Although the legislative session won’t start until February 4th, there is a significant amount of preliminary work being done by those involved in public policy. The Washoe County School District Board of Trustees adopted a final legislative platform at It’s meeting on Tuesday, January 22nd (watch for more on this next week), the governor’s proposed budget was presented to the Legislative Budget Subcommittee and the State Board of Education held its monthly meeting.
Details of what Governor Sandoval described in his State of the State speech was presented by the Nevada Department of Education staff to the Legislative Budget Subcommittee. He is proposing an additional $135 million directed toward K-12 education over the biennium. The increase is mainly related to ongoing employee salary and benefits but also directs some resources towards education initiatives. The governor is proposing $20 million for Full Day Kindergarten expansion; $14 million for ELL Program Enhancement; $2 million to expand Teach for America in Clark County School District; and $1.5 million Jobs for American’s Graduates. We look forward to working with the legislature as they consider and potentially modify this budget proposal.
The State Board of Education also met to consider several critical issues including the consideration of the Teachers and Leaders Council report which is making recommendations on administrator and teacher evaluations. They also discussed the State Improvement Plan and legislative advocacy plans of the newly-seated State Board.
As you can see, education policy and advocacy activities are ramping up and there will be much more to report in the coming weeks. Keep checking back for more information and pictures.
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