Nevada Legislature 2013: Closing Thoughts and Reflections

One hundred and twenty (and a half) days goes very quickly. The pace of the legislature is grueling. The platform the Washoe County School District Board of Trustees adopted prior to the 2013 set clear priorities, and progress was made in many of those key areas.

• Capital Projects Funding: Assembly Bill 46 was signed into law by the Governor. Although it was not approved in its original form (most bills are not), it gives WCSD the opportunity to present information about our capital projects situation to the Washoe County Commission. We know the Washoe County Commission will have to go through a public process and gather all the information in order to make an informed decision, and we look forward to being proactive throughout that process. We hope you will continue your advocacy around this issue.
• Operating Funds: WCSD can expect to see an increase in the per pupil funding, which will help to address the District’s structural deficit. While it does not fully restore funding, this was a welcome increase given the severity of the cuts endured by the District during the economic recession.
• Early Literacy: Additional funds for the expansion of state-funded full-day kindergarten, reduction of kindergarten class size, and precedent-setting appropriations dedicated for our youngest English language learners will be very important as our District continues to emphasize the importance of early literacy. 
• Human Capital: With bipartisan and broad-based support, the recommendations of the Teachers and Leaders Council were adopted to address the modifications to the evaluation system for teachers and administrators. This included additional funds to provide training for teachers and administrators on how the new evaluations will work. In fact, professional development was a common theme and additional resources were allocated for that reason.
• College and Career Readiness: Significant progress was made to align the PreK-20 education system, including emphasis on early childhood standards through eventual replacement of the high school proficiency exam by end-of-course and college readiness exams. Additional investment in the statewide longitudinal data system was also made to provide better data-based decision making tools.

It is certainly not a glamorous process and not all the outcomes are exactly as we would have liked, but on the whole, the legislature demonstrated its commitment to build a strong public school system as a fundamental right and an economic development priority. Thanks to the dedication of our staff, Washoe County School District was regarded as a gold standard within the state and a leader in many areas. Personally, I am proud to represent our district and proud of what we accomplished this session. And, in fact, I’m already looking forward to the 2015 session.

The Home Stretch

This week, we entered the final 30 days of the 2013 Legislative Session. This is the time when things really start to pick up, and we begin to see a lot of votes and action in the Legislature. Even though we are two-thirds through the session, there is still a ton of work left to do!


 Many proposals remain outstanding, including some big issues for education. Here's a quick look at just a few of the major pieces of legislation we are still watching:

 AB 288 - Eliminates the high school proficiency exam and replaces it with a new assessment system
(https://nelis.leg.state.nv.us/77th2013/App#/77th2013/Bill/Overview/AB288)

 AB 161 - Reading proficiency by grade 3 requirements (https://nelis.leg.state.nv.us/77th2013/App#/77th2013/Bill/Overview/AB161)

 AB 162 - Class size reduction bill (https://nelis.leg.state.nv.us/77th2013/App#/77th2013/Bill/Overview/AB162

 AB 163 - Early childhood education programs (https://nelis.leg.state.nv.us/77th2013/App#/77th2013/Bill/Overview/AB163)

 SB 182 - Full day kindergarten (https://nelis.leg.state.nv.us/77th2013/App#/77th2013/Bill/Overview/SB182)

 SB 407 - Implementation of the Teachers and Leaders Council of Nevada recommendations for evalutions; schedule for implementation of the statewide performance evaluation system (https://nelis.leg.state.nv.us/77th2013/App#/77th2013/Bill/Overview/SB407)

Rules and Procedures Matter

During the last two weeks, the legislative process proved that you have to know the rules to master the game.

 Legislators faced a deadline on Friday, April 12. Bills had to pass out of their first committee to continue through the process. If they didn't get the votes or a hearing, the bill died. WCSD continues to monitor many different bills (ranging from education policy issues to other topics that could impact the operations side of the school district) that survived the deadline. Check out the bills that weren't so lucky here.

 The April 12 deadline set us up for a week of numerous and long floor sessions in the Senate and Assembly. Bills were introduced, amended, and passed to the next committee for further discussion. Some bills even received a full vote by the Senate or Assembly. All this activity is leading up to yet another deadline tomorrow (Tuesday, April 23) when bills must get passed out of their first house to move forward.

Unless, the proposed legislation is exempt from this deadline, which usually means the bill has a fiscal impact. Exempt bills can stay alive throughout the process even if they miss the scheduled deadlines. The list of bills receiving an exemption is growing, and you can see that list here.

 As more deadlines draw near, we get a clearer picture of what the end of the session will look like and the impact it could have on WCSD.

AB 46 Lives On

The energy is high and momentum is positive on the district’s most important piece of legislation this session: AB 46.

It took an important step in the legislative process today and you can read more about the details here

Half Time Show

Day 60. This is a big day in the Nevada Legislature, for a couple reasons;

 First, it’s the halfway point of our statutorily limited 120 session, wich means, instead, instead of breaking for half time, things are speeding up exponentially as we approach the first important deadline on April 12. By April 12, all bills have to be passed out of their original committee assignment. Without a long civics lesson, if bills don’t have enough support to get passed in their first committee, they die and will no longer be viable in the 2013 legislative session.

Second, our legislators quit earning a paycheck. They still get reimbursed for their expenses, but they no longer earn a salary for being an elected official. Fortunately, I don’t think many, if any, of our state legislators run for office because of the salary they make while in office. That said, they do regularly remind us that they are working for free after day 60.

The days are long now, but important discussions about ELL, high school proficiency exams, evaluations, student health services, and early childhood programs consume the hours in the legislative building.

It’s time to get the team ready for the second half. Go WCSD!

Education bills are the minority majority

The number of bills proposed that could impact Washoe County School District grew exponentially Monday of this week as it was the last day for legislators to introduce their final language on how to change the law. While many of those bills could outline changes to the educational system, many are much more broad based, but would include our district. We follow many issues that may seem unrelated to education, but indirectly impact the district in other ways. Examples of these areas include child welfare, employment practices, contracts and purchasing, nutrition, social services, and transportation. So in the midst of trying to address all the educational needs we have around our own platform of early childhood, family engagement, college readiness, etc., we are actively participating in conversations on issues to reduce barriers and ensure that we don’t waste resources on unnecessary or onerous requirements operationally.

By the numbers 
Bills we are tracking: 150
Days left in session 74

Alphabet Soup – TLC, RPDP, STEM. Huh??

Alphabet Soup – TLC, RPDP, STEM. Huh??

Even for educators familiar with the lexicon, the acronyms in this world can be overwhelming. Everywhere I turn there is another acronym that needs explaining. This week at the legislature is no exception.

Yesterday, legislators received information from the Teachers and Leaders Council (TLC) that is creating the system for future teacher and administrator evaluations.

And, they heard an overview of the Regional Professional Development Program (RPDP) that deliver professional development to many of our teachers.

Tomorrow, the Senate Education committee will hear from a statewide panel of experts on the value of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs being implemented across the state, including here in Washoe County.

I anticipate there will be hearings about CCSS, SDLS, and the SPF in the near future. Stay tuned to find out about those exciting acronyms.

I’m sure there is a dictionary somewhere that has all the acronyms defined, and if you have it, please send it my way. Until then, I’ll be decoding them through the legislative process.