pacts school board elections and not bond or millage elections. Those elec-tions can still be held on one of the

four regular election dates that exist under current law. Districts that were concerned about Headlee elections on their 18 mills or reauthorization votes on their 18 mills will still be able to conduct those elections in May to take full advantage of tax collections, but will be faced with paying the cost of that election. However, in the long run because of the savings from switching to November, your total election costs will be significantly reduced.

There are a number of questions a change of this magnitude raises, specifically as it relates to what actions local boards need to take. The most common questions on how to make this transition are answered below:

Q. What if my term expires in June 2012?

All terms that end in June 2012 will automatically extend until Dec. 31, 2012. If you plan on running again you’ll be running in the November election. A similar extension also ap-plies to terms ending in June 2014.

Q. What if my term expires in June 2013?

All terms (June or December) that end in 2013 will extend until Decem-ber 31, 2014, with reelection bids in November 2014. That’s an 18 month extension for many school board members, but state law can’t shorten terms. A similar extension will also apply for terms ending in 2015.

Q. What if our district already switched to an every-other-year election in November of odd years?

You won’t have an election in 2012 and all odd year terms will extend until the end of the next even year.

Q. With four year terms, will a ma-jority of the board be up for election every four years?

Yes, if a district has four year terms a

majority of a seven member board will be up for election every four years.

Q. Are there districts that have a majority of board members turn over in an election?

Yes. A number of districts that made the switch to the November general election in past years continued their four year terms. Other districts were uncomfortable with that outcome and made other changes, such as the one noted below, to prevent the situation.

Q. Is there a way to prevent a ma-jority of the board from being up for election?

Yes. A board can pass a resolution to change the length of term to six years for all board members. You must also submit a transition plan to your county election coordinator to move to six year terms.

Q. Is moving to six year terms complicated?

It doesn’t have to be. MASB has worked with a number of districts to map out their transition plans, but it also can be done at the local level without too much trouble. Each district will have a different scenario based on the election intentions of each member, the ending of certain terms and other considerations.

You’ll likely encounter other ques-tions about the implementation of these bills and MASB is happy to work with districts on making this transition as easy as possible. Both Brad Banasik, 517.327.5929, bbanasik@masb.org, and Don Wotruba, 517.327.5913, dwotruba@masb.org have worked on transition plans for districts.

Even year November elections finally a mandate for boardsHow will your district make the transition?

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 20116

Around the state, newly elected school board members are pre-

paring to join your boards. Although these new board members won’t of-ficially join your team until January, it’s a good idea to begin thinking about how veteran trustees can smooth the transition for your freshmen col-leagues. The first step is ensuring they have the basic information they need to get started. At a minimum, the board might compile the following materials for newly elected members:

• A current copy of board policies and district administrative rules.

• Information on how the school board and district are organized.

• A primer on how board meetings are conducted.

• An orientation on the authority and responsibility of the board, superintendent, administrators and individual board members.

• A copy of the district’s budget, with an explanation on how funds are received and allocated.

• A primer on how to read and understand the complexities of various financial reports.

• Details about the district’s school improvement/strategic plan.

• Curriculum standards mandated by federal and state statutes.

• A copy of the district’s collective bargaining agreements, along with background on recent activities.

• Encourage them to visit MASB’s website, www.masb.org. There’s a section specifically for new board members where they can down-load a free copy of A School Board Member’s Resource Guide: First Year Orientation.

Adapted from the Ohio School Boards Association.

Two more issues of Headlines until transition to new digital format

Just two print issues remain until Headlines makes the digital tran-

sition. If you haven’t yet done so, visit our website and take a virtual tour of the new format. The short video will walk you through the key features available and will help familiarize you with the digital format.

Beginning with the Jan. 10 issue, members will receive an email alerting you that the latest issue of Headlines is available. You’ll simply click a link to read the latest news.

Archived issues of Headlines are available on the members-only area of the site, so if you don’t know your username and password contact us for help resetting it.

Member service is of the upmost importance to us, so send your feed-back and suggestions to Sarah Ford, sford@masb.org. We’ve already received several suggestions from members that will help smooth the transition.

Smoothing the transition for new trustees

Schools Cannot Do it Alone; start the conversation to build support

Author Jamie Vollmer is a favorite among the education

community, and was well received at MASB’s Annual Fall Conference. Once a harsh critic of public educa-tion, he’s now an advocate and trusted partner. Jamie is perhaps best known for his list of all of the demands that have been put on public schools over the years.

His book, Schools Cannot Do it Alone, discusses building support for America’s public schools. Jamie tells of how, despite a remarkable record of achievement, teachers and administra-tors will never produce the results our nation needs because they’re asked to operate in a system that’s designed to “select and sort people for an indus-trial society that no longer exists.”

This book leads the reader on a journey through the public education system, which comes to the conclu-sion that we have a systems prob-lem, not a people problem. We must change the system to get the results we desire. We can’t begin to change the system without first changing

the culture of our communities: Schools Cannot Do it Alone. Jamie offers a practical program to secure the understanding, trust, permission and support they need to change the system and increase student success. “Vollmer has written a tonic for every educator’s soul! Teachers, administra-tors and school board members will LOVE this message. His solutions are radical, sensible, and above all, do-able,” said NSBA Executive Director Anne Bryant.

Limited copies are available from the MASB bookstore for $24.95, emerge.masb.org/source/Orders/index.cfm?task=0, or contact Stacy Washington, swash-ington@masb.org, 517.327.5936.

Vollmer offers a pro-gram to secure the public understand-ing, trust, permission and support needed to change our education system and increase student success.

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 2011 7

The U.S. Senate continues to work on language for the re-

authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)—also known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB)—while states are applying for waivers for flexibility from the cur-rent requirements of ESEA. Michigan originally intended to apply in the first round of waiver applications, but decided to delay its application until mid-February in order to more fully develop its application, specifically as it relates to the state’s accreditation system and new teacher evaluation requirements.

The U.S. Department of Education is providing waivers from some of the requirements of NCLB on four main principles. States must outline how they’ll adhere to these principles in order to receive flexibility. Following are the key points of Michigan’s draft flexibility request. Principle 1: Career- and College-Ready Expectations for All Students

The State Board of Education adopt-ed career- and college-ready content standards in June 2010 by adopting the Common Core State Standards in math and English Language Arts. The state will transition to these standards by 2013-14. Further, Michigan is a governing state in two consortiums to develop rigorous assessments that will measure student growth based on the Common Core standards.Principle 2: Integrated System of Accountability

The three goals of this principle are to improve academic achievement for all students, close achievement gaps and increase the quality of instruc-tion. The MDE has identified several components aimed at reaching the above goals. Threaded throughout

these components is the Top to Bot-tom Ranking of schools.

1. Set ambitious and achievable an-nual measurable objectives to reflect new, rigorous cut scores (details at www.michigan.gov/mde/0,4615,7-140--265161--,00.html).

2. Identify and support Priority Schools. These are Michigan’s schools most in need and are identified as the lowest 5 percent on the state’s Top to Bottom Ranking. These schools will still be asked to choose one of the four turnaround models: Restart, Transfor-mation, Turnaround or Closure.

3. Identify and support Focus Schools. Focus schools are the 10 per-cent of schools identified as having the largest achievement gap.

• Achievement gap is defined as the gap in performance between the top 30 percent of students and the bottom 30 percent of students.

• The bottom 30 percent of students now constitutes one subgroup in lieu of multiple subgroups under the current law.

4. Identify and recognize Reward Schools. Reward schools can be iden-tified in one of three ways.

• Highest performing schools: Top 5 percent of the statewide Top to Bottom Ranking.

• High-progress schools: Top 5 percent of schools with the high-est rates of improvement from all five tested subjects (math, reading, writing, social studies and science), weighted equally by subject.

• Beating the Odds schools: schools that perform better than predicted on achievement, improvement of closing achievement gaps.

An important note about Reward Schools is that a school isn’t eligible for reward status if it’s identified as

a Priority or Focus school or if the school doesn’t make AYP. Principle 3: Supporting Effective Instruction and Leadership

Legislation passed in 2011 requires “rigorous, transparent and fair” per-formance evaluations for all teachers and administrators beginning Sept. 1, 2011. The Governor’s Council on Edu-cator Effectiveness will make recom-mendations to the governor, legisla-ture and the State Board of Education no later than April 30, 2012 regarding:

• A student growth/assessment tool.• A state evaluation tool for teachers

and administrators.• A process for evaluating and ap-

proving local evaluation tools for teachers and administrators.

Principle 4: Reducing Duplication and Unnecessary Burden

The MDE, in collaboration with various stakeholders and professional organizations, identified unnecessary and/or burdensome state-required reports for elimination in 2011.

Since any waivers issued would be from requirements of the current law, they would disappear if a new law were authorized. Given the timeline of Congress, we aren’t anticipating reauthorization until next year at the earliest, and more likely not until 2013. We’ll provide more details about the reauthorization plan and the waiver status as they move through the process.

A complete outline of the MDE’s intended request for ESEA flexibility, as well as the various waivers and how they’ll impact student learning, are on-line for review and comment through Dec. 5 at 5 p.m., www.michigan.gov/mde/0,4615,7-140--265161--,00.html.

Michigan opts to delay its ESEA waiver application until FebruaryComments sought on state’s flexibility request

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 20118

$5,000 gift allows two districts to enhance outdoor education

Giving students the opportunity to develop respect and appre-

ciation for the outdoors is a critical piece of science education. In fact, studies show that outdoor educa-tion raises science scores by as much as 27 percent. Bellevue Community Schools and Peck Community Schools were selected from among attendees at MASB’s Annual Fall Conference to receive $5,000 each to send up to 30 students and teachers to the YMCA Storer Outdoor School for five days.

While at the 12,000-acre outdoor school with 15 unique ecosystems, students and teachers will learn about alternative energy, cultural history, environmental sciences and partici-pate in adventure learning and team building.

The YMCA Storer Outdoor School

is a hands-on, total immersion learn-ing center that makes science and other curriculum come alive for students. Research shows that outdoor environmental education has a posi-tive effect on student achievement and behavior, including:

• Enhanced cooperation and conflict resolution skills.

• Higher self esteem.• Gains in problem solving, motiva-

tion and classroom behavior.• Reduced discipline and classroom

management problems.• Increased engagement and enthu-

siasm for learning.• Greater student pride and owner-

ship in accomplishments.The YMCA Storer Outdoor School

chose MASB member districts for these gifts as a way to build a relation-

ship and make school boards aware of the scope and quality of its services. “We want to thank MASB for the opportunity to showcase the YMCA Store Outdoor School. It’s a privilege to serve Michigan schools with pro-grams that have been demonstrated to raise test scores,” said Glen King, vice president of Camping Services.

Congratulations to Bellevue and Peck on the opportunity to partner with the YMCA to enhance the learn-ing opportunities for their students.

To learn more about the YMCA Storer Outdoor School, visit www.ymcastorercamps.org.

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 2011 9

student in trouble? What’s going on in his or her life?”

Value and support professional learning. Professional development must be ongoing, embedded in prac-tice and reflective of students’ needs. It must be expansive and intensive, providing coaching and analysis of student data, and connected directly to instruction. We found that admin-istrators need to learn how to use evaluation and supervision in profes-sional development—building from classroom visits, coaching and ongo-ing dialogue with teachers to support improved teaching and learning. Edu-cators’ continuous reflection on cur-riculum, instruction and the impact of beliefs and expectations on student outcomes is a fundamental piece of ensuring excellence and equity.

Develop a system of supports for all students. The culture of achieve-ment in schools needs to shift, and asking for support must become the norm for all students. Evanston Township High School (ETHS) has a tiered assistance system that includes department study centers, a writing center, support before and after school

and Saturday help, as well as individu-alized supports and interventions for struggling students.

Focus on literacy. Reading is the gateway to all learning. Literacy must be addressed in every classroom, every day—reading strategies must be an integral part of history class and math class and of physical and tech-nical education. At ETHS, teachers receive training to help them imple-ment literacy-learning strategies in everything from history and math to physical education.

Expect more, get more. Many schools are expecting less from some students and—with a painful impact on these students’ futures—getting what they anticipated. With a past system of course placement based on eighth grade achievement tests, ETHS could predict with tragic accuracy who would populate freshman classes: White students were the majority in our most rigorous classes, and nonwhite and low-income students filled the classrooms with the least opportunity to later take honors and Advanced Placement classes. It was as if we were determining academic

futures even before students took a class at ETHS.

Examine evaluations. Through formal and informal, quantitative and qualitative, formative and summative evaluations, schools must constantly analyze what they’re doing and wheth-er they’re helping students. With the support of data, schools must con-tinually refine their work and make the adjustments necessary to ensure achievement of all students.

Achieving excellence and equity for all students is possible. It requires an honest look at beliefs, structures, practices and a willingness to do what it takes to make change. Schools shouldn’t be daunted and must begin immediately—there are too many students who can’t wait. We can act our way to new beliefs and start to make the structural and instructional changes necessary to achieve excel-lence and equity. To do anything less is educational malpractice.

Conference will help your negotiations team start and end on the same page

Between financial challenges and the most significant

changes in the history of labor laws in Michigan, there’s a whole new vocabulary and a new set of best practices all schools need to know.

Having a common understand-ing at the beginning of negotiations will help you stay on the same page during negotiations, and end on the

same page as a management team. Bring a team from your district to

Lansing on Feb. 23-24 to get practical information and strategies from some of the most respected school labor practitioners in Michigan. Knowl-edge and information are essential to be successful in negotiations. In most districts, employee costs make up between 80 and 85 percent of your

budget. You can’t afford to negotiate without preparing and getting your team on the same page.

Registration will be available soon so mark your calendars and then register early to reserve your space. Co-sponsored by MASA, MASB and MSBO.

Save the date • Feb . 23-24, 2012 • Ramada Inn • Lansing

Excellence, continued from back page

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 201110

Education NewsAcross the State

Rep. Tom McMillin appointed interim chair of House Education Committee

Second term legislator and Edu-cation Committee member, Rep. Tom McMillin (R-Roch-ester Hills) was ap-pointed by House Speaker Jase Bol-ger (R-Marshall) as the interim House education chair.

This appoint-ment became necessary after the recall of Rep. Paul Scott (R-Grand Blanc), who chaired the committee during the past year. Rep. McMil-lin was on the Education Committee during the last legislative session and was previously a charter school board member in Oakland County. He was also a key negotiator in the debate on SB 7, which created the 80/20 share and hard cap on public employee health benefits.

Traverse City West teacher wins ‘Oscars of Teaching’

Traverse City West High School teacher Juleen Jenkins-Whall was one of 40 teachers nationwide to receive the Milken National Educator Award and $25,000, no strings attached.

The Milken National Educator Award recognizes the fact that re-search shows that the single most important school-based factor im-pacting student achievement is having a talented teacher in the classroom. Unlike most teaching awards, there’s no formal nomination or application process. Educators are recommended for this prestigious honor without

their knowledge by a panel appointed by each state’s department of educa-tion. Candidates are selected on the following criteria:

• Exceptional educational talent as evidenced by instructional prac-tices and student learning results in the classroom and school.

• Exemplary educational accom-plishments beyond the classroom that provide models of excellence for the profession.

• Strong long-range potential for professional and policy leadership.

• Engaging and inspiring presence that motivates and impacts stu-dents, colleagues and community.

Traverse City West Principal Joe Tibaldi said, “Ms. Jenkins-Whall is an extremely innovative teacher who has greatly contributed to the success of Traverse City Area Public Schools. Recognized by the community as a ‘teacher of choice,’ Juleen is a model teacher for all staff and provides coaching and mentoring for other teachers at TC West Senior High. She embraces technology, and that has made her classroom a dynamic and effective place for students to learn.”

To learn more about the Milken Educator Awards, visit www.mff.org.

MDE announces schools that are ‘Beating the Odds’

The Michigan Department of Education has identified 123 schools that are outperforming schools with similar risk factors and demographic composition. These Beating the Odds schools were identified through two separate studies using considerably different methodologies.

“We have good things happening in Michigan schools,” said State Super-

intendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan. “The Beating the Odds schools are helping students make progress and finding ways to over-come traditional barriers to academic achievement.”

The first study identified 60 schools that are performing above their predicted levels, based on risk factors such as percent of students: economi-cally disadvantaged, with disabilities, English language learners and minor-ity students. The second study identi-fied 83 schools that perform better than a comparison group of schools with similar demographics.

Beating the Odds schools credited various factors for their success:

• Strong building leadership;• Common vision;• Highly qualified/dedicated staff;• High academic and behavioral

expectations;• A collaborative school culture;• Commitment to technology;• Strong community and parent

involvement; and• Staff commitment to do whatever

it takes to help students succeed. For a complete list of schools Beat-

ing the Odds, visit www.michigan.gov/beatingtheodds.

Rep. Tom McMillin

www.masb.org • MASB Headlines • Nov. 21, 2011 11

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HeadlinesA News Report for Michigan Education Leaders

News You Can Use• CBA Weekend, Dec . 2-3, Oakland Schools

• Federal Relations Network Conference, Feb . 5-7, Washington, D .C .

• Negotiations: Starting and Ending on the Same Page, Feb . 23-24, Lansing

• MASB/MASA Legislative Conference, March 15, Lansing

• NSBA Annual Conference, April 21-23, Boston

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Spotlight Site

• A critical role. In an article in Voices of Urban Education, Linda Darling-Hammond and Richard Riley write that civic commitment to equal educa-tional opportunity is in peril. Public education faces two significant challenges. The population of students that schools have traditionally underserved is growing rapidly at the same time there’s greater pressure for improving out-comes for all students and for equipping them with the knowledge and skills for success in the 21st century. Meeting these challenges will require a redou-bling of the civic investment, the authors write. Around the country, commu-nity members have formed organizations to channel their support for public schools. A report identified public education funds (PEFs) that provided $1.2 billion to support public schools in 2007, serving more than 20 million chil-dren. These organizations can only function effectively, however, if they meet high standards for efficiency, effectiveness and ethics. The National Commis-sion on Civic Investment in Education therefore created a set of standards specifically for PEFs in five areas: mission and policies; evaluation and trans-parency; responsible stewardship; legal compliance; and personal and profes-sional integrity. Learn more about the Civic Investment in Public Education, www.publiceducation.org/pubs_20111108_VUE.asp.

• New policies needed for principal development. A report from the Center for American Progress finds that states and districts shouldn’t be bound to traditional principal preparation programs when developing school leaders. The report looks at eight states that are leading the country in forging innova-tive ways to train principals, and eight states it says are lagging because their principal-development policies are out of step with what research shows is effective. The old job of principal as administrative building manager is no longer sufficient to dramatically improve student achievement. The job has evolved into a highly complex and demanding position that requires strong in-structional and leadership skills. Read the full report at www.americanprogress.org/issues/2011/10/principalship.html.

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Michigan Association of School BoardsLeadStrong

Worth Repeating does not necessarily reflect the views or positions of MASB. It is intended to spark dialogue and inform readers about what is being said about public education around the nation.

Worth Repeating

There are many excellent public schools in the U.S.—schools

that receive distinguished awards, produce students with perfect ACT scores and send their graduates to elite institutions of higher education. Yet within these same schools, you can find students experiencing none of these things firsthand, many of them students of color and from low-income families. I know this because I’m the superintendent of just such a school, and my school is working hard to erase these divisions.

Through the years, educators and policymakers have used many means to address gaps in opportunity and achievement through programs de-signed to support students with lower achievement histories. Many efforts

have spurred gains, but nowhere near enough. To genuinely address these issues, schools need to rethink every-thing they do to maintain and grow excellence while ensuring every stu-dent shares in that excellence. Excel-lence without equity is in fact neither and is no longer an option.

To ensure that every student—no exceptions—experiences and benefits from an excellent education, schools need to examine deeply and attend to three key areas of support, chang-ing and growing in each area to meet the needs of all students: the school’s belief system, organizational structure and instructional program.

Analyze and reframe the belief system. For every student to succeed, everyone must believe that success for

all is possible and that failure isn’t an option. This belief is fundamental and must be shared by every student and adult in a school. Expectations corre-late directly with results.

Rethink and retool traditional roles. We need to analyze each job in our schools to ensure all have a role in supporting excellence and equity for every student. Principals, teachers, department chairs and administrators need to reframe their jobs to ensure they’re analyzing the curriculum and classroom instruction as they begin to define excellence. For example, deans, often seen as disciplinarians, need to become interventionists, seeking answers to questions like, “Why is this

Excellence without equity is neitherViewpoint by Eric Witherspoon, superintendent of District 202 in Evanston, Ill.

Reprinted from Education Week, 11.2.11.

Excellence, continued on page 9