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Connecticutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Equitable Access to Excellent Educators Plan

Commissionerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s back-to-school meeting

Patrice A. McCarthy Deputy Director and General Counsel, CABE

Wallingford participates in global exchange Chris Seymour Staff Reporter, CABE

Thanks to the efforts of facilitating organization/sponsor Junior Achievement (JA) and sponsor United Technologies Corporation (UTC), two cohorts of Wallingford High School students have been involved in a one of a kind exchange program with students from Shanghai, China.

Since its inception, the partnership has seen two groups of Chinese students visit Connecticut (in the summers of 2013 and 2015) while one Wallingford cohort (featuring 20 sophomores and juniors) visited China in 2014 and a second is slated to visit China in the summer of 2016.

While spending time in each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s homeland, the students visit noteworthy sites, soak up culture and collaborate on business projects.

81 Wolcott Hill Road Wethersfield, CT 06109-1242

Connecticut Association of Boards of Education Inc.

Connecticutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Equitable Access to Excellent Educators Plan was recently approved by the U.S. Department of Education.

The plan was submitted in compliance with the Federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which requires information on steps the state will take to insure that students from low income families and students of color are not taught by inexperienced, unqualified or out-of-field teachers or inexperienced school leaders at higher rates than other children.

Connecticutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plan was developed with input from numerous stakeholders, in which CABE was represented by President Richard Murray (Killingly).

Connecticut was one of sixteen states approved in the initial approval process.

Connecticutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plan will focus efforts in eight high poverty/high minority districts (Bridgeport, Hartford, New Britain, New Haven, Norwich, Waterbury, West Haven, and Windham) to increase the percentage of experienced teachers and principals, increase retention of teachers and administrators and increase the number of candidates who are fully prepared, certified to teach and accept positions in Connecticutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shortage areas.

Under the plan, the Connecticut Department of Education will implement a comSee CONNECTICUTâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S page 2

OCTOBER 2015

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is the only project happening like this in the country,â&#x20AC;? explained Wallingford Superintendent Dr. Salvatore Menzo. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is a very unique program.â&#x20AC;?

Wallingford was the first of the partners to host foreign students in the summer of 2013, according to Menzo. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Back in the summer of 2013, we hosted with Junior Achievement 20 students from Shanghai who were collaborating with 20 students from our public school district and the project was funded in part by Junior Achievement as well as UTC,â&#x20AC;? explained Menzo. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The students came to Connecticut, collaborated during that week investigating ideas of innovation, design and development, and then the following summer [2014] our students â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and I was fortunate enough to be able to go with them â&#x20AC;&#x201C; traveled to Shanghai during which time our students got to visit many sites for UTC in China,â&#x20AC;? said Menzo.

They also had a chance to reconnect with their Chinese peers whom they had met the previous summer and work on See WALLINGFORD page 10

Policy changes required PAGE 4

Nutmeg establishes curriculum committee PAGE 5

Editorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Note: Below are excerpts from the Keynote address by Commissioner Dianna R. Wentzell at the Commissionerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Back-to-School Meeting on August 19, 2015: . . . In Connecticut, we believe that education matters. It is an engine that powers our economic stability and growth.

A sound education helps us all be better citizens and strengthDianna R. Wentzell ens communities.

We also believe education matters tremendously for us as individuals. It is the pathway to achieving our personal hopes and dreams. It unlocks oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s inherent potential. And it equips a person with the tools and skills needed for lifelong success.

We believe in the power of expectations. We have a long history of high expectations in Connecticut â&#x20AC;&#x201C; high expectations, not only for ourselves, but for others, and especially for our students.

We believe that when we align student learning expectations to those of entry level and college and career expectations, we are adding value to the educational experience for all our students. And we know that when we raise the bar, our students rise to meet the challenge.

In many ways, high standards are our promise to our kids, our families, and our communities â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a promise that they will learn the things that will make them ready for life after high school.

We know, that to make good on this promise, we need to focus on the right strategies at the state and local levels.

Our efforts must work in harmony and effectively support the partnerships beSee COMMISSIONERâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S page 14

Is your district website legal?

New board member/ leadership conference

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Periodical Postage PAID Hartford, CT

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015 PRESIDENT COMMENTARY

We educate all our children!

I hope everyone's school year is off to a rousing start.

Recently, First Vice President Ann Gruenberg, CABE Executive Director Robert Rader, CABE Deputy Director and General Counsel Patrice McCarthy, and I attended NSBA's first annual Summer Leadership Seminar which took place in Chicago, IL. The City of Chicago is a great city to host any event, it is centrally located with lots of interesting things to do. I would question, however, having an event that celebrates public education in a City where the Mayor has closed 50 public schools, the most in our nation's history and nearly all of the closures just happen to be in black and/or brown neighborhoods.

Mayor Emanuel and his School Committee recently sent out 1,500 layoff notices to teachers in the Chicago Public School District while dramatically increasing spending for privately run, for-profit charter schools.

Although, NSBA had a jam-packed agenda along with each region having its own meetings, I think it would have been appropriate to address this issue in general, as well as the specific situation facing Chicago's school children and their families.

As one Chicago School Committee member recently stated, when asked to address the issue of school closures, on the program Democracy Now, "there are no failing schools - only schools that have been failed".

Be that as it may, the Leadership Seminar had several enthralling speakers, including Glenn Tecker who spoke very eloquently on the topic of "The Will to Govern Well".

David Berliner was effective and noteworthy about the topic of his most recent book, "50 Myths & Lies That Threaten America's Public Schools - The Real Crisis, in Education". The first myth Mr. Berliner debunks is America's poor international test results. Our students have never done particularly well on these tests.

Do you remember the 1970s poor performance on an international reading test, we were well behind the leader Italy? I didn't think so. Board members know, that unlike most other nations, we educate all students. Mr. Berliner makes the point that “international tests are not indicative of the strength of education systems or predictive of future ‘national prosperity’ ”.

New! CABE/CAPSS Convention App The CABE/CAPSS Convention app - available for Apple, Google Play and BlackBerry World – gives you instant access to the Convention schedule, presenter bios, sponsors, and exhibitors, as well as the ability to register for the Convention and book your hotel room. During the Convention you will have the ability to complete workshop evaluations through the app.

Download the app by scanning the QR code included in this article. You will immediately have access to Convention information.

If you have any questions about accessing the app, please contact Lisa Steimer at lsteimer@cabe.org or 860-571-7446.

He also states that the many reforms currently being discussed to boost "international test scores to reclaim the United States rightful place at the top of the test results lists - a position we have never held".

Richard Murray David Berliner and his book will certainly help board members, and others, in defending and promoting our public schools. NSBA and State Associations must represent all students and their public schools to be able to truly promote the good work in education that happens every single day.

The seminar closed with the Divisional Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer of Walgreens Steve Pemberton. Mr. Pemberton grew up as a ward of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, shuffled from one bad foster home to the next. Steve's life changed for the good because of three people, one of whom was a member of the local School Committee.

So, if you ever wonder why you are doing this often thankless work remember that you can and do make a difference for a child struggling to find a foothold, especially one who has been repeatedly told that he was worthless.

What an inspirational and moving way to end the Summer Leadership seminar!

The 2016 NSBA National Convention will once again be in Boston. I highly encourage boards of education and their members to begin planning for their members to attend all and or some of the Convention’s workshops, seminars and general session speakers. This will be an invaluable professional learning opportunity for local board members and I would add add, a very cost effective investment.

Which reminds me! The annual CABE/CAPSS Convention will once again be located at the beautiful Mystic Marriott, November 20 and 21. I look forward to seeing more board members and superintendents than ever before. Lisa Steimer and the Convention Committee have been working diligently to provide us with a well rounded and informative two days. As much as I dislike the month of November, the CABE/CAPSS Convention is always an event I look forward too. See you soon.

Mission: To assist local and regional boards of education in providing high quality education for all Connecticut children through effective leadership.

Vision: CABE is passionate about strengthening public education through high-performing, transformative local school board/superintendent leadership teams that inspire success for each child.

CABE Board of Directors EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Richard Murray .................................................. President, Killingly Ann Gruenberg ................................. First Vice President, Hampton Robert Mitchell ................ VP for Government Relations, Montville Elaine Whitney ........... VP for Professional Development, Westport John Prins ......................................... Secretary/Treasurer, Branford Lydia Tedone ............................................ Immediate Past President Donald Harris ........................................................ Member at Large

AREA DIRECTORS Daniel Gentile ......................................... Area 1 Director, Plymouth Susan Karp ................................... Area 2 Co-Director, Glastonbury Donald Harris ................................. Area 2 Co-Director, Bloomfield Laura Bush ................................................. Area 3 Director, Vernon Douglas Smith ........................................ Area 4 Director, Plainfield Andrea Veilleux ................................ Area 6 Co-Director, Stratford Jennifer Dayton ............................. Area 6 Co-Director, Greenwich Roxane McKay ............................. Area 7 Co-Director, Wallingford John Prins ......................................... Area 7 Co-Director, Branford Lon Seidman ................................................. Area 8 Director, Essex Andrea Ackerman ..................................... Area 9 Director, Groton

ASSOCIATES Eileen Baker .............................................. Associate, Old Saybrook Sharon Beloin-Saavedra .............................. Associate, New Britain Gary Brochu .......................................................... Associate, Berlin Robert Guthrie .............................................. Associate, West Haven Robert Trefry ........... Associate, CT Technical High School System COMMITTEE CHAIRS Elizabeth Brown ......................... Chair, State Relations, Waterbury Donald Harris ......................... Chair, Federal Relations, Bloomfield Becky Tyrrell ...................................... Chair, Resolutions, Plainville

CITY REPRESENTATIVES Matthew Poland ................................ City Representative, Hartford Carlos Torre .................................. City Representative, New Haven Polly Rauh ........................................ City Representative, Stamford Charles Stango ............................... City Representative, Waterbury

STAFF Robert Rader ....................................................................... Executive Director Patrice McCarthy .................................. Deputy Director and General Counsel Rebecca Adams ............................................................... Senior Staff Attorney Bonnie Carney ............................................ Sr. Staff Associate for Publications Nicholas Caruso ............................................ Sr. Staff Assoc. for Field Service and Coord. of Technology Sheila McKay ............................. Sr. Staff Associate for Government Relations Vincent Mustaro ..................................... Sr. Staff Associate for Policy Service Lisa Steimer .............................. Sr. Staff Assoc. for Professional Development Teresa Costa .................................. Coordinator of Finance and Administration Pamela Brooks ......................... Sr. Admin. Assoc. for Policy Ser. /Search Ser. Terry DeMars ............................................... Admin. Assoc. for Policy Service Gail Heath ........................................ Admin. Assoc. for Government Relations Wilmarie Newton ........................................ Admin. Assoc. for Labor Relations Corliss Ucci .................................. Receptionist/Asst. to the Executive Director

Connecticut’s Equitable Access to Excellent Educators Plan (continued from page 1)

prehensive approach to improving principal and teacher preparation and ongoing support and development, as well as supporting Connecticut’s school districts to implement specific human capital and talent management strategies.

Like CABE’s recently formed Ad Hoc Diversity Committee, the plan recognizes that the educator workforce does not reflect the racial, cultural, ethnic and or linguistic composition of the student population. The plan includes strategies to increase representation of Black and Latino educators. CABE will work with the Connecticut Department of Education to support board members and superintendents in reaching the plan goals.

The CABE Journal (ISSN 1092-1818) is published monthly except a combined issue for July/August as a member service of the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education, 81 Wolcott Hill Road, Wethersfield, CT 06109, (860) 571-7446. CABE membership dues include $30 per person for each individual who receives The CABE Journal. The subscription rate for nonmembers is $75. Association membership dues include a subscription for each board member, superintendent, assistant superintendent and business manager. The companies and advertisements found in The CABE Journal are not necessarily endorsed by CABE. “Periodicals Postage Paid at Hartford, CT.” POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The CABE Journal, CABE, 81 Wolcott Hill Road, Wethersfield, CT 06109-1242. Email: bcarney@cabe.org.

Members can find the CABE Journal online at: https://www.cabe. org/userlogin.cfm?pp=1024&userrequest=false&keyrequest=YES

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR COMMENTARY

CABE Affiliate Members BUSINESS AFFILIATES DIAMOND MEMBER Finalsite GOLD MEMBERS

Berchem, Moses & Devlin Centris Group Guidance Counselors for Senior Teachers Pullman & Comley Shipman & Goodwin SILVER MEMBERS Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Arthur J. Gallagher & Company Corporate Cost Control Milone & MacBroom, Inc. Perkins & Eastman Siegel, O’Connor, O’Donnell & Beck The Segal Company Sprint

BRONZE PLUS MEMBERS BL Companies Coordinated Transportation Solutions Friar Associates JCJ Architecture Milliman, Inc. Morganti Group O & G Industries The S/L/A/M Collaborative Trane

BRONZE MEMBERS Brown & Brown Insurance Chinni & Meuser LLC Dattco Inc. ECG Engineering, PC Fuller & D’Angelo Architects and Planners Goldstein & Peck, P.C. Kainen, Escalera & McHale, P.C. The Lexington Group Muschell & Simoncelli Suisman Shapiro Attorneys at Law

EDUCATIONAL AFFILIATES American School for the Deaf Area Cooperative Educational Services Capitol Region Education Council The College Board Connecticut Association for the Gifted Connecticut Association of School Business Officials Connecticut Center for School Change Connecticut School Buildings and Grounds Association Cooperative Educational Services EASTCONN EDUCATION CONNECTION LEARN Unified School District #1

Will employers hire robots instead of our children?

According to Geoff Colvin, as recently as 2004, two economists wrote a book called The New Division of Labor in which they described how driving a vehicle requires so many complex, quick judgments that it would be impossible for a computer to ever handle the job.

Today, we know while there are still kinks to be worked out (to say nothing of developing anti-hacker software), that Google has been testing such cars for years.

Colvin, whose new book, Humans Are Underrated, had a chapter of the book excerpted in the August 1st Fortune Magazine. While he discusses other predictions where people underestimated the ability of machines to do the jobs of

“even if a computer could say all the right words… We want to hear our diagnosis from a doctor, even if a computer supplied it…”

STEM is Important, But… So, even with all the attention on STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) over the last decade in our schools, employers’ “top priorities include relationship building, teaming, cocreativity, brainstorming, cultural sensitivity, and ability to manage diverse employees—right-brain skills of social action.” According to Colvin, the overall trend in employment is for a “giant” increase in industries based on personal

“The role of boards and superintendents is to use the knowledge of future needs and integrate teaching these skills to our students.” humans, his story is really that of the continued necessity of humans, with the right skills, to ensure our quality of life.

As we contemplate the future, Colvin writes “We just can’t get our heads around the notion of computer processing power doubling every two years.”

Activities that are thought of as too tough for anything but humans to conquer are being taken over by computers at an astonishingly quick rate.

Even jobs that one would think would be exclusively the job of people, he states, are often done better by computers.

Because humans are, well, human, our imperfections affect decisions. For example, for parole decisions, “Data driven algorithms have proved superior to human judges and juries in predicting recidivism, and it’s virtually certain that computer analysis could judge parole applications more effectively, and certainly less capriciously, than human judges do.”

So, will computer software doom our children to living in a world where computer have virtually (pun intended) taken over?

Not according to Colvin. He argues that we are still social beings and that human problems must still be solved by humans. Why? Because in “real life, and especially in organizational life, we keep changing our conception of what the problem is and what our goals are. Those are issues that people must work out for themselves, and critically must do it in groups.”

We want to follow human leaders,

interaction and the continued shrinkage in jobs like bank tellers, checkout clerks and production workers.

For an employee to be a “great performer is becoming less about what you know and more about what you’re like.” The most valuable engineers of the future “will not be geniuses in cubicles; rather they’ll be those who can build relationships, brainstorm, collaborate and lead.”

Thus, “an employee who is uninterested in human interaction is in trouble...

As the shift in valuable skills continues, organizations are finding not only that they have no jobs for the disengaged and socially inept, but also that such people are toxic to the enterprise and must be removed.”

Colvin states that “as economies have evolved over the centuries, we’ve always looked outward to get the new skills we require, to elders, schools, trainers, and employers that knew and could teach us what we needed to know. Now, for the first time, we must also look inward…

When you change perspectives and look inward rather than outward, you’ll find what you need next has been there all along. It has been there forever. In the deepest possible sense, you’ve already got what it takes…”

What Our Children Need While that is certainly a more hopeful message than, “yes, humans will no longer be needed”, especially those who are not leaders, Colvin’s message to everyone in

Robert Rader

education is that there is a continuing, growing need to ensure that our children have the emotional intelligence or 21st Century skills needed to succeed in the future. Interestingly, Colvin’s article contained a chart showing that empathy, one of the most important characteristics of emotional intelligence, has declined in college students over time.

As we think more about what our districts will look like in the future, including more personalization of learning and encouraging students to follow their passions, we must be careful not to forget about the importance of their continuing to build their social and emotional skills. In addition, as our State’s overall demographics indicate that our enrollments will be decreasing, it will be more and more important that each of our students has these skills. The teaching of right-brain skills cannot be solely the domain of our high-performing schools – all schools and all students must learn how to be effective in the world that our children will inherit.

The role of boards and superintendents is to use the knowledge of future needs and integrate teaching these skills to our students. How well this is done may very well be the key to our children’s – and our – quality of life.

“Empathy is the critical 21st Century skill.”

Meg Bear, Group Vice President, Oracle, as quoted in Fortune Magazine August 1, 2015 issue

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

The Policy Corner Vincent A. Mustaro, Senior Staff Associate for Policy Service, CABE

Changes required in suspension/expulsion policies Recently passed Public Act 15-96 modified existing statutes pertaining to suspension and expulsion, effective this new school year. This new legislation, with certain exceptions, prohibits boards of education from imposing out-of-school suspensions and expulsion on students in grades preschool through two. The exceptions are: 1. out-of-school suspensions for board of education preschool through grade two students whose conduct is of a violent or sexual nature that endangers others; 2. expulsions for kindergarten through grade two students who (a) possess firearms or certain other weapons or (b) sell or distribute controlled substances; and 3. expulsions for preschool students who possess a firearm on or off school grounds or at schoolsponsored activities at preschool programs offered by local and regional boards of education, state and local charter schools, and interdistrict magnet schools (i.e., “preschool program providers”), in accordance with federal law.

The new legislation prohibits preschool program providers from imposing out-of-school suspensions for their preschool students and establishes expulsion hearing procedures for their preschool students.

Additionally, the new law requires school-based primary mental health programs administered by boards of education to include a component for systematic early detection and screening to identify children experiencing behavioral or disciplinary problems.

Previous law required the identification of children experiencing early school adjustment problems only. The legislation requires the programs to include services to address those problems.

Further, the Commissioner of Education is required to consider, as an additional factor when awarding school-based primary mental health program grants to boards of education, the number of children enrolled in grades kindergarten to two who experience behavioral, disciplinary, or early school adjustment problems.

Suspension of Students in Board of Education Preschool through Grade Two Programs The legislation prohibits boards of education from authorizing out-of-school suspensions for students enrolled in preschool through grade two unless the school administration determines during a disciplinary hearing that there is evidence

of conduct on school grounds of a violent or sexual nature that endangers others.

Previously, kindergarten through grade two students could receive an out-ofschool suspension for the same reasons as students in grades three through 12 (e.g., posing a danger to persons or property, disrupting the educational process).

Boards of education are prohibited from authorizing any suspensions for preschool students other than in-school suspensions. State or local charter schools or interdistrict magnet schools are also prohibited from authorizing out-of-school suspensions for their preschool students.

Only in-school suspensions for such students are permitted.

Expulsions for Kindergarten through Grade Two Students Boards of education are now prohibited from expelling a student enrolled in preschool through grade two, unless the student (1) possessed a firearm, deadly weapon, dangerous instrument, or martial arts weapon on school grounds or at a school-sponsored activity; (2) possessed such a firearm, instrument, or weapon in the commission of a crime off school grounds; or (3) offered on or off school grounds, a controlled substance for sale or distribution.

Such students are subject to mandatory expulsion, per federal law, for one calendar year, which the board may reduce on a case-by-case basis for specified reasons. Previously students in kindergarten through grade two could be expelled for both discretionary and mandatory reasons as were students in grades three through twelve. The discretionary expulsions are no longer permitted for the kindergarten through grade two students.

Expulsions for Preschool Students The Act conforms state law to federal law by requiring boards of education to expel preschool students for one calendar year when the school administration determines during a disciplinary hearing that there is reason to believe that the student possessed a firearm on or off school grounds or at a school-sponsored event. Existing law requires this for students in grades kindergarten through 12. The new legislation also subjects preschool students enrolled in a state or local charter school or interdistrict magnet school preschool program to the same mandatory expulsion requirement.

The Act allows boards of education, state or local charter schools, and

interdistrict magnet schools that offer preschool programs to modify this mandatory expulsion period on a case-bycase basis.

Expulsion hearings for preschool students for firearm possession are to be conducted by a boards of education, state or local charter school, or interdistrict magnet school providing the preschool program.

The legislation also allows such hearings to be conducted by (1) the local or regional board of education if a regional education service center or a state or local charter school is the program provider, and such providers have an agreement with the board to do so, or (2) an impartial hearing board established by the local or regional board of education, state or local charter school, or interdistrict magnet school providing the preschool program.

The new legislation generally aligns preschool expulsion hearing requirements to the requirements in existing law for kindergarten through grade 12 expulsion hearings.

The Act prohibits preschool program provider employees from serving as members of impartial expulsion hearing boards but appears to permit local or regional board of education members to serve on an impartial preschool hearing expulsion board. Under existing law for kindergarten through grade 12 students, local or regional board of education members cannot be members of an impartial expulsion hearing board.

Previous legislation requires, for a kindergarten through grade 12 expulsion hearing conducted by a board of education, at least three affirmative votes for expulsion before a student can be expelled.

Firearms Requiring Expulsion The federal Gun Free Schools Act describes the following weapons as firearms that require one calendar year of mandatory expulsion: 1. any weapon that can expel a projectile by the action of an explosive; 2. a firearm frame, receiver, muffler, or silencer; or 3. any destructive device, which includes explosives, incendiaries, and poison gases (but not rifles intended for sporting, recreational, or cultural purposes or knives) (18 USC § 921(a)(3)-(4)).

State law currently complies with this mandatory expulsion requirement for grades kindergarten through 12 (CGS § 10-233d(a)(2)).

Policy Implications This legislation impacts three policies.

They are: 1. Policy #5114 – Suspension and Expulsion/Due Process 2. Policy #5131 – Student Conduct 3. Policy #5144 – Discipline Districts need to update their policies to comply with the new legislation.

State statute requires that boards of education adopt a policy pertaining to discipline. Any one of these three listed above can fulfill that obligation. All three are not necessary. CABE’s samples have been modified to be compliant with the new legislation. They are available upon request from CABE’s Policy Service and can also be accessed in the member section of the CABE website in the sample core manual.

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015 See You in Court – The Nutmeg Board of Education

The Nutmeg Board established a new curriculum committee - are there any concerns?

Thomas B. Mooney, Esq. Shipman & Goodwin

The Nutmeg Board of Education makes many mistakes. The latest imbroglio created by the board will be reported here each issue, followed by an explanation of what the board should have done.

Though not intended as legal advice, these situations may help board members avoid common problems.

Bob Bombast, veteran member of the Nut-meg Board of Education, has been vocal in his opposition to state testing based on the Common Core State Standards.

When Mr. Superintendent reported last month on the poor test results from last year, Bob was in classic form, accusing the State Department of Education of subordinating local control of education to corporate interests.

Bob told the Board and the public that it is imperative that the Board do something, anything, to deal with this problem, and he promised to have a plan at the next meeting. Since that time, Bob has been conferring with several fellow Board members by email and in person, and by the time the Board met again yesterday, Bob was ready with his plan.

At the meeting last evening, Bob took action when the Board got to the New Business portion of its meeting. After the Board had addressed its agenda items listed under New Business, Bob raised his hand and asked to be recognized.

“Mr. Chairperson, members of the Board,” Bob intoned. “I am deeply concerned that the Board of Education is being deprived of its rightful oversight role on matters of curriculum. I move that the Board appoint three Board members and three parents to a new select committee to oversee all issues of curriculum. These matters are far too important to be left to the purported experts. I will be pleased to serve on and, of course, chair this committee. We need to give control of the curriculum back to the people.”

Mr. Superintendent quickly explained to Bob that by statute curriculum matters are already handled by a committee that the Board appoints. Mr. Superintendent also told Bob that Board members can even sit in on the committee meetings if they want.

Bob was undeterred by Mr. Superintendent’s comments. “If we appointed that committee, we can certainly unappoint that committee,” Bob responded curtly. “I amend my motion to provide that any such committee is hereby disbanded and that its responsibilities will now be handled by my new “Board/Parent Select Committee on Curriculum.”

Fellow-traveller and Board member

Mal Content jumped in, and he promptly seconded Bob’s motion.

Mr. Chairperson had not been included on the emails that Bob and Mal had exchanged over the weekend, and he was thus surprised by this move by Bob and Mal. He didn’t quite know what to do with Bob’s motion, however, so he simply noted that a motion had been made and seconded, and he asked if there were any discussion. Given that Bob, Mal and other Board members had already figured out their strategy, they had no further comment on Bob’s proposed new committee.

With no other good option, Mr. Chairperson asked for a vote on Bob’s motion, and it passed unanimously, with Mr. Chairperson abstaining.

Do you have any concerns about Bob’s motion and the new committee?

There are a number of concerns. First, as a legal matter, such a Board/Parent committee seems ill-suited to fulfill the important statutory responsibility of establishing curriculum for the Nutmeg Public Schools. Connecticut General Statutes, Section 10-220(e) provides: (e) Each local and regional board of education shall establish a school district curriculum committee. The committee shall recommend, develop, review and approve all curriculum for the local or regional school district.

As we see, the responsibilities of this committee are extensive, and indeed the wording of the statute does not clearly define the role for the board of education other than its duty to appoint the committee.

Interestingly, the statute does not specify the membership of this committee, and thus theoretically the Board could appoint itself and parents to such a committee.

However, given the important responsibilities of this committee to “recommend, develop, review and approve all curriculum,” it is important that professionals with appropriate expertise serve on this committee.

Second, a board of education can still reserve to itself an oversight role in matters of curriculum. The statute provides that the same committee recommends, develops, reviews and approves curriculum.

Given that a board of education appoints the curriculum committee, it appears that the board can reserve to itself the right to receive and act on the committee’s recommendations and approvals.

However, given the committee’s broad responsibilities under statute, board members should not act independently if

they disagree with the actions of the committee. Rather, boards of education should either approve the curriculum committee’s recommendations or refer the matter back to the committee for further deliberations.

This scenario also presents a number of freedom of information issues, starting with the fact that Bob’s motion was not even on the agenda. As to the committee itself, if it is composed exclusively of staff members appointed by the superintendent (acting as the chief executive officer of the board of education), it is possible that its meetings may be considered “administrative or staff meetings,” which are exempt from FOIA meeting requirements.

However, if Board members or parents sit on the committee, these meeting will be subject to all FOIA requirements.

Significantly, boards of education must be aware that any committee they appoint will be considered a public agency, even if the committee appointed is composed solely of parents or other non-elected town residents.

It is therefore important that boards of education provide appropriate training to persons serving on such committees so that they can provide such service to their

communities and still comply with their legal responsibilities under the Freedom of Information Act, e.g., to post their meetings, to provide the public access to those meetings, to record their votes, and to maintain minutes of their meetings.

Bob’s emails between meetings also raise FOIA concerns. As a starting premise, Bob’s emails about his plans for such a committee are clearly public records.

The larger question is whether the emails back and forth between Board and selected colleagues constituted a “discussion” among a quorum and thus a “meeting.” A “discussion” for this purpose may be defined as an exchange of information and views among members of the public agency on matters within its jurisdiction.

If a quorum of the Nutmeg Board of Education conducted such a “discussion” by email here, those emails would be considered a “meeting” in violation of the FOIA, in that the “meeting” was neither posted nor open to the public.

Attorney Thomas B. Mooney is a partner in the Hartford law firm of Shipman & Goodwin who works frequently with boards of education. Mooney is a regular contributor to the CABE Journal.

The Eighth Edition is here!!

A Practical Guide to Connecticut School Law

by Thomas B. Mooney, Esq. Shipman & Goodwin The Guide comes with a CD which provides hyperlinks to many cases and statutes and will permit ord searches as a supplement to the Index.

The Eighth Edition was substantially rewritten to reflect statutory changes, significant case law developments in state and federal courts. Some of the numerous legal developments and update are as follows: • School Safety and Security • Bullying Law • Teacher Evaluation and Support • Teacher Tenure Act • New Requirements for Professional Development • Budget Issues • Prohibitions on Electronic Notifications of Referenda • Minimum Budget Requirements • FMLA for Paraprofessionals • Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Requirements • Uniform Regional School Calendars • Excusal • Student Assessments • Pool Safety • Concussion Prevention and Education • Sudden Cardiac Arrest Prevention and Education • Administration and Storage of Epinephrine • Excused Absences • Student Free Speech • Employee Free Speech

Order your copy TODAY by going to the CABE website: www.cabe.org/page.cfm?p=1241

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The Journal â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

Board members’ homework assignment: Make sure your district’s website is legally compliant Zachary D. Schurin, Esq. and Michael P. McKeon, Esq. Pullman & Comley LLC

With the start of a new school year, students are not the only ones who have homework. To the contrary, school board members and their respective districts’ central office administrators have their own assignment — ensuring that their school district websites comply with Connecticut law.

This is because among the many laws that Connecticut has crafted in the area of education, a number of them set forth notices that school districts — and in some cases, charter schools — must post on their websites.

In fact, apparently not content with the preexisting posting requirements, during its last session the General Assembly devised a few more.

Therefore, to help board members and administrators keep track of what your websites should include, what follows is an iteration of some of the more notable mandatory website posting requirements that can be found in the Connecticut General Statutes:

Existing Website Posting Requirements • Notices of Special Meetings: Section 1-225 of the Connecticut General Statutes, which is a provision of the Freedom of Information Act, requires all public agencies – including boards of education, board subcommittees, regional education service centers, and charter schools — to post notices of special meetings on their websites not less than twenty-four hours before the meeting is to be held (except in the rare case of emergency meetings).

• Life-Threatening Food Allergies and Glycogen Storage Disease Plans: Now, the first reaction of many people to this statute might understandably be to ask what is a Glycogen Storage Disease? Nonetheless, Section 10212c requires local and regional boards of education to make their mandated, life-threatening-foodallergies and glycogen-storage-disease plans available on either the board’s website or the website of each school under the board’s jurisdiction.

• Indoor Air Quality Program Notice: Section 10-220 requires local and regional boards of education to ensure that the results of their school indoorair-quality inspection reports are available on either the board’s website or on each individual school’s website.

• Student Recruitment

by Specialized Schools: Section 10-220d requires local and regional boards of education to

“provide information relating to technical high schools, regional agricultural science and technology education centers, interdistrict magnet schools, charter schools, alternative high schools and interdistrict student attendance programs” on their websites, a mandate that would seem to be the same as requiring businesses to urge potential customers to consider their competitors.

• Safe School Climate Plans: Section 10-222d requires local and regional boards of education to make their safe school climate plans available on the board’s and each individual school’s website within thirty calendar days of the plan’s approval by the State Department of Education.

• Information Regarding Aggregate Spending for Education: Section 10-220o requires local and regional boards of education, regional educational service centers and state charter school governing authorities to make available on their websites the aggregate spending on salaries, employee benefits, instructional supplies, educational media supplies, instructional equipment, regular

education tuition, special education tuition, purchased services and all other expenditure items, excluding debt service, for each school under their jurisdiction.

• Green Cleaning Program Notice: Section 10-231g requires local and regional boards of education to post the school district’s green cleaning program notices and reports on the district website and on each school’s individual website if such individual school websites exist.

New Website Posting Requirements for the 2015-16 School Year • Innovation Waivers: A provision in this year’s budget implementer bill, specifically, Section 301 of Public Act 15-5, requires local and regional boards of education that have been granted an innovation waiver or innovation waiver renewal by the State Board of Education to post on their websites a report on the results of such waiver.

• Use of Pesticides: The implementer, specifically Section 436 of Public Act 15-5, also amends

existing statutes on the use of pesticides (Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 10-231c & 10-231d). These statutes now require local and regional boards of education to e-mail notice of the impending use of pesticides at a given school to parents who have requested such notice. The amended statutes further require that this notice be posted on the individual school’s website, or the board’s website if an individual school website does not exist. Finally, to ensure that there will be more gilding than there is lily, the statutes also require that districts post this notice of imminent pesticide use on the school’s or, in the alternative, the board’s primary social media account.

• Alternative Education: Public Act 15-133, which became effective July 1, 2015, requires each local and regional board of education to make available on its website information relating to alternative education “including, but not limited to, the purpose, location, contact information, staff directory and enrollment criteria for such alternative education.”

• Restraint and Seclusion Policies and Procedures: Public Act 15-141, which also became effective July 1, 2015, requires local and regional boards of education to post restraint and seclusion policies and procedures on the board’s website.

As exhausting as this list is, it is not necessarily exhaustive of all of the website notices Connecticut requires of its school districts or charter schools. This list is instead a study aid, designed to assist board members and their administrators complete their homework of ensuring that their websites pass legal muster.

Attorneys Schurin and McKeon are both with the law firm of Pullman & Comley LLC, which represents a number of Connecticut school districts and other educational institutions. More articles about issues pertaining to school law can be found on the firm’s blog, Education Law Notes, at http://schoollaw.pullcom blog.com

“Effective leadership is putting first things first.

Effective management is discipline, carrying it out.

– Stephen Covey

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

CELP webinar

Consider an Executive Coach for your Superintendent Joseph Cirasuolo Executive Director, CAPSS

Have you ever wished that you had a person to provide you with the wisdom of their experience and help you think through and address a given situation?

For superintendents of schools such a person would be worth his or her weight in gold. With the many demands on a superintendent every day, finding a way to get the benefits such a person would provide would help the superintendent become more effective and pay many other dividends to the school district.

That type of support can be provided by a person trained to serve as an executive coach. The coach is a person who would help a superintendent identify the issues that need some thoughtful consideration and then think through the issue and come up with an effective resolution. The coach does not supply answers for a superintendent but instead helps the superintendent develop her/his own response.

Executive coaching has been employed outside of the public education enterprise for many years. Some of the most highly compensated chief executive officers of some of the largest corporations in the world receive executive coaching on a regular basis. These very skilled individuals have found that coaching has given them the support that they need to give the thoughtful consideration to issues before action is taken.

The use of coaches by chief executive

officers has been supported outside of public education by boards of enterprises that realize that this is a very effective way for these boards to give their chief executive officers the extra support that they need to meet their responsibilities. I believe that the most farsighted boards are those that are more than willing for their chief executive officers to receive this professional development help.

The use of an executive coach is a sign that the chief executive officer wants to do the job as well as it can be done.

Willingness to use a coach, therefore, is a sign that any superintendent recognizes the complexities of the job and that this extra help will reinforce the strength and competence of the chief executive.

The hiring of an executive coach illustrates that the board realizes that any investment that it makes in coaching for its superintendent will pay rich dividends for the school system and the children whom the system serves.

Executive coaching is one of the truly invaluable aspects of professional development for your superintendent.

Consider an executive coach when you hire your superintendent or if you believe that it might be helpful for a sitting superintendent, provide this service for her/him. The ultimate beneficiaries will be your district as your leadership team will be stronger and so will the education of the children, which, after all is the primary reason why superintendents and board members do what they do.

Connecticut English Language Proficiency (CELP) Standards webinar was held at the CABE Office.

This webinar was designed to introduce members of boards of education to the new CELP Standards, which will be presented to the State Board of Education in the fall of 2015 and is archived on the CABE website.

Committees meet

CABE’s Government Relations and Resolutions Committee met recently to formulate the 2016 Proposed Resolutions that will be discussed and acted upon at the November 19 CABE Delegate Assembly to be held at the Mystic Marriott Hotel in Groton.

Available from The CABE Bookstore!

CABE Search Services Call CABE for your searches!

For an update or more information on vacancies go to our website: www.cabe.org

Understanding the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act and Access to Public Meetings and Records - Fourth Edition Written by:

For more information contact, CABE Search Services, 860-539-7594 Mary Broderick, Senior Search Consultant Paul Gagliarducci, Associate Consultant Jacqueline V. Jacoby, Senior Search Consultant Bob King, Associate Consultant P.O. Box 290252, Wethersfield, CT 06129-0252 www.cabe.org/support • Equal Opportunity Employers

Mark J. Sommaruga, Esq. Pullman & Comley, LLC to order the FOIA book go to the CABE Online Bookstore at: www.cabe.org/page.cfm?p=1256

The Journal â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

Save the Date!

2015 CABE New Board Member Orientation/Leadership Workshop Welcome To School Board Service

Roles and Responsibilities

Legal Requirements and Advocacy

Policy

Common Mistakes

December 9, 2015 | 9:30 AM - 7:00 PM Sheraton South Hotel, Rocky Hill

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

Wallingford participates in global exchange (conrtinued from page 1) one of the very unique aspects of the program, according to Menzo.

“What is unique about this program is it’s not just a twosummer program where kids get to reconnect,” explained Menzo.

“Obviously, there is a cultural exchange but during the school year they set up a business – both school districts in Shanghai and Wallingford – set up a business and they actually sell products and have a board of directors.”

When Wallingford students arrived in China in 2014, the students presented to one another on how their business was faring.

“So they had to discuss – what is the product that they sold? How much profit did they make? What were they able to give back to their shareholders?” said Menzo.

This past August, a second cohort of students came to Connecticut from China.

“Just this past August, we had our second cohort of students from Shanghai come and our second cohort of students from Wallingford next summer [2016] will travel to Shanghai,” said Menzo.

“And we are actually looking to integrate into the program this year international trade – where the students would be trading with each other their

own product that they have chosen to sell in their own country,” said Menzo.

During the course of the school year, before they visit China, the 20 sophomores and juniors from Wallingford (the second cohort also includes one student from Cheshire) meet twice a month for evening classes “on how to develop a business, how to develop a company structure that would benefit the sale of product and the development of merchandise and marketing,” explained Menzo, who said students are selected for the program via an application and interview process through Junior Achievement.

“And they also learn along the way some Chinese and some Chinese customs and cultural aspects, so that when they do travel, they’re best suited for having a great relationship with their counterparts,” he added.

Menzo noted that UTC funds the experience for the Chinese students while they are in the US. “Our students, through fundraising and through parent contributions, fund their trip to China,” he added, however, UTC “subsidizes much of the experiences” while Wallingford students are in China.

Menzo detailed the various Chinese sites the Wallingford students, who stayed in the Crowne Plaza in Shanghai, toured

in 2014. “So we started off in Beijing— they saw all the main sites there, the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and then we traveled by train down to Shanghai,” continued Menzo.

Menzo noted that he was particularly impressed with the poise shown by his students while they presented in China.

“When we got to Shanghai two summers ago, they had to present in front of a large group of people and media from all over China and they were incredible,” he said. “I was so impressed with their poise and their ability to capture an audience and that’s part of global competence – it’s not just about learning another language but they had to understand customs and cultures.”

While in Connecticut, the Chinese students also had their chance to visit noteworthy sites in the Nutmeg State.

“When the Chinese kids were here in August and our students were with them, they stayed in Hartford for the week at the Hartford Hilton together and that was their home base,” said Menzo.

“And, from there, they went out to visit Otis Elevator, we had a kick off at the State Capital, they went bowling, went to a Rock Cats game, they went to Lake Compounce, and we hosted a dance and a barbecue,” said Menzo.

Menzo praised Junior Achievement and UTC for their role in the program. “I

can’t personally thank Junior Achievement and UTC enough for them supporting this program,” he said. “It really has been amazing to see our students grow and to see how mature they become in their understanding of things like marketing and sales and just being able to present themselves the way they do.”

Wallingford Board Chairwoman Roxane McKay says that “the relationship Wallingford BOE forged with Junior Achievement has had extraordinary outcomes for our district.”

She added, “The spotlight was truly on all the students because this was the first of such partnerships for JA and a school district in our country or China. All the students rose to the occasion and participated in the program with great commitment, enthusiasm and with team spirit.

Needless to say, all the organizers, chaperones and other individuals who participated were remarkable and their commitment was without reproach.”

As a result of students having such a positive experience with the Shanghai program, “the interest amongst our students in travel partnerships has grown districtwide,” added McKay, who said it has also encouraged “all the students to think more globally and appreciate the cultural differences as well as the similarities they experienced.”

Support for the budgetary process Providing support for districts, who must strategize for your changing demographics.

Create an Innovative Retirement Incentive Strategy for Your District.

Your Budgetary Process Team Bill Sudol Retired Executive Director, Teachers Retirement Board

John Kowalsky Independent Broker, Husband of Retired Teacher

James Stirling Administrative Support from Stirling Benefits

Call us @ 860-571-7446

It’s a pleasure for the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education (CABE) to join with the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents (CAPSS) in sponsoring this webinar that is designed to give information to Boards of Education that may assist them as they are looking at plans that would be available to their staff that would help individuals make the difficult decision as to whether or not to retire. This is one resource we think is valuable for districts to look at and we bring you this information as a service to our members. The webinar can we viewed on the CABE website at: http://www.cabe.org/ page.cfm?p=1119.

Patrice A. McCarthy Deputy Director and General Counsel, CABE Two of the ongoing challenges that school system administrators face are how to make it possible to assist long time loyal and effective teachers and administrators retire into a financially secure situation and how to secure significant budget savings without sacrificing quality in educational programming. To assist you with these challenges, CAPSS and CABE have established business partnerships with John Kowalsky and Bill Sudol around an effective method for prospective retirees to obtain health insurance coverage that is both affordable and comprehensive Joseph J. Cirasuolo, Ed.D Executive Director, CAPSS

Support for an integral aspect in planning for education transformation.

We are offering a dedicated explanation of the partnership process.

The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

Coleman to facilitate Saturday luncheon general session

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CABE-Meeting

Lisa Steimer Senior Staff Associate for Professional Development, CABE

The CABE/CAPSS Convention Committee is delighted to announce that George A. Coleman, Early Childhood Systems Development Specialist at Cooperative Educational Services, Inc. (C.E.S.) will facilitate the Saturday luncheon general session.

George provides consultation around implementing C.E.S. goals to develop high quality preschool programs in the region and provide effective professional development. Mr. Coleman is an early childhood curriculum and policy specialist.

He retired from the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) in 2011 as Acting Commissioner, after 23 years of service. During his tenure in the CSDE he designed and implemented many of the state’s initial early childhood policies and programs effecting preschool access, affordability, quality and transition to public kindergarten.

During this final session of the Convention, you are provided with many opportunities to learn about new ideas, but given the pace of our worlds we don’t

CABE-Meeting is a user-friendly online service offered by CABE specifically for school boards. Users can eliminate unnecessary paperwork, increase efficiency and reduce costs while enabling board members to utilize the latest in cutting edge technology. Using CABEMeeting, the Meeting Manager can create an electronic meeting from developing the agenda to creating the minutes and everything in between.

CABE-Meeting Offers: • Secure login access for board and district staff • Access from any location with Internet access • Search archived agenda and meeting related items in a flash.

• Ability to download and print attachments • Option to provide a public link to board meeting information George Coleman

often, if ever, have the opportunity to process this information.

Like the Connecticut Core State Standards where students are drilling deeper on fewer concepts rather than skimming the surface on many topics, you are going to drill down on one Convention learning. Our facilitator, George Coleman, will help you lead us in exploring how best to implement your learning into the work your district is currently doing.

Your Subscription Provides: • Access to CABE-Meeting • Initial and ongoing training • Support and maintenance • Upgrades to the service CABE Member Subscription Info: Initial Subscription Fee – $3,000 Annual Maintenance Fee – $1,500 If you have an interest in this service, contact Lisa Steimer at 860-571-7446 or lsteimer@cabe.org.

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

Save the Date!

An opportunity for CABE member boards of education to have a voice in the Legislative process.

CABE Delegate Assembly Thursday, November 19, 2015 2:30 pm Registration 3:00 - 6:00 pm Delegate Assembly Mystic Marriott Hotel, Groton

Book Review

In Defense Of A Liberal Education

by Fareed Zakaria In the recently published book In Defense of a Liberal Education, Fareed Zakaria argues for the importance of a commitment to liberal arts education.

While he focuses on recent efforts by governors in Texas, Florida and North Carolina to end funding for college majors in liberal arts, the issues raised are equally applicable to elementary and secondary education.

Zakaria makes the case that a liberal arts education sets a foundation for thoughtful discourse and clear communication in speaking and writing.

Zakaria, like many, view the liberal arts as a way to train one’s mind and set the stage for life-long learning. He reminds us that efforts in the United States to be at the top in science and math test results should not be done at the expense of our long standing strengths in creativity and innovation.

To Zakaria, the value of a liberal education is in opening the mind, preparing people for a fast changing world, and building a capacity for freedom. The finding in a 2013 study, which shows that half of those who sign up for MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) do so out of general curiosity or just for fun, supports the premise that education is not

confined to formal settings or the awarding of credits or degrees.

Defending the fact that the cost of education rises faster than the general economy, he points out that automation and outsourcing can replace expensive labor.

However, it still takes four musicians nine minutes to perform Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, just as it did in the 19th Century. (Economist Robert Frank) Zakaria points out that Thomas Jefferson and John Adams agreed on the value of education. “The whole people must take upon themselves the education of the whole people and be willing to bare the expenses of it.” (John Adams) Jefferson feared that without a system of public education the country would end up being ruled by a privileged elite.

As districts throughout Connecticut work to implement curriculum that reflects the Connecticut Core Standards but also includes the arts and other “nontested subjects”, they will help students develop a love of learning and address the critical challenge of learning how to read critically, analyze data and formulate ideas – skills for a lifetime.

Patrice A. McCarthy Deputy Director and General Counsel, CABE

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

The

Media Message

from Ann Baldwin, Baldwin Media Marketing, LLC

Tips and Tricks for writing an effective news release For those of us in the Public Relations and Crisis Communications world, writing a news release is second nature, but for those who don’t do it on a regular basis, it can be a little baffling. For that reason, I thought it might be helpful to pass along some tips and tricks of “the trade.”

To begin with, you should create a “Media Release” template. This should be created in a Word document that can easily be cut and pasted into an e-mail, and not as an attachment. The reason for that is that it can be easily accessed once the email is opened. The template should include your logo, website and contact information, should someone wish to reach you regarding the topic.

Be Brief: This is probably the most important advice. Your word count should be between 400-500 words at most.

Headline: Your news release should also have an attention grabbing headline.

For example; Student Test Scores Exceed Expectations-Among Highest in the State Dateline: Then you include the city where the news is originating and the date of the release. You also need to keep in mind that “news” has to be released in a timely fashion. Media outlets don’t want to hear about news that happened months, weeks, or in some cases days ago. (The more current the information is, the better chance you have at getting published, or reported.)

Lead Paragraph: This is the part of

the release which generally answers the Who, What, When, Where and Why questions; in other words the facts. As you write this section of the release, think about this from the media’s standpoint, why should they care, and what makes the content resonate with their readers, or viewers? It is also important to stay away from educator jargon – what I mean by that is words that no one else will understand. Remember your readers probably are not educators.

Body: Additional information and supporting material goes here along with perhaps a quote from the Superintendent, the Board Chair, or both.

Boilerplate: This is a short paragraph about your school or your district. It can be something as simple as your mission statement.

This is the basic formula for a press release. You may ask: What if the subject is more complex and can’t be explained in this number of words, or in this format? The answer to that is let your readers or viewers know where they can go for additional information. Places such as your website, or your Facebook page, if you have one.

Finally, don’t be offended or discouraged if your press release doesn’t get picked up by the media. Use this tool not only for media outreach, but also as a format to communicate with your school community.

Create an “In the News” section on your website and put your press releases and any good news coverage that you do get there. Just because the media doesn’t think it’s important, doesn’t mean that it’s not.

CABE September Board of Directors Meeting

CABE Board of Directors and staff meeting with members of the State Board of Education. l. to r., State Board of Education members: Teresa Hopkins-Staten, Erin Benham, Commissioner Dianna R. Wentzell, Joseph Vrably; Steven Wright and Bob Trefry attended the CABE Board of Directors meeting.

The Wallingford Healthy Drive food truck made a stop in Wethersfield at the annual meeting of the CABE Board of Directors and the State Board of Education.

The Wallingford students who help prepare and serve the dinner for the CABE Board of Directors meeting.

Wallingford Superintendent of School Sal Menzo, Chair Roxane McKay, Commissioner Dianna R. Wentzell and CABE President Richard Murray (Killingly).

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

CABE: working for YOU Individualized Workshops • Professional Development Opportunities Legal Services • Policy Services • Representing You Statewide and Nationally Below are the highlights of activities that the CABE staff has undertaken on your behalf over the last month. We did this:

•

➤ By representing Con-

•

necticut school boards on the state or national level:

•

•

• •

• • • •

•

•

Attended meeting of the Technology Sub-Group of MORE Commission.

Attended meeting of the Connecticut Commission on Educational Technology.

Attended meeting of the CAPSS Technology Subcommittee.

Participated in Connecticut Society of Association Executives (CSAE) Idea Exchange.

Facilitated Certified Association Executive (CAE) study group.

Attended Commissioner’s Back to School Meeting.

Participated in NSBA Summer Leadership Seminar.

Represented CABE at meeting of the Anti Defamation League Board of Directors.

Participated in Connecticut Coalition for Public Education meeting.

Attended Orientation of the Connecticut Association of Latino

• • • • •

Administrators and Superintendents (CALAS).

Represented CABE at Pre-K Program Licensure Committee meeting.

Attended Shipman and Goodwin’s Education Legislation Seminar.

Represented CABE at High School Graduation Task Force meeting.

Attended State Board of Education meeting.

Participated in educator shortage area discussion.

Participated in Connecticut Jumpstart (financial literacy) board meeting.

Participated in personalized learning discussion.

➤ By providing opportunities for members to learn how to better govern their districts:

•

•

Trained the Clinton Board of Education on the use of CABEMeeting.

Provided policy information to 27 districts, one RESC, one out-of-state school board association, and one attorney through 51 answered requests for information or sample policies, on 50 topics. Further, districts continue to access CABE’s online Core Policy Reference Manual

and/or online manuals posted by CABE for policy samples. The topics of greatest interest included school resource officers, memorandum of understanding, sexual abuse/ assault, graduation requirements, restraint and seclusion, and student issues related to health.

➤ By providing services

•

➤ By helping school

boards to increase student achievement

to meet members needs:

•

•

•

•

Met with the Wallingford Board of education members to discuss policy issues.

Hosted and staffed Resolutions and Government Relations Committee meetings.

Continued work with CAPSS and LEAD CT on Governance Statement and Team Assessment document.

Entered into a contract with the Union School District for the Custom Update Service.

➤ By ensuring members

receive the most up-todate communications:

•

As part of the development of new policy manuals utilizing the Custom Policy Service, materials were prepared for Avon, Griswold, New London, Newtown, New Canaan, North Haven, Plymouth, Region

#14, Wallingford, Wethersfield and Windsor Locks Boards of Education.

Met with the Plymouth Policy committee and with the Superintendent of the New Canaan Public Schools.

•

Sent out two issues of Policy Highlights via email listserv covering topics that affect student achievement. This included board member requests for information, childhood health issues, concussions, transportation for special needs students, surrogate parent program, duties related to special education, PPT meetings, and policy deliberation questions.

➤ By promoting

public education:

•

•

Met with Dean Schwab and several professors from the NEAG School at UCONN to discuss diversity on boards of education.

Held a phone conversation with potential Convention sponsors.

Commissioner’s back-to-school meeting (continued from page 1) tween teachers and parents that are so crucial to our students’ success.

We believe that our teachers and leaders are working harder than ever to deliver on our promise to kids and families. As we review the results of our first round of new assessments, aligned to the more rigorous expectations our students deserve, it is important to remember that these results provide useful feedback.

In Connecticut, we believe that feedback is used for improvement. We learned that our students have learned many of the things they need to know and be able to do. And we learned that they haven’t learned some things, yet.

This is not only a baseline year, it is also the beginning of a new era. One of the great opportunities of this new era is to change the conversation around student results in our districts. This is our chance to resist old improvement habits, and instead, to use the state results to foster collaborative inquiry and collective efficacy.

The best use of the state results has always been to analyze the effectiveness

of curricular programs for our students.

These results can help us understand what our kids know and are able to do relative to grade level expectations. We can see how groups of kids performed to see if the curricular programs are equally meeting the needs of all kids.

Our annual state assessments have been compared to the practice of an annual physical exam. Some very important information is monitored on an annual basis. At my physical exam, for instance, four key biometrics are monitored annually: blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, and weight.

If my doctor has a concern with a couple of my indicators, the best way for me to improve my health profile is not by practicing my physical exam. The act of taking my blood pressure every other week isn’t going to improve my results at my next physical.

Similarly, the best way to improve our results over this baseline year is not to practice the Smarter Balanced exam. The only authentic way to improve our performance is to emphasize rich, robust instruction and to personalize this instruction to address individual student needs.

Though this is important information, it is imperative to remember that it is only one piece of the puzzle. When you strive to complete this puzzle, please fill in the gaps with new information, not with redundant practice tests.

And to be clear, test preparation is not instruction. Every class period spent preparing for the state test, is time stolen from quality instruction. We owe it to our students to provide as much quality learning time as possible so that they continue to grow and thrive.

In Connecticut, we believe that growth is as important as performance.

Of course we care very much about keeping our kids on track to arrive at where they need to be. However, we know that is only part of the story. What matters much more is how much growth each student attained toward this goal.

In Connecticut, we believe that growth models will support improvement at all levels. At the state level, we commit to using this information to improve our efforts to support your work with students and families.

In Connecticut, we believe in collaboration, too. We know we will find that

most innovation occurs closest to the kids.

We know that teams of able educators are stronger than individual superstars.

We believe that this is a chorus, not a solo. We know that we are stronger together.

In Connecticut, we believe in second chances and that mistakes present learning opportunities. This belief permeates our approaches with our students, both inside and outside of the classroom. As we support our students to reach high standards academically, we also recognize the importance of supporting social and emotional growth for all students.

In Connecticut, we believe in partnership. The work ahead of us is not easy, but it is terribly important. None of us can do this alone. The improvements we need to make for our kids can’t be done for us, and they can’t be done to us, they can only be done with us, together, in partnership.

We know that the work ahead is challenging. We know the stakes are high for our kids. They are depending on us to get them ready for their futures.

I believe that, together, we can do what’s needed for our kids.

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The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015

State Board Takes Action Sheila McKay Senior Staff Associate for Government Relations, CABE

The State Board of Education approved three positions in the last two months, as Commissioner Dianna R. Wentzell establishes herself in her new role. They are: Mary Anne Butler as Chief Academic Officer, Desi Nesmith as Chief Turnaround Officer and Ajit Gopalakrishnan as Chief Performance Officer.

Butler most recently was with the Windsor Public Schools as Assistant Superintendent for Instructional Service. Nesmith was the Principal of Metacomet Elementary School in Bloomfield and Gopalakrishnan has been Interim Chief and Bureau Chief in the Performance Office.

The Board was briefed on the draft of Connecticut’s new English Language Proficiency (CELP) standards,

Language

Mostly Vocabulary, Grammar

Content

Old Teaching & Learning Paradigm

Language

Discourse Text (complex text) Explanation Argumentation Purpose Typical structure of Text Sentence structures Vocabulary Practices

Content

New Teaching & Learning Paradigm

with adoption slated for this fall by the board. The standards were last issued in 2005.

As reported, English learners comprise 6.6% of Connecticut public schools. The number of EL students is rising while the total student population is decreasing. Citing the need to increase rigor to make all student’s college and career ready.

In materials prepared for the Board, one obvious but important sentence stands out- “English learners arrive in Connecticut’s schools with a vastly diverse range of academic and linguistic skills and bring with them unique experiences and cultural backgrounds.”

The ten CELP standards are on the State Department of Education website – www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/ curriculum/bilingual/celp_parents.pdf.

The State Department of Education’s ESL/Bilingual Consultant Megan Alubicki Flick and Maggie Stevens Lopez an Education Specialists at ACES, led a webinar for Superintendents and Board of Education members on the draft standards that is achieved on CABE’s website at www.cabe.org/ page.cfm?p=1119.

Analysis of the Smarter Balanced Assessment was reviewed by the board and results appear to follow the National Assessment Education Progress results.

Discussion on more efforts to enhance math skills has been recognized

by Commissioner and staff even though this is a baseline year for the test. The participation rate for 2015 is not final as results for the Connecticut Alternative Assessment (CTAA) have not been received by Connecticut. For the presentation to the board please go to www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/ pressroom2015_smarter_balanced_ briefing_document.pdf.

Now is the time to book your next board retreat or training session!

With school board elections coming for most school districts this year, it is important to remember to schedule your board workshops with CABE staff as soon as possible.

We encourage you to sign up your new board members for our New Board Member training session on December 9 (information to follow).

You may also be looking to schedule a workshop for the whole board.

Whether it is goal setting, roles and responsibilities, or a board retreat, this fall and winter promise to be a very busy season.

We encourage you to lock in your dates as soon as possible. To learn how CABE trainers can provide your board with professional development, or to schedule a meeting, contact Nick Caruso, Senior Staff Associate for Field Service and Coordinator of Technology (ncaruso@cabe.org)

People in the News CABE Welcomes Rebecca Adams CABE is delighted to welcome Rebecca Adams as the new Senior Staff Attorney at CABE. Rebecca has experience with state-wide associations, having served as Manager of Research and Information Services at the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, and has worked with municipal officials as Manager of Government Relations for the Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding.

She has also managed her own law

practice. Rebecca served for 11 years on the Middlefield Board of Finance, and served as Chair for 2 years. She is a graduate of the University of Vermont and the University of the Connecticut School of Law, and is admitted to practice in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont.

We welcome Rebecca as a member of the CABE team and look forward to introducing her to you at upcoming events.

Patrice A. McCarthy Deputy Director and General Counsel, CABE

Connecticut Consortium of Education Foundations Congratulations to Liz Stokes, President of the Connecticut Consortium of Education Foundations (CTCEF) on her upcoming retirement.

Liz has been a strong force for the foundation community for many years. Her impact, indirectly and directly, have helped our communities provide needed services, activities and programs to thousands of our students.

Thank you for all your hard work and good luck as you enter the next phase of your life.

New CABE offering for Central Office Staff CABE is now assisting districts by offering periodic professional development and best practices idea exchanges for Superintendents’ Executive Assistants, Administrative Assistants and Secretaries. We hope these programs provide these valuable staff members with collegial support and additional tools and resources that will help them be as effective as possible in their important roles.

The first session will be held on:

October 29, 2015 2:00 - 4:00 pm CABE Office, Wethersfield Legal Issues Impacting the Daily Work of the Superintendent’s Executive Assistants, Administrative Assistants and Secretaries Topics to be discussed include FOI, legal protocol – specifically records retention, magnet school enrollment verification, and homeschooling. Additional topics to be covered will be determined by the participants.

Presenter: Patrice A. McCarthy, Deputy Director and General Counsel, CABE Registration Fee: $25.00. To register go to https://em.eboardsolutions.com/ cabe/emembership/getevents.asp. If you have any questions, contact Lisa Steimer at 860-571-7446 or lsteimer@cabe.org

16 The Journal â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/October 2015