Report of Regents P-12 Education Committee to The Board of Regents

Your P-12 Education Committee held its scheduled meeting on May 19, 2014.  All members were present, except for Regent Young and Regent Norwood, who were excused.

Executive Session Motion
MOVED, that the Regents Ethics Committee convene in executive session on Monday, May 19, 2014 at 1:15 p.m. for the purpose of discussing a personnel matter.

Motion by: Regent Cea
Seconded by: Regent Bendit
Action: Motion carried unanimously by Committee Members: Chancellor Emeritus Bennett, Regent Bendit and Regent Cea.

ACTION ITEMS

Westminster Community Charter School [P-12 (A) 1]

Your Committee recommends that the Board of Regents finds that Westminster Community Charter School authorized by the Board of Education of the City School District of the City of Buffalo: (1) meets the requirements set out in Article 56 of the Education Law, and all other applicable laws, rules and regulations; (2) the applicant can demonstrate ability to operate the school in an educationally and fiscally sound manner; (3) granting the application is likely to improve student learning and achievement and materially further the purposes set out in subdivision two of section twenty-eight hundred fifty of this article; and (4) granting the application would have a significant educational benefit to the students expected to attend the charter school, and the Board of Regents therefore approves the renewal application of Westminster Community Charter School as proposed by the Board of Education of the City School District of Buffalo and that a renewal charter be issued, and that its provisional charter be extended for a two-year term up through and including June 30, 2016.

Renaissance Charter High School for Innovation [P-12 (A) 2]

Your Committee recommends that the Board of Regents finds that the proposed revised charter: (1) meets the requirements set out in Article 56 of the Education Law, and all other applicable laws, rules and regulations; (2) will permit the charter school to operate in an educationally and fiscally sound manner; (3) is likely to improve student learning and achievement and materially further the purposes set out in subdivision two of section twenty-eight hundred fifty of Article 56 of the Education Law; and (4) will have a significant educational benefit to the students expected to attend the charter school, and the Board of Regents therefore approves the above listed charter revision as proposed by Chancellor of the NYCDOE and the provisional charter for the Renaissance Charter High School for Innovation is amended accordingly.

Expansion of Integrated Credits in Approved CTE Programs [P-12 (A) 3]

Your Committee recommends that the Board act to allow additional integrated academic credits in approved CTE programs up to the number currently required for the academic subject area for graduation purposes and direct staff to draft regulations expanding the number of allowable integrated credits to 8 applied to respective core areas as determined at the local level. 

MOTION FOR ACTION BY FULL BOARD
Madam Chancellor and Colleagues: Your P-12 Education Committee recommends, and we move, that the Board of Regents act affirmatively upon each recommendation in the written report of the Committee's deliberations at its meeting on May 19, 2014, copies of which have been distributed to each Regent. 

MATTERS NOT REQUIRING BOARD ACTION

Multiple Pathways – the Committee heard a presentation and discussed the multiple pathways to graduation document provided.  Discussion focused on current requirements to achieve a NYS diploma, the CTE Technical Endorsement, the Career Development and Occupational Studies (CDOS) Commencement Credential, and the various alternatives available for a high school equivalency diploma.  The Committee also discussed college and career readiness and the work underway with the Regents Reform Agenda and the ESEA Flexibility Waiver to assure that students are provided with rigorous standards and assessments.  Committee members referenced distance learning, citizenship and P-Tech as factors to take into consideration as discussions on this topic continue. Staff will come back in June and present to the Committee an item detailing the pathway options discussed at today’s meeting.  Committee members also suggested that this conversation continue in more detail at the July Regents meeting.

Panel Discussion on the Benefits of Participation in Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSO) [P-12 (D) 1] – The Committee was presented with a discussion from a panel of students who are members of SkillsUSA, the largest student organization aligned with CTE-related subject areas.  The students talked about their participation in SkillsUSA and the impact that it has had on their education and career aspirations.  The students shared the challenges associated with this program compared to their traditional courses and the skills they have gained from participating in the program. 

The students and their advisors are listed below.  The students were also accompanied by Bruce Potter, SkillsUSA Director.

Robert Schimschack
Machining, Orleans/Niagara BOCES
Advisor - Scott Brauer

Chelsea Tutt
Welding, Ulster BOCES
Advisor – Kathy Lander

Paige Chaplin
Graphic Communications, Southern Adirondack BOCES
Advisor – Jeff Plummer

Ty Seeman
SkillsUSA State President, Monroe 2 BOCES
Advisor - Brandilyn Gage

Ramon Williams
Architectural Drafting, Williamsburg High School of Architecture and Design
Advisor – Evelyn Diaz

Angelina Martinez
Criminal Justice, Capital Region BOCES
Schoharie Center

Industry Representative
Joe Zahra, Intelitek of NY

Consideration and Expansion of CTE Technical Assessment Study [P-12 (D) 2] – The Committee discussed the preliminary findings and recommendations provided by the Technical Assessment Expert Advisory Panel to the Chancellor’s Blue Ribbon Commission around technical assessment comparability with Regents examinations.  Discussion focused on expanding the scope of work on the Panel to include additional technical assessments.  The Committee agreed that the Panel be reinstituted and continue its work to identify additional technical assessments that can be recommended to the Blue Ribbon Commissioner and the Board of Regents at a future meeting. 

Accountability Equivalence for CTE Endorsements in the Regents Blue Ribbon Panel on Assessments Content Areas [P-12 (D) 3] – Currently, students who demonstrate college and career readiness by passing rigorous CTE examinations in one of the 13 Blue Ribbon Panel-approved CTE content areas may not have passed the Regents exams in ELA or mathematics at a level that earns their school and district full credit for institutional accountability (Level 3).  In such cases, schools and districts are not receiving appropriate acknowledgement for the efforts made by students passing these rigorous CTE examinations.  The Committee recommends that Department staff prepare an amendment to New York’s ESEA Flexibility Waiver to revise the computation of New York’s High School Performance Index so that a student who passes their five required Regents exams (even if below Level 3) and a Panel-approved technical assessment, that student will receive a college and career ready designation and earn their school and district full credit.  The proposed amendment will be published for public comment prior to submission to USDOE.

Revisions to Part 154 of Commissioner’s Regulations [P-12 (D) 4] – the Committee discussed proposed amendments to Part 154 of Commissioner’s Regulations for English language learners.  Staff provided an in-depth overview of the proposed amendment that would be required to be implemented beginning with the 2015-16 school year.  Staff walked the Committee through a chart outlining the current and proposed new provisions of the regulation specifically relating to:

• Identification
• Parent Notification and Information
• Retention of Identification and Review of Records
• Placement
• Program Requirements and Provision of Programs
• Program Continuity
• Exit Criteria
• Support Services and Transitional Services
• Professional Development and Certification
• Graduation Requirements
• District Planning and Reporting Requirements

Following a 45 day public comment period, it is anticipated that the proposed amendment will be presented to the Regents for adoption at the September 2014 meeting.  Until then, school districts must continue to implement the existing provisions of Part 154, and if the Board should adopt the proposed regulatory amendments, school districts may begin implementing the new provisions in the 2014-15 school year. 

Consent Agenda Items

The Board of Regents will take action on the following consent agenda items at their March 11, 2014 meeting.

• Registration of Nonpublic High Schools
• City of Binghamton Consent to Exceed the Constitutional Debt Limit
• Regents Exams and Assessments in Science for Students in Grades 7 and 8 regulations
• Special Education Services for Preschool Children with Disabilities regulations
• Transition to Common Core-aligned Regents Examinations in Mathematics (Geometry)