Across the Board October: Key Takeaways from the ALBOE Board Meeting

Recapping important State Board of Education policy decisions for you

Here are our key takeaways from the October 9th State Board of Education meeting – and what they mean for Alabama’s students. All board members were present. Click here to see the agenda for the full meeting and work session.

Congratulations to all of the school counselors, principals, vice principals, and teachers recognized today for their hard work in service of students from across Alabama! Join us during the next board meeting on November 13 to honor the 2025 A+ College Ready Schools of Excellence, Schools of Distinction, and Schools of Achievement.

Top 7 Takeaways

1.Public School Enrollment Decline

At the end of the work session, Dr. Mackey shared confidential packets with the board containing preliminary enrollment data for the current school year by district. This data still needs to be finalized by districts, with a deadline of October 17. Dr. Mackey stated that the preliminary data suggests that public schools (including charters) in Alabama saw a decline in enrollment of about 5,700 students. Only 12 school districts have increased enrollment, with the remaining 126 experiencing a decline. Once finalized, this will be the largest public school enrollment decline in five decades. 

There are three categories of students who are not enrolled in Alabama schools this year, who were enrolled last year. The ALSDE estimates that about 3,000 students transitioned from public schools to private schools or homeschools, and are taking advantage of the CHOOSE Act. Some students have enrolled in other states. Finally, the ALSDE cannot determine where about 2,100 unenrolled students have gone. This means that 2,100 students who were enrolled last year have not been reported by private schools, are not being homeschooled, and have not enrolled in schools in other states. They may still be present in the state of Alabama, or they may have moved elsewhere and not enrolled in school. Dr. Mackey shared that this issue is widespread across many districts and that district superintendents reported that many of the missing students are Hispanic. 

These numbers are not finalized yet, but a decline in enrollment this large will have profound impacts on schools. Dr. Mackey shared that this large decline will lead to 500-700 teacher jobs disappearing within the next budget cycle. This is because the Foundation Program, our resource-based funding model, calculates teacher units based on student enrollment. He has encouraged parents to send their children to school.

2. Board Meeting Approvals: Foundation Program FY 2027 Budget and RAISE Act Administrative Code Changes

During the meeting, the board voted to send the ALSDE’s FY27 budget request to the Governor’s office. This request will be considered by the Governor as her office creates her recommended budget. The Governor’s recommended budget alongside the ALSDE’s budget request will be presented to the Legislature during the first week of the 2026 Legislative Session, which begins on Tuesday, January 13, 2026. To read more about the ALSDE’s request, check out the August and September Across the Board publications.

During the meeting, the board also approved new regulations on the RAISE Act. These regulations add language from the RAISE Act legislation to Alabama’s Administrative Code. While the regulations are aligned with the legislation in most ways, the board has added a restriction on flexibility stating that for FY26, districts that want to move their money flexibly between student groups must get approval from the State Superintendent of Education (Dr. Mackey) if the amount is over 10% of the weighted allocation for the given student group. To learn more, check out the addition to the administrative code and Dr. Mackey’s memo to district leaders.

3. Office of Mathematics Improvement Update on Alabama Numeracy Act

During the work session, Dr. Anderson from the Office of Mathematics Improvement (OMI) presented new data on full and limited support schools. The Alabama Numeracy Act tasks the OMI to provide coaches and full support to schools across the state in the bottom 6% of ACAP math scores, and limited support to schools in the bottom 7-25%. 88% of full support schools and 78% of limited support schools saw growth in their Math ACAP scores. 

Overall, OMI serves 25% of Alabama’s K-5 schools. About 150 schools receive limited support, and about 50 receive full support through the Alabama Numeracy Act. Intensive coaching for math teachers in grades K-5 has allowed for students in those schools to show improvements year-to-year. From the last school year to this year, about 35 schools are new to OMI support – which means that about 35 schools that were previously in the bottom 25% have improved enough to no longer be in full and limited support. The board discussed which mechanisms may be the root cause of these improvements, including 60 minutes of instructional time in math, high quality instructional materials, and the coaching cycles math teachers are now experiencing to improve their practice.

4. School Supports and Positive Behavior Interventions

During the work session, the board heard from Dr. Melissa Shields and Shanthia Washington on efforts to support teachers in developing structures, norms, and positive behaviors in their classrooms. This work is important with the high rate of teacher turnover in Alabama schools, and the number of new teachers we have each year. They introduced a tiered system of behavior interventions, training for special education teachers on student behavior, professional development related to trauma-informed practices, and provided many supports for teachers related to classroom management. With these supports, students experienced more instructional time and were more engaged during that time. Teachers reported less job-related stress, more happiness and job satisfaction, better health, and a higher likelihood that they would remain in the profession.

5. New School Counseling Plan

During the work session, the board heard from the School Counseling Task Force on their plan. The goal of the task force is to build a document describing the school counselor role and the support provided by school counselors. The task force surveyed the current school counseling landscape and updated the guidelines from the 2003 Alabama State Counseling Plan to match existing legislation at the state and federal levels. Currently, the task force is working with experts to ensure that the framework they are working with meets the needs of all stakeholders impacted by school counseling. Changes from the 2003 plan will include an updated list of necessary skills, definitions, a comprehensive analysis of program benefits, and an emphasis on parental involvement. Dr. Melissa Shields emphasized that the task force would welcome any and all public comments on the newly drafted plan.

6. Arts and Social Studies Textbook Committee Updates

During the work session, the board members received the lists and rankings of textbooks for the Arts and Social Studies Courses of Study. Last year, the board approved new courses of study standards for the Arts and Social Studies, and in April the board unanimously approved the textbook committees. The textbook recommendation process is unique in that the state superintendent cannot make amendments to the recommendations by the committee. The committee itself can amend the recommendations, and the board can ask the committee to consider changes, but those requests may not come from the state superintendent. Next month the board will approve the recommendations.

7. Updates on State Intervention Schools

During the board meeting, Dr. Mackey shared updates on the three school districts currently under state intervention: Sumter County Schools, Bessemer City Schools, and Dallas County Schools. 

The board approved intervention for Sumter County in August 2023, making the district the longest ALSDE intervention at this time. Dr. Mackey reported that the construction progress in Sumter County is ongoing, and that they are in the process of consolidating multiple school buildings into one campus. The Sumter County school board members have completed leadership training, and the ALSDE is working with the board on shoring up the district’s accreditation reports.

Bessemer City Schools went under state intervention in July 2024. Michael Turner recently became the superintendent of Bessemer City Schools in April. Dr. Mackey shared that the district is in the process of completing some construction projects, and is working on a new strategic plan. The Bessemer City school board members have completed leadership training, and the district has implemented a new payroll system.

The Dallas County school system was approved for state intervention in March 2025, making it the most recent district to be taken over by ALSDE. Since March, the district has lost its Chief Finance Officer (CFO) and superintendent. Dr. Mackey has reported that the county is closing two school buildings because of declining enrollment, and that the ALSDE is working closely with the district to work on a long term plan.

The next Board meeting will be on Thursday, November 13, 2025, at 10 am in the Gordon Persons Building Auditorium. The work session will follow at 11 am.

The Alabama State Board of Education usually meets on the second Thursday of each month, with the exception of the July meeting, to discuss important policies, procedures, and changes for Alabama’s K-12 public schools. The Board takes official action during their monthly meeting and then follows up with a Work Session to get updates and discuss future action that will be voted on at the next board meeting. You can watch them live and see old meetings here.