A controversial package of education reforms narrowly passed the South Dakota House of Representatives Wednesday, earning support by the slimmest possible margin. House Bill 1234 will now be delivered to Gov. Dennis Daugaard, who is expected to sign the legislation.

The vote came in the early evening, after consideration of the measure had been delayed three times during the day. Debate lasted for more than an hour, and the bill passed with 36 votes, a single vote above the threshold required for approval.

House Education Chair Tom Brunner, R-Nisland, was the first to speak in favor of the bill, telling lawmakers that the measure had changed significantly in response to concerns from the education community. He ticked off numerous changes that he said would put additional money into the hands of the state’s teachers and bolster local control. He urged passage of the bill, which he said “starts us down the road to true education reform.”

A bipartisan coalition attacked the issue from several angles, including the supporters’ contention that the bill would lead to improved student achievement.

Rep. Scott Munsterman, R-Brookings, argued that the bill was flawed because it lacked the input of the education community. He challenged the notion that the reforms will drive improvement, saying policies within the bill have proven ineffective elsewhere.

Republican lawmakers, including Rep. Shawn Tornow, R-Sioux Falls, and Rep. Laura Hubbel, R-Sioux Falls, objected to the bill’s composition, arguing that it dealt with more than one subject – a tactic specifically prohibited by the South Dakota Constitution.

Rep. Bernie Hunhoff, D-Yankton, had the sharpest criticism for the bill, saying it was misguided for trying to fix problems that don’t exist in South Dakota. He also said lawmakers supporting the bill hadn’t learned their lesson that top-down education reform is destined for failure.

“The Pierre bureaucrats want to take over our schools,” Rep. Hunhoff said.

The measure has changed significantly since it was first released in late January.

The bill now contains two provisions that may result in additional investments in K-12 education, but that will only happen if the state has the financial resources and if future lawmakers vote to fund the program – two variables that are far from certain, despite Gov. Daugaard’s pledge to include funding in future budget recommendations.

The bill promises to devote $10 million toward alternative teacher compensation. Schools can choose to participate in a statewide merit pay program, or can allocate the equivalent of $1,000 per teacher via a “local teacher reward plan,” which can be based on boosting achievement, teacher leadership or hiring teachers in tough-to-fill positions. The measure also includes $2,500 bonuses for effective math and science teachers, and will create a scholarship program to motivate individuals to teach in high-need areas.

The bill will grant local school boards the authority to offer continuing contract and due process rights, effective in the 2016-17 school year. Once implemented, teachers who don’t have continuing contract will only earn it if school boards choose to offer the protection.

One portion of the measure – a mandated staff evaluation system – remains unchanged from the original plan proposed by Gov. Daugaard. Beginning in the 2014-15 school year, all schools will have to use a statewide evaluation system and evaluation instrument, and state law will dictate how often both teachers and principals must be evaluated. For teachers, half the evaluation must be based on quantitative measures of student performance, a significant and potentially costly change from current law that requires teacher evaluation.

The bill’s evaluation components were a major sticking point for school board members. ASBSD supported the measure during a House Education Committee hearing, but expressed reservations about the evaluation components, including the cost of student testing that would be required. ASBSD became an opponent of the legislation later in the session, after it became clear that the unfunded staff evaluation mandates were not going to be altered.

Voting YES (36)

Boomgarden, Brunner, Carson, Conzet, Cronin, Dryden, Gosch, Greenfield, Haggar, Hansen, Hickey, Hoffman, Hunt, Jensen, Kirkeby, Kopp, Lust, Magstadt, Miller, Novstrup, Olson, Perry, Rozum, Schaefer, Scott, Sly, Solum, Steele, Turbiville, Vanneman, Vener, White, Wick, Willadsen, Rausch

Voting NO (33)

Blake, Bolin, Deelstra, Dennert, Elliot, Fargen, Feickert, Feinstein, Gibson, Hawley, Hubbel, Hunhoff, Iron Could, Jones, Killer, Kirschmann, Kloucek, Liss, Lucas, Moser, Munsterman, Nelson, Romkema, Russel, Schrempp, Sigestead, Street, Stricherz, Tornow, Tulson, Van Gerpen, Wink, Wismer

Excused

Abdallah

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The South Dakota House of Representatives approved Monday an amended version of HB 1234 on a 41-28 vote. As passed, the measure would eliminate continuing contract for new teachers beginning next year, mandate more regular and rigorous staff evaluation and enact two alternative teacher compensation programs in the coming years.

The bill was not changed dramatically on the House Floor, although several lawmakers suggested that the measure will undergo significant revision as it enters the South Dakota Senate.

Stay tuned to Open Forum for more information.

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Gov. Dennis Daugaard used his state-of-the-state speech Tuesday to outline a series of sweeping policy proposals that will reshape public education in South Dakota.

Measuring school, student and teacher performance are key components to the governor’s ambitious education agenda. In his speech to lawmakers, the governor referenced a push already underway to revamp South Dakota’s public school accountability system and to change the way teachers are evaluated, calling the efforts central to a new Investing in Teaching Initiative that will financially reward some teachers and strip new teachers of continuing contract rights.

Before outlining his education proposals, the governor used a battery of statistics – enrollment trends, inflation-adjusted spending data, school staffing levels and achievement scores – to establish an argument that additional public school funding doesn't lead to improved achievement. 

“We are not afraid of investing in our young people,” Daugaard said. “But we cannot put money into the same old system.”

The governor praised South Dakota public schools and dedicated educators for helping keep South Dakota achievement scores high, but he expressed concern that test scores have flat-lined. To address stagnant achievement levels, Gov. Daugaard announced a series of policy proposals he believes will improve classroom teaching and better compensate educators, including what he called “the largest investment in the teaching profession in our state’s history.”

Under Daugaard’s plan, South Dakota teachers that don’t currently have continuing contract status will not be granted the protection. The governor said the proposal, which will take effect at the beginning of the next school year, is intended to give administrators the tools to “deal with low-performing teachers.”

Two new programs totaling more than $15 million annually will provide teacher salary enhancements funded entirely by the state.

Math and science teachers at the middle and high school levels will be given a $3,500 bonus each year, beginning in the 2013-14 school year. The proposal meshes with a major workforce development initiative, called South Dakota Wins, which the governor also announced Tuesday. The initiative also coincides with his campaign promise to boost science, technology, engineering and math education at the K-12 level.

In addition, the state’s top performing teachers will be eligible for a $5,000 bonus. To qualify, a teacher must be characterized as a “distinguished” teacher according to a new state-mandated teacher evaluation system. Schools will receive sufficient state funding to provide 20 percent of the district’s “distinguished” teachers with the one-year bonus. The program has a delayed implementation to ensure that the state’s new teacher evaluation system is fully implemented.

The proposals, which are sure to be a hot topic during the 2011 Legislative Session, will be released in bill form later this week.

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The plan, found in SB 24, was proposed by the South Dakota Department of Education.

Melody Schopp, state director of teacher quality, told lawmakers that creation of teaching performance standards would provide a pathway for teachers to improve throughout their career. Establishing the standards would provide teachers a way to evaluate their own performance and help provide administrators some guidance, Schopp said.

The teaching standards, including suggestions for mentoring new teachers, would be developed by a 17-member work group and eventually adopted by the state board of education. The same group will later develop a model teacher evaluation that districts may use, but aren't required to implement.

As drafted, the legislation mandated teacher evaluations each year.

ASBSD Executive Director Wayne Lueders asked lawmakers to modify the bill, providing districts with flexibility to provide more frequent evaluations during the first three years of employment. Lueders also asked that districts have more flexibility for more experienced teachers that may not need to be evaluated annually.

Lawmakers endorsed the changes, and then voted to support the measure.

The bill will eventually lead to a three-step teacher licensing procedure, Schopp said. The teaching standards would be used to create categories of teachers – beginning teachers, professional teachers and instructional leaders – and identify how teachers would move from one level to the next.

Unlike legislation in previous years, the bill does not tie the tiered licensure system to teacher compensation – something the Lueders said would be hard for the school board association to support.

“If you're going to mandate funding with the tiered licensure system, then we have some concerns about how that's going to work,” Lueders said.

When asked, Schopp offered little details about how the three-step licensing system would work, telling lawmakers that the outcome of the work group would determine how the professional pathway will work.

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