In addition, Rep. Addia Wuchner, R-Burlington, has filed a bill that would create a school voucher-like program allowing special needs students to redirect per-pupil public school funding to pay for private schools or private tutoring.
Sen. Mike Wilson
Efforts to bring vouchers and charter schools to the Bluegrass State have been going on for years, but with a new Republican governor that has championed charter schools and vouchers and a House that could be moving closer to Republican control, the chances seem greater compared to recent years that such legislation could pass.
Tuesday was the last day for House members to file bills this session, and Thursday is the last day for Senate members to do so.
The charter school bill filed Tuesday by Sen. Mike Wilson, R-Bowling Green, is similar to those he's filed in previous years.
The bill, SB 253, would essentially create a five-year pilot charter school program in Jefferson and Fayette counties, with a maximum of two charter schools allowed to open per year in each county. It would create a "Kentucky Public Charter School Commission," which would have members appointed by the governor and could approve charter applications and provide oversight.
The bill would have charter schools target low-income students for priority acceptance, with extra spots opened up to other students on a lottery basis.
Wilson on Wednesday said he doesn't know if his charter school bill will pass this year, but said that "any year that we have kids that are in a failing school with an achievement gap as much as 40 percent, it's really unconscionable. This is another tool that could be provided to help those kids."
The House charter school bill, HB 589, filed Tuesday by Rep. Brad Montell, R-Shelbyville, is similar to the Senate version.
Wuchner said her bill, HB 620, would not create a voucher program, but said the bill would create individual educational accounts so the families of students with disabilities could take some of the money that is designated for their education to use for participating private schools or programs.
"This is a way ... to allow parents to use those taxpayer dollars to meet the needs of a very specific group of students," Wuchner said. "It's a newer concept for Kentucky but it's time we start to explore how we can meet the needs of this particular group of students."
Other education bills that were filed right before the House deadline include:
» A bill that would prohibit the state from implementing Common Core and Next Generation Science standards. HB 553 would require the state board of education to recommend new content standards after public input and consultation with the Council on Postsecondary Education, and it would prohibit the state from withholding funds from school districts for adopting different academic content standards;
» A bill (HB 555) that would allow Kentucky residents who are attending high schools in other states that border Kentucky to still earn Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarship (KEES) money;
» A bill (HB 567) that would move the Education Professional Standards Board under the auspices of the Kentucky Department of Education. The EPSB, which is currently a separate organization, issues and renews teacher certificates, among other roles.
2 comments:
I support House Bill 567 which would eliminate the Education Professional Standards Board (EPSB) and transfer duties to other existing state offices. EPSB generates an endless stream of red tape and costly requirements for people that want to become teachers. Furthermore, EPSB has added as many burdensome regulations and requirements as possible to universities that provide teacher education. The most shocking example – students must pay over 100 dollars for a standardized exam at the beginning of their teacher education program, even though in past years the ACT exam was accepted (the ACT exam is FREE for Kentucky students). EPSB requires college students to work over 200 unpaid hours in school districts BEFORE they can work for a semester as a student teacher. That translates to five 40 hours unpaid weeks of work that college students must perform IN ADDITION to a full load of classes. Kentucky college students are already struggling with student loan debt, but EPSB does everything they possibly can to add to that debt by essentially preventing teacher education students from working while in college. New rules and requirements are continually and capriciously issued for university teacher education programs that are expensive and prevent the professors from actually teaching their students. Instead, university professors and staff must file endless reports that the staff at EPSB apparently have no time to actually read.
Use the 10 million dollars budgeted to EPSB for something else.
EPSB generates an endless stream of red tape and costly requirements for people that want to become teachers. Furthermore, EPSB has added as many burdensome regulations and requirements as possible to universities that provide teacher education. The most shocking example – students must pay over 100 dollars for a standardized exam at the beginning of their teacher education program, even though in past years the ACT exam was accepted (the ACT exam is FREE for Kentucky students). EPSB requires college students to work over 200 unpaid hours in school districts BEFORE they can work for a semester as a student teacher. That translates to five 40 hours unpaid weeks of work that college students must perform IN ADDITION to a full load of classes. Kentucky college students are already struggling with student loan debt, but EPSB does everything they possibly can to add to that debt by essentially preventing teacher education students from working while in college. New rules and requirements are continually and capriciously issued for university teacher education programs that are expensive and prevent the professors from actually teaching their students. Instead, university professors and staff must file endless reports that the staff at EPSB apparently have no time to actually read.
I support House Bill 567 to eliminate the Education Professional Standards Board (EPSB) and use that 10 million dollars for something actually needed in this state.
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