Here are our key takeaways from the September 10th State Board of Education board meeting and work session. Board members Yvette Richardson, Marie Manning, and Wayne Renolds were not present at the board meeting. Manning and Richardson made it to the work session. Governor Ivey was present at the board meeting, and all other board members were present. Click here to see the agenda for the full meeting and work session.
Congratulations to Superintendent Mackey on his hundredth board meeting during his tenure.
Top 4 Takeaways
Alabama Numeracy Act Math Course Sequence Approval for Educator Preparation Programs
During the work session, the board heard updates on Alabama Numeracy Act (ANA) implementation work from Superintendent Mackey and Dr. Ann Dominick, who serves as the Policy-Task Force Administrator for the Office of Mathematics Improvement (OMI). Prior to the ANA, early childhood, elementary, and K-6 special education math course requirements for prospective teachers included four math courses from the math department, and one math methods course. ANA changed these requirements to four courses that integrate elementary math content and pedagogy. This change ensures that teachers are prepared to actually teach the math that their students are learning based on the Alabama Math Course of Study, rather than learning more advanced math that is less relevant to elementary students.
The deadline for colleges and universities to submit their plans to the ALSDE for this change has passed, and all of the programs in Alabama submitted on time. The ALSDE’s ANA Course Review Committee has reviewed and approved all 44 course sequences. Next, the board will vote to acknowledge the approval at the October board meeting. In addition to the new course requirements, prospective teachers will also now need to take and pass a Foundations of Math exam, currently in development stages, prior to being recommended for certification by their program.
This process is new to Alabama, and new for the nation. The Alabama Numeracy Act was the first comprehensive K-5 math legislation in the country, and we are creating the model. For more information on the ANA, check out our explainer.
Fiscal Year 2028 Education Trust Fund Budget Request
During the work session, the board discussed the ALSDE’s FY 2028 budget request. The board discussed the ALSDE’s budget request line-by-line, as a follow-up from the initial conversation at the board retreat in August. The board will vote on the budget request at the October meeting, and then it will be sent to the governor’s office. Governor Ivey’s finance team will create a “skeleton budget” using the departmental requests, and share it with the incoming governor when he takes office. The incoming governor will then have until the second Tuesday in February to finalize his budget, and submit it to the legislature.
The majority of the items in the drafted budget were unchanged from the draft discussed during the August retreat. A few changes to note:
- School Breakfast – Added to the budget request at $14 million
- High Needs Special Education Grant – $18 million, increase of $4 million
- Line item for “Special Education Certified Behavior Analyst Program (Autism)” was renamed to “Special Education Behavior Analysts (Autism)”
During the budget conversation, Mackey shared his concerns about the increasing cost of PEEHIP. PEEHIP provides health insurance for Alabama’s teachers and state education employees. The PEEHIP board is requesting about $222 million from the legislature during the next budget cycle, and Mackey shared that he anticipates that the legislature will not provide full funding. This will require the PEEHIP board to consider pulling funds from the Retiree Trust savings account, changing benefits for those insured, or increasing premiums for teachers and state education employees. For more information about PEEHIP, read this article from the Alabama Daily News.
For more information about what is in the ALSDE’s budget request, check out our Across the Board from August.
Apportionment of RAISE Act funds and the Foundation Program
During the meeting, the board unanimously voted to adopt the rules for the education budget. This process now includes both the Foundation Program (rule 290-2-1-.01) and the RAISE Act funds (rule 290-2-1-.06) that are distributed to districts. The Foundation Program portion that was approved today includes fully funding PEEHIP, which supports health insurance for Alabama’s teachers, and the 2% teacher pay raise that was passed by the legislature earlier this year. The pay raise will go into effect on October 1.
The RAISE Act funding for FY27 will support student needs for the 2026-2027 school year. This year, $191 million will flow to districts to support students in poverty, special education students, English learners, gifted students, and charter school students. Districts can move up to 10% of RAISE funds between student groups, and apply for permission from Dr. Mackey for additional flexibility.
For more information on the RAISE Act, check out our recent webinar series. Funding levels for each district for the 2026-2027 school year can be found here.
Superintendent’s Report: Virtual Schools
During the work session, Mackey provided the board with data they had requested on students attending Alabama’s virtual schools and programs. This data was not shared publicly, but the board raised concerns around who holds virtual schools accountable for proficiency rates and attendance. Each district is required to maintain a virtual program or school for any high school student who would like to learn virtually. While the board shared that many programs are doing well, seven virtual schools are priority schools, which earned a D or F on their annual state report card and student proficiency rates vary widely.
Mackey shared that virtual schooling was the first way that Alabama began to consider school choice. Families who need an option different from their local school can choose a public virtual program for free. If the family does not like the virtual program they are enrolled in, they may move back to the district school in the area they reside.
The board was concerned about the low proficiency rates of virtual students, and the accountability measures virtual programs are held to. Mackey shared that all accountability for virtual programs is held at the local level, rather than with the ALSDE, as a part of the Accountability Act. The board was also concerned about funding, and whether state funds were going to virtual programs without accountability. Mackey clarified that the Foundation Program funds districts based on the number of students they enroll, rather than what types of environments those students are learning in.
The next Board meeting will be on Thursday, October 8, 2026, at 10 am at the auditorium in the Gordon Persons building in Montgomery, Alabama. The work session will be held at the same location at 11 a.m. or immediately following the State Board Meeting.
