Legislative Session
Day 8
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Report Snapshot
Educator Pay Raise Controversy
Joint House and Senate Ed Committee Explores Student Literacy, Top 10 Ed Issues & More
House Education Committee Assigns Legislation to Subcommittee
New Regulations on Vaping Proposed
Register for PAGE Day on Capitol Hill
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Upcoming Schedule
Friday, Jan 31 – Legislative Day 9
Monday, Feb. 3 - Legislative Day 10
House Public Safety & Homeland Security, 1:00 p.m., 606 CLOB (hearing on bill seeking to increase penalties for drivers caught texting in school zones)
Senate Education and Youth Committee, 2:00 p.m., 307 CLOB
Tuesday, Feb. 4 - Legislative Day 11
House Retirement Committee, 2:00 p.m., 515 CLOB
Wednesday, Feb. 5 - Legislative Day 12
Thursday, Feb. 6 - Legislative Day 13
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Educator Pay Raise Controversy
As the appropriations process progresses under the Gold Dome, conversation continues about Gov. Kemp’s proposed $2,000 pay raise, the proposed state income tax cut, and cuts to state agencies. Georgia’s school funding formula has been protected from these cuts in the current version of the FY21 budget. For more reading and to take action, read:
-Margaret Ciccarelli
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Joint Education Committee Explores Student Literacy, Top 10 Ed Issues & More
House Education Committee Chair Rick Jasperse (R-Jasper) and Senate & Youth Committee Chair P.K. Martin (R-Lawrenceville) convened a joint meeting of the House and Senate education committees this afternoon. A joint meeting has become customary early in the legislative session. The 2020 House Education Committee member list can be accessed
HERE
; review their Senate committee counterparts
HERE
.
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State School Superintendent Richard Woods briefly addressed those gathered. He introduced deputy superintendent Caitlin Dooley who shared information regarding Georgia student literacy performance. Dooley explained that Georgia uses two literacy assessments: Georgia Milestones, which measures grade-level reading, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). She shared a troubling statistic: Georgia students living in poverty score lower in reading than their peers who are not economically disadvantaged. Georgia’s NAEP scores have dipped slightly in recent years. GaDOE has developed a literacy strategy, which includes:
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- Collaboration with key partners throughout the state
- Literacy plans aligned to Four Pillars
- Leverage resources and partnerships
- Align to school improvement efforts
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Dooley turned next to the Georgia’s
Literacy
for Learning, Living and Leading (L4GA) Grant. In 2017, this federal grant program was directed to 38 Georgia school districts. Those districts experienced a significant boost in Milestones reading scores. Georgia has also received $179M for a 2019 L4GA grant cycle. Grants will be awarded later this spring.
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Dooley reiterated that literacy challenges and opportunities remain. “Georgia is getting better faster, and we have an opportunity to overcome our literacy challenges,” she said. The challenges she described include varying rates of kindergarten readiness, maintaining literacy focus and support beyond third grade, ensuring educators have the skills and capacity to support literacy, and the sustainability of reliance on federal grants.
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Steve Dollinger & Dana Rickman from the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education (GPEE) presented an overview of GPEE’s 2020 Top Ten Issues to Watch. For more details on this publication, check out the complete Top Ten Issues,
HERE
.
1. Preparing for 2030: Shifting Demographics and Georgia’s Future
2. Early Learning: Building Toward the Future
3. Literacy: The Great Equalizer
4. Funding: Ripple Effects of Budget Cuts
5. Principal Leadership: Insulating the Teacher Pipeline
6. Strong Foundations: Standards, Assessments and Accountability
7. Student Success: Barriers Beyond the Schoolhouse
8. Rural Poverty: Endangering Opportunity
9. Schools to Work: Pathways to Employment
10. Beyond the Diploma: Keys to Post-Secondary Success
Following GPEE, Matt Arthur, the new executive secretary of the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) described the GaPSC’s primary roles to the joint committee: preparation of teachers, assessment of educators, certification of educators, and educator ethics. Arthur and GaPSC colleague Penney McRoy presented information on the Teacher Preparation Program Effectiveness Measure (TPPEM). More TPPEM information is available on the
GaPSC website
.
Monica Henson, the Deputy Superintendent of the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), also presented to the joint committee. DJJ, a social service agency, serves Georgia’s youthful offenders up to age 21. Henson reported that DJJ is accredited, hires GaPSC-certified teachers and administrators, and strives to link students with higher education opportunities.
-Margaret Ciccarelli
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House Education Committee Assigns Legislation to Subcommittee
Jasperse held House Education Committee members briefly after the joint meeting for bill assignments. The following bills were assigned to subcommittee:
- HB 741 – Academic Achievement Subcommittee
- HB 755 – Academic Support Subcommittee
- HB 764 – Academic Support Subcommittee
-Josh Stephens
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New Regulations on Vaping Proposed
The Senate Regulated Industries and Utilities Committee heard testimony from community members today on
Senate Bill 298
, a bill that would set new regulations on vaping. Sen. Renee Unterman (R-Buford) authored SB 298 and presented it to the committee on Tuesday, January 28. Unterman is revising the bill based on feedback she received at Tuesday’s committee meeting as well as comments from community members today. (An early version of SB 298 is available
HERE
. PAGE will post the revised bill when it becomes available.)
The bill would increase the age for using tobacco products to 21 to align with changes in federal law and include vaping products in that category. If approved, it would set penalties for individuals under 21 who purchase and use vaping products as well as those who sell these products to minors. The bill would also require local boards of education to prescribe mandatory instruction on the use of vaping and smoking, similar to current instructions for alcohol and drug use. A similar requirement would be set for the State Board of Education.
Representatives of multiple health associations spoke in support of the bill at today’s committee meeting. Several described the serious health consequences of vaping including death as well as the lack of a full understanding of the health impacts given how little time vaping products have been available.
Unterman reported that she expects to present the revised bill to the committee on Tuesday, February 4.
-Claire Suggs
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Register for PAGE Day on Capitol Hill
PAGE Day on Capitol Hill is Tuesday, Feb. 18. We’re pleased to partner with the Georgia Association of Educational Leaders (GAEL) and the Georgia Association of Colleges of Teacher Education (GACTE) again this year. Attendees will meet other politically minded educators from across the state and advocate for teachers and students under the Gold Dome. Please make your plans to attend and register
HERE.
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Claire Suggs
Senior Education Policy Analyst
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Josh Stephens
Legislative Affairs Specialist
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Margaret Ciccarelli
Director of Legislative Services
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