This month I write to you on a more somber note, as we all bear witness to the devastating wildfires that continue to plague Southern California. At the height of the disaster, up to 1.3 million students and 62,000 education staff members were affected by the wildfires. Damage to school facilities has not yet been fully assessed. In order to keep students, parents, teachers, and administrators updated, I set up and regularly maintain a Southern California Wildfires 2007 Web page, that includes a list of the latest school closures, school status, and evacuation centers. There are also links to other state agencies that have information on the wildfires, assistance, and crisis management.
I have been touched by the way people are coming together and supporting one another during this crisis. There were even stories of teachers setting up makeshift tent classrooms at Qualcomm Park to make sure that the children whose lives were so disrupted by these blazes were both comforted and engaged in the process of learning.
On behalf of the California Department of Education, I want to express my deep sorrow for all the victims of the wildfires who have either lost loved ones, homes, or had their lives disrupted because of this disaster. I will continue to work with my staff to find solutions to help homeless students get back to school; get them, their families, and all our school staff access to food and shelter; and seek quick relief for schools in terms of funding, lost instructional days, and cutting the red tape to help them get back in operation. To all those affected by this crisis, please know that you are not alone.
I also want to remind everyone that I am hosting an Achievement Gap Summit at the Sacramento Convention Center on November 13-14. A year in the planning, the Summit is less than a month away, and I am excited about the prospects for this two-day event. I look forward to the in-depth discussions and presentations that are planned, and to hearing your input on solutions to the most critical issue we face in public education. The Summit will bring together thousands of California educators to hear from leading education experts, to share best practices, and to work together on ways to address and eliminate the racial and economic achievement gaps that threaten the competitiveness and quality of life of our state and nation in the global economy.
While the achievement gap has vexed educators nationwide for many years, this is the first time California has undertaken a comprehensive statewide effort to focus on why the gap exists and to develop sustainable, systemic solutions for what the state can do to assist schools and districts in closing it. The Summit is part of a year-long effort directed by my office in partnership with the P-16 Council, educators, researchers, and community leaders throughout the state.
If you have any questions regarding the Summit, or you would like to register for the Summit, please visit the Achievement Gap Summit Web page (Outside Source).
Reported Incidents of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA)
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell last week addressed recent concerns about the incidents of staph infections, especially methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), that are being reported in schools nationwide, including in the East Bay and in the greater Sacramento area. He has provided two documents from the California Department of Public Health in an effort to answer the many questions about contracting the infection. One is a question-answer document and the other is a brochure written for parents that local educational agencies may download and send home with students. A Spanish-language version of the brochure will soon be available from California Department of Education.
Please view the SSPI's Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) letter on CDE's Web site.
Fiscal Policy Division: 2007-08 State Budget Summary
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell is providing a summary letter of the 2007 Budget Act and related legislation. Prepared by staff of the California Department of Education Fiscal Policy Division, it contains information that will be useful to local educational agencies (LEAs) and schools. This letter, as well as other budget-related documents, is available on the Education Budget Web page.
Copies of budget documents themselves are available on the Department of Finance Web site (Outside Source).
Secondary, Postsecondary, and Adult Leadership Division: Career Technical Education Framework Now Available Online
The newly published document, Career Technical Education (CTE) Framework for California Public Schools: Grades Seven Through Twelve, is posted on the Standards and Frameworks Web page.
The CTE Framework provides schools with a blueprint on how to integrate rigorous standards into the classroom and develop the relationships to make career technical education successful for 21st century learning. It also is designed to assist students in preparing for high-skill, high-wage, or high-demand occupations in current or emerging professions and meet the continuing needs of business and industry in keeping California's economy growing. The Framework will be especially important in preparing students for careers in the industries most critical to California's economy in the near future: automotive, transportation, construction, biotechnology, energy, financial services, geospatial, healthcare, hospitality, information technology, manufacturing, retail, agriculture, arts, media, and entertainment.
Copies of this publication are available from the California Department of Education. For prices and ordering information, please visit the Educational Resources Catalog Web page.
If you have any questions regarding the Framework, please contact Paul Gussman, Administrator, Secondary, Postsecondary, and Adult Leadership Division, at 916-319-0669.
Curriculum Frameworks & Instructional Resources Division: Draft Physical Education Framework and Online Survey Available Online
The draft Physical Education Framework for California Public Schools, Kindergarten Through Grade Twelve and the online survey form have been posted for field review and public comment on the Physical Education Framework Field Review Survey Web page [http://staging.cde.ca.gov/ci/pe/cf/peframwrksurvey.asp] [Note, the preceding Web address is no longer valid.]
. The draft Framework and survey will be available online through December 31, 2007. At the end of the field review period, survey results will be collected and presented to the Curriculum Commission.
The new Framework incorporates and supports the state-adopted Physical Education Model Content Standards for California Public Schools. The Framework provides schools and districts guidance on the development and implementation of a standards-based physical education program. The Framework includes chapters on standards-based physical education, assessment, universal access, and instructional resources, as well as research citations and appendix documents.
If you have any questions regarding the field review, please contact Deborah Franklin, Education Programs Consultant, Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division, at dfrankli@cde.ca.gov or 916-319-0442.
Clearinghouse for Multilingual Documents: Online Resources Site Continues to be Popular
Interest and support of the Clearinghouse for Multilingual Documents (CMD) continues to grow. A Web-based resource for locating translations of parental notifications, the CMD now offers registered users a range of 729 documents, with additional translations being added continually. Registered users of the CMD have access to all documents and information contained in the database. Users now total 660 individuals, reflecting 435 agencies in 53 counties-a significant growth over a few months ago.
Any county office, district, or direct-funded charter school may register to use the CMD and its resources, free of charge. If you are uncertain if your agency has already registered, please refer to the list of registered educational agencies provided on the CMD Web page. While there, you may want to check out the Translation Resources, Standards, and Language Group Data provided to assist districts in meeting the translation requirements of California Education Code Section 48985. If your agency has not yet registered, please authorize someone on your staff to e-mail the CMD at cmd@cde.ca.gov and request your agency's registration access codes.
If you have any questions regarding the CMD, please contact the CMD Unit, at 916-445-6109 or by e-mail at cmd@cde.ca.gov.
State Special Schools and Services Division: Opportunities
The Diagnostic Center, Southern California provides a full range of high-quality development opportunities for local school district educators. The 2007-08 offerings feature 40 workshops in a variety of topic areas including autism, literacy, positive behavior supports, collaborative teaching, accessing the core curriculum, differentiated instruction, and Universal Design for Learning.
Workshops are hosted by Special Education Local Plan Areas (SELPAs) or local school districts and are open to all interested educators. For the 2007-08 brochure and training calendar and contact information for southern California please visit the Diagnostic Center, Southern California Web site (Outside Source). Likewise, the Diagnostic Centers in Fremont and Fresno offer workshops in their regions. Their brochures and calendars can be found on the Diagnostic Center, Northern California Web site (Outside Source) and the Diagnostic Center, Central California Web site (Outside Source).
If you have any questions regarding the workshops, please contact Deborah Holt, Director, Diagnostic Center, Southern California, at 323-222-8090 or by e-mail at dholt@dcs-cde.ca.gov.
Data Management Division: Third Issue of Education Data News Online
The third issue of Education Data News, the quarterly newsletter that addresses topics related to data management in the California public school system, is now available.
The following articles are just some of the interesting titles in this latest edition:
- "Fall Submission News" by Karl Scheff, Manager, Educational Demographics Office
- "September Tasks for a Smooth Fall Data Submission" by Nancy Sullivan, California School Information Services (CSIS)
- "CALPADS Development is Around the Corner" by Paula Mishima, CSIS and California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System
- "Potential Major Change: Proposal for States to Collect Office of Civil Rights Survey Data" by Sonya Edwards, Manager, Education Data Office
California State Teachers' Retirement System: Pension2 Offers New Way To Save
California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) members have a new way to meet their financial needs in retirement with the Pension2 personal wealth plan.
Pension2 complements the CalSTRS defined benefit pension by allowing members to set aside extra monies in low cost, flexible fund choices selected by CalSTRS investment professionals.
The fund choices include CalSTRS Easy Choice portfolios. These are target date portfolios developed to match each investor's risk tolerance and future plans, and are automatically adjusted to keep them on track with members' goals.
If you have any questions regarding CalSTRS Pension2, please visit the CalSTRS Voluntary Investment Program Web page (Outside Source). If you have any questions regarding Pension2, please contact CalSTRS, at 888-394-2060.
School Facilities Planning: Applications Due
Applications for the second round of Career Technical Education Facilities Proposition 1D funding are due to the California Department of Education on February 1, 2008. Statewide workshops are scheduled for later this month and in December. The application and date and locations of the workshops are available on the What's New Web page.
If you have any questions regarding the application process, please contact Kathleen Moore, Director, School Facilities Planning Division, at 916-445-2144 or by e-mail at kmoore@cde.ca.gov.
P-16 Council: Executive Director on Board
Roberto Salinas has agreed to serve as the Executive Director of the California Department of Education's (CDE's) P-16 efforts. He fills a new position paid for by a generous grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to WestEd from where he will be detailed to the CDE in order to help with this critical effort.
Dr. Salinas is the former Superintendent of the Dixon, Newman-Crows Landing, and Shoreline Unified School Districts. Throughout his career in education, he has served in a variety of capacities, including teacher's aide, teacher, high school counselor, both elementary and high school principal, assistant superintendent of both curriculum and instruction and business services/facilities and associate professor at San Diego State and California State University, Stanislaus.
Dr. Salinas has been highly involved with community groups where he has worked, has served on federal and state task forces and committees and has held leadership positions in educational associations. He is also the incoming president of the California Association for Latino Superintendents and Administrators. Dr. Salinas' passion is truly the education of students and the preparation of those who will accomplish this important task and his expertise and knowledge will be invaluable as we focus on identifying ways the state can better assist schools and districts to close our pernicious achievement gaps.
Nutrition Services Division: Sign up for "Breakfast Scores High in Closing the Achievement Gap" Workshops
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell's top priority for the next few years, as you know, is to close the achievement gap. Given the compelling link between school breakfast and student achievement and health, we encourage you to ensure that:
- All of your schools offer a breakfast program, especially those with a significant percentage or number of low-income students.
- A team from your district attends a regional workshop, "Breakfast Scores High in Closing the Achievement Gap", which we are hosting in collaboration with the California School Boards Association, the Association of California School Administrators and other interested organizations.
Please make it a priority to identify the schools in your district that need to operate or expand a breakfast program through innovative strategies (such as Second Chance breakfast or Breakfast in the Classroom) and encourage a team to attend from your district (e.g., school administrators, school board members, food service directors, Parent Teacher Association (PTA) representatives, and other key district personnel) as a means of promoting district teamwork and ensuring success. The Breakfast workshops will provide tools and resources to promote district wide support and overcome logistical and other barriers to participation in school breakfast programs. Teams will also learn how to apply for breakfast start-up funding-for which we are extending the grant application deadline so that workshop attendees will have time to submit applications for $15,000 per site.
The workshops are being offered in 11 locations statewide from November 5, 2007, to January 17, 2008. Registration is $15 and includes a working lunch. To determine the date and location of the workshop closest to you and to register, please download a registration form from the SHAPE Breakfast Workshops Web page.
If you have any questions regarding the workshops, or if you are interested in sharing your success in overcoming logistical barriers involving a school breakfast program at one or more of these workshops, please contact Heather Reed, Nutrition Education Consultant, Nutrition Services Division, at 916-323-3581 or 800-952-5609 or by e-mail at hreed@cde.ca.gov.
Nutrition Services Division: How Does Your District Receive United States Department of Agriculture Donated Commodity Food?
This is an excellent time for you to discuss with your Business Official and Food Service Director the options available to your district for ordering and having your U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) commodities delivered in order to determine the most cost effective way your schools can receive USDA foods.
The California Department of Education (CDE) Food Distribution Program (FDP) sent an Information Alert (NSD-FDP-03-2007) in September notifying schools of the opportunity to change the way their USDA commodity food is ordered and delivered. You may view the text of the Information Alert on the Information Alert: Changing Receipts Web page.
The CDE FDP is committed to providing excellent customer service while maintaining low delivery and storage fees in order to provide cost-effective operations that can assist you in stretching your valuable food service funds. The delivery fees we charge are low, and we have recently invested over $1 million in improving our warehouse and delivery operations. Please take advantage of this opportunity to assess your options. The deadline for notifying the FDP of any changes is December 1, 2007, for the 2008-09 school year.
There are several options that the FDP uses to distribute USDA donated commodities to schools:
- State Food Distribution Center: a school receives commodities directly from one of the two State Distribution Centers (SDC) and participates in the regular offering process.
- State Co-operative: a school orders commodities using a pre-planner and receives their commodities through one of the SDCs.
- Private Co-operative: a school orders and receives commodities through membership in a private Co-operative.
If you have any questions regarding USDA donated commodities, please contact Carol Guenther-Wilson, Commodity Consultant, Nutrition Services Division, at 916-324-9875 or by e-mail at cguenthe@cde.ca.gov. You can also contact Amy Bell, Commodity Consultant, Nutrition Services Division, at 916-322-5051 or by e-mail at abell@cde.ca.gov.
Government Affairs Branch: Final Summary of 2007 Education-Related Legislation, Including Bills Sponsored by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) and Additional Bills of Interest
(SSPI-sponsored) Eight Bills Chaptered
- Assembly Bill 347 (Nava) implements a proposed settlement agreement in the Valenzuela v. O'Connell lawsuit by placing conditions on the receipt of funding that requires school districts to provide an additional two years of intensive instruction and services to pupils who have not passed the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) by the end of twelfth grade.
- AB 485 (Solorio) prohibits a nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency whose certification has been revoked from being eligible to apply for re-certification for two years from the revocation date.
- AB 647 (Salas) changes the method of allocating Tobacco-Use and Prevention Education (TUPE) funds to a single competitive grant.
- AB 685 (Karnette) is the special education technical federal conformity bill.
- AB 1663 (Evans) is the special education policy bill to conform to federal law.
- Senate Bill 132 (Education Committee) is the annual technical omnibus bill.
- SB 733 (Torlakson) reauthorizes the Instructional Materials Funding Realignment Program for six years.
- SB 734 (Torlakson) reauthorizes the follow-up adoption review by the California Department of Education (CDE) and fee charged to publishers, as well as place in statute the review for social content compliance and fee charged to publishers.
- SB 827 (Padilla) creates an early literacy assessment for kindergarten and first grade. This bill was initially held but the content was placed in SB 80 and this bill was chaptered.
(SSPI-sponsored) One Bill Vetoed
- AB 252 (Coto) would have allowed school districts to order Standards-based Tests in Spanish from the current Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) system contractor and require districts to cover any costs associated with administration, scoring, and reporting for non-English Language students in dual-immersion programs.
Veto Message from Governor Schwarzenegger
English-speaking pupils who have voluntarily enrolled in dual-language immersion programs are currently required to take the California Standards Test in English. Therefore, another assessment is not needed to measure their mastery of state-adopted academic content standards in another language. Furthermore, I am concerned that this bill creates significant General Fund cost pressures for the state to develop standards-aligned primary language tests in other languages. Given the state's current fiscal climate, it is not prudent for me to enact this measure.
(SSPI-sponsored) Four 2-year Bills
- AB 415 (Karnette) increases caps on adult education for students that do not pass the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) and increases caps for adults that want to return to receive a high school diploma.
- AB 1230 (Laird) requires charter schools to provide pupil health screenings.
- AB 1656 (Feuer) formerly the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) bill, now includes language on County-District-School (CDS) codes.
- SB 960 (Alquist) adds science professional development to the teacher professional development program.
(SSPI-sponsored) Held Bills
- AB 1216 (Laird) would allow the state to assign a District Assistance and Intervention Team (DAIT) to a district that enters its third year of Program Improvement status. It would also sunset the High Priority Schools Grant Program in coordination with the Immediate Intervention and Under Performing Schools Program by 2010. It is needed to help state take another step towards aligning the federal and state accountability systems and prepare districts to address the necessary steps they will need to take to exit Program Improvement. This bill was held in Senate Appropriations.
- SB 830 (Kehoe) would align with SB 70 funding plan and further articulation of career technical education courses (California Partnership Academies) from high school to community college. This bill was held in Assembly Appropriations.
Other bills of interest
- AB 45 (Swanson) would have allowed for the gradual return of local control to the Oakland Unified School District. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 144 (Coto) would have authorized the Franklin-McKinley Elementary School District until January 1, 2010, to offer the mathematics portion of the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) to eighth grade pupils enrolled in specified mathematics classes. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 150 (Lieu) would have established the California Financial Literacy Initiative for the purpose of improving financial literacy by offering materials for teachers and schools to provide high-quality financial literacy education for kindergarten through grade twelve students. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 400 (Nunez) would have required the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) to add and incorporate into the Academic Performance Index (API), high school graduation rates, rates by which pupils complete a course of study at an achievement level that fulfills the requirements and prerequisites for admission to California public institutions of postsecondary education, and rates by which pupils complete a course of study that provides the skills and knowledge necessary to attain entry-level employment in business or industry when they graduate from high school. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 428 (Carter) requires each school district offering any of 9th through 12th grades, as part of the annual notification required by existing law, to provide parents and pupils with written notification relating to the admission requirements for California's public universities. This bill was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger on October 12, 2007.
- AB 438 (Price) would have revised exit criteria for the Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program (II/USP) and the High Priority Schools Grant Program (HPSGP) by requiring schools to meet or exceed API growth targets, including targets for numerically significant subgroups, averaged over three years for HPSGP and averaged over two years for II/USP. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 494 (Huffman) would have expressed the Legislature's intent that high achieving schools and school districts be given additional deference when applying for waivers. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 764 (Soto) would have reauthorized the regional California Technology Assistance Project (CTAP) and the Statewide Education Technology Services (SETS) programs until January 1, 2014. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 1061 (Mullin) modifies the data elements school districts are required to report on the School Accountability Report Card (SARC) for each school. This bill was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger on October 12, 2007.
- AB 1148 (Brownley) would have required the California Department of Education (CDE) to annually report publisher price quotations submitted for instructional materials to be adopted that year, summarize requirements imposed on publishers, and estimate the net per-pupil cost of purchasing a complete set of instructional materials adopted for that year. This bill was vetoed.
- AB 1379 (Brownley) would have required the SSPI to identify alternative criteria and measures, such as transcripts, alternative assessments of equal rigor, or portfolios, by which pupils who are regarded as proficient but unable to pass the CAHSEE may demonstrate sufficient proficiency to receive a diploma. This bill was vetoed.
- SB 20 (Torlakson) clarifies and strengthens the process by which the California State Board of Education (SBE) approves petitions for statewide benefit charter schools. The bill also appropriates $18 million in funding for purposes of the Charter School Facility Grant Program. Jack O'Connell authored the first bill (SB 740) that provided funding for the Charter School Facility Grant Program. This bill was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger on September 21, 2007.
- SB 123 (Romero) extends current exemption for special education students from the requirement to pass the CAHSEE to receive a diploma until 2008 and creates CAHSEE alternatives for special education students. This bill was vetoed.
- SB 219 (Steinberg) requires that all test scores and accountability data of a pupil enrolled in an alternative education program (AEP), including community schools, community day schools, continuation high schools and independent study, be included in the referring school's API if that school is the school of residence for the pupil, unless the pupil has been referred to the AEP by a juvenile court judge or other correctional or judicial official or unless the pupil is under a mandated expulsion order. It would also require the drop out rates for pupils who drop out of eighth or ninth grade in the calculation of a school's API score. If reliable data is not available by July 1, 2011, then the Superintendent shall report to the Legislature reasons for the delay, and the anticipated date of availability and inclusion in the API. Provisions of this bill would only become operative by the bill's 2010-11 date if schools receive a per pupil allocation to implement and administer the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS). This bill was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger on October 11, 2007.
- SB 345 (Aanestad) is an urgency measure that authorizes a charter school to pay teacher salaries on alternative schedules in the same manner as a school district and allows the chief executive of a charter school, or their designee, to issue work permits for charter school pupils. This bill also authorizes the Center for Advanced Research and Technology (CART) operating pursuant to a joint powers agreement between the Clovis Unified School District and the Fresno Unified School District to receive the charter school general-purpose funding for fiscal year (FY) 2007-08 for a total average daily attendance (ADA) not to exceed the center's ADA as determined at the second principal apportionment for FY 2006-07. This bill was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger on October 12, 2007.
- SB 405 (Steinberg) expands the program requirements to require participating school district high schools to require each high school within its jurisdiction to develop a list of coursework and experience necessary in order to assist pupils who have not satisfied or who are not on track to satisfy the curricular requirements for admission to the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU). Participating district middle schools would be required to develop a list of coursework and experience necessary to assist pupils in grade seven to begin to satisfy the curricular requirements for admission to the UC and the CSU and requires this list to be provided to the pupil and his or her parent. This bill was signed by Governor Schwarzenegger on October 14, 2007.
