School Start Date and the Early Start Waiver

Iowa Code states that a school year shall begin no sooner than a day during the calendar week in which the first day of September falls.  In past years, schools have been allowed to apply for a waiver allowing school to start earlier.  By my numbers, all but two school districts in Iowa applied for the Early Start Waiver last year.  Alta and Aurelia have both applied for the Early Start Waiver for a number of years. Past reasons for starting school earlier than the legislated date are:

• To end the first semster prior to Christmas break and start the second semester upon returning from Christmas break.

• To better align the high school calendar with the college calendar because college classes open for high school students to take begin in August and the semester ends prior to Christmas.

• Practices for Fall sports begin in early to mid August.

• A school year extending into June creates difficulties for staff members pursuing continuing education courses.

• To reduce the overlap of youth baseball and softball with the school year.

• Extracurricular competition or scheduling

• Post-Secondary Enrollment Option courses or local community college schedules

• Completion of first semester before winter break

• Professional development for teachers

• To account for snow days

The tourism industry supports a later start date to extend the summer period for family vacations. It also extends the time that high school students would be available to work at tourist attractions.

In the past, the waivers have required a public hearing, local school board approval and the rationale for starting early. If those criteria were met, the waiver was granted.  Starting this Spring, the automatic approval is coming to an end, effective with the 2015-16 calendar submission. 

The process that the Department of Education will follow states that school districts bear the burdent of proving that a start date on or before the date specified in Iowa Code wold have a "significant negative educational impact."  Keep in mind, that the bar set by the general assembly for granting this waiver is high. 

Negative educational impact is defined as and adverse effect on student academic achievement and/or student learning environment. The district is required to provide objective evidence of the negative impact, the percentage of students negatively impacted, the magnitude of the negative impact as supported by valid and reliable measures, and supported by scientifically based research.

Based on recent communications sent to school from the Department of Education, the following WILL NOT constitute a significant negative educational impact:

• Extracurricular competition or scheduling
• Post-Secondary Enrollment Option courses or local community college schedules
• Completion of first semester before winter break
• Professional development for teachers
• To account for snow days

**This is not an all inclusive list.

For the 2015-16 school year, the earliest a school can start without a waiver is August 31st. Proving a negative educational impact may be difficult as most of our local reasons for starting early are clearly stated as not allowable for future waivers.  Start date preference surveys are going out to get impact from staff and parents on the subject.  Deadline for submitting and Early Start Waiver application is March 15th.

School Start Date

On Friday, December 12th Iowa Department of Education Director Brad Buck sent a letter to Iowa schools informing them that waivers to the school start date requirement would no longer automatically be granted. Effective immediately, individual waiver requests will only be granted if there is evidence of “a significant negative educational impact” by following the required start date. Director Buck additionally stated that clarification to the criteria to be used for granting a waiver will come from the Department of Education in January.

I support the concept of local decision-making and local control regarding the school start date. Local school boards, staff members and patrons are in the best position to determine the optimal start date for their communities. These decisions are made for educational reasons, while considering their communities’ and school district's needs and circumstances.

I believe that this is an important issue of local control. We should not be distracted from the more important issues facing our schools. 

I personally have always held to the belief that how we lay out the school calendar is one of the least impactful things we do in education.  Pedagogy, appropriate and timely resources, a guaranteed and viable curriculum all rank far above when we start and end our school year.

As a reminder, the current law states that schools can start their year no earlier than the Monday during the week that Sept 1st falls.  Schools have been allowed to apply for waivers which are to be board approved at a public hearing, which means that the public has an opportunity to weigh in on the subject prior to the board taking action.  

Also, keep in mind that (assuming my numbers are correct) currently there are only two school districts in the state that do not apply for the early start waiver. I think this speaks volumes.

If this is an important issue to you, either way. Please contact your state representaive, and/or state senator eith your opinions and input.  Since this has come down from the Governor's office, a note or email to Governor Brandstads office and Iowa Department of Education Director Brad Buck is recommended as well.

School Funding and the Foundation Formula

Taxpayers often ask, and rightfully so, how Iowa spends the nearly $4 billion earmarked for the state’s public education system. Earlier, we ran the first in a series of articles dedicated to helping taxpayers understand how those dollars are being spent to educate nearly 474,000 students throughout the state. Today we’ll discuss how those dollars are divided.

When it comes to school funding, the state legislature tries to ensure all children receive a quality education based on roughly the same amount of per pupil funding throughout the state. That’s where the school finance formula comes in. This formula relies on a combination of state aid and property taxes to fund education. The amount of state aid each district receives depends on how much it brings in through local property taxes. If the state relied solely on property taxes to fund schools, some districts would be able to raise a lot of money with a very small property tax rate, while others would raise a smaller amount of money on a much larger property tax rate.

This was almost exactly the situation Iowa found itself in over 35 years ago. Before the early 70s districts relied primarily on property taxes for school funding.  However due to the wide range of property tax rates funding districts and concern over the disparity in funding per child, lawmakers instituted a formula to address both of these issues, setting a maximum and “equal” cost per student. All districts are required to levy a uniform levy of $5.40 and then the state funds an additional amount up to a certain level (called the foundation level). Beyond that foundation level, local property taxes are levied to fund the remainder of the difference.

The Iowa Association of School Board’s education finance co-director, Patti Schroeder, explained that school funding is basically made up of three layers. “The first layer is local property taxes determined by the Uniform Levy,” Schroeder said. “The middle layer is state aid and the top layer is additional local property taxes. The mix of all three of these is set by a formula over which the local district has little control.”

Our two districts have a property valuation per pupil that is above the state average. This means our Uniform Levy of $5.40 generates more dollars and we get less state aid as a result. However, our Additional Property Tax Levy rate is lower than the average, so our additional levy rate can be lower and generate the same dollars as other districts because of our higher property valuation."

While the state partially equalizes tax rates through the school finance formula, significant deviations still affect how much each district receives from the state. The lowest combined tax rate for a school district is $7.48 for the current fiscal year and the highest is $21.66, making that a difference of $14.18 per thousand.

The Alta Community School District combined tax rate is currently $11.98.  The Aurelia Community School District combined tax rate is currently $9.95.  Both well below the state average.

Regardless of the financial situation of the local school district, a large portion of the district's tax rate is set by formula and there is little the local school board members or administrators can do about it. However, Iowa law does make allowances for growth and inflation from year-to-year.

We’ll discuss the concept of “allowable growth” in a future article in our series explaining school finance.

Current Enrollments Impact School Funding

Every year public schools in Iowa spend billions of dollars to educate children, sparking taxpayers to often ask school board members, administrators and lawmakers: “Where does that money go?” That’s why part of the Alta Community School District and Aurelia Community School District’s mission is to help taxpayers understand how districts are spending that money, in an attempt to dispel the mysteries surrounding school funding. Knowing how the state school funding formula works is important in helping understand the pressures facing local school districts. Because the formula is based on the number of children enrolled in the district, as we gain children, we gain revenues to serve those children and, if enrollment declines, we also lose revenue.

While the area of school finance is complex, some basic principles make it understandable to the average citizen, including:

1. The number of children enrolled in each district determines a district’s budget/revenues.
2. The General Assembly through the finance formula “equalizes” funding statewide so the “cost per student” is roughly the same in every district and every student has access to a quality education.
3. The Governor recommends the annual change in per pupil allowable growth.  The General Assembly is responsible for passing legislation to establish the annual increase in the “cost per student/allowable growth”.
4. Property taxes matter. They determine how much money each district receives in state aid.
5. Funds are restricted. We can only use funds on what the legislature tells us we can.
6. Schools are budget limited. Most other public entities are property tax rate limited. This difference is monumental.

Iowa’s school funding formula is a child-based formula, meaning that the allowable spending for a school district is based upon the number of children enrolled in that district on October 1 of each year. The number of students counted on that day is used to establish the district’s budget for the following year. This means our revenues are always a year behind the actual number of children we are serving in our classrooms. For the Alta Community School District, our October 1 enrollment is 510 for the current year, which is nearly identical to last year's actual enrollment.  But, the total number of students provided instruction by the district increased by 27 students this year. For the Aurelia Community School District, our October 1 enrollment is 244.7 for the current year, which is up 2.3 students from last year  But, the total number of students provided instruction by the district decreased by 15 students.

Why the different enrollment figures (actual enrollment compared to number of student provided instruction)?  The actual enrollment is all of a district's resident students that attend school, plus all the open enroll out/tuition out students.  The total number of students provided instruction are the actual number of students in the building (resident students, plus the all of open enroll in/tuition in students).  So, as open enrollment in and out of a district changes and the number of resident students attending changes, so changes  the total number of students provided education for a district.

Because the enrollment for our districts have been relatively stable over the past four years, we’ve been fortunate that our budgets have been stable as well. However, if enrollment declines in the future, along with increasing costs, we will be faced with the prospect of reduced resources to serve the needs of our district. This could result in personnel reductions and have an impact on programs.

It's More Than Reading And Writing

Most parents know that reading and writing is so important for children. How words help us to understand our world and make the most of opportunities is much more than reading and writing. This is called literacy.

The word literacy often makes people think of school and many parents expect that literacy will be taught to their children once they start school. Children do not wait until they start school to develop literacy skills. From birth, babies and children are learning all the time.

Literacy is a part of everyone’s daily life. The experiences that are given to children influence their knowledge and understanding of their world.

Children need opportunities to practice the skills they know and are able to do in order to become confident learners. In everyday activities and in your relationship with your children, you have a wonderful opportunity to help them develop literacy skills.

Literacy was once seen as reading and writing. Now literacy is seen as much more; it is language we use in:

• speaking and listening
• reading and watching
• drawing and writing.

Literacy development begins in the family and continues in families and communities as well as in schools.

Years of research show clearly that children are more likely to succeed in learning when their families actively support them. When you and other family members read with your children, help them with homework, talk with their teachers, and participate in school or other learning activities, you give your children a tremendous advantage.

Other than helping your children to grow up healthy and happy, the most important thing that you can do for them is to help them develop their literacy skills. It is no exaggeration to say that how well children learn to read and write affects directly not only how successful they are in school but how well they do throughout their lives. When children learn to read and write, they have the keys that open the door to all the knowledge of the world. 

The foundation for developing literacy skills is in place long before children enter school and begin formal reading instruction. You and your family help to create this foundation by talking, listening, and reading to your children every day and by showing them that you value, use, and enjoy reading in your lives.

You could say that your child starts on the road to becoming literate on the day they’re born and first hears the sounds of your voice. Every time you speak to your child, sing to your child, and respond to the sounds that they makes, you strengthen your child's understanding of language. With you to guide them, they are well on their way to literacy.

To understand the connection between a child's early experiences with spoken language and literacy, you might think of language as a four-legged stool. The four legs are talking, listening, reading, and writing. All four legs are important; each leg helps to support and balance the others.  

Talk with and listen to your child. Read together with them. Help your child learn about books and print. Take advantage of the public libraries. Encourage your child’s early writing efforts. These are all ways to support the development of literacy skills in your children.

As a parent, you are your child's first and most important teacher. You don't need to be the best reader to help—your time and interest and the pleasure that you share with your child as part of reading together are what counts. For more ways to help develop reading, writing, and over all literacy skills with your child, contact their classroom teachers. They are more than willing to support and encourage your efforts at home as we work together to open the world of knowledge for your child’s future.

Stuffing Their Backpacks

John Dewey said, "Education is not preparation for life. Education is life."

     There are few professions where you can see the impact of your work so vividly. There aren't many jobs where hero, friend and mentor are part of the job description. There are few careers that have such a lasting impact on an entire generation.

     I like teaching. I like learning about teaching. And I especially like reading others' teaching philosophies. I love it when teachers select analogies-teaching is like lighting a bonfire, or teaching is like giving students wings-that explain, instruct and inspire.

     For me, teaching is a little like stuffing a backpack. You know the ones I mean-the heavy-duty, oversize backpacks that students shoulder down the halls of our schools. In these metaphorical backpacks, students carry with them the knowledge and skills they will need for their journey through life. When students enter our classrooms, their backpacks have already been partially filled by families, life experiences and other instructors. The backpacks are deep and sometimes it's hard to see what they are carrying in there.

     Through our teaching, we attempt to place items in our student' backpacks. All children do not arrive to school with a backpack full of the same experiences, nor are they all equally full. When students first enter our classrooms, we must determine what is in the backpack and begin filling from there. We add the foundations of language, reading, mathematics, the mechanics of writing and skill development. We pack in sharing and caring, character development, listening skills. Art, music and physical wellness are placed in the pack as well.

     By this time, the students' backpacks are pretty full, but we're not done yet. Our next job is to expand their backpacks so that more will fit in them. We do this by asking them to analyze, question and think.

     As children grow and mature, we ask them to look at what is in their backpacks and apply the items to real world situations. Sometimes, we can actually see their backpacks grow in class as they experience new ways of thinking about an issue. And sometimes students have to discard something from the bottom of their backpacks that has lain there, unexamined, for many years to make room for a new idea.

     The good thing about stuffing a backpack is that it is a lot of fun. We also know that as soon as students are out of our sight, they dump things out of the backpack to lighten the load. With these characteristics in mind, we can't just force items into the backpack. We have to get students to want to carry our backpack stuffers around. So we try new things in teaching. What do students discard? How can we get items to stick around longer in the backpack? Will this exercise expand that backpack or not? Mistakes are okay, because we can always try again. In addition, we find that the students might not notice how heavy the backpack has become if the stuffing process is interesting and even entertaining.

National Teacher Day

Tuesday, May 6, 2014, is National Teacher Day. Thank a teacher for making public schools great!

Teachers in Alta, Aurelia, and in communities across the nation will be in the spotlight on National Teacher Day, as students, parents, school administrators and the general public learn how teachers are making Great Public Schools for every student.

Few other professionals touch as many people as teachers do. National Teacher Day is a good time to learn about the contributions educators make to our community every day. Teachers recognize they are role models. That brings satisfaction. It also brings responsibility. It's time to take it to the next step.

We all have to work together to make our schools even better.  That means everyone in the community. Parents, business owners, retirees, other workers, local government, and yes students. Public schools are at the heart of any community. When there are problems, we address them. When there are kudos, we share them.

Community involvement brings learning to life.  This is an opportunity for all of us to reach out to each other. I ask the community to learn about how we advocate for high standards for students, fair and meaningful evaluations of their work, and resources that go directly to the classroom. Better than an apple or a thank you card, a community’s active support of the work we mutually do to teach and care for the community’s students would be ample reward.