Disputed Education Budget to be Hot Topic When Lawmakers Return from Break

Education News in Alabama March 17, 2011

AnchorDisputed Education Budget to be Hot Topic When Lawmakers Return from Break

When lawmakers return to Montgomery next Tuesday, following their annual spring holiday, all eyes are expected to turn to the state budgets, and nobody is looking forward to it.

Since so few options exist, there is little room for discussion about which parts of the state General Fund budget will suffer severe cuts. But some alternatives do exist for how the painful cuts required in the education budget might be administered, and key decision makers, including the governor and state school superintendent, are at odds about which to use.

AnchorMajor Budgeting Changes Ahead as Responsible Budgeting and Spending Act Gains Swift Passage

A bill designed to dramatically change Alabama’s education funding process and alleviate the burdens of frequent budget proration was the first to move successfully through the 2011 legislative session and be signed into law by Gov. Robert Bentley.

HB57, The Responsible Budgeting and Spending Act, by Rep. Greg Canfield, R-Vestavia Hills, will significantly reduce the chances of mid-year budget proration, which forces districts to cut budgets for the existing year in all areas except teacher salaries and benefits when projected revenues come in below budgeted spending levels. A troublesome and counterproductive measure, proration has been required for more than one-third of the state’s last 33 education budgets.Canfield’s bill, which was supported by the Alabama Department of Education, Alabama Association of School Boards and School Superintendents of Alabama, ends the practice of using unreliable revenue projections in determining budget allocations and bases appropriations instead on the historical 15-year growth rate of recurring revenue. In addition, the bill requires that in good years, when revenues exceed allocations, the money be moved into a Budget Stabilization Fund for use in leaner years when revenues run short. It also ensures that non-recurring revenue is not used to fund recurring expenditures. The bill will take effect for the 2012-2013 school year.

AnchorA+ Education Partnership Urges Congressional Funding for Research and STEM Education

As Congress tackles difficult budget challenges not unlike those facing Alabama and other states across the nation, the A+ Education Partnership has joined other leading business and education advocates in urging funding priorities that are in the best interest of U.S. competitiveness, economic expansion and job growth.

In a March 9, 2011 letter to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, A+ and other members of the Business Roundtable-led Tapping America’s Potential (TAP) coalition called on Congress to support strong funding for basic scientific research and math and science education programs.

AnchorFordham Study Shows Alabama Among Nation’s Best for U.S History Learning Standards

A new analysis by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute shows Alabama as second to only one other state in the nation when it comes to the strength and quality of our K-12 state academic standards for U.S. History.

In fact, the significance of Alabama’s grade of A-minus, second only to South Carolina’s straight A grade in Fordham’s evaluation of U.S. History state curriculum standards, is underscored by the fact that the majority of U.S. states – 28 in all – received D or F grades. The average grade across all states came in at a “dismal D,” according to evaluators, who noted that only one state in five gets honors marks for their K-12 history standards. “The majority of states are mediocre-to-awful in this field,” they said.

AnchorSuperintendents, Business Leaders Collaborate for Effective School Management

Managing effectively through challenging times was just one of the timely and thought-provoking topics that school superintendents from Mobile, Montgomery, and other Alabama schools districts explored earlier this month at Superintendent Leaders Network (SLN) retreats around the state.

More than 40 of Alabama’s superintendents are members of SLN, a professional development program provided in collaboration by the A+ Alabama Best Practices Center and the School Superintendents of Alabama. The innovative, interactive program, which is underwritten with a generous grant from The Malone Family Foundation, focuses on strategic thinking and is designed to strengthen student achievement by developing and empowering quality school leaders.

In addition to the planned curriculum, superintendents at each retreat sat down with some of Alabama’s most successful business leaders to share management perspectives and explore ideas for more effectively managing their schools, especially in these economically challenging times.

“I was able to network with my colleagues and other experts in leadership positions through my participation in SLN. This networking, along with the valuable literature and presentations, enabled me to grow professionally as well as provide our Vestavia Hills Leadership Team with quality professional development activities. By sharing the books I read and the ideas I gained during our SLN sessions, our leadership team gained new ideas and insights that will help us to continue to provide a 21st century education for our students.” – Jamie Blair, Superintendent, Vestavia Hills City Schools

A+ Education Partnership would like to thank George Hall Elementary for allowing us to feature their photo in our Education News in Alabama newsletter.

George Hall Elementary has been a defining example of education excellence in Alabama by showing that, with quality teaching and high expectations, all students can learn at very high levels.

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