Below is the letter that was sent to Senator Alexander, Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. I thought it was interesting to see a few Delaware State Senators signed onto the letter.
PLEASE help me get this bill passed. I need the public to help. Please take the time to click on the link below to send a letter to all Delaware Senators about the misuse of your tax dollars. The Auditor of Accounts has released investigative reports showing that our tax dollars are being mismanaged by some charter school leaders. The state has no financial oversight over charter schools, they do with our public schools but not charters. This letter is already completed you just need to fill in a few lines. It will take 30 seconds. PLEASE GET YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS TO SEND AS WELL.
This is not about charters vs public schools. This is about stopping the stealing and mismanagement of the charter school funds, making sure the money stays at the school helping teachers and students and not in ending up in someone’s wallet.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE help me get this bill passed. I need the public to help. Please take the time to click on the link below to send a letter to all Delaware Senators about the misuse of your tax dollars. The Auditor of Accounts has released investigative reports showing that our tax dollars are being mismanaged by some charter school leaders. The state has no financial oversight over charter schools, they do with our public schools but not charters. This letter is already completed you just need to fill in a few lines. PLEASE SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY AS WELL.
Happy New Year. As you begin the new legislative session, I would like to share the number one thing that is weighing on parent’s minds this year; the ability for a parent’s right to choose to opt out of the state assessment, SBAC.
Delaware PTA is very aware that the way the law reads now they can opt out however, they do so with a fear of repercussions and penalties for their children and their children’s schools. They do so with no protection from threats. They do so with no guarantee of constructive instruction while other students test. Parents want to exercise choices when it comes to their children’s education. Our membership of over 8000 finds no value in SBAC. We appreciate the assessment inventory task force however, did you know there is no PTA representative on this task force. There is no representation solely of parents. How can this be permitted? So we, as parents, turn to you to make this right.
As an aside, Delaware PTA is not opposed to assessments. We understand they are necessary to measure the progress of our children. However, SBAC is not a valid growth measure, does not inform instruction, and the results are received by parents after their child begins a new school year and is promoted. These are just a few reasons we do not support the use of SBAC.
Parents want the choice of opting their children out of the the state assessment. This is something you all voted on and it was passed by a majority vote in The House last Spring. That was the democratic process at work. The Senate then voted to pass the bill. The veto by Governor Markell was disrespectful to the democratic process. The people spoke, but the Governor did not listen. When HB#50 passed there were hundreds of your constituents all thrilled that you listened to their voices.Thank you for that. Now it is time to listen to them again. Please make this right by voting to override the Governor’s veto of HB#50
With all due respect to Governor Markell, he ignored the voice of the parents, and quite frankly of the General Assembly. It is wrong on so many levels. I am confident you will make this right. We are asking all of you to vote in favor for first, suspending the rules and second , in favor of an override of the veto of HB#50.
Delaware PTA will be presenting a petition signed by hundreds of parents from up and down Delaware this Thursday Jan 14, 2016. We would like to invite each of to join us at a rally on the steps of Legislative Hall at 1 pm that same day. We invite you to listen to the voices of parents and to speak if you so choose on this issue.
I thought it was interesting to see that two Senate members voted no to Secretary Godowsky’s appointment; I wonder why? To view the Senate vote, click here.
Steven Godowsky Passed
Date: 10/28/2015 04:34 PM Passed
Vote Type:SM Yes: 19 No: 2 Not Voting: 0 Absent: 0
| Blevins | Y | Hocker | Y | Peterson | Y |
| Bonini | N | Lavelle | N | Pettyjohn | Y |
| Bushweller | Y | Lawson | Y | Poore | Y |
| Cloutier | Y | Lopez | Y | Richardson | Y |
| Ennis | Y | Marshall | Y | Simpson | Y |
| Hall-Long | Y | McBride | Y | Sokola | Y |
| Henry | Y | McDowell | Y | Townsend | Y |
Secretary Godowsky has a very impressive resume according to the News Works article. He has been a part of Delaware’s educational system for over 40 years.
The new secretary of education began his career more than 40 years ago as a special education teacher in Wilmington. He later became an administrator, serving as assistant principal at Delcastle Technical High School in Newport and principal of Hodgson Vo-Tech High School in Newark.
From 2003 to 2011 he was superintendent of the New Castle County Vocational Technical School District, and was named the state’s superintendent of the year in 2010.
As a legislator, this is so frustrating, seeing how the positions were funded using vacant positions. How many vacant positions did the Department of Education have to use to fund these positions: 8, 10, 15, 24, 30 – no one knows.
Last spring, the Delaware Department of Education asked for $7.5 million to, among other things, continue funding 10 Race to the Top positions. The Joint Finance Committee was quite clear on the subject when we told DOE, “No.” We gave them $3.75 million as direct pass-through money to go to programs in schools and very […]
Source: Delaware Department of Education playing a shell game – Delaware State News | Delaware State News
Appointments from the House and Senate were completed in August and September.
View the entire bill, click here – SJR #2.
The amount of testing required of our students and educators has grown significantly in recent years. While the General Assembly recognizes the need to administer assessments that provide valid and reliable data about how Delaware’s students are growing academically, it is also committed to maximizing time in the classroom for our educators to teach, and our students to learn.
The Department of Education is already coordinating an inventory of all assessments required at the state, district, and school level. This Joint Resolution requires the Department of Education to report the inventory results, and any assessments that districts or the state propose to eliminate, to the public and to the House and Senate Education Committees of the General Assembly. It also requires the Department to convene a group, consisting of members of the General Assembly and the public, to conduct an in-depth review of the inventory results and make recommendations for consolidation or elimination of assessments.
Membership Information
| Membership: | Appointing Authority: |
| Three House Members of the House Education Committee (two members of the majority party and one member of the minority party) | Speaker of the House |
| Three Senate Members of the Senate Education Committee (two members of the majority party and one member of the minority party) | President Pro Tempore |
| President of the Delaware State Education Assoc. or designee | |
| President of the Chief School Officer’s Assoc. or designee | |
| A rep. of the civil rights’ community | Governor |
| A parent | Governor |
Appointee Information
| Appointee: | Appointed by: | Appointment Date: |
| Rep. Earl Jaques | Speaker of House | 08/21/2015 |
| Rep. Sean Matthews | Speaker of House | 08/21/2015 |
| Rep. Timothy Dukes | Speaker of House | 08/21/2015 |
| Sen. David Sokola | President Pro Tempore | 09/15/2015 |
| Sen. Nicole Poore | President Pro Tempore | 09/15/2015 |
| Sen. Ernesto Lopez | President Pro Tempore | 09/15/2015 |
Appointments from the House and Senate were completed in August and September.
ESTABLISHING THE EDUCATION FUNDING IMPROVEMENT COMMISSION TO REVIEW AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO MODERNIZE AND IMPROVE DELAWARE’S SYSTEM FOR FUNDING PUBLIC EDUCATION.
View the entire bill, click here – SJR #4.
While Delaware is deeply committed to preparing every child to reach his or her full potential and succeed in the new economy, the State will not be able to build a world-class education system for its children without modernizing the 70-year-old education funding system. This Joint Resolution establishes the Education Funding Improvement Commission to conduct a comprehensive review of Delaware’s public education funding system and make recommendations to modernize and strengthen the system. The Commission will include stakeholders from across the education system and will submit a report and recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly no later than March 31, 2016.
Membership Information
| Membership: | Appointing Authority: |
| Chair | Governor |
| Two Senate Members (1 from each caucus) | President Pro Tempore |
| Two House Members (1 from each caucus) | Speaker of House |
| Controller General | |
| Secretary of Education | |
| Director of Office of Management and Budget | |
| President of Delaware State Board of Education | |
 |
|
| President of Delaware State Education Assoc. | |
| One parent | Delaware Parent Teaacher Assoc. |
| One superintendent | President of the Chief School Officers Assoc. |
| One superintendent Vocational Technical District | President of Chief School Officers Assoc. |
| One traditional public school administrator employed at a school with high population of at-risk students. | Delaware Assoc. of School Administrators |
| One charter school leader employed at school with a high population of at-risk students | Delaware Charter Schools Network |
| One local school board member | Delaware School Board Assoc. |
| Council Chair of Governor’s Advisory Council for Exceptional Citizens | |
| One business representative | Governor |
| One member of community organization serving student in poverty | Governor |
| One member of community organization serving students learning English. | |
|
Governor |
Appointee Information
| Appointee: | Appointed by: | Appointment Date: |
| Rep. Earl Jaques | Speaker of House | 08/12/2015 |
| Rep. Ruth Briggs | Speaker of House | 08/12/2015 |
| Sen. David Sokola | President Pro Tempore | 09/15/2015 |
| Sen. F. Gary Simpson | President Pro Tempore | 09/15/2015 |
Minutes, Reports & Information
DelawareFirstState 