From the Kentucky PTA:
Safeguard PIRC Funding!
On February 19, 2011, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a Continuing Resolution (CR), to take effect March 4, 2011 and fund government operations through the end of the fiscal year. The CR includes not only unprecedented cuts to education funding – a more than $10 billion overall decrease – but also the proposed elimination of PIRCs, the ONLY federal funding stream dedicated to engaging parents and families in the education of their children.
There is at least one PIRC in every state and territory. This proposed program elimination affects all PTAs and all parents. Without inclusion of PIRC funding in the FY2011 CR, the sole funding stream for family engagement would disappear, halting all PIRC program operations. We must tell Congress that continued program funding is not a luxury, but a necessity: when parents are engaged in education, our nation’s students reap the benefits.
De-funding of PIRCs negatively impacts PTAs, schools and parents.
Why PIRCs matter:
- They provide schools and districts with tools to effectively partner with parents.
- They empower parents to advocate for their children and school reform.
- They provide training and professional development on effective family engagement to districts and school staff.
- They collaborate with state PTAs to engage all public school parents in their children's education.
- They train family engagement coordinators in schools.
- They convene parent leadership academies to equip parents with skills needed to help their children to succeed.
Annually, PIRCs served more than 16.4 million parents by connecting them to their schools to improve the education of their children. Parents need PIRCs. You can help! Please urge the White House, both of your Senators, and your Representative to include PIRC funding in the FY2011 Continuing Resolution.
----------------------------------------
Commonwealth of KY Legislative News:
Anti-bullying bill approved by House committee
School bullies in Kentucky could soon have a new list of reasons why they should leave their fellow students alone.
House Bill 370, sponsored by Rep. Mary Lou Marzian, D-Louisville, would specifically protect school children from being bullied based on their race, national origin, religion or other personal characteristics. Gay and lesbian students would also be better protected under the bill, supporters say.
The bill passed the House Education Committee this afternoon and now goes to the full House for a vote.
Proponents of HB 370 say the measure will strengthen the state’s current anti-bullying law, which requires schools to have policies in place to deal with bullies, but does not list specifically protected characteristics.
“This gives folks in authority specific direction,” Marzian said.
Some lawmakers on the committee said it is up to school personnel to enforce statutes that protect students at their schools. Oldham County Assistant Superintendent Dan Orman said HB 370 would be “an exclamation point” for adults at a school who are charged with protecting students.
The National Center for Education Statistics reports that nearly one in three students between the ages of 12 and 18 reported being bullied at schools nationwide in 2007.
Senate signs off on Bible literacy bill
The Bible’s role as a work of literature and in shaping historical events should be a course option for high school students, the Senate said in a 34-1 vote today.
Senate Bill 56, sponsored by Sen. Joe Bowen, R-Owensboro, would direct the state Department of Education to develop a course curriculum around the Bible, which local school councils could then approve for teaching in their schools. The course could focus on the Old Testament, the New Testament, or a combination of the two.
“This bill ensures it will be about education, not indoctrination,” Bowen said. Under the bill, students could use any translation of the Bible they choose. The course, Bowen said, would be designed not to preach to students or win them over to a single interpretation, but to help them understand the Bible’s role in the arts and history.
The course, an elective option, would be classified under the social studies department. “The influence the Bible has had on our society and all of Western Civilization is not something we can evade,” Bowen said.
The legislation now moves to the House for its consideration
House approves raising dropout age to 18
Kentucky children would be required to attend school through age 18 instead of the current dropout age of 16 under a bill that cleared the House this afternoon.
House Bill 225, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Greer, D-Brandenburg, would increase the dropout age in two phases. The dropout age would be raised to 17 in July 2015 and to age 18 in July 2016. The bill also tightens the state’s alternative education programs and more firmly states the General Assembly’s intent relative to career and technical education.
“This measure will have an impact on our economy, on our society, but most importantly, for our children,” Greer told House members.
The legislation now moves to the Senate for its consideration.
Teacher evaluation bill clears House
The state House of Representatives hopes to make public school teacher evaluations more uniform and more effective under a bill that would create a single evaluation system by the 2013-2014 school year.
House Bill 120, sponsored by House Education Committee Chair Carl Rollins, D-Midway, would eliminate the current system, which is actually 174 separate evaluation systems in each of the state’s 174 school districts, Rollins said. Evaluation under HB 120 would be statewide, not district-wide, and would use several evaluation techniques—from peer and parent/student surveys to some measure of student progress—to evaluate a teacher’s performance instead of evaluation by principal or school committee observation alone.
“This evaluation system isn’t to be used punitively. It is to be used to make all of our teachers better,” Rollins said.
HB 120 passed the House by a vote of 92-2 and now goes to the Senate for consideration.
Bill to allow ads on school buses passes House
Commercial advertising would be allowed on the outside of school buses in Kentucky with local school board approval under a bill that cleared the House 61-35 today.
House Bill 67, sponsored by Rep. Terry Mills, D-Lebanon, would let school boards decide whether to allow the advertising, Mills said. Political or campaign ads and ads for alcohol or tobacco products would be prohibited.
Mills said HB 67 will help bring money to school districts in dire need of funding.
The legislation now moves to the Senate for its consideration.
Senate approves early graduation bill
High school students across the state would have a consistent program to graduate early and start college early under legislation approved by the Senate today.
Senate Bill 69, sponsored by Sen. Ken Winters, R-Murray, would require 18 credits in core academic areas for graduation under the program, including two college-level courses through the Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate programs.
“The basis of this bill is the effort to eliminate the ‘lost senior year’” in which students coast through the final year of school without being challenged, Winters said.
The legislation now moves to the House for its consideration
Senate OKs mandatory Pledge time in schools
Hours after the Senate Education Committee approved a plan to mandate time for the Pledge of Allegiance in all public schools, the full Senate did the same.
Senate Bill 15, sponsored by Sen. Vernie McGaha, R-Russell Springs, was passed as part of the Consent Orders with a single vote in opposition. While mandating all schools set aside time for the Pledge, individual students could refrain from participating.
The bill, known as the Kentucky School Patriot Act, now moves to the House for its consideration.
