New WASB resolutions support “talent development” to help with teacher shortage
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
COLFAX — Two of the new resolutions that will be introduced at the Wisconsin Association of School Boards convention in January focus on incentivizing talent development as a way to help alleviate the teacher shortage.
There are 11 resolutions that will be presented at the WASB convention, and the first two new resolutions focus on boosting and incentivizing the development of talent, said Ken Neuburg, a member of the Colfax Board of Education, at the December 18 meeting.
Neuburg is the Colfax school board’s representative at the WASB delegate assembly.
The convention is scheduled for January 17 through January 19 at the Baird Center in Milwaukee.
Usually there are about 20 resolutions, but this year, there are 11, Neuburg noted.
At last year’s convention, there were so many resolutions, some of which sparked intense discussion, that some of the delegates left and there was no longer a quorum, he said, adding that he hoped the delegate assembly would not be in the same situation this year.
The first resolution deals with the Wisconsin Improvement Program, said William C. Yingst Jr., district administrator.
Colfax will be participating in the WIP program with a student teacher who will be an intern at Colfax High School teaching math beginning January 2, he said.
The student math teacher was approved for an internship as part of earning his teaching certificate, Yingst said.
WIP is offered by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. The program is new, and the DPI wants to expand it, he said.
The student math teacher will be a paid intern, Yingst noted.
Twenty years ago when a school district posted an open teaching position, the school district could expect to receive 100 to 200 applications.
Today, school districts — especially smaller, rural school districts — are fortunate to receive one or two applications for an open teaching position.
WIP interns
The first new WASB resolution, “Student Teachers and WIP Interns,” supports the revision of Wisconsin’s student teacher programs and WIP “internships for consistency, accessibility and to incentivize talent development across the state which may include year-round licensure, waiver of fees and/or payment of stipends,” according to the resolution.
The resolution notes that “Wisconsin continues to experience an extreme teacher shortage which jeopardizes the ability of districts to provide high-quality education through well-trained available staff, as well as to fill specialty and substitute teaching needs.”
Removing barriers and offering incentives such as pay for student teaching, flexibility in internship licensure and the ability for education candidates to work as substitute teachers will help in addressing the challenge of the teacher shortage, the resolution states.
Stipends
The second new resolution focuses on stipends for cooperating teachers.
“WASB supports creation of a stipend program to incentivize and compensate Wisconsin DPI designated cooperating teachers for consistency, accessibility, and to boost talent development across the state,” according to the resolution.
Cooperating teachers help student teachers to understand the dynamics of the classroom and mentor the student teachers as they develop lesson plans that align with state standards.
Cooperating teachers also help student teachers to use effective methods and strategies that address the academic and behavioral needs of all learners and help the student teachers to design assessment tools to monitor the progress of their students, the resolution states.
Wisconsin currently does not pay cooperating teachers, and while some teachers are willing to work with student teachers, having a student teacher is additional work, and universities face challenges sometimes in finding cooperating teachers for student teachers, according to the resolution.
Disabilities
Four existing resolutions pertaining to special education or students with disabilities are proposed to be amended with one new resolution on seclusion and restraint.
A resolution on federal aid will be amended to strike the word “aid” and substitute the word “funding” as it relates to removing barriers in school facilities that may limit access by students and others and will also add to the resolution “and to ensure compliance with federal law.”
The resolution on special education general policy includes removing the word “mainstreaming,”which “is an outdated term that does not align with the goal of inclusive practices.”
The resolution will be amended by adding “best practice inclusion of children with disabilities in the general education environment. All children with disabilities deserve access to the general education environment to the greatest extent possible.”
In another resolution, “mainstreaming” will be replaced with “access to the general education environment.”
A resolution on state specialty schools will remove the words “visually handicapped and hearing impaired” because the terms are outdated and will be amended to read “blind or visually impaired and/or deaf or hard of hearing. An IEP team should determine if a speciality school is the appropriate educational placement.”
A resolution on seclusion and restraint will be created to read, “WASB supports continued best practice resources, training, and funding to support school districts in seclusion and restraint practices with a focus on improving systems and reducing harmful events.”
The rationale for the seclusion and restraint resolution states that advocates say seclusion and restraint are used disproportionately on students with disabilities and students of color. Students with disabilities make up only 14 percent of the statewide student population.
School safety
Another new resolution proposed would pertain to funding and staff to maintain the Office of School Safety.
Support for the Office of School Safety would include but would not be limited to “grants for schools, trainings for school staff and law enforcement on preventing and mitigating school violence, and maintenance of the 24-hour hotline to confidentially report potential threats.”
Funding to continue the Office of School Safety was not included in the final 2023-2025 biennial budget.
The Department of Justice recently announced an extension of funding for one year, but state funding may be required to ensure the office can operate beyond 2024, according to the rationale for creating the new resolution.
The office was established in 2018 with bipartisan support to distribute $100 million in federal grants to help strengthen safety protocols in schools and to complete criminal incident mapping, the rationale states.
Artificial intelligence
Another new resolution that is being proposed focuses on artificial intelligence.
“WASB recognizes the significance of Artificial Intelligence as a newly developing technology and looks to be a part of the state discussion as Artificial Intelligence evolves.”
According to the rationale, WASB should be involved in legislative discussions on Artificial Intelligence regulations “so that the educational perspective is not left out of the conversation.”
Classroom technology
The following resolutions are proposed to be repealed and replaced by a resolution on “educational technology”: interactive communication systems; technology in the classroom; education technology initiative; online courses; virtual schools; statewide contracting for virtual classes; Cooperative Education Service Agencies and virtual charter schools.
The proposed resolutions on educational technology include a general policy, state funding, virtual charter schools, and CESAs and virtual charter schools.
According to the rationale for the resolution, “These resolutions are outdated. These changes are meant to update terminology and consolidate resolution language into a more concise and coherent policy. This is deleting/writing existing resolutions in accordance with the original intent, nothing new was added.”
Revenue limits
Existing resolutions on revenue limits — state cost controls and modification of revenue limits — would be repealed and recreated as state cost controls and additional revenue limitations.
“WASB opposes any additional limitations that will force decreases in revenue to public school districts. This includes but is not limited to: freezing property tax levies; creating a moratorium on school district referenda; delaying payments to school districts; and adopting a constitutional regulation of school finance.”
WASB supports exemptions from the revenue cap to allow for the financial needs of individual districts and the requirements of their programs.
WASB also supports annually increasing the per pupil revenue limits statewide by a dollar amount that is equal to or greater than the Consumer Price Index (CPI); allowing carryover of any unused revenue authority; changing the revenue limit Full Time Equivalency (FTE) to a five-year rolling average, or a three year rolling average or the current year membership, whichever is greater and also allowing a school district to apply to the DPI for emergency aid or revenue flexibility.
In addition, WASB supports including 100 percent of the FTE summer school membership for each of the years used to compute the revenue cap; that the revenue limit be determined prior to the start of the district’s fiscal year; and legislation for a sliding scale formula factor multiplier to increase the membership of districts for revenue limit purposes.
According to the rationale for the resolution, the changes were made to update the terminology, and nothing new was added.
Licensure
The last of the resolutions, related to licensure, would repeal and recreate resolutions on general policy, shortages, temporary certification, alternative certification, DPI licensing of clinical counselors, performance-based licensure, a teacher competency exam, professional growth, mentoring duties, charter school teachers, revocation of teaching licenses and evaluations.
Among those resolutions, WASB supports legislation to require DPI to revoke the license of any teacher who has been dismissed or non-renewed by a school board for intentionally using school district technology to download, view or distribute pornographic material in violation of the school district’s acceptable use policy.
WASB also supports legislation that would require teachers to pass a state competency exam or demonstrate competency through alternative means before they are granted a license to teach in a Wisconsin school district.
In addition, WASB supports legislation that would allow districts to develop a teacher evaluation instrument that includes all test/assessment results as part of the criteria for evaluating teachers and supports efforts to develop a model teacher evaluation system, provided that it is not mandated, is implemented gradually and allows districts to continue to use their own rigorous teacher evaluation systems.
The changes to the resolutions remove outdated language, and nothing new was added, the rationale for the resolutions states.
Other business
Following a closed session, the Colfax Board of Education:
• Approved hiring two teacher aides: Tasha Bjork and Laney Dicks.
• Approved the retirement of Vicki Seston, high school math teacher.
