2011 Fall Alabama School Boards Magazine

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FEATURES6 LAW PROVIDESBOARDS WITHMORE FLEXIBLEBORROWINGAUTHORITYA new law passed by the Legislature in its last sessionprovides a new framework under which boards may borrowthrough sale of their warrants.

8 AASB PROVIDESRESOURCES TO ASSISTWITH STUDENTS FIRSTACT IMPLEMENTATIONAASB has already mailed a CD to superin-tendents with Students First guidelines and sample materials. In addition, members continue to use the Students First Question Clearinghouse at www.AlabamaSchoolBoards.org/clearinghouse.html.

10 CONGRATULATIONS! 2011 AWARD WINNERSAwards include Champions for Children,AASB Legislative Award, the President’sAward and resolutions to the Students FirstTask Force and Strides for Schools campaign.

12 FACE TO FACE: REP. MIKE HUBBARD House Speaker Hubbard tells ExecutiveDirector Sally Howell his plans for 2012.

24 LEADING IN TURBULENT TIMES: AN INSIDER’SVIEW OF HIGH SUPERIN-TENDENT TURNOVERNearly 70 percent of Alabama’s school super-intendents have been on the job less thanseven years.

26 LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE Eight key steps to help school boards refocustheir energy on the work that really matters.

28 LIVE BY THE PRESS, DIE BY THE PRESS Don’t depend on the news media to deliveryour message the way you want it delivered.

29 SAVE ENERGY, SAVE MONEYARTAG helps with loans and information.

IN EVERY ISSUE4 TRENDS, RESEARCH & DATES 11 CALENDAR 11 HELP30 AT THE TABLEON THE COVER: photo©BigStockPhoto.com

OFFICERSPRESIDENT

Florence BellamyPhenix City

PRESIDENT-ELECTSteve FosterLowndes County

VICE PRESIDENTKaty Smith Campbell

Macon County

STAFFEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Sally Brewer Howell, J.D.

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICERKen Roberts, C.P.A.

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC RELATIONSDenise L. Berkhalter

DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENTAL RELATIONSLissa Astilla Tucker

DIRECTOR OF BOARD DEVELOPMENTSusan Salter

MEETING/MARKETING COORDINATORAngela Ing

MEMBERSHIP COORDINATORDebora Hendricks

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANTTammy Wright

BOOKKEEPERKay Shaw

STAFF ASSISTANTLashana Summerlin

Tanja Rains

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANTSDonna Norris

CLERICAL ASSISTANTDenisha Stewart

BOARD OF DIRECTORSDISTRICT 1

Stephanie WalkerBrewton

DISTRICT 2Bill MinorDallas County

DISTRICT 3Roxie Kitchens

Troy

DISTRICT 4Charlotte MeadowsMontgomery County

DISTRICT 5Kim Webb BenosVestavia Hills

DISTRICT 6Larry B. StewartCalhoun County

DISTRICT 7Tracey EstesWinfield

DISTRICT 8Pam DoyleMuscle Shoals

DISTRICT 9Dr. Jennie Robinson

Huntsville

PUBLICATION POLICYAlabama School Boards is published by theAlabama Association of School Boards as aservice to its members. The articles publishedin each issue represent the ideas or beliefs ofthe writers and are not necessarily the viewsof the Alabama Association of School Boards.Subscriptions sent to members of schoolboards are included in membership dues.Complimentary copies are available uponrequest to public school principals through-out the state. Additional annual subscriptionscan be obtained for $30 by contacting AASB.

Entered as third-class mail at Montgomery, AL. Permit No. 34.

Alabama School Boards is designed by J. Durham Design, L.L.C., Montgomery, AL.

Address all editorial and advertising inquiries to: Alabama School Boards, Editor, P.O. Drawer 230488, Montgomery, AL36123-0488. Phone: 334/277-9700 ore-mail [email protected].

InsideInside16SCHOOLS WAIT FOR IMMIGRATIONLAW OUTCOMEAlabama’s new immigration law in limbo.

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FALL 2011Vol. 32, No. 3

www.AlabamaSchoolBoards.org

20ALABAMA IMMIGRATION LAW NOW TIED UP IN COURTWhat would the obligations of public schools be should the law clear legal hurdles? Could schools lose federal funds?

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OUR MISSION:To develop excellent school board leadersthrough quality training,advocacy and services.

Alabama School Boards • Fal l 2011 3


4 Alabama School Boards • Fal l 2011

&Trends,Research Dates

UPFRONT

Officer Nominees and District Director Candidates AnnouncedaasB’s members have submitted the following director nominations for the even-numbered aasB districts:

• District 2 Donald Nichols of Perry CountyMike Oakley of Bibb County

• District 4 Shirley Dawkins of Clay CountyGail Holley of Lanett Charlotte Meadows of Montgomery County (current director who is eligible for re-election)

• District 6 Larry Stewart of Calhoun County (uncontested)

• District 8 Jimmy Dobbs of Morgan CountyJim Fisher of FlorenceBruyne Rollins of Hartselle.

Ballots will be mailed to board presidents soon and must be actedon in a board meeting, signed by the board president, postmarkedby Oct. 31 and returned to AASB Executive Director Sally Howell.

Officers will also be chosen in December. AASB’s NominatingCommittee recently met to consider candidates for president-electand vice president of the board of directors. The committee’s nom-inees are Katy Smith Campbell of Macon County for president-electand Pam Doyle of Muscle Shoals for vice president. The election willbe held at the Delegate Assembly. In accordance with AASB bylaws,President-elect Steve Foster will automatically become presidentat the close of convention and Campbell will complete her term asvice president.

Compiled by Denise Berkhalter

SAY WHAT?“Accreditation recognizes the vital role thateffective school boards can play in the successof a school system. A board of education is

responsible for establishing and monitoring policies that aredesigned to optimize the ability of the school system to provide the conditions that support student success. Accreditation is a process dedicated to helping schools and school systems continuously improve. Every role, including that of the govern-ing board, in a school or school system is critical. Ultimately, a board of education plays an important role in accreditation by ensuring leadership results in improving the school system to provide for the success of every student.”

— Dr. Mark A. Elgart, President and CEO of AdvancED

aLL-sTaTe NOMINees DUe OcT. 1The association is looking for current or past board members

who have shown exemplary boardmanship for the coveted All-State School Board Member recognition. The award will be presented at the annual convention scheduled for Dec. 8-10 at The Wynfrey Hotel in Birmingham. Nomination forms have beenmailed and are due Oct. 1. Refer questions to AASB MembershipCoordinator Debora Hendricks at [email protected] or 800/562-0601.

ReseaRch: schools UsingVouchers show No clearadvantage in achievement

After sifting through a decade’s worth ofresearch on school vouchers, the non-profitCenter on Education Policy found “no clearadvantage in academic achievement” for stu-dents who used vouchers to attend privateschool. The report, Keeping Informed aboutSchool Vouchers: A Review of Major Developments and Research,showed mixed outcomes for students overall.

“We have a great body of research about the effects of vouchersthat policymakers should draw on to inform current debates,” saidAlexandra Usher, co-author of the CEP study. “Before state legislatorsand Congress move quickly to enact new voucher programs, theyshould consider the evidence from programs already in place for several years to ensure they understand the impacts their policieswould have.” Read the 2011 report at www.cep-dc.org.



The Times Leader (Pa.) reports that only four of Pennsylvania’s cyber charterschools made Adequate Yearly Progress under the federal No Child Left Behindlaw. The state used graduation rate, attendance and standardized test scoredata from the 2009-2010 school year as accountability measures. The DelawareCounty Daily Times reports that “Pennsylvania has about 140 charter schoolsand 13 cyber charter schools that serve more than 50,000 students.” Eleven ofthe cyber charter schools were in operation during the 2009-10 academic year.

AASB and School Superintend-ents of Alabama secured anunderstanding from the EthicsCommission that the board ofeducation is an “institution” underthe revamped Alabama EthicsLaw. In certain situations outlined

in the law, public officials may not accept a “thing of value,” including free ticketsto events. An exception in the law allows faculty, staff and the administration ofan educational institution to accept passes to school events within that sameinstitution, and AASB and SSA maintained the board of education is the institu-tion. Now, it is clear that “boards of education” are institutions and employeesmay receive passes to school events within that school system, including plays, performances, football games and other athletic events. SSA and AASBrequested a formal Ethics Commission Advisory Opinion on the issue.

BOARD RESOURCE:Engage StudentsThe National School Boards Associa-

tion recently launched a resource tofacilitate school board conversationswith students. Students on Board: A Conversation Between School BoardMembers and Students focuses onpractical, straightforward guidanceto help engage students. A brochurecreated by the Center for Public Education outlines ways to set up a meeting with students, school board members and other school staff. It also lists questions to ask when discussing school climate. To learn more or access similar resources, visitwww.nsba.org/studentsonboard.

Though the average Alabama ACT composite score of20.1 lags the national average of 21.1, there were 11students who earned the top score, 36. Gaps stillexist when comparing the races, but the number ofstudents taking the ACT in Alabama is at its highest– 32,179.

32,179 BY THE NUMBERS

Request Your AASBMembership Card

AASB’s membership cards are avail-able upon request for current, paidmembers. In addition to serving as ahandy reference on how to contactAASB, the card entitles you (non-transferable) to free admission toany state championship playoffgame sponsored by the AlabamaHigh School Athletic Association, which isallowed under the new Alabama Ethics Law. To requestyour card, contact AASB Membership Coordinator DeboraHendricks, [email protected] or800/562-0601.

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IN THE NEWSStudies Show CyberSchools Not Making Grade

AASB Gets Clarification About Sporting Event Tickets for Employees


he act expands board borrowing authority by, for the first time, allowing long-term financing of working capital. Boards are now explicitly authorized to borrow to

fund operations for the current fiscal year with repayment from future years’ revenues. In addition, casualty losses, such as storm damage, and legal judgments are now specifi-cally authorized for financing. Of course, the act permitsfinancing for building construction or renovations and for purchasing school buses. The act specifically provides a com-prehensive laundry list of facilities and equipment used or useful in educational facilities that may be financed with board borrowing.

Importantly, the act allows additional authority for refund-ings. In short, the act allows “any valid indebtedness or obligations of such board” to be refinanced with warrant pro-ceeds. Costs of issuance can also be included in the principalof a refinancing. For any financing under the act, whether new money or refunding, approval of the state superintendentof education is required.

The new law offers flexibility in the revenues that may bepledged to support repayment. The act empowers a board topledge any combination of revenues lawfully available to theboard, including ad valorem taxes, privilege, license or excisetaxes, and other revenues “of whatsoever kind or nature” thatare received by the board, including payments by local gov-ernments. However, the act prohibits a pledge of FoundationProgram Fund receipts, Public School Fund receipts or anystate tax revenues.

There are more options in the execution of a financing, too.Importantly, the act allows the sale of board warrants througha negotiated underwriting. In addition, boards are authorizedto utilize variable rate debt with the specific approval of thestate superintendent of education. This new authority will pro-vide a board with the flexibility to choose its entire financingteam, and the use of variable interest rates may help lowerinterest costs.

The act’s flexibility should free boards from the need tolease facilities from local authorities, although those relation-ships may continue under the new law. Should a board stilldesire to sell bonds through a local authority, it can now enterinto loan agreements with local authorities instead of having to utilize lease agreements. Any loan agreement entered intoby a board with a local authority must be approved by thestate superintendent of education.

The act also facilitates local government cooperation. Itspecifically authorizes local governments, such as cities andcounties, to guarantee warrants issued under the act, effec-tively allowing for credit enhancement of board debt, which isimportant given the state of the municipal bond insurance market. Local governments are now empowered to directlypay the principal and interest on any outstanding debt of aboard within its jurisdiction. Local governments are alsoauthorized to lend or donate land, other property, money orservices to local boards.

The chart on page 7 presents a brief comparison of the actagainst the most commonly used financing laws for boards.

In summary, this act provides boards with an additionaltoolkit to address the financial challenges school systems of allsizes are facing. More flexible borrowing authority, coupledwith broad authorization for cities and counties to providedirect support to their local boards, may help alleviate cashflow challenges until the economy improves. However, anydebt should be carefully evaluated against a board’s financialpicture. The act assists in this regard by allowing boards to team with trusted professionals, whether attorneys, underwriters or bankers, in a negotiated transaction. Finally,

the act’s liberalization of refinancing rules may assist boards in need of restructuringexisting obligations. �


J. Thomas Longino is an attorney with Presley Burton & Collier LLC, a Birmingham-based law firm providing the full complement of legal services to public entities seekingaccess to financing. Visit www.presleyburton.com.

EDUCATION & THE LAWBy J. Thomas Longino, Presley Burton & Collier LLC

Law Provides Boards with More Flexible Borrowing AuthorityThanks to a new law passed by the Alabama Legislature inits last session, city and county boards of education nowhave more flexible borrowing authority. Sponsored bySenate Majority Leader J. T. “Jabbo” Waggoner of VestaviaHills, the act, number 2011-631, was signed into law byGov. Robert Bentley on June 9 and took effect Aug. 1.It provides a new framework under which boards mayborrow through sale of their warrants. During severalsuccessive years of proration, boards all over Alabama havebeen required to tackle significant financial challenges.This law gives boards and their local governmentsadditional tools to navigate the downturn.

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Act 2011-631: A Borrowing Authority SummaryNew ActAct 2011-631

Broad definition allowing for basically any costs associated with “public school facilities.” "Public school facilities" is a broadly defined term which includes most any item associated witha school, including land

Proceeds may be used to pay expenses such as casualty losses, legal judgments, operating expenses for current fiscal year and any other legal purpose

Proceeds may be used to refund debt of any type incurred under any law, any funding or lease agreements and any indebtedness incurred on behalf of a board

Warrants may be paid from a pledge of any one or a combination of ad valorem taxes; privilege, license or excise taxes; payments in lieu of taxes or any other contractual payments, but not certain state or trust fund revenues. The act specifically authorizes cities and counties to contract to support school debt issued under the act

30 years

Variable rate debt allowed with approval of state superintendent of education

Act allows negotiated or competitive sale

Required

Cities and counties are authorized toguarantee or otherwise support debtissued under the act. Act also author-izes local governments to donateproperty and to pay any outstandingdebt of a board. Act also authorizeslocal government lending to boards

Citation

Permissible Projects

Additional Uses of Proceeds

Refunding Uses

Sources of Payment

Maximum Term

Interest Rate

Sale of Warrants

StateSuperin tendentApproval

Local Government Support

Tax Anticipation WarrantsSection 16-13-70 et seq.

Authorizes erecting, purchasing, renovating, repairing and equipping school buildings, playgrounds, facilities for school buses and purchase of school buses

Not allowed

Proceeds may only be used to refund outstanding warrants issued under any law

Warrants may be paid solely from a pledge of ad valorem taxes or privilege, license and excise taxes, but not both.Debt service supported by annual ad valorem tax pledge is limited to 80 percent of annual proceeds of tax

30-40 years, depending on pledged tax

Fixed rate only;12 percent maximum

Competitive sale only

Required

Not provided for

Capital Outlay WarrantsSection 16-13-90 et seq.

Authorizes erecting, purchasing, improving, repairing and equippingland, school buildings, playgrounds,facilities for school buses and purchase of school buses. Also allows purchase of buildings from another governmental entity

Not allowed

Proceeds may only be used to refund outstanding warrants supported by pledged tax

Warrants may be paid solely from special taxes. Debt service supported by tax pledge is limited to 80 percent of annual proceeds of pledged tax

Limited to period of usefulness of assets

Fixed rate only; 8 percent maximum

Competitive sale only

Required

Not provided for

“Local Tax” WarrantsSection 16-13-90 et seq.

As authorized by local act generating tax pledged

Not allowed

Proceeds may only be used to refund outstanding warrantsissued pursuant to Section 16-13-120

Warrants may be paid from a pledge of specialprivilege, license andexcise taxes and/or ad valorem tax equivalents, so long as all pledged revenues are levied bylocal act

30 years

Fixed rate only; 12 percent maximum

Negotiated or competitive sale

Required

Not provided for



STUDENTS FIRST ACT RESOURCESBy Sally Howell, Executive Director, Alabama Association of School Boards

AASB Provides Resources to Assist with Students First Act Now that most of you have the first days of school behind you, you’re probably fielding a number of how-does-it-work questions about due process and personnel actions under the new Students First Act of 2011 (Act 2011-270). The Alabama Association of School Boards, as promised, has already mailed sample hearing scripts and a CD to superintendentswith Students First guidelines and other sample materials.

Advance Rights Review/ SeeAction Employee Reason Timing Notice to Before Appeal Statute Notes

Employee Board (SFA)

Nonrenewal Probationary Any or End No None No 5(c) Notice by June 15 (or June 30 if quadrennium) in teacher none1 of year year 1 or 2; Notice by last day of school in year 3

Nonrenewal Probationary Any or End No None No 5(a) Notice by June 15 (or June 30 if quadrennium);classified none1 of year Pay continues for 15 days

Termination Probationary Any or Mid-year Yes Written No 5(c) 30 days’ notice before board voteteacher none1 statement

Termination Probationary Any or Mid-year No None No 5(a) Pay continues for 15 daysclassified none1

Termination Tenured teacher Statutory Any time Yes Full hearing Yes 6 Pay cut off 75 days after board vote or upon grounds2 hearing officer decision, whichever first4

Termination Nonprobationary Statutory Any time Yes Full hearing Yes 6 Pay cut off 75 days after board vote or uponclassified grounds2 hearing officer decision, whichever first4

Termination Tenured teacher Criminal Any time No None No 10(a) If conviction overturned, teacher must be conviction reinstated or placed on leave with back pay

Termination Tenured teacher Loss of Any time No None No 10(d)certificate

Pay/Term All employees Any Prospective No None No 6(h)(2) Must apply to category, class, Reduction division, etc. of employees

Layoff Tenured teacher Statutory Any time No None No 6(h)(3) Be sure to comply with local (RIF) Nonprobationary grounds3 reduction in force policy

classified

Suspension All employees Any Any time Yes Written No 6(i)20 Days statement oror Less conference

Suspension All employees Any Any time Yes Full Yes 6(i)More Than hearing20 Days

1 Boards are not required to disclose a reason to the employee, but if the employee alleges that the termination/nonrenewal is illegal, the board should have a reason. For instance, if theemployee files an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission charge claiming nonrenewal because of race or gender, the board must be prepared to provide a reason to the EEOC.

2 Grounds for termination are justifiable decrease in the number of positions, incompetency, insubordination, neglect of duty, immorality, failure to perform duties in a satisfactory manner, or other good and just cause.

3 Grounds for declaring a reduction in force are a shortage of revenues or decreased student enrollment.4 If the termination is based on moral turpitude, immorality, incarceration, neglect of duty or loss of certificate, pay is cut off immediately upon board approval.

NONRENEWALS, TERMINATIONS, LAYOFFS & SUSPENSIONS

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In addition, members continue to use the Students First QuestionClearinghouse at www.AlabamaSchoolBoards.org/clearinghouse.html. The clearinghouse helps those impacted by the neweducation personnel law to provide consistent answers to our constituents’ questions. It also includes implementation guidelines.The clearinghouse is a joint effort of AASB, the School Superintend-ents of Alabama, the state Department of Education, the stateDepartment of Postsecondary Education and the Council for Lead-ers in Alabama Schools. In addition, a team of experienced and talented school board attorneys assisted with an AASB task force thatcrafted the successful Students First legislation and continues to helpeducation leaders understand the new law. (See page 10.)

I would like to especially thank AASB Staff Attorney JayneHarrell Williams of Hill Hill Carter Franco Cole & Black for theexcellent work she put into the charts that accompany this article. These charts outline steps to be taken in employee terminations, nonrenewals, suspensions, layoffs, transfers andreassignments.

We hope you find it useful. As always, consult with yourschool board attorney on such actions and to seek legal advice.Expect additional guidance and resources to help you navigateAlabama’s education personnel law, including an AASB Boardmanship Basics booklet and an upcoming webinar onprogressive discipline. �

Advance Rights Review/ See

Action Employee Pay Location Notice to Before Appeal Statute NotesEmployee Board (SFA)

Reassignment Probationary Same Within No None No 7(b) Board approval not requried teacher location

Reassignment Probationary Same Within No None No 7(a) Must be qualifiedclassified1 location

Reassignment Tenured teacher Same Within No None No 7(b) Board approval not required; any grade, positionlocation or work location within school, campus or facility;

no later than 20th day of class; once a year; must be certificated; no loss of pay

Reassignment Nonprobationary Same Within No None No 7(a) Must be qualified classified1

Transfer Tenured teacher Same Different Yes Conference No 7(c) Any grade, position or work location outside school,location campus or facility; no later than 20th day of class;

once a year; must be certificated; no loss of pay

Transfer Tenured teacher Same Outside Yes Conference No 7(c) Any grade, position or work location outside feeder school, campus or facility; no later than pattern 20th day of class; once a year; must be

certificated; no loss of pay

Transfer Nonprobationary Same Different Yes None No 7(d) Effective 15 days after board decisionclassified location

Transfer Nonprobationary Same Outside Yes Full Yes 7(d) classified feeder hearing

pattern

Transfer Probationary Reduced Any Yes Written No 7(e) Initial notice must state impact on pay; teacher position statement effective 15 days after board decision

Transfer Probationary Reduced Any Yes Written No 7(e) Initial notice must state impact on pay;classified position statement effective 15 days after board decision

Transfer Tenured teacher Reduced Any Yes Full Yes 7(f)Nonprobationary position hearing classified

Transfer Tenured teacher Reduced Any No None No 6(h)(3) Be sure to comply with local (RIF) Nonprobationary position reduction in force policy

classified

1 Any reassignment or transfer not specified in Section 7 of the Students First Act can be accomplished by superintendent’s recommendation and board approval.

REASSIGNMENTS & TRANSFERS1

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Champions for Children The Champion for Children Award is the Alabama Association of School

Boards’ highest honor and is presented to honor those who go above andbeyond to enhance public education in Alabama. The 2011 recipients took onherculean efforts which led to enactment of pivotal legislation for K-12 edu-cation. They are:

• Rep. Greg CanfieldAfter years of back-to-back

proration of the EducationTrust Fund, Canfield workeddiligently for more than threeyears, with AASB’s full sup-port, to convince lawmakersto adopt the “ResponsibleBudgeting and Spending Act,”also known as the RollingReserve Act. This act revisedthe Education Trust Fundbudgeting process based on asustainable 15-year average —with the goal of making prora-tion a thing of the past.

• Rep. Chad Fincherand Sen. Trip Pittman

Pittman and Fincher suc-ceeded in reforming thestate’s costly, cumbersomeeducation personnel laws sothe focus is on ensuring thebest possible faculty and staffare in place for students. TheStudents First Act of 2011was a monumental changeand completely replaced theflawed tenure and dismissallaws with a more workableprocess that retains dueprocess protections.

AASB Legislative AwardThe 2011 AASB Legislative Award is pre-

sented to lawmakers who have shownremarkable commitment to supporting a keyK-12 education issue. Rep. Stephen McMil-lian was chosen for his longstanding supportand personal commitment to reforming Ala-bama education personnel laws. Speaker ofthe House Mike Hubbard and Senate ProTem Del Marsh were selected for their lead-ership in shepherding passage of the Stu-dents First Act.

Students First Task Force

The AASB Board of Directors approvedresolutions to recognize a task force of edu-cation advocates and school board attorneyswho did behind-the-scenes work that led tocreation of a viable bill that ultimatelybecame law. The task force continues toassist in creation of resources and materialsschool board members can use to implementthe law. The task force included representa-tives of the Business Council of Alabama;Executive Director Dr. Eric Mackey andGovernmental Relations Director LisaWoodard of the School Superintendents ofAlabama; and attorneys Carl Johnson,Melissa McKie, J.R. Brooks, Jayne HarrellWilliams, Juliana Dean, Katy SmithCampbell, Robert Lusk and RobinAndrews.

Sponsors of K-12Legislation The AASB board also approved resolutions

to recognize the hard work state Reps. J.T.“Jabbo” Waggoner, James Buskey, DickBrewbaker and Greg Wren did to sponsorand support vital K-12 legislation during the2011 Regular Legislative Session.

AASB Executive Director Sally Howell (center) presents AASB’s2011 Champion for Children Award to Rep. Greg Canfield (right),shown with his wife, Denise.

Receiving the AASB Championfor Children Award was Rep. Chad Fincher. He is shown (left to right) with his wife,Caresse, and AASB ExecutiveDirector Sally Howell.

Sen. Trip Pittman was a jointrecipient of the Champion forChildren Award for 2011.


�MARK YOUR CALENDAR

President’s AwardFor the sixth year, the Alabama Associationof School Boards celebrated its President’sAward winners. In all, 49 school boards were recognized for having 60 percent or more of theirmembers attend at least three School BoardMember Academy conferences in a year.

• District 1- Brewton, Clarke County,Escambia County, Monroe County and Saraland

• District 2 - Autauga County, ButlerCounty, Demopolis, Lowndes County and Perry County

• District 3 – Enterprise, Geneva, Henry County and Troy

• District 4 – Auburn, Bullock County,Elmore County, Macon County andPhenix City

• District 5 – Bessemer, Birmingham, Fairfield, Midfield and Shelby County

• District 6 – Anniston, Calhoun County,Cherokee County, Etowah County, Gadsden, St. Clair County, Talladega and Talladega County

• District 7 - Greene County, Hale County, Pickens County, Sumter County, Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa County and Winfield

• District 8 – Athens, Colbert County, Florence, Hartselle, Lauderdale County,Lawrence County, Muscle Shoals and Russellville

• District 9 - Jackson County and Madison

Strides for SchoolsAs she rounded out her 11th year and final term

on the Jacksonville school board, Lori Tippetsdecided to build awareness statewide about thefinancial woes schools face. She laced up her run-ning shoes and ran a total of 186 miles, stopping in30 cities to speak with local education officials, themedia and all who would listen. She called herone-woman campaign Strides for Schools and isnow speaking to a variety of civic groups about herexperiences. AASB honored her with a resolutionfor her selfless contribution to K-12 public educa-tion in Alabama.

Q. Can a student’s phone be searched if he used it to cheat on astandardized test?

A. Parents and students should be properly informed, so they know possess-ing a phone or other digital device during secure tests is prohibited, mayautomatically invalidate the student’s test and could result in search andseizure of the device. Administrators should also be familiar with boardpolicy on possession, search and seizure of digital devices. The stateDepartment of Education has guidelines on handling confiscation of digi-tal devices during secure tests, which include: keeping a record of whatperson(s) had custody of the confiscated phone before it was delivered tothe school administrator; learning the facts to determine if there is rea-sonable suspicion that the phone was used to cheat; limiting the phone’ssearch to only what is necessary to reasonably determine whether thestudent was cheating; and, if the student did cheat or do somethingwrongful, securing the phone in accordance with school system policy.

—Denise L. Berkhalter


OCTOBER2-3 AASB Core Academy ConferenceLeadership for Community EngagementRenaissance Montgomery Hotel*6 Academy Hours

3 Data First Post-Conference WorkshopRenaissance Montgomery Hotel*3 Academy Hours

NOVEMBER15 Webinar:Get Out the Good News

1.5 Academy Hours

DECEMBER8 AASB Core Academy ConferenceEffective Boards and Relationships Orientation Wynfrey Hotel, Birmingham*6 Academy Hours

8-10AASB Annual ConventionWynfrey Hotel, Birmingham

Note: Every attempt will be made to follow this schedule.* Core credit awarded only once

Help.

MARK YOUR CALENDARMake Your Plans Today!


ep. Mike Hubbard is speaker of the Alabama House ofRepresentatives, the first Repub lican to have that title inmore than a century. Education tops his agenda, so Ala-

bama Association of School Boards Executive Director SallyHowell spoke with him to see what his plans are as he looksahead to 2012. During the 2011 regular session, the monumental Students

First Act passed, reforming the process for disciplining sub-standard education employees. Hubbard was crucial to thelaw’s passage, and he is a key player in developing the edu-cation agenda that will play out in the upcoming legislativesession. In this installment of Alabama School Boards’ Faceto Face series, the speaker discusses what he sees on thehorizon for pre-K-12 public education.

� Howell: Our members love to know the man behind the

man. Who is Rep. Mike Hubbard in your own words?� Hubbard: Well, my day job is running the Auburn Net-

work, a company I incorporated almost 20 years ago tohandle Auburn University’s media rights. I’m a native ofGeorgia and attended the University of Georgia, where Imajored in broadcast journalism. Two weeks after gradu-ation, I came to Auburn to work in the athletic depart-ment helping with their media efforts, including Bo Jack-son’s Heisman campaign. Years later I was lucky enoughto convince a brilliant, beautiful young woman namedSusan to marry me, and we’ve lived happily here inAuburn ever since. She is a professor and associate deanof the Auburn University College of Human Sciences. We

have two sons, Clayte and Riley, both of whom are avidgolfers. We’re a busy family, but a happy family. We’re ateam, and we stick together to support each other.

� Howell: How do you view your role as speaker of the

House?� Hubbard: The motto of the House of Representatives is

“Vox Populi,” or “Voice of the People.” As speaker, my jobis to keep order and ensure the business of the peopleflows smoothly in the House. When you are dealing withimportant issues, tempers can sometimes flare, but aslong as everyone is treated fairly and given their duerespect, we all get along quite well. Obviously, I’m a Republican, and I have certain issues

I strongly advocate. But my role as speaker is not thesame as it was when I was minority leader. I speak for allmembers, both Republicans and Democrats. In a repre-sentative democracy, the majority rules, but all sides areensured a voice in the debate.

� Howell: Well, the 2011 Regular Legislative Session was

definitely one for the history books. What is your assess-

ment of that session and the outcome for K-12 public

education?� Hubbard: The 2011 Regular Session was a turning point

for education reform in Alabama. Reforming Alabama’stenure and fair dismissal laws isn’t the silver bullet that isgoing to vault Alabama to the top of the education chartall by itself. But our success passing it showed once andfor all that Alabama is ready to tackle the tough educationchallenges our state faces, despite an obstructionist oppo-sition that is used to getting its way. On the budget front, the new leadership demonstrated

its continued commitment to funding K-12 education bypassing a balanced, responsible budget that sought toavoid proration, teacher layoffs and pay cuts. We alsorevamped the budgeting process to ensure future budgetswon’t force our schools to deal with proration.

� Howell: Look over your career as a legislator. What has

been your greatest achievement for education? � Hubbard: It is difficult to overstate the significance of

reforming the tenure and fair dismissal laws. We couldhave lost that debate, and it would have inhibited ourfuture chances for success on the education front. But


FACE TO FACEBy Sally Howell, Executive Director, Alabama Association of School Boards

Rep. Mike Hubbard

Sally Howell with Rep. Mike Hubbard

R



we drew a line in the sand separating those who want toreform education in this state and those who want the sta-tus quo. Winning that vote sent a message that Alabamawould never be the same. However, probably my greatest satisfaction as a lawmaker

has been working with Gov. (Bob) Riley over the years, andmore recently with Gov. (Robert) Bentley, to institute andexpand the Alabama Reading Initiative, the Alabama Math,Science and Technology Initiative, ACCESS Distance Learn-ing and First Class Pre-K. There’s no question these innova-tive programs have changed our schools for the better. Wefought to fund these critical programs year after year andsaw the fruits of our labor last year as Alabama was ranked25th for education quality by Education Week. That’s quitean achievement for our students, teachers, administratorsand school board members, and I’m proud to have been apart of it.

� Howell: What elusive task do you still hope to achieve dur-ing your tenure as a legislator?

� Hubbard: I first ran for office because I wanted to makeAlabama a better place for my children and my grandchil-dren. That hasn’t changed. I want Alabama to be what otherstates look to as a model for quality of life. Now being in aposition of leadership, it is great to have an opportunity toturn that vision of a better Alabama into reality.

� Howell: What are your thoughts about improving the education pipeline in Alabama — that connection be -

tween pre-kindergarten, K-12, career-technical education

and higher education?� Hubbard: The goal is to create a truly world-class educationsystem that gives Alabama students the opportunities theydeserve and trains workers not just for the jobs of today butfor the careers of tomorrow. Only then can our economy bestronger and more resilient, even during difficult times. To do that, I believe we must think more comprehen-

sively about education. We must acknowledge that we startour children on education pathways beginning in pre-school. If we want them to succeed, we ought to carefullyplan how and where those pathways can lead.

� Howell: School board members know public education inAlabama is necessary to improve the economic outlook for

this state and to create the types of workers that industries

and businesses want. Do you value public education as a

tool for improving the jobs outlook for Alabama?� Hubbard: It’s not ‘a’ tool; it is ‘the’ tool for making oureconomy stronger and more resilient. Alabama has come along way in improving K-12 education, modernizing workforce development and raising the quality of college instruc-tion available in this state. However, we still have far to go.

� Howell: Charter schools, vouchers, school choice ... what isyour position on these issues?

� Hubbard: I’m an advocate for school choice. Some scoff at

the idea that there could be alternative options that wouldimprove a child’s chances to succeed academically. But, theway I see it, you can’t argue with results. In places likeMemphis and New Orleans, charter schools have dramati-cally improved the quality of education offered to chroni-cally underserved students. We might not like to talk aboutit, but there’s no denying we have some chronically under-served students right here in Alabama. While we work toimprove our overall education system from the ground up,we must also allow local boards the flexibility to partnerwith parents, educators and community leaders to fix localproblems in the short term.

� Howell: Looking ahead to the next legislative session. Whatdo you hope to accomplish? What is on your agenda for

issues that impact education?� Hubbard: Authorizing innovative public charter schools inAlabama will be on the agenda this legislative session.There is plenty of misunderstanding of what charter schoolsare and what their presence in Alabama would mean. Manyfear change, and that could be the cause of some un -

(Continued on page 14)

It is difficult to overstate the significance of reforming

the tenure and fair dismissal laws. We could have lost

that debate, and it would have inhibited our future chances

for success on the education front. But we drew a line

in the sand separating those who want to reform education

in this state and those who want the status quo.

Winning that vote sent a message that Alabama

would never be the same.

— Speaker Mike Hubbard



easiness. But I’d like to start a conversation about howallowing this option can improve the lives of children whootherwise would be underserved educationally. I’d like toexplore how other states have succeeded when they allowedlocal school boards to cut the bureaucratic red tape that,especially in certain places, keeps children from having thequality instruction they need. Charter schools aren’t the panacea that will cure all our

education ills, but they would be a valuable tool to raise per-formance in areas where we are dreadfully behind. Rightnow, we are one of only nine states without a charterschools law. Though we are catching up in this area, we alsohave the advantage of learning from the successes and fail-ures of other states to ensure our law affords us the bestopportunity to benefit from this reform.Most school systems in Alabama probably aren’t candi-

dates for charter schools, but that can’t be the reason wekeep other districts from utilizing a reform that could makea real difference.

� Howell: What is the big challenge for the next legislative

session — the big issue to overcome?� Hubbard: The biggest challenge will probably be crafting

our General Fund budget. Now, that won’t really affect theEducation Trust Fund budget, but it is still a significant issuefor our state. Increasing costs of Medicaid plus continuedincreases for state worker benefits are straining ourresources thin.

� Howell: Can we overcome that?� Hubbard: Yes, and we must. Despite the challenges, Ala-

bama will balance its budgets next year. It’s no different thanany school board out there, or family for that matter. Wemust set priorities and appropriate money accordingly. Whatwe don’t want to do is over-appropriate, then force the gov-ernor to declare proration like previous Legislatures havedone.

� Howell: I know you won’t be hiring the next state superin-

tendent of education, but that’s a pretty influential position

that will drive the course of public education in this state.

What strengths and skills would you like to see in the next

state superintendent?� Hubbard: First of all, (Dr.) Joe Morton has been an excellent

leader for Alabama schools. He has been able to accomplishmore forward-thinking education reform than probably anystate superintendent in our history. We need our next super-intendent to possess that same commitment to reform, so wecan continue to move Alabama forward. The next state superintendent should also be able to

clearly articulate policy ideas and be a forceful advocate forreform, not only to the state school board but in the Legis-lature as well.

� Howell: How can school board members provide feedback

or have input when legislators shape their legislative agen-

das?� Hubbard: I would encourage school board members to be

in regular contact with their state lawmakers, not just whenwe are in session, but throughout the year. I’ve always val-ued my relationship with board members from the LeeCounty area, and I know my fellow representatives feel thesame way about those from their districts.

� Howell: If you had every local school board member in Ala-

bama in your office, what would you say to them?� Hubbard: I’d say thank you. Thank you for dedicating your

time and energy toward improving the lives of children. Iwould also say I look forward to working with school boardsthroughout the state to raise the quality of education in Ala-bama. We have a unique opportunity over the coming yearsto take our state to the next level in terms of the instructionalopportunities we are able to offer students. Once we finallyfree ourselves of the policies that have kept us shackled tothe bottom, together we’ll climb to the top.

� Howell: Let’s play a game of, “if they only knew.” When it

comes to passing legislation in Alabama that benefits

schools, what is it that you wish school boards knew?� Hubbard: This is probably something most school boards

already know, but opponents of education reform won’thave any less disdain for reformers if we acquiesce to theirdemands or water down meaningful policy. It is a commontactic by certain special interests groups to threaten politicalretaliation if their demands to abandon attempts at educationreform aren’t met. However, the truth is they are more likelythan not to retaliate even if their demands are met.I’m all for being reasonable. But sometimes education pol-

icy decisions come down to a fundamental choice betweenwhat’s best for the students and what’s convenient foremployees of the system. Those who agree to weaken theirposition because of a threat from the union do so at theirown peril. If the union is coming after you either way, whynot achieve the reform you are pursuing? �

ABOUT SPEAKER MIKE HUBBARDAn Auburn resident; former chairman of the Alabama Republican Party;graduate of the University of Georgia with a degree in radio and television;married to Dr. Susan Hubbard, professor and associate dean in Auburn Uni-versity’s College of Human Sciences; father of two sons, Clayte and Riley; andmember of Auburn United Methodist Church.

What he does: Speaker of the House; represents Alabama District 79,which includes portions of Auburn and Opelika; and president of the AuburnNetwork Inc., a broadcast, multimedia production and publishing company.

Committee: Lee County Legislation

Contact him: 334/826-9151 or [email protected]

Face to Face: Rep. Mike Hubbard Continued from page 13




Alabama’s controversial new immigration law is tied upin U.S. District Court, where a federal judge gave herselfat least until Sept. 29 to review challenges to the law’sconstitutionality. In the meantime, school officials wait.

Reporting requirements of the law were intended to find out how many undocumented students are served in Alabama’s schools and at what cost. To meet that requirement, the state Department of Education sent guidance to schools asking them to verify which students have or don’t have proper documentation verifying they are in the United States legally.

Before the enjoinment, the state education departmenthad advised schools to only note the immigration statusof every student who enrolled on or after Sept. 1, whenthe law was to take effect. Students who enrolled prior to that date would have been unaffected.

In late August, when U.S. District Judge Sharon Blackburn instituted her 30-day hold on the statute,implementation of the law was blocked.

Gov. Robert Bentley, who signed the immigration billinto law on June 9, issued a statement on Blackburn’sdecision: “I look forward to the judge ruling on the merits. We have long needed a tough law against illegal immigration in this state, and we now have one. I will continue to fight at every turn to defend this law against any and all challenges.”

For now, schools in Alabama are not required to collect anydata outside the norm when enrolling undocumented stu-dents, according to state Department of Education officials.“We are not collecting that information since the law is on

hold,” said Deputy State Superintendent of Education Dr.Tommy Bice. If the law does clear legal hurdles and receivesa green light, the state Board of Education would report oncea year to the Alabama Legislature the number of studentswho don’t have acceptable documentation verifying legalimmigration status. That annual reporting date hasn’t beendetermined.

HOW IT WORKSThe state education department’s nine-page School Atten-

dance Manual was sent to schools prior to the temporaryinjunction and outlines the steps for complying with the newlaw.The process is basic.At enrollment, students must present a birth certificate. If

the country of birth is other than the United States, but thestudent is a citizen or a legal immigrant, the student has 30days to provide documentation of citizenship or legal status.If the student can’t produce documen-

tation within a month proving citizen-ship or legal status, the system re -quests a declaration, signed un -der penalty of perjury, that statesthe student is a citizen or a legalimmigrant.If no such declaration can be

made, the student is reported tothe state as not having a birth certifi-cate on file. Schools enter a code inthe state’s student infor mation data-base to indicate whether thestudent had proper docu-mentation to prove immi-gration status or not.

By Gigi Douban and Denise L. Berkhalter

photo©BigStockPhoto.com



State Department of Education officials said the goalwas to create a system that upheld the law but wasalso fair to school personnel and students.

Even if the Alabama Immigration Law does survivelegal challenges, it shouldn’t keep immi-grant students, whether legal or illegal,out of school.According to the guidance manual, “No

student shall be denied enrollment or admis-sion to the school due to a failure to providethe birth certificate or other supplemental documentation described in this section.”

DAMAGE TO RELATIONSHIPSThere are education advocates who are

monitoring whether the state’s immigration lawweathers legal challenges. They say enforcingthe law would be downright uncomfortable.“One of your first interactions with school is

demanding paperwork to prove your citizen-ship,” said Lisa Soronen, senior staff attorneywith the National School Boards Association.“‘Uncomfortable’ is a nice way of saying it.”Soronen said she believes implementing the

law will be frustrating for school

staff members who don’t want to make students ortheir families feel ill at ease. “Even if this was aboutwhat color hair students have,” she said, “it would befrustrating and annoying.”Part of the point, according to the legislation, is for

the state to estimate the cost of educating studentswho are in the United States illegally. Those expensesinclude instruction, computers, textbooks, meals andextracurriculars. But some question the value of suchinformation.“You can’t deny these students an education, so why

does it even matter what they cost?” Soronen said.“That to me would be the frustration.”That is, unless you consider intimidation kind of the

point, Soronen said. “It’s very intimidating if you can’tprovide that paperwork,” she said. “It’s very intimidat-ing to know the state now will know.”Rick Ayer, superintendent of Albertville City Schools,

said he’s worried the law will potentially mar the rela-tionship the system has worked hard to build with itsimmigrant community over the years.About 25 to 30 percent of students in Albertville are

Hispanic. Ayer said that a majority of Albertville’s His-panic community is comprised of legal immigrants.

“A lot of those students have been with us from kindergarten through 12th

grade, and if you get into the polic-ing stage, it’s going to create adifficulty in reaching out andteaching the kids like we’resupposed to,” he said.




Ayer said that although the fear ofdeportation leaves immigrants generallywary and guarded, they’ve become less soin Albertville. “As of right now, our rela-tionship with that community is extremelygood,” he said. “They feel safe and com-fortable in our schools. They come in andwork with us, talk to us. We don’t want todo anything to jeopardize that.”

State Department of Education officialssay they are fully committed to carryingout the law and advise local schoolboards to do the same. Not doing so canjeopardize state funding.

Prior to his retirement Aug. 31, formerstate Superintendent of Education Dr. JoeMorton encouraged school boards to “dothe best they can.”

“We’re just going to ask people toimplement the law and … be genuine intheir efforts,” he said.

ENGLISH LEARNERSThe state Department of Education

tracks students who aren’t proficient inEnglish but not their immigration status.

“The question is how many of thosetens of thousands of students are herelegally versus how many are here ille-gally. That’s what we do not know,”Morton said.

The Pew Hispanic Center estimatedAlabama’s unauthorized immigrant population at 120,000 in 2010, and

national data show 70 percent of the par-ents of undocumented immigrant chil-dren in America hail from Mexico.

A majority of Alabama’s immigrantschool population are Hispanic. Theirnumbers in recent years have increased.

This past school year, about 33,000Hispanic students were enrolled in Ala-bama schools. That’s up from 20,300 in2005-06. However, Morton said thosenumbers shed no light on how many ofthose are in the United States legally.

“We’ve never asked that before,” he said.

FINANCIAL IMPACTSoronen said the controversial state

law also intends to underscore the finan-cial burden on schools’ resources posedby illegal immigrants. She encouragesAlabama to take the long view.

“The drain becomes even greaterwhen these people stay in the UnitedStates for a lifetime and are uneducated.What kind of future can they have? Nofuture at all,” she said.

Attorney Jayne Harrell Williams repre-sents several Alabama school boards.She said board members seem most con-cerned about the immigration law’s“chilling effect.”

“Some of my clients are concernedthat if parents could not provide thisinformation and they are not herelegally, they won’t bring their kids toschool, and the kids won’t get an educa-tion,” Williams said.

The law isn’t complicated, she said.“All this is, frankly, is collecting data,”

Williams said, “but it’s this collecting datathat might keep people out of the door.”

Groups challenging the law in federalcourt say that this is a real concern. In alawsuit filed by the American Civil Liber-ties Union in July, members of GreaterBirmingham Ministries, a service organi-zation that caters to immigrants, sayundocumented members of the congre-gation have “expressed concern thattheir children may not be able to attendschool. … These members fear that theirimmigration status will be sent to thefederal government and lead them tobeing detained and possibly deported.”

An unnamed plaintiff in the lawsuit saidshe’s considering homeschooling her chil-dren for fear of having her undocu-mented status reported to the state.

In the end, if the immigration law isallowed to stand, Williams advises boardmembers to follow the law.

“We are public boards of education,”she said. “We just don’t have the author-ity — even if we don’t like a law — topick and choose.” �

Gigi Douban is a freelance reporter and writer based inBirmingham. Denise L. Berkhalter is director of publicrelations for the Alabama Association of School Boards.

Will the New Alabama Immigration Law Result in a Loss of Federal Funding to Alabama Schools?See related article on page 20.

Table A3

Estimates of Unauthorized Immigrant Population by State, Selected Years 1990 to 2010

2010 2007 2005 2000 1990Estimated Estimated Estimated Estimated Estimated

(thousands) Population Range Population Range Population Population Population

U.S. Total 11,200 10,700-11,700 12,000 11,500-12,500 11,100 8,375 3,525

Alabama 120 (75-160) 110 (55-160) 60 25 5

Source: Unauthorized Immigrant Population: National and State Trends, 2010, www.pewhispanic.org

Law in LimboContinued from page 17




IMMIGRATION & THE LAWBy David J. Canupp, Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne, P.C.

Will the New Alabama Immigration Law Result in aLoss of Federal Funding to Alabama Schools?On June 9, 2011, Alabama Gov. Robert Bentleysigned H.B.56, commonly known as the Alabama Immigration Law (Act 2011-535). The law contains a variety of provisions related to immigration, including reportingrequirements for primary and secondary schools. As of this writing, the law is being challenged in federal court on constitutionalgrounds. The U.S. Department of Justice is among the plaintiffs. Implementation of the law has been temporarily blocked until at least late September.

ven assuming the public school provisionsof the law are found constitutionally valid,

there is another possibility: The law may be permissible under the Constitution but still violate certain federal laws. If the law violates federal statutes which provide for educationalfunding, a loss of federal funds for Alabamaschools may be on the horizon. To take a closerlook at this important issue, this article brieflysummarizes the obligations of public schoolsunder the new law and then analyzes whetherfederal school funding is in jeopardy.

E

photo©BigStockPhoto.com



The Public SchoolReporting RequirementsSection 28 of the new law says a stu-

dent’s parents must present a copy of thestudent’s original birth certificate (or acertified copy) when the student enrolls.If the parents do not have a birth certifi-cate for their child, they have 30 days inwhich to inform the school of the stu-dent’s immigration status under federallaw. This 30-day period can also be trig-gered if the school’s review of the birthcertificate leads it to conclude that the stu-dent was born outside of the UnitedStates or is the child of an unauthorizedalien. In that case, the parents once againhave 30 days in which to inform theschool of the student’s citizenship orimmigration status.

To meet the requirement of establish-ing citizenship or immigration status,the parents may present official documentation or notarized copies of such documentation and sign a statement, under penalty of perjury,that the document states the trueidentity of the child. Alternatively, ifthe parents have no documentationand maintain the child is lawfullypresent in the United States, theymay sign a statement, under penaltyof perjury, that the child is lawfullypresent. If no documentation is presented or the parents do not signa statement, the school is to presumethe child is an unauthorized alien for reporting purposes.

Significantly, the bill provides no con-sequences for parents or guardians whosimply fail to present a birth certificate orotherwise fail to comply with the school’sefforts to collect data, except that theschool official shall presume the studentis unauthorized for data collection and

reporting purposes. The law also doesnot make the data collection applicableonly to students suspected of being for-eign nationals or aliens but ratherapplies to all students enrolling. Further-more, the bill states that it is to beenforced without regard to race, religion,gender, ethnicity or national origin.The point of this data collection

process is to assist the school in fulfillingits duty to provide the state Board ofEducation an annual report of all dataobtained. The state board is required tosubmit an annual report to the Legisla-ture. The annual report to the Legislatureis apparently intended to be a tool bywhich the state will compile statisticsabout money spent on unauthorizedaliens and how their presence affectseducation.Before the law was temporarily en -

joined, the state Department of Educa-tion provided guidance to schools onimplementing it. But, the law itself pro-vided no details about how schools wereto compile and transmit the data to thestate Board of Education. Schools havebeen given no legislative guidance aboutwhether they should report just the num-ber of citizens and non-citizens or alsoinclude the identities of the students andparents and the documentation obtainedin the process.The law also provides that “public dis-

closure” of information that personallyidentifies any student is unlawful, subjectto certain exceptions under federal law.The law also says that any student whoseidentity is negligently or intentionally dis-closed can sue the person or agency thathas made the unauthorized disclosure.Unclear is whether “public disclosure”means providing the state Board of Edu-cation with the names of unauthorizedaliens or whether “public disclosure” isonly disclosure of information to anyoneoutside of the school or to anyone otherthan employees of the state board.

Analysis of Federal LawAn analysis of federal law raises ques-

tions about the legality of the activitiesmandated by the Alabama law. The De -partment of Justice filed a federal lawsuit

— now merged with a pending lawsuitbrought by three church groups and spe-cial interest groups — which alleges thatthe Alabama law “will lead to the harass-ment of lawfully present and unlawfullypresent aliens.” Furthermore, the U.S.Departments of Justice and Educationhave recently released a letter to schoolsnoting awareness of “student enrollmentpractices that may chill or discourage theparticipation, or lead to the exclusion, ofstudents based on their or their parents’or guardians’ actual or perceived citizen-ship or immigration status” (May 6, 2011,letter, U.S. Dept. of Justice and U.S. Dept.of Education). According to the letter,these practices “contravene federal law.”Any discussion of school enrollment

practices for aliens must start with theU.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Plyer v.Doe, 457 U.S. 202 (1982), in which theCourt held that a state cannot intention-ally deny a public education to aliens onthe basis of their national origin or immi-gration status. This holding has only lim-ited direct application to the Alabamalaw, which does not expressly excludealiens from public schools. Indeed, thebill includes no provisions permitting orrequiring school officials to deny enroll-ment to any student, regardless of theinformation collected.However, multiple legislators who

signed on to the bill have stated openlythat the entire point of the law is to intim-idate and dissuade unauthorized aliensand their children from seeking a publiceducation. Lawyers frequently refer to thephenomenon created as a result of such alaw as “disparate impact” discrimination— in other words, while the law does notexpressly prevent a class of persons fromexercising their rights, it does dispropor-tionately impact a particular class of per-sons more directly than others. In thiscase, the Alabama Immigration Law verylikely will discourage unauthorized aliensfrom seeking a public education, eventhough it does not prohibit them fromdoing so. The question thus becomeswhether the “disparate impact” of this law on unauthorized aliens is sufficient toviolate federal law.



The answer to this question is clear ifthe analysis is limited to the result underthe 14th Amendment, as it was in Plyer.The Plyer decision rested upon the notionthat the 14th Amendment itself prohibiteda school from intentionally and expresslyexcluding unauthorized aliens. AfterPlyer, it is clear schools cannot engage insuch activity. However, under severallongstanding court decisions, laws thatpresent a mere “disparate impact” do notviolate the 14th Amendment. Board ofTrustees of University of Alabama v.Garrett, 531 U.S. 356, 372-73 (2001).Under these decisions, the 14th Amend-ment is not violated unless a lawdirectly authorizes discrimination. Thus,since the Alabama law lacks any provi-sions directly excluding aliens, it probablydoes not violate the 14th Amendment.The U.S. Department of Justice appears torecognize this as well, since its recent let-ter merely cites the Plyer case for theproposition that “the undocumented ornon-citizen status of a student (or his orher parent or guardian) is irrelevant tothat student’s entitlement to an elemen-tary and secondary public education.”Apart from the 14th Amendment, the

bill may be unconstitutional under Art. I,§ 8 of the Constitution if it usurps the fed-eral government’s exclusive power toenforce immigration policy. That isexactly what the Department of Justicecontends in its recent lawsuit. Still, evenassuming the bill does not violate theConstitution by denying enrollment tounauthorized aliens or by interfering withfederal immigration policy, a number ofother federal laws and regulations pro-scribing national-origin discriminationmay conflict with the bill. Among the rel-evant laws are Title IV of the Civil RightsAct of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2006-c; Title VI ofthe Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §2000d; and the Equal Educational Oppor-

tunity Act of 1974, 20 U.S.C. § 1703. Only litigation will definitively determinewhether the bill is actually in conflict withthese federal laws. However, there iscause for concern with respect to regula-tions promulgated under Title VI of theCivil Rights Act. Title VI applies to any state program

receiving federal financial assistance, butthat includes most (if not all) publicschools within the state of Alabama. TitleVI outlaws discrimination based on race,color and national origin, and a section ofthe law allows federal agencies to issueregulations to carry out the law’s direc-tives. The U.S. Supreme Court in Alexan-der v. Sandoval, 532 U.S. 275 (2001)issued an opinion in which it assumedthat this regulatory authorization permit-ted federal agencies to proscribe not justracially discriminatory actions, but alsomethods of administration which have theeffect of discriminating against membersof a particular national origin “in deter-mining the type of services which will beprovided or the class of individuals to beafforded an opportunity to participate.”42 C.F.R. § 42.104(b)(2). In other words,regulations under Title VI appear to pro-hibit the precise sort of “disparate impact”discrimination that the Alabama Immigra-tion Law arguably creates.There is good news and bad news aris-

ing out of this realization. Court decisionshave held that private citizens cannot sueto enforce these regulations, so schoolsprobably will not be inundated with pri-vate lawsuits alleging violations of TitleVI. Camellia Therapeutic Foster Agency,LLC v. Alabama Department of HumanResources, 2007 WL 3287342, at * 3 (M.D.Ala. Nov. 5, 2007). Furthermore, there issome residual controversy as to whetherthe regulation is valid and consistent with the statute, and there are legitimatequestions as to whether the types of datacollection activities mandated by the Alabama Immigration Law actually violatethe regulation.

The bad news, however, is that — atleast based on present law — both theU.S. Departments of Justice and Educa-tion can enforce the regulations. Fur-thermore, assuming they establish thatthe mandates in the Alabama law violatethe regulations, the remedy available tothose departments is to terminate all orpart of the federal funding provided toschools who violate the regulations.There are signs that such action may beon the horizon.In their recent joint letter, the depart-

ments of justice and education take theposition that the regulations precludeschools from inquiring into students’ citizenship or immigration status. Thedepartments claim that under the regula-tions, “districts may not request informa-tion with the purpose or result of denyingaccess to public schools on the basis ofrace, color, or national origin.” This meansthe departments may attempt instituteenforcement action pursuant to their TitleVI regulatory authority. If they do, it takeslittle analysis to demonstrate that thepotential consequences for already under-funded Alabama schools could be dire.

ConclusionOf course, the result of any potential

enforcement action cannot be predicted.The departments of justice and educationmay or may not take action, and if theydo, there are arguments to be made thatthe Alabama law’s requirements fall out-side the regulatory proscription. But thereare also powerful arguments that the lawwill result in clear disparate impact dis-crimination — especially in light of thestatements of many legislators who sup-ported and voted for the bill. With all ofthese uncertainties, however, one thing isplain: many challenges lie ahead forAlabama’s schools, and the potential lossof federal funding as a result of the stateimmigration law only adds to the list. �


Alabama Immigration Law

Continued from page 21

David J. Canupp practices lawwith the Huntsville-basedLanier Ford law firm, where heregularly advises governmentalentities and schools in the areaof civil rights law.

United States of America v. State of Alabama http://media.al.com/bn/other/U.S.%20Justice%20Department%20lawsuit.pdf

Departments of Justice and Education letter to schools related to immigrationhttp://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/letters/colleague-201101.pdf



By Dr. Larry E. DiChiara

hese are inarguably the most difficult times to be the leader of a school system in thestate of Alabama. The statistics and facts are daunting: high poverty levels, extremely lowper pupil expenditures, inadequate resources, teacher shortages, proration three years

straight and on and on. Not only do education leaders need to be competent, creative, innovative and strong, they

must also be magicians who can pull rabbits out of nowhere. There is nothing magical aboutsuperintendents seemingly disappearing in thin air. Across the country, the average superintendent tenure is a little more than three years. In

Alabama today, there are 23 brand new superintendents out of 132 school systems. The aver-age years of experience of all current Alabama superintendents, excluding those who haveannounced their retirements, is 4.4 years, and 56 percent of the state’s superintendents havebeen in their current positions less than four years. A superintendent barely learns the ropesbefore he or she leaves either voluntarily or involuntarily. This does not bode well forthe troops being led into the battle of their lives by a leader who has not beenaround long enough to be considered battle tested or ready.The big question that must be asked is, “Why are superin-

tendents leaving?” There are numerous reasons — reasons I’ve gathered from my own experiences as wellas copious conversations with superintendent colleagueswho have either considered “getting out” or who havealready left. Of course, superintendents leave due to the obvi-

ous reasons: retirement, non-renewed contracts, lostelections, family or health issues and to pursue other employment. But, they also leave due topolitical pressure, fiscal instability, burnout andbecause they are tired of micromanagement, controversy, constantly swimming upstream andfinding themselves the scapegoat for issuesbeyond their control. The superintendentsoften make very unpopular, yet very accurate and responsible decisions thatmay bring grief or jeopardize theiremployment.

T

photo©bigstockphoto.com24 Alabama School Boards • Fal l 2011



One very interesting and constanttheme that I see and hear from col-leagues is that much of their stressand grief comes from the numeroustimes they stood on principle orinsisted on doing the right things forkids. I have heard horror stories overmy 30-year career of the superintend-ent who got fired because he refusedto make a recommendation contrary

to a majority of the school board; thesuperintendent that angered themayor and was later fired when themayor dismantled the school boardand stacked the deck; the superin-tendent who was not re-electedbecause he fired the popular principalor football coach who was insubordi-nate or neglected his or her duties; orthe superintendent who was not re-appointed or re-elected because ofthe unpopular decision to close a fewschools or layoff some personnel inorder to make ends meet.If there is one thing I have learned

in 30 years as a teacher, coach, prin-cipal, central office administrator andsuperintendent, the admirable quali-ties that help propel educators to thesuperintendency are the same onesthey continue to exhibit throughouttheir tenure as a superintendent —oftentimes to their detriment. Let me explain. Most superintend-

ents I know are principled leaders.They are smart, competent, innova-tive, possess excellent people skills,have integrity and genuinely careabout teachers, administrators and,most importantly, the kids. They gen-

uinely and routinely make very toughdecisions based on doing the rightthing or doing what is ultimately inthe best interest of the children. Unfortunately, we are often faced

with moral dilemmas that force us tomake a choice between doing theright thing or doing what might helpus keep our jobs. In my own experi-ence, I have always chosen to dowhat is right, not what is politicallyexpedient. This has caused great griefto me and my family. I have chosento hang in there and fight the goodfight — for the kids. Many superin-tendents throw their hands up in theair, pack their bags and simply saythat they have had enough and wouldrather leave the profession rather thancompromise their character orintegrity. And to be fair, there aresome superintendents that simply donot do a good job and their contracttermination may be justified.So, what is my message for school

board members? • Inexperience is not what we needleading our schools during thesetumultuous times. Nurture and holdon to your effective superintend-ents if at all possible.

• Let superintendents do their job asthey have been trained and educated to do, but hold themaccountable.

• Respect their decisions and openlysupport them during times of toughdecision-making.

• Help keep politics and personalagendas out of the equation. Theissues are complex enough as it is.

• Finally, understand that if you forcea superintendent to choosebetween doing the right thing orwhat is politically expedient, youare setting him or her on a courseto leave your school system verysoon. And that would be a shame.

Retain EffectiveSuperintendentsA survey of Colorado superintendents,A Candid Look at Today’s Superintendents(www.dkfoundation.org), suggests“the relationship superintendents havewith their school board can ‘make orbreak their success.’ The report offers tipsboards can use to recruit and retain effectivesuperintendents. See page 26.� Focus on the “big picture” issues,

policymaking and holding the superin-tendent accountable for day-to-dayoperations. Don’t micromanage.

� Create opportunities to discuss the rolesof policymakers and superintendents.

� Provide/attend teamwork seminars forboard members and superintendentsthat result in mutual feelings of respect,a sense of efficacy in their work andimproved conflict management.

� Communicate, communicate,communicate.

� Understand the crucial leadership roleof the board president, particularly whenit comes to refocusing the board.

� Hold each other accountable.� Encourage mentorship and coaching

opportunities for superintendents.� Ensure there is a process that nurtures

talent to grow leaders from within theranks.

� Develop succession plans well before asuperintendent retires.

DID YOU KNOW?

56% of Alabama’s superintend-ents have been on the jobfor less than four years.

— 2011 School Superintendents of Alabama Longevity Report

Dr. Larry E. DiChiara is completing his 30th year ofeducation in Alabama andhas served as superintendentof Phenix City Schools forseven years.

56%56%

21%21%

15%15%

3%3% 5%5%

n 15+ or More Yearsn 10+ to 15 Yearsn 7+ to 10 Yearsn 4 to 7 Yearsn Less than 4 years

Years of Service for CurrentSuperintendents (SSA, 2011)



BOARDMANSHIP BASICSBy Susan R. Salter, Director of Board Development

LET YOUR LIGHT SHINEQuestion: How many board members does it take to change a light bulb?

Answer: None. The board’s job is to say, “Let there be light.”The superintendent’s job is to choose the best light bulbs and delegate a staff member to install them. Then, the board determines if the light shines bright enough.

ure, it’s a little simplistic, but the adage makes a point thatcan be easily lost in board members’ zeal to roll up theirsleeves and lead: Effective school boards govern from 30,000

feet — not the trenches. From that vantage point, boards can seethe “big picture” emerge and shift and can see the issues on thehorizon in time to head off problems. In short, taking the longview enables boards to keep their eyes on the prize of higher stu-dent achievement. That all sounds well and good, but what does that look like in

the world? How does a school board extract itself from tasks thatleech its time (or worse, ones that are outright micromanagement)and focus on activities that genuinely result in better outcomes for students? The answer is actually simple: stay within the framework. There are eight board work areas identified by theNational School Boards Association’s Key Work of School Boards.These work areas are based on research with effective schoolboards and help school boards refocus their energy on the workthat matters.In its groundbreaking Lighthouse research, the Iowa Associa-

tion of School Boards identified five board roles that appear toanswer the question, “What do high achieving school boards dodifferently?” They are:• Set clear expectations.• Create the conditions for success by aligning resources, stayingthe course and working effectively with the superintendent.

• Hold the system accountable for meeting expectations.• Build public will.• Learn together as a board team.

Not surprisingly, these roles all fall within NSBA’s Key Workframework. Thus, school boards can ratchet up their impact onthe things that matter by tackling the Key Work tasks:

Create a vision centered on raising achievement. Vision isn’t about where a school system’s schools are. It’s

about where the board and community want them to be. Itgives staff, parents and the community a sense of direction, anunderstanding of what’s possible for students. Plus, it gives allstakeholders something to rally around (in Lighthouse terms,this helps fulfill the board’s role of building public will). Boards that don’t have a vision for the school system should

work with the superintendent, employees, parents, area leadersand other stakeholders to develop it. And while they’re at it,they should be sure the discussion includes efforts to identifythe community’s core values about education. “Core values”answer the question, “What does the community believe itmeans to be a well-educated graduate.”Throughout these discussions, broad public and staff input

will be essential. First and foremost, it helps ensure buy-in. Butjust as importantly, it gets stakeholders talking positively aboutwhat the community wants for its children. That, in turn, canlead to commitments from the community to work toward help-ing the schools accomplish the mission.

Set standards that outline what students should know and be able to do. Closely linked to development of the vision, goals and

values, standards set expectations for students and faculty by

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defining the level of performance required at various bench-mark grades and by graduation.

In Alabama, standards are set at the state level (includingrecent adoption of the national Common Core State Standardsfor mathematics and English language arts). But, the board andsuperintendent have the option to require more. The boardshould ask itself if state standards reflect the community’s corevalues. Do they go far enough? And, if not, what more shouldbe expected of students?

Once the vision, values and standards are in place, the board,superintendent and system leadership team will need to studyachievement data together, identify the area of greatest learningneed and set measurable goals (in Lighthouse language, “setclear expectations”) for addressing them. Remember, the boardwon’t choose instructional programs but rather define wherethe system needs to go and how long it has to get there.

Assess progress regularly.While it’s true that weighing the cattle don’t make them fat-

ter, weighing academic achievement regularly is critical to theboard’s ability to hold the system accountable. Quality data onstudent progress helps the board accurately report its status tothe community (in Lighthouse terms, “hold the system account-able” and “build public will”). It also helps the board and lead-ership team determine which programs and schools are work-ing and which aren’t. But assessments are only valuable if theresults are used. The high-achieving school boards studied inthe Lighthouse research were found to relentlessly use data intheir decision making. They knew the status of achievement intheir system and what was being done to address the weak-nesses. Does your board?

Hold the system accountable. This is one of the school board’s most critical roles. But

remember, accountability isn’t just assigning blame and punish-ing employees. Rather, the board and the superintendenttogether must analyze the data, determine what works andwhat doesn’t and then require that changes (large or small) aremade where needed.

Among the questions the board may ask to achieve greateraccountability are:• How often does the staff review disaggregated data with the

board and make recommendations?• How often should progress and challenges be reported to the

public? • How does the board publicly recognize success?• What is done to help parents understand test results? • How does the superintendent ensure principals are using

individual teachers’ data to hold each teacher accountable?• Are faculty and administrators receiving the training, materi-

als and programs they need to accomplish the mission?As board teams work, they should strive to balance that pres-

sure to achieve with support for the efforts. Apply too muchpressure and employees quickly learn that the harsh conse-quences of failure are not worth the risk when it comes to try-ing innovative approaches.

Align system resources with the vision and goals. Alignment has to do with matching resources with stated

goals. In Lighthouse terms, this is part of creating the conditionsfor success. If the board is not allocating adequate resources tothings it says are important, the public and staff will quickly fig-ure out what the “real” priorities are and act accordingly. Sup-pose, for example, the board has set the expectation that all stu-dents will read on grade level by the end of third grade. Has itallocated money for training for the K-3 teachers? Has it askedthe superintendent if the curriculum is adequate to accomplishthe goal? Is additional staffing (reading coaches, mentors, etc.)needed?

A word of caution, however. Boards should guard againstgetting too deep into administrative territory here. The boardwill make alignment a priority, discuss options brought by thesuperintendent and work with him or her to choose the mostproductive options for the school system. But, the superintend-ent chooses curriculum, recommends staff and staffing levelsand keeps the board apprised of budget issues that could beimplicated in decisions.

Ensure the system’s climate is good for kids and adults.Climate is the human dimension of school systems. It is how

students and staff are treated, whether they feel safe andrespected, whether all students are expected to learn (andtreated as if they can), whether teachers feel empowered to dotheir jobs effectively, how students and staff feel about the facil-ities they learn and work in and more. It has an enormousimpact on student achievement, employee morale and the over-all success of your school system.

GET THE BOOKThe National School Boards Associ-

ation provides an array of tools forschool boards to use in following the KeyWork framework at www.nsba.org/keywork.The material includes detailed discussions ofeach area, links to additional resources andresearch and training materials.

NSBA also offers a Key Work of School Boards Guidebook thatincludes numerous resources such as lists of questions yourboard should ask as it works in each of the key work areas andself-assessments to help you gauge where you are now. In addition, the guidebook includes tactics for surviving and thrivingin this era of public accountability; suggestions for using data to inform decision making at all levels; and case studies on school systems that have successfully used Key Work concepts to advance student achievement.

Call 800/562-0601 (in-state) to order the most recent edition ofKey Work for only $20, or attend the June 23-24, 2012, Roles andResponsibilities Orientation for new school board members toreceive a free copy.




lected officials, local and otherwise, have aresponsibility to listen and respond to con-stituents. One way to do that is through

the news media. It’s certainly not the onlyway. An old saying, “If you live by thepress, you die by the press,’ means don’tdepend on the news media to deliver yourmessage the way you want it delivered to thepeople you want it delivered to.

Yet, board members should be skilled infielding press inquiries. So, here are myrecommendations:

Know that it’s an individual decision,not a board edict. Some reporters willcome directly to the board’s chairman forcomments. Some boards elect to havethe chairman be the spokesman. That’sa choice, not a binding rule. As it takesa majority vote of the board to act, itshouldn’t surprise anyone when reporterstry to find out how at least a majority of theboard is leaning on an issue.

Just as there is no statute, policy or common practice requiringindividual school board members to give interviews, there is nocommon good achieved by a ban or collective limitation on mediacontacts, either. Such attempts would be met in many quarterswith a cry about free speech. Others may challenge who gaveeven a majority of the board the right to silence a member equallyelected to represent the community.

Be clear about speaking for yourself, not for the board. Toooften, the quoted remarks of a single school board member aremisinterpreted (and, yes, sometimes misrepresented) as the think-ing and/or direction of the full board. I also have no doubt thatthere are times when a single board member wishes to appear tospeak for the board. But just as a single board member may notdirect any action, no single board member should attempt tospeak for the full board — with one exception. When the boardhas acted and questions arise, it’s fine for the board chairman tofield questions on why the decision was made. That’s OK even ifthe chairman is only speaking for the majority in a split decision,as long as he or she clearly acknowledges other viewpoints inthose votes on the other side.

In short, if you’ve got something to say, speak for yourself andmake it clear that you’re offering one board member’s opinion.

Consider when you should speak out. Any longtime observer ofelected legislative bodies, including school boards, has seen theoutspoken member. It may be a member who frequently opposesthe majority or the superintendent, the mayor or the governor. It may also be a member whose passion comes through less

frequently but no less forcefully on this issue or that issue.Yet, just as it may be argued that there is a timewhen the greater good is served by speaking out,it’s equally true that there is a time when contin-ued criticism fails to serve anyone. Before the

board acts, it’s appropriate for members to raiseissues and challenge answers. When the board votes,

it’s appropriate to explain why each membermade his or her decision. But after the action

is completed, consider whether you are helping the students, the school system,

the board and the community by continuing to criticize, challenge orcondemn.

Understand the power of a ‘Yes”vote. Here are a couple of truths

to chew on. More people inpublic office tend to explaintheir “no” votes than their “yes”votes. Yet, there are far toomany times when an opportu-

nity to inform the public is lostby those who just want to decide and

move on. And reporters are more likely to seekout a person who voted “no” for an explanation, but not pose thesame question to the voting majority.

Frequently, school boards act on the recommendation of thesuperintendent. On the tough decisions, the superintendentsbecome lightning rods for criticism right along with school boards.So, when board members go along with the superintendent,regardless of whether the vote is split or unanimous, someoneneeds to speak up to the community and say, “This is why wemade this decision.”

The Last Word. There is a time to speak up and a time to keepyour mouth shut. In this, school board membership is little differ-ent than membership in a church congregation, a workplace teamor even the family dinner table. In each of those cases, every per-son has something to contribute. Choosing when to make thatcontribution — when to or whether to speak up — is sometimesa very personal decision.

Elected officials, including school board members, must go beyondmembership and participation in decision making. They accept aresponsibility — not mandated in law but expected by many voters— to inform the represented public on the hows and whys of thosedecisions. That’s a responsibility that, if unfulfilled, can contribute toone joining the ranks of ex-school board members. �

Brad Hughes is the director of member support services at the Kentucky School BoardsAssociation. Reprinted with permission from the Kentucky School Advocate.

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LIVE BY THE PRESS, DIE BY THE PRESSBy Brad Hughes

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ymnasium lights are rarely turned off intentionally. They stayon for extremely long hours. I realized that several years agoas a member of the not-for-profit Alabama Retirees Techni-

cal Advisory Group. I was part of a team that was piloting a train-the-trainer course in energy efficiency for K-12 teachers at Mus-cle Shoals High School. ARTAG, headquartered at NorthwestShoals Community College, is comprised of retired educators,engineers, scientists and other professionals and has been con-ducting waste reduction assessments and energy audits forschools for more than 15 years. At that time, my ARTAG teamwas teaching sessions at 6:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. to accommodatethe Muscle Shoals High School teachers’ schedules. At 6 a.m., as I drove to the high school, it was still dark. I

remember seeing the silhouette of the gym with its lights glow-ing through the dark, a throwback to the Clint Black song “LightsAre On, Nobody’s Home.” Subsequent trips across North Ala-bama to perform energy audits or teach energy efficiency coursesconfirmed that many unoccupied high school gyms — likethe man-eating plant in “Little Shop of Horrors” movie — werefeeding costly energy to those brightly burning lights. They wereshining symbols of energy waste, consuming electricity for 12 to16 hours a day (feed me … feed me … feed me). Today, ARTAG’s chosen mission is to eliminate those energy-

consuming, unoccupied monster gyms. New lighting technologyhas lower wattage, longer life, high output and quality light.There are even sensors that activate the lights when the gym isoccupied. The cost of using these energy-saving lights could beas low as 40 percent of the cost of operating the ever-on, 400-watt metal-halide lamps used in most gyms.In these challenging economic times, school systems are look-

ing for ways to conserve resources and reduce costs. Many havefound it beneficial to have a third party provide assistance inidentifying ways to conserve energy, reduce waste and improveoperational practices. ARTAG provides assistance at no cost forschools in the Appalachian Regional Commission region of Ala-bama. The commission has awarded ARTAG a grant, most ofwhich is directed toward assisting schools. The grant includesfunds to assist schools in accessing a zero percent interest loanavailable from the Alabama Department of Economic and Com-munity Affairs for energy efficiency and conservation im -provements; to develop energy efficiency demonstration proj-ects; and to offer a Train-The-Trainer in Energy Efficiency Proj-ect, which ARTAG initiated in 2009. Unfortunately, few school systems take advantage of the zero

percent interest Local Government Energy Loan Program. They

may either be unaware of the loan or may find the process toocumbersome to undertake. That’s where ARTAG can help. The loan makes money available for lighting retrofits; heating

ventilating and air conditioning equipment upgrades; infiltrationprevention such as insulation and double pane windows; andother energy efficiency and conservation measures. The maximumloan amount is $350,000 per school campus and $500,000 perschool system. The term of the loan is 10 years or less and can berepaid from energy savings. School systems are responsible for thecosts associated with establishing eligibility for the loan, applyingfor the loan and completing the annual energy use report. Alabama’s 37 Appalachian counties are Bibb, Blount, Calhoun,

Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Clay, Cleburne, Colbert, Coosa,Cullman, DeKalb, Elmore, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Hale, Jack-son, Jefferson, Lamar, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Macon,Madison, Marion, Marshall, Morgan, Pickens, Randolph, St. Clair,Shelby, Talladega, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker and Winston.The Appalachian Regional Commission, a federal-state-local

partnership created to promote economic growth and improvethe quality of life in the Appalachian Region, has provided fundsto ARTAG for eligible schools and systems. ARTAG invites allschools to take advantage of the experience and information ithas gained from assisting schools and systems with the LocalGovernment Energy Loan Program. �

FREE ASSISTANCE Contact the Alabama Retirees Technical Advisory Group (256/627-6288 or256/710-2042) to find out how schools in parts of Alabama served by theAppalachian Regional Commission can receive free assistance with:• A zero percent interest loan available from the Alabama Department of

Economic and Community Affairs for energy efficiency and conserva-tion improvements (up to $350,000 per school and $500,000 per sys-tem);

• Energy efficiency demonstration projects; and/or • Participation in ARTAG’s Train-The-Trainer in Energy Efficiency Project. Find a link to ADECA’s Local Government Energy Loan Program athttp://www.adeca.alabama.gov/Energy or call 334/242-5100.

Buster Smith is on staff with the Alabama Retirees Technical Advisory Group. Contact himat [email protected]. You may also contact Robert Mitchell, [email protected],or Liz Anderson, [email protected].

SAVE ENERGY,SAVE MONEYBy Buster Smith

ARTAG staff assisted Greensboro High School with securing funding to purchase 21 fixtures for its gym which saves the school about$2,100 in energy costs.

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Boardmanship Basics: Let Your Light ShineContinued from page 27

School BoardWinfield City Board of Education

Hometown Winfield

How long have you been a board member? 14 years

Books at BedsideHoly Bible, Storm Warning by Billy Graham and FinalSummit by Andy Andrews, along with numerous travelmagazines.

InspirationHope. Knowing the Good Lord is in control encourages me to push forward even in the hardest times.

Motto as a Board MemberQuiet service through humility. If the board is doing its jobproperly, there is little reason for fanfare. When a system isoperating smoothly, there should rarely, if ever, be a reasonfor children or their parents to be reminded the schoolboard even exists.

Walter Mitty FantasyLive a long, healthy life, watching my children and future grandchildren grow and mature in their Christian faithwhile growing old with my loving wife.

Advice to New Board MembersBehind-the-scenes commitment. Never shy away from yourresponsibility, but remember you were not elected/appointed to oversee daily operations.

Greatest Accomplishment as a Board MemberFundraising for projects, trying to serve every family in our district, but most importantly, loving all 1,300 schoolchildren as if they were my own.

Pet Peeve as a Board MemberBoard members who believe they should be the center ofattention. I have been blessed to avoid serving with suchmembers. Board service only works smoothly when every-one around the table pulls together to serve the children ofthe district. Remember these four words: “It’s not about me.”

Reason I Like Being an AASB MemberBoard service has afforded me the opportunity to serve the community where I was born by serving what many view as our most important asset — our school system.

My EpitaphHere lies a man who spent a lifetime chasing after his Heavenly Father’s heart all the while running on his knees. �

AT THE TABLE

TracyEstes

The board can impact climate in numerous ways, includingfostering a culture that makes clear all children can learn athigher levels; approving and monitoring programs to meet theneeds of low-achieving students; monitoring employee moraleand addressing issues; recognizing and rewarding student andstaff successes; requiring periodic assessment of the system cli-mate; modeling respect and professional behavior; and keep-ing achievement as the focus of board meetings.

Collaborate with stakeholders.How does the board view stakeholders? Are they cus-

tomers purchasing a service with their tax dollars? Or, arethey owners with a shared responsibility for providing chil-dren a quality education? In high-achieving school systems,school boards expend great effort building public will forchange and making connections with the community. Thatmeans going beyond simply asking the “customers” whatthey want. It means treating stakeholders as owners: brain-storming what is possible, getting them actively engaged insolving problems and really listening to their ideas. In short,it means forging solid, mutually respectful relationships, sostakeholders embrace their role. For boards and administra-tors alike, this can be daunting because it also means givingup an element of control. The board can start by modeling engagement and setting

expectations, so building-level administrators will follow suit.A good first steps are to choose a key achievement challengeand reach out to various groups or organizations that eitherhave the resources to help or have a stake in the outcome. Puttogether a task force or stage a series of community conversa-tions around the issue to generate ideas, and ask attendees fora commitment to help before they leave. By making it a habitto address issues in these ways, the board can, over time, shiftpeople’s mindset from that of disengaged consumer to fullyengaged owner.

Work to continuously improve. It goes without saying, but the school board’s work is

never done. NSBA deliberately depicts the Key Work frame-work as a circle because the board must revisit each workarea, some of them at scheduled intervals and others almostcontinuously. Consider the Lighthouse research showing thathigh-achieving school boards use data relentlessly. At eachphase of the board’s Key Work, effective boards monitor their work’s impact. Where outcomes are positive, they lookfor ways to ramp up. And where they’re not, they study

the data to find out why. They identify thecauses, make adjustments when possibleand change course when necessary. �

Susan Salter is AASB’s director of board development. For more information, contact Susan at 800/562-0601or [email protected].



Alabama Association of School Boards

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Documents

2011 Fall Alabama School Boards Magazine