AL

Feedback from higher education to high schools is used as an element of the state’s accountability system for secondary education. 

Major priority given to review of existing academic programs resulting in a reduction over the past five years from 3,200 to 1,781 active programs, and the reallocation of resources to strengthen other programs.

Governor Seigelman in 1999 gained approval of initiatives to lower K–3 class size, strengthen professional development, and a reading initiative (see next column).

In March 1999, tenth graders will become the first students to take new high school exit exam. New exam is aligned with standards and accountability legislation enacted in 1995. Students have several opportunities in 11th and 12th grades to pass exam.

State accountability system rates schools based on Stanford Achievement Test-9th edition. Schools earning lowest rating must show improvement or ultimately face intervention. 1999 saw first state intervention in one school.

Fall 1998 agreement to implement a basic-skills test for new teachers no later than 2002, and eventually to add subject-matter testing.

Fall 1998, schools of education will be classified on basis of their students’ classroom performance and performance on teacher tests. Schools could lose the authority to certify teachers in certain subject areas if their records in those areas are consistently poor. Subject to implementation of new testing.

Reading and teacher-training initiative, begun in late 1997 with private support, engages teacher training institutions with schools focused on reading. Initially limited to 80 schools, will be expanded to 200 schools in 2000-01 with state funding. Intent is to focus on math, science and technology in the future.

From ACHE “Evaluation of the Alabama Reading Initiative: 1998-99.” The initiative started in 1998.

AK

The Legislature passed a law in 1997 that directed the Department of Education to develop the Alaska High School Qualifying Examination.

In 1998, another law was passed that made the qualifying exam part of a greater system of accountability standards and assessment.

The Quality Schools Initiative requires schools to create development profiles for each child entering kindergarten or first grade; requires schools to adopt state-mandated academic standards in reading, writing, and math; requires third, sixth, and eighth grade assessments in reading, writing and math; requires schools to report to public; requires low-performing schools to develop school improvement plans. Starting in 2002, schools will be grouped into four categories of performance based on multiple student measures, and low-performing schools will be subject to intervention.

The new law requires each high school student, beginning with the Class of 2002, to pass the Alaska High School Graduation Qualifying Exam. A new high school exit exam was piloted in 1999 and 2000. Sophomores are the first to be required to pass the exam to graduate in 2002. State is administering “benchmark” exams in grades three, six and eight, in 2000.

1997 law requires new teachers to take the PRAXIS I exam.

1997 law requires institutions to meet NCATE standards.

See WICHE Policy Insights for tuition and student aid information.

University of Alaska Board of Regents voted in December 1999 to award up to $1,350 per semester, or $10,800 over four years, to recent high school graduates who are academically talented and who enroll at the university to earn a degree. Program would focus on students who rank in the top ten percent of their graduating class.

AZ

Governor’s proposed tax increase for education including funding both for K-12 and for higher education.

Governor’s Task Force on Higher Education will make recommendations in fall 2000. Likely recommendation will call for reduced tuition at the community colleges as an incentive for students to attend these institutions and thereby take pressure off the universities.

State adopted new academic standards in 1996. New state exam (Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards– AIMS) measures proficiency against 1996 standards. Class of 2002 will be first required to pass AIMS exam to receive a diploma. Original target implementation of 2001 postponed by one year.

December 1998 rules require that new teachers pass two written exams on pedagogy and subjects that teachers intend to teach, in order to enter the classroom. Also, they must pass performance assessment on teaching skills to remain there. New standards have been adopted for teacher preparation.

Teacher preparation has been opened to entities other than university-based schools of education (e.g., school districts, businesses, and charter schools)

See possible recommendations of the Governor’s Task Force on Education regarding community college tuition.

Board of Regents in June 2000 adopted proposal for Virtual University.

AR

1999 law established the Arkansas Comprehensive Testing, Assessment and Accountability Program, which incorporates academic standards, professional development for teachers, and state tests for students in grades four, six and eight. Plan to be phased in over four years. Any school that fails to achieve expected levels of student performance will be placed on list of failing schools and will be required to work on an improvement plan. Failure to show improvement could lead to a school’s takeover by the state. Beginning in 2003-04 school year, schools will be assessed based on students’ test scores, attendance, graduation rates, school safety and teacher qualifications.

In February 2000, Arkansas legislators sought to limit access to the Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship program because of projected cost increases.

The Governor’s Distinguished Scholars program, created in 1997, pays the full cost of attendance, including tuition, room and board and mandatory costs, at public or private school of choice. To qualify, students must achieve a 32 on the ACT, or 1410 on the SAT, or be named a National Merit Finalist.

More than 9,000 students successfully applied for the scholarships in the 1999-2000 academic year, nearly twice as many as the year before. The flood of new applications was attributed to a successful television advertising campaign for the scholarships, and to the state’s decision to double the income limit to $70,000 for a family of three, for example. The higher education department found itself without nearly enough funds to fulfill its commitments. To do away with $3.8 million of the program’s $8-million shortfall, the state Higher Education Coordinating Board voted in May 2000 to renege on its promise of bonuses for good grades.

State law requires the Arkansas Coordinating Board of Higher Education to evaluate its role and scope every five years. It should have done so in 1994, but it voted then not to tackle the task with the threat of a lawsuit hanging over it. In 1999, the evaluation was largely internal involving the college presidents, chancellors, faculty and staff.

CA

Governor Davis’ 1999 education reform initiative creates a school-performance index, provides additional funding for literacy training, and requires a graduation exit exam in 2004. New provision would reward teachers in low-performing schools whose students show significant improvement on the state’s new performance index, which is being phased in during the 2000-01 school year.

Under a landmark agreement reached between Governor Davis and the California Legislature, state spending on need-based student aid was set to grow by $97 million—enough to support a 41 percent increase in the number of grants awarded in the 2000-01 academic year. In addition, the agreement provides for nearly doubling spending on the state’s need-based aid program, to $1.2 billion, by 2006. Under the agreement, the awards would be guaranteed to every student who qualified, rather than depending on how much money was available in the budget.

Senate Bill 1644 revamps the State’s current statewide financial aid program, Cal Grant, creating an entitlement program guaranteeing a grant or scholarship award to future California high school graduates who demonstrate financial need and earn at least a C grade point average in their high school course work. Beginning in 2001, high school graduates with financial need and at least a B average would be eligible for a full-tuition grant at a state institution, or up to $9,700 at a private college in the state. Needy students who have at least a C average would be eligible for up to $1,550 to cover living expenses. In addition, the legislation provides grants for older students who are returning to college or enrolling for the first time.

Senate Bill 1688 provides financial awards of up to $5,500 for college costs to those high school students who are the highest scorers on the state’s standardized STAR examinations and on advanced placement examinations in mathematics and science. Program would provide $1,000 scholarships to students with high scores on a statewide standardized test (STAR), and $2,500 grants to students with high scores on Advanced Placement tests in math and science.

CO

Colorado public institutions, by fall 2001, are to test the basic skills of their incoming freshmen and determine which students need extra help. The results will be grouped by school districts and used to help them adjust their high school curricula, if necessary, to cut down on students’ remedial needs.

1999 reform legislation created pilot project to test the abilities of college sophomores at the state’s public institutions. In the spring of 2000, seven Colorado institutions administered tests to assess the writing, reading, critical thinking and mathematical reasoning abilities of some of their sophomores. In 2000-01, officials will try out different types of standardized tests and continue to weigh how the test results might be used to help assess institutions’ core courses, and measure how well high schools prepared the students for college.

SB 00-186, passed in April 2000, establishes a new school accountability system with school grading based on an expanded assessment program.

New law will require each Colorado public high school junior, beginning in spring 2001, to take the ACT college-entrance examination. The state will pay as much as $1 million a year to pick up students’ registration fees.

SB 154 (1999) requires all resident teachers to pass a basic-skills test by April 15 of their first year of employment.

SB 154 eliminated state approval of all teacher-preparation programs as of July 1, 2001. To continue, teacher training programs must conform to new standards to be set jointly by the state board of education and the Colorado Commission on Higher Education.

State officials set new standards, as well, for students receiving Colorado merit-based scholarships. All new recipients, beginning in the 2000-01 academic year, will be required to maintain at least a 3.0 grade point average to be eligible for the aid in the subsequent academic year.

State policy changes in 2000 will shift resources to begin providing more aid to the state’s neediest students rather than allocating smaller amounts of assistance to a wider group of people. Eligible low-income students in 2000 began receiving the new Governor’s Opportunity Scholarships. The program aims to provide students whose families’ incomes fall in the state’s bottom quartile enough assistance so that they do not have to accrue debt by taking out loans for college.

The Colorado General Assembly set aside $800,000 to increase access to higher education through another route. The money will be used for a rural education-access program, to begin in fall 2000, which will allow some two-year colleges in rural and mountainous areas to offer bachelor’s degrees.

New performance funding policy.

CT

1996 mandate targeted significant proportion of state aid to poor and urban districts on literacy programs, and in 1998 launched the Early Reading Success program.

1999 law requires districts to revise policies to reduce social promotion. Over two-year period, the state’s poorest and most urban districts are to provide additional instruction to all fourth and sixth grades who fail to meet performance goals on Connecticut’s standardized tests. Students who still don’t progress even after receiving help will be required to attend summer school or be held back a grade. Plan also calls for public listing of elementary and middle schools whose test scores are most in need of improvement. Those on the list must develop improvement plans. If actions do not yield improvements, the law authorizes the state to reconstitute or completely re-staff the school.

State board of education in 1999 approved a “Common Core of Teaching” replacing the 15 “competencies” used since implementation of the Education Enhancement Act of 1986. The common core is meant to guide teacher training and evaluation programs.

Connecticut froze tuition at public institutions beginning in 1997, but because of Constitutional spending limitations that barred state funding to offset tuition, the state abandoned this freeze and agreed to increase spending on need-based aid for public-college students by about 30 percent in 2000-01. The state’s public colleges, meanwhile, resolved to increase their tuitions by about four percent.

Governor Rowland proposed Connecticut HOPE Scholarship Tax Credit and the Lifelong Learning Tax Credit in his 2000 State of the State message. (This was not enacted, as far as can be determined.)

The Legislature approved the establishment of a Waterbury campus of both the University of Connecticut and the Connecticut State University System, which would jointly use the site to offer a limited selection of four-year programs intended to meet local business needs.

Lawmakers appropriated about $5 million to begin to build a distance-education network linking all of the state’s colleges, school systems and libraries.

Accountability in Higher Education Act of 1999 directs the state’s public colleges and universities to develop benchmarks for improvement in areas such as graduation rates, minority-student access, and fee growth. Public Act 99-285 clarifies the major goals and expectations that Connecticut citizens have for their public system of higher education. The act charges the Higher Education Coordinating Council (HECC) with developing accountability measures for each constituent unit and each public institution of higher education. These measures must be approved by the BOG and used by the D of HE and each constituent unit in assessing progress toward meeting six identified goals. The BOG presented a progress report on the process on January 26, 2000.

DE

Accountability requirements enacted in mid-1990s are just now being implemented. State has been administering assessments in reading, writing and mathematics in grades three, five, eight and ten since spring 1998. In 1999, the state administered social studies assessments in grades four, six, eight and 11. Students in grades three, five and eight will be required to meet the state standards in reading in order to advance to the next grade. Students in grades eight and ten will be required to meet state standards in math to advance. Students must pass the tenth grade math assessment to receive a high school diploma.

Governor Carper’s 2000 Legislative Agenda included raising student achievement by recruiting and retaining highly qualified teachers, maximizing the impact of 10,000 mentors, and other initiatives.

In March 2000, Governor agreed to delay for one year the mandatory consequences of testing in grades three, five and eight, and to delay for an additional two years (from 2002 to 2004) the graduation requirements. Student Standards bill, SB 182, was first enacted in 1997.

Delaware also considered (and may have enacted) a social promotion bill in 2000.

State rejected the Governor’s educator-accountability law proposed in Fall 1999.

Proposal in 1999 for “HOPE-like” scholarship program died in state Legislature. Plan would have provided a free education to any student whose family earned $40,000 a year or less and who maintained a grade point average of at least 2.5 in high school. No major student aid proposals were enacted in the 2000 legislative session.

FL

Major governance change creating a new structure effective January 2003. New structure would include a seven-member state board of education appointed by the governor, a commissioner of education appointed by the board of education, and chancellors for non-public and non-traditional education, community colleges, state universities and K–12 education. Each of the state universities would have a governing board appointed by the governor. A transition task force is overseeing implementation with deadlines for reports in March 2001, 2002, 2003 and a final report on May 1, 2003.

In February 2000, the Florida Board of Regents approved the Talented 20 initiative as alternative to affirmative action. Proposal required approval by the State Board of Education and Cabinet. Under previous policy, students had to have a 3.0 grade point average and take 19 required credits to get into a state university. Race could be considered in regular admissions and in alternative admissions, which were used when students didn’t meet the minimum standards. Under the One Florida and Talented 20 rules, students in the top 20 percent of their graduating classes would be guaranteed admission. Students would still have to take the 19 credits, but their grades and college entrance test scores would not matter if they ranked in the top 20 percent of their high school class.

Governor Bush’s A+ for education reform plan calls for students to receive a letter grade based primarily on their performance on state tests. Under the law, students in schools graded F in two out of four years may transfer to better public schools or use state-financed vouchers to pay private or religious school tuition. Schools earning A’s are to be rewarded with extra money.

New tougher state assessments (Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test) were phased in be-ginning in spring 1999. Tests were given to students in grades four, five, eight and ten for the first time in spring 1999.

New policy (under development in 1999) to end social promotion. New law requires that schools tie student progression from one grade to the next to demonstrated proficiency in reading, writing, science and math. Also requires that schools provide those students who are held back with individual education plans.

1999 legislation increased entrance requirements and expanded types of data schools of education must report to enable identification of best practice. Also, legislation established committee on teacher education to recommend new curriculum requirements for state-approved teacher education programs to be completed in January 2000.

Florida Bright Futures, established in 1997.

Maximum award: Academic: tuition, fees and book allowance. Merit: 75 percent of tuition and fees. Gold Seal Vocational: 75 percent of tuition and fees. First awards in 1997.

Eligibility requirements: Academic: 3.5 grade point average in college preparatory courses; maintain a 3.0 grade point average in college to renew. Merit: 3.0 grade point average in college preparatory courses; maintain a 2.75 grade point average in college to renew. Gold Seal Vocational: 3.0 overall and 3.5 grade point average in vocational courses; maintain a 2.75 grade point average in postsecondary courses to renew.

Performance funding in place for community colleges and in process of implementation for State University System.

GA

Governor Roy Barnes’ Education Review Commission, initiated in June 1999, reported at the end of 1999. Commission’s recommendations led to enactment of major reform legislation, HB 1189, effective July 1, 2000. New law includes provisions related to both K–12 and higher education, although it focuses primarily on K–12. HB 1187 establishes a new Education Coordinating Council and Office of Educational Accountability. Ten-person council including Governor as chair brings to quarterly meetings the heads of the five public education departments, boards and offices: state superintendent of schools, and the chair of the state board of education; chancellor of the University System of Georgia and chair of the board of regents; commissioner of the Department of Technical and Adult Education, and chair of the board; executive director of the Professional Standards Commission, and chair of the board; and executive director of the Office of School Readiness.

Utilizes existing staff in the five departments and offices, together with staff from the Office of Education Accountability (OEA) and the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget (OPB).

Purpose is to improve public education through “seamless” coordination among the five education providers, from pre-K all the way through postsecondary; to get the most out of tax dollars by looking for ways to share facilities, equipment, personnel and other resources; to make it easier for students to transition from one to the other, align the curriculum so a student doesn’t have to start over at each level; to foster state, regional and local cooperative groups; to help raise student achievement in all five by overseeing accountability through an Office of Education Account-ability; and to reduce rules and regulations in all five, cut paperwork, do more via the Internet, encourage mentoring programs.

The Georgia P–16 Initiative is a comprehensive and collaborative statewide effort aimed at raising expectations and ensuring student success from preschool through postsecondary education. P–16 is a collaborative effort (begun in 1995 and first funded by the state in 1997) of the University System of Georgia (USG), the Department of Education, the Department of Technical and Adult Education, the Office of School Readiness, and the business community. At the state level, the P–16 council has led to agreements and recommendations related to college preparation curriculum, teacher preparation (see column on teacher initiatives), academic standards, testing, a linked student database, the University System Reading Consortial and technology in the classroom.

Examples of P­–16- related initiatives are: Performance Assessment for College and Technical School (PACTS) program, a standards-based assessment system being piloted in four local P–16 councils; and Post-secondary Readiness Enrichment Program (PREP) to identify and work with at-risk middle school students.

Beginning with the vision and guiding principles adopted by the Board of Regents in 1994, the University System of Georgia has pursued a consistent, coherent set of policy initiatives. Among these are the reform of missions for all institutions, stronger coordinated admissions requirements, partnerships between USG and K–12 schools, business, and other organizations, a partnership with DTAE, and the P–16 initiative.

Governor Roy Barnes’ Education Review Commission, initiated in June 1999, reported at the end of 1999. Commission’s recommendations led to enactment of major reform legislation, HB 1187, effective July 1, 2000.

Prior to HB 1187, Georgia had established a Core Curriculum. 1998-99 was first year that teachers were expected to use the new curriculum.

Assessments tied to the curriculum—in the form of the criterion-referenced competency tests—were to be given for the first time in spring 2000. Students in grades four, six and eight will be tested in English/language arts, reading and mathematics. Science test for grades three, five and eight, and the social studies test, to be given in grades three, five and seven, are still being developed and will be phased in.

New K–12 accountability system established by HB 1187, including many of the provisions found in accountability laws in Florida, Texas, North Carolina and other states. The measure sets up a system by which schools are to be graded from A to F based on their students’ performance on state tests. Schools will be graded based on both their students’ absolute test scores and on how much they have improved. Each year, teachers at schools awarded an A will receive $1,000 bonuses; those at B schools will get $500. D or F will trigger various forms of state intervention that will become increasingly severe over time. If a school receives poor grades for three or more years, for example, state education officials could order the removal of school personnel or give parents the option of transferring their children to another public school.

The law also stipulates that students’ achievement gains be considered in teachers’ annual evaluations, and that educators with unsatisfactory evaluations be kept from moving on to the next step of the salary scale.

The school performance results must be disaggregated with respect to ethnicity, sex, socioeconomic status, disability, language proficiency, grade level, subject area, school and district.

Board of Regents in 1998 approved ten principles and related actions for improving the quality of teacher education. Principles and actions are being phased in. Revised programs (undergraduate and graduate) must be in place for students admitted to the program beginning in fall 2000.

Report of P–16 Council in June 1999 called for a qualified teacher in every public school classroom by 2006.

Agreement between the USG and the Department of Technical and Adult Education provides for improved coordination and articulation between the two systems, with the USG concentrating on general education and DTAE focusing on job-entry occupational instruction.

HB 1187, effective July 1, 2000, reconstitutes the DTAE board and allows technical institutes to change name to “technical college.” Institute must first get occupational degree-granting accreditation from SACS or COE or any other appropriate accrediting agency approved by the United States secretary of education.

HOPE Scholarships

Maximum award: tuition, fees and book allowance up to $3,000.

First awards in 1994.

Eligibility requirements: 3.0 grade point average in high school for college preparatory curriculum and 3.2 grade point average for other curricula; maintain 3.0 grade point average in college to renew. Beginning in 2000 high school grade point average in core courses will determine eligibility.

HB 1187 effective July 1, 2000, makes adjustments to HOPE: It removes cap on technical school students that currently cuts off HOPE after two certificates or diplomas or after two changes in program of study; sets initial grade point average for a junior in college receiving a PROMISE teacher scholarship at 3.2 instead of 3.6. For a full-time or part-time student, already having baccalaureate degree does not affect eligibility for PROMISE scholarship (to encourage “second career” teacher candidates); removes so-called Pell offset requirement that previously penalized students who got both a federal grant, such as Pell, and HOPE.

Change in the USG budget policy since 1995-96 uses special funding as the leverage to advance the USG strategic plan and to address state priorities. Budget is divided into formula and non-formula components with the non-formula components deliberately linked to state priorities and policy initiatives consistent with the USG strategy plan.

HB 1187 also changes the funding formula to move away from a totally enrollment-driven model.

Enrollment-Driven Funding Formula For Technical Schools Funds now to be based on enrollment and cost factors (subject to appropriation).

Major technology initiatives to serve students and the state include, among others, GALILEO, the one statewide electronic library; Georgia EASY program, which allows high school students to research and apply online for any of the university system’s 34 institutions.

Initiatives linking the USG to the state’s economic development agencies and business community:

Intellectual Capital Partnership Program (ICAPP); Information Technology Strategic Response Initiative; and Governor Barnes’ YAMACRAW Mission, designed to make Georgia a leader in the microchip industry.

HI

2000 Legislative session approved an autonomy bill for the university system. As a result, voters will decide in the fall of 2000 if the Board of Regents should have constitutional authority over all decisions within the university system. Those decisions include some reforms passed in 1998 which would be placed in the state Constitution under the ballot measure—such as the university’s power to keep tuition revenues and to hire its own counsel.

1999 law gives education officials authority to establish an accountability system including a state assessment system based on state standards and involving rewards and sanctions for schools based on their performance. Nevertheless, it could be five years before schools face any consequences.

Performance Review Commission report found that state standards developed in late 1980s were not consistently implemented throughout the state. Report also emphasized lack of assessment system. An evaluation of the education system commissioned by the state superintendent identified core needs for improvement.

In August 1999 the state board approved revised standards. Next step is development of assessment system. Hawaii Assessment Program of Outcomes piloted in 1999. Implementation in 2000-01 contingent on funding.

ID

First draft of standards for K–8 was due in January 2000. Previous standards-writing effort stalled.

1999 state appropriation for literacy plan for K–3.

1999 legislation outlines reading standards and assessments and calls for statewide testing of students twice a year. Summer programs for students scoring below grade level in reading.

State board of education approved exit standards for students in grades 9–12 that were to be approved by the Legislature in 2000.

1999 legislation called for testing of K–8 teachers and administrators prior to certification.