House Committee on Education (03/07/2012)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Date:	03/07/2012	ATTENDANCE

Time:	10:38 AM to 11:46 AM	Hamner	X
		Holbert	X
Place:	HCR 0112	Joshi	X
		Kerr A.	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Murray	X
	Representative Massey	Peniston	X
		Ramirez	X
This Report was prepared by		Schafer S.	X
	Kristen Johnson	Solano	X
		Summers	X
		Todd	X
		Beezley	*
		Massey	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
HB12-1306 HB12-1261		Amended, Referred to Appropriations Amended, Referred to Appropriations

10:39 AM -- House Bill 12-1306

Representative Massey, Chair, made opening remarks and stated that House Bill 12-1306, which was laid over from March 5, 2012, would be on the table for action only. He stated that the amendment phase of the hearing was kept open at the bill's hearing on March 5 to provide committee members with more time to review Amendment L.001 (Attachment A).

House Bill 12-1306 concerns the manner of determining pupil enrollment counts in public schools. The committee adopted Amendment L.002 (Attachment B) to the bill on March 5, 2012. For witness testimony and access to the vote sheet for Amendment L.002, please refer to the House Education Committee summary from March 5, 2012.

Representative Holbert came to the table to explain Amendment L.001 (Attachment A).


BILL:	HB12-1306
TIME:	10:39:44 AM
MOVED:	Holbert
MOTION:	Adopt prepared Amendment L.001 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Beezley
		VOTE
	Hamner
	Holbert
	Joshi
	Kerr A.
	Murray
	Peniston
	Ramirez
	Schafer S.
	Solano
	Summers
	Todd
	Beezley	Excused
	Massey

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

10:40 AM

Representative Holbert provided closing comments to the bill.


BILL:	HB12-1306
TIME:	10:43:47 AM
MOVED:	Holbert
MOTION:	Refer House Bill 12-1306, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a roll call vote of 12-1.
SECONDED:	Ramirez
		VOTE
	Hamner	Yes
	Holbert	Yes
	Joshi	Yes
	Kerr A.	No
	Murray	Yes
	Peniston	Yes
	Ramirez	Yes
	Schafer S.	Yes
	Solano	Yes
	Summers	Yes
	Todd	Yes
	Beezley	Yes
	Massey	Yes

Final YES: 12 NO: 1 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

10:47 AM -- House Bill 12-1261

Representative Solano, sponsor of House Bill 12-1261, presented the bill and distributed handouts to the committee (Attachments C through E). As introduced, the bill extends an existing program that requires that the Colorado Department of Education (CDE), subject to available appropriations, award a stipend of $1,600 to employed public school teachers holding certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). The CDE awards an additional bonus stipend of $3,200 to certified teachers employed in low-performing, high-needs schools. A low-performing, high-needs school is defined as any school that is accredited with a priority improvement plan or a turnaround plan. A teacher awarded the bonus stipend will continue to receive it as long as he or she remains employed at the school, even if the school achieves a higher accreditation level in subsequent years. The stipend is considered part of the employee's regular salary and prorated for teachers employed less than full-time. Under current law, the program will expire July 1, 2012. This bill makes principals certified by NBPTS eligible for the awards.

House Bill 08-1384 established the NBPTS certification award program from FY 2008-09 until FY 2010-11, and appropriated $1.5 million for the awards in that first year; however, in the following legislative session, Senate Bill 09-214 eliminated the FY 2008-09 appropriation, and made future awards subject to available appropriations. Although the program received some federal money in FY 2009-10, no state appropriations have been made to award the NBPTS teacher bonuses.

10:48 AM

For the purposes of discussion, Representative Solano moved strike-below Amendment L.001 (Attachment F) to the bill. She walked the committee through each section of the amendment. Representative Solano responded to questions from the committee concerning the program's funding.

The following persons testified:

10:58 AM -- Nancy Shakowski, former staff member of NBPTS, expressed support for the bill. Ms. Shakowski clarified that she is not testifying on behalf of NBPTS, but that she was asked by the bill sponsor to provide historical information on the program based on her experience as a former staff member of NBPTS. She discussed the funding for the program, referring the committee to the handout that provides the federal and state funding history (Attachment C). She stated that, this year the program has the highest number of candidates for certification ever going through the process. She stated that the process, which is very rigorous and has very high standards, can last up to three years, and that the certification rate in the first year is only about 45 to 50 percent. She stated that there is currently no funding for this program, and teachers who wish to undergo the certification process are responsible for paying the full $1,250 in order to receive the federal matching funds. She discussed the incentives available to teachers who become certified, stating that over 20 states pay stipends to teachers for being certified. She said that Colorado has lost some of its certified teachers to Wyoming, which pays a $4,000 stipend to NBPTS certified teachers. She said that the stipend amount varies between states. She stated that there are over 97,000 NBPTS certified teachers nationwide, and 641 NBPTS certified teachers in Colorado. She said that in 2008-09, about 312 teachers received the stipend from the state, and that in 2010, there were about 380 teachers who received the stipend. She added that last year, Colorado had a 17 percent increase in NBPTS certified teachers. She discussed research that shows the program as improving student achievement and learning. She added that teachers who are NBPTS certified stay in the teaching field and profession longer; on average, teachers leave the field after five years of service.

Ms. Shakowski responded to questions from the committee.

11:17 AM -- Kim Ursetta, a National Board Certified Teacher, expressed support for the bill. Ms. Ursetta provided background on the school that she teaches at as a bilingual kindergarten teacher, Denver Public School's (DPS) Math and Science Leadership Academy. She discussed the process for National Board certification, describing it as a very rigorous process. She stated that the certification process takes a holistic view of what teachers do, and what teachers should be able to do, to meet the needs of students. She said that the process also looks at how teachers contribute to the school community and what leadership roles teachers are taking upon themselves. She discussed the efforts of the NBPTS, where she serves as a board member, over the last few years.

Ms. Ursetta responded to questions from the committee. She discussed the research backing the program outcomes.

11:31 AM -- Kayla McGannon, Advocacy Director, Stand for Children Colorado, expressed support for the bill. Ms. McGannon provided a brief background of her organization. She stated that access to and awareness of the program needs to be improved in order to engage more teachers in the process of becoming certified. She discussed the benefits of having Colorado teachers be NBPTS certified. She stated that all students deserve great teachers in their classroom. She added that teachers already dig into their own pockets and that Colorado needs to do all it can to continue providing professional development to teachers.

Ms. McGannon responded to questions from the committee.


BILL:	HB12-1261
TIME:	11:37:10 AM
MOVED:	Solano
MOTION:	Adopt prepared Amendment L.001 (Attachment F). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Massey
		VOTE
	Hamner
	Holbert
	Joshi
	Kerr A.
	Murray
	Peniston
	Ramirez
	Schafer S.
	Solano
	Summers
	Todd
	Beezley
	Massey

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

11:39 AM

Representative Solano provided closing remarks to the bill.

Representative Holbert asked for research data that correlates the national certification with student achievement.

Representatives Hamner, Todd, and Murray described why they support the bill.


BILL:	HB12-1261
TIME:	11:43:56 AM
MOVED:	Solano
MOTION:	Refer House Bill 12-1261, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a roll call vote of 13-0.
SECONDED:	Todd
		VOTE
	Hamner	Yes
	Holbert	Yes
	Joshi	Yes
	Kerr A.	Yes
	Murray	Yes
	Peniston	Yes
	Ramirez	Yes
	Schafer S.	Yes
	Solano	Yes
	Summers	Yes
	Todd	Yes
	Beezley	Yes
	Massey	Yes

Final YES: 13 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

11:46 AM

The committee adjourned.