Summary of Proceedings
Education Merit Scholarship Committee
September 12, 2006
Meeting
Attendance
Committee
Members (present)
Senators:
Representatives: Steve
Harshman and Jeff Wasserburger
Other members: Andrew Hansen, State
Superintendent Jim McBride, Joe Megeath, Bryan Monteith and Marta Stroock
Absent:
Reed Eckhardt, Tom Kinnison
Legislative
Service Office
Dave Gruver, Dave Nelson, Matt Obrecht
Others
Present
Please refer to Appendix 1 to review the
Committee Sign-in Sheet for a list of other individuals who attended the
meeting.
Written
Meeting Materials and Handouts
All
meeting materials and handouts provided to the Committee by the Legislative
Service Office (LSO), public officials, lobbyists, and the public are
referenced in the Meeting Materials Index, attached to the minutes. These materials are on file at the LSO and are
part of the official record of the meeting.
Executive summary
The
Committee reviewed draft legislation modifying the Hathaway scholarship
program, including a success curriculum and other eligibility standards. The Committee voted to recommend legislation
for the implementation of a high school success curriculum for the Hathaway
program, for using the success curriculum as the "default curriculum"
for high schools and for slight modification to payments to institutions when
Hathaway scholarship recipients attend more than one institution. The Committee also reviewed and refined its
final report. The Committee will review
the final report and vote on approving it by mail ballot. No future meetings of the Committee are
anticipated. The full summary of
proceedings follows.
Call To Order
Cochairman
Boggs called the meeting to order. The
agenda which was followed is attached as appendix 2.
Hathaway program funding
LSO
staff explained Hathaway funding experience to date. Staff provided appendix 3 showing funding of
the Hathaway program and estimated revenues and expenditures to date. As of the fiscal year ending June 30, 2006,
approximately $198 million had been deposited to the Hathaway endowment account
from federal mineral royalties. The
latest Consensus Revenue Estimating Group (CREG) projection for the current
fiscal year is for an additional $127 million to be deposited. The same projections would have the endowment
account fully funded ($400 million) by June 30, 2008. Those numbers will be updated with the
October CREG forecast. Staff noted that
the projections are based upon natural gas and other mineral prices and that
natural gas prices have for the current fiscal year been lower than projected,
but that the price also fluctuates and is somewhat cyclical during the
year. Production amounts also factor
into the revenue projections. While
spending from the school foundation program account can also affect revenues to
the Hathaway endowment account, for the current fiscal year it is not
anticipated that spending should affect the $127 million projection, but it
could affect the remaining $75 million projection for the upcoming fiscal
year.
Regarding
expenditure amounts, staff noted that payments to the institutions for the
first year of the Hathaway program are estimated to be just a bit under $4
million. That amount would exclude
institutional scholarships, for this first year only. Based upon estimated "head counts"
Hathaway scholarship payments would be approximately $4.8 million for this
first year. That amount is between the
$4 and $5 million estimation made last summer when the Committee was establishing
the program eligibility criteria. Based
upon these estimates, if that enrollment held constant each year and there were
no attrition, a fully funded program would cost approximately $19 million once
all four years of students are included.
That would require approximately a 4.79% rate of return on the full $400
million endowment. However, some
attrition is expected. Staff also noted
that the expenditure data is based upon estimates and that accurate numbers would
be forthcoming from the institutions later this month.
Thirteen
million five hundred thousand dollars was appropriated to the expenditure
account last session. That amount, plus
any earnings on the endowment are available for current scholarship funding
needs of the program.
The Committee discussed
the effects of the Hathaway program on attendance at the University and community
colleges. Rick Miller,
Success curriculum
Superintendent McBride
provided the Committee with written material regarding the success curriculum
and his recommendations regarding that curriculum. (Appendix 5) He recommended:
1. All Hathaway scholarship students should be
required to take a rigorous success curriculum and perform to equally rigorous
standards.
2. The success curriculum should support the
international baccalaureate, advanced placement and dual enrollment programs.
3. All Hathaway scholarship recipients should be
required to perform at a proficient or advanced level on the Proficiency
Assessment for Wyoming Students (PAWS).
4. If students take courses to reflect needs
identified by the ACT or Workkeys examination, those courses should count toward
completing the success curriculum.
5. Students should be able to offer evidence of
completing the success curriculum by passing proficiency examinations that are
valid and reliable and support state standards.
6. "Career scholarship" recipients
should be able to transfer into an "opportunity scholarship" to
achieve a four year degree.
7. Native American language coursework should
receive credit for the foreign language requirement. Also districts and the department should be
provided the tools and flexibility to identify coursework which meets courses
specifically named by statute.
The Committee discussed
the issue of using the state assessment as an eligibility tool and the
percentage of students who would have met those assessment standards. Mr. McBride noted that he did not have those
percentages, but stated that the state assessment would take on additional
importance if Hathaway eligibility were tied to state assessments.
The Committee discussed
the issue of virtual schools and the implications for the Hathaway
program. The Committee also discussed
Mr. McBride’s additional recommendations, including how the courses would be
designated and whether sign language should meet the foreign language
requirement. Cochairman Boggs noted that
there currently is opportunity to use the career scholarship for a four year
degree; but because a student starts with a technical program they will not
have enough transferable hours to earn a four year degree within four
years. He believed those students would need
an additional two years to finish a four year degree. Mr. McBride allowed that it was not his intent
to increase the number of years of Hathaway eligibility.
Mary Kay Hill,
Department of Education provided information on proficiency on the state
assessment (PAWS). For the last group of
11th graders taking the assessment:
Math – 5961 took the
test and 3,469 were proficient or above;
Writing - 5,902 took the test and 3,460 were proficient
or above.
Overall 2,395 were
proficient in all three subjects.
The Committee discussed whether
Native American languages and sign language should qualify for the foreign
language requirements.
LSO staff summarized the
success curriculum bill draft 07 LSO 129.W2.
(Appendix 6) Representative Wasserburger
moved the bill should be recommended by the Committee, Cochairman Harshman
seconded. The Committee took the
following actions:
Cochairman Harshman
moved proposed amendment 1, which would eliminate the requirement to take all
four years of math in grades 9-12. (Appendix
7) The motion passed.
Cochairman Harshman
moved proposed amendment 2, which would eliminate the requirement that the
fourth year math course must be a statistics course or one for which Algebra I
or geometry is a prerequisite. (Appendix
8) The motion passed.
The Committee next
discussed proposed amendment 3. (Appendix
9) The amendment would require the Department
of Education to continue to report on the success curriculum modifications and
the adoption of state standards to augment the ACT and other eligibility requirements. Representative Wasserburger moved the
amendment, Cochairman Harshman seconded.
The motion passed.
Cochairman Boggs
explained proposed amendment 4. (Appendix
10) The amendment would provide for a
process for school districts to submit and the Department of Education to verify
course requirements. The amendment was
moved by Representative Wasserbuger,
seconded and passed.
Senator Scott moved to
insert on page 2, at the appropriate section of the statutes: "Starting
with the 2010-2011 graduating class, in order to be eligible for a Hathaway scholarship,
a student shall score proficient on the 11th grade level PAWS test, which may
be taken in any of the grades 9 through 12.
The Committee discussed the intent of the amendment, which was that the
student must be proficient in all areas and may test multiple times. The amendment passed. LSO staff explained that title and other
conforming amendments would be needed since the bill now goes beyond success
curricula.
Cochairman Harshman
moved to modify the foreign language requirement to require only one year of a
foreign language. The year could be
taken in grades 7 through 12. A
proficiency requirement could still satisfy the requirement. The amendment failed.
Representative Wasserburger
moved to amend the foreign language requirement on page 8-line 25 – by changing
grade "nine" to grade "seven," thus requiring only one of
the two years to be in grades 7-12. Cochairman
Harshman moved to amend the amendment by changing "7" to "6." The amendment to the amendment passed. The amendment then passed.
Senator Scott moved on
page 8-line 24 – after "language" to insert “which need not be taken
consecutively”. The motion passed.
Senator Scott moved to
amend the science requirement on page 8 - line 6, by adding geology I to the
list which can be taken for science.
Mrs. Stroock seconded. The intent
of the motion was to include geology in the stated first 6 courses which can
meet the initial or fourth year requirement.
LSO staff was directed to conform the earlier provisions as
necessary. The motion passed.
Mr. Monteith moved an addition
to amendment 4 passed earlier, by inserting in the amendment on page 11-line
18: "The rules shall include a
process to authorize and verify functional equivalents of courses specified in
this section." Cochairman Boggs
explained the intent of the motion was to allow the Department to adopt rules
allowing it to work with districts to authorize courses which cover the same
subject matter which the legislation identifies by specific course name but which
the district might identify with a different name. The motion passed.
The main motion on the
draft legislation passed unanimously.
Hathaway scholarship payments
Representative Wasserburger
moved, Senator Scott seconded recommending bill draft 07 LSO 131.W2. (Appendix 11)
LSO staff explained the bill would require students attending multiple
institutions to designate one as a home institution. Only the home institution would receive
payment for the Hathaway scholarships. The
bill reflects the Department's proposed final rules and how other scholarships
are handled. The motion passed.
Curriculum choice
The Committee considered 07 LSO 130.W3 (appendix
12), which would provide that the Hathaway success curriculum would be the
default curriculum requirement for all students unless the student and his
parent signed a waiver acknowledging the intent to waive the opportunity to
take the Hathaway curriculum and that failure to do so can result in not
receiving Hathaway or other scholarships.
Cochairman Boggs discussed the provision explicitly retaining the
immunity for school districts under the bill.
LSO staff explained that the language under page 2-lines 24 and page
3-lines 1 and 2 could be seen as unnecessary since the State had not waived
immunity under the Governmental Claims Act.
Senator Scott moved the amendment deleting the language. (Appendix 13). The amendment passed. The main motion passed unanimously after a
roll call vote.
Final Report
LSO staff reviewed the
draft final report. (Appendix 14). Staff noted that based upon Committee actions
at this meeting the report would need to be modified and staff would do so in
accordance with the final actions of the Committee.
The Committee discussed
the earlier amendment to the success curriculum, regarding proficiency on the state
assessment and its applicability to home school students and to those
qualifying under the GED provisions. LSO
staff stated that the amendment adopted required all proficiency standards to
be met to receive a Hathaway scholarship, without exceptions for those students.
The LSO was asked to research the pros and cons on that issue and provide that
information to the Education Committee. LSO
staff was also asked to research if the state assessments could be made
applicable to GED and home school students. Representative Wasserburger moved
to include that request and presentation of the issue to Education Committee.
Senator Scott moved an
addition to the phase-in provision (see appendix 15). The addition encourages students to take the
full success curriculum even though it is not required of students until the
graduating class of 2011. The motion
passed.
Cochairman Boggs noted
that staff could make technical changes required on page 8.
Senator Scott moved on page
6, footnote 4 to delete "been adopted" and to insert "yet been
voted on by the people". The motion
passed.
Staff suggested sending
the revised final report to the cochairmen, then to the Committee, with
opportunity for amendment within a week's time.
Any suggested additional amendments would be voted upon along with final
approval by postcard ballot. The approved
final report will be sent to the Education Committee and the Appropriations
Committee. Senator Scott, Mrs. Stroock
and Mr. Megeath asked for hard copies to be provided to them. Mr. Megeath asked to be apprised of the
Education Committee meeting. Cochairman
Boggs stated that the Committee would pay the per diem and mileage for members
wishing to attend the Education Committee meeting at which the final report was
discussed. Cochairman Boggs thanked the
Committee, the Department and the LSO staff
for their work.
The meeting adjourned at
1:40 pm.
Respectfully
submitted,
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