"Draft Only - Approval Pending"

M I N U T E S

Joint Education Interim Committee

Clarion Plaza Canyon Room                                                                                   October 9 & 10, 2003

2009 S Douglas Highway                                                                                             Gillette, Wyoming

PRESENT:      Senator Henry H.R. "Hank" Coe and Representative Jeff Wasserburger, Cochairmen;

Senators Jim Anderson, Larry Caller, Robert Peck and Kathryn Sessions;

Representatives Kurt Bucholz, Liz Gentile, Becket Hinckley, Tom Lockhart, Del McOmie, Ann Robinson and Mark Semlek.

Legislative Service Office: Dave Nelson and Mary Byrnes.

ABSENT:        Representative Jane Wostenberg.

AGENDA:       See attached Appendix A.

*  *  *  *  *

Representative Jeff Wasserburger, Committee CoChair, called the meeting to order at 10:45 a.m.

Approval of Minutes.

Senator Peck made a motion to approve the minutes of the August 28-29 Committee meeting.  Representative Hinckley seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Special Education Update.

Tami Cox and Peg Brown Clark, state department special education staff, updated Committee members on departmental special education activities occurring since the last report to the Committee at the August 28-29 meeting.  The report is in response to 2003 legislative requirements for statewide guidelines prescribing special education staffing levels, state monitoring of district special education service delivery and the provision of regionalized special education services.  The department has developed draft guidelines and procedures for monitoring district special education staffing, identification and service delivery practices, appropriateness of service delivery and student performance tracking.  The guidelines and procedures will serve as a basis for departmental monitoring efforts, scheduled to commence in November.  Department rules and regulations accompanying the guidelines and procedures are also under development.  A copy of the draft guidebook together with draft rules and other related materials are attached at Appendix B.

Staff Briefing.

Committee staff presented a schedule of topics anticipated to be included on the agenda of the next Committee meeting, set for November 17 and 18 in Casper.  A copy of tentative November meeting topics is attached at Appendix C.  Thereafter, it is anticipated the Committee will be required to meet in December and once again in January to complete interim work.  CoChair Coe announced the Committee CoChairs nave requested additional Committee funding from Management Council to enable additional meetings.

Committee Action.

CoChair Wasserburger requested Committee action and disposition of school finance issues previously reported at the joint meeting of the Management Council and Education Committee, including reading assessment and intervention, at-risk adjustment, summer school program, classified personnel salaries and school finance judicial review issues.

Senator Sessions moved the reading assessment and intervention program be maintained as a categorical program funded outside the block grant model, with expenditures accordingly restricted.  Representative McOmie seconded the motion and the motion carried.

CoChair Coe directed Committee staff to prepare legislation and fiscal impact information on recommendations contained in the classified personnel salaries report submitted by MAP, the at-risk adjustment report submitted by Ruth Sommers on behalf of the Department of Education and the summer school program as recommended by the Design Team, referenced within the report submitted by Ruth Sommers on behalf of the department.  Representative McOmie requested staff report on the identification of amounts within the cost-based model prototypes for summer school programs.  Additionally, Representative Bucholz requested the summer school proposal address concerns expressed by the Attorney General regarding funding provided outside the cost-based model.

CoChair Coe further indicated the proposed constitutional amendment on judicial review would be placed on the November meeting agenda.

Senator Peck distributed materials to Committee members on the Reading Recovery Program for early intervention for first grade readers, a copy of which is attached at Appendix D.  Materials were also distributed by Senator Peck on the Fremont County BOCES Lights On program targeting kindergarten through grade eight students at-risk.  A copy of this material is attached at Appendix E.

Representative McOmie distributed material pertaining to the proposed constitutional amendment on judicial review, a copy of which is attached at Appendix F.

Future Committee Meetings.

The next meeting of the Committee is scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, November 17 and 18, 2003, in Casper.

Adjournment.

There being no further business before the Committee, CoChair Wasserburger adjourned the meeting at 11:45 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

____________________________    _________________________________

Senator Henry H.R. "Hank" Coe,           Representative Jeff Wasserburger,

Committee CoChair                               Committee CoChair